attachment - caregiver-infant interactions Flashcards
what is reciprocity?
a type of interaction in which a person’s contribution is followed by the other’s contribution
e.g caregiver smiles, which elicits a response from infant
what are alert phases?
phases in which baby signals that they’re ready for interactions
how often do mothers pick up on alert phases?
around 2/3 of the time
varies according to skill and external factors (e.g stress)
when does interaction become more frequent?
from 3 months - more alert phases and interaction
what is interactional synchrony?
caregiver and infant act in a way that their actions and emotions mirror the other
Meltzoff and Moore (1977) - procedure
adult displayed 1of 3 facial expressions or gestures and baby’s response observed
Meltzoff and Moore (1977) - findings
babies mirrored adult more than chance would predict - significant association
interactional synchrony can start as early as 2 weeks
Isabella et al (1989) - procedure
observed 30 mothers and babies and assessed degree of synchrony and mother-baby attachment
Isabella et al (1989) - findings
high levels of synchrony associated with better quality attachment
strength - observations filmed in lab
control over distractions
can be recorded and analysed later so key behaviours aren’t missed
more than one observer can analyse - inter-rater reliability
babies don’t know they’re being observed - no demand characteristics
limitation - difficulty observing babies
lack co-ordination so movements are small and subtle, hard to analyse
don’t know what’s happening from the baby’s perspective - is behaviour random or triggered by caregiver
limitation - doesn’t tell us developmental importance
Feldman (2012) - synchrony and reciprocity give names to observable patterns of behaviour but don’t explain purpose in child development
counterpoint - Isabella et al (1989) found association between synchrony and quality of attachment
