Attachment Explanations Flashcards
Learning theory of attachment
Idea that attachment behaviour learned rather than innate or inherited
Classical conditioning attachment
food unconditioned stimulus pleasure unconditioned response
provider a neutral stimulus but over time associated with pleasure from food
person becomes conditioned stimulus with pleasure conditioned response
hence attachment bond develops and why children are happy in caregiver presence
Operant conditioning
baby gets positive reinforcement for crying when hungry which leads to being fed
caregiver gets negative reinforcement for feeding baby as crying stops
LT for attachment eval
+plausible and scientific as established theory with applications in other fields eg phobias
- Harlow (1959) separated monkeys from mothers and put in cages - milk provided by either wire mesh or comfy cloth surrogate mother - monkeys clung to soft cloth mother esp when scared by stimulus even when the wire mesh gave milk - comfort over food
- Schaffer et al found 39% babies attach to those who play with them rather than mother who feeds
- How attachments form but not why they form - perhaps better explained by Bowlbys theories
- Environmentally reductionist as oversimplifies complex relationships eg 3 types of attachment, different interactions
+ Though easy to understand
- Environmentally deterministic as states that early learning determines later attachment behaviours
Why attachments form Bowlby
idea that attachment evolves as increases chance of babies survival and parents passing on genes - so adaptive
Bowlbys monotropic theory
Innate drive to be attached - critical period or never will happen - 2 years
Could be driven by caregiver sensitivity - responsiveness, co-operativeness
Social releases important to elicit caregiving e.g crying when hungry or smiling when fed
One special emotional bond - monotropy (usually bio mum) and secondary attachments which are also important safety nets for development
