Attachment: Explanations for Attachment; Learning Theory Flashcards
Learning Theory who did it
Dollard and Miller (1950): ‘Behaviourism’ or cupboard love theory.
Two types:
1. Classical conditioning.
2. Operant conditioning.
Learning theory: defo
a set of theories from the behaviourist approach to psychology that emphasise the role of learning in the acquisition of behaviour. Explanations for learning of behaviour include classical and operant conditioning.
Cupboard love theory:
the belief that attachments are formed with people who feed infants.
Two types of learning theory apply to the developments of attachments.
classical conditions
opernatnt conditions
Classical Conditioning
Associating two stimuli together & begin to respond to one in the same way as we already respond to the other. Food, caregiver and baby. Baby feels pleasure when eating food given to them by the caregiver, so associate all pleasure with caregiver. For example, when a baby is fed milk, they get pleasure from it, and associate that pleasure with the caregiver who gave them the milk, as opposed to the milk itself.
Operant conditioning:
‘Law of effect’
Learning occurs via reinforcement of behaviour, increasing the chances of the behaviour occurring again (or not).
Attachment as Secondary Drive
Primary drive: innate, biological motivators
Secondary drive: learned drives acquired through association with primary drive. Sears er al. 1957
Evaluation geese
Lorenz’s geese imprinted on the first thing they saw, and Harlow’s monkey experiment did not emphasize the importance of food at all. The monkeys showed a preference based on contact. Harlow’s experiments disprove cupboard love, because the cloth and wire mother didn’t show any but the monkey still became attached.
Evaluation babies
Schaffer and Emerson (1964) showed that babies tended to form an attachment to their mother regardless of whether she usually fed them or not.
Evaluation synoccy
Isabella et al. it was noted that interactional synchrony predicted the amount of attachment between parents, rather than the amount they fed them.
eval con
Conditioning may be involved in attachment but not with food. Babies might associate warmth with the presence of an adult.
Social learning theory:
learning by imitation.
Steps in observational learning
Behaviour is modelled by a role model -> observer identifies with the role model -> behaviour is observed and noted -> behaviour is imitated and learned
learning theory full explanation
Learning theory uses classical conditioning and operant conditioning to explain attachment. Classical conditioning is learning by association and operant conditioning is learning by consequences. In terms of classical conditioning, the child learns to associate the carer with food. Food is an unconditioned stimulus which is associated with pleasure. At the start the carer is a neutral stimulus, that is, a stimulus that produces no response. Over time, when the carer regularly feeds the child, he/she becomes associated with food and becomes a conditioned stimulus which evokes pleasure. ¬ This is how attachment develops. In terms of operant conditioning, if a behaviour results in agreeable consequences it is likely to be repeated and if it results in disagreeable consequences, it is likely to declined. If crying results in feeding, then the consequences are pleasant, and crying is reinforced. Escaping from an unpleasant stimulus is also agreeable so it is a reinforcer. Most carers dislike hearing a baby cry, so the cessation of crying is a negative reinforcer encouraging the carer to behave in such a way that the child stops crying. Smiling by the child is very rewarding and is therefore a positive reinforcer so the carer behaves in such a way as to evoke smiling. In these ways, an attachment bond is formed between carer and child.
- Explanations for attachment summary
- Classical conditioning: learning by association.
- Operant conditioning: learning by consequences.
- Social learning theory: learning by imitation.
