Attachment Figures and The Role of the Father Flashcards
What is a primary attachment figure?
A person whom an infant is most intensely attached too and responds most intensely too when separated.
What is a secondary attachment figure?
A person that an infant receives additional support from they provide an emotional safety net
When did Schaffer and Emerson find that infants became attached?
Most babies become attached to their mother first at around 7 months
Why is the primary attachment figure most likely to be according to Schaffer and Emerson?
The mother
What did Schaffer and Emerson find that happened a few weeks after the primary attachment was formed?
The infants formed secondary attachments to other family members, including the father
What did Schaffer and Emerson find regarding the 75% of infants studied and the father?
An attachment was formed with the father by the age of 18 months. As they had separation distress when fathers walked away.
Schaffer and Emerson declared that fathers were more likely to be what?
Secondary attachment figures
Who provided research evidence for fathers as secondary attachment figures
Grossman
What did Grossman do in his study?
-longitudinal study
-looked at both parents behaviour & relationship to child’s attachment in their teens
What did Grossman find?
Quality of infant attachment to mothers, but not fathers, was related to children’s attachments in adolescence
What does Grossman’ findings suggest?
Fathers are less important in emotional development. But the quality of fathers play with infant related to quality of adolescent attachment. Fathers have a different role in attachment.
What did Lamb suggest?
Mothers and fathers play different roles in attachment. Mother is traditionally seen as nurture showing sensitivity and the father seen as the playmate.
Who provided research evidence for Fathers as Primary Attachment Figures?
Field
What did Field do?
Filmed 4 month old infants face-to-face interactions with primary caregiver mothers and secondary caregiver fathers and primary caregiver fathers.
What did Field find?
Primary caregiver fathers (like mothers) spent more time smiling, imitating and holding infants than secondary caregiver fathers. This behaviour is important in building attachment.
