Attachment- infant interactions in humans Flashcards
What is attachment
A close emotional relationship between two people, characterised by mutual affection and a desire to maintain proximity.
What is interactional synchrony
Caregiver-infant interactions are ‘synchronised’ so that their responses reflect each other.
They respond in time to sustain communication.
This can mean mirroring the action, imitation or responding in a coordinated way.
What is reciprocity
Caregiver-infant interaction is a two way / mutual process. I.e., mutual responsiveness.
To sustain interaction, they each communicate signals which elicit responses in the other.
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What is attachments in infants and caregiver characterised by
- Reciprocity
- Interactional synchrony
What is an example of reciprocity
A mother smiles and her baby smiled back
What is an example of interactional synchrony
Infant moves their head in time with their mother
Who came up with the 4 attachment behaviours
Maccoby
What are the 4 attachment behaviours
1) seeking proximity
2) distress on seperation
3) pleasure when reunited
4) general orientation of behaviour towards PAF
What is ‘seeking proximity’
The infant will try to stay close to the attachment figure (caregiver).
What is ‘distress on separation’
Both caregiver and infant will experience and demonstrate signs of distress when separated.
What is ‘pleasure when reunited’
There will be obvious signs of pleasure from the child and caregiver upon being reunited
What is ‘general orientation of behaviour towards PAF’
The infant and caregiver will direct attention to each other and try to engage each other in activities and interaction. For example they engage in mutual gazing.
Evaluation, evidence for reciprocity
Tronick
P- There is research to support the concept of reciprocity from Tronick et al. (1975) and the ‘still face’ experiment.
E- After 3 mins of attempted interaction with a non-responsive expressionless mother, infants rapidly grow wary and distressed. (showing withdrawn, hopeless facial expression)
L- Therefore, reciprocity is a key caregiver-infant interaction that seems to support healthy development and emotional stability
Evaluation, evidence for interactional synchrony
P- There is research to support interactional synchrony by Meltzoff and Moore (1987)
E - Babies as young as 12-21 days could imitate facial gestures (e.g sticking out tongue) and manual getsures (waving fingers) in order to investigate their abilities to imitate , suggesting these abilities were innate.
L- Therefore, infants (and caregivers) could be biologically programmed to engage with these behaviours to aid their development).
Evaluation, practical applications
P- There are practical applications from the ‘still face’ experiment.
E- This procedure can be used to measure atypical development in children. I.e., if children are not showing distress in the still face experiment, perhaps further investigations may be needed.
This means that help could be provided to these children and their caregivers, aiding their development.
L- Therefore, this would be beneficial for society because it could help safeguard the healthy development of children.
