Attachment: Lesson 11n- Thebinfluence Of Earky Attachment On Childhood Relationships

Question 1

What is the procedure of the Minnesota Parent-Child Project? (Sroufe et al)

Answer 1

• Since 1975the mothers’ and the childrens’ behaviour has been assessed using questionnaires and observations
• For example, the mothers and children were videotaped(intra-rater reliability)while playing for a period of 10-15 minutes at home
• The mothers were aware that they were being videotaped(possible social desirability bias)
• Two observers analysed the recordings(inter-rater reliability

Question 2

What are the findings of the Minnesota Parent-Child Project? (Sroufe et al)

Answer 2

• As children, those who were classed as securely attached as infants were;
  rated the highest for social competence
  were less socially isolated,
  were more popular with their peers,
  were more empathetic.
• An infant’s early attachment creates their internal working modelof what relationships are, how partners in a relationship behave towards each other and what they should expect of a relationship
• Those who are securely attached will have a positive internal working modelfor relationships and so are better at forming and maintaining relationships with others

Question 3

What are the long term affects of the Minnesota

Parent-Child study?

Answer 3

• If children do not have an early attachment during the critical periodthis would result in a lack of an internal working model for attachment
• This could lead to attachment disorderwhere children have no preferred attachment figure, and an inability to interact and relate to others
• This becomes evident from the age of five and is usually caused by severe neglect or frequent change of caregivers

Question 4

Evaluation of Sroufe et al (Minnesota…) ( reliable) (+)

Answer 4

+ This studyis reliable.Simpson et al. (2007) found similar results; they assessed infant attachment styles at one year of age
+ Studies havefound that children who were securely attached as infants were rated as having higher social competence as children and were closer to their friends aged 16

Question 5

Evaluation of Sroufe et al (Minnesota…) ( deterministic) (-)

Answer 5

• This studysuggests that early experiences have a fixed effect on later childhood relationships and therefore children who are insecurely attached as infants are doomed to experience emotionally unsatisfactory relationships as children
• It is therefore deterministic (does not take account of people’s free will to make conscious decisions about their behaviour).

Question 6

Evaluation of Sroufe et al (Minnesota…) ( reliable) (+)

Answer 6

• There are lots of studieswhich contradictthe claim that early attachment affects later childhood relationships
• Tizard and Hodges (1989) found that children raised in care who had never formed any attachments by the age of four, and were then adopted, could still form attachments to their new adopted parents