Attachment Part 1

Question 1

Bowlby’s Attachment Theory

Answer 1

Children are biologically predisposed to develop an attachment bond to caregivers as a means of increasing chances of their survival

Question 2

Attachment experiences form (3)

Answer 2

1. the basis of personality
2. emotion regulation
3. self- esteem

Question 3

Main Characteristics of Attachment System (4)

Answer 3

1. Proximity seeking and maintenance
2. Separation distress
3. Safe haven
4. Securebase

Question 4

Attachment is crucial for ? and forms the ?

Answer 4

Attachment is crucial for children’s psychological well-being and forms the basis of personality development

Question 5

Development and quality of child’s attachments are highly dependent on their experiences with

Answer 5

caregivers

Question 6

The Strange Situation - Paradigm designed to systematically assess children’s

Answer 6

attachment to a specific caregiver

Question 7

What is The Strange Situation?

Answer 7

Caregiver and child play in a room together

Question 8

Examines how children react to: (3)

Answer 8

• Separations from caregiver
• Reunions with caregiver
• Meeting a stranger

Question 9

Secure Attachment

Answer 9

60%; Child distressed when parent left, but able to be soothed by stranger and seeks comfort upon reunion with parent; explores the room when parent is present

Question 10

Avoidant Attachment

Answer 10

15%; Child does not display signs of distress upon separation from parent, plays by themselves, and disinterested in parent upon reunion

Question 11

Anxious/ambivalent Attachment

Answer 11

10%; Child extremely distressed upon separation, not soothed by stranger, but takes a long time to be soothed upon reunion with parent/resists parent’s attempt to soothe; stays close to parent when parent is in the room and doesn’t explore much

Question 12

Disorganized Attachment

Answer 12

15%; Behaviour is contradictory. Seems to want to approach parent but also sees them as a source of fear. Frequently appear dazed and dissociated.

Question 13

Securely Attached Children - Parents’ behaviour

Answer 13

• Generally supportive/sensitive to child’s needs
• Affectionate and expresses frequent positive emotions towards child
• Fosters autonomy and exploration

Question 14

Securely Attached Children - Child learns that

Answer 14

Proximity seeking is a good strategy to soothe distress/ to have needs met

Question 15

Parents of Avoidantly Attached Children - Parent’s behaviour:

Answer 15

• Consistently insensitive to the child’s signals
• Avoids close contact or rejects child’s bids for contact
• May be angry or impatient
• Discourages displays of emotion
• OR parent is consistently over-bearing and intrusive

Question 16

Parents of Avoidantly Attached Children - Child learns that

Answer 16

Proximity seeking is not a good strategy to soothe distress/ to have needs met

Question 17

Parents of Avoidantly Attached Children - Child’s Deactivation of the attachment system

Answer 17

• Attention diverted away from threat
• Avoid proximity of caregiver when distressed
• Cope with distress by suppressing it or avoiding situations that elicit distress

Question 18

Parents of Anxiously Attached Children - Parents’ behaviour:

Answer 18

Inconsistent in reacting to child’s distress, sometimes soothing and attentive and other times insensitive

Question 19

Parents of Anxiously Attached Children - Child learns that

Answer 19

Proximity is sometimes a good strategy to soothe distress, but not always

Question 20

Parents of Anxiously Attached Children - Childs Hyperactivation of attachment system

Answer 20

• Hypervigilance to threat and exaggerated perceptions of threat * Excessive proximity-seeking of caregiver when distressed
• Cope with distress by heightening it

Question 21

Parents of Children with Disorganized Attachment - Parents’ behaviour:

Answer 21

• Frightens the child
• May be harsh or abusive
• Often struggle with severe mental health issues

Question 22

Parents of Children with Disorganized Attachment - Child learns that

Answer 22

• Proximity seeking often results in feeling scared
• Caregiver is extremely unpredictable and cannot be trusted

Question 23

Other Factors Influencing Attachment - Infant’s temperament

Answer 23

• Infant’s vary insensitivity and how easy they are to soothe
• Infant’s that are more sensitive are more likely to develop anxious attachment
• Those that are less sensitive are more likely to develop secure or avoidant attachment

Question 24

Other Factors Influencing Attachment - Socialization of gender roles

Answer 24

• Males are more likely to develop avoidant (vs.anxious)attachment
• Females more likely to develop anxious (vs.avoidant)attachment

Question 25

Other Factors Influencing Attachment - Safety vs. danger of environment

Answer 25

More likely to develop insecure attachment when growing up in more dangerous environment

Question 26

Attachment in Adulthood - Attachment relationships have similar functions in

Answer 26

adulthood as they do in childhood (Proximity seeking/ maintenance, separation distress, safe haven, secure base)

Question 27

Romantic partners are most common

Answer 27

attachment figures in adults (best friends too)

Question 28

Adult attachment style is related to

Answer 28

childhood experiences due to internal working models

Question 29

Define Internal Working Models

Answer 29

Mental representations of the self, of attachment figures, and of relationships in general that are constructed as a result of experiences with caregivers

Question 30

Filter through which interactions with attachment figures are

Answer 30

interpreted throughout life

Question 31

Guide expectations about

Answer 31

relationships throughout life

Question 32

Avoidance Dimension

Answer 32

Discomfort with closeness and intimacy To what extent are others reliable? Low avoidance = others are reliable

Question 33

Anxiety Dimension

Answer 33

Vigilance and concerns about rejection and abandonment To what extent is the self worthy of love? Low anxiety = self is worthy of love

Question 34

Internal Working Models - Secure

Answer 34

Comfortable with closeness and interdependence, but also seeks autonomy low anxiety and low avoidance

Question 35

Internal Working Models - Anxious

Answer 35

Fear of rejection and abandonment because believes self is “not good enough” Leads to a heightened need for reassurance and becoming overly controlling/clingy high anxiety and low avoidance

Question 36

Internal Working Models - Dismissive-avoidant

Answer 36

Avoid seeking closeness to protect self from being let down by others Often emotionally distant, prioritize independence, and find it difficult to trust/rely on others low anxiety and high avoidance

Question 37

STUDY: Support Seeking in Couples - Does attachment style influence support- seeking behaviour in couples? RESULTS

Answer 37

More anxiety related to more support seeking for secures, but less support seeking for avoidants Consistent with children’s behaviour in the Strange Situation

Question 38

Internal Working Models - Fearful-avoidant/ Disorganized

Answer 38

Strong need for closeness but distrusts others and sees self as deserving of rejection. Leads to inconsistent way of meeting attachment needs. high anxiety and high avoidance

Question 39

Dismissive-avoidants deactivate:

Answer 39

deactivate both overt attachment behaviours AND covert (internal) attachment system * Reduced physiological response when imagining separation from partner

Question 40

Fearful avoidants only deactivate:

Answer 40

Only deactivate overt attachment behaviours, BUT are unable to deactivate covert attachment system * Elevated physiological response when imagining separation from partner

Question 41

Adult Attachment Style Distributions (%)

Answer 41

* 56% secure (vs. 60% in kids) * 25% avoidant (vs. 15% in kids) * 19% anxious (vs. 10% in kids)

Question 42

Researchers tend to no longer categorize people into

Answer 42

attachment styles (categorical approach)

Question 43

Attachment is measured using a

Answer 43

continuous approach

Question 44

Degree of attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance measures

Answer 44

separately

Question 45

Anxiety:

Answer 45

* “I often worry that my partner doesn't really love me.” * “My desire to be very close sometimes scares people away.”

Question 46

Avoidance:

Answer 46

* “I prefer not to show a partner how I feel deep down.” * “I find it difficult to allow myself to depend on romantic partners.”

Question 47

Secure attachment (low anxiety and low avoidance) associated with:

Answer 47

* Higher self-esteem * Greater tendency to seek out social support * Better conflict-resolution skills * Higher life satisfaction * Better relationship satisfaction

Question 48

STUDY: Attachment and Partner Selection - Time 1 Results

Answer 48

* No anxious-anxious or avoidant-avoidant pairs * Relationship satisfaction lower in relationships with at least one in securely attached partner * Lowest relationship satisfaction in anxious-avoidant couples

Question 49

Anxious-Avoidant Pair: Chronic relationship

Answer 49

dissatisfaction

Question 50

Anxious partner wants more

Answer 50

closeness than avoidant is willing to provide *Ends up feeling not good enough and “too much”

Question 51

Avoidant partner wants more

Answer 51

independence than anxious partner is willing to accept * Ends up feeling trapped and suffocated

Question 52

Attachment and Partner Selection: At follow-up 3 years later:

Answer 52

Avoidant-anxious pairs were most likely to still be together

Question 53

Strange given relationship satisfaction results from

Answer 53

TIME 1

Question 54

Explaining the Stability of the Anxious-Avoidant Pair - Familiarity:

Answer 54

Each partner’s attachment pattern is consistent with internal working model

Question 55

For anxiously attached partner, avoidant’s distance mirrors their experience of

Answer 55

inconsistent caregiving, triggering their pursuit of closeness

Question 56

For the avoidant partner, anxious partner’s pursuit of closeness mirrors their experiences of

Answer 56

attachment figures being intrusive or not meeting their needs (e.g. for autonomy), triggering their instinct to retreat and protect independence

Question 57

Explaining the Stability of the Anxious-Avoidant Pair - Complimentary dynamic

Answer 57

Anxious partner’s pursuit of closeness feeds into the avoidant’s tendency to withdraw, creating a maladaptive cycle