Attachment: Predictors and Consequences Flashcards
what should bowlby’s research not be limited to?
heterosexual mothers and their biological children, although this is the vast majority of studies
- he only discussed the importance of early caregivers towards attachment
what do national household statistics show?
mothers still do the majority of caring responsibilities
however, studies may still not be representative of current contemporary working in the UK, as not all families in the UK are two-parent households
types of families in the 21st century
- solo-parent families (15% of families in the UK, 20% of these are single fathers)
- LGBTQ families
- adoption, fostering, and assisted reproduction
- grandparents and blended families
fox (1991) characteristics of the caregiver
found 65.5% of children were securely attached to their fathers – attachments can be formed outside of maternal relationships
ven den fries (2009) adoption studies
observed no difference in security of adopted and non-adopted children after 12 months, and slight evidence of lower security before 12 months
no difference between security of foster children and biological children
golombok (1995) assisted reproduction
found no biological influence of security and representations in children, by studying samples from IVF and egg and sperm donation
mcconnachie (2010) LGBTQ families
heterosexual couples’ children had lower levels of secure attachment than gay or lesbian parents between 10-14 years
feuge (2020) found __% of adopted children were securely attached and __% of gay fathers exhibited sensitive parenting
what is this evidence of?
75, 88
normativity hypothesis (most common attachment form is secure)
caregiving quality is more important for attachment than caregiver gender or sexual identity
sensitivity hypothesis
early attachment is dependent on caregivers’ responsiveness to signals
causes of variation in attachment are largely environmental due to attachment cues/communication
caregiver sensitivity (ainsworth, 1974)
refers to the ability to perceive and interpret infant signals, and to respond appropriately and promptly
- awareness of signals
- interpretation of signals
- responding appropriately
- responding promptly
what did menard (2002) claim developmental theories must be established by?
- observed variables must co-vary
- covariation must not be spurious
- causal factors must precede outcomes (temporality)
what is the purpose of intervention studies?
used to describe attachment, identify predictors of attachment, and identify possible causes of change within attachment security
ainsworth (1978) evidence of parental sensitivity being a primary determinant of attachment security
strong associations (r=0.,78) but failed to be replicated in future studies by lucassen (2011) (r=0.22)
opposes the idea that parental sensitivity is the primary determinant in predicting security
does temperament influence caregivers’ style of parenting?
groh (2017) suggests so, but concerns over spurious correlation between attachment and parental sensitivity, as they are both related to temperament
is parental sensitivity an environmental influence on attachment security?
similar associations between adoptive and biological parents, so yes
(stams, 2002; schoenmaker, 2015)
bakermans-kranenburg (2003) intervention meta-analysis
interventions on parental sensitivity training improved child attachment security (d=0.20), showing evidence of causality
why are some caregivers more sensitive than others?
others due to inter-generational transmission of attachment (Verhage, 2016), where caregiver and child attachment correlated
does caregiving matter for attachment security?
yes, but this is not the primary environmental determinant
also consider other factors, such as mind-mindedness, also associated with attachment and sensitivity
bulk of research on WEIRD participants
competence hypothesis
secure attachment leads to positive outcomes in a variety of domains
bowlby (1947) competence hypothesis
claimed prolonged maternal separation during the first 5 years of life is “foremost among the causes of delinquent character development”
ainsworth (1979) competence hypothesis
ntinued that secure attachments were the basis for forming positive future relationships
internalising behaviour
inner-directed behaviour, usually the result of negative emotions
externalising behaviour
aggression or defiance directed outwardly to others or the environment
how can early attachments matter for later outcomes?
impact on later mental health
impact on later relationships
how can negative WM become risk factor for MH problems?
by failing to view self as worthy of love, having negative expectations of others, and low self-confidence and regulation upon stress
fearon (2010) and groh (2012) specificity hypothesis
as different types of insecurity are linked to different types of mental health issues, unlike Bowlby’s general risk factor
examples within the specificity hypothesis
resistant children (those who maximise emotions) might predict internalising problems
avoidant children (disinterested in being around others) might predict later externalising
disorganised attachment is a general risk factor for either internalising or externalising
fearon (2010) meta-analysis on attachment and externalising
insecure children had elevated levels of externalising problems (d=0.31) compared to secure children, but this does not have specific patterns of association
associations between security and externalising were stronger in male children (d=0.18)
disorganised children had strong associations for developing externalising problems (d=0.27)
groh (2012) attachment and internalising
insecure children were at higher risk of developing these, but only from a small effect (d=0.15) – not the biggest determinant of MH
disputes the specificity hypothesis, as avoidant children were at higher risk of internalising behaviours, and resistant children were no different from secure
disorganised attachment unrelated to internalising
how do fearon and groh support the competence hypothesis?
as insecure attachment increases risk of MH problems
alternative explanation for the correlation between attachment and MH
‘positive genetic transmission’, where caregivers are at genetic risk for MH problems which affects their parenting
how can social competence be measured?
observing children’s interactions with peers, peer nominations to indicate their social network size, teacher reports, and reciprocated friendships
groh (2014) social competence
secure children had higher levels of social competence (d=0.39), showing evidence of correlations between attachment security and positive social outcomes
unclear directions between social competence and attachment?
- are sociable children more likely to become securely attached?
- is secure attachment causing children to be more sociable?
deneault (2023) prosociality
small associations (d=0.19) between secure children and higher likelihood of engaging in prosocial behaviour, which improves relationships and social competence
confounding factors of meta-analyses on attachment
temperament
potential genetic factors
how did stams (2002) address potential confounds?
by studying predictors of social competence, internalising, and externalising behaviours in adoptive families
stams (2002) results: temperament
temperament (negative affect and poor regulation) plays a moderate (r=0.22) role in predicting later social competence, internalising, and externalising
stams (2002) results: sensitivity
sensitivity did not predict any of these when controlled for temperament
stams (2002) results: attachment security
attachment security predicted these when controlling genetic confounds and temperament
secure children showed high levels of social competence compared to insecure (r=0.17)
how did van ijzendoorn (2023) establish causal connections between caregiver sensitivity and behaviour?
intervention improved parental sensitivity (r=0.18) and child attachment security (r=0.23), but there was no clear effect on externalising behaviours (r=0.07)
explanation for finding no effect on externalising behaviour (van ijzendoorn, 2023)
due to short follow-up period, as the effects of security take more time to emerge
why is attachment security unlikely to be a necessary or sufficient cause of MH problems?
since multiple pathways exist
- equifinality
- multi-finality
influence of attachment on MH can be moderated by other factors
links may be non-linear and vary across different points in development
equifinality
different risk factors leading to the same outcome
multi-finality
a given risk factor gives rise to multiple different outcomes
