Bowlby's and Ainsworth's work on attachment

Question 1

what was the aim of 44 thieves

Answer 1

to see if there is an association between delinquency and maternal deprivation

Question 2

what was the procedure of 44 thieves

Answer 2

• 44 juvenile thieves (31 boys and 13 girls)
• he gathered data using interviews, psychological testing trying to look for patterns
• carried out tests such as IQ and emotional attitudes.

Question 3

what were the results of 44 thieves

Answer 3

• Bowlby found that 14 of them had emotionless psychopathy.
• 17 had experienced prolonged separation before the age of 6.

Question 4

strengths and weaknesses of 44 thieves

Answer 4

• case study is rich in data as used various methods to collect results, however it lacks generalisability as it was done 70 years ago with a small sample size
• there was a control group of similar children who were not thieves.
• only 17 out of the 44 thieves suffered maternal deprivation so no conclusions can be drawn that maternal deprivation leads to delinquency.

Question 5

what are the main features of Bowlby’s theory

Answer 5

Adaptive - attachment is an evolutionary trait for survival.
Social cues - bring, smiling and cooing are ways that encourage bond forming.
Critical period - the first two and a half years should be unbroken, if so it can lead to the most adverse affects.
Monotropy - babies have an innate need to form one unbroken attachment.
Internal working model - the template for how our attachment as a child promote future relationship types

Question 6

what are weaknesses of Bowlby’s theory

Answer 6

research shows that babies could form multiple attachments, any baby who receives a suitable response can attach to any caregiver.

Question 7

what are the three attachment types and the percentage

Answer 7

A - anxious avoidant (15%)
B - secure attachment (70%)
C - anxious resistant (15%)

Question 8

what are the key features of a Type A child

Answer 8

anxious avoidant - indifferent to if the mother is there or not, does not check for presence.
does not become distressed when the mother leaves and can seek comfort from a stranger.
shows no interest in the mothers return.

Question 9

what are the key features of a Type B child

Answer 9

secure attachment - becomes upset when the mother leaves the room. is happy when the mother returns and can quickly be calmed

Question 10

what are the key features of a Type C child

Answer 10

anxious resistant - stays close to the mother rather than exploring, cries more than the secure attached child when the mother leaves.
goes for comfort when the mother responds but then rejects her comforting and shows anger.

Question 11

Strengths of SSP

Answer 11

• used highly standardise procedure involving times episodes so it is replicable.
• Lab experiment so had controlled procedure. therefore no extraneous variable

Question 12

weaknesses of SSP

Answer 12

• lacked generalisability as used white middle class families
• it does not take into account individual difference, for example the procedure may just be observing the temperament of the child

Question 13

what was the largest abundance attachment type in Israel

Answer 13

Type C, this is because mothers were regularly absent and could not give attention all the time

Question 14

what was the largest abundance attachment type in Germany

Answer 14

Type A, this is due to value being placed ion independence and early weaning.