Bowlby's Monotropic Theory Flashcards
What does Bowlby suggest about babies and caregivers?
They are both biologically pre-programmed through evolution. Babies are instinctively drawn to a caregiver who is programmed to care for them.
What do babies to to enact the caregiving response from caregivers?
They perform social releasers which their caregiver is biologically pre-programmed to respond to, with the purpose of getting the caregivers attention for survival
What are examples of some social releasers?
crying, smiling, crawling, following
What is a critical period?
It is the period in which an attachment bond needs to be formed in order for strong attachment with caregiver
It lasts up till 2.5 years
What is an internal working model?
Schema built from the attachment bond with the main caregiver
They guide expectations/beliefs about future relationships
What is monotropy?
It is the special attachment with one caregiver who provides comfort
What are the limitations of Bowlby’s monotropic theory?
- Counter evidence from Schaffer and Emerson’s study because 87% of kids reached the multiple attachment stage
- Koluchova twins formed good attachment and had a positive IWM after adoption. This shows that missing the critical/sensitive period is not irreversible
ALT: They had each other so poor evidence
What are the strengths of Bowlby’s Monotropic theory?
- Lorenz and the goslings
- The israeli metapelets in Kibbutz - the mother is the source of comfort and is biologically programmed to be the attachment figure for her child
Explain the real world application of Bowlby’s research
- hospital visiting times lengthened so that parents can be close to their kids
- parental leave extended in Sweden for parents to spend with kids
What are the limitations of the Monotropic theory?
- women in the workforce decreases, as politicians used Bowlby’s theory to encourage women to stay at home and care for kids
-> this was bad for the economy
