Care-giver infant interactions

Question 1

Define attachment

Answer 1

A reciprocal emotional bond between a primary caregiver and a child which endures overtime.

Question 2

Define reciprocity

Answer 2

A response from one party elicits a response from the other

Question 3

Describe alert phases

Answer 3

• A period in which infants signal that they are ready for interaction
• Mother respond to this correctly 2/3 times
• From around 3 months, reciprocity increases in frequency

Question 4

What is active involvement?

Answer 4

• Infants are not passive recipients of care -> take and active role in initiating interaction
• Brazelton et al. - ‘a dance’

Question 5

What is interactional synchrony?

Answer 5

Temporal coordination of micro-level social behaviour (Feldman, 2007)

Question 6

Meltzoff and Moore (1977)

Answer 6

• Observed the beginnings of interactional synchrony in infants as young as 2 weeks old
• Adults displayed 2 of 3 facial expressions/gestures and infant response was recorded and identified
• Positive correlation between adult behaviour and infant response

Question 7

Isabella et al (1989)

Answer 7

• assessed degree of synchrony in 30 infants and their mothers
• Also assessed quality of attachment
• High levels of interactional synchrony associated with better quality attachments

Question 8

Evaluation points

Answer 8

+ Filmed in a lab: controlled + allow multiple researchers to review

• Babies immobile + lack coordination -> specific imitative behaviour or general activity?

+ Isabelle et al (1989) high interactional synchrony associated with better quality attachment

• IS lacks cultural support: Levine: Kenyan mothers showed little interactional synchrony but high proportion still securely attached