Caregiver infant interactions

Question 1

What is an attachment

Answer 1

A two way emotional bond between two individuals where they both seek each other for their emotional security.

Question 2

How to measure attachment

Answer 2

-Proximity- people are close to people they are attached to
-Separation distress
-Secure base behaviour- Regular contact with attachment figures and use as a base to explore from.

Question 3

What is a caregiver

Answer 3

A person who provides care for an infant

Question 4

What is an infant

Answer 4

A child in their first year of life

Question 5

Caregiver infant interactions

Answer 5

Communication between between a caregiver and an infant. Important in a child’s social development and forms the basis of the attachment between the two.

Question 6

What is the effect of infant and caregiver spending time interacting.

Answer 6

Infants have alert phases and signal when they want to interact. From 3 moths these become more frequent and involve close attention to each other signals.

Question 7

Reciprocity

Answer 7

A two way mutual process where each party responds to each others signals to sustain the interaction (turn taking.) when an action elicits a response from the other.

Question 8

Implications of reiprocity

Answer 8

Important precursor to later communications. Sensitivity to infants behaviour lays the foundation for later attachment. Infants signals are regular so the caregiver can respond appropriately.

Question 9

Interactional synchrony

Answer 9

When a caregiver and infant reflect the actions and emotions of the other in a synchronised way. They mirror each other.

Question 10

What did melzoff and Moore observe about interactional synchrony

Answer 10

-Observed the beginnings of interactional synchrony as young as 2 weeks old.
-An adult displayed one of three fascial espressions/ gestures. infants response filmed
-Association observed between the adult and the infant.
-demonstrated in 3 day old babies suggesting this behaviour is innate.
-Concluded this helps with observing others emotions.

Question 11

Isabella et al (1989)

Answer 11

Observed 30 mother and infant interactions and assessed the degree of synchrony. Found high levels of synchrony associated with better quality of mother-infant attachment.