Developments of attachments Flashcards
Schaffer and Emerson
In the 1960s they conducted a landmark study on attachment and how an attachment develops. They came up with four specific stages of attachment.
Who were the participants of Schaffer and Emersonās (1964) study?
60 babies from Glasgow. Majority from skilled working class families, from 5 to 23 weeks of age. Babies and mothers visited every 4 weeks for the first year and then at 18 months.
How often were the participants of the Schaffer and Emersonās (1964) visited?
Babies and mothers visited every 4 weeks for the first year and then at 18 months.
What was the gender of the babies that were used in Schaffer and Emersonās (1964) study?
31 male and 29 female
How was data collected in Schaffer and Emersonās (1964) study?
A mixture of observations (overt) and interviews were conducted to collect the data. The mother also kept a diary of childās behaviour.
What were the seven everyday situations in Schaffer and Emersonās (1964) study
- Left alone in a room
- Left with other people
- Left in their pram outside the house
- Left in their pram outside the shops
- Left in their cot at night
- Put down after being held by an adult
- Passed by while sitting on their cot or chair
What were the mothers asked to record in Schaffer and Emersonās (1964) study?
Describe the intensity of any protest (e.g. a full blooded cry or a whimper), rated on a four-point scale and whom the protest was directed at.
What were the two specific attachment behaviours?
- Separation protest (anxiety)
- Stranger anxiety
Separation anxiety
the distress shown by an infant when separated from his/her caregiver.
Stranger anxiety
the distress shown by an infant when approached or picked up by someone who in unfamiliar
When does the pre-attachment phase occur?
birth to 3 months
What happens from 0-6 weeks in the pre-attachment phase?
The baby behaves similarly to both humans and inanimate objects.
What happens from 6 weeks in the pre-attachment phase?
Infants become attracted to other humans, preferring them to objects and events. This preference is demonstrated by their smiling at peoples faces.
Pre-attachment phase
They prefer familiar faces. Babies are also happier in the presence of other humans
When does the indiscriminate attachment phase occur?
3-6 or 7 months
Indiscriminate attachments
Babies at this stage become much more social, they begin to recognise and prefer familiar adults. They usually accept comfort and hugs from any adult. They do not usually show separation protest or stranger anxiety and they do not really show any preference towards one adult.
When do specific attachments occur?
7/8 months
Specific attachment (discriminate)
- Infants begin to show protest when one particular person puts them down (separation anxiety).
- They show joy at reunion and are most comforted by this person.
- They formed a specific attachment to their primary attachment figure and show stranger anxiety, another sign that a specific attachment has been formed
Multiple attachments
- Infant develops a wider circle of multiple attachments depending on how many consistent relationships they have.
- Specifically Schaffer and Emerson found in one month, 30% of infants had multiple attachments to someone else. these are secondary attachments.
- Infants also displayed separation anxiety in these relationships. Within 6 months it rose to 78%
What is disputed in multiple attachments?
The relative importance of the different attachment figures.
What does John Bowlby believe about multiple attachments?
believes the attachments are hierarchical in nature with children having a primary attachment figure at the top of the hierarchy and second attachments to others, and these werenāt as important as the main attachment
Rutter (1995)
Proposed a model of multiple attachments that saw all attachments as of equal importance, with these combining together to help form a childās internal working model
What are the strengths of the development of attachments in Schaffer and Emersonās study?
- Good external validity
- Longitudinal study
- Internal validity as less confounding variables such as individual differences
- No ethical issues as consent gained from parent
How has Schaffer and Emersonās study got good external validity?
the study was carried out in the families home and done by parents so they would have behaved naturally and the study has mundane realism and has high validity
Why is it good that Schaffer and Emersonās study used longitudinal research?
Good for babies as their mothers were followed up and observed regularly for a long time
What are the weaknesses of the development of attachments in Schaffer and Emersonās study
- Methodological issues
- Biased sample
- Measuring multiple attachments may cause issues with how they are tested so hard to define differences between attachment figure and playmate
- Conflicting evidence on multiple attachments
How are there methodological issues with Schaffer and Emersonās study?
Observations and self report measures used so both are prone to bias and in self report methods they could have shown social desirability bias
How is there a biased sample from Schaffer and Emersonās study?
It was from a working class population so it may not apply to middle class people and the sample was from the 1960s so parental care may have changed for example women now work so children are cared for outside of the home
How is there conflicting evidence in regards to Schaffer and Emersonās study?
Itās not clear when the baby can form multiple attachments as some research shows it only happens once a primary attachment is formed
