Early attachment to childhood and adult relationships Flashcards
define what is meant by childhood relationships
Affilications with other people in childhood, including friends and classmates, and with adults such as teachers.
Define what is meant by adult relationships
Those relationships the child goes on to have later in life as an adult. These include friendships and working relationships but most critically relationships with romantic partners and the person’s own children.
Define internal working model
The mental representation we all carry with us of our attachment to our primary caregiver. They are important in affecting our future relationships because they carry our perception of what relationships are like.
explain the continuity hypothesis
It suggests future relationships will follow the pattern based on the IWM template, impacting childhood relationships, adult relationships and even their relationships with their own children.
Explain Wilson and Smith 1988’s research into bullying
Wilson and Smith (1998) assessed attachment type and bullying involvement through questionnaires with 196 children aged 7-11yrs from London.
- Secure children were less likely to be involved in bullying behaviour.
- Insecure avoidant most likely to be
victims
- Insecure resistant most likely to be
bullies
Not results
Describe Hazan and Shaver 1987’s research
AIM: to investigate the association between attachment and adult relationships
PROCEDURE: 620 entered a ‘love quiz’ printed in American newspaper. 3 sections
1) assessed current or most important relationship
2)general love experiences (number of partners)
3) Attachment type –respondents chose which best described their feelings
What were the findings of Hazan and Shaver
56% Securely attached (good long lasting romantic experiences)
25% Insecure avoidant (revealed jealously and fear of intimacy )
19% Insecure resistant (desire for intense closeness)
weaknesses - research -2
Evaluation of the idea that attachment affects later relationships
- Zimmermann (2000) assessed infant attachment type and adolescent attachment to parents. Very little relationship between quality of both.
- Kagan et al (1982) attachment type more related to innate temperament not relationship with primary carer
weaknesses - not research
Evaluation of the idea that attachment affects later relationships
- Validity of interviews and questionnaires? depend on respondents being honest
- Relies on accurate recollections
- IWM is unconscious we are not directly aware of the influence, but then rely on conscious thought to understand those relationships
weakness - method
Evaluate Hazan and Shaver and Wilson and smith
A weakness of both Myron Wilson and Smith (1998) and Hazan and Shaver (1987) is that they both use questionnaires as the method of getting the participants response. This is a weakness as questionnaires rely on accurate recall and honesty. This means that the participants could have lied because in the case of Myron Wilson and Smith’s study they didn’t want anyone to get in trouble or in the case of Hazan and Shaver’s study that they wanted to make themselves look better. This means that the study may not be reliable or accurate as the answers themselves could be lies.
strengths -
Evaluation of the idea that attachment affects later relationships
- The internal working model has a practical real-life application.
- Understanding why a child or adult may be struggling due to their attachment type allows those working with them, to support them better.
- This may help those who were not securely attached, reach relationship stability as they grow older.
Strengths - research
Evaluation of the idea that attachment affects later relationships
Supported by harlow and Bailey
describe Bailey 2007
Bailey et al (2007) found that mothers who reported poor attachments to their own mothers (measured by questionnaire), also had poor quality attachments to their children (measured by observation). This supports the internal working model idea.
Describe McCarthy 1999
40 women who were assessed when infants to determine their attachment type.
Those assessed as securely attached had the best adult friendships and romantic relationships, insecure-avoidant adults struggled with intimacy and insecure -resistant adults had problems maintaining friendships.
This shows that securely attached adults have better relationships with friends and partners.
