Explanations of attachment

Question 1

How does the learning approach explain behaviour-classical conditioning

Answer 1

• Getting food naturally gives the baby pleasure
• baby’s desire for food is fulfilled whenever its mother is around to feed it
• An association is formed between mother and food -mother is around the baby will feel pleasure

Question 2

How does the leraning approach explain behaviour-operant conditioning&dollard and miller

Answer 2

• Dollard and Miller (1950) claimed that babies feel discomfort when they’re hungry and so have a desire to remove the discomfort
• if they cry, their mother will come and feed them-the discomfort is removed (this is the negative reinforcement)
• The mother is associated with food and the baby will want to be close to her

Question 3

What is a primary reinforcer

Answer 3

Something that provides positive reinforcement because it serves to satisfy some basic needs e.g. food

Question 4

What is a secondary reinforcer

Answer 4

This has no natural properities of reinforcement but through association with the primary reinforcer becomes a reinforcer

Question 5

Strengths of the learning theory

Answer 5

• has scientific research support
• V+K identified that parents use different child learning styles in different cultures
• supports nurture side of debate

Question 6

Weaknesses of the learning theory

Answer 6

• reductionist-tries to explain complex attachment using simple stimulus-response processes
• lots of research is from animal studys-findings can’t be generalised
• Schaffer and Emerson’s findings don’t fully support learning theory beause half of the infants didn’t have their mother as the PCG
• other theories of attachment have support e.g. Bowlby’s theory

Question 7

What theory did Bowlby (1951) put forward

Answer 7

monotropic theory of attachmen- an evolutionary theory

• humans as being like other animals-we have an innate tendancy to form attachments with a caregiver
• Attachments only form if caregivers respond to infants attachments in a meaningful way

Question 8

Bowlby’s monotropic theory ASCMI - Adaptive

Answer 8

• attachments are adaptive
• this means they give our species an ‘adaptive advantage’, making us more likely to survive
• if an attachment if formed with an infant to a caregiver, they are kept warm and safe and given food

Question 9

Bowlby’s monotropic theory ASCMI - Social releasers

Answer 9

• babies have social releasers, which unlock the innate tendency of adults to care for them
• these are physical e.g. body proportions, and behavioural e.g. crying

Question 10

Bowlby’s monotropic theory ASCMI - Critical period

Answer 10

• babies have to form the attachment with their caregiver during a critical period-this is between bith and 2 ½ years old
• Bowlby said that if this didn’t happen, the chuld would be damaged for life-socially, emotionally, intellectually and physically

Question 11

Bowlby’s monotropic theory ASCMI - Monotropy

Answer 11

• Bowlby believed that infants form one very special attachment with their mother
• this special, intense attachment is called monotropy
• if the mother isn’t available, the infant could bond with another ever-present adult, mother-substitute

Question 12

Bowlby’s monotropic theory ASCMI - Internal working model

Answer 12

• through the monotropic attachment, the infant would form an Internal working model
• this is a special mental schema for relationships
• all if the child’s future adult relationships will be based on this

Question 13

Strengths of Bowlby’s theory

Answer 13

• There is evidence for his claims-Harlow’s study supports the idea that we have evolved a need to attach. It suggests that social and emotional development might be damaged if an attachment isn’t formed
• Hazan and Shaver (1987) used a ‘love quiz’ and found a continuity between childhood attachment styles and later adult relationships. Securely attached children had close and loving adult relationships. Insecure avoidant children had insecure adult relationships

Question 14

Weaknesses of Bowlby’s theory

Answer 14

• Harlow’s study of monkeys raised in isolation goes against the idea of monotropy. Other monkey’s who didn’t have a mother, but who grew up together, didn’t show signs of social and emotional disturbance in later life. They didn’t have a PCG, but seemed to attach to each other instead
• Schaffer and Emerson (1964) provided evidence against Bowlby’s claims about monotropy. They found that children form multiple attachments, and may not attach to their mother
• little support for monotropy hypothesis with its emphasis on one main attachment. Schaffer and Emerson found that infants have 5 or more attachments

Question 15

What is retropective data

Answer 15

This is bssed on information from the past