Explanations of attachment: Bowlby's theory Flashcards
Bowlby’s monotropic theory
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Bowlby rejected learning theory because he said ‘were it true, an infant should take readily to whomever feeds him & this is clearly not the case’
Bowlby looked at work of Lorenz & Harlow & proposed evolutionary explanation - attachment is innate system that gives survival advantage
Attachment evolved as mechanism to keep young animals safe by ensuring they stay close to adult caregivers
Monotropy
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Bowlby’s theory is described as monotropic because he placed emphasis on child’s attachment to 1 particular caregiver
He believed that child’s attachment to this one caregiver is diff & more important than others
Bowbly called this person the ‘mother’ but they didn’t need to be
Bowlby believed that more time baby spent w/ mother, the better
Law of continuity
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Stated more constant & predictable a child’s care, the better the quailty of their attachment
Law of accumulated separation
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
States effects of every separation from mother add up & safest dose is therefore zero
Social releasers
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Bowlby suggested babies born w/ innate behaviours like smiling, cooing & gripping that encourage attention from adults
Called these social releasers because their purpose is to activate adult social interaction & so make adult attach to baby
Bowlby recognised attachment was reciprocal process
Both mother & baby are ‘hard-wired’ to become attached
Critcal period
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Interplay between baby & adult attachment systems gradually builds relationship between baby & caregiver, beginning in early weeks of life
Bowlby proposed critical period around 6 months when infant attachment system is active
Bowlby believed it more sensitive period
Child is maximally sensitive at 6 months & this possibly extends to age 2
If attachment not formed in this time, child will find it much harder to form one later
Internal working model (IWM)
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Bowlby proposed child forms mental representation of their relationship w/ PAF
This is called IWM because it serves as model for what relationships are like
Child whose 1st experience is of loving relationship tend to form expectation all relationships are as loving & reliable & they’ll bring these qualities to future relationships
A child whos 1st relationship involves poor treatment will form further poor relationships in which they expect such treatment from others & treat others in that way
People tend to base their parenting behaviour on their own experiences of being parented
Explains why children from functional families tend to have similar familes themselves
Evaluation: Validity of monotropy challenged
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Limit: concept of monotropy lacks validity
Schaffer & Emerson found that most babies did attach to 1 person at first, a sig minority formed multiple attachments at same time
Although 1st attachment doesn’t have strong influence on later behaviour, this may simply mean it is stronger, not necessarily diff in quality from the child’s other attachments
E.g. other attachments to family members provide all same key qualities
Therefore, Bowbly may be incorrect that there is unique quality & importance to child’s PAF
Evaluation: Support for social releasers
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Strength: Evidence supporting role of social releasers
There is clear evidence that baby behaviours are designed to elicit interaction from caregivers
Brazelton et al observed babies trigger interactions w/ adults using social releasers
Researchers instructed babies’ PAFs to ignore social releasers
Babies became increasingly distressed & some eventually curled up & lay motionless
Therefore, social releasers are important in process of attachment development
Evaluation: Support for IWM
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
Strength: Support for IWM
Idea of IWM predicts patterns of attachment will be passed through gens
Bailey et al assessed attachment relationships in 99 mothers & their 1yos
Researchers measured mothers’ attachment to their own PAFs
Researchers also assessed attachment quality of babies
Found mothers w/ poor attachment to own PAF were more likely to have poorly attached babies
Therefore, supports Bowlby’s idea that mothers’ ability to form attachments to their babies is influenced by their IWMs
Evaluation: Support for IWM (Counterpoint)
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s theory
However, there are other important influences on social development
E.g. some psychologists believe that genetic diffs in anxiety & sociability affect social behaviour in both babies & adults
These diffs could also impact on their parenting ability (Kornienko)
Therefore, Bowbly may have overstated importance of IWM in social behaviour & parenting
