Explanations of attatchment: Learning theory

Question 1

How is the learning theory connected to attachment?

Answer 1

Dollard and Miller (1950) - proposed that attachment can be explained by the learning theory. It is also known as the ‘cupboard love’ approach, as it emphasises the importance of the caregiver as a provider of food.

Question 2

What is classical conditioning in attachment?

Answer 2

• Food serves as an unconditioned stimulus and being fed gives us pleasure (the unconditioned response).
• A caregiver starts as a neutral stimulus, and when the same person provides the food over time, they become associated with ‘food’.
• The neutral stimulus has become a conditioned stimulus. Once conditioning has taken place, the sight of the caregiver produces a conditioned response of pleasure.

Question 3

What is operant conditioning in attachment?

Answer 3

• Operant conditioning can explain why babies cry for comfort - an important behaviour in building attachment.
• Crying leads to a response from the caregiver (feeding), and as long as the caregiver provides the correct response, crying is reinforced. The baby then directs crying for comfort towards the caregiver who responds with the comforting ‘social suppressor’ behaviour.
• This reinforcement is a two-way process. At the same time as the baby is reinforced for crying, the caregiver receives negative reinforcement because the crying stops. This interplay of mutual reinforcement strengthens attachment.

Question 4

What are the primary and secondary drives in attachment?

Answer 4

• Learning theory draws on the concept of drive reduction. Hunger can be thought of as a primary drive (it’s an innate biological motivator)
• Sears et al (1957) - suggested that, as caregivers provide food, the primary drive of hunger becomes generalised to them. Attachment is thus a secondary drive learned by an association between the caregiver and the satisfaction of a primary drive.

Question 5

(AO3) What is a strength of the learning theory as an explanation?

Answer 5

Updated explanations:

• Hay and Vespo (1988) - proposed a modern explanation for infant-caregiver attachment which is based on the social learning theory.
• They suggest that social behaviour is acquired largely as a result of modelling and imitation of behaviour and that parents teach children to love by modelling attachment behaviour (hugging them and other family members). Parents also provide children with instructions and rewards with approval for displaying attachment behaviour similar to their own.
• This updated explanation can apply elements of social learning theory to real-life attachments with parents and children.

Question 6

(AO3) What is a weakness of the learning theory as an explanation?
(1)

Answer 6

Counter-evidence from animal studies:

• A range of animal studies show that young animals do not necessarily attach to (or imprint) those who feed them.
• Lorenz’s geese imprinted before they were fed and maintained these attachments regardless of who fed them. Harlow’s monkeys attached to a soft surrogate in preference to a wire one that dispensed milk.
• In both studies, it is clear that attachment does not develop as a result of feeding. The same must be true for humans as learning theorists believe that non-human animals and humans are equivalent.

Question 7

(AO3) What is a weakness of the learning theory as an explanation?
(2)

Answer 7

Counter-evidence from human research:

• Research with human infants also shows that feeding does not appear to be an important factor in humans.
• In Schaffer and Emerson’s study many of the babies developed a primary attachment to their biological mother even though other carers did most of the feeding.
• These findings are a problem for learning theory as they show that feeding is not the key element to attachment and so there is no unconditioned stimulus or primary drive involved.