Harlow attachment theory

Question 1

attachment in monkeys

Answer 1

he conducted some experiments to measure the development of attachment of infant monkeys to their mothers

Question 1

attachment

Answer 1

the formation of a close emotional tie between a mother and her baby

Question 2

aim of Harlow experiment

Answer 2

to investigate whether attachment is formed by a carer providing food or tactical comfort

Question 3

method of harlows

Answer 3

there were 2 surrogated mothers which were substitutes for their real mother made of wire mesh

one was covered in cloth and the other was left uncovered

a baby bottle was attached to one of the surrogates where the mother breast would be

half the infants had the bottle attached to the wire mesh surrogate and the other half to the cloth cerrogate

Question 4

harlows findings:

Answer 4

regardless of food the infant monkeys spent more time clinging to the cloth surrogate

monkeys spent more time with the cloth mother than the wire mother

monkeys would run to the cloth mother when scared but not the wire mother

monkeys would return to the cloth mother after exploration but not to the wire mother

Question 5

harlow conclusion

Answer 5

he concluded the ‘contact comfort’ was more important in the formation of mother infant attachment than feeding and he generalised this conclusion to the human mother - infant bond

attachment is not based on having physical needs met but is based on having emotional needs met (contact comfort)

Question 6

harlows prediction on the findings

Answer 6

harlow predicted that an infant attachment to its mother was based on feeding, infant mothers would prefer and become attached to the surrogated mother with wire and no comfort

Question 7

harlow strength

Answer 7

outweighs the cost (the suffering of animals). e.g., the researcher influenced other work on attachment theory

his research provided a foundation for further research to be conducted on the development of attachment and emotional development

Question 8

critism of experiment

Answer 8

experiments seen unnecessarily cruel (unethical) and of limited value in attempting to understand the effects of deprivation on human infants

it was clear the monkeys in the study suffered from emotional harm from being reared in isolation

Question 9

animal ethics in Harlow experiment (reasons why animals have been used)

Answer 9

when experiments need large numbers of participants who have same genetic backgrounds animals are easier to obtain

participants expectations can influence the results of an experiment, however animals dont have expectations or after their activity and influences results

studied can be conducted with humans due to risk of psychological or physical harm that can be caused or suitable human participants are unavailable

Question 10

3 R’s of animals in research are:

Answer 10

replacement
reduction
refinement

Question 11

replacement

Answer 11

refers in method which avoid or replace the use of animal

Question 12

absolute replacement

Answer 12

replacing animals by computer models

Question 13

relative replacement

Answer 13

replacing vertebrates with animals having lower potential for pain perception such as some invertebrates

Question 14

reduction

Answer 14

refers to any strategy that will result in fewer animals being used to obtain sufficient data to answer the research question

Question 15

refinement

Answer 15

refers to the modification of experimental procedures to minimise pain and distress and to enhance the wellfair of an animal used in science from the time it is born until its death