Influence of early attachment

Question 1

What is the continuity hypothesis

Answer 1

there is a consistency between early emotional experiences + later relationships – i.e, child’s attachment types are reflected in their later relationships
based on the internal working model

Question 2

What is the internal working model

Answer 2

template of expectations, like a schema, about how to relate to others formed by early experiences with the 1º caregiver and the type of attachment formed

Question 3

Influence of early attachment on childhood

Answer 3

KERNS: found securely attached infants were more inclined to have good quality peer relationships during childhood whilst infants w/ insecure attachment types are likely to have difficulties with making or maintaining friendships. TS early experience w/ relationships from 1º care-giver affect later relationships in line with the continuity hypothesis
YOUNGBLADE + BELSKY: securely attached children where more curios, resilient + empathetic + were more likely to form close friendships. TS idea of continuity process + IWM. Results can be understood by considering the role of IWM; since securely attached infants will have pos expectations that others whom they relate to will be trustworthy and friendly in return, which provides the ideal platform for interacting with others during childhood.

Question 4

influence of early attachments on adulthood

Answer 4

→Infant-mother attachment has been found to correlate w/ adult romantic relationships
HAZAN + SHAVER: self-report questionnaire, ‘The Love Quiz’, to assess the IWM. found a pos correlation between early attachment types + later adult relationships. TS idea of IWM + TS early childhood experiences affect our later adult relationships. ALSO TS intergeneration continuity →IWM able to affect child’s own ability to parent later on as they tend to base their parenting style on their IWM, ∴ attachments type tends to be passed down generations
BAILEY: assessed mother-baby attachment through TSS + mother-own mother attachment through interview. The majority of women has the same attachment categories as their children + their mothers. TS idea of intergenerational continuity + in turn the IWM

Question 5

Influence of early attachment evaluation

Answer 5

Issues w/ validity – use interviews + questionnaires as self-report techniques relies on pts being honest + having a realistic view on their relationships. This may be an issue bc reporting on evens so long ago → inaccurate recollection
IWM + relationships only correlational. Whilst an association has been found, that quality of later relationships is heavily influenced by attachment type from infancy, this does not determine causality. FRALEY: found correlations not always strong pos ones either, w/ correlation coefficients ranging from +0.1 to +0.5. TS correlational research in this area is not very reliable due to an unstable array of results. 


Question 6

Intellectually attachment IDA

Answer 6

FREE WILL vs DETERMINISM
BOWLBY suggests the IWM will influence several childhood/adulthood behaviours: friendships, parenting, romantic relationships and mental health. ∴, presents a deterministic view of behaviour suggests an infant’s early attachment experiences will have potentially negative consequences on childhood/adulthood behaviours.

NOMO vs IDEO
Takes nomothetic approach as general theory of how early attachments affect later relationships; however, such early experiences are not universal and a neg experience for one infant might have very different outcomes to the neg experiences of another infant. Such considerations suggest that an idiographic approach, especially within these sensitive topics, might be more appropriate.