Influence of early attachment on later relationships

Question 1

What is the internal working model?

Answer 1

A mental representation of their first relationship as a child, this acts as a template for future relationships.

Question 2

What is the continuity hypothesis?

Answer 2

The (internal working) model predicts that there si continuity between the security of an infants’ attachment and that of later attachments.

Question 3

The internal working model predicts that if a child’s first experience of a relationship is a loving one then what will happen for their adult relationships?

Answer 3

Their future attachments will be loving.

Question 4

The internal working model predicts that if a child’s first experience of a relationship is a poor one then what will happen for their adult relationships?

Answer 4

Their future attachments will be poor.

Question 5

How does attachment type affect relationships in later childhood?

Answer 5

Kerns (1994) - Securely attached infants tend to go on to form the most quality childhood friendships whereas insecure attached infants later have more difficulties.

Question 6

Which aspects of later childhood friendships can be most predictable?

Answer 6

Bullying, Smith (1980) found secure children were unlikely to be involved in bullying, insecure-avoidant children were likely to suffer from bullying and insecure-resistant children were likely to be the bullies.

Question 7

Smith (1980) found that which infant attachment type is least likely to be involved in bullying issues?

Answer 7

Secure, (Type B).

Question 8

Smith (1980) found that which infant attachment type is most likely to be a bully in later childhood?

Answer 8

Insecure-resistant, (Type C).

Question 9

Smith (1980) found that which infant attachment type is most likely to be bullied in later childhood?

Answer 9

Insecure-avoidant, (Type A).

Question 10

How did Smith (1980) investigate the effects of attachment type on later childhood relationships?

Answer 10

He used standardised questionnaires on 196 children aged between 7 and 11 from London.

Question 11

Kerns (1994) found that which infant attachment type is most likely to form the best childhood friendships?

Answer 11

Secure attachments.

Question 12

Kerns (1994) found that which infant attachment type is most likely to form the worst childhood friendships?

Answer 12

Insecure attachments.

Question 13

Who conducted a study on the influence of early attachment on adult romantic relationships?

Answer 13

Gerard McCarthy (1999).

Question 14

Describe the procedure of McCarthy (1999):

Answer 14

Studied 40 adult women who had been assessed in their attachment as an infant.

Question 15

What were the findings of McCarthy (1999)?

Answer 15

Those who had been categorised as secure attachments had the best adult romantic relationships, those classified as insecure-resistant struggled with maintaining friendships and those classified as insecure-avoidant struggled with intimacy in romantic relationships.

Question 16

McCarthy (1999) found that which attachment type had the best romantic and adult relationships?

Answer 16

Secure, (Type B).

Question 17

McCarthy (1999) found that which attachment type had maintaining friendships in their adult relationships?

Answer 17

Insecure-resistant, (Type C).

Question 18

McCarthy (1999) found that which attachment type had intimacy in their adult relationships?

Answer 18

Insecure-avoidant, (Type A).

Question 19

Who conducted the ‘love quiz’?

Answer 19

Hazan and Shaver (1987).

Question 20

Describe the procedure adopted by Hazan and Shaver (1987):

Answer 20

They analysed 620 replies to a ‘love quiz’ printed in an American magazine, the quiz had three sections; current relationships, general love experiences and their feelings.

Question 21

What were the findings of Hazan and Shaver (1987)?

Answer 21

56% of respondents identified as securely attached with 25% insecure-avoidant and 19% insecure-resistant. Secure were most likely good long-lasting relationships, avoidant respondents tended to reveal jealousy and fear intimacy.

Question 22

What did Hazan and Shaver find about securely attached adults in adult relationships?

Answer 22

• Held certain beliefs (love is enduring),
• Reported certain experiences (mutual trust),
• Less likely to become divorced.

Question 23

What did Hazan and Shaver find about insecurely attached adults in adult relationships?

Answer 23

• Felt true love was rare,
• Fell in and out of love easily,
• Found relationships hard,
• More likely to become divorced.

Question 24

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type was preoccupied by love?

Answer 24

Insecure-resistant, (Type C).

Question 25

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type held a fear of closeness and intimacy?

Answer 25

Insecure-avoidant, (Type A).

Question 26

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type held the view that relationships are a positive thing?

Answer 26

Secure, (Type B).

Question 27

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type tended to fall in love easily but have trouble finding true love?

Answer 27

Insecure-resistant, (Type C).

Question 28

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type tended to adopt the idea that love is not durable, nor is it required for happiness?

Answer 28

Insecure-avoidant, (Type A).

Question 29

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type tended to remember mothers as cold and rejecting?

Answer 29

Insecure-avoidant, (Type A).

Question 30

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type tended to remember their mother as being positive and rejecting?

Answer 30

Insecure-resistant, (Type C).

Question 31

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type tended to remember their mother as being dependable and caring?

Answer 31

Secure, (Type B).

Question 32

Hazan and Shaver found that which type of attachment type tended to trust others and believe in all-enduring love?

Answer 32

Secure, (Type B).

Question 33

What are the three different parts of the ‘love quiz’?

Answer 33

• Attachment history,
• Adult attachment types,
• Mental models of relationships.

Question 34

Explain how attachment styles can be handed down through generations:

Answer 34

(Must mention the internal working model!)
People tend to base their parenting style on their internal working model and therefore attachment styles can be carried through generations of a family.

Question 35

AO3 -Self-report method.

Answer 35

Hazan and Shaver used a self-report questionnaire, this introduced an acquiescence bias and a social desirability bias as participants may desire to show demand characteristics, there are also limited options to answer (A, B and C). The data is also retrospective meaning it is non-reliable memory.

Question 36

AO3 - Consciousness.

Answer 36

The self-report method is conscious, the internal working model is not. This means that the model is unseeable, unfalsifyable and untestible.

Question 37

AO3 - Determinism.

Answer 37

The idea that early attachments affect later relationships is heavily deterministic, this means that we have no control or free-will and our choices are pre-determined.

Question 38

AO3 - Correlation not causation.

Answer 38

Some research appears to show an association between early attachment style and later relationships, however, this is only an association and a causation cannot be drawn as there are many extraneous variables.