Internal Working Model Flashcards
Bowlby’s internal working model looked at how
out childhood attachments influence adult relationships
if a child has a secure attachment to a sensitive caregiver
they are likely to see themselves as worthy of being loved
if a child has an insecure attachment with a caregiver who rejects them
they are likely to see themselves as unworthy to be loved
these insecure children will then be likely to form
insecure relationships
caregiver’s interaction with a child develops the
child’s internal working model
what are the three types of attachment?
secure attachment
insecure-avoidant attachment
insecure-resistant attachment
secure attachment
secure relationship
insecure-avoidant attachment
avoidant relationship
insecure-resistant attachment
resistant relationship
Hazan and Shaver (1987) developed a study to
explore how early attachment can predict adult relationships
Hazan and Shaver date
1987
Method: Hazan and Shaver conducted a
love quiz in a local newspaper
Method: how many parts did the quiz have?
two
Method: what was the first part?
it assessed the attachment type of each person with their parents
Method: what was the second part?
it involved questions asking about their current beliefs about romantic love
Results: how many responses were analysed?
620
Results: they found that there was a correlation between the type of
childhood attachment and peoples later views on romantic love
Results: secure children were more likely to have
happy and trustworthy relationships
Results: insecure-avoidant children ended up
fearing intimacy
Results: insecure-resistant children were more likely
to be worried that they weren’t loved in their relationships
Conclusion: Hazan and Shaver concluded that their findings proved
support for Bowlby’s internal working model
Conclusion: early attachments
do influence adult relationships
Evaluation: the quiz relied on people thinking
back to their childhood, which isn’t always accurate
Evaluation: additionally, they study used a volunteer sample so a
certain type of person might be more likely to respond
Evaluation: people might have answered untruthfully to
show themselves in a better light
Evaluation: they repeated the study in
2003
Evaluation: the 2003 study found
similar results
