Lecture 8 - Early Attachments and Relationships

Question 1

What is attachment, according to Harris (1993)?

Answer 1

An enduring emotional tie that develops between the infant and other significant people.

Question 2

How does Bowlby define attachment?

Answer 2

An innate primary drive in infants - a ‘canalized process’ often found in newborn infants (seeking proximity).

Question 3

What did Ellis et al (1981) show?

Answer 3

That time spent with adults decreases over time from birth, and vice versa for time with peers.

Question 4

What did Schaffer (2003) write about the nature and functions of attachment?

Answer 4

• Selective: specific individuals elicit attachment behaviour more.
• Physical proximity seeking: attempt to maintain closeness, which results in comfort and security.
• Separation upset

Question 5

According to Schaffer (2003), what are the phases of attachment development?

Answer 5

• Pre-attachment (0-2 months) indiscriminate
• Attachment-in-the-making (2-7 months) learning basic interaction rules
• Clear-cut attachment (7-24 months) separation protest, stranger wariness, intentional communication.
• Goal-corrected partnership (24mths+) relationships more two-sided, consider parents’ needs.

Question 6

What is the Social Learning perspective on attachment?

Answer 6

• Parents are secondary reinforcers

- Relationships develop through a series of mutually reinforcing behaviours.

Question 7

What is the Psychoanalytic perspective on attachment?

Answer 7

• Freud: development of social relationships is based on biological needs (cupboard love)
  Erikson: infants’ demands are centred on care and affection.

Question 8

What is the Ethologist perspective on attachment?

Answer 8

• Infants are biologically programmed to emit certain behaviours to ensure they get care-giving activity
• Attachment is adaptive as it leads to physical proximity.

Question 9

Is there a critical period for attachment?

Answer 9

+ Attachment relationships are a form of imprinting (Spalding’s chicks, Lorenz’s goslings, Harlow = 6mths-3yrs in rhesus monkeys)
+ Seems to be a biological basis for attachment according to ethology.

Question 10

What does Bowlby’s theory of attachment (1969) state?

Answer 10

• Critical period 6-9mths
• 4 phases: No attachment (0-5m), start of attachment (5-7m, smiles, comfort), separation protest and stranger fear (7m-3y), goal-corrected partnership (3y+).
• 6mths-4yrs crucial for emotional development.

Question 11

When does an attachment bond with a caregiver develop?

Answer 11

Around 9mths - onset of separation anxiety, although they’re shown preference from early infancy.

Question 12

What is the caregiver attachment bond based on?

Answer 12

Early bodily contact (Ansfield et al., 1990)

Question 13

How can attachments be revealed in an experimental setting?

Answer 13

Ainsworth’s Strange Situation test (1973).

Question 14

How is a secure attachment revealed in Ainsworth’s SS?

Answer 14

The child explores the room and plays, using the mother as a base, is upset by her departure and welcomes her return.

Question 15

How is an insecure/resistant attachment revealed in Ainsworth’s SS?

Answer 15

The child is clingy, upset by the mother’s departure and approaches her for comfort on return but resists it when offered.

Question 16

How is an insecure/avoidant attachment revealed in Ainsworth’s SS?

Answer 16

The child is aloof, doesn’t really care when mother leaves and fails to greet her on return.

Question 17

How is a disorganised/disoriented attachment revealed in Ainsworth’s SS?

Answer 17

The child behaves in a contradictory way with no system of coping with stress - seem to want comfort from mother but are also wary.

Question 18

Grossman (1981) found comparatively high levels of insecure/avoidant attachments in German children, why might this be?

Answer 18

German culture fosters spirit of independence.

Question 19

What did Main et al (1985) do?

Answer 19

Research adult attachments with interviews.

Question 20

How did Main et al (1985) characterise types of adult attachment (AAI)?

Answer 20

• Autonomous - coherent balanced account of childhood, relationships valued and assessed objectively.
• Dismissing - deny importance of attachment relationships, remember little/idealised account of childhood.
• Preoccupied - unable to move in, still involved with issues relating to early attachment.
• Unresolved - towards early difficulty with attachment e.g. divorce or death of caregiver.

Question 21

How do securely attached children behave at ages 2 and 3?

Answer 21

2 - respond more positively to strangers, explore environment more, develop good relationships with siblings.
3 - more likely to a) be identified as peer leaders and b) demonstrate competence.

Question 22

What did Belsky et al (1996) do?

Answer 22

Showed 3yos a puppet show and asked to recall, found that securely attached children remembered positive events and insecurely negative.

Question 23

What did Fonagy et al (1991) find?

Answer 23

• Dismissive in AII tended to have insecure-avoidant children.
• preoccupied = insecure-resistant children.

Question 24

What can insecurely attached children develop according to Bowlby?

Answer 24

An internal working model of maladaptive relationships, which could result in low self esteem and unpopularity among peers. Could also explain cycle of abuse.

Question 25

According to Bowlby (1965), what are the consequences of maternal deprivation (separation/failure to bond)?

Answer 25

• In babies: failure to respond to coo, poor appetite, failure to gain weight, sleeping badly, low IQ.
• Prolonged: personality disorder - affectionless psychopathy, delinquency.
• Incapability of love, amorality and selfishness.

Question 26

What has research found with regard to multiple attachment bonds?

Answer 26

• Schaffer and Emerson (1964) = stronger bond to main caregiver.
• Leiderman and Leiderman (1974) = more cognitively advanced.
• Kegan, Kearsley & Zelazo (1978) daycare infants no ill-effects.

Question 27

What has research found with regard to attachment and delinquency?

Answer 27

• Goldfarb (1943) - infants in institutions with no bonds = damaging effect, but only 1 antisocial.
• Rutter (1972) - teenagers w/prolonged sep well adjusted (unless had no opportunity to form social bond)

Question 28

What are the positives and negatives of Bowlby’s theory?

Answer 28

+ recognised importance of attachment during infancy
+ highlighted what can go wrong if deprived of bond
- didn’t recognise importance of multiple bonding
- overestimated adverse effects of separation.