Outline and evaluate learning theory as an explanation of attachment Flashcards
outline learning theory
Dollard and Miller (1950) suggested that infant-caregiver attachment can be explained by learning theory.
Learning theory suggests that attachments are learned/initiated through classical conditioning, whereby an infant forms an attachment with the person who feeds them as they associate the primary caregiver with the pleasure of being fed and will maintain proximity with this person because of this association.
The innate primary drive for food acts as an unconditioned stimulus which produces the unconditioned response of pleasure.
The neutral stimulus is the primary attachment figure as they alone don’t provide any innate pleasure.
As the PAF is always present during feeding, they become associated with the pleasure from food.
The infant now associates the PAF with pleasure and is motivated to maintain proximity with her (attachment behaviour) and separation anxiety develops.
The PAF has become the CS and the pleasure associated with her becomes the CR.
outline operant conditioning
Operant conditioning involves learning based on consequences.
This can be used to explain why babies cry for comfort; it is an important behaviour in developing an attachment.
Crying usually leads to a response from the caregiver, often in the form of food - when the caregiver produces the correct response, the crying is reinforced.
The baby will then direct the crying towards the caregiver in anticipation of a comforting response.
The reinforcement is a two-way process; when the baby is reinforced for crying, the caregiver received negative reinforcement as the crying stops.
This mutual reinforcement strengthens the attachment.
outline learning theory
Learning theory also looks at the concept of drive reduction; hunger can be thought of as a primary drive and this is a biological motivator – we are all motivated to eat to reduce the hunger drive.
Sears at al 1975 suggested that because the caregiver is the person who provides food, the primary drive of hunger becomes associated with them.
This suggested that attachment is a secondary drive, that is learned through developing an association between the caregiver and the satisfaction of a primary drive.
strength
A strength of the learning theory is that it can explain some aspects of attachments, including how infants learn through reinforcement.
This is because infants do learn via association and reinforcement, but food may not be the most important reinforcer; it is possible that parental attention and responsiveness are more important factors in formation of attachments, supporting the basic principle of learning theory.
This shows that even though learning theory doesn’t provide a complete explanation of attachment, it still has some value.
limit 1
A limitation of learning theory however is that there is contradicting research from both animal and human studies.
Lorenz’s geese maintained their attachments regardless of who fed them, whilst Harlow’s monkeys attached to a soft cloth mother rather than a wire who provided food.
Schaffer and Emerson’s study showed that may babies primary attachment figure was not the person who fed them.
These studies show that attachments do not develop as a result of feeding, contradicting learning theory.
limit 2
Another limitation of the theory is that it ignores other factors linked to attachment.
Research has shown that the quality of attachment is associated with developing reciprocity and interactional synchrony.
Other research has also shown that the best quality attachments are formed with carers who are sensitive to their infants signals and respond appropriately.
If attachments developed primarily as a result of feeding, then these interactions would have no purpose and so we would not expect to find relationships between them and the quality of infant-caregiver attachment.
alternative explanation
There is an alternative explanation based on SLT.
Hay and Vespo (1988) suggest that parents teach children to love them by modelling attachment behaviours e.g. hugging them and other family members.
Parents also reward children with approval when they display their own attachment behaviours e.g. that is a lovely smile.
Therefore, babies could have learned attachment behaviours as a result of their interactions; this fits with research on the importance of interactional synchrony and reciprocity.
