Paper 3 - Child 5 - Attachment Flashcards
1
Q
describe the background study by Dollard and Miller
A
- used the concepts of classical and operant conditioning to explain how attachment is learnt
- food is a unconditional stimulus which provides a unconditional pleasure response.the mother is a neutral stimulus but the baby learns so associate food given with the mother as she feeds it. she becomes a conditioned stimulus and now produces a pleasured response on the baby independently from food.
- operant conditioning - babies crying is positively reinforced by food from caregivers, feeding the baby to stop crying. the baby finds this pleasurable so cries again to get more food. this is negative reinforcement for the caregiver making them escape something unpleasent.
2
Q
explain Bowlby’s theory
A
- attachment is an innate instinct evolved for survival
- monotropy - baby’s first attachment to one caregiver is special and different from other attachments, the bonds are uniquely important
- social releases/critical period - emotiond in the adults are activated by babies innte cuteness. smiling, gurgling and cooing are all social releasers because they trigger an innate disposition to respond by giving affection and food. the first 6 months are critical for attachment development, separation may disrupt this.
- internal working model - the baby’s primary attachment provides the baby with an internal working model, a template for what other relationships should be like
- continuity hypothesis - early attachment style dictates later attachment styles, secure or insecure avoidant or resistant
- evidence - Bailey studied 99 mothers . most with poor attachment to their parents were more likely to have 1 year olds who were poorly attached.
3
Q
what is the impact of failure of developing attachments
A
- deprivation = separation from attachment figure
- privation = no attachment at all
- effects of deprivation - Bowlby - correlation with 4 juvenile theives.They interviewed them and diagnosed 14 with affectionless psychopathy and inability to feel empathy for others guilt or wrong doings. 12 of these had experienced lengthly separation from mothers before 2 years old. concluded that deprivation of maternal bond in the critical period of first 30 months led to irreversable emotional deprivation.
- effects of privation - Rutter - a longitudinal study of orphans rescued from appauling circumstances of institutions in Romania. children had physically harsh treatment and lack of opportunity to form an attachment bond. 165 romanion orphans adopted to uk. physical, cognitive and emtional development was assessed at age 4, 6, 11, and 15. When they first arrived they showed signs of mental retardation, but once adopted they made remarkable recoveries. 60% had formed a secure attachment with parent. concluded that it is a sensitive period for the first 6 months as those adopted after 6 months had clingyness and attention seeking but some recovered.
4
Q
what are the aims of Ainsworth and Bell’s study
A
- highlight the evolutionary concept of attachment
5
Q
what is the method of Ainsworth and Bell’s study
A
- controlled observation
- of babies behaviour
- to investigate responses to certain manipuated events
6
Q
what is the sample of Ainsworth and Bell’s study
A
- 56 babies from white middle class familes
- recruited via paediatricians
- 33 were observed in a strange situation at the age of 49 weeks, 23 at the age of 51 weeks
- the babies mother also participated following standardised procedures of thr strange situation.
- a confederate played the role of a stranger
- two observers
7
Q
what was the strange situation
A
- 8x3 minute episodes
- which included the mother, observer and stranger
- they either left or entered the room
- at some points the baby was on its own
- at some points it was given a toy
8
Q
what was the procedure of Ainsworth and bell’s study
A
- 2 observers dictate running commentary into a tape recorder which is transcribed and coded
- a timer clicked every 15 seconds.
- a score of one was given for every event of crying or exploratory behaviour per 15 seconds
- 5 categories of behaviour assessed on a 7 point scae of babies behaviour to mother and stranger
- categories - proximity seeking, contact maintaining, proximity avoiding, proximity avoiding, contact resisting, searching behaviour
9
Q
what were the results for Ainsworth and Bell’s study
A
- exploration - significantly decreased when stranger was present, lowest in 7, highest in 5
- crying - did not increase when stranger entered but did when mum left and reduced when mum returned
- search behaviour - highest in 6, 37% cried minimally and seeked strongly and 20% cried alot and searched weakly
10
Q
what are the conclusions of Ainsworth and Bells study
A
- attachment behaviour is shaped by factors such as the mum leaving and stranger entering
- babies have a predisposition to proximity seeking this is the attachment
- attachment behaviour increases in threatning situations
- baby used mam as a safe base for exploration, strong attachment behaviour is the oposite of exploratory behaviour
- attachment behaviours may reduce or disappear after separation, but the attachment is not weakened
- there are individual differences in the quality of attachments. these differences and the sensitivity to situational factors make it hard to assess strength of an attachment
- research should focus on the differences in the quality of attachments rather than their strengths
- supports Bowlby’s theory on evolution - attachment is for survival against threats.
11
Q
evaluate the validity of this topic
A
- ainsworth and bell - internal validity - standardised controlled lab study
- ainsworth and bell - ecological validity is low, artficial environment, parents may act different in homes
- Bowlby - population validity - 44 thieves were a small sample all from london clinic
12
Q
evaluate the reliability of this topic
A
- ainsworth and bell - internal reliability - strange situation is a standarised procedure
- ainsworth and bell internal reliability - some strange situation procedures were not standardised or replicated, e.g. some mothers strayed from the script. tape recordings were not done for 14 babies
- Rutter - external reliability - difficult to know if the adoptees got the same level of care in each of their families. if they were different this could impact findings and explain behaviour
13
Q
evaluate sampling bias in this topic
A
- bowlby used 44 thieves from his own clinic in london
- rutter - reprisentitive - 165 romanian orphans were compared against 52 british orphans adopted under 6 months. shows affect of privation
- ainsworth and bell - strange situation used 56 white middle class american babies at 49 and 51 weeks old. sample is narrow and cannot be generalised to other cultures or individuals
14
Q
evaluate ethnocentrism in this topic
A
- ainsworth and bell - based on western idea of what attchment is- more distress in babies in strange situation study in japan as separation is rare (co - sleeping)
- rutter - reprisentitive - 165 romanian orphans were compared against 52 british orphans adopted under 6 months. shows affect of privation
- bowlby’s 44 thieves - early separation leading to affectionless psychopathy. however in collectivist cultures, babies may have more than 1 carer
15
Q
evaluate nature/nurture in this topic
A
- nature - Bowlby - innate instict for attachment, social releasers are innae and evolved for survival.
- nurture - Rutter romanion orphans adopted after 6 months had disinhibited attachment (attention seeking) because of harsh ophanage conditions
- interactionist - Ainsworth and Bell - attachment is a biological instinct and is universal. but attachment type is shaped by interactions with care givers - inconsistent care = insecure resistant attachments
16
Q
evaluate freewill/determinism in this topic
A
- biological determinism - Bowlby - innate instict for attachment, social releasers are innae and evolved for survival.
- environmental determinism - Rutter romanion orphans adopted after 6 months had disinhibited attachment (attention seeking) because of harsh ophanage conditions
- freewill - Bailey studued 99 mothers those with poor attachments to own parents were more likely to have poor attachments with their babies . however some were secure attachment - parents had chosen to break tha patter and maybe get professional help or do research
17
Q
evaluate reductionism/holism
A
- biological reductionism - Bowlby - innate instict for attachment, social releasers are innae and evolved for survival.
* environmental reductionism - Rutter romanion orphans adopted after 6 months had disinhibited attachment (attention seeking) because of harsh ophanage conditions
* holism - Ainsworth and Bell - attachment is a biological instinct and is universal. but attachment type is shaped by interactions with care givers - inconsistent care = insecure resistant attachments
18
Q
evaluate ethics in this topic
A
- ainsworth and bell - no protection from harm - the strange situation causes distress like crying, however each episode only lasted 3 minutes
- ainsworth and bell - no right to withdraw - mothers were involved they may feel olbliged to continue even if their child was upset
- Bailey - informed consent - parents consented to being involved but no consent from babies
19
Q
evaluate psychology as a science in this topic
A
- ainsworth and bell - low ecological validity
- ainsowrth and bell - reliable - standardised procedure
20
Q
evaluate usefulness of research in this topic
A
- practical benefit - Bailey studued 99 mothers those with poor attachments to own parents were more likely to have poor attachments with their babies . however some were secure attachment - parents had chosen to break tha patter and maybe get professional help or do research
- new insight - until ainsworth and bell’s study parents thought comforting a distressed baby would make it to dependent but the strange situation showed that babies can be comforted
- not useful - ainsworth and bells strange situation lacks ecological validity - artificial environment with scripted behaviours which doubts the outcoome - mum may behave differently at home
21
Q
evaluate soically sensitive research in this topic
A
- studying rare behaviour - Genie, privation until 13 years old resulting in no language or social skills or attachment and developing dwarfism. she was able to form some attachments but doubts over brain damage from birth make it difficult to conclude if she could have made a good recovery with aftercare.socially sensitive because it could make all people affected by privation doubt if recovery is possible
- negative labeling - Ainsworth and bell and bowlbys research could be misused to prevent mothers working outside the home. bowblys theory caused society to want women to stay at home so returining ww2 soldier could have their jobs back. women felt guilty for working and using day care as it was seen as deprivation.
- policies - Rutter - romainion orphans adopted into uk. shows the need for adoption policies - early adoption to ensure attachment formation as many adopted after 6 months showed disinhibited attachments. SS- affect anyone adopted later thinking their attachments are insecure
22
Q
what are the 2 applications for developing attachment friendly environment
A
- high quality day nurseries
- improving experiece of hospitalism
23
Q
describe the application: high quality day nurseries
A
- a temporary form of care provided by non biological parents
- these nurseries can create an attachment friendy environment by providing high quality emotional care to counter emotions of separation from parents
**features ** - lower number of children, well trained about emotional care, turnover of staf should be low, staff should be responsive and sensitive to emotional needs
24
Q
what is the usefulness, effectiveness and practicalities of high quality day nurseries
A
- usefulness - consistency of care can provide an attachment that is not the same between baby and main caregiver but is still beneficial. builds trust of other care givers
- effectiveness - staff with more sensitivity training allow for secure attachment with children
- practicalities - key person approach - each child has a specific member of staff who creates the attachment bond by being approachable and sensitive.
25
Q
describe the application: improving the experience of hospitalism
A
- an attachment bond can be disrupted when the child or caregiver spends long time in hospital
- after bowlby’s research the government recommended that children should no longer be separated at the hospital and parents and children should stay togetjer and be flexible with visiting hours
- more recently charities have extended this by building houses near children’s hospitals so families can stay in close proximity and attachment is maintained
- steps should be taken to maximise contact. substitute carers should be sensitive and responsive to emotional needs. maintain childs normal routine allowing them to bring toys into hospital and encourage them to talk about their mother. other caregivers like grandparents should visit to maintain emotional connetion to family
26
Q
describe the usefulness, effectiveness and practicalities of improving experience of hospitalisation
A
- usefuless - reduces stress on families during hospitalisation which could create more disruption for atachment
- effectiveness - stops distress in separation from mother
- practicalities - limited by funding .
