Stages of attachment identified by Schaffer and Multiple Attachments Flashcards
what are the stages of attachment and the ages they are found at
1) Asocial stage (birth to 2 months)
2) Indiscriminate attachment stage (2 to 7 months)
3) Specific attachment stage (7/8 months onwards)
4) Multiple attachments stage (9 months onwards)
what is the asocial stage
From 6 weeks of age, infants become attracted to other humans, preferring them to objects and events. They smile in response to people’s faces.
what is the Indiscriminate attachment stage
Infants begin to discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar people, smiling more at known people, though they will still allow strangers to handle and look at them (no obvious signs of stranger anxiety).
what is the Specific attachment stage
Infants begin to develop specific attachments, staying close to particular people (their primary attachment figure) and becoming distressed when separated from them (separation anxiety). They avoid unfamiliar people and protest if strangers try to handle them (stranger anxiety).
what is the Multiple attachments stage
Infants form strong emotional ties with other major caregivers e.g. grandparents and non-caregivers e.g. other children. The fear of strangers weakens, but attachment to the mother figure remains strongest.
what did Bowlby say
Bowlby: children have one prime attachment (monotropy).Subsidiary to this are many other secondary attachments which are important as an emotional safety net and for other needs i.e. siblings are important in learning how to negotiate with peers.
What did Rutter say
Rutter (1995): all attachments are of equal importance, combining together to help form an infant’s attachment type and their internal working model
what is the internal working model
a schema (cognitive framework) for relationships, which acts as a template for what to expect from future relationships i.e. how to form and maintain peer and romantic relationships.
It forms through experience i.e. interactions with the primary attachment figure (usually the mother).
what is monotropy
one special emotional bond - the primary attachment relationship. This individual is often the infant’s biological mother.
what are multiple attachments
the formation of emotional bonds with other major carers e.g. father, grandparents
what was the aim of Schaffer and Emerson (1964) study
To assess whether there was a pattern of attachment formation that was common to all infants.
To identify/describe the distinct stages by which attachments form.
what was the procedure of Schaffer and Emerson (1964) study
A longitudinal study, conducted upon 60 new-born babies and their mothers from a working-class area of Glasgow.
Mothers and babies were studied each month for the 1st year of their lives in their own homes and again at 18 months.
Observations were conducted, as well as interviews with the mothers, with questions asked about whom infants smiled at, whom they responded to, who caused them distress etc.
Schaffer and Emerson measured attachment in two main ways:
Separation Protest
Stranger anxiety
what is separation protest
(distress displayed when not in close proximity to the caregiver) - assessed through several everyday situations e.g.:
the infant left alone in a room
left in their pram outside the house or shops
left in the cot at night
being put down after being held
what is stranger anxiety
(distress displayed when in the company of unfamiliar individuals) - assessed by the researcher starting each home visit by approaching the infant to see if this distressed the child.
what were the key findings of Schaffer and Emerson’s study
Most infants started to show separation protest when parted from their attachment figure at between 6-8 months, with stranger anxiety being shown around one month later.
Most infants went on to develop multiple attachments. At 18 months, 87% had at least two attachments, with 31% having five or more attachments.
39% of infants’ prime attachment was not to the main carer i.e. the person who fed and bathed them.
what were the conclusions of Schaffer and Emerson’s study
There is a pattern of attachment formation common to all infants, which suggests the process is biologically controlled.
Attachments are more easily made with those who display sensitive responsiveness, recognising and responding appropriately to an infant’s needs, rather than those spending the most time with a child. This supports Ainsworth’s Caregiver Sensitivity Hypothesis.
Multiple attachments are the norm and of similar quality, which opposes Bowlby’s idea that attachments are a hierarchy of one prime attachment and other minor ones. Schaffer commented that there is nothing to suggest that mothering can’t be shared by several people.
The study has high mundane realism
It was conducted under everyday conditions, meaning that the conclusions drawn about the formation of attachments can be seen as having high ecological validity.
Most of the observations were made by parents during ordinary activities and reported to the researchers – this means it is highly likely that the babies behaved naturally while being observed.
Schaffer & Emerson provide supporting evidence for the stages of attachment
Separation protest was shown between 6-8 months, demonstrating the formation of a specific attachment at this time.
Most infants went on to develop multiple attachments, suggesting that this is the norm.
However, there were large individual differences in when attachments formed, casting doubt on the process of attachment formation being exclusively biological in nature.
Unreliable Data
Biased data: The data was based on mothers’ reports of their infants.
- Some mothers might have been less sensitive to their infants’ protests, but less likely to report this because they wanted to be seen in a positive light i.e. as a responsive caregiver (social desirability bias) - this undermines the validity of the data.
Biased sample
Lacks population validity: The sample was from a working-class background, so the findings may not apply to other social groups.
Lacks temporal validity: Child-rearing practices have changed considerably since the 1960’s…
More women go out to work, so children are often cared for outside the home, or fathers stay at home and become the main carer.
Therefore, the findings might be different if a similar study was conducted today.
Limitations of stage theories
This stage theory suggests development is rather inflexible i.e. that normally single attachments must come before multiple attachments.
But, in some situations and cultures, multiple attachments may come first…
…this then becomes a standard by which families are judged and they may be classed as abnormal if they don’t follow the expected pattern.
what is an individuates culture
- Individualist cultures (i.e. Britain and the USA) focus on the individual. Each person in the society is concerned with their own needs or the needs of their immediate family group.
what is a collectivist culture
Collectivist cultures are more focused on the needs of the group rather than the individuals. In such cultures people share many things i.e. possessions and child care. In such societies, we would expect multiple attachments to be more common.
