Unit 2 - Attachment Flashcards
Define attachment
A lasting psychological connection between human beings
This highlights the importance of a child’s emotional bond with their primary caregivers
Define innate
Biological response, cannot be controlled
Explain Bowlby’s theory on attachment
Infant’s social and emotional development is significantly influenced by their relationship with their primary caregiver
Based on the idea that infants are biologically programmed to form attachments, which is a survival mechanism
Suggests that attachment patterns persist into adulthood and affect how people relate to others
What are the 4 stages of forming attachments with age stamps?
Pre-attachment (6 weeks - 3 months)
Indiscriminate attachments (3-7 months)
Specific attachment (8 months)
Multiple attachments (8 months+)
What are the features of the pre-attachment stage?
Babies attracted to faces/voices
First smiles at 6 weeks
What are the features of the indiscriminate attachments stage?
Showing pleasure to familiar faces
Happy to be handled by strangers
Prefer to be handled than left alone
What are the features of the specific attachment stage?
Miss people, show distress e.g. crying
1 strong attachment, usually with mother or primary caregiver
Wariness of strangers
What are the features of the multiple attachments stage?
Make multiple attachments with other family members or key workers - important to their future socialisation
What are the 5 key features of Bowlby’s attachment theory?
Monotropy
Critical period
Children need ‘parenting’
Children show distress when separated from their main carer
Internal working models
Describe monotropy
Babies need to form one special bond, this is usually with the mother
Describe the critical period
Need an attachment by 2 years old
Prolonged separation can cause long term psychological damage
Describe how children need ‘parenting’
As well as physical needs, they need emotional support
Describe how children show distress when separated from their main carer
This can lead to maternal deprivation, meaning that they will not form long lasting relationships or attachments
Describe internal working models
Strong attachments help to build strong attachments later in life
Define separation anxiety
Feeling distress and discomfort in the absence of an attachment
Wo was Mary Ainsworth?
A theorist who adapted Bowlby’s theory of attachment
How did Mary Ainsworth’s ideas develop Bowlby’s theories further?
States that there are 4 types of attachment
What are the 4 types of attachment with their traits?
Secure attachment - greet parents with positive emotions
Ambivalent attachment - Wary of strangers
Avoidant attachment - May avoid parents
Disordered attachment - Confusion or apprehension
How can childcare practitioners make use of Bowlby’s theory when developing early years provision?
Develop a relationship - key person system, a set member of staff who responds to the child’s emotional and physical needs, shows consistency and the consistent approach which is a key principle in child centred practice
Provides the child with a sense of safety and security
Unconditional positive regard - engaging with children positively without judgement
How might you recognise separation anxiety in a child?
Distress/discomfort when an attachment leaves temporarily
Give impacts of separation anxiety on an adult’s behaviour in the future
Difficulty trusting others
A lack of trust
Impulsiveness
Desire for control
Lack of responsibility
Addiction
Sees relationships as threatening
Feels insecure
Many short-term relationships
Possessive
Prone to depression
Problems with empathy
Quick to feel anger
Self-reliance
At risk of abusing their own children
Jealous, anxious or paranoid
Hostile
How did James and Joyce Robertson further develop our ideas on attachment in children?
Young children separated from their mothers experience a range of emotions including sadness and aggression
The provision of a positive caring environment can mitigate , (work together), almost all adverse reactions to separation
The provision of alternative care can provide the stimulus to new relationships
