Unit 4.2: The First Two Years of Life (Part 2) Flashcards
What kind of relationship is attachment theory focused on?
attachment relationship
What is attachment?
a strong and enduring affectionate bond or emotional tie we have with other people
Does the quality of provided care necessarily determine whether or not an attachment relationship develops?
no, but it determines its quality
Can a child form multiple attachment styles?
yes
What is the attachment system and what is its goal?
innate motivation system, believed to be activated when an individual is distressed
-> achieve and maintain availability of attachment figure as safe base
What’s another name for internal operating models and what do they help with?
expectations
predicting caregiver’s behavior
John Bowlby’s attachment theory is regarded as one of the landmark theories of developmental psychology. Where did Bowlby draw his ideas from and why does it suggest, that the tendency to form attachments is a biological trait?
Psychoanalysis, evolution, ethology
promotes adaptation and survival (helps satisfy needs)
What did Bowlby discover, when researching the reason for isolation, emotional distancing and interpersonal difficulties?
consequence of early mother-child bond ruptures
Bowlby renamed the period between 6 months and 3 years from critical to sensitive period. Why?
this is the timeframe, during which it is the easiest to develop an attachment style (afterwards it is highly difficult)
Which ethological concept was the critical period derived from?
imprinting
Imprinting (Konrad Lorenz)
newborns recognize and seek proximity with first object they encounter
-> promotes survival
Which are the systems included in the attachment system?
behavioral system (e.g. following)
motivational system (maintains proximity to attachment figure)
Which implications do secure and insecure attachment have on the perceived self-worth?
secure: self deserves love, other is loving and attentive
insecure: self is worthy of rejection, other is unavailable
Why is the caregiver’s role as a safe base necessary for child development?
allows child to safely explore and learn
infant can return in moments of distress
What does attachment promote and what does it thus get activated by?
proximity
-> activated by separation
Why does the development of attachment depend on the cognitive and physical development of the infant?
needs to be able to recognize and distinguish caregiver from others
monotropism
idea that any child only forms a strong attachment to one person
separation protest
behaviors to prevent caregiver’s departure
stranger anxiety
wariness and fear of unfamiliar people
Are babies able to distinguish the caregiver from others at 2 months old?
no
When do children begin to recognize the caregiver? Is this skill fully developed yet?
2-7 months
no, lacks object recognition
-> comforted by presence of caregiver but no separation anxiety
When do stranger anxiety, separation protest and proximity seeking begin to be clearly developed?
starts at 7 months
increasingly clear at 2 years
How does attachment change in year 3 and what develops then?
abstract, internal representation
trust and understanding of the needs of others
maternal deprivation
prolonged disruption in attachment to mother figure
may result in illness, abandonment or institutionalization
What’s the name of the notion that maternal deprivation leads to negative outcomes later in life?
maternal deprivation hypothesis
William Goldfarb studied variables in 30 children that were given up by mothers before 9 months (half to foster care, half institutionalized until 3.5 years). Which children showed worse abilities and were more restless, less popular and needier?
institutionalized children
What conclusion did Goldfarb draw from his study?
institutionalization and lack of attachment with caregiver as defining factors
Bowlby suggested, that adequate care can correct disruptive effects. When does this have to occur?
before 2.5 years of age
What’s another experiment performed on the maternal deprivation hypothesis (Harlow and Zimmermann)?
rhesus monkeys in isolated cages
-> lack of attachment can cause psychological harm
Which fields did Bowlby’s theory impact (apart from scientific research)?
perception of child rearing and parenting
social policy
parenting education
Can environmental enrichment later in life compensate for effects of maternal deprivation?
yes
Tizard and Hodges found, that children institutionalized during the sensitive period that were later adopted showed normal development between 4.5 - 16 years. They also found, that those adopted between 4 and 7 could develop a secure attachment, with the right care. What can thus be concluded about the effects of institutionalisation?
are not as rigid as originally thought
-> can be mitigated
What did Mary Ainsworth focus on, with regard to child attachment?
communication between mother and child
Strange Situation Study/ Strange Situation Procedure (SSP)
formal study of parent and child separation and reunification
How was the SSP constructed?
7 phases (3 mins)
natural interactions between mother and child
observed through one way mirror or camera
Who was studied in the SSP?
children between the ages of 1 & 2
What are the scales used during assessment of the SSP?
Proximity and contact seeking
Contact maintaining
Avoidance of proximity and contact
Resistance to contact and comfort
Search behavior
Phase 1 (SSP)
Parent and child play in room with toys
Phase 2 (SSP)
Stranger enters room and sits down (1 min)
talks to parent (1min)
plays with child (1min)
Phase 3 (SSP)
Parent leaves
stranger plays with child, then sits back on chair
Phase 4 (SSP)
Parent returns (reunion)
stranger leaves
Phase 5 (SSP)
Parent leaves room
child alone
Phase 6 (SSP)
Stranger enters room and tries to settle child
Phase 7 (SSP)
Stranger leaves and parent returns (second reunion)
How would a child with secure attachment act during the SSP?
Stages 1,2 and 4: uses parent as safe basis to explore & returns when distressed (stranger enters, stranger anxiety)
Stages 3,5 and 6: distressed and seeks parent (separation protest)
reunion should restore sense of safe base
What are characteristics of Type B (secure) attachment and how common is it?
trust in attachment figure (safe base)
Desire for proximity and maintenance
preference of mother over stranger
Can find some comfort in stranger during absence of mother, but mother is preferred
44-60%
What are characteristics of Type A (insecure-avoidant) attachment and how common is it?
child ignores and avoids parents upon reunion
Lack of desire for proximity
treats stranger and mother in similar way
Lack of distress during separation
14-15 %
What are characteristics of Type C (insecure-resistant/ ambivalent/ preoccupied) attachment and how common is it?
Child is clingy to mother in new situation and doesn’t want to explore
Distressed when parent leaves, can’t be settled down during reunion
more frustration
8-11 %
Why are children with Type C attachment ambivalent?
pleased to see mother when reunited
simultaneously rejects parent in anger
What do Type A and C attachment reflect?
child’s unwillingness to use parent as safe base
What are characteristics of type D (disorganized) attachment, who discovered it and how common is it?
Mary Main
Lack of consistent behavioral patterns
No standard response to stress of separation and reunion
uncertainty as to how to use caregiver as safe base
5-15 % general population (28-30% clinical)
The SSP has high ecological validity. What does this mean for its results?
can be generalized
Why is Ainsworth’s SSP criticized?
SSP may not reflect complete degree of attachment between child and caregiver, as children are often left in care of others
What is attachment security founded on, according to Ainsworth?
sensitivity of parent in first year of life
Working Model of Attachment
early experiences that influence how adults cope with stress and provide nurturance to offspring
What does the adult attachment interview (AAI) describe?
describes quality of relationships with parents in different situations, with focus on stressful moments
Which correlations did the AAI reveal? And are children with insecure attachment destined to remain so?
Attachment in infancy and adulthood
Attachment category of parents and children
no (insecurely attached parents can also raise children with secure attachment)
Which type of development does language acquisition follow?
universal sequence of development
When do symbolic functions (like verbal language) begin to appear?
towards the end of the sensorimotor period (15-18 months)
What is language characterized by?
a great distance between signifier and signified
What are the fields of linguistics?
Phonology
Morphology
Syntax
Semantic
Pragmatic
What is baby talk, motherese or child-directed speech characterized by?
higher pitch
simple words and grammar
slower speech
exaggerated emotional tone
What is the purpose of child directed speech?
to encourage learning and communication
When do proto-conversations appear and what are they?
0-9 months
interactions without dialogue
Protos
behaviors of the human species with same function as linguistic signs without words
triangulation between child, adult and object
protoimperatives/ imperative gestures
9 months
child points at object with intention of obtaining it
Protodeclarative/ declarative gestures
12 months
Child points at or touches object to share attention with adult
directs attention to objects
When does babbling appear and what happens towards 12 months with regards to babbling?
6 months
begins to sound like infant’s native language (accents, etc.)
When do infants begin to understand that words have meaning and when can they understand them (despite not being able to use them yet?
12-13 months
12-17 months
What are the phases of language acquisiton?
Prelinguistic period (0-12 months)
Holophrase Period (12-24 months)
Word combination period (> 24 months)
When do children utter their first words?
around 12 months
How quickly does an infants vocabulary grow after 12 months?
1 word per week
What develops faster? Comprehension or speech production?
Comprehension
How do children initially communicate?
holophrases: using a single word to express a complete, meaningful thought
When does the naming explosion occur and what is it?
18 months
sudden increase in infant’s vocabulary
When does grammar become essential for the child and why?
18-24 months
two-word combinations
What is grammar?
different methods of communicating
word order, prefixes, intonation, etc.
What is grammar proficiency correlated with?
length of sentences
Mean length of utterance (MLU)
average number of words in the infant’s sentences
measures language progress
What is the learning perspective on language?
language is learnt (no innate aspect)
children imitate sounds they were previously exposed to (depending on reinforcement)
-> parents shape language by showing approval and positive regards after particular utterances
What is the nativist perspective on language?
learning doesn’t account for all aspects of language
everyday language tends to be incoherent (so imitations should be incoherent as well)
-> suggestion of the Language acquisition device by Chomsky (LAD)
Language Acquisition Device (LAD)
ability to detect regularities existing in everyday speech
Which hemisphere seems to be more important for language?
left hemisphere
Broca’s area
one of the first areas responsible for language that were discovered
responsible for speech production
-> Broca’s aphasia: speech in short, broken sentences
in left frontal lobe
Wernicke’s area
responsible for language comprehension
-> Wernicke’s aphasia: speech lacks meaning
What is the interactionist perspective on language?
language development as result of interaction between social and biological factors
