Harlow (1958) study on attachment

• What was the aim of Harlow's 1958 study into attachment?


  To study mechanisms of how newborn monkeys bond with their mothers
• What was the sample of Harlow's 1958 study into attachment?


  8 rhesus monkeys
• What was the method of Harlow's 1958 study into attachment?


  • Lab experiment
  • Independent groups design + observation techniques for data collection
• What was the procedure of Harlow's 1958 study into attachment?


  • Monkeys separated from mothers immediately after birth
  • Studied for 165 days
  • Each cage had 2 surrogate mothers -> one made of wire, one made of cloth (both had a heating element)
  • Sample split in half -> 4 monkeys in each condition
  • Condition 1: milk dispensed by wire mother
  • Condition 2: milk dispensed by cloth mother
  • DV = amount of time monkeys spent with each surrogate mother
  • Other variables = noisy mechanical toy to frighten monkeys
• What were the findings of Harlow's 1958 study into attachment?


  • Baby monkeys:
  • Cuddled cloth mother in preference to wire mother regardless of which one dispensed milk
  • Spent avg. of 17 hours with cloth mother each day
  • Mechanical toy variation = monkeys sought comfort from cloth mother when frightened
• What were the conclusions of Harlow's 1958 study into attachment?


  • Attachment = innate
  • Contact comfort more important than food in monkeys' attachment behaviour
  • Could indicate towards humans innately attaching + having contact comfort as key basis for attachment
  • If motherless monkeys under 3 months spent time with peers they seemed to recover -> 6 months+ with surrogate mother = unable to recover
  • Possible that inability to form attachment in infancy = negative long-term consequences (could apply to humans too)