Bowlby’s Theory AO3

• Validity of monotropy challenged 1/2

  -One limition of Bowlbys theory; the concept of monotropy lacks validity. Schaffer and Emerson found that although most babies did attach to one person at first, a significant minority formed multiple attachments at the same time though the first attachment does appear to have a particularly strong influence on later behaviour, it may simply mean that its stronger, not necessarily different in quality from the child's other attachments.
• Validity of monotropy challenged 1/2

  -Other attachments to family members provide all the same key qualities This means Bowlby may be incorrect that there's a unique quality and importance to the child's primary attachment.
• Support for social releasers 1/2

  +One strength of Bowlbys theory; evidence supporting the role of social releasers. There is clear evidence that cute baby behaviours are designed to elicit interaction from caregivers. Brazelton observed babies trigger interactions with adults using social releasers. The researchers then instructed the babies primary attachment figure to ignore their babies social releasers.
• Support for social releasers 2/2

  +Babies became increasingly distressed and some eventually curled up & lay motionless. This illustrates the role of social releasers in emotional development and suggests that they’re important in the process of attachment development.
• Support for internal working model 1/2

  +One strength of Bowlby's theony is support for the internal worhing model. The idea of the IWM predicts the patterns of attachment will be passed from one generation to the next. Bailey assessed attachment relationships in 94 mothers & their 1 year old babies. The researchers measured the mother's attachment to their own primary attachment figure.
• Support for internal working model 2/2

  +The researchers also assessed the attachment quality of the babies. They found that mothers with poor attachment to their own PAF were more likely to have poorly attached babies. This supports Bowlby's idea that mother's ability to form attachments to their babies is influenced by their IWM.
• +-Some psychologists believe that genetic differences in anxiety and sociability affect social behaviour in babies & adults. These differences could also impact on their parenting ability (Kornienho). This means that Bowlby may’ve overstated the importance of the IWM in social behaviour and parenting at the expense of other factors.