BOWLBY'S MONOTROPIC THEORY

• WHAT DOES THE EVOLUTIONARY APPROACH TO ATTACHMENT SUGGEST?

  come into world biologically programmed to form attachments as they are crucial for our survival
• WHAT DID BOWLBY PROPOSE?

  human infants have innate tendency to form attachments to primary caregiver (most often their mother)
• FIVE CRITICAL FEATURES OF BOWLBY'S MONOTROPIC THEORY?

  1. Monotropy
  2. Adaptive
  3. Social Releasers
  4. Internal Working Model
  5. Critical Period
• HOW TO REMEMBER FIVE CRITICAL FEATURES OF BOWLBY'S MONOTROPIC THEORY?

  MASIC
• WHAT IS MONOTROPY?

  infants form one very special attachment with mother/ mother substitute (one bond with an ever-present adult)
• WHAT IS ADAPTIVE?

  attachments give us an 'adaptive advantage' and help to survive
• HOW DO ATTACHMENTS HELP US SURVIVE?

  can allow an infant to be kept safe, warm and given food
• WHAT DO SOCIAL RELEASERS DO?

  unlock innate tendencies of caregivers to look after infants
• WHAT ARE THE TWO TYPES OF SOCIAL RELEASERS?

  physical, behavioural
• PHYSICAL SOCIAL RELEASERS?

  typical 'baby face' features/ body proportions
• BEHAVIOURAL SOCIAL RELEASERS?

  crying, cooing, laughing, smiling
• WHAT IS THE INTERNAL WORKING MODEL?

  blueprint for (future) relationships (how to behave/ what to expect)
• WHAT IS THE CRITICAL PERIOD?

  period of time where attachments must be formed
• WHEN IS THE CRITICAL PERIOD?

  between 6 months and 2.5 years old
• WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF THE CHILD DOES NOT FORM ATTACHMENTS DURING THE CRITICAL PERIOD?

  will be socially, emotionally, intellectually and physically damaged
• WHAT IS THE CONTINUITY HYPOTHESIS?

  if the child has insecure relationships when they are a child, they will have difficult relationships in the future and vice versa
• WHAT IS THE SENSITIVE PERIOD?

  critical period
• STRENGTHS OF BOWLBY'S THEORY OF ATTACHMENT?

  research support
• WEAKNESSES OF BOWLBY'S MONOTROPIC THEORY?

  • role of father
  • research
• WHAT RESEARCH PROVIDES EVIDENCE FOR BOWLBY'S MONOTROPIC THEORY?

  • Harlow
  • Shaffer and Emerson
• HOW DID HARLOW'S RESEARCH OF RHESUS MONKEYS SUPPORT BOWLBY'S THEORY?

  shows blueprint of attachment is long-lasting (rhesus monkeys grew up)
• HOW DID SHAFFER AND EMERSON'S RESEARCH OF 'GLASGOW BABIES' SUPPORT BOWLBY'S THEORY?

  suggests one relationship with mother is more important than the other (infants mostly formed an attachment to one person, usually the mother)
• COUNTERARGUMENT AGAINST BOWLBY'S THEORY FROM SHAFFER AND EMERSON'S RESEARCH?

  suggests theory is limited as he underestimated the role of multiple attachments (30% of children simultaneously formed multiple attachments)
• HOW DOES THE ROLE OF THE FATHER PROVIDE EVIDENCE AGAINST BOWLBY'S THEORY?

  • underestimated role of father
  • primarily economic role
  • outdated, sexist view
  • alpha bias
  • modern society focuses on shared responsibility
• WHO CONDUCTED THE TWIN STUDY THAT PROVIDES EVIDENCE AGAINST BOWLBY'S THEORY?

  Koluchova
• WHAT TWIN STUDY DID KOLUCHOVA DO?

  • case study on monozygotic twin boys (reared from 18 months to 7 years of age in social isolation)
  • despite severe maternal deprivation in critical period
  • twins still able to form secure attachments to adoptive family/ own children as adults
• WHAT DOES KOLUCHOVA'S THEORY DISCREDIT?

  idea of an internal working model
• COUNTERARGUMENT FOR BOWLBY'S THEORY BY KOLUCHOVA?

  • twins may have formed monotropic bond with each other rather than mother
  • first year of life with aunt helped them become resilient to later effects