Explanations of attachment

• Learning theory is a behaviourist theory and focuses on the baby wanting its needs fulfilled
• Classical conditioning in attachment

  Getting food gives baby pleasure

  Baby desire for food is fulfilled when the mother is around to feed it

  Association with mother and food
• Operant conditioning in attachment

  Dollard + Miller claimed babies feel discomfort when they're hungry and have a desire to get food to remove the discomfort.

  If the baby cries the mother will feed the baby
• Strengths of learning theory:

  • Lot of support from scientific research
• Weakness of learning theory:

  • Reductionist - tries to explain complex process using stimulus response
  • Uses animal research --> not generalisable
  • Schaffer and Emerson found over half infants don't have primary attachment