Caregiver infant interactions

• What is an Attachment?

  A close two way emotional bond between 2 individuals. They see the other as essential for their own emotional security
• What is Reciprocity?


  Description of how two people interact. Mother infant interaction is reciprocal in that both infant and mother respond to each others signal and elicit a response from the other
• What is interactional synchrony?


  Mother and infant reflect both the actions and emotions of the other and do this in a coordinated way
• What was Meltzoff and Moore's research?

  • Observed interactional synchrony in infants as young as 2 weeks old
  • The adult displayed 1 of 3 facial expressions and the child's response was recorded and identified by independent observers
  • An association was found between the expression the adult displayed and the action of the baby
• What was Isabella et al's research? ( Interactional synchrony)

  • Observed 30 mothers and infants together and assessed the degree of interactional synchrony
  • The researchers also assessed the quality of mother and infant interaction
  • High levels of synchrony were associated with better quality mother infant attachment
• According to Schaffer and Emerson when do majority of babies become attached to their mother?

  Around 7 months
• According to Schaffer and Emerson when did most infants form an attachment with the father?

  18 months
• Evaluation of interactions: Criticising methodology

  • Many studies involve observing interactions between mothers and infants and they show the same pattern
  • However what is being observed is hand gestures and facial expressions
  • It is difficult to see if the infant is responding to the adult's signal
  • We cannot know for certain that behaviours seen in mother infant interaction have a special meaning
• Evaluation of interactions: Good validity and reliability

  • Observations of mother infant interactions are well controlled so everything is recorded and analysed
  • Good inter-rater reliability as it was recorded
  • No demand characteristics so there is good validity and reliability
• What is Schaffer and Emmerson's study?

  1. Investigate the formation of early attachments
  2. Sample is 60 Glaswegian babies that are 18 months
  3. Longitudinal study
  4. Parents had to keep a diary to observe the children's behaviour
• What 3 behaviours are shown for an attachment to form?

  1. Proximity
  2. Separation anxiety
  3. Secure base behaviour (even when independent of attachment figure we still maintain close proximity to them)
• Evaluation of interactions: Developmental Importance

  • Simply observing behaviour does not tell us its importance
  • Synchrony and reciprocity give names to observable behaviour
  • They are not useful in understanding child development and there is no purpose behind these behaviours
• Evaluation of interactions: Practical value vs Ethics

  • Practical Application has meant Parent Child Interaction Therapy has improved interactional synchrony in 20 low income mothers and their children
  • However, this research can be socially sensitive because it can be argued when a mother returns to work too soon after having a baby they may risk damaging their child's development