Influence of early attachments on later relationships

• Internal Working Model


  •Bowlby suggested that attachment to a primary attachment figure provides a child with a mental representation of this relationship, which acts as a template for future relationships. Therefore the quality of a child’s first attachment is crucial.
• Secure -  emotionally responsive early experiences-Secure - quality childhood friendships-Secure - trusting adult romantic relationships-Secure - emotionally responsive parenting
• The IWM


  •This leads to the continuity hypothesis, which suggests that later relationships are likely to be a continuation of early attachment types.
• The IWM


  •A child whose first experience is of a loving relationship with a reliable caregiver (securely attached) will assume relationships are meant to be that way. They will then seek out functional relationships and behave functionally within them, without being too uninvolved or emotionally close (insecure-avoidant) or being controlling and argumentative (insecure-resistant). This may mean they struggle to form relationships in the first place or may not behave appropriately when they have them (both friends and partners).
• Relationship In Later Childhood


  •Attachment type is associated with the quality of peer relationships in childhood: securely attached infants go on to form the best quality friendships while insecurely attached infants struggle and have friendship difficulties.•Securely attached children were rated highest for social competence later in childhood, were less isolated, more popular and more empathetic.
• Relationships In Later Childhood

  •This can be explained in terms of the internal working model because securely attached infants have higher expectations that others are friendly and trusting, and this would enable easier relationships with other.Myron-Wilson and Smith (1998) found that insecure-avoidant infants are most likely to be bullied while insecure-resistant infants are most likely to be bullies (questionnaire to 196 children aged 7-11 from London)
• RELATIONSHIPS IN ADULTHOOD (& ROMANTIC PARTNERS)

  •McCarthy (1999) studied 40 adult women who had been assessed when they were infants to establish their early attachment type.•Those assessed as securely attached infants had the best adult friendships and adult relationships.
• RELATIONSHIPS IN ADULTHOOD (& ROMANTIC PARTNERS)

  •Adults classified as insecure-resistant as infants had particular problems maintaining friendships.•Insecure-avoidant struggled with intimacy in romantic relationships.
• Hazan and shaver (1987)love quiz


  •Hazan and Shaver (1987) were interested in John Bowlby’s idea that an infant’s first attachment formed an internal working model - a template - for all future relationships.•They wanted to see if there was a correlation between the infant’s attachment type and their future approach to romantic relationships.
• Hazan and shaver (1987)love quiz


  •They analysed 620 replies to a ‘love quiz’ printed in an American local newspaper.•The quiz was in 3 sections: current or most important relationship, general love experiences e.g. number of partners, and attachment type.
• •Hazan and Shaver found


  :–56% were securely attached, 25% insecure-avoidant, and 19% insecure-resistant.–They found a positive correlation between attachment type and love experiences.
• –Secure attachments were most likely to have good and longer lasting romantic experiences.
• –Insecure-avoidant tended to reveal jealous and fear of intimacy.
• Insecure-resistants tended to fall in love easily but found it difficult to find true love.
• Relationships in adulthood as a parent

  •People tend to base their parenting style on their internal working model, so attachment type tends to be passed through generations of a family.•The majority of women had the same attachment type as their babies and own mothers.
• Relationships in adulthood as a parent

  •Bailey et al. (2007) considered the attachments of 99 mothers to their babies and o their own mothers. Mother-infant attachment was assessed using the Strange Situation and mother’s own mother attachment was assessed using an adult attachment interview.