development of attachment

• multiple attachment


  Having more than one attachment figure
• primary attachment figure


  the person who has formed closest bond with child
• separation protest


  distress shown by an infant when separated from his/her caregiver
• stranger anxiety


  distress shown by an infant when approached or picked up by someone who is unfamiliar
• Asocial stage (0-6 weeks)


  Similar responses to objects & people. Preference for faces/ eyes.
• indiscriminate attachments (6 weeks-6 months)


  Preference for human company. Ability to distinguish between people but comforted indiscriminately.
• Specific attachment ( 7 months+)

  -infants show a preference for one caregiver, displaying separation and stranger anxiety.

  -Baby looks to particular people for security, comfort and protection
• Multiple (10/11 months+)


  attachment behaviours are displayed towards several different people
• Role of the father

  -Heerman et al (1994) suggests that there is evidence that men are less sensitive to infant cues than mothers

  -Geiger (1996) suggested that a mother's relationship is primarily nurturing and caring, but a father's relationship is more focused around play
• evaluation points


  -data collected by Schaffer and Emerson may be unreliable as it is based on the mothers' report of their infants, some mothers are less sensitive than others.

  -Sample is biased as it was from a working class population so the findings cant be generalised

  -there are cultural differences in the upbringing of a child therefore this stage model only applies to individualist cultures.

  -'stage theories' suggest development is inflexible therefore this is problematic as if they become a standard by which families are judged this may lead to them being classed as abnormal.