Attachment

• What is attachment?

  A strong emotional bond usually between a caregiver and an infant
• What are the 4 main features of caregiver-infant interactions?


  Imitation, sensitive responsiveness, interactional synchrony and reciprocity
• What is imitation?

  Infants between 2 and 3 weeks imitate the facial expressions and hand movements of caregivers
• What is sensitive responsiveness?


  The caregiver responds appropriately to the infants needs
• What is interactional synchrony?


  Infants react in time with caregivers speech
• What is reciprocity?


  Interaction flows back and forth between infants and caregivers
• What are the 4 stages of attachment identified by Schaffer?


  Asocial phase, indiscriminate attachment phase, discriminate attachment phase and multiple attachment phase
• What is the asocial phase?


  Occurs during the first 3 months where the baby has no strong preference between people
• What is the indiscriminate attachment phase?


  Occurs between 6 weeks and 7 months where the infants begin to discriminate between people
• What is the discriminate attachment phase?


  Occurs during 7 and 11 months where the infant forms a strong attachment with an individual
• What is the multiple attachment phase?


  Occurs from around 9 months onwards when the infant has multiple attachments that vary in strength
• What did Schaffer and Emerson propose about the role of the father?

  The primary attachment figure was the mother and the secondary was the father
• What did Ross's study show about the role of the father?


  There is a positive correlation between the amount of nappies changed by the father and the strength of the attachment
• Who studied the critical period of infants?


  Lorenz
• What were the results of Harlow's monkey's study?


  When scared the monkey's went to the cloth covered surrogate mother
• What were the results of Lorenz geese study?


  Both groups of geese imprinted on the first moving object they saw
• When is the critical period identified by Lorenz?


  Around 2 years
• Outline Bowlby's monotropic theory


  Infants have an innate need to form one main attachment figure
• What is the internal working model?


  Mental schemas for relationships that base future relationships
• Outline the learning theory of attachment


  Infants form attachments based on conditioning
• How does classical conditioning explain attachment? 


  Infants form an association between the mother and food and this forms attachment
• How does operant conditioning explain attachment?


  Infants feel discomfort when hungry and use negative reinforcement via crying to ease this discomfort and forced the mother to feed them
• What was the aim of Ainsworth’s strange situation study?


  To test and identify attachments styles between infants
• What did the results of Ainsworth’s study show?


  70% showed a secure attachment style, 15% showed a insecure-resistant attachment style and 15% shows a insecure-avoidant attachment style
• What is a secure attachment style?


  Infant is distressed when separated from mother, they can’t be comforted by a stranger yet they are easily comforted by caregiver
• What is an insecure-avoidant attachment style?


  Infants are not distressed when separated from caregiver and can be comforted by both stranger and caregiver
• What is an insecure-resistant attachment style?


  Infants is distressed when separated but reject caregiver when reunited
• Which country showed higher rates of infants with insecure-resistant attachment styles?


  Japan
• Which country showed higher rates of infants with insecure-avoidant attachment styles?


  Germany
• Who studied the strange situations between cultures?


  Van Ijzendoron
• What were the results of Bowlby’s juvenile study?


  17 thieves out of the 44 experienced prolonged separateness from their mother before 5
• How many of the pps in Bowlby’s juvenile study shows affectionless psychopathy?


  15
• What is Bowlby’s maternal deprivation theory?


  If children don’t form an attachment with a mother during the critical period they won’t be able to function properly
• What was found in the Romanian adoption study?

  Those adopted before 6 months caught up to they British counterparts but those adopted after 6 months showed disinhibited attachment types and peer relationship problems