Caregiver-Infant Interactions in Humans

• Stages of Attachment:

  :) high ecological validity

  > observations carried out in families' own homes, during ordinary activities such as the parent leaving the room

  > makes it easier to generalise the findings to real life examples of attachment - child's behaviour is likely to be representative of everyday interactions

  > increases external validity
• Stages of Attachment:

  :( social desirability bias

  > interviews were used - mothers may have lied about their child's behaviour to present their parenting in the best possible light e.g. saying the child is distressed when they leave the room, even if they are not

  > lacks internal validity
• Stages of Attachment:

  :( culture bias

  > sample were all from Glasgow - difficult to generalise the findings to other cultures

  > for example, in non-Western cultures families often work together to look after a child, so the infant can form multiple attachments without forming a specific attachment first

  > limiting external validity, as stages of attachment may differ between cultures
• Stages of Attachment:

  :) carried out longitudinally

  > same children were observed regularly (every month for first year of life)

  > research does not have the confounding variable of individual differences between children e.g. how their natural temperament may affect their attachment stage

  > increases internal validity
• Role of the Father - Field:

  :) practical applications

  > the principles, that responsiveness to child's needs is most important when forming attachments, can be used to advise parents

  > mother may feel pressure to stay home/father may feel pressure to go back to work - may not be the best option if the mother earns more money

  > can reduce parental anxiety as father can become primary attachment figure - important part of applied psychology
• Role of the Father - Grossman:

  :( RTC Macallum and Golombok

  > children growing up in single-mother or lesbian families do not develop differently to those in heterosexual families

  > suggests that the father's distinct role of play and stimulation may not be solely related to gender

  discussion - parents that aren't in heterosexual families adapt to accommodate the role played by fathers
• Role of the Father - Grossman:

  :) biological basis to support

  > female hormones create higher levels of nurturing, therefore, women are biologically predisposed to be the primary attachment figure

  > whereas, males produce more testosterone (not associated with nurturing) which suggests that the father's role is less important, as argued by Grossman
• Caregiver-Infant Interactions:

  :( lacks ecological validity

  > research takes place in controlled environments e.g. observation

  > difficult to generalise findings to real-life cases of caregiver-infant interactions, as the infant may behave differently e.g. they may interact less than in real-life because they may feel shy in an unfamiliar environment

  > lowers external validity
• Caregiver-Infant Interactions:

  :) high control over extraneous variables

  > takes place in controlled environments

  > an extraneous variable that can be controlled is not having other adults in the room that may distract the infant

  > means cause and effect can be established

  > increases internal validity
• Caregiver-Infant Interactions:

  :( prone to bias

  > infants cannot speak, so inferences have to be made about their behaviour - psychologist may interpret the behaviour to fit their hypothesis

  > e.g. infant may have wind, but psychologist may interpret it as a smile in response to their parent's smile

  > lowers internal validity

  discussion - can be reduced by having two observers