attachment

    Cards (43)

    • outline caregiver-infant interactions
      reciprocity - mothers respond to infant alertness
      • e.g. taking turns in a conversation
      • Brazelton: mother anticipates infant's signals
      interactional synchrony - coordinated behaviour
      • Meltzoff & Moore: 3-day-old babies imitate mothers
      • Piaget: behaviour is pseudo-imitation (operant conditioning)
    • evaluate caregiver-infant interactions
      + controlled observations
      X testing infant behaviour is difficult, always in constant motion
      X observes simple gesture/expression and assumes intentions
    • outline role of father
      traditionally mother-infant
      role of father:
      • Grossman - less important but has role of play and stimulation
      • Field - fathers as primary carers adopt behaviour typical of mothers
    • evaluate role of father
      X father's don't tend to be primary carer, gender roles or biological differences
      X children without fathers aren't different, over-exaggerated importance
      X socially sensitive research with working mothers
    • outline schaffer & emerson's key study

      aim - investigate age of attachment formation
      • who attachments are formed with
      method - mothers of 60 glasgow babies reported monthly on separation anxiety
      findings - 50% showed anxiety by 32 weeks
      • 40 weeks: 80% had specific attachment, 30% had multiple attachments
    • evaluate schaffer & emerson's key study

      X unrepresentative sample, all from glasgow so lacks generalisability
      + good external validity, observed in participant's natural environments
      + longitudinal design, eliminated individual differences
    • outline schaffer's stages of attachment 

      1. asocial stage - little observable social behaviour
      2. indiscriminate - accept cuddles from adults
      3. specific - stranger and separation anxiety to one particular adult
      4. multiple - behaviour directed towards more than one adult
    • evaluate schaffer's stages of attachment

      X unreliable data, based on mother's reports, systematic bias
      X biased sample, working-class 1960's women, lacks temporal validity
      X cultural differences, multiple attachments may appear first in different contexts
    • outline and evaluate lorenz's research

      procedure - goose eggs incubated, first saw mother or Lorenz
      findings - goslings imprinted on first moving object they see
      • sexual imprinting: adult birds mate with species they imprint on
      X animals have different attachment systems, lacks generalisability
      + Guiton - birds imprinted on rubber gloves
    • outline and evaluate harlow's research 

      procedure - monkeys given cloth or wire "mother" with feeding bottle
      findings - clung to cloth bottle rather than wire one
      • maternally deprived monkeys: abnormal socially and sexually
      • critical period: formed before 6 months
      + theoretical value, attachment depends on comfort over feeding
      X generalising to humans isn't justified
    • outline learning theory as an explanation of attachment
      behaviourism, all learned rather than inherited

      classical conditioning:
      • new conditioned response learned through association
      • neutral stimulus and unconditioned stimulus
      operant conditioning:
      • infant is positively reinforced and caregiver is negatively
      social learning:
      • children model parent's attachment behaviours
    • evaluate learning theory as an explanation of attachment
      + explains attention and responsiveness to rewards in attachment
      X animal studies, lack external validity as simplify human attachment
      X attachment isn't based on food, Harlow showed comfort was basis
    • outline bowlby's monotropic theory as an explanation of attachment

      critical period:
      • attachments form around 3-6 months
      social releasers:
      • innate "cute" behaviours that elicit caregiving
      monotropy:
      • one particular attachment is different in quality and importance
      • primary caregivers have special emotional role
      internal working model:
      • mental representation for template of future relationships
    • evaluate bowlby's monotropic theory as an explanation of attachment 

      + Brazelton - social releasers ignored, babies get upset
      + Bailey - quality of attachment is passed through generations
      X some babies form multiple attachments, monotropy lacks validity
    • outline ainsworth's strange situation

      procedure - 7 stage controlled observation, every 15 seconds
      • assessed proximity seeking, exploration/secure base, stranger and separation anxiety, response to reunion
      findings - 65% were secure, 22% insecure-avoidant, 12% insecure-resistant

      types of attachment:
      • secure - enthusiastic greeting and content
      • avoidant - avoids reunion, reduced responses
      • resistant - resists reunion, more distressed
    • evaluate ainsworth's strange situation

      + high reliability, different observers agreed 90% of the time
      + real-world application, predicts social personal behaviour
      X other types of attachment, disorganised or type D
    • outline cultural variations in attachment - key study
      van ijzendoorn:
      • meta-analysis of 32 studies of strange situation, 8 different countries
      • secure attachment was norm, greater variation within countries than between
      cultural similarities - Tronick, Efe infants
      cultural differences - Grossman, more insecure in German sample
      cultural differences - Takahashi, no avoidant in Japan sample
    • evaluate cultural variations in attachment - key study
      + large samples, reduce impact of anomalous result, improve internal validity
      X Rothbaum - culture or western bias
      X unrepresentative sample, compared countries not cultures
    • outline bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation 

      maternal care:
      • children need intimate and continuous relationship with mother
      critical period:
      • prolonged separations before age of 2 causes damage
      • critical period of up to age 5
      consequences:
      • Goldfarb - low IQ
      • Bowlby - affectionless psychopathy
      44 thieves study:
      • 86% affectionless psychopaths had separation compared to 17% of others or 2% in control group
    • evaluate bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation

      X poor evidence, orphans experienced other traumas, observer bias
      X Lewis - 500 people, no link between early separation and criminality
      X sensitive period, Koluchova, can recover from damage
    • outline romanian orphan studies and effects of institutionalisation
      Rutter - key study
      • 165 romanian orphans adopted in britain
      • physical, cognitive and social development tested at regular intervals
      • age 11: before 6 months showed good recovery, others had disinhibited attachment
      canadian study - physically smaller at adoption, recovered by 10 years
      romanian study - if institutionalised, displayed disinhibited attachment

      effects:
      • physical underdevelopment
      • intellectual under functioning
      • disinhibited attachment
    • evaluate romanian orphan studies and effects of institutionalisation
      X individual differences, some recovered without attachment in sensitive period
      + real-life application, care and adoption improved
      + longitudinal study, changes takes a while to appear, recovery is possible
    • outline influences of early attachments on later relationships
      internal working model:
      • Bowlby - primary attachment is template for later relationships
      Hazan & Shaver - key study
      • "love quiz" in newspaper, 620 responses
      • positive relationship between attachment type and love experiences
      behaviours influenced:
      • childhood friendships
      • poor parenting
      • romantic relationships
      • mental health
    • evaluate influences of early attachments on later relationships
      X correlational, temperament may be intervening variable
      X retrospective, type is based on memory of childhood
      X deterministic, past experiences don't determine future relationships
    • define attachment
      strong emotional bond between two people
    • define reciprocity
      two-way turn taking process
      • respond to eachother
    • define interactional synchrony
      mirror movements
      • coordinated behaviour
    • outline schaffer and emerson's study
      • 60 glasgow babies
      • longitudinal observations and interviews
      • 80% had specific attachment
    • outline the formula of classical conditioning
      before:
      1. neutral stimulus -> no response
      2. unconditioned stimulus -> unconditioned response
      during:
      1. neutral stimulus + unconditioned stimulus -> unconditioned response
      after:
      1. conditioned stimulus -> conditioned response
    • outline what bf skinner found about operant conditioning
      positive reinforcement - rewards action
      • baby cries, receive comfort or food
      negative reinforcement - to stop negative action
      • mum feeds to stop baby crying
      primary reinforcer - reduces the drive
      • food is the drive to reduce hunger
      secondary reinforcer - what provides the thing to reduce the drive
      • food provided by mother
    • define ASCMIC for bowlby's monotropic theory
      A - adaptive
      • changes across years, environment and species
      S - social releasers
      • more attentive towards child
      C - critical period
      • within 2 years
      M - monotropy
      • one primary figure
      I - internal working model
      • mental representation
      C - continuity hypothesis
    • outline characteristics of the different types of attachment
      secure:
      • high proximity seeking
      • moderate stranger/separation anxiety
      • enthusiastic reunion response
      avoidant:
      • high proximity seeking
      • low/no stranger/separation anxiety
      • avoid reunions
      resistant:
      • low proximity seeking
      • high stranger/separation anxiety
      • seek and reject reunion
      type D - disorganised
      • inconsistencies in behaviour and responses
    • outline research into cultural similarities
      Tronick et al
      • infants breastfed by other women but slept with mum
      • at 6 months, still showed 1 primary attachment
    • outline research into cultural differences
      Grossman
      • high levels of insecure attachment in German infants
      Takahashi
      • high levels of resistant attachment in Japanese infants
    • outline bowlby's 44 thieves study
      • 44 criminal teenagers
      • interviewed families and teenagers
      • 14/44 were affectionless psychopaths
      • 12/14 had prolonged separations
    • outline effects of institutionalisation
      • physical underdevelopment
      • intellectual under functioning
      • disinhibited attachment
      • poor parenting
      • quasi-autism
    • outline effects of maternal deprivation
      • intellectual underdevelopment
      • affectionless psychopathy
    • what type of internal working model does each attachment type have?
      secure - loving relationship with caregiver
      avoidant - uninvolved, not emotionally close
      resistant - controlling and argumentative
    • what affect does each attachment type have on future relationships?
      secure - best quality friendships, more popular
      insecure - struggle, friendship difficulties
    • what affect does each attachment type have on romantic relationships?
      secure - best adult relationships
      avoidant - struggled with intimacy
      resistant - problems maintaining friendships