who came up with the learning theory of attachment
Dollard and Miller
importance of food
sometimes called the 'cupboard love' explanation as it emphasises the importance of food in the formation of attachments. children learn to love whoever feeds them
the role of classical conditioning
the baby learns that the mother produces a sense of pleasure. the mother becomesassociated with food over time and so produces a conditioned response of love
the role of operant conditioning
explains why babies cry for comfort. the crying leads to a response from the caregiver, and as long as the crying stops, it is positively reinforced as it provides a pleasurableconsequence for the infant.
the role of negative reinforcement
while the baby is positively reinforced for crying the caregiver is negativelyreinforced because the crying stops (the caregiver is negatively reinforced by removing something unpleasant). the interplay of different reinforcements strengthens an attachment.
drive reduction
hunger is a primary drive - an innate biological motivator. we are motivated to eat to reduce the hunger drive.
attachment is a secondary drive learned by an association between the caregiver and the satisfaction of a fulfilling a primary drive. sears suggested that as caregivers provide food, the hunger drive becomes generalised to them
limitation of the learning theory of attachment - feeding is not an important factor
Schaffer and Emerson showed that for many babies a primary attachment was not to the person who fed them. this shows that feeding is not the key element to attachment and so there is nounconditionedstimulus or primary drive involved. the evidence suggests that other factors are more important than food in the formation of attachment.
strength of the learning theory of attachment - some elements of conditioning could still be involved
the main issue with learning theory is the idea that feeding provides the unconditioned stimulus, reinforcement or primary drive. however, many aspects of human development are affected by conditioning so it seems plausible that it could still play a role in attachment (but not in relation to feeding). for example, associations between the primary caregiver and provision of comfort and social interaction could be part of what builds attachment.
limitation of learning theory of attachment - animal studies provide evidence against food as the basis of attachment
Lorenz's geese maintained attachments regardless of who fed them, and Harlow's monkeys preferred a cloth mother over a wire one that dispensed milk. in both these studies, attachment did not develop as a result of feeding. the same must be true for humans. as, after all, learning theorists believe that animals and humans are equivalent