The influence of early attachments

• Influence of early attachments on childhood & adult relationships:

  • IWM = cognitive framework which acts as a template for future relationships, carry perception of what relationships should be like.
  • Continuity hypothesis = early relationships with caregiver predict later relationships in adulthood.
• • Secure = first attachment was a reliable caregiver, loving relationship they will seek a functional, healthy relationships.
  • Childhood = good quality friendships (Kerns, 1994) , unlikely to be involved in bullying (Myron-Wilson + Smith, 1998)
  • Adult = best adult friendships & romantic relationships. (McCarthy, 1999 - studied 40 adult women who had been assessed as infant to establish attachment types & how they developed)
  • Parenting = same attachment style (Bailey et al)
• • IA = first attachment was poor, may become too involved/ too emotionally attached in future relationships.
  • Childhood = friendship difficulties (Kerns, 1994), victim of bullying (Myron-Wilson + Smith, 1998 used questionnaires on 196 children (7-11) from London to predict bullying).
  • Adulthood = struggle with intimacy in romantic relationships (McCarthy, 1999)
  • Parenting = same style (Bailey et al)
• • IR = first attachment was poor, may become controlling/argumentative in future relationships.
  • Childhood = friendship difficulties (Kerns, 1994), most likely to be bullies (Myron-Wilson + Smith, 1998)
  • Adulthood = cannot maintain friendships or relationships (McCarthy, 1999)
  • Parenting style = the same (Bailey et al)
• The Love Quiz: Hazan + Shaver (1987) -

  Placed a 'love quiz' in a local American newspaper, analysed 620 replies (205 male, 415 female) 3 sections:

  1. Respondents' current/most important relationship
  2. General love experiences e.g. number of partners
  3. Assessed attachment type by asking respondents which of 3 statements described them the best.
• The Love Quiz: Hazan + Shaver (1987) Findings -

  • 56% secure most likely to have a good long-lasting relationship.
  • 25% IA were jealous & feared intimacy
  • 19% IR feared that their partner(s) didn't really love them
  • Conclusion - patterns of attachment behaviour are reflected in romantic relationships. Early attachments do influence later adult relationships.
• AO3 The Love Quiz: Hazan + Shaver (1987) -

  • self-report, subjective, social desirability bias
  • sample: all American (individualist) & local can't be generalised across cultures
  • mix of quantitative & qualitative
  • limited options may impact validity
• AO3 -

  • RS, McCarthy (1999) supports IWM. Assessed 40 adult women's attachment types as infants to establish their early attachment type. Supports continuity hypothesis, consistent findings, improves scientific credibility of psychology as a science.
  • Contradictory research, Zimmerman found little relationship between attachment types & quality of adolescent relationships. Insecure A/R don't always have poor relationships. Too deterministic suggests we have no freewill, ignores role of therapy & healing.
• AO3 -

  • Methodological issues with attachment research e.g. questionnaires used (Bailey et al) depends on participants being honest and research may be subject to social desirability bias. Details could also be inaccurate, low internal validity.
  • Alternative explanations for poor relationships, Hazan + Shaver don't account for EV's. Secure may also be insecure leading to struggles with intimacy.
• • relationship between early attachment type and later romantic relationships – the ‘love quiz’ (Hazan and Shaver)
  • relationship between early attachment type and parenting style
  • adult attachment interview (Main et al) continuity between early attachment type and adult classification/behaviours – credit knowledge of procedure and coding system (insecure-dismissing, autonomous-secure, insecure-preoccupied, unresolved)
• • Bowlby’s internal working model (IWM) – early attachment provides blueprint/prototype for later attachment; formation of mental representation/schema of first attachment relationship; affects later relationships during childhood and adulthood
  • Material on maternal deprivation is creditworthy if made relevant to the question
  • attachment type associated with quality of peer relationships in childhood – studies of friendship patterns, bullying, etc.
• AO3 -

  • Bowlby’s IWM, determinism; negative implications of assumption that the relationship is cause and effect.
  • self-report techniques to assess quality of childhood/adult relationships – subjectivity, social desirability.
  • difficulty of measuring the IWM – hypothetical concept
  • counter-evidence, children can recover from deprivation/privation and form effective adult relationships
  • discussion of use of findings from animal studies in this area, e.g. Harlow and difficulty of generalising across species.
• • Bowlby’s internal working model (IWM) – early attachment provides blueprint for later attachment; formation of mental representation/schema of first attachment relationship; affects later relationships during childhood
  • attachment type associated with quality of peer relationships in childhood – studies of friendship patterns, bullying, etc
  • knowledge of relevant studies, e.g. Myron-Wilson and Smith
• AO3 -

  • Research on adult relationships (e.g. Hazan & Shaver) linked to childhood relationships.
  • Bowlby’s IWM & issue of determinism; negative implications of assumption that the relationship is cause and effect
  • self-report techniques to assess quality of childhood/adult relationships, subjectivity, social desirability, etc – as well as retrospective assessment of early attachment patterns
  • difficulty of measuring the IWM – hypothetical concept.