Influence of early attachment

• Internal working model


  interaction with primary attachment figure teaches a child what relationships are and how people in a relationship act towards each other.

  
  

  These experiences form the internal working model, which is a mental representation of the world allowing individuals to predict and control their environment.

  
  

  In attachment, this model relates to people's expectations about relationships, and can be used to predict people's future behaviour.
• Minnesota Child-Parent Study


  Sroufe et al

  
  

  Infants who were rated high in social competence during childhood were more empathetic, popular and felt less isolated.

  
  

  This can be explained by the concept of the IWM - as infants who are securely attached will have positive expectations that others whom they relate to will be trustworthy and friendly in return.

  
  

  This provides the ideal platform for interacting with others during childhood.
• Key study: Hazen and Shaver - procedure


  A love quiz in the local American news publication

  men and women from a cross-section of the population responded to questions about current attachment experiences, attachments in childhood and attitudes towards love.

  From this, their current and childhood attachment types were identified.
• Hazen and Shaver - findings


  Analysis showed that the prevalence of attachment styles was similar to that found in infancy - majority securely attached, 29% insecure-avoidant and 19% insecure-resistant.

  
  

  positive correlation found between attachment type and love experiences.

  
  

  securely attached adults described their love experiences as happy and trusting, and the relationship lasted longer than insecurely attached people (insecure-resistant lasting the least amount of time - 5yrs on average).

  
  

  Individuals with a secure attachment tended to have a more positive internal working model.
• A03 overly deterministic - P


  This research present a set view that early experiences have a fixed effect on later adult relationships. They suggest, for example, that infants with an insecure attachment type will be doomed to experience poor quality and unsatisfying relationships - and to be a poor parent themselves - in adulthood.
• Hazen and Shaver - conclusions

  • indicates that specific attachment behaviours are reflected in adult romantic behaviours due to IWM formed in infancy to guide expectations