Influence early atttachment on relationships

• Internal working model of an infant

  Thought to predict the likely outcomes of behaviour in childhood and adulthood
• Securely attached infants


  More inclined to have good quality peer relationships during childhood
• Infants with insecure attachment types


  Likely to have difficulties with making or maintaining friendships
• Infants rated high in social competence during childhood


  More empathetic, popular and felt less isolated
• Early attachment type


  Experiences in love
• Secure attachments in childhood

  More likely to have loving and lasting romantic relationships in adulthood
• Insecure-avoidant attachment type from infancy


  More likely to report feelings of dislike in relation to intimacy
• Insecure-resistant attachment type


  More likely to have shorter relationships compared to secure respondents
• There is mixed research in determining continuity of attachment type from childhood to adulthood
• Infant attachment type and the quality of relationships with parents during adolescence are not related
• These findings do not support the role of the internal working model being important in the development of childhood and adult relationships, casting doubt on the emphasis placed on this concept by developmental psychologists such as Bowlby
• The research is correlational, so an association has been found but this does not determine causality
• The correlations were not always strong positive ones, with correlation coefficients ranging from +.10 to +.50
• There are methodological issues with assessing attachment type retrospectively, as recollections from years gone by are likely to be impaired and any answers provided may lack accuracy due to deterioration which lowers the internal validity of findings
• The internal working model is an unconscious framework, so individuals may not report honestly or even have an insight into their own template of expectations
• Research into the impact of attachment on childhood and adult relationships have very set views on the outcomes for future behaviour, presenting a deterministic view of behaviour
• Not all psychologists prescribe to deterministic views, and many would argue that humans have free will and the ability to overcome negative childhood experiences and go on to form happy and healthy adult relationships