Learning Theory

• John Dollard and Neal Miller (1950) believed that caregiver-infant attachment could be explained by learning theory
• Learning theory emphasises the person who provides food to the infant
• Infants have no innate tendency to form attachments
• Infants learn attachments because of food
• Learning is a result of conditioning (operant and classical)
• The most basic principle of learning theory is that all behaviour is learned
• Before conditioning:

  • food is an UCS
  • Baby's pleasure from food is UCR
  • The caregiver is a NS
• During conditioning:

  • Caregiver and bottle are NS and UCS
  • Baby's pleasure due to food and caregiver is UCR
• After conditioning:

  • Caregiver becomes a CS
  • Pleasure baby receives from caregiver is CR
• Classical conditioning takes place while the caregiver is feeding the baby
• Babies cry for comfort due to positive reinforcement
• Feeding a crying baby is a type of negative reinforcement for both baby and caregiver
• Dollard and Miller (1950) suggested the concept of drive reduction
• Drive reduction

  • Food becomes a primary reinforcer as it reduces discomfort
  • The person who supplies the food becomes the secondary reinforcer
  • Attachment occurs when the baby seeks the person who can provide the reward of less discomfort
• Sears et al (1957) suggests that as caregivers provide food, the primary drive becomes generalised to them
• STRENGTHS

  • some elements of conditioning could still play a role in forming attachments
• LIMITATIONS

  • Feldman (2007) found that interaction and attachment involves both mothers and babies paying attention to each other's signals
  • Hay and Vespo (1988) suggest that parents teach children how to love by modelling attachment behaviours
  • Harlow's monkey study- attachment is formed for comfort, not food
  • Isabella et al (1989) found that high levels of interactional synchrony predicted the quality of attachment