caregiver- infant interactions in humans

• Reciprocity


  The child and the parent (in most research this is the mother) pay attention to each other's verbal and non-verbal signals, taking it in turn to initiate the sequence
• Interactional Synchrony


  The child and parent are in harmony with their verbal and non-verbal signals, mirroring each other
• A child will have more than one attachment figure, forming multiple attachments to key people in their life
• Research has often overlooked the role of the father in attachment
• Caregiver-infant interactions is an often overlooked part of the course but has come up several times as extended answer questions: i.e. 8 and 16 marks
• Research support for caregiver-infant interactions

  • Feldman and Eidelman (2007) - an observational study which found that mothers responded to their babies in a reciprocal way two-thirds of the time
  • Isabella et al. (1989) - better quality of maternal care was associated with higher levels of mother-infant synchrony
• Key study in caregiver-infant interactions

  • Schaffer and Emerson (1964) - A naturalistic observation of 60 babies from the same housing estate in Glasgow over an 18 month period
• The results showed that 50% of babies showed separation anxiety towards their PCG in the first 25-32 weeks
• The babies showed the strongest attachments to those who gave them the highest quality of care i.e. responding to them sensitively, interacting with them etc. rather than to those who spent the most time with them
• Stages of attachment developed by Schaffer and Emerson

  1. Stage 1: Asocial stage (0-few weeks old) - the baby does not really distinguish between human and non-human objects

  2. Stage 2: Indiscriminate attachment (2-7 months old) - the baby prefers familiar adults but is happy to be comforted by any adult

  3. Stage 3: Specific attachment (7 months onwards) - the baby now prefers one specific adult and shows separation anxiety and stranger anxiety

  4. Stage 4: Multiple attachments (8/9 months onwards) - the baby enjoys being with people they are familiar with rather than just one specific caregiver all the time
• Interactional synchrony


  This is when an infant mirrors the actions of their care-giver
• Reciprocity


  This is when the caregiver and infant respond to each other's signals appropriately
• Pseudo-conversation


  This is when the caregiver 'speaks' to the infant and then 'allows' the infant to respond
• The caregiver will usually speak in 'motherese' or 'caregivers'- the exaggerated sing-song voice often used by adults to 'talk' to babies and animals
• The caregiver will speak and then allow the infant to mumble/gurgle a reply, before responding
• This is the start of learning how to converse with others
• If you have a pet or know someone with a cat or dog, you may see this in the interactions with animals
• Stages of attachment- Schaffer & Emerson

  1. Asocial (0-6 weeks) - Infants respond to people and objects in the same way

  2. Indiscriminate Attachment (6 weeks-6 months) - Babies enjoy the company of a range of people

  3. Specific Attachment (7 months +) - The baby now has a strong attachment to their primary caregiver

  4. Multiple Attachment (10 months onwards) - Babies now have a range of secondary attachment figures
• Schaffer and Emerson (1964) found that by the time the infants were 18 months they had already formed multiple attachments
• Multiple attachments


  Whereby an infant forms several, different attachments with a range of people, usually a family member
• Monotropy


  The theory that an infant forms one main attachment with their Primary Care Giver (PCG) and this is then replicated throughout their life in their relationships with others
• The role of the father

  • The most common second attachment formed was with the father
  • 27% of the initial sample had formed an attachment with their father by 18 months
• Research into the role of the father

  • Geiger (1996) - Fathers have a different role from the mother, being more about fun and playing
  • Grossman (2002) - The early attachment to the mother was a better predictor of what the teenage relationship was like
  • Field (1978) - If the father was the main PCG from before attachment began, they took on more of a maternal role
• Children tend to need both parents and so it is not really a case of one being better or more suited: Both are needed
• Practical applications: If the father can take the role of the mother as well, then this has implications for society: Paternity/maternity leave, Custody of children: Men gaining more equality in this, Role modeling parental skills in young men, More societal acceptance of the single father