Bowlby's monotropic theory of attachment

• Attachment = adaptive
• Attachment provides 2 advantages to an infant:

  • Protection + care = survival (necessary for reproductive success)
  • Template for later relationships (IWM) -> also necessary for reproductive success
• Attachment adapted to the EEA (Environment of Evolutionary Adaptiveness) -> desire to attach = innate in humans
• Critical/sensitive period = first 12 months for most infants, 2.5-3 years for every infant

  • If an infant doesn't attach to primary caregiver in critical period, they won't ever be able to form attachments
• Infants born with social releasers = innate behaviours that elicit caregiving

  • More common in presence of more receptive caregivers
• What does monotropy involve?

  • First unique attachment leads to development of the Internal Working Model (IWM)
  • Hierarchy of attachments
  • Continuity Hypothesis
• Monotropy:

  • Primary caregiver = special focus of attachment who provides safe base
  • First unique attachment develops IWM
  • IWM = internal schema of relationships
  • "I am/am not loveable"
  • "My caregiver is/isn't trustworthy"
  • "This is how relationships should work"
• Monotropy:

  • Hierarchy of attachments
  • Develops once child has IWM
  • All later attachments follow schema of monotropic attachment
  • All later relationships mirroring monotropic relationship because they're based on the IWM = Continuity Hypothesis
• Monotropic theory A&E point 1: monotropic theory has significant evidence to support it

  • Hazan + Shaver (1987) 'Love Quiz' = strong correlation between childhood attachment types + current romantic partners (retrospective + unreliable though)
  • Sroufe et al. (2005) longitudinal Minnesota study found similar results (more prospective study)
  • Both studies strengthen theory because they found what monotropic theory would expect to find
• Monotropic theory A&E point 2: evidence against monotropic theory

  • Schaffer + Emerson (1964) = 30% of infants developed multiple attachments simultaneously
  • Zimmerman et al. (2000) = some individuals' attachment types change from childhood to adulthood
  • Securely attached children whose parents divorced became insecurely attached
  • Initially insecurely attached people became securely attached once in a healthy romantic relationship
  • These 2 things shouldn't happen if monotropic theory is true
• Monotropic theory A&E point 3: importance of Bowlby's work shouldn't be underestimated because it's positively affected children in UK

  • Bowlby's work = studies into disruption of attachment
  • e.g. Robertson + Robertson (1971) study of children's hospitals
  • Led to changes in care for orphaned children + UK moved away from institutional model -> substituting families (e.g. foster care, parents allowed to visit children during long hospital stays)
  • Bowlby's theory = important -> saved many children from distress + later issues forming relationships due to a lack of attachment to primary caregiver