The learning theory of attachment

• What are attachments learned through?

  The experience of their caregivers feeding them
• How are attachments learned?

  Through classical and operant conditioning
• How does classical conditioning contribute to forming an attachment?

  • At first, food is an unconditioned stimulus and caregivers are a neutral stimulus
  • Babies then learn to associate their caregiver with food
  • Therefore, the caregivers become a conditioned stimulus and babies develop a happy conditioned response to their caregivers
• Two ways operant conditioning contributes to forming an attachment?

  1. Positive reinforcement
  2. Negative reinforcement
• strength of the learning theory of attachment

  Dollard and Miller's observation which found that babies get fed over 2000 times by their caregivers.
• weakness of the learning theory of attachment

  Is not supported by Harlow's monkeys study