Developmental PsychologyMaternal Attachment

What are attachments

• Attachment is a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space (Ainsworth, 1973;Bowlby, 1969).

• Attachments greatly impact social, emotional and cognitive development.

• Attachment is characterized by specific behaviors in children, such as seeking proximity with the attachment figure when upset or threatened.

• Attachment behavior in adults towards the child includes responding sensitively and appropriately to the child’s needs.

• Attachment theory provides an explanation of how the parent-child relationship emerges and influences subsequent development.

Attachment Theory

Attachment Theory

Learning / behaviorist theory of attachment

Evolutionary theory of attachment

Learning / Behaviorist Theory of Attachment (e.g. Dollard & Miller, 1950)

• This theory suggests that attachment is a set of learned behaviors. The basis for the learning of attachments is the provision of food. An infant will initially form an attachment to whoever feeds it.

• They associate the feeder (usually the mother) with the comfort of being fed and through the process of classical conditioning.

• They also find that certain behaviors (e.g. crying, smiling) bring desirable responses from and through the process of operant conditioning learn to repeat these behaviors in order to get the things they want.

Evolutionary Theory of Attachment (e.g. Bowlby, Harlow, Lorenz)

• This theory suggests that children come into the world biologically pre-programmed to form attachments with others, because this will help them to survive.

• The infant produces innate behaviors such as crying and smiling that stimulate innate care giving responses from adults.

• The determinant of attachment is not food but care and responsiveness.

• Bowlby suggested that a child would initially form only one primary attachment and that the attachment figure acted as a secure base for exploring the world.

• The attachment relationship acts as a prototype for all future social relationships so disrupting it can have severe consequences.

• This theory also suggests that there is a critical period for developing at attachment (about 0 -5 years).

• If an attachment has not developed during this period then the child will suffer from irreversible developmental consequences, such as reduced intelligence and increased aggression.

Why Is Attachment Important?Early infant-caregiver attachment sets the stage

for the infant’s future intimate and trusting relationships

Development of ability to regulate emotions linked to attachment relationship

Child develops a set of beliefs (“Working Model”)

Stages of attachment

Rudolph Schaffer and Peggy Emerson (1964) studied 60 babies at monthly intervals for the first 18 months of life.

• The children were all studied in their own home and a regular pattern was identified in the development of

attachment.

• Evidence for the development of an attachment was that the baby showed separation

anxiety after a caregiver left.

Observations

They discovered that baby's attachments develop in the following sequence:

• Up to 3 months of age - Indiscriminate attachments. The newborn is predisposed to attach to any human.

Most babies respond equally to any caregiver.

• After 4 months - Preference for certain people. Infants they learn to distinguish primary and

secondary caregivers but accept care from anyone;

• After 7 months - Special preference for a single attachment figure. The baby looks to particular people for security, comfort and protection. It shows fear of strangers (stranger fear) and unhappiness when separated from a special person (separation anxiety).

• After 9 months - Multiple attachments. The baby becomes increasingly independent and forms several attachments.

Strange Situation Procedure

• Psychologist Mary Ainsworth devised an assessment technique called the Strange Situation Classification (SSC) in order to investigate how attachments might vary between children

Procedure• (1) Parent and infant alone.

• (2) Stranger joins parent and infant.

• (3) Parent leaves infant and stranger alone.

• (4) Parent returns and stranger leaves.

• (5) Parent leaves; infant left completely alone.

• (6) Stranger returns.

• (7) Parent returns and stranger leaves.

• Four categories of behaviors are measured and observed:

• (1) separation anxiety• (2) the infant’s willingness to explore, • (3) stranger anxiety• (4) reunion behavior.

Results

• Ainsworth (1970) identified three main attachment styles:

• secure,• insecure avoidant • and insecure ambivalent.

• A forth attachment style known as disorganized was later identified (Main, & Solomon, 1990).

  Secure Attachment Ambivalent Attachment

Avoidant Attachment

Separation Anxiety Distressed when mother leaves.

Infant shows signs of intense distress when mother leaves.

Infant shows no sign of distress when mother leaves.

Stranger AnxietyAvoidant of stranger when alone but friendly when mother present.

Infant avoids the stranger - shows fear of stranger.

Infant is okay with the stranger and plays normally when stranger is present.

Reunion behavior Positive and happy when mother returns.

Child approaches mother but resists contact, may even push her away.

Infant shows little interest when mother returns.

OtherWill use the mother as a safe base to explore their environment.

Infant cries more and explores less than the other 2 types.

Mother and stranger are able to comfort infant equally well.

% of infants 70 15 15

Strange Situation Conclusion

• Ainsworth & Bell suggested that behavior in the strange situation classification was determined by the behavior of the primary carer (in this case the mother).

• Securely attached infant are associated with sensitive & responsive primary care.

• Insecure ambivalent attached infants are associated with inconsistent primary care. Sometimes the child’s needs and met and sometime they are ignored by the mother.

• Insecure avoidant infants are associated with unresponsive primary care.

Cross Cultural Variations

Country Secure

Resistant

Avoidant

Israel 62% 33% 5%

Japan 68% 32% Nil

Germany 40% 11% 49%

Bowlby's Attachment Theory

Main Points of Bowlby’s Theory

• A child has an innate need to attach to one main attachment figure (i.e. monotropy)

• A child should receive the continuous care of this single most important attachment figure for approximately the first two years of life.

Maternal Deprivation

The long term consequences of maternal deprivation might include the following:

• delinquency,

• reduced intelligence,

• increased aggression,

• depression,

• affectionless psychopathy

• Robertson and Bowlby (1952) believe that short term separation from an attachment figure leads to distress.

• They found 3 progressive stages for distress:

• Protest• Despair• Detachment

• The child’s attachment relationship with their primary caregiver leads to the development of an internal working model.

The End