attachment

Question 1

what is the behaviourist view of attachment?

Answer 1

pleasure derived from food is the basis of the mother-infant bond
- food = unconditioned stimulus
- mother = conditioned stimulus linked with food

Question 2

what is Harry Harlow’s monkey experiment? did the results support or undermine the behaviourist view of attachment?

Answer 2

• tested preference of monkeys for wire mother with food vs cloth mother without food
• found that the monkeys sought comfort from the cloth mother, and only went to the wire mother to get food when necessary
• opposed the behaviourist idea that the infant-mother bond is the result of conditioning based off their need for food (if this was the case, they would prefer the wire mother who provided them with food)

Question 3

who is John Bowlby? what was his attachment theory?

Answer 3

• psychoanalyst who studied the emotional distress of orphaned children in ww2
• children are biologically predisposed to develop attachment to caregivers as a means of increasing chances of survival
• development and quality of child’s attachment are highly dependent on their experiences with caregivers

Question 4

what are the features of the attachment system?

Answer 4

1. proximity maintenance and seeking (adaptive motivation to stay close to caregiver)
2. separation distress
3. safe haven (caregiver provides comfort when distressed)
4. secure base (caregiver provides sense of security from which child can explore the environment)

Question 5

who is Mary Ainsworth?

Answer 5

• came up with Strange Situation procedure
• provided empirical evidence of attachment theory

Question 6

list the 4 types of attachment styles and their frequencies

Answer 6

1. secure (40%)
2. avoidant (15%)
3. resistant (10%)
4. disorganized (15%)

Question 7

how do securely attached infants react to the strange situation?

Answer 7

• uses parent as a secure base
• upset at separation
• seeks parent at reunion and is easily soothes by the parent

Question 8

how do avoidant attached infants react to the strange situation?

Answer 8

• readily separates to explore
• avoids or ignores the parent when they return after separation
• does not prefer the parent to the stranger

Question 9

how do resistant attached infants react to the strange situation?

Answer 9

• does not separate to explore
• wary of the stranger even when the parent is present
• extremely upset at the separation
• not soothed by the parent and resists the parent’s attempt to soothe

Question 10

how do disorganized attached infants react to the strange situation?

Answer 10

• often freezes and dissociates
• behaviour is confused and contradictory
• seem to want to approach caregiver but sees them as a source of fear

Question 11

what are the determinants of attachment style?

Answer 11

1. parenting/parental sensitivity

Question 12

what are the common traits/behaviour of parents of securely attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?

Answer 12

• parents are generally supportive and have sensitive reactions to the child
• parents are affectionate and express frequent positive emotions toward the child
• parents initiate frequent close contact with the child
• child learns that proximity seeking is a good strategy to soothe distress

Question 13

what are the common traits/behaviours of parents of avoidantly attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?

Answer 13

• parents are consistently insensitive to child’s signals
• parents avoid close eye contact or reject the child’s bid for attention
• parents may be angry or impatient
• child learns that proximity seeking is not a good strategy to soothe distress; deactivates attachment system and relies on self-soothing

Question 14

what are the common traits/behaviours of parents of resistantly attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?

Answer 14

• parents are inconsistently supportive/sensitive in reacting to child’s distress
• parents seem overwhelmed with caregiving
• child learns that proximity is sometimes a good strategy to soothe distress; hyperactivates the attachment system leading to excessive proximity-seeking when distressed

Question 15

what are the common traits/behaviours of parents of disorganized attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?

Answer 15

• parents behaviour confuses or frightens the child
• parents may be harsh or abusive
• parents often struggle with severe mental health issues
• child learns that proximity seeking often results in feeling scared; caregiver is extremely unpredictable and cannot be trusted

Question 16

how do genetics influence attachment style?

Answer 16

• no evidence that specific genes are related to attachment style, but variations in the serotonin transporter gene may lead to heightened reactions to stress
• presence of genes related to environmental sensitivity (S allele vs L allele) when combined with poorer parenting quality tends to result in less secure attachment styles
• differential susceptibility: variation in sensitivity toward the environment (genetically based)

Question 17

what are internal working models? how are they constructed? what are the two dimensions upon which they operate?

Answer 17

• mental representations of the self, attachment figures, and relationships in general
• constructed through experience with caregivers?
• act as a filter through which interactions with attachment figures are interpreted; guide expectations about relationships; guide
  child’s behaviour and interactions
• dimensions: model of others (and their reliability for support) and model of self (and perceived worthiness of love)

Question 18

what does the internal working model look like for securely attached individuals?

Answer 18

• positive model of others, positive model of self
• expect relationships to be rewarding
• comfortable with closeness
• feel worthy of love

Question 19

what does the internal working model look like for resistant attached individuals?

Answer 19

• positive model of others, negative model of self
• strong need for closeness, but worry about rejection due to feeling “not good enough”

Question 20

what does the internal working model look like for avoidant attached individuals?

Answer 20

• negative model of others, positive model of self
• disinterested in closeness and intimacy
• very self-reliant

Question 21

what does the internal working model look like for disorganized attached individuals?

Answer 21

• negative model of others, negative model of self
• distrustful of others
• sees self as deserving of rejection

Question 22

how does childcare (and/or its quality) affect attachment security?

Answer 22

childcare does not undermine parent-child attachment security, but good quality childcare can compensate for negative parenting experiences by promoting attachment security
- low maternal sensitivity + poor quality childcare = less secure
- low maternal sensitivity + high quality childcare = more secure
- high maternal sensitivity (regardless if paired with high or low quality childcare) = more secure