Paper 1 Attachment

Question 1

what is an attachment?

Answer 1

A two-way interaction between a caregiver and infant that develop a strong emotional bond via seeking closeness and security from each other.

Question 2

How can formation of an attachment be maintained through interactions?

Answer 2

1. Reciprocity:
   - mutual turn-taking
   - sensitive responsiveness where a caregiver correctly interprets the baby’s communication
   - baby’s active role in initiating interactions/take turns
2. Interactional Synchrony:
   - simultaneous micro-level social behaviour
   - rhythmically matchin emotional states
   - associated with high quality of attachment

Question 3

Discuss research support on Interactional Synchrony

Answer 3

Who? Meltzoff and Moore
What? use of recordings dipicting baby’s response to adults one of three facial expressions. infants were more likely to mrror these facial expressions than chance could predict.
So? suppots interaction’s importance
+ use of filmed observations allows for natural behaviours to be observed and for them to be analysed later in detail
So? increase reliability and validity
- observed behaviour heavily relies o inferences. thus not told the true purpose of the behaviours and may dismiss their importance in development

Question 4

State the stages of attachment

Answer 4

1. Asocial
2. Indiscriminate
3. Specific
4. Multiple

Question 5

Outline the 1st stage of attachment

Answer 5

When? 0-6 weeks
What? innate behaviour towrds people and objects and can be comforted by anyone. happier in presence of others

Question 6

Outline the 2nd stage of attachment

Answer 6

When? 6 weeks - 7 months
What? can tell the difference between objects and people, un/familar people and have no stranger/separation anxiety.
prefer familar people but exhibit same behaviour towards all

Question 7

Outline the 3rd stage of attachment

Answer 7

When? 7-9 months
What? strong connection to primary caregiver and will show stranger/separation anxiety. a specifc attachment is formed.

Question 8

Outline the stage 4th of attachment

Answer 8

When? one year
What? formation of secondary attchments with other individuals

Question 9

What is a primary caregiver?

Answer 9

the person who offers the most interaction and respond to the baby’s signals with most skill.

Question 10

Outline the procedure and findings of Scaffer & Emerson’s research into stages of attachment

Answer 10

Who? 60 babies from working-class families in glasgow
What? visited mothers every month for one year and again in 18 months. asked them questions about everyday separations and children’s response to unfamilar adults to measure separation and stranger anxiety.
So? babies formed attchments via the stage model linearly and the specfic attachment was found to be with the person who was most sensitive and interactive.

Question 11

Evaluate the stages of attachment

Answer 11

+ high external validity and mundane realism for Scaffer and emerson’s research
- use of self-report techniques could reduce internal validity as mothers may of been biased in what they reported.
- limited generalisation due to child-rearing styles heavily based off historical and cultural context. may not generalise to collectivist cultures

Question 12

Outline research on the role of the father in attachment

Answer 12

primary attachment is usually formed with the mother (75% of secondary attachments with father)
Who? Grossman et al 2002
What? longitudinal study that found quality of attachment with the father was less important in adolenscent suggesting lack of involvement in long term emotional development. BUT quality of fathers’ play correlated with the quality of adolescent attachments.
So? Different role within attachment more to do with play and stimulation

Question 13

Outline research on the role of fathers as a primary attachment figure.

Answer 13

Who? Field 1978
What? when fathers adopt a primary caregiving role, they also adopt more motherly behaviours. related to interactional synchrony and emotional attachments
So? fathers can be the more emotional attachment figure. dismisses gender as the key to attachment.

Question 14

Evaluate the role of the father

Answer 14

• confusion over research question
  What? research from Grossman and Field conflict explanations for the role of the father and do not answer the simple question of what role do they actually take
  + parenting advice
  allows for flexibility between parents in their routines at work and home. promotes fathers to be more prevalent at home and offers reassuring advice to them
• research like Grossman can reinforce stereotypes on mothers role on attachment making it socially insensitive

Question 15

Outline procedure and findings of Lorenz’s imprinting

Answer 15

What? randomly divided a clutch of goose eggs. half hatched with their mother and the rest with lorenz. they were then mixed together to see who they would follow and their later-courtship behaviour
So? A critical period was established where imprinting needs to occur within the first 32 hours after hatching otherwise no formation of attachment. sexual imprinting also occurs whereby birds acquire template of desirabe characteristics in a mate

Question 15

Outline procedure and findings of Harlow’s monkeys

Answer 15

What? 16 rhesus monkeys were given 2 wire model mothers. there were 2 conditions: 1- milk dispensed by plain wire mother 2- milk dispensed by cloth-covered wire mother. also have noisy mechanical teddy bear which monkey would cuddle clothed mother regardless of who dispensed the milk
So? suggest comfort is more important than food

+ looked at deprived monkeys and found they had suffered severe consequences such as agressiveness, less sociable and lacked mathing skills

Question 16

evaluate animal studies within attachment

Answer 16

• limited generalisation to humans as there is a greater emotional aspects and complexities. so not appropiate
  + could be applied to niche human behaviours such as baby duck syndrome (useres sticking to what they know)
  + RWA in child abuse prevention and breeding programmes benefitting both humans and monkeys
• ethical issues within harlows research

Question 17

Outline the learning theory via classical conditioning

Answer 17

Who? Dollard & Miller
What? outlines ‘cupboard love’ through the significance of food in attachment formation
How?
Mother (neutral stimulus) is associated with milk (unconditioned stimulus) to reinforce a feeling of pleasure (conditioned response).
So? Mother becomes a conditioned stimulus providing a CR (basis of love) which eventually forms an attachment between the baby and mother

Question 18

Outline the learning theory via operant conditioning

Answer 18

Who? Dollard & Miller
What? explains why babies cry for comfort as it leads to response from caregiver, thus reinforcing crying.
How?
1. if a baby cries, a mother gives the baby food - negative reinforcement from mother’s perspective and positive from baby’s perspective.
So? strengthens attachment

Question 19

What is the difference between primary and secondary drives in drive reduction?

Answer 19

Primary drives such as hunger are innate whereas secondary drives such as attachment are learnt. Therefore primary drives are generalised to secondary drives

Question 20

Evaluate the learning theory

Answer 20

• counter evidence provided by animal studies
  Who? Harlow’s monkeys
  So? other factors may be more significant
• counter evidence from stages of attachment
  Who? Schaffer and Emerson
  So? other factors may be more significant
• psychic determinism
  So? limits the role of freewill in attachment

Question 21

Outline monotropy in bowlby’s theory for explaining attachment

Answer 21

What? an evolutionary explanation that suggests the emphasis of a child’s attachment on one caregiver (primary)
How? the extended time spent with a primary attachment figure, the better the quality of attachment
So? unique significant attachment is formed

Question 22

law of continuity?

Answer 22

the more constant a child’s care, the better the quality of attachment

Question 23

law of acumulated separation?

Answer 23

the effects of every separation add up.

Question 24

what are social releasers and their purpose?

Answer 24

What? set of innate behaviours babies instinctively use to encourage attention from adults So? used to activate adult social interaction. (reciprocal) e.g. smiling, cooing

Question 25

What is the critical period?

Answer 25

This is a period of about 2 years where if an attachment is not formed in this time, a child will find it much harder to form one later one. therefore more of a sensitive period.

Question 26

What is an internal working model and the purpose of it?

Answer 26

This is a mental representation that acts as a blueprint for future relationships (parenting). therefore if a child's first experience is of a loving relationship, they will tend to form expectations that all relationships are loving and reliable.

Question 27

Evaluate bowlby's theory of attachment

Answer 27

- concept of montropy lacks validity How? primary attachment may be stronger rather than different in quality. e.g both family members act as a secure base and give comfort So? suggests there may not be an unique quality to the primary attachment + RS for social releasers Who? Brazelton et al What? primary attachment figures were instructed to ignore social releasers from babies. babies initially showed some distress and eventually curled up, laying motionless So? suggests social releasers play an important role in attachment development - temporal validity How? Schaffer and Emerson research show how fathers can take on the role of the primary care-giver. also implies working mothers damage attachment development So? outdated and contributes to oppression of women

Question 28

Outline the procedure in Ainworth's Strange Situation

Answer 28

What? Lab controlled observation with two-way mirror How? ExAxRe 1. Baby is encouraged to explore by CG 2. Stranger enters and talks to CG, approaches baby 3. CG leaves 4. CG returns, stranger leaves 5. CG leaves baby alone 6. Stranger returns 7. CG returns

Question 29

What behaviours are observed in Ainworth's Strange Situation to judge attachment quality

Answer 29

1. Separation and Stranger anxiety - anxious when separated or left alone with stranger 2. Response to reunion - enthusiastic 3. exploration and secure base - confidence in exploring, using CG as safety point 4. proximity seeking - staying close

Question 30

What are the common features of an insecure-avoidant attachment?

Answer 30

What? Type A, 20% of UK babies - low levels of both separation and stranger anxiety - little sensitive responsiveness and proximity - indifferent reunion behaviour (avoids) - explores freely

Question 31

What are the common features of an insecure-resistant attachment?

Answer 31

What? Type C, 3% of UK babies - clingy behaviour, seeks proximity and less exploration - considerable separation and stranger anxiety - amibivant due to inconsistent care so resists comfort in reunion behaviour

Question 32

What are the common features of a secure attachment?

Answer 32

What? Type B 75% od UK babies - happy to explore and seeks proximity - moderate levels of searation and stranger anxiety - requires and accepts comfort in reunion response - high levels of sensitive responsiveness

Question 33

Evaluate Ainworth's Strange Situation

Answer 33

+ predictive validity What? predicts later development such as Type B individuals having more success in school whereas Type A may experience bullying So? can explain and predict future outcomes + easily replicable due to standardised procedure So? can be applied to different cultures in their respective cultural context (CP: cultural relativism link to japan etc) - culture bound How? cultural differences may explain why children respond differently So? may be difficult to know what is being measured in other cultures (but CP) + good inter-rater reliabity How? use of multiple observes coming to same conclusion (94%) due to use of controlled conditions. So? can be confident in the use of this for wider application

Question 34

Outline Van IJzendoorn's research in relation to cultural variations

Answer 34

What? Meta-analysis of around 2000 infants across 32 studies using the strange situation Who? USA, UK, Germay, Israel, China, Japan Findings? - all countries had high proportions of Type B (50% china) - collectivist cultures rates for Tpe C were higher than individualists around 25% whereas Tyoe A was reduced - high variation rates of studies within the same country than between So? suggests there were cultural differences n the distriution of insecure attachment

Question 35

Outline Simonelli's research in relation to cultural variations

Answer 35

Where? Italy Who? 76 12 month old babies What? used the strange situation to see if the proportion of attachment types still matched previos research Findings? - 50% Type B - 36% Type A So? lower ates in Type B may be due to mothers increasing work hours and use of childcare showing how cultural changes affect patterns in attachment

Question 36

Evaluate Van IJzendoorn's research in relation to cultural variations

Answer 36

+ use of large sample increases generalisability CP: confounding variables with sample such as smaller rooms or use of children in different social classes may inhibit our understanding of cultural differences - imposed etic could make research meaningless How? differences in culture norms cause differences in the behaviours observed e.g japan sees high levels of proximity So? can only be meaningful with the use of cultural relativism - ethnocentric due to strange situation being westernised

Question 37

Evaluate Simonelli's research in relation to cultural variations

Answer 37

+ dominance in Type B attachments support bowlby's theory as suggests innate drive for a montropic attachment CP: contributes to oppress of women within working roles as sugests lower rates of Type B is due to them - use of small sample suggests individual characteristcs may have a greater affect on the research reducing internal validity

Question 38

Why is continued emotional care essential?

Answer 38

As continued emotional care from a mother is necessary for normal emotonal and intellectual development

Question 39

What leads to deprivation?

Answer 39

When the monotropic attachment is disrupted during the critical period (first 30 months) How? prolonged separation meaning child is physically separated from mother's love and emotional care. BUT can be avoided if given altenative/substitute care. So? Leads to psychological damage and negative impacts inevitably. Continuing risk up to the age of 5

Question 40

what are negative irreversible effects of maternal deprivation?

Answer 40

Intellectual - Low IQ/ mental retardation (comparisons in institutionalised and foster children) Emotional - Affectionless Psychopathy (no care, guilt, or affection for others) prevents development of normal relationships Social - Delinquency (behaviour outside social norms) So? creates a schema for future relationships (internal working model) whereby they have difficulties in parenting and relationships

Question 41

Outline Bowlby's 44 theives study

Answer 41

Who? 44 delinquent teenagers accused of stealing What? interviewed for signs of affectionless psychopathy as well as families to esablish prolonged separation periods Findings? 14 could be seen as AP 12 of these experienced PS within critical period contrasts to remaining 30 where only 5 experienced separations So? suggests prolonged separation caused AP

Question 42

Evaluate Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation

Answer 42

- confusion between deprivation and privation How? could be suggested individuals within 44 theives sample experienced privation (failure to form an attachment) instead. So? effects of deprivation may be exaggerated and muddled. - critical period may be more of a sensitive period How? case studies such as the Czech twins (isolated from 18 months and later looked after by 2 loving adults) show full recovery from severe deprivation. So? supports hypothesis - Use of correlational findings could suggest other factors affecting AP AND biased procedure as he conducted interviews (investigator effects) - Beta bias as he emphasises role of the mother marginalizing the father's role So? upholds household stereotypes and places excessive responsibility on the mother - Retrospective research

Question 43

Outline Rutter et al as a romanian orphan study

Answer 43

Who? 165 romanian orphans and CG og 52 UK adoptees What? longitudinal study testing the extent to which good care can makeup for poor experiences in institutions How? tested physical, cognitive and emotional development at ages 4,6,11,15, 22-25 Findings? - half of orphas showed delayed intellectual development when arriving in the UK - at 11, those adopted before 6 months have mean IQ of 102 compared to 77 after 2 years with apparent differences at 16 - frequency of disinhibited attachment for those adopted after 6 months So? support sensitive period and can have long-lasting effects

Question 44

Outline Zeanah et al as a romanian orphan study

Answer 44

Who? 95 romanian kids aged 12-31 months (institutionalised) and CG of 50 children What? the use of the strange situation to asses attachment Findings? - 19% were Type B compared to 74% in CG - 44% had characteristics f disinhibited attachment compared to 20% in CG

Question 45

what is institutionalisation?

Answer 45

The effects of living within an institutional setting wherby little to no emotional care is provided

Question 46

What are the effects of institutionalisation?

Answer 46

Disinhibited attachment - kids tend to be equally friendly and affectionate towards strangers and familar ppl Damage to intellectual development - signs of intellectual disability AFTER 6 MONTHS

Question 47

Evaluate the romanian orphan studies

Answer 47

+ RWA in improvements for institution child care How? less number of caregivers for each care (play a central role) So? displays importance of sensitive research providing high quality research for legislation and allows for them to have greater chance of normal development + lack of confounding variables such as bereavement and neglect allows for effects of institutionalisation to be observed in isolation So? increases internal validity CP: may be hard to distinguish poor institutional care from effects of institutional care. - no random allocation of children so children 'least impacted' by institutionalisation may have been picked more often suggesting a partial observation.

Question 48

What impact does our internal working model have on our childhood compared to adulthood?

Answer 48

Childhood: - Type B have best quality of friendships - Type A most likely to be victims of bullying compared to Type C becoming bullies Adulthood: - Majority of mothers have the same attachment classification as their babies - there is a link between our attachment type and romantic relationships

Question 49

Outline Hazan and Shaver's Love Quiz into influence of early attachment on later relationships

Answer 49

What? love quiz on newspaper that recieved 620 replies How? quiz assessed current and most important relationship, general love experiences and attachment type Findings? Ps attachment type reflected in their romantic relationships e.g. Type B most likely to have good and longer-lasting relationships

Question 50

Evaluate Hazan and Shazer's love Quiz as a RS into influence of early attachment on later relationships

Answer 50

- retrospective study as relies on individuals to reflect back using questionaire. also assesses attachment in adulthood assuming it have remained the same since infancy. So? measures of attachment may not be valid (reduces internal validity) + shows link between internal working model and romantic relationships - confounding variables such as personality are ignored when they may affect later development. So? can't be sure infant attachment is influencing later development - correlational research