Attachment Theory

Attachment Theory

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

2. Stages of Attachment

   • Schaffer and Emerson: studied 60 babies every month for 18 (longitudinal). All were studied at home. Stranger Anxiety- response to arrival of a stranger. Separation anxiety- distress level when separated for carer, degree of comfort needed on return. Social Referencing- degree that child looks at carer to check how they should respond to something new.

3. Harlow (1958)

   • Aim: Whether a monkey would show attachment to comfort or food. Method: Two cylinders, one with milk and one with a blanket. Results: the monkeys spent more time with comfort. They only went to the milk for feeding. Conclusion: Reinforcement through the provision of food is not the main determiner of attachment. Evaluation: The study provided an important findings but ethically unacceptable.

4. Ainsworth created the strange situation which included having a baby be briefly separated. They had different happenings and 65% of children were securely attached, 15-20% were anxious avoidant 5% were anxious resistant. Van Ijzendoorn found cultural differences.

5. Meta-analysis

   • Involves a review of a large number of studies about a particular topic, statistical techniques are used to provide a summary of the results from different studies. In this way we can be more confident about the conclusions because they are based on a large number of studies and participants.