Attachment Unit 1

Attachment Unit 1

1. How we Attach

   • Learning Theory
   • Ainsworth's Strange Situation
   • Bowlby's Biological Theory
     • We have an innate evolutionary drive to form attachments, we have developed things to help us do this. These include; Social Releasers, Adaptive, Sensitive Period, Monotropy, Secure Base, Internal Working Model and Continuity Hypothesis.
       • Koluchova (Czech) Twins; Not found until 7 years old and still went on to develop normally and form normal attachments. This is not possible according to the Sensitive Period in Bowlb'ys model and so is in direct challenge to it.
       • Harlow et al; They found that given a choice between a Wire Mother with food and a Cloth Mother with no food a Monkey will spend 23hrs per day with the Cloth Mother. This provides support for the theory as it shows there is an innate drive to attach and find a Monotropy. Harlow et al also found that these monkeys then rejected their young which provides evidence for the Internal Working Model and Continuity Hypothesis.
       • Lorenz; He found that as soon as an egg hatches a baby Duck will perceive the first moving object it sees as its Mother. This provides evidence that attachment is innate and cannot be learnt.
       • The majority of the evidence provided in support of Bowlby's theory of attachment is from animal studies. This therefore means results cannot be generalised to humans.

2. What affects development of attachment

   • Cultural Variation
   • Privation
   • Disruption

3. Residences and Attachment

   • Day Care
     • Aggression
     • Peer Relations
   • Institutionalisation