EARLY ATTACHMENTS

EARLY ATTACHMENTS

1. Developments of attachments:

   • 0-2 months – pre attachment phase Preference for people over objects, but no discrimination between people.
   • 3-7 months – indiscriminate attachment phase Apparent preference for familiar people (e.g. smiling more at some people).
   • 7 months – discriminate attachment phase True emotional attachment. Multiple attachments by about 9 months
   • 9 months- Multiple Attachment phase - Infants form strong emotional bonds with others, e.g. grandparents.
   • Schaffer & Emerson
     • It’s a Longitudinal study using a variety of methods. Conducted in Glasgow. 2 behaviors measured were separation protest and stranger anxiety
     • Evaluation: unreliable results: The data collected may be unreliable because it was based on mothers reports of their infants. Some mothers might have been less sensitive and therefore were less likely to report them. this would create systematic bias and would challenge the validity of the study.
     • Evaluation: Mundane realism is when an activity/study is similar to an activity/process one would complete in day to day life. It was achieved because the study was conducted under everyday conditions so has high validity.
     • Findings: Most infants started to show separation protest when parted from their attachment figure at between 6-8months Strongly attached infants had mothers who responded to their needs quickly and who provided more opportunities for interaction At 18 months 87% had at least two attachments, with 31% having 5 or more. 39% of infants’ prime attachment was not to the main career.

2. Institutional care

   • Evaluation: Value of longitudinal studies: They're time consuming and take a lot of planning as the children have to be studied for a number of years. Without these studies we would conclude that there are major effects of institutional care, now we know such affects disappear with time and high quality care.
   • Evaluation: Deprivation is only 1 factor: The Romanian orphans were faced with more than emotional deprivation. The physical conditions were bad and impacted health. The lack of cognitive stimulation would also affect their development. More likely that damage occured when there was multiple risk factors. For many institutionalised children, poor care in infancy is followed by poor subsequent care, such as living in poverty etc.
   • Emotional privation: Children who are raised in institutions often display signs of emotional privation. They have received a good standard of physical care, but have not formed an attachment with a caregiver.
     • Institutional care: Due to certain early experiences in childhood, e.g. family breakdown or an inability of a caregiver to look after their child, some children end up spending time in institutional care (children’s homes or orphanages).
   • Rutter and Sonuga-Barke (ERA English and Romanian Adoptees).
     • Procedure: 165 Romanian children spent their early lives in institutions and have suffered from institutionalisation. Of that group 111 were adopted before the age of 2 and a further 54 by the age of 4. The adoptees were tested at regular intervals (ages 4, 6, 11 and 15) to assess there physical, cognitive and social development. Info was gathered from teachers and parents. Their progress was compared to a control group of 52 British children who were adopted in the UK before the age of 6 months.
     • Findings: At the time of adoption the Romanian orphans lagged behind their British counterparts in all aspects. They were smaller, weighed less and were classes as mentally retarded. By the age of 4 some children had caught up with their British pair. This was the case for most adopted before 6 months. Many orphans adopted after 6 months showed disinhibited attachments and had problems with peer relationships. Long term consequences may not be severe if a child is in care but if the infant doesnt make an attachment then consequences could be severe.

3. Influence of early attachment

   • The role of the Internal Working Model (IWM): An IWM is a mental model of the world which enables individuals to predict and control their environment. In the case of attachments the IWM refers to a person’s expectations about relationships. The infant learns what relationships based on how parents behave towards each other and the infant themselves. It is ‘operable’ as it is used to predict the behaviour of partners in relationships in the future.
   • Poor parenting: Halrlows monkeys lack of care as a child makes it difficult to parent in later life lack of attachment with a parent will cause a lack of attachment with their child.
   • Childhood friendships: individuals classified as securely attached in infancy have the highest rate of social competence in later childhood, less isolated, more popular and more empathetic.
   • Romantic relationships: A link between early attachment and later relationships. securely attached people have longer lasting relationships.
   • Mental health: lack of attachment during critical period would mean a child lacks in their IWM. Children who arent attached dont have a specific attachment figure stopping them relating with others.
   • Hazan and Shaver love quiz
     • Evaluation: socially sensitive people could think their relationship is their parents fault.
     • Evaluation: Self report studies- people could lie, so no best fit.
     • Questions dont apply to everyone e.g. people with split up parents.

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