Attachment Theories

Slide 1

• LEARNING THEORY - sees all behaviours as acquired through experience via the process of association. Attachments are seen as developing through an infant learning to associate a caregiver with feeding.
• 1. Classical conditioning - occurs when a response produced naturally by a certain stimulus, becomes associated with another stimulus that is not normally associated with that particular response.
• Before learning: FOOD(UCS) = PLEASURE(UCR)
• During learning: FOOD(UCS) + CAREGIVER(CS) = PLEASURE(UCR)
• After learning: CAREGIVER(CS) = PLEASURE(UCR)
• 2. Operant conditioning - where any action that has a pleasurable outcome will be repeated again in similar circumstances. Explains attachments in terms of how babies learn to behave in various ways for caregivers respond to these behaviours

Slide 2

• BOWLBY'S MONOTROPIC THEORY - suggested that emotional bonds had evolutionary functions; thus attachments evolved via the process of natural selection to ensure that offspring stayed close to caregivers. Through evolution, infants became genetically programmed to behave towards their mothers in ways that increased their survival chances.
• These are known as social releasers and include:
• -crying(to attract parent's attention)
• -looking, smiling and vocalising(to maintain parental attention & interest)
• -following & clinging(to gain & maintain proximity to parents)

Slide 3

• Critical Period - Bowlby believed that there is a critical period for the formation of attachments.
• He saw attachment behaviours useless for all children if delayed until after 2 & half to 3yrs old.
• Internal working model - Bowlby sees attachments as monotropic, whereby infants have an innate tendency to become attached to the one particular adult.
• This attachment is unique, first to develop & the strongest of all, forming a model for relationships. A template for future relationships based upon the infant's primary attachment, which creates a consistency between early emotional experiences and later relationships.