Attachment

1
Attachment

• What are emotional attachments
• Theories of attachment
• Behaviorist approach
• Dependency and drive reduction model
• Operant conditioning model
• Problems with the models
• Psychoanalytic approach
• Freuds theory
• Eriksons theory
• Cognitive-developmental approach
• Ethological approach
• Background of the theory
• The developmental course of attachment
• The preattachment phase
• The attachment in the making phase
• The phase of clearcut attachment
• The formation of a reciprocal relationship
• Measurement of attachment
• The strange situation

2
Behaviorist Approach to Attachment

• The importance of feeding and drive reduction
• Elicits positive responses
• Mothers provide infants with additional comforts,
  such as warmth, vocalizations
• All occur in single setting
• Mom becomes source of reinforcement

3
The Effects of Blanket Attachment on Play
4
Behaviorist Approach to Attachment

• The importance of feeding and drive reduction
• Elicits positive responses
• Mothers provide infants with additional comforts,
  such as warmth, vocalizations
• All occur in single setting
• Mom becomes source of reinforcement
• Operant Conditioning model
• Infants look, smile, and seek proximity because
  mom reciprocates with smiles, hugs
• The greater number of behaviors that get
  reinforced by particular person, the more one is
  attached to that person

5
Psychoanalytic Approach to Attachment

• Freudian approach
• Similar to drive reduction
• Become attached to person who satisfies basic
  biological drives (typically Mom)
• Relationship with Mom then prototype for romantic
  relationships throughout life
• Eriksons approach
• 1st developmental stage birth 1 yr Trust vs.
  mistrust
• Children become attached to people who minister
  to needs
• Importance of mothers overall responsiveness

6
Cognitive-DevelopmentalApproach to Attachment

• Little to say about which people to whom one
  becomes attached
• Suggests that attachment depends, in part, on
  level of cognitive development
• Must be able to discriminate familiar persons
  from strangers
• Must recognize that familiar persons have
  permanence object permanence abilities, as
  discussed earlier
• Thus, timing of attachment related to timing of
  development of cognitive ability

7
Ethological Approach to Attachment

• Central feature of theory
• Babies born with in-born set of behaviors
• Behaviors elicit parent care, thus increase
  change of survival
• The developmental course of attachment
• The preattachment phase
• Behavior a matter of genetically determined
  reflexive responses with survival value
• Promote physical contact
• Attachment in the making
• Orient and respond with preference towards mom
• No specific attachment yet
• The phase of clearcut attachment
• Shows separation anxiety
• Mom as a safe haven
• Formation of a reciprocal relationship
• Decrease in separation anxiety

8
The Strange Situation Procedure
9
Patterns of Attachment

• Insecure Avoidant
• Little distress at separation
• Avoids mother during reunion
• About 20 of North-American infants
• Securely Attached
• Distressed during separation
• Seeks out mother during reunion
• About 65 of North-American infants
• Insecure Ambivalent/Resistance
• Distressed throughout, and during separation
• Reunion a mixture of relief and anger
• About 10 of North-American infants
• Insecure Ambivalent/Resistance
• Combination of avoidant and ambivalent/resistant
• Confusion over whether to approach or avoid
• During reunion may act dazed or freeze