Attachment is a core aspect of growing up. A baby is naturally attached to their parents, which is beneficial for multiple reasons. Namely, the parent-child attachment is important for the child's survival. So, what are these types and explanations of attachment?
Explanations of Attachments: Overview
An attachment is a deep, enduring, reciprocating emotional bond between two people. The relationship is characterised by a child seeking closeness and feeling secure when the attachment figure is present. And for an adult, it is characterised by responding sensitively and appropriately to the child's needs.
Ainsworth Explanation of Attachment
Ainsworth attempted to assess how children would react when exposed to a new situation, precisely, how they would feel and behave when their primary caregiver (in this case, their mother) left and reunited with them. In addition to how they acted when left with a strange.
The strange situation refers to an observation technique in which an infant or child is placed in a situation where their caregiver is not present or leaves the room.
The study was conducted on 12 to 18-month-old children, and researchers observed participants in eight scenarios. Ainsworth defined different behaviours that were measured to determine the children's attachment types:
- Proximity seeking – how close the infant stays to their caregiver
- Secure base behaviour – secure base behaviour involves the child feeling safe to explore their environment but returning to their caregiver often, using them as a safe 'base'
- Separation and stranger anxiety – display anxious behaviours such as crying, protesting or seeking their caregiver when separated. Some displays of anxious behaviours are crying or avoidance when the stranger approaches.
- Reunion response – the child's response to their caregiver when reunited with them
The children's behaviour was recorded using a controlled observation to measure the attachment. This process was comprised of consecutive sections, each lasting approximately 3 minutes. These are as follows;
- The parent and child enter an unfamiliar playroom. The child is encouraged to explore and play with their parent.
- A stranger enters and attempts to interact with the child.
- The parent leaves the room, leaving the stranger and their child.
- The parent returns, and the stranger leaves.
- The parent leaves the child alone in the playroom.
- The stranger returns.
- The parent returns again.
Fig. 1 Infants with a close bond are often categorised as having a secure attachment. Ainsworth Explanation of Attachment: Conclusion
Mary Ainsworth concluded that children have three distinct attachment types with their primary caregiver (secure attachment, insecure-resistant attachment, and insecure-avoidant attachment).
15% were insecure-avoidant, 70% were securely attached, and 15% were insecure-resistant.
This challenged the previously accepted idea that attachment was something a child either had or didn't have, as theorised by Ainsworth's colleague John Bowlby. Parents play the most significant role in an infant's life. They teach them all their basic skills, including forming healthy attachments.
Issues exist because the study lacked ecological validity (being conducted in a laboratory setting), and behaviours of both parent and child could reflect this (they may act differently, and the child can pick up on these subtle cues). However, the study is reliable as it did account for different variables.
Bowlby's Explanation of Attachment
Another attachment theory is John Bowlby's explanation of attachment. Three pillars of his theory include monotropy, critical periods, and the internal working model.
Explanations of Attachment: Monotropic Theory
Between 1969 and 1988, Bowlby formed his monotropic theory of attachment.
Monotropic theory: Influenced by psychodynamics and evolutionary psychology, the theory suggests attachment is evolutionary and essential for survival.
Bowlby explains that attachment behaviours of both infants and caregivers have evolved through natural selection and serve the evolutionary purpose of ensuring infant survival. This relationship is considered the most important in the child's life, survival, and psychological well-being. While other attachments can be made, this primary attachment is the most significant.
This attachment forms through social releaser innate behaviours such as crying, eye contact, clinging and smiling. These behaviours are biologically programmed to encourage the parent to bond with the child and respond to their needs.
The child's ability to perform these behaviours and the parent's ability to pick up on them are both considered evolutionary advantages and therefore have become innate through natural selection.
Explanations of Attachment: Critical Period
Through his research, Bowlby defined a critical period during which babies must bond with a caregiver. Otherwise, there is a risk that they will not bond at all later in life. According to Bowlby, this carries detrimental consequences.
If a relationship is not formed during the critical period, then this may contribute to developmental, social, behavioural and psychological problems.
This critical period is between birth and 2.5/3 years.
In later revisions, Bowlby added that there might be a sensitive period, between 0 and 5 years after the critical period, where the attachment can form. However, it takes longer and requires more effort.
Explanations of Attachment: Internal working model
We can see the internal working model as a 'blueprint' that a child learns for navigating social relationships. It also represents what the relationships they form throughout life might look like.
The child learns this from the first, monotropic attachment with their primary caregiver, influencing their future platonic and romantic relationships.
Essentially the theory proposed that people use their initial relationship with their primary caregiver as a template for future relationships.
The model involves three main features:
A model for the trustworthiness of others – if their primary caregiver has been consistently responsive to their needs, the child is more likely to perceive others as trustworthy.
A model of the self as valuable – if the child is treated with respect and their needs are met, they will see themselves as valuable.
A model of the self as effective in interacting with others – if the child's social releasers are adequately responded to, the child will see themselves as effective in interacting with others.
Classical Conditioning Explanation of Attachment
In classical conditioning, first demonstrated in the famous Pavlov's Dogs experiment, an individual begins to associate a neutral stimulus (something not associated with anything else) with an unconditioned response.
There are a few important abbreviations we'll need to define going forward. These are:
UCR – Unconditioned response: when the response to a stimulus is not a result of conditioning (e.g., expressing pain when you fall)
UCS – Unconditioned Stimulus: when the stimulus is not associated with anything. (e.g., plain paper is unlikely to be associated with any feelings or behaviour)
CR – Conditioned response: when a response is associated with a particular stimulus (e.g., if a dog bites you, you associate dogs with fear)
CS – Conditioned stimulus: when a stimulus is associated with a response (e.g., the dog in the above example)
In classical conditioning, a person simultaneously experiences a stimulus as another stimulus which elicits a response. As a result, the individual associates the unconditioned stimulus with the response of the other stimulus.
The classical conditioning explanation of attachment suggests that the baby begins to associate the positive feeling (UCR) that they experience when they receive food (UCS) with their mother (CS), resulting in attachment.
Fig. 2 Attachment by classical conditioning, Vaia Originals
Before learning: Food (UCS) → Pleasure (UCR)
During learning: Food (UCS) + Caregiver (CS) → Pleasure (UCR)
After learning: Caregiver (CS) → Pleasure (CR)
Attachment Theory Explanation of Parasocial Relationships
Can you think of your favourite character in your favourite television show? What if that character was written off the show? Would this make you feel sad or abandoned? For some people, the answer is yes. They've formed a parasocial relationship with that character.
Several researchers have investigated attachment theory explanations of parasocial relationships. For example, Cole and Leets (1999) designed a study to observe how audience members become attached to television personalities using attachment theory.
They found that people with insecure-resistant attachment styles were more likely to form parasocial relationships, perhaps as a way to fulfil their emotional needs that were not being met.
People with an insecure-avoidant attachment style, however, were least likely to form parasocial relationships, likely because they avoid forming emotional attachments.
Outline and Evaluate One or More Explanations of Attachment
How can we outline and evaluate one or more explanations of attachment? Let's begin with Rutter's (2007) later research on Romanian orphanages, which found no significant difference in attachment for children under or over six months.
Thus, age may not be such a substantial factor in a child's ability to attach.
Another study by Schaffer and Emerson (1964) studied 60 Scottish infants in the first 18 months of life. It found that infants were more likely to bond with caregivers who responded accurately and consistently to their signals, supporting Bowlby's idea of social releasers.
However, they also found that babies can develop multiple strong attachments by ten months of age, challenging Bowlby's idea that they only have one.
Bowlby's theory tends to take an 'all or nothing' approach to attachment. However, a study by Mary Ainsworth (1970) investigated different attachment qualities and found three different attachment types with other developmental consequences. The study points out the limitations of Bowlby's theory as it shows there is much more to attachment than he assumed.
Explanations of Attachment - Key takeaways
Mary Ainsworth's explanation of attachment theorised three infant-caregiver attachment styles secure attachment, insecure-resistant attachment, and insecure-avoidant attachment.
Another attachment theory is John Bowlby's explanation of attachment. Three pillars of his theory include monotropy, critical periods, and the internal working model.
The classical conditioning explanation of attachment suggests that the baby begins to associate the positive feeling (UCR) that they experience when they receive food (UCS) with their mother (CS), resulting in attachment.
Parasocial relationships are one-sided relationships in which a person emotionally attaches to a media personality. The attachment theory explanation of parasocial relationships suggests particular attachemnt styles are prone to develop parasocial relationships.
Bowlby's theory takes an 'all or nothing' approach to attachment. However, a study by Mary Ainsworth (1970) investigated different attachment qualities and found three different attachment types with other developmental consequences.
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