Attachment Theory: Bowlby and Ainsworth's Theory Explained

Attachment can be defined as a deep and enduring emotional bond between two people in which each seeks closeness and feels more secure when in ... Togglenavigation TheoriesResearchMethodsMentalHealthA-levelStatistics DevelopmentalPsychologyAttachmentTheoryWhatIsAttachmentTheory?TheImportanceofEarlyEmotionalBondsBySaulMcLeod,PhD|UpdatedonAugust18,2022WhatisAttachment?Attachmentisdefinedasa“lastingpsychologicalconnectednessbetweenhumanbeings”(Bowlby,1969,P.194),andmaybeconsideredinterchangeablewithconceptssuchas“affectionalbond”and“emotionalbond.”Ahumanbeing’sfirstattachmentisoftenestablishedduringinfancywiththeprimarycaregiver;however,itmustbenotedthatattachmentisnotuniquetoinfant-caregiverrelationships,butmayalsobepresentinotherformsofsocialrelationships.Attachmentsofvariouskindsareformedthroughtherepeatedactof“attachmentbehaviors”or“attachmenttransactions,”acontinuingprocessofseekingandmaintainingacertainlevelofproximitytoanotherspecifiedindividual(Bowlby,1969).Becausecaregiversvaryintheirlevelsofsensitivityandresponsiveness,notallinfantsattachtocaregiversinthesameway. TableofcontentsUnderstandingAttachmentAinsworth's"StrangeSituation"AttachmentStylesStagesofAttachmentLastingImpactofEarlyAttachmentUnderstandingAttachmentAttachmenttheoryinpsychologyoriginateswiththeseminalworkofJohnBowlby(1958). Inthe1930sJohnBowlbyworkedasapsychiatristinaChildGuidanceClinicinLondon,wherehetreatedmanyemotionallydisturbedchildren. ThisexperienceledBowlbytoconsidertheimportanceofthechild’srelationshipwiththeirmotherintermsoftheirsocial,emotionalandcognitivedevelopment. Specifically,itshapedhisbeliefaboutthelinkbetweenearlyinfantseparationswiththemotherandlatermaladjustment,andledBowlbytoformulatehisattachmenttheory.Bowlby(1958)proposedthatattachmentcanbeunderstoodwithinanevolutionarycontextinthatthecaregiverprovidessafetyandsecurityfortheinfant.Attachmentisadaptiveasitenhancestheinfant’schanceofsurvival. Childrencomeintotheworldbiologicallypre-programmedtoformattachmentswithothers,becausethiswillhelpthemtosurvive.ThisisillustratedintheworkofLorenz(1935)andHarlow(1958). AccordingtoBowlbyinfantshaveauniversalneedtoseekcloseproximitywiththeircaregiverwhenunderstressorthreatened(Prior&Glaser,2006).Take-homeMessagesAttachmentcanbedefinedasadeepandenduringemotionalbondbetweentwopeopleinwhicheachseeksclosenessandfeelsmoresecurewheninthepresenceoftheattachmentfigure.Attachmentbehaviorinadultstowardsthechildincludesrespondingsensitivelyandappropriatelytothechild’sneeds. Suchbehaviorappearsuniversalacrosscultures.Attachmenttheoryexplainshowtheparent-childrelationshipemergesandinfluencessubsequentdevelopment.Attachmentsaremostlikelytoformwiththosewhorespondedaccuratelytothebaby'ssignals,notthepersontheyspentmoretimewith.SchafferandEmersoncalledthissensitiveresponsiveness.Attachmentischaracterizedbyspecificbehaviorsinchildren,suchasseekingproximitytotheattachmentfigurewhenupsetorthreatened(Bowlby,1969).Ainsworth's"StrangeSituation"MaryAinsworthandhercolleaguesdiscoveredthreemajorpatternsthatinfantsattachtotheirprimarycaregivers(“motherfigures”)fromtheirStrangeSituationProcedure(Ainsworthetal.,1978).Thestudyrecruitedfourdifferentsamplesofinfantsataround1yearofage,andengagedthemintotheStrangeSituationprocedure,roughlydescribedbelow:Aninfantwasputintoanunfamiliarenvironmentwithhisorhermotherandwasfreetoexploretheenvironment;astrangerenteredtheroomandgraduallyapproachedtheinfant;themotherthenlefttheroom,returningaftertheinfantspentsometimealonewiththestranger.Ainsworthandcolleaguesobservedhowcomfortableeachinfantwasbeingphysicallyfartherawayfromthemotherinanunfamiliarenvironment,howeachinfantinteractedwiththestranger,andhoweachinfantgreetedthemotheruponherreturn.Basedontheobservations,theysortedtheinfantsintothreemajorgroups:secure,anxiousandavoidant.AttachmentStylesAttachmentstylesrefertotheparticularwayinwhichanindividual relatestootherpeople.Thestyleofattachmentisformedattheverybeginningoflife,andonceestablished,itisastylethatstayswithyouandplaysouttodayinhowyourelateinintimaterelationshipsandinhowyouparentyourchildren.Theconceptinvolvesone’sconfidenceintheavailabilityoftheattachmentfigureforuseasasecurebasefromwhichonecanfreelyexploretheworldwhennotindistressaswellasasafehavenfromwhichonecanseeksupport,protection,andcomfortintimesofdistress.AttachmentTheoryPleaseenableJavaScriptAttachmentTheorySecureAttachmentBowlby(1988)describedsecureattachmentasthecapacitytoconnectwellandsecurelyinrelationshipswithotherswhilealsohavingthecapacityforautonomousactionassituationallyappropriate.Secureattachmentischaracterizedbytrust,anadaptiveresponsetobeingabandoned,andthebeliefthatoneisworthyoflove.Aninfantwithasecureattachmentischaracterizedasactivelyseekingandmaintainingproximitywiththemother,especiallyduringthereunionepisode.Theinfantmayormaynotbefriendlywiththestranger,butalwaysshowedmoreinterestininteractingwiththemother.Additionally,duringthesamesituationtheinfanttendedtobeslightlydistressedduringseparationfromthemother,buttheinfantrarelycried.Ainsworthandcolleaguesinterpretedinfantswhoweresecurelyattachedtotheirmothers,showedlessanxiousnessandmorepositiveattitudestowardtherelationship,andwerelikelybecausetheybelieveintheirmothers’responsivenesstowardstheirneeds.Anxious(Ambivalent)AttachmentAnxiousattachment(alsocalledambivalent)relationshipsarecharacterizedbyaconcernthatotherswillnotreciprocateone'sdesireforintimacy.Thisis causedwhenaninfantlearnsthattheircaregiverorparentisunreliableanddoesnotconsistentlyprovideresponsivecaretowardstheirneeds. Ananxiouslyattachedinfantischaracterizedasbeingsomewhatambivalent(andresistant)tothemother.Theinfantoftendemonstratedsignsofresistinginteractionswiththemother,especiallyduringthestrangesituationreunionepisode.However,oncecontactwiththemotherwasgained,theinfantalsoshowedstrongintentionstomaintainsuchcontact.Overall,ambivalentinfantsoftenseemedtodisplaymaladaptivebehaviorsthroughouttheStrangeSituation.Ainsworthandcolleaguesfoundambivalentinfantstobeanxiousandunconfidentabouttheirmothers’responsiveness,andtheirmotherswereobservedtolack“thefinesenseoftiming”inrespondingtotheinfants’needs.Asadults,thosewithananxiouspreoccupiedattachmentstyleareoverlyconcernedwiththeuncertaintyofarelationship.Theyholdanegativeworkingmodelofselfandapositiveworkingmodelofothers.AvoidantAttachmentChildrenwithavoidantattachmentstylestendtoavoidinteractionwiththecaregiver,andshownodistressduringseparation.Thismaybebecausetheparenthasignoredattemptstobeintimate,andthechildmayinternalizethebeliefthattheycannotdependonthisoranyotherrelationship.Aninfantwithanavoidantattachmentwascharacterizedasdisplayinglittletonotendencyofseekingproximitywiththemother.Theinfantoftenshowednodistressduringseparationwiththemother,interactedwiththestrangersimilarlytohowheorshewouldinteractwiththemother,andshowedslightsignsofavoidance(turningaway,avoidingeyecontact,etc.)whenreunitedwiththemother.Ainsworthandcolleaguesinterpretedinfants’avoidancebehaviorsasadefensivemechanismagainstthemothers’ownrejectingbehaviors,suchasbeinguncomfortablewithphysicalcontactorbeingmoreeasilyangeredbytheinfants.Disorganized(Fearful)AttachmentMainandSolomon(1986)discoveredthatasizableproportionofinfantsactuallydidnotfitintosecure,anxiousoravoidant,basedontheirbehaviorsintheStrangeSituationexperiment.Theycategorizedtheseinfantsasdisorganizedattachmenttype.Disorganizedattachmentisclassifiedbychildrenwhodisplaysequencesofbehaviorsthatlackreadilyobservablegoalsorintentions,includingobviouslycontradictorybehaviorsorstilling/freezingofmovements.MainandSolomonfoundthattheparentsofdisorganizedinfantsoftenhadunresolvedattachment-relatedtraumas,whichcausedtheparentstodisplayeitherfrightenedorfrighteningbehaviors,inturnresultinginthedisorganisedinfantstobeconfusedorforcingthemtorelyonsomeonethattheywereafraidofatthesametime.StagesofAttachmentRudolphSchafferandPeggyEmerson(1964)investigatedifattachmentdevelopsthroughaseriesofstages,by studying60babiesatmonthlyintervalsforthefirst18monthsoflife(thisisknownasalongitudinalstudy).Thechildrenwereallstudiedintheirownhome,andaregularpatternwasidentifiedinthedevelopmentofattachment.Thebabieswerevisitedmonthlyforapproximatelyoneyear,theirinteractionswiththeircarerswereobserved,andcarerswereinterviewed.Adiarywaskeptbythemothertoexaminetheevidenceforthedevelopmentofattachment.Threemeasureswererecorded:•StrangerAnxiety-responsetoarrivalofastranger.•SeparationAnxiety-distresslevelwhenseparatedfromcarer,degreeofcomfortneededonreturn.•SocialReferencing-degreethatchildlooksatcarertocheckhowtheyshouldrespondtosomethingnew(securebase).Theydiscoveredthatbaby'sattachmentsdevelopinthefollowingsequence:Asocial(0-6weeks)Asocial(0-6weeks)Veryyounginfantsareasocialinthatmanykindsofstimuli,bothsocialandnon-social,produceafavorablereaction,suchasasmile.IndiscriminateAttachments(6weeksto7months)Infantsindiscriminatelyenjoyhumancompany,andmostbabiesrespondequallytoanycaregiver.Theygetupsetwhenanindividualceasestointeractwiththem.From3monthsinfantssmilemoreatfamiliarfacesandcanbeeasilycomfortablebyaregularcaregiver.SpecificAttachment(7-9months)Specialpreferenceforasingleattachmentfigure. Thebabylookstoparticularpeopleforsecurity,comfort,andprotection. Itshowsfearofstrangers(strangerfear)andunhappinesswhenseparatedfromaspecialperson(separationanxiety). Somebabiesshowstrangerfearandseparationanxietymuchmorefrequentlyandintenselythanothers,nevertheless,theyareseenasevidencethatthebabyhasformedanattachment. Thishasusuallydevelopedbyoneyearofage.MultipleAttachment(10monthsandonwards)ManyofthebabiesfromtheSchafferandEmersonstudyhadmultipleattachmentsby10monthsold,includingattachmentstomothers,fathers,grandparents,siblingsandneighbours.Thebabybecomesincreasinglyindependentandformsseveralattachments.By18monthsthemajorityofinfantshaveformedmultipleattachments.Themultipleattachmentsformedbymostinfantsvaryintheirstrengthandimportancetotheinfant.Attachmentsareoftenstructuredinahierarchy,wherebyaninfantmayhaveformedthreeattachmentsbutonemaybestrongerthantheothertwo,andonemaybetheweakest.Theresultsofthestudyindicatedthatattachmentsweremostlikelytoformwiththosewhorespondedaccuratelytothebaby'ssignals,notthepersontheyspentmoretimewith. SchafferandEmersoncalledthissensitiveresponsiveness.Intenselyattachedinfantshadmotherswhorespondedquicklytotheirdemandsand,interactedwiththeirchild.Infantswhowereweaklyattachedhadmotherswhofailedtointeract.TheLastingImpactofEarlyAttachmentAccordingtoBowlby’stheory(1988)whenweformourprimaryattachmentwealsomakeamentalrepresentationofwhatarelationshipis(internalworkingmodel)whichwethenuseforallotherrelationshipsinthefuturei.e.friendships,workingandromanticrelationships.Thedifferentattachmentstylesmaybeviewedessentiallyasdifferentinternalworkingmodelsof“relationships”thatevolvedoutofeventexperiences(Main,Kaplan,&Cassidy,1985).Thiswouldsuggestthatearlyinteractionswithcaregiverscouldnotonlyshapehowaninfantunderstoodandbehavedinrelationships(asexemplifiedbyinfantattachmentstyles),butthatsuchimpactcouldbecarriedforwardintoadultattachment.AccordingtoBowlby(1969)laterrelationshipsarelikelytobeacontinuationofearlyattachmentstyles(secureandinsecure)becausethebehavioroftheinfant’sprimaryattachmentfigurepromotesaninternalworkingmodelofrelationshipswhichleadstheinfanttoexpectthesameinlaterrelationships.Inotherwordstherewillbecontinuitybetweenearlyattachmentexperiencesandlaterrelationships.Thisisknownasthecontinuityhypothesis.Inhumansattachmentdoesnotconcludeininfancy,orevenchildhood,butinsteadisactivethroughoutthelifespan,withindividualsgainingcomfortfrombothphysicalandmentalrepresentationsofsignificantothers(Bowlby,1969). Itisthroughanindividual’sinternalworkingmodelthatchildhoodpatternsofattachmentarecarriedforwardacrossthelifecycleintoadolescentandadulthood. Thenotionofsecurityisstillanimportantone;however,thegrowingemergenceofautonomyisalsosignificantastheattachmentsysteminadultsislesslikelytobeactivatedduetothembeingabletotoleratehigherlevelsofdistresscomparedtochildren. Duringadulthoodnewattachmentbondsareformedwhichmaybecomeasignificantsourceofsupportduringperiodsofdistress,orduringperiodsofgoalachievementandexplorationResearchershaveproposedthatworkingmodelsareinterconnectedwithinacomplexhierarchicalstructure(Bowlby,1980;Bretherton,1985,1990;Collins&Read,1994;Main,Kaplan,&Cassidy,1985).Forexample,thehighestlevelmodelcomprisesbeliefsandexpectationsacrossalltypesofrelationship,andlowerlevelmodelsholdgeneralrulesaboutspecificrelations,suchasromanticorparental,underpinnedbymodelsspecifictoeventswithinarelationshipwithasingleperson.Theexistenceofmultiplementalmodelsissupportedbyevidencewhichdemonstratesconsiderablewithin-personvariabilityintheexpectationsandbeliefsthatpeopleholdabouttheselfandothers(Baldwin&Fehr,1995).Furthermore,althoughspecificmodelsofattachmentrelationshipsarepositivelyassociatedwithmoreoverarchinggeneralworkingmodels,thecorrelationsaresmalltomoderate(lessthan.40),indicatingthattheycompriseddistinctbeliefsregardingtheselfandsignificantothers(Cozzarelli,Hoekstra,&Bylsma,2000).Likely,generalmentalmodelsindicateatypicalappraisaloftheselfandothersacrossrelationships,andrelationship-specificbeliefsabouttheselfandone’spartnerwouldplausiblyrepresentonlyapartofthesegeneralisedbeliefs.Howtoreferencethisarticle:Howtoreferencethisarticle:McLeod,S.A.(2017,Febuary05).Attachmenttheory.SimplyPsychology.www.simplypsychology.org/attachment.htmlAPAStyleReferencesAinsworth,M.D.S.,&Bell,S.M.(1970).Attachment,exploration,andseparation:Illustratedbythebehaviorofone-year-oldsinastrangesituation.ChildDevelopment,41,49-67.Ainsworth,M.D.S.(1973).Thedevelopmentofinfant-motherattachment.InB.Cardwell&H.Ricciuti(Eds.),Reviewofchilddevelopmentresearch(Vol.3,pp.1-94)Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress.Ainsworth,M.D.S.,Blehar,M.C.,Waters,E.,&Wall,S.(1978).Patternsofattachment:Apsychologicalstudyofthestrangesituation.LawrenceErlbaum.Ainsworth,M.D.S.(1991).Attachmentsandotheraffectionalbondsacrossthelifecycle.InC.M.Parkes,J.Stevenson-Hinde,&P.Marris(Eds.),Attachmentacrossthelifecycle(pp.33-51).London:Routledge.Bowlby,J.(1958).Thenatureofthechildstietohismother.InternationalJournalofPsychoanalysis,39,350-371.BowlbyJ.(1969).Attachment.Attachmentandloss: Vol.1.Loss.NewYork:BasicBooks.Bowlby,J.,andRobertson,J.(1952).Atwo-year-oldgoestohospital.Proceedings oftheRoyalSocietyofMedicine,46,425–427.Dollard,J.&Miller,N.E.(1950).Personalityandpsychotherapy.NewYork:McGraw-HillHarlow,H.F.&Zimmermann,R.R.(1958).Thedevelopmentofaffectiveresponsivenessininfantmonkeys.ProceedingsoftheAmericanPhilosophicalSociety,102,501-509.Prior,V.,&Glaser,D.(2006).Understandingattachmentandattachmentdisorders:Theory,evidenceandpractice.JessicaKingsleyPublishers.Schaffer,H.R.,&Emerson,P.E.(1964).Thedevelopmentofsocialattachmentsininfancy.MonographsoftheSocietyforResearchinChildDevelopment,1-77.FurtherInformationA-levelPsychologyAttachmentRevisionNotes JohnBowlby A-levelPsychologyAttachmentRevisionNotes AttachmentStyles HodgesandTizard KonradLorenzImprinting PrivationandGenieRutter MaternalDeprivation ReviewandCriticismsofAttachmentTheory TheEffectsofChildcareonSocialDevelopmentANewLookat AttachmentTheory&Adult“Attachment”BehaviorBowlby44ThievesTheOriginsofAttachmentTheory:BowlbyandAinsworthMichaelRutter  DownloadthisarticleasaPDFHowtoreferencethisarticle:Howtoreferencethisarticle:McLeod,S.A.(2017,Febuary05).Attachmenttheory.SimplyPsychology.www.simplypsychology.org/attachment.html Home|AboutUs|PrivacyPolicy|Advertise|ContactUsBacktotopSimplyPsychology'scontentisforinformationalandeducationalpurposesonly.Ourwebsiteisnotintendedtobeasubstituteforprofessionalmedicaladvice,diagnosis,ortreatment.©SimplyScholarLtd-Allrightsreservedreportthisadreportthisad RelatedArticlesA-levelRevisionNotes JohnBowlby StrangeSituation HodgesandTizard Privation/GenieCaseStudy LorenzImprintingreportthisad x