Harlow's Attachment Experiments Flashcards

Questions and Answers

What did Harlow do in his attachment experiments?

Tested attachment in the rhesus monkeys by separating them from their mothers at birth.

What was Harlow's aim in the attachment experiments?

To investigate whether food or comfort were more important in the formation of attachment in the monkeys.

The steps of his experiment involved infant monkeys being removed from their mothers at birth and kept in cages containing two ______.

surrogate mothers

Harlow observed that more time was spent on the ______ surrogate.

cloth Signup and view all the answers

What did Harlow conclude from his observations?

Contact comfort is more important than feeding in the formation of infant-mother attachment in the monkeys. Signup and view all the answers

What was the independent variable (IV) in Harlow's experiment?

Whether the bottle was on the cloth or wire surrogate. Signup and view all the answers

What was the dependent variable (DV) in Harlow's experiment?

The amount of time spent on either surrogate. Signup and view all the answers

What was Harlow's hypothesis?

Infant rhesus monkeys would prefer either food or contact comfort in forming attachment. Signup and view all the answers

Was Harlow's experiment considered unethical?

True Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Harlow's Attachment Experiments

Conducted experiments using rhesus monkeys, removing infants from their mothers at birth to study attachment behavior.
Aimed to determine whether attachment in monkeys was primarily influenced by food or comfort.

Experiment Procedure

Infant monkeys were housed in cages with two surrogates: one wire model and one covered with soft cloth.
Each surrogate had a feeding bottle attached to simulate nursing, with one bottle on the cloth surrogate and one on the wire surrogate.
A total of eight monkeys were observed, with half in each condition.

Observations and Conclusions

Monkeys consistently spent more time with the cloth surrogate, regardless of which surrogate provided food.
Harlow concluded that "contact comfort" is a more significant factor than food in forming attachment bonds.

Experimental Variables

Independent Variable (IV): The location of the feeding bottle (cloth vs. wire surrogate).
Dependent Variable (DV): Duration of time the monkeys spent with each surrogate.

Hypothesis

Proposed that for infant rhesus monkeys, attachment would be influenced more by contact comfort than by feeding.

Ethical Considerations

The experiments were deemed unethical due to intentional exposure of the monkeys to distressing stimuli.
Violated animal ethical guidelines aimed at preventing pain, stress, or deprivation in animals, especially under conditions where alternatives exist.

Description

Explore the key concepts of Harry Harlow's attachment experiments with these flashcards. Learn about his methodology, aims, and the significance of his findings in the study of attachment theory. Perfect for students of psychology and behavioral studies.