Attachment Theories & Early Development Notes PDF

Attachment -- can happen on multiple levels (parent child, teacher student ex), early attachments are needed for health and well-being, creating strong well adjusted people Theories of attachment -- Harlow studied bond between cloth mother and wire mother with food -- highlighting social support (...

Attachment -- can happen on multiple levels (parent child, teacher student ex), early attachments are needed for health and well-being, creating strong well adjusted people Theories of attachment -- Harlow studied bond between cloth mother and wire mother with food -- highlighting social support (comfort and affection are critical for development not just the provision of food) -- monkey's had a choice and chose the cloth mothers suggesting infant development isn't relying only on nourishment or being fed an can't be reduced to just nursing Contact comfort -- some believe skin on skin is essential on developing attachment, provides innate pleasure for both infant and caregiver, basis of infants first attachment (bottle feeding is close contact and nursing is skin on skin) close contact begins comfort Lorenz -- studied imprinting with geese and believed was nature related -- took clutch of goose eggs and half went to mother goose and half went to incubator -- hatched eggs imprinted on goose or him from incubator -- suggested they would follow the first moving object they see (known as imprinting) once imprinting has occurred it can't be reversed (it is one and done) -- to ensure imprinting had occurred he put all goslings together under a box and when turned the box over the goslings went to who they had imprinted -- it's a survival impulse to keep infants close to caregivers -- -secure attachment placed in a strange situation 60% will show secure attachment and will explore when caregiver present -- when caregiver leaves, they become distressed -- insecure attachment cling to caregiver and wont be taken from caregiver -secure attachment results from relaxed and attentive caregiving is the backbone of secure attachment -insecure attachment -- harlow showed monkey experience anxiety it terry mother removed \*\*\*quiz -- insecure avoidant attachment -- reacts to caregiver indifferent when leaving and doesn't react upon return -insecure anxious -- reacts to departure with panic and upon return responds mixed reaction -Deprivations -- impact of early maternal deprivation and not being able to develop attachment only lasted if 60 days (humans 6 months) -- no amount of attempt to makeup after this could change the behaviour or way respond or brain had developed -deprivation attachment the children become withdrawn, frightened and unable to develop speech -brain of child after prolonged neglect is smaller, has deeper selki, surface is affected which affects every aspect of thinking -prolonged deprivation -- risk for physical, psychological and social problems including alterations in brain serotonin levels -Romainia dictator banned abortion, birth control and taxed families with less than 5 people -- orphanages had one caregiver per 15 children and they failed to develop healthy attachments -- institutions that don't provide the proper care suffer many issues, diminished language skills, rarely cry, stiffen when picked up, appear forelorn, susceptible to infection, die from lack of attachment -- low language scores -- white matter was significantly damage but children who found loving foster homes were able to regrow matter and connections -percentage of infants who cry when mothers left -- peeks around 13 months -attachment styles -- the strange situation -- found children could be divided into three groups, secure, anxious/ambivalent, anxious/avoidant and then fourth added disorganized/disoriented \*\*\*quiz anxious/ambivalent infant becomes upset when mother leaves room and when returns wants to be close and then squirms to get away Parenting styles -- reflect various degrees of control -authoritarian -- parents are coercive, impose rules and expect obedience -permissive -- parents are unrestraining, make few demands and set few limits and use little punishments -negligent -- parents are uninvolved, neither demanding nor responsive, careless and inattentive who do not seek a close relationship with their children -authoritative -- parents are confrontive, demanding and responsive and exert control by setting rules but especially with older children encourage open discussion and allow exceptions Adolescence -- life between childhood and adulthood -- some think our attitudes and behaviours are set during childhood but we know it is a lifelong process now -- brain development -- selective pruning begins but cognitive development continues as we age -- at adolescence they begin to think more about what others are thinking and what others are thinking about them, how they can reach ideals and start to criticize society parents and themselves -- developing reasoning power Moral Reasoning -- it is a personal decision 3 basic levels of moral thinking -preconventional morality -- birth to 9 -- going to do what I can get away with , based on punishment and reward -conventional morality -- early adolescence to adulthood -- understands society rules and laws -postconventional morality -- affirms people's agreed upon rights or follows personal ethical principles Kohlerg's Theory -moral reasoning vs behaviour -- higher levels or reasoning , situationally dependent Possible gender bias -- casual relationships people tend to tell more lies Cultural differences -- may be more reflective Forming an Identity -- trying to figure out who we are