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Effect of abuse on child development
The Strength Of Attachment Theory
The Strength Of Attachment Theory
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After thoroughly examining different cases of maladjusted children, psychologist John Bowlby began to pioneer his work, linking patients’ childhood histories to the symptoms they showed. It appeared that the children’s behavior was affected by the parental deprivation and instances of separations they had since infancy. He also made medical breakthroughs when he discovered that parents’ childhood experiences also contribute significantly to the behavior of these emotionally troubled children (Bretherton, 1994, p. 762). Although he originally established the theory on the attachment behavioral system of a child, he ascribed that each child has a distinct way of appraising the receptiveness towards their primary caregivers and how they adjust their actions and behavior when responding to unfamiliar settings or threats. Objective of the Study This report aims to discuss John Bowlby’s research on attachment. The study revolves around infants and their primary caregivers, properly addressing the attachment level between them, and how they interact with each other. With thorough observations, this study will be able to determine how attachment affects the infant’s sense of security and predetermine their future behavior. Methods Subjects or Participants: Bowlby studied 2 to 36-month old infants. Although there must be further research from 37th month and above, Bowlby believes that the following ages are the most crucial in developing behavioral characteristics among infants. The researcher, however, did not mention other relevant factors concerning the participants such as their race, socioeconomic level and the like. Strange Situation Procedure: To examine how attachments vary from one situation to another, Bowlby conduct... ... middle of paper ... ...t Theory: John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth. A Century of Developmental Psychology. American Psychological Association. Zeanah, C., Berlin, L. & Boris, N. (2011) Practitioner Review: Clinical Applications of Attachment Theory and Research for Infants and Young Children. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. Blackwell Publishing. Main, M., Kaplan, N., & Cassidy, J. (1985). Security of attachment in infancy, childhood and adulthood: A move to the level of representation. In I. Bretherton & E. Waters (Eds.), Growing points of attachment theory and research. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development. Kobak, R., & Madsen, S. (2008). Disruptions in Attachment Bonds: Implications for theory, research and clinical intervention. In J. Cassidy & P.R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of Attachment: Theory, research and clinical applications (2nd Edition).
Waters, E., C.E. Hamilton and N.S. Weinfield. (2000). The stability of attachment security from infancy to adolescence and early adulthood: General introduction. Child Development, 71(3).
Shaffer, D. R., & Kipp, K. (2014). Infancy. In Developmental psychology: Childhood and adolescence (p. 158). Australia: Wadsworth.
Attachments are formed with parents; this contributes to give a sense of who we are and who we will become in later life. However where these attachments are broken the child needs to have a secure attachment established with an alternative adult care giver,...
John Bowlby’s attachment theory established that an infant’s earliest relationship with their primary caregiver or mother shaped their later development and characterized their human life, “from the cradle to the grave” (Bowlby, 1979, p. 129). The attachment style that an infant develops with their parent later reflects on their self-esteem, well-being and the romantic relationships that they form. Bowlby’s attachment theory had extensive research done by Mary Ainsworth, who studied the mother-infant interactions specifically regarding the theme of an infant’s exploration of their surrounding and the separation from their mother in an experiment called the strange situation. Ainsworth defined the four attachment styles: secure, insecure/resistant, insecure/avoidant and disorganized/disoriented, later leading to research studies done to observe this behavior and how it affects a child in their adolescence and adulthood.
According to (Pittman, Keiley, & Kerpelman, 2011), Bowlby theorized that it is the interactions between people that form connections and develop attachments. There are four different types of attachments; secure, avoidant, and anxious ambivalent. When we look at this theory applied to children we see that a secure attachment is when children are most comfortable when their parents are around and are easy to soothe by the parents. Insecure or avoidant attachment is when the child doesn’t prefer to be near the parents and could care less if the parents are absent. This happened when the parents failed to meet their child’s needs, despite a child expressing their needs. Anxious ambivalent attachment is when the child won’t leave their parents side, even if it is to explore their surroundings, is distraught if the parents leave, and mistrusting if the parents try to comfort after leaving (Arnett, & Maynard,
Both Erik Erikson’s (1963) theory and Mary Ainsworth and John Bowlby (1973) theory support the idea that early life experiences impact the person across their lifespan. Both theories believe that personality begins to develop from a young age and therefore occurrences in early life can have lasting impacts on the developmental of an individual. An individual’s social and psychological development is significantly influenced by early life and childhood experiences. The experiences an individual has as a child impacts on the development of social skills, social behaviours, morals and values of an individual.
Attachment theory explains the extent to which the emotional and physical bond to a primary caregiver is critical to personal development (Bowlby,1969). In addition, attachment theory provides an explanation for the universal behaviours that a caregiver has toward a child (like, responding with care and tending to needs) and how this relationship influences later development (Bowlby, 1969). It is this search for a secure base that is at the root of the biosocial contract between an adult and a child that results in the child looking for safety and security (Holmes, 2014). However, if this contract is broken, and the adult uses their power for selfish means, then the child is left with feelings of shame, unworthy of attachment (Holmes, 2014). This trauma, as consequence of rejection and broken trust, has a powerful impact on a child’s attachment (Holmes, 2014). An assessment of attachment insecurity can inform decisions around the effective treatment of depression due to prior exposure to trauma (Fowler, Allen, Oldham, & Frueh,
Infant attachment is the first relationship a child experiences and is crucial to the child’s survival (BOOK). A mother’s response to her child will yield either a secure bond or insecurity with the infant. Parents who respond “more sensitively and responsively to the child’s distress” establish a secure bond faster than “parents of insecure children”. (Attachment and Emotion, page 475) The quality of the attachment has “profound implications for the child’s feelings of security and capacity to form trusting relationships” (Book). Simply stated, a positive early attachment will likely yield positive physical, socio-emotional, and cognitive development for the child. (BOOK)
Hazan, C., Gur-Yaish, N., & Campa, M. (2003). What does it mean to be attached? In W. S. Rholes & J. A. Simpson (Eds.) Adult Attachment: Theory, Research, and Clinical Implications, (pp. 55 – 85). New York: Guilford.
Attachment theory is the idea that a child needs to form a close relationship with at least one primary caregiver. The theory proved that attachment is necessary to ensure successful social and emotional development in an infant. It is critical for this to occur in the child’s early infant years. However, failed to prove that this nurturing can only be given by a mother (Birns, 1999, p. 13). Many aspects of this theory grew out of psychoanalyst, John Bowlby’s research. There are several other factors that needed to be taken into account before the social worker reached a conclusion; such as issues surrounding poverty, social class and temperament. These factors, as well as an explanation of insecure attachment will be further explored in this paper.
In this study, researchers took sixty-four adolescent mothers and their infants to participate in a 24-month study. The researchers wanted to test Bowlby’s attachment theory to find out if Bowlby was correct about if unusual parenting escalates the child’s possibility of abstaining psychopathological effects. The participants were moth...
Brenning, K.M. & Braet, C. (2013). The emotion regulation model of attachment: An emotion-specific approach. Personal Relationships, 20(1), 107-123. Doi: 10.1111/j.1475-6811.2012.01399.x
John Bowlby was the first attachment theorist, he describes attachment as a “lasting psychological connectedness between human beings” (Bowlby, 1969, p.194), he believed that the earliest bonds that were formed between child and caregiver has a huge impact that continues throughout the infants life. Attachment is said to help keep the infant close to their mother, so it improves the child’s chance of survival.
In secure attachment, infants use the caregiver, usually the mother, as a secure base from which to explore the environment. Secure attachment is theorized to be an important foundation for psychological development later in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. In insecure attachment, infants either avoid the caregiver or show considerable resistance or ambivalence toward the caregiver. Insecure attachment is theorized to be related to difficulties in relationships and problems in later development. Developmentalists have begun to explore the role of secure attachment and related concepts, such as connectedness to parents, in adolescent development. They believe the attachment to parents in adolescence may facilitate the adolescent’s social competence and well-being, as reflected in such characteristics as self- esteem, emotional adjustment, and physical health (Allen & Kuperminc ; Armden & Greenberg; Black & McCartney; Blain, Thompson,
Bowlby’s attachment theory has greatly influenced his practice. His theory of attachment explains the importance of having a figure that the child shares a strong bond with. Having an attachment can significantly support a child’s development, as Barbara Woods suggests that “his theory of attachment proposed that attachment is innate in both infants and mothers, and that the formation of this attachment is crucial for the infants development” Wood, B (2001, p.53). Bowlby believed that forming an attachment will help a child develop in all areas, e.g. emotionally, physically and mentally. However, if they did not form an attachment during the sensitive period, the child may have issues or problems in their cognitive, emotional and social development.