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Analyse the significance of attachment on children's development
Contemporary attachment theory
Contemporary attachment theory
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Attachment is the “…strong emotional bind that emerges between infant and caregiver” (Bukatko & Daehler, 418). Behaviors that are specific to attachment include: separation anxiety, reunion behavior, stranger anxiety, secure attachment, secure base, insecure attachment, etc. All of these behaviors are influence by attachment or lack there of during infancy. For example, secure base is when a child explores but checks to see if their caregiver is still there. Another example is separation anxiety that is when a child shows distress when the caregiver leaves their environment. Childcare plays a large role in a child’s attachment development; depending on how much time a child spends there. If a child is around ten month they will often show
The attachment process plays a crucial role in a child’s development and their future impact on society According to Dr Suzanne Zeedyk. Children can’t feel relaxed and safe with the adults & children in the nursery until they get to know them. If there’s a lack of affection towards a child they may be reluctant to take advantage of all the learning opportunities because of their anxiety. We now know that relationships literally shape the neural connections in young children’s brains. This means everything that happens or doesn’t happen for the child will leaves a physiological trace in their growing brain. According to Dr Suzanne
The Strange Situation, in which infants are exposed to eight different episodes involving the mother and/or a stranger, is widely used to test attachments, although there are many different views regarding its validity and reliability. In order for the Strange Situation to be considered reliable, a child tested at different times should produce the same reaction every time; this was supported by Main, Kapland and Cassidy’s 1985 study which found that 100% of infants who had been securely attached before 18 months were still securely attached at 6 years, and 75% of those who had been anxious-avoidant remained so. One interpretation of attachment type (based on the Strange Situation) is that it is a fixed characteristic and therefore cannot be changed, but if there is a change in family circumstances this is often not the case. Attachments to mothers and fathers have been proven to be independent – Main and Weston (1981) found that children reacted differently depending on which parent they were with. This shows that the attachment types shown by the Strange Situation are based on qualities of distinct relationships as opposed to a child’s characteristics.
Attachment is an important aspect through the developmental stages of a child. It is the process through which an individual develops specific bonds with others (). John Bowlby theorized Attachment Theory, which focuses on a behavioral system that demonstrates the response of an adult when a child signals which can lead to a strong trusting relationship (). Through attachment infants develop strong emotional bonds with others, which can result in a more positive outcome later in life.
The results of the study claimed that the attachments developed over time and goes through four stages. From birth to six weeks it’s the Pre-attachment or Indiscriminate phase, the infants respond to all stimuli in the same ways and so does not have certain attachments or preferences about who they were with, towards the end of the stage the child begins to show a preference for social stimuli (e.g. smiling). Between six weeks to six months it’s the Discriminating phase, they become extremely sociable with anybody, cl...
It has been proposed that infant attachment styles do not change after the first year of life, the following essay will argue against this prompt in that ones attachment style will change continuously throughout life. Attachment theory is based on the joint work of Bowlby and Ainsworth (Bretherton, 1992). In recent years the idea of ‘attachment’ has become and increasingly popular debate within developmental psychology (Bretherton, 1992). Attachment theory provides an explanation on how parent and child relationships are formed and the important role they play in child development. However majority of the research into attachment has focused on identifying the stability of attachment rather then identifying the possible insatiability of
The attachment style that a child endures with their mother initially begins before the child is even born. In the mother’s womb, the infant becomes aware of their mother and father’s voices, where they begin to develop a bond with them and feel nurtured and comforted by the things they hear their parents sing and speak to them. According to Bowlby, the development of attachment takes place in four different phases and are reinforced as they grow older from the Preattachment (birth to age 6 weeks), attachment-in-the-making (age 6 weeks to 8 months), clear cut attachment (between 8 months to 1 ½ years of age) and the reciprocal relationship (from 1 ½ or 2 and on). As the child grows older, then begin to understand their parent’s feelings and motives and are able to organize their efforts and reciprocate the same i...
Attachment is described as the close emotional bond between two people and Attachment Theory (AT) generally concentrates on the early bonds in a person’s development as well as the effects that these bonds have on later socio-emotional development. While emphasis on attachment as an antecedent for future behavior and personality has decreased somewhat in recent years, it is interesting to note that the DSM IV-TR includes a “reactive attachment disorder” which it states is caused when extreme circumstances prevent proper attachment development.
Infant attachment is the first relationship that occurs between infants and their mothers or other primary caregivers (Craig & Dunn, 2010). The mother-infant attachment begins at birth and is considered by a group of...
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)
Through the well-studied idea of maternal-infant attachment there has been important insight into a child’s development. Mary Ainsworth found through her “Strange Situation” experiment that there are three distinct types of attachment that infants form; anxious avoidant, secure, and anxious resistant (O’Gorman, 2013). Later a fourth attachment style known as, disorganized attachment, was identified (CITE). Secure attachment is linked to maternal sensitivity just as insecure attachment is linked to maternal rejection or unpredictable maternal response to an infant’s desires and needs (Kinsvatter, Desmond, Yanikoski, & Stahl, 2013). Infants are “at risk” of developing an insecure attachment to their mother when they are placed in alternative care before nine months of age (Stifter, Coulehan, & Fish, 1993). This is concerning in that we see there are negative effec...
...n infant will form attachments for more than purely the need for food and that they crave care, comfort and safety. These early attachment theories prove that an infant needs a loving and protective relationship with a parent or primary caregiver and this relationship will continue to develop into childhood and may possibly have an impact in later life.
Crugnola, C.R., Tambelli, R., Spinelli, M., Gazzotti, S., Caprin, C. & Albizzati, A. (2011). Attachment patterns and emotion regulation strategies in the second year. Infant Behaviour and Development, 34(1), 136-151. Doi: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2010.11.002
The child feels more desire to explore when the caregiver is around, and he or she is discontented when the caretaker goes away. This pattern of attachment is characterized by high discriminative aspects where the child highly sensitive to the presence of strangers (Newton, 2008). A child becomes happy where the caregiver is present and dull when the caregiver goes away. Secure attachment level and intensity is determined by the caregiver sensitivity to the needs of a child. Consistent response to a child needs by the caregiver or parents will create a relatively strong secure attachment pattern. Care and attention are the major determinants of secure attachment and a child who revives a lot of attention and care from his or her parent are much prone to develop secure attachment, and it is an indication that the parent is responsive to the child
For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to become a teacher and change the lives of young children through education. I not only love teaching, but I also love learning. Teaching is my greatest passion. According to Carbonneau (2008), “passion appears to be an important concept to consider in education because the teaching profession requires teachers to invest time, energy, and their hearts in their teaching” (p. 2). The field of education requires teachers to have a strong passion but also to continue to add to their pedagogy and grow professionally constantly. A teacher’s passion is fueled by several factors, and these can help guide one in his or her quest to because a better educator. One thing that ignites my passion is being
A number of studies focused on the mother- infant relationship and the effect of child care on the development of such relationship (Belsky, 1989; Lamb, Sternberg, & Prodromidis, 1992). Attachment theory indicates that a secure relation formation between child and caregiver is important for the child to develop flexible behavioural system and adapt easily to new situations. Bowlby (quoted by Lamb, Sternberg, & Prodromidis) summarised that attachments form around middle of the first year and are strengthened later in the year. It comes as no surprise that studies done by Barglow, Vaughn, & Molitor (1987); Belsky & Rovine (1988); Vaughn, Gove, & Egeland, (1980) , as quoted by Egeland & Heister (1995), reported that entry of infants before 12 months of age to child day care is linked to increased risk of insecure-avoidant attachment. Assessments were based on Ainsworth’s Strange Situation (Ainswoth, Blehar, Water, & Wall, 1978) to measure the infant-mother attachment. While these children might not reject attention from parents, they also did not seek comfort, showing no preference between a parent and a complete stranger.