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John Bowlby’s theory of attachment: relevance to the role of the educators
Impact of attachment at developmental stages
John Bowlby’s theory of attachment: relevance to the role of the educators
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The theory which contributes to the theme is John Bowlby’s attachment theory. “Bowlby used the term maternal deprivation to refer to the separation or loss of the mother as well as failure to develop an attachment”, Mcleod, (2007). Bowlby’s attachment theory is relevant to children and young people’s development. In order for children to develop, they need to have secure attachments, as those children with secure attachments, are better able to explore the environment freely and confidently. As there are many tasks that involve the regulation of emotion, such as stress. “If a child has not developed a strong foundation of emotional competence… they will struggle to manage the learning and social environment of school as successfully as their peers”, Furnivall, (2013). If children cannot cope with the learning environment then it will be difficult for them to develop.
It is supported by Harlow’s study (1959) in which Harlow created two wire mothers, one with a feeding bottle and the other with no food but a warm cloth wrapped around. The monkeys formed an attachment with the unresponsive cloth covered mother, but these monkeys had difficulties in later life. This shows the importance of interaction in attachment, another study which supports Bowlby’s theory is Scaffer and Emerson’s study (1964), they observed 60 babies over a year and found that they were most attached to the person who responded and interacted with them.
Bowlby’s theory talks about how a primary caregiver needs to respond and interact with children. However, there are some weaknesses to Bowlby’s theory of attachment as Bowlby suggested that the most important attachment figure for a child is the mother, however “many psychologists hold the view that all attachme...
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...riers to the child’s development and overall impacts the quality of the provision provided. My learning can have a positive impact on future practice as it enhances the quality of children and young people’s experience in education.
Works Cited
McLeod, S. A. (2007). John Bowlby | Maternal Deprivation Theory - Simply Psychology, (http://www.simplypsychology.org/bowlby.html), [Accessed 29 October 2013].
Cardwell Et al. (2008). Psychology AS| The Complete Companion, 2nd Edition. Oxford. Oxford University Press.
Taylor, W, Et al, (2012), CACHE Level 3 Extended Diploma, Children and Young People’s Workforce, Essex, Pearson Education Limited.
Furnivall. J, (2013), attachment-informed practice with looked after children and young people, (http://www.iriss.org.uk/resources/attachment-informed-practice-looked-after-children-and-young-people), [Accessed 30 December 2013].
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 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...
Criticisms of attachment theory have come mainly from the feminist schools of thought since the theory has been used to argue that no woman with a young child should work outside the home or spend time away from her baby (Goodsell and Meldrum, 2010). Children’s experience and development also depend on what happens after early years, whether bad or good later in life may change a child’s emotional development, e.g. lack of basic needs, diet, education, stimulation such as play might affect a child’s development (Rutter, 1981). Differences in cultures have to be taken into consideration as well. A study by Schaffer and Emmerson (1964) provided contradictory evidence for Bowlby’s attachment theory. They noted attachment was more prominent at eight months, and afterwards children became attached to more than one person.
Relationships are the building block for personality and are significant in children’s ability to grow into substantial individuals who can thrive in an often harsh world. Constructing lasting and fulfilling relationships is an integral part to development as the interpersonal bonds forged are not only highly sought after but also set the ground work for all upcoming expressive interactions. Relationships and attachment go hand in hand as attachment is the strong and lasting linkage established between a child and his or her caregiver. Moreover, attachment significantly influences a large capacity of ones make up as it these first relationships that teaches morals, builds self-esteem, and develops a support system. The pioneers of Attachment Theory realized early on that human beings are not solely influenced by drives but that the earliest bonds formed by children with their caregivers greatly impact their ability to forge lasting relationships later in life. John Bowlby was first to introduce this theory to the masses in the 1950’s, and later Mary Ainsworth conducted further research to expand on Bowlby’s theory which proclaims that attachment is a “lasting psychological connectedness between human beings” (Bowlby, 1969, p. 194). The attachment bond theory by both Bowlby and Ainsworth focuses on the significance of the relationship between babies and their caretakers which research has suggested is accountable for influencing impending interactions, firming or injuring our capabilities to concentrate, being aware of our emotional states, self-soothing capabilities, and the capacity to be resilient in the face of hardship. Additionally, this research has provided a framework for assisting in describing these att...
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.
The attachment theory, presented by Mary Ainsworth in 1969 and emerged by John Bowlby suggests that the human infant has a need for a relationship with an adult caregiver, and without a subsequent, development can be negatively impacted (Hammonds 2012). Ainsworth proposes that the type of relationship and “attachment” an infant has with the caregiver, can impact the social development of the infant. As stated by Hammonds (2012), attachment between a mother and a child can have a great impact on the child 's future mental
Bowlby 's attachment theory is used a lot in settings as children gain strong bonds with the teachers and key workers in the setting. Having a secure attachment in the setting can have a variety of positive or negative impacts on the child depending on how emotionally attached they are. A strength of the attachment theory is that by children gaining attachment with their key worker it can help the practitioner support the child and meet their needs in the setting. By a child having an attachment to their key worker it can help their development as they are more engaged with the staff. Again research has shown that the quality of a child’s learning and the development of resilience can depend on the quality of their relationships both with their
Psychologist, Mary Ainsworth expanded upon Bowlby's original work. She conducted a study labelled the ‘Strange Situation’. In the study, based upon the children’s reactions, Ainsworth described three major styles of attachment: secure attachment, ambivalent-insecure attachment, and avoidant-insecure attachment. Work by Stroufe and Waters in 1977, further supported Ainsworth's attachment styles and have indicated that attachment styles also have an impact on behaviours later in life (Birns, 1999, p. 13). Researchers have found strengths in attachment patterns established early in life can lead to a number of outcomes. For example, children who are securely attached as infants tend to develop stronger self-esteem and better self-reliance as they grow older. These children also tend to be more independent, perform better in school, have successful social relationships, and experience less depression and anxiety (Birns, 1999, p. 13).
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...
Taylor, W, Et al, (2012), CACHE Level 3 Extended Diploma, Children and Young People’s Workforce, Essex, Pearson Education Limited.
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.
One of the major pieces of research used to explain the deviant behaviour of people who have been in the care system is attachment theory. Attachment theory was developed by John Bowlby in 1951 for the World Health Organisation and originally titled “Maternal Deprivation” (Bretherton, 1992). Bowlby defines attachment as, “A deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across tim...
The Open University Press Davis, S.F. and Palladino, J.J. (1995) Psychology. Englewood Cliffs, N.J. : Prentice Hall Website : http://www.webref.org
Attachment theory is a psychological model that describes the dynamics of interpersonal relationships. The most critical point of attachment theory is that a child needs at least one primary caregiver relationship for the child’s healthy social and emotional development. Understanding attachment theory is critical with this research because it guides how early experiences can impact on behavioural and emotional development in adolescence and adulthood. The way a child understands themselves, how they cope with stressful situation, developing intimate and romantic relationships, are all shaped by the attachment style that child developed with their very first
“Attachment is as essential for the child’s psychological well-being as food is for physical health,” claimed Bowlby, B (2001, p.54). Bowlby claimed in this statement that attachment is a necessary thing that a child needs in order to develop healthily. There is evidence from other theorists who support Bowlby’s theory of attachment, such as Harlow, whose approach is based upon a caregiver’s sensitivity and attachment. Ainsworth is another theorist whose research supports Bowlby’s theory of attachment. In her strange situation study, she tested for the attachment types and what effects they had on a child’s behaviour.