Attachment theory

Psychosocial development occurs as children form relationships, interact with others, and understand and manage their feelings.

Attachment is a long-standing connection or bond with others, and in social and emotional development, forming healthy attachments is very important and is the major social milestone of infancy.

Developmental psychologists are interested in how infants reach this milestone and often seek answers to questions related to how parents and infant form attachment bonds, how neglect can affect bonding, and what accounts for children's attachment differences.

Researchers Harry Harlow, John Bowlby, and Mary Ainsworth conducted studies designed to answer these questions, and were all key contributors to attachment theory.

Harry Harlow

In the 1950s, Harlow conducted a series of experiments on monkeys. He separated newborn monkeys from their mothers. Each monkey was presented with two surrogate mothers. One surrogate monkey was made out of wire mesh, and she could dispense milk. The other monkey was softer and made from cloth: This monkey did not dispense milk.

Research shows that the monkeys preferred the soft, cuddly cloth monkey, even though she did not provide any nourishment. The baby monkeys spent their time clinging to the cloth monkey and only went to the wire monkey when they needed to be fed.

For an example, consider watching on YouTube, where Harlow discusses his experiments.

Content warning: Please note, some viewers may find some scenes disturbing.

Prior to this study, the medical and scientific communities generally thought that babies become attached to the people who provide their nourishment. However, Harlow concluded that there was more to the mother-child bond than nourishment. Feelings of comfort and security are the critical components to maternal-infant bonding, which leads to healthy psychosocial development.

Harlow's studies of monkeys were performed before modern ethics guidelines were in place, and today his experiments are widely considered to be unethical and even cruel.

John Bowlby

Building on the work of Harlow and others, John Bowlby developed the concept of attachment theory. He defined attachment as the affectional bond or tie that an infant forms with the mother.

An infant must form this bond with a primary caregiver in order to have normal social and emotional development. In addition, Bowlby proposed that this attachment bond is very powerful and continues throughout life. He used the concept of secure base to define a healthy attachment between parent and child.

A secure base is a parental presence that gives the child a sense of safety as he explores his surroundings.

Bowlby said that two things are needed for a healthy attachment: The caregiver must be responsive to the child's physical, social, and emotional needs, and the caregiver and child must engage in mutually enjoyable interactions.

Mary Ainsworth

While Bowlby thought attachment was an all-or-nothing process, Mary Ainsworth's research showed otherwise. Ainsworth wanted to know if children differ in the ways they bond, and if so, why. To find the answers, she designed the 'Strange Situation' procedure to study attachment between mothers and their infants.

In the procedure, the mother (or primary caregiver) and the infant (age 12 to 18 months) are placed in a room together. There are toys in the room, and the caregiver and child spend some time alone in the room. After the child has had time to explore her surroundings, a stranger enters the room. The mother then leaves her baby with the stranger. After a few minutes, she returns to comfort her child.

Based on how the infants/toddlers responded to the separation and reunion, Ainsworth identified three types of parent-child attachments: secure, avoidant, and resistant. A fourth style, known as disorganisedattachment, was later described.

The most common type of attachment, also considered the healthiest, is called secure attachment. In this type of attachment, the toddler prefers his parent over a stranger. The attachment figure is used as a secure base to explore the environment and is sought out in times of stress.

Securely attached children were distressed when their caregivers left the room in the Strange Situation experiment, but when their caregivers returned, the securely attached children were happy to see them. Securely attached children have caregivers who are sensitive and responsive to their needs.

For an example, consider watching on YouTube, where researchers are conducting their own experiment with a mother and child.Avoidant attachment

With avoidant attachment, the child is unresponsive to the parent, does not use the parent as a secure base, and does not care if the parent leaves. The toddler reacts to the parent the same way she reacts to a stranger. When the parent does return, the child is slow to show a positive reaction. Ainsworth theorised that these children were most likely to have a caregiver who was insensitive and inattentive to their needs.

Resistant attachment

In cases of resistant attachment, children tend to show clingy behavior, but then they reject the attachment figure's attempts to interact with them. These children do not explore the toys in the room, as they are too fearful. During separation in the Strange Situation, they became extremely disturbed and angry with the parent. When the parent returns, the children are difficult to comfort. Resistant attachment is the result of the caregivers' inconsistent level of response to their child.

Disorganised attachment

Finally, children with disorganised attachment behaved oddly in the Strange Situation. They freeze, run around the room in an erratic manner, or try to run away when the caregiver returns. This type of attachment is seen most often in kids who have been abused. Research has shown that abuse disrupts a child's ability to regulate their emotions.

Criticism of Ainsworth's theory

While Ainsworth's research has found support in subsequent studies, it has also been met with criticism. Some researchers have pointed out that a child's temperament may have a strong influence on attachment, and others have noted that attachment varies from culture to culture, a factor not accounted for in Ainsworth's research.