Childhood: Developmental Psychology Summary by Bente Niemeijer
Attachment
Attachment: the strong emotional bond between a child and a significant other and the
processes that create and maintain the long-lasting social relationship
Attachment complex: the set of behaviours + mental states that are responsible for
setting up + maintaining attachment
a) Smiling serves a signaling function in a feedback loop: mom smiles + rocks
baby → baby smiles in recognition and joy → motivates mom to continue + higher
concentration of oxytocin which increases feelings of trust and a@ection)
b) Clinging and touching: to maintain proximity (however, humans can also form
attachment without direct contact)
c) Cuteness: rounded faces, large eyes, small chin, nose and limbs etc. evoke
a@ection and inhibit aggression ('baby-schema' is activated)
Sequence of developing bonds
1. Newborn: show a preference for looking at faces + human voices
2. 3 months: infants smile more, but still no specific bonds (they do seem to
recognize parents)
3. 6 months: bonds to specific individuals formed and infant smiles more in their
presence (prior to this they do prefer parents, but this is because their parents
know how to make them happy)
a. From now on they are also more skilled at social interactions and are more
sensitive to other's emotional states
4. 8 months: signs of separation distress
5. > 2 years: the infant maintains close proximity and rich communication with
others and is better at coping with brief separation
The early interactions
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, Childhood: Developmental Psychology Summary by Bente Niemeijer
Infants expect contingent responding: give-and-take social interaction pattern
Social referencing: infants rely on expression + behaviour of others (especially in
strange/ambiguous/dangerous situations) for information on how to interpret the
situation. This happens as young as 7 months.
Gaze-following: the infant follows the gaze of others. This is a critical early component
of joint attention that is even present in newborns. From 9 months this is fully developed
and known as joint attention.
Joint attention: infant + another person simultaneously attend to the same
object/event. Can be done through pointing or other communication.
a) This is critical for forming language skills.
b) Joint attention help infants develop a set of shared experiences with the
caretaker, which helps to understand each other and empathize with each other
Attachment theories
Psychoanalytic theory (Freud): psychosexual development and unique mother-infant
bond stems from oral gratification via breast-feeding
a) Counterarguments
1. Many studies showed that father-infant bonds can be equally important
2. No di@erences between breast and bottle fed: amount of time spent with
infant is better predictor of attachment strength
3. Infant cognition and believes also shape attachment (not only the 'drives')
Learning theory: focus on the infant behaviour and how the environment reinforces
them; bonds emerge from associations to positive reinforcement. In this case the
'drives' (i.e. motivation) are physiological constructs like thirst, hunger and discomfort
a) Counterarguments
1. Mental states/cognitive components were left out of this theory
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Attachment
Attachment: the strong emotional bond between a child and a significant other and the
processes that create and maintain the long-lasting social relationship
Attachment complex: the set of behaviours + mental states that are responsible for
setting up + maintaining attachment
a) Smiling serves a signaling function in a feedback loop: mom smiles + rocks
baby → baby smiles in recognition and joy → motivates mom to continue + higher
concentration of oxytocin which increases feelings of trust and a@ection)
b) Clinging and touching: to maintain proximity (however, humans can also form
attachment without direct contact)
c) Cuteness: rounded faces, large eyes, small chin, nose and limbs etc. evoke
a@ection and inhibit aggression ('baby-schema' is activated)
Sequence of developing bonds
1. Newborn: show a preference for looking at faces + human voices
2. 3 months: infants smile more, but still no specific bonds (they do seem to
recognize parents)
3. 6 months: bonds to specific individuals formed and infant smiles more in their
presence (prior to this they do prefer parents, but this is because their parents
know how to make them happy)
a. From now on they are also more skilled at social interactions and are more
sensitive to other's emotional states
4. 8 months: signs of separation distress
5. > 2 years: the infant maintains close proximity and rich communication with
others and is better at coping with brief separation
The early interactions
1/45
, Childhood: Developmental Psychology Summary by Bente Niemeijer
Infants expect contingent responding: give-and-take social interaction pattern
Social referencing: infants rely on expression + behaviour of others (especially in
strange/ambiguous/dangerous situations) for information on how to interpret the
situation. This happens as young as 7 months.
Gaze-following: the infant follows the gaze of others. This is a critical early component
of joint attention that is even present in newborns. From 9 months this is fully developed
and known as joint attention.
Joint attention: infant + another person simultaneously attend to the same
object/event. Can be done through pointing or other communication.
a) This is critical for forming language skills.
b) Joint attention help infants develop a set of shared experiences with the
caretaker, which helps to understand each other and empathize with each other
Attachment theories
Psychoanalytic theory (Freud): psychosexual development and unique mother-infant
bond stems from oral gratification via breast-feeding
a) Counterarguments
1. Many studies showed that father-infant bonds can be equally important
2. No di@erences between breast and bottle fed: amount of time spent with
infant is better predictor of attachment strength
3. Infant cognition and believes also shape attachment (not only the 'drives')
Learning theory: focus on the infant behaviour and how the environment reinforces
them; bonds emerge from associations to positive reinforcement. In this case the
'drives' (i.e. motivation) are physiological constructs like thirst, hunger and discomfort
a) Counterarguments
1. Mental states/cognitive components were left out of this theory
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