AQA A Level Psychology - Attachment - Key terms 100% Pass

AQA A Level Psychology - Attachment - Key terms 100% Pass Attachment A close, loving/emotional two way bond between two individuals in which each individual sees the other as essential for their emotional security Reciprocity A description of how two people interact where both the infant and mother respond to each other's signals and elicit a response from the other Interactional synchrony Mother and infant reflect both the actions and emotions of the other and do this in a co-ordinated way Primary caregiver The person who takes primary responsibility for someone who cannot care fully for themselves (infant) Asocial stage First stage in early attachment where the baby's behaviour towards human and non-human objects is similar, familiar adults find it easier to calm them Indiscriminate attachment From 2-7 months babies show a preference for people over objects but accept comfort from any adult Specific attachment From around 7 months the baby becomes anxious when separated from one particular adult Multiple attachments Attachments to two or more people. Most babies develop them once they have formed one true attachment to their primary attachment figure Stranger anxiety Response to unfamiliar adults Separation anxiety Level of distress shown when separated from a particular adult Imprinting Bird species that are mobile from birth follow the first moving thing they see Ethology Study of animal behaviour Sexual imprinting Directing courtship behaviour towards the first moving objects an animal sees Critical period Time within which an attachment MUST form if it is to form at all Contact comfort Contact with something soft (e.g. a cloth) is important for baby monkeys Learning theory A set of theories from the behaviourist approach to psychology that emphasise the role of learning in the acquisition of behaviour Cupboard love Babies develop an attachment with their caregiver because they provide food Primary drive An innate, biological motivator e.g. hunger Secondary drive Learned by an association between the caregiver and the satisfaction of a primary drive Monotropic (theory) Child's attachment to one caregiver is different and more important Law of continuity The more consistent and predictable care is, the better the quality of the attachment Law of accumulated separation Effects of separation add up and the 'safest dose is zero dose' Social releasers Innate sense of cute behaviours designed to activate the adult attachment system Sensitive period Time within which an attachment SHOULD form because it will be more difficult to form one later Internal working model Mental representations of relationship to your primary caregiver which affects future relationships Temperament Child's genetically influenced personality Strange Situation A controlled observation design to test attachment security in an unfamiliar playroom Secure base (behaviour) Using caregiver as a point of contact during exploration to make them feel safe Proximity (seeking) An infant with a good attachment will stay fairly close to their caregiver Secure (attachment) Most desirable attachment type, moderate stranger and separation anxiety, happy to explore but returns regularly, comfort is required and accepted on reunion Insecure avoidant (attachment) Attachment type with little stranger and separation anxiety, no secure base or proximity seeking and little response on reunion Insecure resistant (attachment) Attachment type with high stranger and separation anxiety but resists comfort at reunion Disorganised (attachment) Attachment type showing a mix of insecure resistant and insecure avoidant characteristics Imposed etic Trying to apply a theory or technique designed for one culture to another culture Maternal deprivation The emotional and intellectual consequences of separation between a child and their mother or mother substitute Deprivation Child is not in the presence of the primary attachment figure and loses an element of care Separation Child is not in the presence of the primary attachment figure Affectionless psychopathy The inability to feel guilt or strong emotion for others, no empathy, no remorse Privation Failure to form any attachment in the first place Institutionalisation Living in an institutional setting such as a hospital or orphanage for long, continuous period of time Orphan Child whose parents have died or abandoned them permanently Disinhibited attachment Attachment type characterised by attention seeking, clinginess and social behaviour direction indiscriminately towards all adults even if unfamiliar Secondary attachment figure A person other than the primary caregiver with whom the child has formed a close emotional bond Classical conditioning Learning by association when an unconditioned stimulus is paired with a neutral stimulus Operant conditioning A form of learning in which behaviour is shaped and maintained by its consequences Mutual reinforcement Reinforcement is a two way process - crying and comfort is positive reinforcement for the baby and negative reinforcement for the caregiver