Animal studies in attachment
Ethology- study of non-human animals to learn more about humans
Lorenz imprinting (1935)
- Ethologist who looked at imprinting in goslings
- Imprinting – some species attach to the first moving object they see when born so
attachment must be innate (natural)
Method
- Batch of 12 fertilised gosling eggs and split them into 2 groups of 6
- One group (control group) remained with mother until hatched
- Second group (experimental group) were placed in an incubator where Lorenz
stayed close until near hatching, he was to be the first moving object they saw
Findings
- Lorenz group imprinted on him and followed him everywhere and even as adults still
saw Lorenz as their mother
- Was later observed that if the two groups mix, they would automatically split into
the original groups
EVALUATION
- High ecological validity (field study)
- Highly reliable – has been repeated.
Research support
- Support for concept of imprinting.
- Chicks were exposed to simple shape combinations that moved.
- A range of shape combinations were then moved in front of them any they followed
the original most closely.
- This supports the view that young animals are born with an innate mechanism to
imprint on a moving object present in the critical window of development, as
predicted by Lorenz.
Generalisability to humans
- Can't generalise findings to humans form birds.
- Humans are more complex than animals.
- Not appropriate to generalise Lorenz’s ideas to humans.
- Humans are more complex than goslings, so attachment is not likely to be as quick,
birds have survival requirements so develop into maturity fast.
- Human attachment takes longer, as mother is not always immediately with baby.
- Low ecological validity because they can't be generalised beyond the research
setting.
- Small sample size – limits generalisation of results
Ethology- study of non-human animals to learn more about humans
Lorenz imprinting (1935)
- Ethologist who looked at imprinting in goslings
- Imprinting – some species attach to the first moving object they see when born so
attachment must be innate (natural)
Method
- Batch of 12 fertilised gosling eggs and split them into 2 groups of 6
- One group (control group) remained with mother until hatched
- Second group (experimental group) were placed in an incubator where Lorenz
stayed close until near hatching, he was to be the first moving object they saw
Findings
- Lorenz group imprinted on him and followed him everywhere and even as adults still
saw Lorenz as their mother
- Was later observed that if the two groups mix, they would automatically split into
the original groups
EVALUATION
- High ecological validity (field study)
- Highly reliable – has been repeated.
Research support
- Support for concept of imprinting.
- Chicks were exposed to simple shape combinations that moved.
- A range of shape combinations were then moved in front of them any they followed
the original most closely.
- This supports the view that young animals are born with an innate mechanism to
imprint on a moving object present in the critical window of development, as
predicted by Lorenz.
Generalisability to humans
- Can't generalise findings to humans form birds.
- Humans are more complex than animals.
- Not appropriate to generalise Lorenz’s ideas to humans.
- Humans are more complex than goslings, so attachment is not likely to be as quick,
birds have survival requirements so develop into maturity fast.
- Human attachment takes longer, as mother is not always immediately with baby.
- Low ecological validity because they can't be generalised beyond the research
setting.
- Small sample size – limits generalisation of results
