ATTACHMENT NOTES
CAREGIVER INFANT INTERACTIONS AO1
- ATTACHMENT- a close and emotional bond between two people
- Attachment is characterised by; proximity seeking people,
separation distress and secure base behaviour
- RECIPROCITY- a form of interaction between 2 people where actions
elicit a response eg: mother responds to baby crying as an alert
- INTERACTIONAL SYNCHRONY- interactions between two people that
become mirrored which a baby does to aid chances of survival
- Primary caregiver is usually the mother as this is the first person a
baby attaches to
- Attachment develops due to consistent and sensitive care
- The dad is usually secondary attachment that develops through play
and socialising, this attachment becomes noticeable by around 18
months
- Fathers can be the primary caregiver when the mother is incapable,
same sex parents or dad has full custody
CAREGIVER INFANT INTERACTIONS AO3
LIMITATION
- Observations tell us little about infants
- Difficult to know what is happening from infants perspective
- Only gives us info on facial expressions and hand movements
- Tells us nothing about the motivation of this action
- We dont know if behaviour is deliberate or not
LIMITATION
- Culture bias
- Research that has focused on reciprocity and interactional
synchrony has focused on american or british children
- So this is where the norm is one caregiver for the infant
- Findings are ethnocentric if they assume all interactions work like
this
- Eg the efe tribe can have up to 8 feeders
- Not completely valid
STRENGTH
- Support for the role of the father
- In the first days and weeks of fatherhood a mans testosterone levels
decreases which promotes bonding experience between father and
newborn
, - Scientists have found new neurons are formed in a mans brain
dependant on the time spent in close proximity with their newborn
- Human males also ‘bulk’ their brains in areas linked to attachment
and empathy
- Suggests attachment with father is important
SCHAFFER’S STAGES OF ATTACHMENT AO1
STAGE ONE- ASOCIAL STAGE STAGE TWO- INDISCRIMINATE
- First few weeks of life STAGE
- Babies treat humans as an - 2-7 months
object - Babies display clear
- They show preferences to preference to people
familiar people - Accepts cuddles + comfort
STAGE THREE- SPECIFIC STAGE FOUR- MULTIPLE
ATTACHMENT ATTACHMENTS
- 7 months - Shortly after stage three
- Show signs of attachment to - Multiple attachments extend
one person (primary - By the age of one the baby
attachment) has formed multiple
- It is the mum in 65% of cases attachments
GLASWEGIAN BABY’S STUDY- aimed to observe early infant- adult
interactions. Had 60 babies and mothers were asked to measure everyday
seperations and baby’s response to this. Found four children had primary
attachments at 21-24 weeks and by 29-32 18 were attached to their
mother. This concluded schaffer and emersons four distinct stages in the
development of infant attachmemt
SCHAFFER’S STAGES OF ATTACHMENT AO3
STRENGTH
- Research support
- The glaswegian baby study consisted of investigating the formation
of early attahcment
- Longitudinal study that validates the stages
- Scientific research
LIMITATION
- Reliant on observations for the asocial stage
- Observations tell us little about infants
- Difficult to know what is happening from infants perspective
- Only gives info on expressions and movements, nothing on the
motivation behind the action
- Dont know if behaviour is conscious or deliberate
LIMITATION
CAREGIVER INFANT INTERACTIONS AO1
- ATTACHMENT- a close and emotional bond between two people
- Attachment is characterised by; proximity seeking people,
separation distress and secure base behaviour
- RECIPROCITY- a form of interaction between 2 people where actions
elicit a response eg: mother responds to baby crying as an alert
- INTERACTIONAL SYNCHRONY- interactions between two people that
become mirrored which a baby does to aid chances of survival
- Primary caregiver is usually the mother as this is the first person a
baby attaches to
- Attachment develops due to consistent and sensitive care
- The dad is usually secondary attachment that develops through play
and socialising, this attachment becomes noticeable by around 18
months
- Fathers can be the primary caregiver when the mother is incapable,
same sex parents or dad has full custody
CAREGIVER INFANT INTERACTIONS AO3
LIMITATION
- Observations tell us little about infants
- Difficult to know what is happening from infants perspective
- Only gives us info on facial expressions and hand movements
- Tells us nothing about the motivation of this action
- We dont know if behaviour is deliberate or not
LIMITATION
- Culture bias
- Research that has focused on reciprocity and interactional
synchrony has focused on american or british children
- So this is where the norm is one caregiver for the infant
- Findings are ethnocentric if they assume all interactions work like
this
- Eg the efe tribe can have up to 8 feeders
- Not completely valid
STRENGTH
- Support for the role of the father
- In the first days and weeks of fatherhood a mans testosterone levels
decreases which promotes bonding experience between father and
newborn
, - Scientists have found new neurons are formed in a mans brain
dependant on the time spent in close proximity with their newborn
- Human males also ‘bulk’ their brains in areas linked to attachment
and empathy
- Suggests attachment with father is important
SCHAFFER’S STAGES OF ATTACHMENT AO1
STAGE ONE- ASOCIAL STAGE STAGE TWO- INDISCRIMINATE
- First few weeks of life STAGE
- Babies treat humans as an - 2-7 months
object - Babies display clear
- They show preferences to preference to people
familiar people - Accepts cuddles + comfort
STAGE THREE- SPECIFIC STAGE FOUR- MULTIPLE
ATTACHMENT ATTACHMENTS
- 7 months - Shortly after stage three
- Show signs of attachment to - Multiple attachments extend
one person (primary - By the age of one the baby
attachment) has formed multiple
- It is the mum in 65% of cases attachments
GLASWEGIAN BABY’S STUDY- aimed to observe early infant- adult
interactions. Had 60 babies and mothers were asked to measure everyday
seperations and baby’s response to this. Found four children had primary
attachments at 21-24 weeks and by 29-32 18 were attached to their
mother. This concluded schaffer and emersons four distinct stages in the
development of infant attachmemt
SCHAFFER’S STAGES OF ATTACHMENT AO3
STRENGTH
- Research support
- The glaswegian baby study consisted of investigating the formation
of early attahcment
- Longitudinal study that validates the stages
- Scientific research
LIMITATION
- Reliant on observations for the asocial stage
- Observations tell us little about infants
- Difficult to know what is happening from infants perspective
- Only gives info on expressions and movements, nothing on the
motivation behind the action
- Dont know if behaviour is conscious or deliberate
LIMITATION
