ATTACHMENT INTODUCTION
ATTACHMENT SPECIFICATION
Caregiver-infant interactions in humans: reciprocity and interactional synchrony.
Stages of attachment identified by Schaffer.
Multiple attachments and the role of the father.
Animal studies of attachment: Lorenz and Harlow.
Explanations of attachment: learning theory
Explanations of attachment: Bowlby’s monotropic theory. The concepts of a critical period and an internal working model.
Ainsworth’s ‘Strange Situation’. Types of attachment: secure, insecure-avoidant and insecure-resistant.
Cultural variations in attachment, including van Ijzendoorn.
Bowlby’s Maternal Deprivation Hypothesis.
Romanian orphan studies: effects of institutionalisation.
The influence of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships, including the role of an internal working model
WHAT IS ATTACHMENT?
Attachment is a fundamental aspect of human relationships, shaping how individuals connect with caregivers, partners, and social groups. From an evolutionary perspective, attachment is not simply an emotional experience but a survival mechanism that promotes caregiving, protection, and cooperation. ATTACHMENT THEORY, rooted in psychology, evolution, and ethology, suggests that strong emotional bonds are essential for survival, ensuring that infants receive the care they need to develop and thrive.
Infants are born with an innate drive for attachment, requiring at least one primary caregiver for healthy emotional and social development. This need extends beyond childhood into adult romantic relationships, highlighting how human connection is biologically programmed rather than a random emotional response. Evolutionary theory suggests that romantic love evolved to encourage mating, long-term pair bonding, and cooperative parenting. Without emotional attachment, humans struggle to form stable relationships, reproduce, and raise their offspring successfully.
ATTACHMENT AND COOPERATIVE PARENTING
Unlike species where females can raise offspring independently, human survival depends on cooperative parenting. Pregnant or nursing women faced significant challenges in ancestral environments, including predators, rival groups, and food scarcity. A bonded mate provides stability, resources, and protection, increasing the chances of survival for both the mother and child.
The extended dependency of human infants further reinforces the necessity of long-term pair bonding. Unlike many other species, human children take years to develop the cognitive and physical skills necessary for survival. This prolonged period of vulnerability makes strong parental and social bonds essential.
PARENTAL ATTACHMENT ACROSS SPECIES
The evolutionary drive for attachment is not limited to romantic relationships but extends to parent-child bonds. Parental attachment is most pronounced in species where offspring require extended care for survival:
Low Parental Attachment: Species such as fish and reptiles, whose young are self-sufficient from birth, show little to no parental investment.
High Parental Attachment: Mammals, particularly humans, primates, and elephants, invest heavily in their offspring, ensuring they receive prolonged care, protection, and social learning.
THE NEUROCHEMISTRY OF ATTACHMENT
The biological foundation of attachment lies in the brain’s neurochemistry. Several key hormones play a crucial role in reinforcing emotional bonds:
Dopamine – is associated with pleasure and reward, creating feelings of euphoria when individuals are with their partners or children.
Oxytocin ("The Bonding Hormone") – Strengthens attachment and is released during childbirth, breastfeeding, and physical affection.
Vasopressin – Supports long-term commitment by reinforcing social recognition and pair bonding.
These chemical processes drive humans to seek close relationships, maintain emotional connections, and nurture their young, ensuring the survival and stability of families and social groups.
WHAT IS ATTACHMENT? A PSYCHOLOGICAL, EVOLUTIONARY, AND ETHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
Attachment is a fundamental aspect of human relationships, shaping emotional bonds from infancy to adulthood. From an evolutionary perspective, attachment is an emotional experience and a survival mechanism designed to promote caregiving, protection, and social cohesion. ATTACHMENT THEORY, developed by JOHN BOWLBY, integrates psychological, evolutionary, and ethological perspectives to explain why humans form strong emotional connections.
Infants are born with an innate need for attachment, requiring at least one primary caregiver for healthy development. These early bonds influence future relationships, from friendships to romantic attachments. Attachment is also seen across species, particularly in mammals, where parental care is essential for survival. Unlike species where offspring are independent at birth, human infants are highly vulnerable, reinforcing the necessity of CAREGIVER-INFANT INTERACTIONS, such as RECIPROCITY AND INTERACTIONAL SYNCHRONY, which strengthen early bonds.
CAREGIVER-INFANT INTERACTIONS IN HUMANS
The foundation of attachment begins with the sensitive responsiveness of caregivers. Two essential aspects of early interaction are:
RECIPROCITY – Infants and caregivers engage in a mutual, two-way interaction where both respond to each other’s signals. A baby’s cooing, for example, may elicit a smile from the caregiver, reinforcing attachment.
INTERACTIONAL SYNCHRONY – The caregiver and infant mirror each other’s emotions and behaviours synchronously, promoting emotional bonding and communication.
These early interactions play a crucial role in attachment development, shaping the infant’s expectations of relationships (the INTERNAL WORKING MODEL) and influencing social and emotional development.
STAGES OF ATTACHMENT: SCHAFFER & EMERSON (1964)
SCHAFFER AND EMERSON identified four stages of attachment based on their longitudinal study of Glaswegian infants:
ASOCIAL STAGE (0-6 WEEKS) – Infants respond similarly to humans and objects but prefer familiar people.
INDISCRIMINATE ATTACHMENT (6 WEEKS - 7 MONTHS) – Infants prefer human interaction and can be comforted by anyone.
SPECIFIC ATTACHMENT (7-9 MONTHS) – Infants develop a strong attachment to one primary caregiver, showing separation and stranger anxiety.
MULTIPLE ATTACHMENTS (9 MONTHS+) – Infants form secondary attachments to other caregivers, including fathers, siblings, and grandparents.
Schaffer’s research highlighted that infants do not solely attach to their mothers, challenging Bowlby’s MONOTROPIC THEORY, emphasising a single, primary attachment figure.
MULTIPLE ATTACHMENTS AND THE ROLE OF THE FATHER
Historically, attachment research focused on the mother-infant bond, but more recent studies emphasise the father’s role in emotional and social development. While fathers may not always be primary caregivers, they play a crucial role in:
Encouraging risk-taking and exploration (Grossmann, 2002).
Providing sensitive caregiving that can form strong attachments (Field, 1978).
Contributing to emotional and cognitive development through play interactions.
Research suggests that fathers can form equally strong attachments with infants if they provide nurturing, consistent care.
ANIMAL STUDIES OF ATTACHMENT: LORENZ & HARLOW
Studies on attachment in animals provide valuable insights into innate attachment behaviours:
KONRAD LORENZ (1935) – IMPRINTING IN GEESE
Lorenz found that geese imprint on the first moving object they see after hatching.
This suggests a CRITICAL PERIOD for attachment formation.
This supports BOWLBY’s idea that attachment is biologically programmed.
HARRY HARLOW (1959) – CONTACT COMFORT IN MONKEYS
Infant monkeys preferred a soft cloth mother over a wire mother that provided food.
Demonstrated that attachment is driven by comfort and security, not just feeding, contradicting LEARNING THEORY.
These findings emphasise that attachment is not solely based on CLASSICAL OR OPERANT CONDITIONING but has an innate and emotional basis.
EXPLANATIONS OF ATTACHMENT
LEARNING THEORY OF ATTACHMENT
Attachment is learned through CLASSICAL CONDITIONING (associating the caregiver with food) and OPERANT CONDITIONING (caregivers become rewarded through reinforcement).
Harlow’s study contradicts this, showing that comfort is more critical than food in attachment formation.
BOWLBY’S MONOTROPIC THEORY (1969)
Attachment is innate and adaptive, ensuring infant survival.
MONOTROPY – Infants form one special attachment (usually to their mother).
CRITICAL PERIOD – If attachment does not form within the first 2.5 years, it may lead to emotional and social difficulties.
INTERNAL WORKING MODEL – Early attachments serve as a template for future relationships.
Bowlby’s theory is supported by Lorenz’s imprinting research and Harlow’s contact comfort study but has been challenged by research on MULTIPLE ATTACHMENTS.
AINSWORTH’S ‘STRANGE SITUATION’ AND TYPES OF ATTACHMENT
MARY AINSWORTH (1978) identified three types of attachment through her Strange Situation experiment, where infants were observed in stressful situations involving separation and reunion with their caregiver:
SECURE ATTACHMENT (66%) – Infants show distress when the caregiver leaves but are easily comforted upon return.
INSECURE-AVOIDANT (22%) – Infants show little distress when separated and avoid contact with the caregiver upon return.
INSECURE-RESISTANT (12%) – Infants are highly distressed when separated but resist comfort upon reunion.
These attachment types impact later childhood and adult relationships, influencing trust, intimacy, and emotional regulation.
CULTURAL VARIATIONS IN ATTACHMENT (VAN IJZENDOORN, 1988)
Attachment patterns vary across cultures:
Western countries (e.g., the UK and the USA) show higher rates of SECURE ATTACHMENT.
Collectivist cultures (e.g., Japan, Israel) have more INSECURE-RESISTANT ATTACHMENTS, likely due to cultural differences in caregiving styles.
This challenges Bowlby’s UNIVERSAL ATTACHMENT THEORY, suggesting biological and cultural factors influence attachment behaviours.
BOWLBY’S MATERNAL DEPRIVATION HYPOTHESIS
BOWLBY proposed that prolonged separation from a primary caregiver during childhood could lead to:
Intellectual impairment (e.g., lower IQ).
Emotional consequences, including affectionless psychopathy (lack of guilt/empathy).
Social difficulties affect future relationships.
His hypothesis was supported by research on institutionalised children, mainly ROMANIAN ORPHAN STUDIES.
ROMANIAN ORPHAN STUDIES: EFFECTS OF INSTITUTIONALISATION
Research on Romanian orphans (Rutter et al., 1998) examined the effects of early deprivation:
Children adopted before 6 months recovered well.
Those adopted after 6 months showed disinhibited attachment (overly friendly behaviour towards strangers).
It suggests a sensitive period for attachment, but recovery is possible with proper caregiving.
CONCLUSION
Attachment is a biologically driven process that ensures survival by fostering close emotional bonds. Attachment plays a crucial role in shaping human behaviour, whether through CAREGIVER-INFANT INTERACTIONS, ROMANTIC LOVE, or SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS. Bowlby’s MONOTROPIC THEORY, Ainsworth’s ATTACHMENT TYPES, and research on DEPRIVATION & CULTURAL VARIATIONS provide a comprehensive understanding of attachment throughout life.
Ultimately, attachment shapes who we are, how we connect with others, and how we navigate the world. 💙
