AS Psychology Essay

The Evolutionary Theory of Attachment

The evolutionary theory of attachment as proposed by John Bowlby (1907-1990)

suggests that attachment, in terms of adaptation, is essential for survival. In
order to progress healthily, children are born with an innate tendency to form
attachments. This means that infants are pre-programmed to become attached
to their caregiver.
Bowlbys evolutionary theory consists of a number of essential factors. The first
is monotropy which refers to his suggestion that infants form one social bond
with the person who is most sensitive to their social releases (i.e. their
caregiver). This bond or attachment is a two-way process which is referred to as
reciprocal. Furthermore, Bowlby proposed that infants develop an Internal
Working Model which acts as a template for future relationships. This is based on
the relationships between the infant and the primary caregiver. Finally, Bowlby
also suggested that there is a critical period of 2 years where an attachment
has to be formed. If not, the infant will experience social and emotional problems
in late life.
This theory can be both criticised and supported through studies carried out by
several researchers. For instance; Konrad Lorenz (1952) was an ethologist who
found that a group of goslings became attached to the first living thing they
encountered. This immediate attachment is referred to as imprinting. Lorenzs
findings suggest and support the idea of an innate drive to form an attachment.
However, there is also the issue of extrapolation.
On the other hand, a study which contradicts the theory was carried out by
Schaffer and Emerson in 1964. They conducted a large-scale observational study
and found that after a main attachment was formed, multiple attachments
followed. This contradicts Bowlby's suggestion of monotropy as there was more
than one attachments formed. The study also has high ecological validity but can
also be criticised as being prone to bias as the infants mothers kept the records.
When considering the Internal Working Model proposed by Bowlby, two studies
can be used to support this concept. In 1987, Hazan and Shaver found a strong
relationship between childhood attachment type and adulthood attachment type.
In a more recent study, Black and Schutte (2006) found a similar result, which
suggests that the relationship between child and caregiver does form a template
for future relationships. It also strongly supports the continuity hypothesis
concerning attachment experiences. Nevertheless, both studies depend on the
memories of young adult and so, the accuracy of this retrospective data can be
questioned.
Koluchov (1976) studied the Czechoslovakian twins, Andrei and Vanya, who
were confined children. For five years, they were locked in a cellar and regularly
beaten. They had no significant attachment or relationship with anyone during
this time. According to Bowlbys Internal Working Model, the Czech twins should

not have been able to form positive relationships of any kind due to not having a
monotrophic attachment in their childhood. Therefore, they would have no
experience or template to base future relationships on. Andrei and Vanyas
adulthood experiences undermine Bowlbys theory as they currently live normal
lives, have above average intelligence, are experiencing warm relationships and
have children.
A case of privation which supports Bowlbys suggestion of a critical period is that
of Genie who was found at the age of 13 in 1970. Susan Curtiss (1989) carried
out research as several methods were undertaken to ensure Genie improved
socially and emotionally. However, Genies language development did not have
positive results. Her case suggests that it was the result of not having made an
attachment within the critical period that led to problems in her social and
emotional development.
In conclusion, Bowlbys evolutionary theory of attachment has many strengths
and weaknesses. The learning theory can be used to undermine Bowlbys theory
as it suggests that attachments are learned whereas Bowlby suggests that they
are innate. Also, his suggestion of an Internal Working Model can simply be due
to the explanation that some infants may simply be better than others at forming
relationships. Overall, his theory is based on the assumption that attachment
exists due to it being adaptive, as it was first proposed by Darwins theory of
evolution.

Topic 6: Ainswoths Strange Situation:

Mary Ainsworth developed the strange situation, and the aim was to be able to
observe key attachment behaviour as means of assessing the quality of a childs
attachment to a caregiver.
Procedure: Strange Situation is a controlled observation procedure designed
to measure the security of attachment a child display towards a caregiver. It
takes place in a room with controlled condition (Laboratory experiment) to
observe childs behaviour.
Behaviours used to judge attachment were:
-

Proximity seeking: an infant with good attachment would stay

close to the caregiver.
Exploration and secure-base behaviour: Good attachment
enables to feel confident to explore, using caregiver as the secure
base.
Stranger Anxiety: One of the signs of becoming closely attached
is to display anxiety when a stranger approaches.
Separation Anxiety: Protest at separation from the caregiver
Response at Reunion: With the caregiver after separation for a
short period of time under controlled conditions.

Secure Attachment: These children explore happily but regularly go back to

their caregiver (proximity seeking and secure base behaviour). They usually
show moderate separation distress and moderate stranger anxiety. Securely
attached children require and accept comfort from the caregiver in the reunion
stage. 60% - 75% of British children are secure.
Insecure Avoidant Attachment: These children explore freely but do not seek
proximity or show any secure base behaviour. They show little or no reaction
when their caregiver returns. They also show little stranger anxiety, they do not
require comfort at reunion stage. About 20% - 25% of toddlers are insecure
avoidant.
Insecure Resistant Attachment: These children seek greater proximity than
other and so explore less, they show huge stranger and separation distress but
resist comfort when reunited with carers. 3% of British children show Insecure
Resistant Attachment.

AO3: Evaluation:
The strange situation classification has been found to have good reliability.
This means that it achieves consistent results. For example, a study conducted
in Germany found 78% of the children were classified in the same way at ages 1
and 6 years (Wartner et al. 1994).
Although, as Melhuish (1993) suggests, the Strange Situation is the most widely
used method for assessing infant attachment to a caregiver, Lamb et al. (1985)
have criticized it for being highly artificial and therefore lacking ecological
validity. The child is placed in a strange and artificial environment, and the
procedure of the mother and stranger entering and leaving the room follows a
predetermined script.
Mary Ainsworth concluded that the strange situation can be used to identify the
child's type of attachment has been criticized on the grounds that it identifies
only the type of attachment to the mother. The child may have a different type of
attachment to the father or grandmother, for example (Lamb, 1977). This means
that it lacks validity, as it is not measuring a general attachment style, but
instead an attachment style specific to the mother.
In addition, some research has shown that the same child may show different
attachment behaviors on different occasions. Children's attachments may
change, perhaps because of changes in the child's circumstances, so a securely
attached child may appear insecurely attached if the mother becomes ill or the
family circumstances change.
The strange situation has also been criticized on ethical grounds. Because the
child is put under stress (separation and stranger anxiety), the study has broken
the ethical guideline protection of participants.
However, in its defence the separation episodes were curtailed prematurely if the
child became too stressed. Also, according to Marrone (1998), although the
Strange Situation has been criticized for being stressful, it is simulating everyday
experiences, as mothers do leave their babies for brief periods of time in
different settings and often with unfamiliar people such as baby sitters.
Finally, the study's sample is biased - comprising 100 middle class American
families. Therefore, it is difficult to generalize the findings outside of America and
to working class families.
Also the Strange Situation shows good inter-rater reliability, as observing the
same children in the strange situation generally agrees on what attachment type
to classify them as, this could be due to behavioural categories are easy to
observe.
Jerome Kagan, has suggested that in fact temperament, the genetically
influenced personality of a child is more important influence to the behaviour in a
strange situation. It means that temperament is a confounding variable.

A Level exam tips

Answering exam questions (PSYA1 AQA A specification)
How can the strange situation be used to measure attachment type? (4
marks):
4 AO3 marks: This question is asking you to apply your knowledge of the strange
situation to a novel situation. A good answer will state that the strange situation
is a controlled observation, and will describe the main procedure. There is no
need to evaluate the strange situation.
Billys mother often ignores him when he is crying, and only plays with
him when she wants to, even if it means waking him up. What
attachment type is Billy most likely to have? (2 marks)
2 AO3 marks: This question is asking you to apply your knowledge of attachment
types to a novel situation. Billys mother behaves ambivalently towards him,
does not care for his needs, and is only interested in her own needs. Billy is
therefore likely to be insecure-resistant or Type C.