Attachment Theory Essay

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In this essay I will firstly start by giving a brief biography on both John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth, the founders of Attachment theory. I will then outline and briefly describe both the positive and negative affects of Attachment, I will also describe the four main types of this phenomenon. Lastly, I will evaluate its significance for counselling practice and give critical analysis based on other theorists. John Bowlby was born in 1907 in London to an upper-middle-class family. He was the fourth of six children and was brought up by a nanny. His father, Sir Anthony Bowlby, first baronet, was surgeon to the Kings household. Normally, Bowlby saw his mother only one hour a day, though during the summer she was more available. Like many other mothers of her social class, she considered that parental attention and affection would lead to dangerous spoiling of her children. Bowlby was lucky in that the nanny in his family was present throughout his childhood. (Bowlby R and King P (2004). When Bowlby was almost four years old, his beloved nanny, who was actually his primary caretaker in his early years, left the family. Later, he was to describe this as tragic as the loss of a mother. At the age of seven, he was sent off to boarding school. In his work Separation: Anxiety and Anger, he revealed that he regarded it as a terrible time for him. He later said, "I wouldn't send a dog away to boarding school at age seven" (Schwartz. J, 1999). Because of such experiences as a child, he displayed a sensitivity to children’s suffering throughout his life. Bowlby attended the University of Cambridge where he studied medicine, upon the advice of his surgeon father. In his third year of study, he became drawn to what would later be known as developmental psychology, and he temporarily gave up plans for a medical career. After graduation he volunteered at two progressive

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