Abstract The following essay will explore the attachment theory by discussing how the theory was developed, making note of the influential theorists involved in the attachment theory and also what the theory entails. The essay will go on to investigate the impacts of being each of the four proposed attachment styles, including the secure, preoccupied, dismissing and the fearful avoidant attachment styles. Personal examples will be supplied throughout the essay to illustrate some of the salient points raised. Finally the essay will contrast the two opposing perspectives on the durability of attachment styles, concluding that the research on the topic is contradictory, and thus no perspective is clearly more accurate than the other. In conclusion, further personal examples, including celebrity examples
His findings into attachment radically challenged the prevalent behaviourist theory of Watson of learned infant attachment in response to constant stimuli and the psychoanalytical theory of Freud that attachment was based on biological needs or ‘cupboard love’ theories as unreliable. (Custance, 2010). Within this essay I will attempt to describe both Harlow’s and Ainsworth research methods and compare and contrast their findings and criticisms. Harry Harlow’s work on attachment focused on the bond between infant and mother. Harlow wanted to investigate whether attachment was based on the ‘cupboard love’ theory of Freud and Watson or on Bowlby’s suggestion that attachment was an innate tendency in response to warmth and tactility.
BECOMING ATTACHED In chapter 17 from the book “Becoming Attached” by Robert Karen, the author based his book on the research work of John Bowlby who is known as the father of attachment theory. Bowlby believed that attachment begins at infancy and continues throughout life. He developed the theory after running a study in which he attempted to understand the intense distress experienced by infants who had been separated from their parents. Karen also questions some of the most fundamental issues of emotional life: how do our early struggles with our primary caregiver shape our personality? And the impact it has in the way we relate to others as adults.
What are the implications for subsequent development? One of the most comprehensive and influential accounts of attachment theory came from theorist John Bowlby. Bowlby described attachment as any form of behavior which attains or maintains proximity to a caregiver in times of need or stress (Lamb, Bornstein, and Teti, 2002). Bowlby’s theory includes four phases of attachment. Bowlby’s first phase of attachment is titled “pre attachment,” and this phase occurs between birth
How has Bowlby's formulation of attachment theory been modified in light of subsequent research? Ethological research on attachment provided beliefs that in the first period of a humans life attachment to specific objects could have influence on a individuals development. These beliefs about human attachment provided a basis that inspired John Bowlby to explore upon for four decades from 1940 as he sought to clarify the evolving dynamics of the child-mother/primary care giver relationship and its developmental implications. Bowlby established a strong, productive theory with the central concept of attachment describing it as being established between infant and one primary caregiver. Although other relationships are formed they are not
Spelling, references, abbreviations TMA03 Option two: How has Bowlby’s Formulation of attachment theory been modified in the light of subsequent research? Attachment is a deep and emotional bond connecting one person to another (Lamb, Lewis and Oates, 2005). Attachments form as security to child in times of distress and upset. They are not just to satisfy basic needs of survival. This essay will explore how work by Bowlby has been modified in terms of how it has been developed in light of later research.
(2007), speaks of a study that was done with adoptive families receiving family preservation services, to find if the services helped the families stay enacted six and 12 months prior to receiving services. The outcome of the study showed that when family preservation services are offered to post adoptive families, the outcome is promising, especially if services are offered for a longer period of time. The information presented by Berry et al (2007), is useful for my thesis, because it shows the benefits of family preservation services. I found it useful to look at how the services are used with adoptive families because it is important to note that these services are benifical to all types of families. Van Puyenbroeck, H. et al.
It highlights the important concepts of the theory, its chief tenets and its application during the early childhood relationships. Then, the essay goes on to examine the ways in which knowledge and understanding of the theory help social workers to promote and safeguard the welfare of children. The examination mainly focuses on how the attachment theory can help social workers in assessing, intervening, examining the causes of child abuse and how children are looked after. Theory of attachment Attachment theory is the strongest theoretical influence in modern-day studies of infant-parent relationships. John Bowlby was the first exponent of the theory.
Therefore these styles remain with us into adulthood effecting how we make and maintain relationships. Bowlby dedicated wide-ranging research to the concept of Attachment describing it as a “lasting psychological connectedness between human beings” (Bowlby, 1969, 194). He believed that attachment had an evolutionary element, is hard wired and instinctual: “The propensity to make strong emotional bonds to particular individuals [is] a basic component of human nature" (Bowlby, 1988, 3). Bowlby believed that there are four distinguishing characteristics of attachment: 1. Proximity Maintenance - The
The main principle of lifespan psychology is that human development is influenced by external (historical and cultural) and internal (psychological and physiological) factors. It finds it's reflection in internal working models which seem to be influenced by fixity and change. Developmental psychology aims to understand connections between experiences and behaviours in childhood and adulthood, as well as identify continuities between those points; it therefore implies that although internal working models become fixed with time, they can