The Theory Of The Attachment Theory

The Development of Attachment Theory and Its Strengths and Limitations English psychiatrist John Bowlby is a leading and influential figure within the history of social reform. His work has influenced social work policies and legislation relating to child psychiatry and psychology. Bowlby was trained as a psychoanalyst, and was influenced by Freudians theories, but became influenced again in his attachment theory by the work of ethologists. The ethologists theory concentrates on looking at the role parents play rather than only the child. Bowlby believes that parenting has strong ties with biology and it explains why there are such strong emotions attached.

The attachment theory was created by Mary Ainsworth, an American-Canadian developmental psychologist. Ainsworth built off the initial works of psychiatrist John Bowlby, who observed deserted children and how they would grow and face the world. Ainsworth conducted an experiment to observe early emotional attachment between a child and their caregiver. Ainsworth wanted to set up a “base” for the children and observe the different kinds of attachment that the children would develop. Through these studies different types of attachments were discovered such as secure and insecure attachments.

John Bowlby’s attachment theory established that an infant’s earliest relationship with their primary caregiver or mother shaped their later development and characterized their human life, “from the cradle to the grave” (Bowlby, 1979, p. 129). The attachment style that an infant develops with their parent later reflects on their self-esteem, well-being and the romantic relationships that they form. Bowlby’s attachment theory had extensive research done by Mary Ainsworth, who studied the mother-infant interactions specifically regarding the theme of an infant’s exploration of their surrounding and the separation from their mother in an experiment called the strange situation. Ainsworth defined the four attachment styles: secure,

As we have seen in Rose's counseling session, past relational patterns are elicited from exploration of the patients' past and early relationships. Key themes are: the degree of love and care (emotional warmth) they experienced in early life; the degree of neglect and abuse; and the types and qualities of core conflicts. In Rose's case, the key issue, as Dr. Berenson discovers over the course of the interview is the subtle manipulation of a mother by her child. She tests her and puts her through a lot of stress, to see how she responds; in this case losing sleep and stressing over the situation.

The research shows that female adolescents who were victims of childhood abuse or neglect are more likely to engage in self-harming behaviour in the form of cutting (Spielhagen and Schwartz 2013) as this is the way they gain sense of control over their body and pain as their soothing and problem solving skills are underdeveloped. Patricia did not enjoy warm, engaged and connected relationship with her mother when she was an infant. As an infant and young child she was very often left to soothe herself. Attachment theory suggest that when carers are addicted to drugs and distance themselves from their child, they send the message to the child that the parent's needs are primary and that the child needs to care for himsel (Bettman 2006). Now,

The attachment theory was created by John Bowlby and later expanded by Mary Ainsworth (Dunham, 2017). This theory explains how a bond of affection that is formed between an infant and their caregiver, usually their mother, will go on to shape the relationships that they will have later on in life (Dunham, 2017). Bowlby believed that in order for an infant to form a secure attachment, the mother needs to be completely attuned to the infant’s needs (Schore & Schore, 2012). He also believed that how the caregiver responded to the infant would determine the nature of the attachment. Ainsworth would go on to define the three types of attachment. The first attachment is the secure attachment, the second is the anxious-avoidant attachment, and lastly is the anxious-resistant attachment (Dunham, 2017). Researchers would later add a fourth attachment, the disorganized attachment (Dunham, 2017). A disorganized attachment is usually formed when a caregiver is abusive (Dunham, 2017). An anxious-resistant attachment is an insecure attachment that is formed when the caregiver is inconsistent and unpredictable (Dunham, 2017). An anxious-avoidant attachment is another insecure attachment, in this case the child has learned not to depend on anyone (Dunham, 2017). Finally, a secure attachment is when the child knows they can rely on their caregiver to meet their needs (Dunham, 2017).

Bowlby 's maternal deprivation hypothesis assumes that continual disruption of the attachment bond between the infant and primary caregiver would result in long term cognitive, social and emotional difficulties for the child.

Attachment theory is a psychological model that provides an influential, biologically driven explanation of how the parent-child interaction emerges and how it influences human development over a life span. The term attachment refers to the complex set of related thought processes and behaviors towards a primary care giver. The attachment behaviors are biologically guided by our natural instinct for protection and safety. This evolved behavioral system organizes human motivation, emotions, cognition, and memory. The attachment relationship that an individual creates in infancy effects their growth, behavior in other relationships, risk taking, and mental health through their human development (George, 2014, p. 97). I chose to use attachment theory to understand Carla’s current situation because the theory has been powerful in understanding the range of relationships patterns that develop between mother and their infants and children. It has been shown that children who experience inadequate parenting are at a much higher risk for an insecure attachment style and experience more interpersonal difficulties in adulthood especially with relationships. Carla grew up in a very inconsistent environment her whole life. Using attachment theory I am analyzing how her childhood shaped who she is as a woman and the choices she made that ultimately brought her to where she is today.

As humans, building relationships between others is a form of connecting and communicating. It is a social situation that is experienced every day through the course of a lifetime. The initial relationship that is made is between the mother and the child. This bond that connects two people is known to be called attachment. The theory of attachment begins at birth, and from that, continuing on to other relationships in family, friends, and romance. Attachment is taught through social experiences, however the relationship with the mother and her temperament are the key factors in shaping the infants attachment type, which

In the first few months of life, the sole purpose of any child’s behaviour is to survive. This, more often than not, results in actions that reduce the risk of harm and increase the chances of longevity. Of these behaviours, some argue that the most influential is attachment behaviour. “Attachment behaviour is any form of behaviour that results in a person attaining or maintaining proximity to some other clearly identified individual who is conceived as better able to cope with the world”(Bowlby, 1982). Therefore, children will make an effort to stay close to and under the protection of their primary caregiver. According to Webster, “through interactions with their primary caregiver, the child develops expectations and understandings about the workings of relationships. These mental representations of relationships become internalized to the degree that they influence feelings, thought and behaviour automatically and unconsciously” (1999, p.6). Moreover, the response of the identified individual plays a huge role in the child’s perception of the outside world. If the caregiver responds to the child’s needs in a caring and protective manner, the child will feel safe and comfortable in his or her surroundings. If, on the other hand, the caregiver is often emotionally and/or physically unavailable, the child is likely to

To begin with attachment theory, first everyone should understand what the attachment is. According to attachment means bonding between a child and caregiver or vice versa. The attachment theory is the theory that describes the long term interpersonal relationship between the humans. Also, it can be defined as the strong bond between parent and child, and later in peer and romantic relationship (Metzger, Erdman, Ng 85). It generates a specific fact that how the humans react in relationships when they get hurt, separated from loved ones and perceiving a threat. Basically the two main types of attachment are secure and insecure. Secure attachment is the attachments where mother and father are available for their child and during that time child demonstrates his or her stress and reestablish the connection (Metzger, Erdman, Ng 87). Insecure attachment is the attachment where parents are not regularly in touch with their children or they ignore their child which built a failed emotion communication (Metzger, Erdman, Ng 87). Also, it may be repeated from one generation to another until it is not recovered. However, as a result of attachment theory, it is so important for children to know about it and there are also several emotional effects on children when their parents leave to go to another county due to their connections or bond between them.

This study was conducted to use concepts from attachment theory, and social support theory, to contribute to our understanding of the human–companion animal bond. “Measure Pets as Sources of Social Support and Attachment Figures”, This study uses Attachment Theory, Social Support Theory, and the concept of the hierarchical nature of attachment relationships to further understand and measure human–animal attachment. (Meehan, Massavelli & Pachana, 2017). In one of the studies discussed in the article, the purpose of one experiment was to use the Attachment Scale to determine the level of attachment the owners feel to their animals. Researchers believed participants who appeared to be lonelier or didn’t have enough social support would be more

Attachment theory is a deep emotional bond that connects the child to the caregiver across time and space. The child is attached by specific behaviors in children, such a seeking proximity with a primary caregiver when the parent is upset or threatened.

Attachment theory is a concept that explores the importance of attachment in respect to direct development. “It is a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space” (Bowlby, 1969; McLeod, 2009). It is the relationship that develops within the first year of the infant’s life between them and their caregiver. The theory also relates to the quality of the attachment that is shown in the behavior of the infant (Rieser-Danner, 2016). Attachment theory shows that infants need a close nurturing relationship with their caregiver in order to have a healthy relationship. Lack of response from the caregiver

Mary D. Salter Ainsworth, one of the preeminent developmental Psychologist of the 20th century, died on March 21, 1999, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Her conceptual and empirical contributions to attachment theory have led to groundbreaking changes in how psychologist think about connection between an infant and its caregivers and, by extension, about close human relationships at all ages. She was born in Glendale, Ohio, in 1913. She was the eldest daughter of Charles and Mary Salter. When she was four year old, her father being a successful businessman had to move to Toronto Ontario, Canada. Mary Ainsworth spent most of his childhood and early adulthood in Toronto where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology in 1935 and her Ph.