The quality of attachment that a child has with his or her parent or caregiver is extremely important for later development. An overwhelming concern on this topic is in the area of adoption and institutionalization. It is important to understand the factors that affect the relationship between a child and the caregiver, and it is equally important to understand the deficits an institutionalized child suffers from in terms of attachment when considering adoption. Three scholarly sources investigate what an attachment is between a child and a caregiver, the types of attachment that are prevalent in institutionalized children, the behaviors that follow specific attachment types, and the future implications of those inhibiting behaviors. Literature …show more content…
The purpose of this study was to examine whether or not early deprivation of attachment in orphanages compromises the ability to develop a secure attachment relationship after adoption (Chisholm, 1998). Chisholm’s central question was what happens to the development of attachment when it occurs for the first time beyond infancy (1998)? Using the Waters and Deane Attachment Q-sort, parents of each of the comparison groups responded to a series of questions to assess the child’s attachment security. To assess the children’s attachment through a behavioral evaluation, a separation-reunion procedure was used and it was coded through the Preschool Assessment of Attachment (PAA) (Chisholm, 1998). It was expected that the Romanian orphans would demonstrate more insecure attachment patterns than the other two comparison groups, and that that there would be no differences between the comparison groups. This assumption was proven to be …show more content…
It has been evidenced that indiscriminate friendly behavior is strongly correlated to children who lived in an orphanage early in life. It also did not show any signs of the behavior decreasing after the first two to four years of being adopted (Chisholm, 1998). As an interpretation, Chisholm (1998) suggests that this might be a reflection of needing stimulation as they had been previously under-stimulated. While children with higher indiscriminate friendly behavior had lower scores on the attachment security test, that behavior is not directly linked to their attachment type (Chisholm, 1998). In conclusion, Chisholm (1998) advises that parents who are interested in adopting a child from another country should be aware of the child’s social-emotional development and the possibility of developmental delays, health issues, and behavioral
The Strange Situation, in which infants are exposed to eight different episodes involving the mother and/or a stranger, is widely used to test attachments, although there are many different views regarding its validity and reliability. In order for the Strange Situation to be considered reliable, a child tested at different times should produce the same reaction every time; this was supported by Main, Kapland and Cassidy’s 1985 study which found that 100% of infants who had been securely attached before 18 months were still securely attached at 6 years, and 75% of those who had been anxious-avoidant remained so. One interpretation of attachment type (based on the Strange Situation) is that it is a fixed characteristic and therefore cannot be changed, but if there is a change in family circumstances this is often not the case. Attachments to mothers and fathers have been proven to be independent – Main and Weston (1981) found that children reacted differently depending on which parent they were with. This shows that the attachment types shown by the Strange Situation are based on qualities of distinct relationships as opposed to a child’s characteristics.
The attachment theory, presented by Mary Ainsworth in 1969 and emerged by John Bowlby suggests that the human infant has a need for a relationship with an adult caregiver, and without a subsequent, development can be negatively impacted (Hammonds 2012). Ainsworth proposes that the type of relationship and “attachment” an infant has with the caregiver, can impact the social development of the infant. As stated by Hammonds (2012), attachment between a mother and a child can have a great impact on the child 's future mental
An infant’s initial contact with the world and their exploration of life is directly through the parent/ primary caregiver. As the child grows, learns, and develops, a certain attachment relationship forms between them and the principle adult present in this process. Moreover, this attachment holds huge implications concerning the child’s future relationships and social successes. Children trust that their parental figure will be there; as a result, children whom form proper attachments internalize an image of their world as stable, safe, and secure. These children will grow independent while at the same time maintaining a connection with their caregivers. (Day, 2006). However, when a child f...
The first topic that came up in the interview relates to idea of attachment theory. Attachment theory explains the human’s way of relating to a caregiver and receives an attachment figures relating to the parent, and children. In addition, the concept explains the confidence and ability for a child to free explore their environment with a place to seek support, protection, and comfort in times of distress (Levy, Ellison, Scott, and Bernecker, 2010, p. 193). Within attachment theory explains different types of attachment styles that children experience during early childhood. These attachment styles affect the relationships they continue to build in adulthood. The best attachment style happens when the parent is attuned to the child during his or her early childhood called secure attachment (Reyes, 2010, p. 174). In order for complete secure attachment, the child needs to feel safe, seen, and soothed. Any relationship that deviates from this model represents the anxious or insecure attachment. This means that parents or caregivers are inconsistently responsive to the children. Children who have these parents are usually confused and insecure. Some children experience a dismissive attachment where they
Attachments are formed with parents; this contributes to give a sense of who we are and who we will become in later life. However where these attachments are broken the child needs to have a secure attachment established with an alternative adult care giver,...
The National Adoption Center reports that fifty-two percent of adoptable children have attachment disorder symptoms. It was also found that the older the child when adopted, the higher the risk of social maladjustment (Benson et al., 1998). This is to say that a child who is adopted at one-week of age will have a better chance of “normal'; adjustment than a child who is adopted at the age of ten. This may be due in part to the probability that an infant will learn how to trust, where as a ten-year-old may have more difficulty with this task, depending on his history. Eric Erickson, a developmental theorist, discusses trust issues in his theory of development. The first of Erickson’s stages of development is Trust v. Mistrust. A child who experiences neglect or abuse can have this stage of development severely damaged. An adopted infant may have the opportunity to fully learn trust, where as an older child may have been shuffled from foster home to group home as an infant, thereby never learning trust. Even though Trust v. Mistrust is a major stage of development, “the greatest psychological risk for adopted children occurs during the middle childhood and adolescent years'; (McRoy et al., 1990). As children grow and change into adolescents, they begin to search for an identity by finding anchoring points with which to relate. Unfortunately, adopted children do not have a biological example to which to turn (Horner & Rosenberg, 1991), unless they had an open adoption in which they were able to form a relationship with their biological families as well as their adoptive ones. Also key to the development of trust is the ab...
attachment for infants raised in a prison nursery. Attachment & Human Development, 12(4), 375-393. doi:10.1080/14616730903417011
Infant attachment is the first relationship a child experiences and is crucial to the child’s survival (BOOK). A mother’s response to her child will yield either a secure bond or insecurity with the infant. Parents who respond “more sensitively and responsively to the child’s distress” establish a secure bond faster than “parents of insecure children”. (Attachment and Emotion, page 475) The quality of the attachment has “profound implications for the child’s feelings of security and capacity to form trusting relationships” (Book). Simply stated, a positive early attachment will likely yield positive physical, socio-emotional, and cognitive development for the child. (BOOK)
...ill have lengthy bodily contact and clinginess, this is seen as signs of closeness and dependency (Rothbaum et al 2000). The Japanese infants find separation from their caregiver stressful, but this may be due to shock than insecure attachment. The Japanese also consider avoidant behaviour as rude in their culture so this will mean that the strange situation classification will not be a suitable measurement of attachment. This is compared to Germany where they believe that independence should be encouraged in early childhood (Grossman et al, 1985).
Attachment theory is the idea that a child needs to form a close relationship with at least one primary caregiver. The theory proved that attachment is necessary to ensure successful social and emotional development in an infant. It is critical for this to occur in the child’s early infant years. However, failed to prove that this nurturing can only be given by a mother (Birns, 1999, p. 13). Many aspects of this theory grew out of psychoanalyst, John Bowlby’s research. There are several other factors that needed to be taken into account before the social worker reached a conclusion; such as issues surrounding poverty, social class and temperament. These factors, as well as an explanation of insecure attachment will be further explored in this paper.
Children who experience privation are likely to suffer from lower intelligence, emotional disturbance and as Bowlby suggested affectionless psychopathy. Rutter believes that privation is when a child has never had the opportunity to form an attachment with their caregiver and because of this the child is more likely to suffer from a permanent emotional effect in comparison to deprivation. Rutter decided to conduct a case study of Romanian orphanage’s and wanted to assess the effects of privation and whether the effects could be reversed through loving care by adoptive parents (Lawton, 2015).His study supported the idea of a children suffering from negative effects due to privation as it showed that children who were adopted before the age of six months were able to make developmental improvements after having spent their previous lives in institutions with poor conditions. These children had higher average IQ’s and were more likely to form relationships, they showed signs of attachment bonding with their primary caregivers. However, children who were adopted after the age of 6 months experience difficulties in forming peer relationships and had low levels of communication. Therefore suggesting that the effects of privation can be overcome if the attachment bond is made
In secure attachment, infants use the caregiver, usually the mother, as a secure base from which to explore the environment. Secure attachment is theorized to be an important foundation for psychological development later in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. In insecure attachment, infants either avoid the caregiver or show considerable resistance or ambivalence toward the caregiver. Insecure attachment is theorized to be related to difficulties in relationships and problems in later development. Developmentalists have begun to explore the role of secure attachment and related concepts, such as connectedness to parents, in adolescent development. They believe the attachment to parents in adolescence may facilitate the adolescent’s social competence and well-being, as reflected in such characteristics as self- esteem, emotional adjustment, and physical health (Allen & Kuperminc ; Armden & Greenberg; Black & McCartney; Blain, Thompson,
One of the major pieces of research used to explain the deviant behaviour of people who have been in the care system is attachment theory. Attachment theory was developed by John Bowlby in 1951 for the World Health Organisation and originally titled “Maternal Deprivation” (Bretherton, 1992). Bowlby defines attachment as, “A deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across tim...
Studies have shown that children with secure attachments develop strong intelligence and imaginations (Clarke-Stewart & Parke, 2014, p.118). This includes having the ability to regulate their emotions in difficult environments. “Studies also show that even adopted children with secure attachment have high levels of cognitive skills” (Clarke-Stewart & Parke, 2014, p.118). After reading about the results of the studies performed on attachment, I believe there should be more concern when it comes to leaving children in daycare or an orphanage. If the staff working in these institutions are not passionate about their jobs or are not efficiently trained to teach and care for children, then the children will most likely not be able to succeed in an environment that requires social cognitive skills and will also have emotional issues. I believe that to help children develop their social cognitive skills to their full potential, parenting quality should be reinforced. Daycares and Orphanages should also have constant involvement with the children, so they may have a better possibility of enhancing their skills. Studies show that even when parents were insecure at first, once they developed a secure attachment to their children, their children showed improvement in their social cognitive
The majority of laymen believe that if an infant is not securely attached to its caregiver, it must have no sense of attachment at all. Moreover, they assume blindly that there will be no in-betweens. However, psychology shows that there is much more to it when it comes to attachment styles. There are in fact, three main types of attachment styles that make up the crux of the Attachment Theory, which will be explored in further detail.