Harlow's Monkey Experiment Essay

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To begin with, the study that was chosen for this assignment was the Harlow’s Monkey Experiment. The point of this experiment was to prove that love shapes our livelihood and can cause attachment issues starting from infant years. Harlow believed that the want of love can damage an infant’s life. This study demonstrated that we as humans feed off of love and attention from our caregivers. This experiment was interesting because it shows that our ability to love and become attached begin as an infant and can ultimately mold our future relationships. This study clearly demonstrates the importance of a healthy environment for an infant. There were some unethical facts about this study, however Harlow proved that love can be tested through science. …show more content…

Nature are the experiences and environment that shapes our behavior, yet nurture is the belief that one’s behavior is due to heredity. In this particular experiment, it is clear that nature outweighs nurture. The early stages of social environment has a major impact on one’s life and future relationships with others. For example, a child that grows up without the love and care of a mother will more than likely have attachment issues and will ultimately have problems forming close intimate relationships because they wasn’t shown love and isn’t sure how to give it to someone else. This ties in with nature, because their childhood experiences shaped their future. In Harlow’s experiment, the monkey showed attachment issues due to not having that caregiver in the early stages of his life. “Attachment is a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space” (McLeod, 2012, pg.1). In one experiment with the monkey, there were two “mothers” setup; one that provided food and the other that provided comfort. Ultimately the baby monkey chose the mother that provided comfort. This shows that love and attachment is deeper than substances. On the other hand, not having love and comfort can go from generation to generation if the deep rooted issue of attachment is not

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