John Bowlby Attachment Theory Essay

John Bowlby drew on ideas from animal studies, psychology and psychoanalysis to develop what is known as attachment theory. Babies and people who care for them usually form close bonds. As the baby is fed, held, enjoyed these emotional, loving relationships develop and deepen. Babies who find that adults who respond quickly to their cries become trusting of life and are securely attached in stable, warm relationships. They know that they will be fed, changed, comforted etc. Babies and parents who do not make close emotional bonds experience general difficulty in forming stable, warm and loving relationships.

Bowlby looked at:
• How babies became attached to the mother figure (attachment).
• What happens when babies are separated from the

mother figure (separation).
• What happens when babies experience loss and grief after being separated from the people they feel close to.

Mary Ainsworth who worked with Bowlby found that if adults responded quickly to a baby’s cries, the child was less demanding by the age of three, than those babies who had been left to cry. The individual temperament of a baby becomes obvious very early on and has an effect on the carers. For example, some babies, become quite hysterical very quickly when hungry others may have a much calmer nature. Bonding is partly about adults and babies adjusting to and understanding each other.

Bowlby thought that early attachment was very important. He did not believe that the most important attachment figure must be a natural mother but did say that babies need one central person. It is now understood that babies can have deep relationships with several people i.e. mother, father, brothers, sisters, grandparents etc. Babies develop in an emotionally and socially healthy way only if they bond with several different people. It is the quality of time which the child spends with people that determines whether or not the child becomes attached to them.

Attachment can be difficult at first, especially in cases where it is hard for the adult and child to communicate. Examples of such circumstances are:-
• The birth has caused mother and baby to be separated, and the mother is depressed.
• The child is visually impaired and eye contact is absent.
• The child is hearing impaired and does not turn to the parent’s voice. Eye contact is also harder to establish here because the child does not turn to the parents face when they speak.
• The child has severe learning difficulties and needs many experiences of a person before bonding can become stable.

Harry and Margaret Harlow conducted a series of experiments in the 1950’s to determine the source of attachment and the effects of maternal separation. They separated infant monkeys from their natural mothers at an early age and placed them in individual cages with two inanimate surrogate mothers. These surrogates were dummies made to look like real monkeys. One was made from wire mesh and contained a food bottle, another was padded with foam and covered with a towelling cloth although no food was provided. The monkeys showed a clear preference for the soft padded monkey over that of the wire mesh monkey despite being fed regularly. They would only go to the wire mesh monkey to feed before returning and clinging to the soft padded monkey. In other experiments the infant monkeys only had access to the wire mesh monkey. These monkeys exhibited signs of emotional disturbance. This research ultimately refuted the theory that attachment develops because a parent feeds the child and that affectionate behaviour is reinforced by food. The results consistently supported that a warm, comfortable area to which to cling was more likely to promote attachment than merely a food source.

James and Joyce Robertson made a series of films in the 1950’s that showed Bowlby’s theory about maternal deprivation in action. The films were of young child who were separated from their parents and showed that they went through various stages of loss and grief:-

- They protested – crying out but were able to be comforted
- They despaired – they were inconsolable
- They showed denial and became detached in the way that they related to others.

The research ultimately showed that maternal deprivation does seem to cause emotional difficulties for children.

Attachment means a warm, affectionate and supportive bond between a child and their primary carer, which enables the child to develop secure relationships. When children receive warm, responsive care, they feel safe and secure.

Bonding with a baby is vitally important, as it supports their physiological and safety needs. A bond can be created through day-to-day routines such as bathing, feeding etc. The senses are important in developing a relationship with a baby through touch, eye contact and use of voice.

A secure relationship is developed through more emotional connections. This can still be through the regular routines involved in bonding, but the tie is built through non-verbal cues. The quality of these cues will determine the quality of the secure relationship

Children become securely attached and begin to trust when someone:-
• Smiles back at them
• Comforts them when they are upsets
• Feeds them when they are hungry

As indicated above research shows that babies who receive quick and affectionate responses to their expressed needs typically learn to cry much less and sleep more at night.

When babies are calmed by being comforted or fed, the brain’s stress-response systems are turned off. Babies’ brains begin to create the network of cells that help them learn to self-regulate.

Developing secure attachments is a process that is supported by a caring and nurturing environment. Babies and young children make emotional attachments and form relationships that lay the foundation for future mental health and well-being. Attachment relationships are particularly important and have far reaching effects on the development of personal, emotional, social and cognitive skills. In the first few months of life babies make attachments with their primary carers.

Secure attachments form the basis of all the child’s future relationships. Because babies experience relationships through their senses, it is the expression of love that affects how they develop and that helps to shape later learning and behaviour. Children who are securely attached tend to be more inquiring, to get along better with other children and to perform better in school than children who are less securely attached. Child who have formed secure attachment tend to cope better with stressful

situations.

Children who do not have loving, secure relationships with the important people in their lives are likely to find it difficult to settle into and enjoy an early years setting.

Babies development “attachments” with their parents and other key members of their family through a gradual process. From around 6 weeks to three months babies can be described as being at the “indiscriminate stage” of attachments. This means that they begin to show an attraction to human voices and faces and they usually start to smile at around 6 weeks of age. The indiscriminate stage continues to around 8 months of age although during this time the baby will begin to learn to distinguish between faces and will be able to show pleasure when someone familiar comes into view. Babies of this age are happy in human company and are often content to be handled by strangers.

‘Specific’ or ‘primary’ attachments start to emerge after 8 months when the baby has learned to recognise, and therefore miss, familiar key people in their lives – this in turn leads to distress for example when the familiar adults leaves the room or goes out of view. Often babies will develop one particularly strong attachment and this is referred to as the primary attachment.

Following on, at around 8 months and older babies will begin to develop ‘multiple’ attachments whereby they form a number of attachments. This is the start of the important socialisation process.

Young babies are very trusting however by the time they reach 6-9 months they will begin to develop feelings of insecurity and may become distressed if their primary carer leaves their sight.

Children between 8 and 20 months are happiest in the company of the people they know and trust.

Between 16 and 26 months a child’s emotions will be very strong. They may in fact be overpowering, frightening and difficult for the child to control.

Between 22 and 36 months children will have developed an understanding of the unknown and may become fearful of people and situations they are unsure of.

Between 30 and 50 months a child may still be afraid of the unknown however they should be more confident and willing to try out new activities and take part in new experiences.

Between 40 and 60 months children should be capable of forming good relationships with others and have a wide circle of friends. Children should be encouraged to contribute to and value their own well-being.