Attachment Adult relationships

Starter: exam questions Discuss the effects of institutionalisation. Refer to the studies of Romanian orphans in your answer. (Total 16 marks)

What would you include for your A01? Knowledge of studies and/or theory into the effects of institutionalisation, including reference to the Romanian orphan studies What were the effects identified by Bowlby? What effects were identified by Harlow? What were the effects identfied by Zeenah? What were the effects identified by Rutter?

What would you include for your A03? Mindmap AO3 Discussion points • practical applications: enhanced understanding of negative effects –establishment of key workers in institutions. Evidence that adverse effects of institutionalisation can be overcome with adequate substitute care: e.g. Rutter (1998); Hodges and Tizard (1989). Importance of age of adoption and quality/stability of aftercare. • methodological weaknesses: Adoption vs control groups were not randomly assigned in ERA studies – more sociable children may have been selected. Problems of generalising from Romanian studies as standards of care were particularly poor. Early studies of institutionalisation were poorly controlled or effects extrapolated from animal studies. Other studies, e.g. Bucharest Early Intervention Project, did randomly allocate but ethical issues with this. Although longitudinal research – the Long-term effects on Romanian orphans are not yet clear.

Starter: types of attachment You have already completed these activities so NO NOTES! There are three types of attachment according to Ainsworth Secure, insecure-avoidant, insecure-resistant. Match the correct type of attachment to the correct descriptions below

The influence of early attachment

Think, pair, share Think!-Task one You will have a multiple choice quiz that you need to do alone, with no notes and in silence. There are questions that cover material we haven’t looked at but you should be able to work the answers out based on previous learning of the internal working model and Ainsworth’s types of attachment. You can use the next slide to help you if you need it.

A reminder The internal working model suggests that a child's first relationship with their primary caregiver shapes all future relationships. The continuity hypothesis is based on this and says that the specific attachment type of a child is reflected in their adult relationships.  Avoidant- avoids social interaction, no separation anxiety, low stranger anxiety Resistant-Very distressed on separation, clingy with mother, low exploration, seeks and reject intimacy.

Answers 1. The internal working model is part of what theory? C. Bowlby’s monotropic theory 2. The internal working model would predict which of the following if a child has a secure relationship with their primary caregiver?  A. They will find it easy to form friendships   3. Thinking about the internal working model which type of child do you think will be least likely to be a bully and be bullied?  A. Secure 4. Thinking about the internal working model which type of child do you think will be most likely to be a bully?   B. Insecure resistant 5. Thinking about the internal working model which type of child do you think will be most likely to be a victim of bullying?  C. Insecure avoidant 

6. Thinking about the internal working model which type of child do you think will be most vulnerable to loneliness as an adult?  B. Insecure resistant   7. Thinking about the internal working model which type of child do you think will have the longest lasting romantic relationships as an adult? A. Secure 8. Adults classified as which attachment style picked the following statement to best describe their inner feelings "I find it easy getting close to others and am comfortable depending on them and having them depend on me. I don't worry about being abandoned or about somebody getting close to me".  A. Secure attachment 9. Adults classified as which attachment style picked the following statement to best describe their inner feelings- "I find others are reluctant to get as close as I'd like. I worry my partner doesn't really love me or won't stay with me. I want to merge completely with another person and this desire scares people away" 10. Adults classified as which attachment style picked the following statement to best describe their inner feelings- "I am uncomfortable being close to others; I find it difficult to trust them, difficult to depend on them. I am nervous when anybody gets close to and love partners want me to be more intimate than I feel comfortable being.  C. Insecure avoidant 

11. Adults classified as which attachment type were most likely to agree with the following statement-"it is easy to fall in love. I feel myself beginning to fall in love often" B. Insecure resistant  12. Adults classified as which attachment type were most likely to agree with the following statement-"it is rare to find someone you can fall in love with".  C. Insecure avoidant   13. In a study by Quinton (1984) 50 women raised in institutions were compared to 50 women raised at home. What do you think they found?  B. The institutional group had extreme difficulties acting as parents and their children spent more time in care.  14. Bailey (2007) interviewed and observed 99 mothers with their babies using the strange situation and found what? This study supports the internal working model. A. The majority of mothers had the same attachment style with their babies as they reported having with their own mothers.

Pair Those students who have scored 10 and above stand up. You need to pair up with somebody sat down for the next task. Now using the answers from the quiz fill in the grid

Background Attachment processes may play out in adulthood. Hazan and Shaver (1987) were two of the first researchers to explore Bowlby's ideas in the context of romantic relationships. Hazan and Shaver noted that the relationship between infants and caregivers and the relationship between adult romantic partners share the following features: both feel safe when the other is nearby and responsive both engage in close, intimate, bodily contact both feel insecure when the other is inaccessible both share discoveries with one another both play with one another's facial features and exhibit a mutual fascination and preoccupation with one another both engage in "baby talk"

3 implications If adult romantic relationships are attachment relationships, then we should observe the same kinds of individual differences in adult relationships that Ainsworth observed in infant-caregiver relationships. If adult romantic relationships are attachment relationships, then the way adult relationships "work" should be similar to the way infant-caregiver relationships work. Third, whether an adult is secure or insecure in his or her adult relationships may be a partial reflection of his or her experiences with his or her primary caregivers. Bowlby believed that the mental representations or working models (i.e., expectations, beliefs, "rules" or "scripts" for behaving and thinking) that a child holds regarding relationships are a function of his or her caregiving experiences.

The earliest research on adult attachment involved studying the association between individual differences in adult attachment and the way people think about their relationships and their memories for what their relationships with their parents are like. Hazan and Shaver (1987) developed a simple questionnaire to measure these individual differences.

Love quiz link http://www.web-research-design.net/cgi-bin/crq/crq.pl This survey is designed to measure your attachment style--the way you relate to others in the context of close relationships. This survey takes about 5 minutes to complete and will provide you with detailed feedback on your attachment style. This tool is designed to be used for educational purposes.

Share On your tables talk about how you scored in the love quiz. What was your attachment style? Do you think it really reflects your attachment type and how you view relationships? What issues are there with finding out your attachment style in this way? Turn over the back of your grid sheet and together evaluate the love quiz (only use the prompts if you need them). Remember to link your points back to whether it adds support or weakens it’s support for the internal working model and continuity hypothesis.

and the influence of early attachment on childhood relationships Exam skills and the influence of early attachment on childhood relationships

AO1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of scientific ideas, processes, techniques and procedures. This skill requires you to simply show that you have knowledge of the relevant theories, studies etc. What exam words might they use to ask you to do this? Outline Describe Explain

Get into groups of 4 You will each be given a different card (do not show the rest of your group). In three minutes you will have to put the card away and EXPLAIN or DESCRIBE the content of the card to the rest of your group. You need to be clear and exact in your explanation and don’t apply or evaluate JUST explain. The rest of the group will make a quick note of your explanation to use later. Did it make sense? Was all the detail there for a full explanation of the information?

AO2: Apply knowledge and understanding of scientific ideas, processes, techniques and procedures-in a theoretical context, in a practical context, when handling qualitative data, when handling quantitative data. So what does this mean?! This is the ability to look at a scenario or data table or interview transcript for example and to be able to use your knowledge to explain what is happening and why it is happening.

Dave’s daughter is 3 and has had a poor relationship with her mother and in a recent psychology experiment she took part in he came out as insecure avoidant. He has been looking for advice as he wants to know if she’ll have friends and be a good friend and ever be able to have a happy romantic relationship and be a good parent. Referring to research studies into the influence of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships explain to Dave the impact of his daughter’s early attachment on her future friendships and romantic relationships. (6 marks). On big boards have a go!

AO3: Analyse, interpret and evaluate scientific information, ideas and evidence, including in relation to issues, to: make judgements and reach conclusions, develop and refine practical design and procedures.

ANALYSE AND INTERPRET-On the big whiteboards Using your knowledge of research into the effects of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships, explain what is being shown in the graph below. (3 marks)

Evaluation Use your knowledge of psychological theory and evidence to discuss the influence of early attachment on later relationships. [16 marks] On big boards-So what type of evaluation skills/points would you use here? Don’t mention specific research yet we just want skills.

Now include research and specific evidence-roughly plan on big boards Bowlby’s theory of the internal working model – primary attachment relationship as a template for later relationships • Hazan and Shaver’s types of adult relationships and the links with Ainsworth’s secure, insecure-avoidant, insecure-resistant types • Relationships in later childhood – stages of friendship: eg Selman’s Possible discussion points: • Evidence to support or challenge Bowlby’s internal working model • Evidence to support/contradict continuity of attachment type from childhood into adulthood and across generations: eg Fonagy, Steele and Steele 1991, Main 1985, Hazan and Shaver 1987 • Implications of findings re continuity: eg determinism • Practical implications: eg bullying in childhood, relationship stability in adulthood • Issue of cause and effect – research that shows a link cannot establish causality • Validity of measures of attachment – where used to discuss influence of early