A Thematic Analysis in Support of the Theory That Early Relationships Affect Adult Attachment

Perhaps the most influential explanation of attachment was presented by John Bowlby who began developing his ideas in the 1940s. Bowlby was commissioned by the World Health Organisation to investigate whether young children were likely to be harmed if they are separated from their mothers in the early years. (Hayes, 1996). Bowlby (1951) reported that infants possesses an innate need to attach to one main attachment figure (this was usually the mother). According to Hayes (1996), this is a special relationship which is qualitatively different from the relationship they form with any other kind of person. He described this as the process of monotropy; however, Bowlby did not deny that babies formed lots of attachments. (Bailey et al. 2008).

The term ‘attachment’ is used by psychologists who study the child’s early relationships. An attachment is a unique emotional bond normal between a child and an adult. A theorist called John Bowlby (1970-90) had a relation to the attachment theory. In 1950s John identified that when children and

John Bowlby’s work in attachment has been the foundation when determining the attcahments and bonds that a child and parent may experience (Webb, 2011). According to Bowlby, “attachment” is referring to a lasting, mutual bond of affection that is dependent on an individual or more than one person (Webb, 2011). Establishing a secure attachment during infancy and early childhood is an important task of a parent or a caregiver. Not all parents or caregivers can provide their child with a secure attachment at this important in life due to various reasons. Since parents are the main providers in their child’s development of attachment, their lives and history has a great influence on their children’s lives.

One of the most important factors that affect child development is the relationship of the child with their primary caregiver. This is a tenet of developmental psychology known as attachment theory. John Bowlby, the creator of this theory, wanted to examine how early childhood experiences influence personality development. Attachment theory specifically examines infant’s reactions to being separated from their primary caregiver. Bowlby hypothesized that the differences in how children react to these situations demonstrates basic behavioral differences in infancy that will have consequences for later social and emotional development.

Psychologist Phillip Shaver expanded upon Bowlby’s theory too and stated that the attachments formed in one’s infancy extend to adult romantic relationships (Feldman, 2011). According to Shaver, securely attached adults enter into romantic relationships confidently and happily. They also tend to be supportive and sensitive to their partner’s needs. Those who have avoidant attachment style tend to be less into relationships and feel lonelier. Ambivalent or anxiously attached adults tend to be too invested in their relationships, have low self-esteem, and often are intrusive rather then helpful when

Ainsworth (1978) developed the Strange Situation Theory, which is how one is able to view the different levels of attachment (Groh, Roisman, Booth-LaForce, Flaley, Owen, Cox, & Burchinal, 2014). The first attachment is secure attachment, which is when a child is able to greet and seek out contact with the caregiver upon arrival after a stressful separation (Haltigan & Roisman, 2015). The next is anxious-avoidant/resistant (insecure) attachment, when the child has no want to contact with the caregiver while showing signs of resistance upon the return (Haltigan & Roisman, 2015). The last and the most crucial to child development is disoriented/ disorganized attachment; conflicting responses from the child which show hostile and aggressive behavior toward the caregiver (Haltigan & Roisman, 2015). All of these attachements show the different types of ways that a child can communicate with their caregiver. These actions are the representations of their early attachment and experiences with the caregiver (Siebert & Kerns, 2015). If there are no changes toward the environment, the attention

John Bowlby, the backbone of attachment theories will be discussed throughout this essay to explain and evaluate the key theories of attachment. Health and well-being which is made up of four factors ‘physical, intellectual, emotional and social ' (Jones, 2016), will also be discussed within the essay. The definition of attachment is ‘an act of attaching or the state of being attached. ' (Dictionary, 1400) This will be showed in the assignment, using theorists to analyse the meaning. Sharing the strengths and weaknesses in some theorists will help conclude this assignment.

This qualitative research was conducted to ascertain if the attachment style a person has as an adult is created or influenced by his/her interactions with early childhood experiences. The research was carried out by means of a thematic analysis of an interview of a married middle-aged couple. The interviews bought the themes of Work, Childhood and Relationships to the foreground and these were analysed to establish if there is a connection in our childhood attachments and those we make as adults. It can be seen that there are similarities to the attachment types of infants compared to those that

Attachment theory was originally proposed by Bowlby (1969) as an explanation of interpersonal relationships, with particular focus in his work on the parent-child relationships which are formed in early childhood. He noted that this was an evolutionary need within us as humans to form close attachments to improve our rate of survival (Bowlby, 1969). He later also theorized that these attachment styles would persist throughout life into adulthood (Bowlby, 1988). Further work on attachment theory by Bartholomew & Horowitz (1991) expanded on attachment styles and looked at the continuation of attachment style into adulthood. Using interviews with participants and the participants close friends they found evidence for four types of adult attachment styles: Secure, Preoccupied, Dismissing and Fearful (Bartholomew & Horowitz 1991). Further support for adult attachments styles is from Mikulincer & Shaver (2004) showing that attachments styles persist from childhood into adulthood demonstrating bowlby 's later hypothesis

In the part of the essay I will describe and evaluate Bowlbys theory of Attachment and the learning theory of Attachment. I will show strengths and weaknesses in both theories. I will use a collection of source literature to back up and correlate this information.

Bowlby’s work on attachment theory shows infants treated well develop a secure attachment. Hence they have a good foundation for healthy self-esteem, behavior, and future relationships (Barnet, Ganiban, & Cicchetti, 1991). If the infant develops an insecure bond with the caregiver, they may develop mental disturbances (Cicchetti, Ganiban, & Barnett, 1991). Mary Ainsworth, Bowlby’s contemporary, applied Bowlby’s theory in her research. In 1978, Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, and Wall, created the strange situation technique to study one year old infant attachments (as cited in Colonnesi et al., 2011, p.631). Results of their analysis led to three categories of attachment. They distinguished a secure (B), an insecure avoidant (A), and insecure ambivalent attachment (C)

Bowlby’s Ethological Theory of Attachment, first we have to understand that attachment is a bond between two people, which can give them comfort and pleasure by being connected. During the study they wanted to recognize the emotional tie from the child to the mother/caregiver evolved. Some examples of attachment are when a child who is scared clings to their caregiver, or when an infant smiles as the caregiver walks into the room. Bowlby’s theory is that children are born with a set of built in behaviors that will help to keep the caregiver/parent close for safety and support. He also believes that a child needs that single focus from that one main person for the first two years of their life in order to form the proper attachments.

These characteristics are well demonstrated in Mary Ainsworth’s experiment of the “strange situation.” Researcher Chris Fraley describes the study as, “a group of 12 month-old infants and their parents are brought in to the laboratory and, systematically separated from and reunited with one another.” Approximately 58 percent of the children demonstrated characteristics of secure attachment. When the parent left the room the child displayed signs of distress with a need to be close to the attachment figure. When the parent returned to the room, the child eagerly approached

Attachment refers to the ability of individuals to form robust and affectionate bonds throughout the lifespan. John Bowlby was the one of first researchers to draw attention to the idea of attachment and spent his career dedicated to the investigation and refinement of attachment theory. Bowlby was a practicing psychoanalyst and sought to explore the link between mental health, behavioural dysfunctions and early childhood experiences. Bowlby (1969, 1973, 1980) posited that the emotional bonds that are formed in early development through close contact between the young (especially infants) and caregivers, have a profound influence on the child’s psychological, interpersonal and behavioural functioning, as the primary purpose of attachment is to ensure the survival and security of offspring (Khetrapal, 2009).

In this study the four-category model will be used to describe different attachment styles. This model is based on the individual beliefs of themselves and others, positive or negative (Hollist & Miller, 2005). Individuals with a