Attachment Analysis: Rudolph Schaffer And Peggy Emerson

What is the definition of attachment? If you look it up in a dictionary it explains that it is ‘an emotional bond between an infant or toddler and primary caregiver, a strong bond being vital for the child’s normal behavioural and social development’. That strong bond between infant and caregiver is believed to happen between the ages of 6-8 months although Bowlby (1958) suggests that the infants are born into this world pre-programmed to form attachments, they have innate behaviours in the way of crying, smiling, crawling and cooing which will stimulate attention and comforting responses from the caregivers. These behaviours are called social releasers. Kagan et al (1978)

Spending a few days with the newborn, doesn’t give adequate time for the mother to structure any type of connection with the child. The first months of the baby’s life are essential for its progress. In the later years when it’s time for the mother to come home, she and the child are strangers. Not having developed that bond at an early age causes the child to be unfamiliar with its own mother, which leads to long term sentimental and conduct issues.

So, in talking about attachment bonds, how are attachments developed in the first place? Starting from birth, infants are essentially unattached emotionally to any significant figure and show no social discriminatory responses to anyone specific. As the baby grows and develops, they will enter the second phase in which they can distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar faces, voices, and smells. At this point, they are not completely attached to any one individual, despite their

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)

Over the years research has shown that attachment is critical to human development, and that in many ways early childhood attachments set up a framework for intimate relationships in adulthood. As they begin to develop an attachment with their caregivers infants go through several phases. The first phase is the asocial phase, which occurs during the first six weeks of an infant's life (Shaffer & Kipp, 2014). The second phase is the phase of indiscriminate attachments, which lasts until the infant is six or seven months old (Shaffer & Kipp, 2014). When infants are about seven to nine months of age they are go through what is called the specific attachment phase (Shaffer & Kipp, 2014). It is during this time that infants establish their initial genuine attachments (Shaffer & Kipp, 2014). The development of a secure attachment during this time is critical for, "… it promotes the development of exploratory behavior" (Shaffer & Kipp, 2014). Finally, during the phase of multiple attachments, in which infants are about nine to eighteen months old, they begin to develop attachments to multiple people (Shaffer & Kipp, 2014).

Although, I relate to some aspects of both secure and ambivalent attachment styles, I believe that my anxiety has caused me to mainly have an ambivalent attachment style. At a young age, I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder that has caused me to be timid and nervous in relationships. As someone with an ambivalent attachment style, I find it difficult to maintain a clear view of self, put myself in new social settings, and express myself around people. Even though I know that the Lord wants His followers to let go of worry and fellowship with one another, I feel held back by my attachment style and nerves. I do not believe that my attachment style originated as a result of limited independence during childhood,

Attachment behaviour according to Mary Ainsworth (1985; Ainsworth and Bell, 1974; Ainsworth et al., 1978) forms the groundings for all potential associations and this develops up to two years after the child is born. She also harmonized with Bowlby on the view that the attachment bonding occurred within the age of two years old. Approximately when the child is seven months old they become wary of strangers and unknown surroundings. This continue until the child is about two years old. The procedure Ainsworth (1969) investigated to measure if a child was securely or insecurely attached was the ‘strange situation paradigm’. This entailed a sequence of short partings and reunions. The child’s parent and a stranger took part in the

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Attachments are formed in the very earliest months and years of life. These have a significant influence on emotional development as well as providing a template for the child as he or she grows into adulthood.

Generally the first three years are very sensitive period for attachment. Secure attachment is healthy and most adaptive attachment style which enables children to work autonomously with others. Parents who consistently

Attachments are intrinsic to a child’s development both in the short term and for the duration of their lives. Infants have an innate need to develop an attachment with their mother to ensure their survival and are equipped with evolutionary characteristics called social releasers; physical social releasers such as large eyes and a small chin are found to be more aesthetically pleasing to the parents so they are more likely to care for them and behavioural social releasers for example, crying; very young infants typically only cry if they 're hungry, cold or in pain (Gross 2015 p535) this alerts the parents to an infants immediate need. At around 7 or 8 months of age children begin to make specific attachments for reasons other than survival, children display proximity maintaining behaviour normally with the mother,

Attachment, as defined by “Infants, Children, and Adolescents” is the strong emotional connection that develops between an infant and caregiver, which provides the infant with a sense of joy, comfort, and emotional security (Berk, 2012, p. 264). Between 6 to 12 months of age, infants typically have developed said strong emotional connection to familiar people who have responded to their need for comfort, care, and other needs. While many individuals might suggest that a baby’s emotional connection to the mother serves as the basis upon which all future relationships are built, how this strong emotional connection develops has been a source of debate for decades. Theories that attempt to explain the emotional bond between an

Attachment theory is a concept that explores the importance of attachment in respect to direct development. “It is a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space” (Bowlby, 1969; McLeod, 2009). It is the relationship that develops within the first year of the infant’s life between them and their caregiver. The theory also relates to the quality of the attachment that is shown in the behavior of the infant (Rieser-Danner, 2016). Attachment theory shows that infants need a close nurturing relationship with their caregiver in order to have a healthy relationship. Lack of response from the caregiver

Seeking comfort, the infant tries to gain the attention of the attachment figure by crying, pleading and crawling to the attachment figure. This responsive caregiver eventually becomes the object of the infant’s primary attachment bond, the one the child turns to in times of uncertainty. The caregivers can be any member of the family, close family friends, neighbors, a nanny, etc. This forms the earliest interpersonal experience of a human being. The strength of the attachment bond is determined by how the caregiver interacts with the child. A strong bond represents a sensitive warm, responsive, consistent caregiver. A weak, unhealthy bond signifies a distant cold, unavailable or inconsistent caregiver. Caregivers are the earliest form of social interaction and help socialize individuals about how to manage their social and interpersonal

Jude Cassidy, Jason D. Jones, and Phillip R. Shaver (2014) documented infant attachment patterns with antecedents and consequences of individual differences. Their study was