John Bowlby's Theory Of 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).

Kate Murphy’s 2017 article, “Yes, It’s Your Parents’ Fault”, seems to point blame on parents for adults’ behavior in relationships. Murphy’s claim however is grounded in research on a theory first devised in 1958 by British psychoanalyst John Bowlby, known as the attachment theory. This theory has garnered more and more attention and credibility as it continues to give psychologists, neuroscientists, sociologists, and other researchers insight on human connections and information from explaining how we function in relationships to its practical applications in therapeutic and clinical settings. The underlying assumption of Bowlby’s attachment theory is that the quality of a baby’s early attachments and relationships describes and influences

The purpose of this paper is to describe three psychosocial theories and how they impacted my own personal development. I will use the theories to trace my development throughout my undergraduate career and show how I processed information and how is some situations I am still developing. In this paper, I will use Marcia’s theory identity development to describe how I moved from moratorium to identity achievement. I will also use Chickering’s vector developing a mature interpersonal relationship to discuss how I am continually developing. I will conclude with discussion two components of Bronfenbrenner’s developmental ecology theory.

John Bowlby created the theory of attachment, this is where he believed that the earliest bonds formed by babies with their parents/care gives have a tremendous impact of their relationships/attachments towards people in their continuous life. Also Bowlby believe that the attachment bond is to keep the infants close to their mother, this is to improve the child’s chances in survival. What is attachment? This is a strong affectionate tie with special people which young babies will make in the early stage of their life e.g. an attachment towards their mum and dad.

Charles Manson’s name will forever be associated with murder. However, “Manson did not physically kill anyone. Although he had gone with six Family members on the second night to the LaBianca's home, he had not used a weapon, “instead he had successfully manipulated his followers to commit the most terrible slaughter” (Bannerman, 2017 p.1). The motivation of these offenders, known as disciple killers is to earn respect and gain attention from their charismatic leaders within in their cult. It is critical for researchers to study disciple mass murders due to severe nature of the crime and due to its current lack of research.

After the death of my husband, I have watched my children grapple with grief. At times it seems as if they are in a tug-of-war with God. Losing a loved one has always been a part of life and eventually everyone will go through a time when they will have to grapple with grief. The death of a father at any age can be devastating, but when children lose their father at a young age their feelings of security disappear. If children lose their attachment to their father they are left wondering if they can even trust to put that attachment somewhere else due to the fear of losing it again. Children grieve differently than adults.

John Bowlby had worked with residential school children as a volunteer early on in his career and had determined that the children who suffered the most from anger outbursts, aggressivity, and whom her termed “affectionless” were also the children who had suffered the most maternal deprivation (). Bowlby advanced that the loss of the mother figure was extremely distressing and damaging and could influence adults' behavior years later. Hence, where psychoanalysis had been concerned “solely with the imaginings of the childish mind, the fantasied pleasures and the dreaded retributions” (Fonagy), Bowlby showed that humans do not develop in a void or as “individual monads” but as members of interacting systems. Bowlby developed his theory on attachment for several decades, and at a time where any dealings with childhood trauma were still rigorously influenced by Freudian psychoanalysis through the likes of psychoanalysts such Anna Freud or Melanie Klein. Even Winnicott was “revulsed” upon reading Bowlby's papers (siegel). It certainly was a bitter pill to swallow for psychoanalysts who had been repeating since Freud that the newborn was a little tyrant fighting for oral gratification at the mother's breast and merely clinging on to fulfil sexual instinctual needs. Bowlby's work was thus eschewed for a considerable time, despite his involvement with the World Health Organisation and the considerable empirical weight that was added to his findings by Mary Ainsworth's studies in

Technology has taken over our lives and we are constantly being distracted. According to Jana Brech, teachers have noticed that attention spans of children are getting shorter as they opt for screen based activities over regular reading. Their attachment style may also play a role in how much they pay attention to given assignments. As a result, technology can be affecting college student’s attention span and their attachment style may have a role on who pays more attention. John Bowlby came up with an attachment theory in 1969, he proposed the emotional bond between a child and their primary caregiver which has an affect on the child’s psychological development shaping their personality and the way they will cope.

Bowlby's Attachment Theory Findings form animal studies were a powerful influence on Bowlby's thoughts. He suggested too that there was a critical period for the development of attachments between infant and care giver. According to Bowlby infants display an innate tendency to become attached to one particular individual. He called this monotropy. He suggested this tendency was qualitatively different from any subsequent attachment a child might form.

ATTACHMENT INTRODUCTION The relationship that we build in our lives at every stage of life are the building blocks for the development of personality and are also necessary for the growth and development of a child into an individual who can survive happily in this harsh world and face all challenges in his life. This relationships and attachment go hand in hand; attachment can be described as a strong bond or linkage established between two individuals not only with humans but also with animals or some objects. Attachment significantly influences a large capacity of an individual makeup as it helps one to maintain the relationship and it also teaches us the moral values, build up the self-esteem, also helps in increasing confidence level

In relation to Freud and Erikson’s theory, Heenen-Wolff (2011) stated that attachment theories with their interest in terms of interpersonal interactions between mother and the child have influenced greatly in psychoanalysis. In the case study it that Shannon has had not had any contact with her mother since she was three years old and does not what kind of relationship she had with her mother however it does specify that services were concerned about neglect and there was evidence that Shannon was left unsupervised. From this information it relevant to consider the attachment theory and the effect of the lack of relationship Shannon has with her primary care giver when she was an infant. In relation to this Schore (2000) stated that at age three the final stage of the Bowlby’s attachment theory (1969) the child begins to demonstrate behaviours of attachment and begins to develop an internal working model, a cognitive framework that influences the child’s personality and future relationships/interactions with others. This is important to consider in relation to Shannon who was separated from her mother at three years old which could be a concern in terms of her attachment with others during and later in her

The child’s relationship with his parents is an attachment while as the parents’ is more of an affectional bond. Emotions such as love, grief and sadness due to separation are all part of attachment. Many psychologists talked about attachment. But the strongest theory in the study of parent and child relationships is the attachment theory which was first mastered by John Bowlby and later developed by Mary Ainsworth.

John Bowlby’s attachment theory established that an infant’s earliest relationship with their primary caregiver or mother shaped their later development and characterized their human life, “from the cradle to the grave” (Bowlby, 1979, p. 129). The attachment style that an infant develops with their parent later reflects on their self-esteem, well-being and the romantic relationships that they form. Bowlby’s attachment theory had extensive research done by Mary Ainsworth, who studied the mother-infant interactions specifically regarding the theme of an infant’s exploration of their surrounding and the separation from their mother in an experiment called the strange situation. Ainsworth defined the four attachment styles: secure,

According to Erikson, the development of the lifespan is a lifelong process from birth to death and includes the formation of identity (Broderick & Blewitt, 2010). I will cover in the paper six life events that influence my identity development from childhood to middle adulthood. Each life event will be explained based on the significance of the event as well as the impact the event had on my development. Also, theories will be discussed as they relate to my development.

James Marcia, an Eriksonian researcher believed that in to maintain the status “identity achievement” an individual must undergo crisis and make a commitment. Crisis is defined as “the period of identity development during which the individual is exploring alternatives.”(Santrock 386) The commitment is made when different approaches, ideologies, and vocations are explored on their own in response to the crisis. Key Changes in identity primarily occur in emerging adulthood. “Once formed, an identity furnishes individuals with a historical sense of who they have been, a meaningful sense of who they are now, and a sense of who they might become in the future.”(James Marcia)