Pre-Attachment In The Real World

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)

Chapter six in the book Disorders of Childhood Development and Psychopathology, authored by Parritz and Tory, points out that one of the most important accomplishments for caregivers and infants in the first year of life is developing a strong attachment relationship. During that time that baby should begin to gain a sense of self, others, and the world around them. Babies gain a secure attachment when their needs are consistently meet, they feel love, affection and from their caregiver, and they safe in their environment. From an evolutionary standpoint, attachments between a baby and his caregiver were necessary for survival. Besides a secure attachment there are three other types of attachments.

Attachment Theory for Childcare Providers: An Annotated Bibliography Mardell, B. (1992). A Practitioner’s Perspective on the Implications of Attachment Theory for Daycare Professionals. Child Study Journal, 22(3), 121-128. Retrieved from https://www.esc.edu/library/

Despite all the benefits of the three theories, they do have some limitations when addressing Andrew’s needs. For instance, attachment theory puts too much emphasis on the relationship between the mother and the chid, which unfortunately result in blame being put on the female caregiver (Coady & Lehmann, 2008). In Andrew’s case, the counsellor may focus too much on the relationship he had with his mother instead of also focusing on what kind of relationship he had with his father. One of the limitations for cognitive-behavioural theory regarding to treatment is that it may not be appropriate for clients with severe depressions or other sever problems (Coady & Lehmann, 2008). For Andrew’s case, if he was still taking his medications, he may

EFT is an attachment based research theory, that suggest that couples have strong need to stay connected (bond) to each other. As such, bonding is very important in marital relationships and if the bond is disappearing, then stressful and negative cycle pattern begins to emerge. Thus, the goal of EFT is to support couples walk through a process of healing (overcoming the negative patterns, rebuilding the connection again, and fortify the bond) (Goldenberg, Stanton, & Goldenberg, 2017). From the assessment that has carried out by the therapist it is clear that Tam and Lisa do not have what it takes to manage or settle conflicts without it escalating into something else. As such, the bonding between them is disappearing and it’s becoming stressful and disturbing to them and their children. Because Jimmy and Emma even though do not see their parent fight or disagree in the open but they can sense the disconnection between their parent and feel the tension whenever both of them where at home. More so, because of the negative pattern that has emerge as a result of lack of secure attachment, there is no more interactions between the couple and each others needs are not met. From the case conceptualization, and to decide what treatment plan should target or focus on the therapist will use the step-by-step treatment manual provided by Johnson and Greenberg (1995) as cited in (Goldenberg et al., 2017) for the therapy process:

Adults’ propensity to seek proximity and support when faced with a distressful situation demonstrates how attachment formations endure over one’s entire lifespan. Disorganization has also been observed in childhood and adolescence. For example, some disorganized children behave punitively toward their parents, seeking to challenge or humiliate them, while others adopt a caregiving stance, taking the role of the parent and attempting to soothe or comfort them Both of these forms of behavior are seen as controlling. Other forms of disorganized behavior include manifesting fear toward or having difficulties in addressing or interacting with the parent, exhibiting behavior that invades parental intimacy, engaging in self-injuring behaviors or

The attachment theory is a theory by Bowlby that refers to the joint mutual relationship that babies experience and develop with their primary caregiver (Bowlby, 1982). This theory is not supported by research in various sceneries. However, even though the attachment theory began as an initiative, the clinical application to the daily clinical understanding of adult mental health complications has penned red behind the current available research. I believe that the theory can give valuable insight into both the developing nature of recognized psychiatric disorders as well as in the development of the therapeutic relationship in adults. My position provides an overview of (a) the application of attachment theory to diverse psychopathologies

Attachment begins in stages. It involves seven stages that is from birth until life ends. In the first stage, in includes birth to six weeks. It is called preattachment. Basically, the newborn cry and do body movement to get others attention. With that, the newborn is then comforted. The second stage is from six week to eight months. This stage is called attachment in the making. The newborn react to familiar facial features and their voice, touch and expressions. The third stage is from ages eight months to two years. This stage is called classic secure attachment. In this stage, the newborn greets the caregiver and show emotional signs whenever left alone by the caregiver. This is about the age where the newborn and caregiver share more of an attachment. The fourth stage is from age two to six. It is called attachment is a launch pad. Young children seek their caregiver’s praise and reassurance as their social world expands [1]. The child is also

Attachment starts at the first ever relationship between the infant and caregiver. This relationship may be one of trust, love, security etc or the contrary, Inconsistent, uncertain, aggressive etc. This relationship will create an expectation if which all relationships will be like. Overtime an infant will develop a model about emotional relationships. This model will include concepts about relationships and expectations from others. Bowlby called this model the internal working model.

Analyzing Billy through a modern attachment and self-psychology perspective truly elucidates his inconsistent and volatile nature. This is a child that is crying for empathy and relation. While his early interactions in the orphanage and adoptive family has truly impacted his attachment to others and maturity of his self, there is still room for growth and positive change. Both theories place a major role on the psychological and social influences, but the modern attachment has included the biological aspect as well. Unfortunately, due to his parent’s decision to revoke their custody, services with Billy were terminated and there is a chance in foster care that he will never have a stable and empathic caregiver. In order for Billy to have

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.

Psychologists realized that the first few years of a child 's life are vital to their personality and behavioral development. One of the most critical qualities of a child 's development is the child 's relationship with their caregiver. From determining a child 's early attachment patterns, it can help further the child 's behavior in later development, and the way the child will relate to others in her years to come. The acknowledgment of this simple fact has led many psychologists to create theories and findings to support this idea. Bowlby’s creation of the Attachment Theory sparked many famous psychologists to come up with ways to support his theory. Mary Ainsworth is known to be most famous for her “Strange Situation” procedure, which determined how attached a child is with their caregiver (usually the mother).

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).

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.

Many psychologists have come and gone, and many different theoretical orientations have been developed. With each orientation has come a new perspective on development, behaviour and mental processes. Some are similar, yet others could not be more contradictory. Attachment is one such theoretical orientation, developed by John Bowlby out of his dissatisfaction with other existing theories. Although Bowlby rejected psychoanalytical explanations for early infant bonds, the theory of attachment was influenced in part by the principles of psychoanalysis; in particular the observations by Ana Freud and Dorothy Burlingham of young children separated from