Attachment Relationships
Nurturing Healthy Bonds
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Attachment Relationships:
Nurturing Healthy Bonds
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Attachment Relationships
Summary
Attachment is the ability to form and maintain healthy relationships. In this program, viewers follow
the journey of a baby’s phases of attachment from the womb to age two. It studies founding theorists
John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth and shows examples of ways parents and primary caregivers can
foster attachment relationships. Attentive, responsive and loving care given by a baby’s primary
caregiver sets the foundation for a child’s capacity to form these relationships throughout life.
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Attachment Relationships
Key Facts About Attachment
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Attachment is the two-way process through which children and their parent or primary
caregiver form emotional bonds with each other.
Two components of attachment are: the child’s need for protection and comfort; and the
parent’s giving of care in response to these needs.
A baby who learns to feel loved and attached to his or her primary caregiver has brain
connections that are structured for later success.
Secure attachment takes place when a caregiver is sensitive to a baby’s needs and meets
these needs consistently and a baby who develops a sense of trust in his caregiver, feels
good about himself, and feels safe to explore his world.
When parents give babies love and consistency, babies gain not only a sense of security, but
also the confidence to explore their world and create relationships with others throughout their whole life.
Key Facts About Attachment History and Theory
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John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth were the pioneers in the field of attachment theory.
Bowlby concluded, after working with maladjusted boys, that a child’s early relationship to
his mother is important to his immediate well being and his social functioning later in life.
He believed that babies express innate signals (crying, smiling, babbling, clinging, and nonnutritional sucking), which keep their parents close to them in order to fulfill their physical
and emotional needs, thereby creating attachment.
Attachment Relationships
Bowlby’s Characteristics of Attachment
Proximity maintenance
The desire to be near the parent.
Safe haven
The return to an attachment figure when afraid or threatened.
Secure base
The attachment figure is a source of security from which the child can
explore his or her world.
Separation distress
Anxiety that occurs in the absence of the attachment figure.
Bowlby’s Stages of Attachment
Stage
Age
Pre-attachment
Birth to 6 weeks
Attachment in the Making
6 weeks to 8 months
Clear-Cut Attachment
8 months to 18 months to 2 years
Characteristics
The early infant exhibits positive
responses to attention from any
individual- not just the primary
caregiver.
Distinguishes and prefers primary
caregiver. When distressed, they
calm most quickly in the arms of
their primary caregiver- their safe
haven. They develop expectations
about how their caregiver will
respond to their needs.
Protests when a caregiver leaves
and is distressed when separated
from her. Stranger anxiety often
begins at this stage as well.
They begin to explore their
world, always returning to their
primary caregiver- their secure
base for contact, comfort, and
reassurance.
Formal Reciprocal Relationships
5
18 months and older
Understands that their caregivers
will return. They protest less and
show less anxiety when separated
from them. They begin to try
more things on their own.
However, a toddler is still
extremely dependent on that
caregiver.
Attachment Relationships
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Mary Ainsworth confirmed many of Bowlby’s ideas through observations of caregiver-child
interactions. And she expanded on the concept of the parent as a secure base.
Ainsworth created a technique called the “Strange-situation” in order measure infant
attachment wherein a parent, infant, and person unknown to the infant were observed in
various configurations in a room. The reactions of the infant and the mother helped
Ainsworth categorize the type of attachment they exhibited.
Ainsworth’s Strange-Situations
Stranger in the room with the baby and mother.
Stranger in the room with just the baby.
Baby in the room alone.
Mother returning to greet her baby after the baby had been left alone.
Patterns of Attachment
During the Strange-Situation Experiment
Secure
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At ease when their mothers were
present and went to her for closeness
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Preferred the parent to a stranger
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Not distressed by her absence
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A short absence babies immediately
sought contact with her, and displayed
positive emotions.
Avoidant
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Did not go to the mother for closeness
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Showed little or no preference between
their parent and the stranger
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Avoided the mother upon her return
after an absence
Ambivalent
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Disorganized-disoriented
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Wariness of strangers
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Contradiction that even though the child
was upset when the parent left, they
were not comforted by the parent’s
return
Mixture of behaviors- from clinging to
avoiding to fighting off a parent
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Dazed, confused, or scared in each of
the strange-situation scenarios
Attachment Relationships
Key Facts About Prenatal Attachment
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Prenatal attachment is the emotional bond established between parents and their unborn
children.
Attachment begins when a mother:
o Responds positively to her pregnancy.
o Welcomes the idea that her child is connected to her, yet still an individual separate
from herself.
o Understands that the baby relies on her for nourishment and protection.
o Thinks about what her baby will look and act like after delivery and throughout a
lifetime of development.
These feelings of attachment on the part of the mother lead her to want to give her baby
love and affection, protection and nourishment, attention and interaction-- everything a
baby needs.
Attachment also begins when babies in the womb become accustomed to their mother’s
sounds and movements.
Key Facts About Pre-attachment
(birth to 6 weeks)
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As soon as an infant is born, parents and primary caregivers begin to learn the baby’s cues,
(cries, fixed attention, facial expressions) which indicate his needs.
Babies often have a specific kind of cry to indicate that they are hungry and different cries
that indicate they need comfort or sleep.
Parents and primary caregivers eventually learn to learn the meaning of cries, and their
responses begin to match the baby’s needs. In this way, both parent and baby grow more
attached to each other-- a parent becomes more intuitive to a baby’s needs and a baby’s
needs are met quickly and correctly.
Infants develop a social smile, which is usually returned by a parents smile. This is the
beginning of positive communication.
Attachment Relationships
Key Facts About Attachment-in-the-Making
(6 weeks to 8 months)
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They spend more and more time awake and alert - becoming more aware of their
environment and the people in it- especially their parents and primary caregivers.
Their vision has sharpened and they actively seek out their parents’ eyes. When they catch
them, they brighten their own and begin to smile and coo in order keep their primary
caregiver interested.
Securely attached parents will return the smiles, and make funny faces, and eventually
exchange laughter. Both participants delight in this communication.
Babies are now better able to express a wider variety of emotions. The more in tune the
parent is with these cues, the better they will be able to attend to the child’s needs, and
deepen the child’s sense of trust.
If a crawling baby finds himself in an unfamiliar situation or realizes how far he has gotten
from their caregiver, he may become upset and seek his primary caregiver, or secure base.
Key Facts About Clear-Cut Attachment
and the Formation of Reciprocal Relationships
(8 months to 18 months)
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They have no experience with how a stranger will act, so interactions with people they
don’t know may make children feel anxious. They may seek their primary attachment figure
for comfort.
Separation anxiety occurs when a child’s need for attachment outweighs her need for
independence.
Separation anxiety peaks at around 14 months. As infants learn that Mom always returns
after an absence, their distress usually lessens or subsides.
They may begin “testing” their parents by going places even when they have been told not
to.
Though babies may feel frustration or disappointment over not getting their way, at the
same time they are comforted to know that a parent is in charge.
Boundaries help promote attachment as well as safety.
Attachment Relationships
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Exploring children will still circle back to their secure base just to reassure themselves.
If a child gets frustrated while trying to be independent, a parent may need to jump in and
give a little assistance. It helps baby to know that they can rely on their parents for help
when they need it.
With repeated support from their caregivers, children will feel safe to express their
emotions and will learn how to cope with overwhelming or upsetting feelings on their own,
while feeling safe to share their feelings with others.
Key Facts About Attachments
Beyond the Primary Caregiver
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Children form attachments with people beyond their primary caregivers.
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Children form attachment relationships with their siblings as well.
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Non-primary caregiver relationships can help children develop trust and feel secure in who
they are and in their interactions throughout their lives.
Childcare workers can also become attachment figures.
If created with care and planning, caregiver attachment can complement and even enhance
primary caregiver attachment.
“Continuity of care” refers to a childcare program in which the children remain with the
same caregiver for the first three years of life.
Within the continuity of care model, caregivers know their charges well. They should be
able to read their cues and anticipate and respond to their needs, which helps babies learn
to trust and feel secure.
Infants that have secure attachments to their caregivers are more likely to explore and
interact with children and adults in the childcare setting.
In a family centered childcare situation, milestones a child reaches, or emotional issues likes, dislikes and cues - are shared within the parent/caregiver team.
Secure attachment is so important to setting up children for success throughout their lives,
the more people that can contribute to that in a positive way, the better!
Attachment Relationships
Suggested Activities
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Do further research on psychologists John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth. Compare and
contrast their findings regarding attachment.
For each stage of attachment, devise three things that a parent or primary caregiver can do
each day to foster secure attachment.
Name some examples of when a child would need to return to their parents because they
need a secure base. Why is it important for children to view their primary caregiver as a
safe haven?
Imagine you are setting up guidelines for a childcare facility that uses a continuity of care
model, which stresses a family-centered environment. What would these guidelines include?
Attachment Relationships
Attachment Relationships: Nurturing Healthy Bonds
Matching Quiz
Match the words in the first column to the best available answer in the second column.
_____
Anxiety that occurs in the absence of the attachment figure.
1) attachment
_____
Attachment stage from about 6 weeks to 8 months.
2) proximity
maintenance
_____
The return to an attachment figure when afraid or threatened.
3) continuity of
care
_____
The emotional bond established between parents and their unborn children. 4) cortisol
_____
A stress hormone that can pass through the placenta and affect a fetus.
5) safe haven
_____
The attachment figure who is a source of security from which the child
can explore his or her world.
6) Attachment-inthe-Making
_____
Attachment stage from about 8 months to 18 months.
7) Clear-Cut
Attachment
_____
The two-way process through which children and their parent or primary
caregiver form emotional bonds with each other.
8) secure base
_____
Childcare program in which the children remain with the same caregiver
for the first three years of life.
9) prenatal
attachment
_____
The desire to be near the parent.
10) separation
distress
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Attachment Relationships
Attachment Relationships: Nurturing Healthy Bonds
Matching Quiz Answer Key
__10_
Anxiety that occurs in the absence of the attachment figure.
1) attachment
__6__
Attachment stage from about 6 weeks to 8 months.
2) proximity
__8__
The return to an attachment figure when afraid or threatened.
3) continuity
of care
__9__
The emotional bond established between parents and their unborn children.
4) cortisol
__4__
A stress hormone that can pass through the placenta and affect a fetus.
5) safe haven
__5__
The attachment figure who is a source of security from which the child can
explore his or her world.
6) Attachment-inthe- Making
__7__
Attachment stage from about 8 months to 18 months
7) Clear-Cut
__1__
The two-way process through which children and their parent or primary
caregiver form emotional bonds with each other
8) secure base
__3__
Childcare program in which the children remain with the same caregiver for
the first three years of life
9) prenatal
attachment
___2__
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maintenance
Attachment
The desire to be near the parent.
10) separation
distress
Attachment Relationships
Attachment Relationships: Nurturing Healthy Bonds
Fill-In-The-Blank
Select the correct term from the list below and write it in the blank space. Some terms may be used
more than once, while others not at all.
1. The attachment pioneer who established the stages of attachment was __________________.
2. The attachment pioneer who created the strange-situation experiment was _________________.
3. _________________ help promote attachment as well as safety.
4. Parents and primary caregivers eventually learn the meaning of a babies different
_________________, and their responses begin to match the baby’s needs.
5. Infants develop a ___________________, which is usually returned by a parent’s own. This is the
beginning of positive communication
6. Two components of attachment are: the child’s need for ________________ and comfort; and
the parent’s giving of ________________ in response to these needs.
7. __________________ attachment is characterized by a baby who was upset when the parent left
the strange-situation, but they were not comforted by the parent’s return
8. _________________ attachment is characterized by a baby who, after a short absence,
immediately sought contact with the mother, and displayed positive emotions.
9. _________________ occurs when a child’s need for attachment outweighs her need for
independence.
10. _________________ attachment is characterized by a baby who is dazed, confused, or scared in
each of the strange-situation scenarios
11. The finals stage of childhood attachment is called the formation of _________________
relationships.
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social smile
protection
ambivalent
boundaries
separation anxiety
John Bowlby
Mary Ainsworth
cries
care
secure
disorganized-disoriented
reciprocal
Attachment Relationships
Attachment Relationships
Fill-in-the-Blank Exercise Answer Key
1. The attachment pioneer who established the stages of attachment was John Bowlby.
2. The attachment pioneer who created the strange-situation experiment was Mary Ainsworth.
3. Boundaries help promote attachment as well as safety.
4. Parents and primary caregivers eventually learn the meaning of a baby's different cries, and
their responses begin to match the baby’s needs.
5. Infants develop a social smile, which is usually returned by a parent’s own. This is the
beginning of positive communication
6. Two components of attachment are: the child’s need for protection and comfort; and the
parent’s giving of care in response to these needs.
7. Ambivalent attachment is characterized by a baby who was upset when the parent left the
strange-situation, but they were not comforted by the parent’s return
8. Secure attachment is characterized by a baby who, after a short absence, immediately sought
contact with the mother, and displayed positive emotions.
9. Separation anxiety occurs when a child’s need for attachment outweighs her need for
independence.
10. Disorganized-disoriented attachment is characterized by a baby who is dazed, confused, or
scared in each of the strange-situation scenarios
11. The finals stage of childhood attachment is called the formation of reciprocal relationships.
social smile
boundaries
Mary Ainsworth
secure
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protection
separation anxiety
cries
disorganized-disoriented
ambivalent
John Bowlby
care
reciprocal
Attachment Relationships
Additional Resources
Attachment in Early Childcare settings
http://www.naeyc.org/store/files/store/TOC/123.pdf
Prenatal Attachment
http://www.mc.maricopa.edu/dept/d46/psy/dev/Spring02/prenatal/attachment.html
Continuity of Care
http://www.drspock.com/article/0,1510,4393,00.html
Keys to building attachment
http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/yf/famsci/fs631w.htm
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Attachment Relationships