Different relationship experiences can lead to different developmental outcomes. Mary Ainsworth developed a theory of a number of attachment styles in infants in which distinct characteristics have been identified known as secure attachment, avoidant attachment, anxious attachment and, later Main and Solomon (1986) added a fourth attachment style known as disorganized-insecure attachment.
Styles of Attachment
Secure Attachment:- The attachment figure responds appropriately, promptly and consistently to the emotional as well as the physical needs of the child. She helps her child to transit and regulate stress, and as a result, the child uses her as a secure base in the home environment.
The child protests the mother's departure and quiets promptly on the mother's return, accepting comfort from her and returning to exploration.
Avoidant Attachment:- The attachment figure shows little response to the child when distressed. She discourages her child from crying and encourages independence and exploration. The avoidantly attached child may have lower quality play than the securely attached child. The child shows little or no signs of distress at the mother's departure, a willingness to explore the toys, and little or no visible response to the mother's return.
Ambivalent Attachment - The ambivalently attached child is vulnerable to difficulty coping with life stresses and may display role reversal with the mother. The child presents stereotypes upon the mother's return after separation, such as freezing for several seconds or rocking. This appears to indicate the child's lack of coherent coping strategy. Children who are classified as disorganized are also given a classification as secure, ambivalent or avoidant based on their overall reunion behavior. The child shows sadness on the mother's departure, ability to be picked up by the stranger and even be 'warm' to the stranger, and on the mother's return, some ambivalence, signs of anger, reluctance to 'warm' to her and return to play.
Disorganized Attachment - This can be associated with frightened/disoriented behaviour, intrusiveness/negativity and withdrawal, role/boundary confusion, affective communication errors and child maltreatment. The attachment figure is inconsistent with her child; she may at some times be appropriate and at other times neglectful to the child. The child raised in an ambivalent relationship becomes preoccupied with the mother's availability and cannot explore his environment freely or use his mother as a secure base.
Support Us
Hi, Really great effort. Everyone must read this article. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting blog. A lot of blogs that I see these days don't really provide anything this interesting. But I'm definitely interested in this one more than any other blog. Just thought to share my views on this to let you know how useful these articles are. Thanks.
ReplyDelete