BOWLBY'S AND AINSWORTH'S THEORY OF ATTACHMENT

Bowlby's and Ainsworth's theory of attachment



Bowlby's and Ainsworth's theory of attachment

Introduction

Attachment theory is the joint work of John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth (Ainsworth & Bowlby, 1991 ). Drawing on concepts from ethology, cybernetics, information processing, developmental psychology, and psychoanalysts, John Bowlby formulated the basic tenets of the theory. He thereby revolutionized our thinking about a child's tie to the mother and its disruption through separation, deprivation, and bereavement. Mary Ainsworth's innovative methodology not only made it possible to test some of Bowlby's ideas empirically hut also helped expand the theory itself and is responsible for some of the new directions it is now taking. Ainsworth contributed the concept of the attachment figure as a secure base from which an infant can explore the world. In addition, she formulated the concept of maternal sensitivity to infant signals and its role in the development of infant-mother attachment patterns.

Bowlby's and Ainsworth's theory of attachment

The ideas now guiding attachment theory have a long developmental history. Although Bowlby and Ainsworth worked independently of each other during their early careers, both were influenced by Freud and other psychoanalytic thinkers-directly in Bowlby's case, indirectly in Ainsworth's.

As Ainsworth and Bowlby pointed out, all infants develop some form of attachment to their primary caregiver. This attachment is formed because infants are small, fragile, and clueless as to how to take care of themselves. Basically, the world is a scary place to an infant, and the infant needs an adult figure on whom to rely. This adult figure is the primary caregiver, and the infant will attach to this caregiver in a number of ways. Bowlby's theory stated that attachment began at infancy and continued throughout life. Bowlby also believed that there were many innate behavioral control systems needed for survival. Ainsworth added to this theory and developed the strange situation, which divided attachment up into three categories: secure, avoidant, and resistant.

A shortcoming in this paper was the insufficient evidence provided by the author. Bowlby and Ainsworth were the two most prominent theorists discussed in this paper, yet the origins of their theories were not discussed. The reasons theorists begin to theorize about a particular issue are vital to understanding their theories. When one has knowledge regarding the origins of a theory, one gains a deeper view on the theory, as well as the ability to broaden one's view on the topic.

Bowlby developed the theory of attachment because one of his goals was to preserve some of Freud's insights about relationships and early experiences by casting them in a more scientifically defensible framework. Freud said that infant behavior was organized around managing ever-growing instinctual drives. At high levels, the drives can be harmful, and therefore the mother is vital as an object through which the drives can be reduced.

Bowlby realized that these ideas were questionable at best, and changed some of the ideas and structures of Freud's theory around to come up with his own ...