• approach behaviors
• attachment behaviors
• avoidance
• felt security
• resistance
• separation protest
• signalling behaviors
• “strange situation”
• stranger anxiety
Bonding refers to the development of an emotional tie of the mother to the
infant. This biologically based process is believed to occur in mothers
shortly after the birth of an infant, a time period during which the mother’s
intense emotional response is triggered by contact with her newborn. The
existence of such a bond is then evidenced in the mother’s behavior. Attachment,
on the other hand, refers to a relationship between the caregiver and
infant that develops over the infant’s first year of life; the quality of the attachment
is apparent in the behavior of the infant.
Evidence for the biologically based bonding process has been inconsistent.
In contrast, there exists considerable scientific evidence to support the
notion of attachment. Thus, the remainder of this discussion will focus on
the development of the attachment relationship.
The work of British psychiatrist John Bowlby played an important role in
the acceptance and understanding of the notion of mother-infant attachment.
Bowlby argued that the behaviors of infants are not random and that,
in fact, some of the behaviors exhibited most commonly by infants actually
serve a single goal. Specifically, he argued that the infant behaviors of crying,
babbling, smiling, clinging, non-nutritional sucking, and following all
play an important role in bringing the infant into close contact with the
caregiver. He believed that, for the infant, seeking and maintaining proximity
to the caregiver are essential for survival because the infant is dependent
upon the caregiver for food, shelter, and protection. Thus, the infant’s be
havior is organized and goal-directed. During early infancy, however, this
goal is neither understood nor learned by the infant. Rather, humans are
born with a biological predisposition to engage in certain behaviors that aid
in the maintenance of proximity to the caregiver. Thus, the goal of maintaining
proximity is built into the human infant, as are some initial behaviors
that serve the function of achieving that goal. With further development,
the infant becomes more aware of the goal, and therefore his or her
behaviors become more intentional.
The infant’s emotional state is also believed to play an important role in
attempts to seek and maintain proximity to the caregiver. That is, the infant’s
behavior is dependent upon his or her sense of emotional security.
For example, as long as a child is in the immediate presence of the attachment
figure, or within easy reach, the child feels secure and may then attend
to important developmental tasks such as exploration of the environment,
using the mother as a secure base from which to explore. Upon the threat of
loss of the attachment figure, however, the infant may lose that sense of security
and may exhibit attachment behaviors designed to increase the proximity
of the attachment figure. Thus, the infant’s attempts to seek or maintain
proximity to the caregiver are determined by how secure he or she feels with
the caregiver in a specific environment.
The attachment relationship and the infant’s sense of security develop
over the period of infancy. Bowlby has described four phases in the development
of the attachment to the caregiver. In phase one, the newborn shows
limited discrimination among people and therefore exhibits no preferential
or differential behaviors, thus behaving in a friendly manner toward all
people. In phase two, the eight- to twelve-week-old infant shows the ability to
discriminate the caregiver from others but exhibits no preferential behavior
toward the caregiver. In phase three, which generally appears at approximately
seven or eight months of age, the infant clearly discriminates the
caregiver from other people and begins to show preferential treatment toward
him or her. For example, the infant begins to follow a departing
mother, greets mother upon her return, and uses her as a base from which
to explore an unfamiliar environment. Furthermore, during phase three,
the infant begins to treat strangers with caution and may withdraw from a
stranger. In phase four, the child maintains a “goal-directed partnership”
with the caregiver, a more complex relationship in which the child is acquiring
some insight into the caregiver’s own feelings and motives, and thus interacts
with the caregiver as a partner. This final phase is not apparent in
most children until after age two.
havior is organized and goal-directed. During early infancy, however, this
goal is neither understood nor learned by the infant. Rather, humans are
born with a biological predisposition to engage in certain behaviors that aid
in the maintenance of proximity to the caregiver. Thus, the goal of maintaining
proximity is built into the human infant, as are some initial behaviors
that serve the function of achieving that goal. With further development,
the infant becomes more aware of the goal, and therefore his or her
behaviors become more intentional.
The infant’s emotional state is also believed to play an important role in
attempts to seek and maintain proximity to the caregiver. That is, the infant’s
behavior is dependent upon his or her sense of emotional security.
For example, as long as a child is in the immediate presence of the attachment
figure, or within easy reach, the child feels secure and may then attend
to important developmental tasks such as exploration of the environment,
using the mother as a secure base from which to explore. Upon the threat of
loss of the attachment figure, however, the infant may lose that sense of security
and may exhibit attachment behaviors designed to increase the proximity
of the attachment figure. Thus, the infant’s attempts to seek or maintain
proximity to the caregiver are determined by how secure he or she feels with
the caregiver in a specific environment.
The attachment relationship and the infant’s sense of security develop
over the period of infancy. Bowlby has described four phases in the development
of the attachment to the caregiver. In phase one, the newborn shows
limited discrimination among people and therefore exhibits no preferential
or differential behaviors, thus behaving in a friendly manner toward all
people. In phase two, the eight- to twelve-week-old infant shows the ability to
discriminate the caregiver from others but exhibits no preferential behavior
toward the caregiver. In phase three, which generally appears at approximately
seven or eight months of age, the infant clearly discriminates the
caregiver from other people and begins to show preferential treatment toward
him or her. For example, the infant begins to follow a departing
mother, greets mother upon her return, and uses her as a base from which
to explore an unfamiliar environment. Furthermore, during phase three,
the infant begins to treat strangers with caution and may withdraw from a
stranger. In phase four, the child maintains a “goal-directed partnership”
with the caregiver, a more complex relationship in which the child is acquiring
some insight into the caregiver’s own feelings and motives, and thus interacts
with the caregiver as a partner. This final phase is not apparent in
most children until after age two.
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