Influence of Attachment on Later Relationships

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  • Influence of Attachment on Later Relationships
    • internal working model
      • A mental representation of how relationships work. 
        • Believed to affect the quality of future relationships
      • A child whose first attachment/ relationship with primary caregiver (PC) is loving and reliable (secure) 
        • will assume that all relationships should be like this.
          • they will seek out and engage in functional relationships
      • A child whose first attachment/relationship with primary caregiver (PC) is insecure 
        • will assume that all relationships should be like this.
          • they will seek out and/or engage in dysfunctional relationships
            • type A would  be too involved or emotionally close
            • type C would be controlling and argumentative 
      • Extensive research conducted on the effect of attachment on later relationships
        • [see PDF]
        • Later childhood -Adult romantic relationships -Adult as parent
          • looks into:
    • AO3
      • Research evidence on the continuity of attachment type is mixed
        • Not all research agrees with the theory eg Zimmerman (2000)
          • This is a problem as it is not what we would expect if the model were important in development.
      • Validity issues with research
        • interviews rely on honesty
        • memory is unreliable
          • These question the accuracy of the research and also the validity of it as well
      • Association does not mean causality
        • other factors can have an influence like parenting style
          • This is a limitation because it counters Bowlby’s theory that internal working model causes these later outcomes.
      • The influence of early attachment is probabilistic
        • attachment does affect relationships however its significance could be exaggerated
          • People are not doomed to have bad relationships because of a poor early attachment    
            • They just have a greater risk of having problems (probably will)

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