HARLOW'S MONKEYS

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  • Created by: AnnabellP
  • Created on: 13-10-17 10:15

THE EVOLUTIONARY THEORY OF ATTACHMENT

  • THERE ARE TWO THEORIES THAT EXPLAIN WHY ORGANISMS ATTACH
  • THIS IS ONE OF THEM
  • TO SURVIVE - SPECIES ATTACH, CAREGIVER HAS A ROLE WHERE FOOD & PROTECTION TO THE CHILD
  • SURVIVAL ADVANTAGE - AN ABILITY/TRAIT THAT INCREASES THE CHANCES IN SURVIVAL
  • ATTACHMENT = SURVIVAL ADVANTAGE
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HARLOW'S EXPERIMENT

  • HARLOW = SCIENTIST WHO STUDIED THE IMPORTANCE OF FORMING ATTACHMENTS
  • CONDUCTED EXPERIMENTS ON MONKEYS WHO WERE KEPT IN ISOLATION
  • MEASURED ATTACHMENTS OF MONKEYS THAT WERE MADE TO THE TWO MODEL "MOTHERS" AND ASSESSED THE DIFFERENCE IN THE ATTACHMENTS FORMED
  • REMOVED MONKEYS FROM MOTHERS & KEPT IN ISOLATION
  • KEPT IN CAGES WITH TWO DIFFERENT MODELS OF MATERIAL WHICH RESEMBLED A MOTHER-LIKE FIGURE

1) ONE MADE WITH WIRED MESH WITH A FEEDING TUBE

2) MADE OF CLOTH WITHOUT A FEEDING TUBE

  • MEASURED HOW MUCH TIME THEY WOULD SPEND WITH EACH MOTHER AND WHAT THEY WOULD USE THEM FOR
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HARLOW'S FINDINGS

  • MONKEYS SPENT MORE TIME WITH CLOTH MOTHER (HUGGING) THAN THE WIRE MOTHER
  • FRIGHTENED - WENT TO CLOTH MOTHER FOR COMFORT
  • LONG TERM EMOTIONAL CONSEQUENCES - ACTED MORE CRUELLY TO OFFSPRING - MATERNAL DEPRIVATION
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EVALUTATING HARLOW'S EXPERIMENT - WEAKNESSES

  • MONEKEYS NEVER EXPERIENCED MATERNAL DEPRIVATION AS THEY NEVER DID HAVE A MOTHER. INSTEAD THEY SUFFERED FROM PRIVATION - NEVER HAVING HAD SOMETHING
  • HUMANS ARE MORE COMPLEX THAN MONKEYS, SO THE EXPERIMENT MAY NOT RELATE TO HUMANS
  • MONKEYS WERE TAKEN OUT OF NATURAL ENVIRONMENT - THEY MAY HAVE BEHAVED DIFFERENTLY, GIVING INVALID RESULTS
  • ISRAELI CHILDREN WHO WERE BROUGHT UP WITH NURSES IN EARLY YEARS STILL HAD STRONG ATTACHMENT WITH THEIR MOTHERS, DISPROVING THE IDEA OF MATERNAL DEPRIVATION
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