Explanations of attachment

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what does learning theory assume about infants?
They are born as blank slates
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who supports learning theory?
Behaviourists - who believe that attachment behaviours are formed through either classical or operant conditioning
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what is ithe UCS in this theory?
food
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What i the UCR to the the UCS?
pleasure and comfort
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what might be the neutral stimuli?
anything present at the time of feeding = the mother, her chair, the bottle, etc...
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What happens to the NS during feeding?
They become associated with the UCS and prompt the UCR of pleasure and comfort
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what is a drive?
something that motivates behaviour
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when an animal is uncomfortable what does it do?
create a drive to reduce discomfort: drive reduction theory
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What type of reinforcement ooccurs when an infant is fed?
positive reinforcement as it increases comfort and replaces hunger with pleasure and the drive is reduced
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what is the secondary reinforcer?
the caregiver, because they are associated with reducing discomfort. Attachment occurs because the infant seeks the person who provides the reward
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What is the primary reinforcer?
food, because it supplies the reward
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SLT can also explain attachment, how?
Hay and Vespo (1988) proposed children observe and imitate their parents displays of affection. Children are also instructed what is apropriate behaviour for relationships and are rewarded with hugs and kisses
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E1: How do behaviorists argue that animal studies can be genrilised?
We are built on the same building blocks of stimulus and response
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E1: why do some psychologists beleive attachment is more complex than is portrayed by learning theory
the animal studies upon which the research is based is hard to accfept as attachment is a complex behavior difficult to explain with just stimulus and response.
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E1: what do non-behaviouris psychologists belive are the key diffreneces between animals and humans that complicates the study of attachment?
Humans have inate predispositions and different mental activity to animals
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E2: what evidnence exists to show that feeding is NOT the main basis of attachment?
Harlow's (1959) monkeys preferred the cloth over the wire mother. This was supported by Schaffer and Emerson (1960)
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E3: are there any benefits to the learning theory of attachment?
infants do learn through association and reinforcement but it might be that attantion and responsivness of the caregiver, not food are the primer reinforcers.
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E4: When was drive reduction theory popular?
1940s
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E4: Why has drive reduction theory fallen out of favour with many psycholgists?
It can only explain a limited number of behviours
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E4: Which behaviours can drive reduction theory not explain?
Any behaviour in which an individual seeks discomfort, such as bungee jumping or boxing
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E4: How is drive reduction theory inadiquetly explain secondary reinforcers?
It does not explain how secondary reinforcers have any reinforcing capability if they do not reduce discomfort
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E5: What advantages does Bowlby's theory have over learning theory?
Where learning theory explain how attachment is formed, it does not explain why it is formed as is the case with Bowlby's model.
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E5: How does Bowlby's theory explain why attachment forms?
Because attachment implies better protection from harm which maxamises survival rates
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E5: why else is Bowlby's model superior?
It is supported by greater evidence: Schaffer and Emmison (1960) and Harlow (1959)
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

who supports learning theory?

Back

Behaviourists - who believe that attachment behaviours are formed through either classical or operant conditioning

Card 3

Front

what is ithe UCS in this theory?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What i the UCR to the the UCS?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

what might be the neutral stimuli?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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