Lorenz's Imprinting Experiment

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Aim
To investigate the mechanisms of imprinting where the youngsters follow and form an attachment to the first large moving object that they meet.
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Procedure
Lorenz (1935) split a large clutch of greylag goose eggs into two batches. One batch hatched naturally with the mother, the other batch hatched in an incubator with Lorenz, making sure that he was the first moving object the goslings encountered.

The gos
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Findings
After birth, the naturally hatched baby goslings followed their mother about whilst the incubator hatched goslings followed Lorenz around.

When released from the upturned box, the naturally hatched goslings went straight to their mother, whereas the incu
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Conclusion
Imprinting is a form of attachment, exhibited mainly by nidifugous birds (ones who have to leave the next early), whereby close contact is kept with the first large moving object encountered.
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Evaluation
(Strength)
A strength of Lorenz's study is that its findings have been highly influential within the field of developmental psychology. For example, the fact that imprinting is seen to be irreversible (as suggested in Lorenz's study) suggests that attachment formati
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Evaluation
(Weakness)
A weakness of Lorenz's study is that it can be criticised for extrapolation. Lorenz conducted his study on imprinting on animals. This is a weakness because humans and animals are physiologically different. The way a human infant develops an attachment wi
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Evaluation
(Weakness)
A further weakness of Lorenz's findings is that later researchers have questioned Lorenz's conclusions. For example, Guiton et al (1966) found that chickens that imprinted on yellow washing up gloves would try to mate with them as adults. However, with ex
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Card 2

Front

Procedure

Back

Lorenz (1935) split a large clutch of greylag goose eggs into two batches. One batch hatched naturally with the mother, the other batch hatched in an incubator with Lorenz, making sure that he was the first moving object the goslings encountered.

The gos

Card 3

Front

Findings

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

Conclusion

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

Evaluation
(Strength)

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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