Page 41 - Demo

Prenatal and Childhood Development MODULE 10 171other was a bare-wire cylinder. It was no surprise that if both %u201cmothers%u201d had a bottle attached for feeding, the baby monkeys preferred the soft, cuddly mother. But what if only the wire mother had the bottle? Which mother would the baby cling to when alarmed or spend most of its time with? The Harlows surprised other psychologists (and parents) when they revealed that the infant monkeys preferred contact with the cuddly mother even while feeding from the wire mother40(Figure 10.9).Attachment is not primarily a function of who provides the food. Human infants become attached to warm, soft parents who cuddle, rock, and feed. Early on, emotional communication between parent and infant takes place most often through touch. Snuggling soothes a baby, whereas tickling elicits smiles and laughter.41Attachment provides an infant with a secure base from which to set out for wobbly explorations of the environment. Luciana needed the closeness of her mother, especially when she was stressed by the presence of someone she didn%u2019t know. The kind of attachment people experience as children shows up later, when they become parents themselves. Those who did not experience secure attachment are more likely to describe parenting as stressful and unsatisfying, whereas securely attached children are more likely to describe parenting as enjoyable and meaningful.42Attachment appears to play a role in our adult lives in other ways as well. Adults who experienced secure attachment as children are more driven to achieve and less likely to express a fear of failure.43 We still seek to maintain a secure base as we mature, although that base tends to take the form of good friends and partners.44We have a greater chance of flourishing when we know a trusted friend or loved one will stand behind us, no matter what.FamiliarityBody contact is one piece of the attachment puzzle; familiarity is another. My daughter and I were unfamiliar faces to Luciana, so she pulled back to the safety of her parents. For some species, the attachment bond forms during a critical period%u2014an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism%u2019s exposure to certain experiences produces proper development. For example, researchers have found that a newborn duckling, chick, or gosling will follow the first moving object it sees, which typically is the little creature%u2019s mother.45This process, known as imprinting, is an adaptive response: following and staying close to Mom provides safety and nourishment for these birds. But during that critical period for attachment in baby birds, fledglings may also imprint on black boots with yellow stripes or on bouncing balls if either of those objects is the first thing they see.46 Researchers found that ducklings that imprinted on the boots would follow those boots wherever they went, regardless of who was wearing them. Attachment in these animals is hard to reverse once established.Do humans have a similar critical period for attachment? No. Humans do not imprint, and babies who are adopted days, weeks, or even months after birth can become every bit as attached to their new caregiver as any child does to its birth parents. Familiarity fosters contentment, but human attachment develops gradually.critical period The optimal period shortly after birth when an organism%u2019s exposure to certain experiences produces proper development.imprinting The process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period early in life.Harlow Primate Laboratory, University of WisconsinFIGURE 10.9 Outside Their Comfort ZoneThe Harlows%u2019 monkeys preferred the soft, comfortable %u201cmother%u201d to the bare-wire, woodenheaded %u201cmother,%u201d even though the wire model provided nourishment. This discovery%u2014that attachment is formed more through comfort than through nourishment%u2014 surprised many psychologists.%u00a9 Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. For review purposes only. Do not distribute.