Bowlby’s Theory of Attachment

Bowlby was a psychoanalyst who followed the ideas of Freud and believed that an infant was strongly affected by the beginning of their life. By attachment, he meant a warm, continuous, loving relationship with one person – attachment is a two-way emotional bond where people depend on one another for a sense of security.

Psychodynamic Roots

Bowlby formed his theory after working with maladjusted and delinquent children. He considered psychodynamic theories which suggest that problems arise from fantasy relationships with parents but believed that real relationships with parents was often the cause of problems – so he moved away from his psychodynamic roots. He still used some of the ideas however, suggesting that the mother acted as both the ego and superego until they developed in the child.

The World Health Organisation asked Bowlby to write a report on the effect of homelessness on the mental health of children after the war. Within the report he said that a strong attachment with the mother was crucial for good mental health.

These assertions led to change in both policy and practice within institutions. Within hospitals there was a reform in the length and provision of visiting hours when children were admitted.

Evolutionary Basis of Attachment

Bowlby also looked at the work of people use ethological methods. In particular he was interested in the work of Lorenz. Lorenz noticed that animals like ducks and geese followed the first moving thing that they saw when they hatched (usually the mother) and this imprinting allowed them to survive. Bowlby believed that human infants might have a similar attachment instinct to help them survive and but forward the evolutionary basis of attachment.

The theory of evolution holds that any behaviour or characteristic that aids survival will help an organism to survive for longer and so they are more likely to reproduce – survival of the fittest.

Bowlby’s theory agreed with this. He thought that infants came into the world with an innate tendency to form an attachment. The bond with the main care giver would help them to survive so they are biologically programmed to form attachments.

Things like separation, insecurity or fear would trigger the instinct in the child to go to the attachment figure. This is supported by studies such as Lorenz and the geese and the work of Harlow with the monkeys.

The Theory

Bowlby suggested that children deprived of their attachment figure would have problems later on in life. He acknowledged that the bond needed to be with one specific attachment figure with didn’t have to be the mother. He also referred to monotropy – a warm, loving relationship with one person.

This attachment should provide a safe haven when the child is afraid so they can return to the caregiver for comfort. The attachment figure also provides a safe base for the child, from which they can explore. The child will seek out the attachment figure if they are separated, showing distress and separation anxiety, with the goal of drawing the caregiver back to the child.

His maternal deprivation hypothesis states that social, emotional and intellectual development would be affected by any break or interruption with the mother-child bond. He also believed that any problems that arise as a result of this are permanent and irreversible.

The first 2 years of an infant’s life are the key period where the attachment should continue uninterrupted. Deprivation refers to when the attachment becomes broken as a result of separation.