Editing Attachment theory (section)

{{Short description|Psychological ethological theory}}
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[[File:Eskimo Family NGM-v31-p564-2.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|right|alt=An Inuit family is sitting on a log outside their tent. The parents, wearing warm clothing made of animal skins, are engaged in domestic tasks. Between them sits a toddler, also in skin clothes, staring at the camera. On the mother's back is a baby in a papoose.|For infants and toddlers, the "set-goal" of the behavioural system is to maintain or achieve proximity to attachment figures, usually the parents.]]

'''Attachment theory''' is a [[psychological]] and [[evolution]]ary framework, concerning the [[Interpersonal relationship|relationships between humans]], particularly the importance of early bonds between infants and their primary caregivers. Developed by psychiatrist and psychoanalyst [[John Bowlby]] (1907–90), the theory posits that infants need to form a close relationship with at least one primary caregiver to ensure their survival, and to develop healthy social and emotional functioning.<ref name="Cassidy">{{cite encyclopedia |year=1999 |title=The Nature of a Child's Ties |encyclopedia=Handbook of Attachment: Theory, Research and Clinical Applications |publisher=Guilford Press |location=New York | veditors = Cassidy J, Shaver PR |pages=[https://archive.org/details/handbookofattach0000unse/page/3 3–20] |isbn=1-57230-087-6 | vauthors = Cassidy J |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofattach0000unse/page/3 }}</ref><ref name="Abrams Turner Baumann Karel 2013 pp. 149–155">{{cite book | last1=Abrams | first1=David B. | last2=Turner | first2=J. 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Rick | last102=Pulgaron | first102=Elizabeth R. | last103=Wile | first103=Diana | last104=Baumann | first104=Linda C. | last105=Karel | first105=Alyssa | last106=Schroeder | first106=Beth | last107=Davis | first107=Mary C. | last108=Zautra | first108=Alex | last109=Stark | first109=Shannon L. | last110=Whang | first110=William | last111=Soto | first111=Ana Victoria | last112=Gidron | first112=Yori | last113=Wheeler | first113=Anthony J. | last114=DeBerard | first114=Scott | last115=Allen | first115=Josh | last116=Mitani | first116=Akihisa | last117=Mitani | first117=Akihisa | last118=Pulgaron | first118=Elizabeth R. | last119=Mitani | first119=Akihisa | last120=Carter | first120=Jennifer | last121=Whang | first121=William | last122=Schroeder | first122=Beth | last123=Hicks | first123=Angela M. | last124=Korbel | first124=Carolyn | last125=Baldwin | first125=Austin S. | last126=Spink | first126=Kevin S. | last127=Nickel | first127=Darren | last128=Richter | first128=Michael | last129=Wright | first129=Rex A. | last130=Thayer | first130=Julian F. | last131=Richter | first131=Michael | last132=Wright | first132=Rex A. | last133=Wiebe | first133=Deborah J. | title=Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine | chapter=Attachment Theory | publisher=Springer New York | publication-place=New York, NY | year=2013 | doi=10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_939 | pages=149–155| isbn=978-1-4419-1004-2 |quote=Bowlby (1969, 1988) described an attachment as an emotional bond that is characterized by the tendency to seek out and maintain proximity to a specific attachment figure, particularly during times of distress.}}</ref>

Pivotal aspects of attachment theory include the observation that infants seek proximity to attachment figures, especially during stressful situations.<ref name="Abrams Turner Baumann Karel 2013 pp. 149–155"/><ref name="Brimhall Haralson 2017 pp. 1–3">{{cite book | last1=Brimhall | first1=Andrew S. | last2=Haralson | first2=David M. | title=Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy | chapter=Bonds in Couple and Family Therapy | publisher=Springer International Publishing | publication-place=Cham | year=2017 | isbn=978-3-319-15877-8 | doi=10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_513-1 | pages=1–3 | quote=Bond is an emotional attachment between one or more individuals. To be considered an attachment bond, the relationship must have four defining characteristics: proximity maintenance, separation distress, safe haven, and secure base.}}</ref> Secure attachments are formed when caregivers are sensitive and responsive in [[social interaction]]s, and consistently present, particularly between the ages of six months and two years. As children grow, they use these attachment figures as a secure base from which to explore the world and return to for comfort. The interactions with caregivers form patterns of attachment, which in turn create internal working models that influence future relationships.<ref name="Bretherton/Mul">{{cite encyclopedia |year=1999 |title=Internal Working Models in Attachment Relationships: A Construct Revisited |encyclopedia=Handbook of Attachment:Theory, Research and Clinical Applications |publisher=Guilford Press |location=New York | veditors = Cassidy J, Shaver PR |pages=[https://archive.org/details/handbookofattach0000unse/page/89 89–114] |isbn=1-57230-087-6 |author=Bretherton I, Munholland KA |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofattach0000unse/page/89 }}</ref> Separation anxiety or grief following the loss of an attachment figure is considered to be a normal and adaptive response for an attached infant.{{sfn|Prior|Glaser|2006|p=17}}

Research by [[Developmental psychology|developmental psychologist]] [[Mary Ainsworth]] in the 1960s and '70s expanded on Bowlby's work, introducing the concept of the "secure base", impact of maternal responsiveness and sensitivity to infant distress, and identified attachment patterns in infants: secure, avoidant, anxious, and disorganized attachment.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bernard |first1=Kristin |last2=Meade |first2=Eb |last3=Dozier |first3=Mary |date=November 2013 |title=Parental synchrony and nurturance as targets in an attachment based intervention: building upon Mary Ainsworth's insights about mother–infant interaction |journal=Attachment & Human Development |language=en |volume=15 |issue=5–6 |pages=507–523 |doi=10.1080/14616734.2013.820920 |issn=1461-6734 |pmc=3855268 |pmid=24299132}}</ref><ref name="Bretherton">{{cite journal | vauthors = Bretherton I |year=1992 |title=The Origins of Attachment Theory: John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth | url = https://archive.org/details/sim_developmental-psychology_1992-09_28_5/page/759 |journal=Developmental Psychology |volume=28 |issue=5 |pages=759–775 |doi=10.1037/0012-1649.28.5.759}}</ref> In the 1980s, attachment theory was extended to adult relationships and [[attachment in adults]], making it applicable beyond early childhood.<ref name="Hazan, Shaver, 1987">{{cite journal | vauthors = Hazan C, Shaver P | s2cid = 2280613 | title = Romantic love conceptualized as an attachment process | url = https://archive.org/details/sim_journal-of-personality-and-social-psychology_1987-03_52_3/page/511 | journal = Journal of Personality and Social Psychology | volume = 52 | issue = 3 | pages = 511–24 | date = March 1987 | pmid = 3572722 | doi = 10.1037/0022-3514.52.3.511 }}</ref> Bowlby's theory integrated concepts from [[evolutionary biology]], [[object relations theory]], [[Control theory |control systems theory]], [[ethology]], and [[cognitive psychology]], and was fully articulated in his trilogy, ''Attachment and Loss'' (1969–82).<ref name="simpson">{{cite encyclopedia |year=1999 |title=Attachment Theory in Modern Evolutionary Perspective |encyclopedia=Handbook of Attachment:Theory, Research and Clinical Applications |publisher=Guilford Press |location=New York |veditors = Cassidy J, Shaver PR |pages=[https://archive.org/details/handbookofattach0000unse/page/115 115–40] |isbn=1-57230-087-6 |author=Simpson JA |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofattach0000unse/page/115 }}</ref>

While initially criticized by academic psychologists and psychoanalysts,<ref name="Rutter 95" /> attachment theory has become a dominant approach to understanding early social development and has generated extensive research.<ref name="Schaffer" /> Despite some criticisms related to temperament, social complexity, and the limitations of discrete attachment patterns, the theory's core concepts have been widely accepted and have influenced therapeutic practices and social and childcare policies.<ref name="Rutter 95" /><ref name="BZL" />