Evidence for this can also be seen with both women and their children in a domestic violence refuge. For example, each woman is usually allocated a key worker who is responsible for assisting the women in claims for housing benefit, income support and a wide range of complex issues relating to domestic violence. However, in many cases the women may have a much stronger relationship with another member of staff and only seek the attention of their key worker in relation to practical matters. So what is it that encourages us to form attachments with particular individuals? In order to explore the concept of attachment we must begin by looking at an individual’s initial attachments, or lack of them as the case may be.
The first relationship is generally regarded as crucial for healthy development because it acts as a model for all later relationships. A child learns through its interaction with its mother (in many cases) a basic trust or mistrust of the world in general and of people in particular. Erikson, (1982) The question is does an attachment always and inevitably develop between a mother and her child. Many theories tend to cite the mother as the primary and most important attachment figure with out which the child cannot develop ‘normally’. However, as subsequent studies have revealed’ this need not be the case and we must focus on particular aspects in a child’s development in order to identify how different influences shape their experiences. As Yarrow (1961) emphasised, little progress is likely to occur until the basic variables indiscriminately combined under the term ‘maternal deprivation’are differentiated and the separate effects of each determined. His review suggests that different psychological mechanisms may account for different types of outcomes.
Moreover, we must examine issues such as the quality of a relationship and whether it has a direct effect on a child’s strength of attachment. Can a child develop multiple attachments, how important are other family members in attachments, is there a fixed timescale within which an attachment must form and how doe’s the child’s individual personality characteristics affect the attachment process?
In ‘Mothering’ (1977) Rudolf Schaffer describes the three stages involved in social development in infancy. The first stage is marked by the infants attraction to other humans, the second, by the child’s ability to distinguish its parents from strangers and the third, when the child has the ability to form a meaningful bond or attachment with certain individuals. The indications that an attachment has been formed is evident in the infants distress when the mother is absent and the appearance of fear response to strangers under certain conditions.
Robertson & Robertson, (1971) argue that babies like to be close to people and initially to anyone in their company. This tendency is built on in order to form selected bonds or attachments, i.e. attachments to particular individuals which continue over time. In addition, evidence indicates that there are important differences in the strength and security of a child’s bonds which if evenly balanced, promote both self & social confidence and healthy coping mechanisms for later life.
Ainsworth et al. (1971) devised a method of studying attachments called the ‘strange situation.’ Eight experimental situations were manipulated and controlled observation was used to record a child’s attachment behaviour to its mother. From their studies Ainsworth et al identified categories of behaviour which they described as securely attached, anxious avoidant and anxious resistant. The group described as ‘securely attached’ explore and play happily in the presence of their mother. They show some distress when their mother leaves, but greet her return with enthusiasm. The remaining children show various signs of insecure and resistant behaviour. They don’t explore even in their mothers presence, become intensely upset when she leaves and act emotionally ambivalent when she returns, running to her when she returns and then angrily struggling to get down. Others are aloof and distant show little sign of distress when she leaves and ignore her when she returns. The application of this theory can be seen in studies such as Tizard and Rees (1974) who found that four year olds brought up in institutions showed more following and clinging behaviour than children reared within families but they were less likely to show selective attachment or meaningful relationships.
Michael Rutter(1981) goes as far as to suggest that the whole point of attachment is detachment, that is, once an individual forms a strong attachment, they can then explore life more independently and thus develop positively into a ‘ well adjusted adult’. This is why it is important that social workers foster attachment behaviour with their clients to enable them to feel comfortable and secure enough to explore their potential. Rutter goes on to argue that individuals who have had negative experiences in their childhood in terms of the parenting they have received may experience difficulties with parenting their own children. This is not to say that early attachment experiences are fixed and unchangeable but they may be influenced by other variables. For example, Vaughan et al (1970) studied single family mothers and their infants living in poverty and who changed their accommodation on a regular basis. The children were found to shift from secure attachments to insecure attachments and vice versa depending on the circumstances at that time. In my experience, this may be the situation within a women’s refuge as children may not stay with their mother but move around to various members of the family and in some cases go in to foster care until a suitable placement is found. This illustrates the dynamic nature of attachment and the need for sensitivity and speed when dealing with children in various settings.
Perhaps the most unusual findings from attachment studies are those which show how anxiety and fear may increase attachment behaviour in certain situations. It seems that bonds are likely to develop when a child has regular contact with a person who can provide comfort in times of stress. For example, although a child is unlikely to attach to a dentist who may be associated with pain, they may under some conditions, develop attachments to some people who cause them distress as in the case with many abused children ( identification with the aggressor). This idea has been shown in animal studies and the same may occur in human’s. This has certainly been the experience for some children living with domestic violence. If the child has experienced an intense or close attachment with their father ( usually the aggressor) then it can have a profound affect on their sense of self and they may attempt to re-establish internal harmony by identifying with the abuser and trying to make contact. For many children the experience of refuge life generates intense feelings of anger, sadness, insecurity, despair and confusion as they try and come to terms with the loss of their father, friends, school, possessions, pets and for some, the loss of their name as they take on a new identity.
At the same time it has been suggested that occasional parental rejection ( as in the case of some physically and emotionally battered women unable to respond to their children needs ) may actually increase attachment behaviour in spite of the less secure bond. This idea is illustrated in a study by Rosenblum and Harlow (1963) in which it was noted that rejected infant monkeys showed very strong attachments to rejecting mother’s. The chimps were not only rejected but blasted with compressed air and yet still clung to the rejecting mother figure. From this we can argue that attention , be it negative or positive, can be more stimulating than none and indifference is probably more damaging in the formation of attachments. It seems that the very act of rejection results in more clinging which results in more rejection and even stronger attachment behaviour A similar study .by Heind and Spencer-Booth (1967) noted that the infant monkey which showed the most distress after separation were those that had experienced the most rejection from their mother’s. However, in the case of some children living in a refuge they constantly want to contact their father’s and other family members in a desperate bid to remain in contact, despite their understanding of the danger and possible consequences. Therefore, it would appear that if a child experiences anxiety, then the intensity of it’s attachment behaviour may very well increase. Many children become obsessed about visiting family and only through positive attachment with significant others can they relieve their anxiety and make progress in terms of forming new relationships. Therefore, it is imperative for the key-worker or social worker to provide them with as much appropriate support as possible and to try and encourage their attachment with other people.
The notion that a child’s development will suffer if they fail to bond with a significant other soon after birth is debatable. For example, cross-cultural studies of attachment show that children born on a Kibbutz are cared for by non-family members and the community as a whole share the responsibility for child-rearing. Also, Chinese families traditionally employed wet nurses to look after their children and had much less contact with them in comparison to Western parents. Many other anthropological studies support the view that multiple- attachments and communal care enhance a child’s well-being
Tronick et al (1992) also found that children raised with multiple care-givers were found to be emotionally healthy.
Adams, Dominelli and Payne (1998) argue attachment theory appears to be central to social work. They argue that most literature is Eurocentric and does not take account of issues surrounding black families. Gamble et al (1992) argue that:
The process of colonization, migration, refuge-seeking and the effect of immigration controls have led to black families developing the capacity to maintain relationships and attachments over vast distances and time. Adams, Dominelli and Payne (1998).
However, attachment theory fails to take account of other cultures and for many women and children living in a refuge this can be damaging. Negative perceptions of minority groups and the notion that they are somehow different have made it difficult for some women and children to form bonds. They often feel excluded and language barriers only make them further isolated. Women and children may be stressed at the loss of family members and detached from the strange surroundings of the women’s refuge. Women can be torn between cultures, unable to cope with restricting rules and complex family issues. Therefore ,Adams, Dominelli and Payne (2002) argue, the role of the social worker must address the issues of Eurocentric perspective and it’s application to practice within black families. Social workers need to understand attachment theory and be able to identity development within these families, take account and deliver an effective service.
Finally, it would be incomplete to end any discussion of attachment without looking at the role of gender. For example, in many cases of social work intervention within dysfunctional families the women are viewed as the main carer and therefore seen as more worthy of blame, whereby the fathers remain in the background. Therefore, we as social workers must develop a critical approach which questions and challenges everyday assumptions.
To conclude, the theory of attachment provides us with an understanding of the important role we as social workers have in providing realistic support for children and any one else we may work with. Attachment studies demonstrate the need to form meaningful bonds or attachments which are prerequisite for the formation of later ones. The child who has been never been shown any love by its parents may have problems with further social development. But while the early attachments to mother and father lay the foundation for later one’s the two are nevertheless quite different and there may be ways of aquiring the social tools for dealing with later life Attachment theory also aids our understanding of why children often hold strong emotions towards their parents after being subjected to physical or emotional abuse. Finally, we could argue that government incentives are in opposition to the need for parental- child- bonding and encourage child minding and nursery care while the parents work.
References
Adams,R, Dominelli,L and Payne,M (2002) Social Work Themes, Issues and Critical Debates. Second Edition . Palgrave. New York
Ainsworth; M (1978) The Development of Infant-Mother Attachment. University of Chicago Press. Chicago
.Bowlby; J (1969) Attachment and Loss: 1. Attachment, Hogarth Press.
Stratton; P. and Hayes N. (1998) Students Dictionary of Psychology Edward Arnold . London.
Erikson; E (1972) Childhood and Society. Second addition New York Press. New York..
Gross; R.(1987) Psychology: The Science of Mind and Behaviour. Second Edition. Hodder and Stoughton.
Howe D 1995) Attachment Theory for Social Work Practice. Macmillan Press. London.
Rutter, M (1981) Maternal Deprivation Reassessed. Second Edition. Penquin . London.
Shaffer; R (1977) Mothering, Fortana Open Books. London.
Vaughan;B.E, Grove,F.L and Egeland.B R (1980) The Relationship between out-of-homecare and the quality of infant-mother attachment in an economically disadvantaged population. Child Development, 51,1203-14
