Understanding Baby Attachments: Lessons on Classical and Operant Conditioning

1. Why do babies develop attachments? Lesson one

2. Getting you thinking.... • Look at the articles about Madonna and Angelina Jolie adopting children from other cultures • Do you think adopted children have the same chances to live the same happy home life as that of children brought up in their own home? • Do you think there are any particular problems children of international adoptions may face?

3. Classical Conditioning Pavlov 1927 • Behaviour learned through ‘stimulus response’ associations. • It is not the object, nor the situation that causes us fear but the conditioned response to the object or situation • Phobias are a good example of classical conditioning .......

4. Phobias • Person climbs to the top of a tall building and looks down (environmental stimulus) • Experiences nausea and dizziness (physiological response) • Associates the physiological response with the environmental stimulus and therefore avoids all heights and it becomes a phobia

5. Example of Little Albert • See additional sheet which explains Little Albert’s fear of white rats

6. Operant Conditioning Skinner 1974 • Our behaviour is influenced by the behaviour of our actions • Worked with animals to form his theories • Noticed that when he put an animal in a new cage, they would explore • If they pressed a lever and food came out they quickly learned to press it again and again

7. Reinforcement • If a behaviour produces a reward (positive reinforcement) it is likely to be repeated • If a behaviour produces a punishment then it is not likely to be repeated • If a behaviour ‘switches off’ something negative (negative reinforcement) then it is likely to be repeated • Apply this to a baby using page 51 of NT

8. Learning TheoryDollard • Behaviour is acquired through conditioning. This is based on classical and operant conditioning. An infant’s attachment will be to the person who gives the greatest pleasure • The evidence provided by Harlow and Harlow explains the learning theory in attachment terms – see additional handout

9. Plenary • Does Harlow’s evidence support or contradict the ideas from the learning theory? • Can we relate information from animal studies to humans? • Do humans place more importance on attachments and love than feeding and rewards?