2. Lived from 1907 to 1990
Born in London to upper class family
Raised by nanny and attended boarding
school
Bowlby attendedTrinity College,
Cambridge, where he studied psychology
and spent time working with delinquent
children
Became an psychoanalyst in 1937 and he
served in the Royal Army Medical Corps
duringWorld War II
3. In 1940, theWorld Health Organization asked him
to write a health report about the orphans
(including infants) afterWorldWar II.
4. Secure attachment between an infant
and caregiver has positive outcome
that affects relationship throughout
their life
Infants need a secure base, someone
they trust, in order to develop normally
For a secure attachment, the caregiver
must be responsive to their needs
If their needs are not meet an insecure
attachment may form that can lead to
unhealthy development
5. Safe Haven
When the child feels threatened or afraid, she or he can return
to the caregiver for comfort
Secure Base
The caregiver provides a secure and dependable base for the
child to explore the world
Proximity Maintenance
The child strives to stay near the caregiver, thus keeping the
child safe.
Separation Distress
When separated from the caregiver, the child will become
upset and distressed.
http://www.thenannydoctor.com/at.php
6. “Bowlby argued that babies are born with
behaviors---crying, smiling, clinging---that elicit
caregiving from parent” (Rathus 2008).
“He observed that separated infants would go
to extraordinary lengths (e.g., crying, clinging,
frantically searching) to prevent separation from
their parents or to reestablish proximity to a
missing parent”(Fraley, C. R. 2010).
7. Worked with and utilized Bowlby’sTheory
of Attachment for developing her “Strange
Situation” to measure “attachment” of
infants to their main caregiver in a
laboratory setting.
Ainsworth’s attachments styles:
Secure Attachment
Avoidant/InsecureAttachment
Resistant/AmbivalentAttachment
8. Cherry, K. (N.D.). John Bowlby Biography (1907-1990). Retrieved June 26, 2014 from
http://psychology.about.com/od/profilesal/p/john-bowlby.htm
Fraley, R.C. (2010). A Brief Overview of Adult Attachment and Theory. Retrieved June 28, 2014 from
http://internal.psychology.illinois.edu/~rcfraley/attachment.htm
Heller, L. (2009). A Brief Description of Attachment Theory. Retrieved June 26, 2014 from
http://www.thenannydoctor.com/at.php
Korb, K.A. (N.D.). Attachment Theory. Retrieved June 26, 2014 from
korbedpsych.com/LinkedFiles/680_08AttachmentTheory.ppt
Rathus, S.A. (2008). Childhood Voyages in Development. Belmont: Thomson Higher Education
