B.Ed course notes.

1. COURSE 1
MODULE 3
Unit 6
Namrata Saxena, Asst Professor, PCER, New Panvel.
B) Issues and Implications of changing family structure:-
a) Attachment and Bonding
Introduction
The most important property of humankind is the capacity to form and maintain relationships.
These relationships are absolutely necessary for any of us to survive, learn, work, love, and
procreate. Empathy, caring, sharing, inhibition of aggression, capacity to love, and a host of
other characteristics of a healthy, happy, and productive person are related to the
core attachment capabilities which are formed in infancy and early childhood. The first and
most important of all relationships are attachment bonds. Initially, these are created through
interactions with our primary caregivers, usually parents. First relationships help define our
capacity for attachment and set the tone for all of our future relationships.
What Is Attachment?
Attachment is an emotional bond between an infant or toddler and primary caregiver, a strong
bond being vital for the child’s normal behavioral and social development.
'Attachment' refers to the enduring 'tie' of affection that the baby develops towards their
main carers, usually their parents. John Bowlby, a British doctor, first described how the
security of the attachment that an infant makes with their parents becomes the foundation
for emotional wellbeing.
DEFINITIONS
 Attachment can be defined as an emotional bond between two people in which each
seeks closeness and feels more secure when in the presence of the attachment figure.
 Papalia et al., (1999) define it as a reciprocal, enduring, relationship between infant
and caregiver, each of whom contributes to the quality of the relationship.
 Attachment is a deep and enduring affectionate bond that connects one person to
another across time and space (Ainsworth 1973; Bowlby 1969).

2.  According to Ainsworth (1979), it may be "an essential part of the ground plan of the
human species for an infant to become attached to a mother figure".
There are a number of definitions offered by different psychologists but these two
seem typical:
 Schaffer (1993): ‘A close emotional relationship between two persons,
characterized by mutual affection and a desire to maintain proximity.’
 In a similar vein, Maccoby (1980) describes four characteristics of an attachment:
 Seeking proximity, the desire to be close to the person to whom you are attached.
 Separation anxiety, the distress that results from being separated from that person.
 Pleasure when reunited, relief and observable joy when reunited with them.
 General orientation of behavior towards the caregiver, the child’s awareness of where
the person is, and the reassurance they feel by them being close.
CHARACTERISTICS OF ATTACHMENT:
 Attachment isa reciprocal processinwhichanemotional connectiondevelopsbetweenan
infantandtheirprimarycaretaker(mostoftenthe mother).
Unique Features of an Attachment Bond
 Enduring form of a bond with a "special" person
 Involves soothing, comfort, and pleasure
 Loss or threat of loss of the special person evokes intense distress
 There is security and safety in context of this relationship
 Attachment relationships are characterized by specific behaviors in children, like
showing preference for or retreating to the attachment figure when threatened or upset,
and using the attachment figure as a secure base while exploring their world.
 Specific attachment behaviors in adults include attending to the needs of the child,
responding to the child’s signals, and looking toward the child.
 Attachment behaviors show remarkable similarity across varied cultures. Most children
direct attachment behavior toward more than one preferred person. However, children are
highly selective about attachment figures, and so are likely to be attached to just a few.
Usually children are attached to family (e.g., mother, father, and siblings), but they may
also be attached to nonfamily (e.g., teachers or childcare providers).
 Right from the start, babies begin to build an attachment to familiar carers who respond to
their day-to-day physical and emotional needs.
 In any family, attachment must be achieved in order for the child to flourish. Time and
interaction are needed.
 It starts with a promise, a promise from parents to child that says, “you count, and you
can always rely on me.” From this promise will come the baby’s sense that the parents
matter more than anyone else, leading to the baby’s reliance on them. Parents then begin

3. enjoying their ability to nurture with competence. Richly rewarding feelings grow back
and forth as each comes to believe: we belong together.
 FUNCTIONS OF ATTACHMENT :
Attachment has at least two functions pertinent to classrooms or even home
1. Attachment provides feelings of security, so that children can explore freely. While all
children seek to feel secure, attachment helps them balance this need with their innate
motivation to explore their environment.
2. Attachment forms the basis for socializing children. As children and adults are drawn
together and interact harmoniously, children adopt the adults’ behavior and values.
3. Attachment influences the infant’s physical, cognitive, and psychological development
and becomes the basis for the development of basic trust (or mistrust).
4. Attachment shapes how the child will relate to the world around her, how she will learn in
school, and form relationships throughout life.
5. Attachment actually affects the way the brain develops … or does not develop. Healthy
attachment occurs when the infant experiences a primary caretaker as consistently
providing emotional essentials such as love, touch, playful interaction, comfort, emotional
regulation, prizing and mirroring, as well as the attuned meeting of physical needs (food,
shelter, movement, etc.).
 ATTACHMENT AND BONDING
Terms such as "attachment" and "bonding" often are used interchangeably. However, the
meanings can be quite different.
 Attachment is the word used to refer to the relationship developed between an infant
and a parent or primary caregiver during the first two to three years of life.
How this relationship forms is dependent on how a parent responds to a child's needs
for care, comfort and security. It develops gradually and goes through a variety of
phases. Note that this attachment refers to a child's feelings for parents and actions
in the relationship and not to the parent's feelings about the child.
 Bonding The process of bonding refers to the intense emotional connection that the
parent feels for the baby. Some parents feel this straight away and others take time
to get to know their baby.
 Bonding and attachment are different
Attachment Bonding
Definitions
Start
Attachment can be defined as an
emotional connection that
develops between an infant and the
primary caregiver.
Attachment is a two-way
reciprocal process between parents
and their children.
Bonding can be defined as
the attachment that the parent
or primary caregiver feels for
the infant.
Bonding is a one-way process
that begins in the birth
mother during pregnancy and
continues through the first
few days of life. It is her

4. Type of Connection
Nature
In attachment, it is both the infant
and the caregiver.
Attachment is more emotional
instinctive desire to protect
her baby.
Bonding is the feeling
initiated by the primary
caregiver.
Bonding involves taking care
of the needs of the infant.
Simply stated, bonding is the process of forming an attachment. Just as bonding is the term
used when gluing one object to another, bonding is using our emotional glue to become
connected to another. Bonding, therefore, involves a set of behaviors that will help lead to
an emotional connection (attachment).
Types of Attachment Relationships
(primary attachment figure and secondary attachment figure)
The attachment relationship that a young child forms during the first two years of life takes
time to develop. Typically, infants will develop this relationship with the parent(s) or person
who provides the most direct, responsive care to their needs. This type of attachment with
one to two significant adults is the primary attachment relationship.
Then children will form supporting relationships with other caring adults, which fall into the
category of secondary attachment relationships. Ideally, a child will be able to form one to
two strong and positive attachment relationships with parents, and then have a supportive
web of secondary attachments with siblings, aunts and uncles, grandparents, close friends,
caregivers, etc. This is the most positive environment for a young child.
ATTACHMENT STYLES
When speaking of attachment, there are two styles of attachment. Remember that this refers
to a child's quality of connection to an adult caregiver, not the parent's feelings about the
child. They are,
 Secure Attachment
 Insecure attachment

5. SECURE Attachment: A secure attachment is an advantage for a whole life time.
 SECURE ATTACHMENT
 A secure attachment is likely to develop when an adult is sensitive and attuned to the
baby’s communications, and when the adult provides consistent and predicable care
which meets the needs of the baby quickly and reliably.
 Securely attached infants have pleasurable interactions with their main carers and
they can rely on them to be a source of comfort when they are distressed. When a
parent comforts their baby, they are letting her know that they care about her
feelings and promoting her sense of wellbeing. Her sense of wellbeing will become
a source of later resilience, and will help her to develop trusting relationships.
 INSECURE ATTACHMENTS: Not all babies are securely attached. Insecure
attachment occurs
An insecure attachment is likely to develop when the adult is insensitive and not well
attuned to the baby’s communications, and when the care is inconsistent and
unpredictable and does not satisfy the baby’s needs quickly or reliably.
Insecure attachments can have unfortunate consequences. If a child cannot rely
on an adult to respond to their needs in times of stress, they are unable to learn
how to soothe themselves, manage their emotions and engage in reciprocal
relationships.
 When Attachment Goes Wrong
If a child has few positive relationships in early childhood or has had a bad start due
to problems with the primary-caregiving experiences of infancy, this child is at risk
for a host of problems. In a very real sense, the glue of normal human interactions is
gone. A child with poor attachment capacity is much harder to "shape" and teach.
This child will feel little pleasure from the teacher's smile or approving words. And he
does not feel bad disappointing, angering, or upsetting a parent or teacher. Without
the capacity to use human interactions to "reward" and "punish," the teacher and
parent often are confused and frustrated in their attempts to promote appropriate
social behavior. In extreme cases, the child with poor attachment capacity
demonstrates no remorse when harming others and risk developing further anti-social
or even aggressive and violent behaviors. This child needs help. Research and clinical
experience show that attachment capacity is easiest to shape if early identification and
intervention takes place.

6.  CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN WITH SECURE AND INSECURE
ATTACHMENTS:
SECURE ATTACHMENT INSECURE ATTACHMENT
Children who are secure in their
attachments more freely explore their
environment and are able to learn with
confidence,
Children who are insecure are more likely to
struggle in being confident and learning about their
surroundings.
Children who are secure tend to be
more popular with peers and exhibit
more positive social interaction with
other kids,
Children who are insecure seem more at risk for
hostile, anti-social or difficult relationships with
other children.
Children who are secure tend to be
more emotionally stable and able to
express and manage their feelings well,
Children who are insecure are more likely to be
emotionally unstable and have difficulty in
expressing and managing feelings.
Children who are secure demonstrate
greater ability to handle stress and help
others handle stress
Children who are insecure are more likely to
struggle when stressed, act out in unhealthy ways
and be insensitive to others who are stressed.
Secure attachment can promote self-
esteem in children
 Be better problem-solvers
 Form friendships and be
leaders with peers
 Be more empathetic and less
aggressive
 Engage their world with
confidence
 Have higher self-esteem
 Be better at resolving
conflict
 Be more self-reliant and
adaptable


duration of learning

achievement
 Be socially withdrawn from peers
 Be overly dependent on adults (e.g.,
teachers)
 Have lower self-confidence
 Victimize or be victimized by peers
 Form fewer friendships
 Be less emotionally healthy
 Unfocussed
 Disruptive
 Controlling
 Withdrawn
 Destructive
• These children tend to underachieve in school
and are often punished and even excluded. Little
that schools do seems to work.
 As a result, these children may not fulfil
their potential as adults, either in
employment or relationships

7.  co-operative and self-regulative

emotional and behavioural
problems

less biased in interpreting
behaviour of others
 -aware (self-
knowledge)
 ADVANTAGES OF
Secure attachment is one of
the main sources of later
resilience in
childhood. Securely
attached children achieve
better outcomes across all
domains including, social
and emotional development;
behaviour; relationships with
peers, and learning.
Attachment patterns that
develop over the first few
years of life continue to
influence mental health and
psychological functioning
throughout childhood and
the adult years
 Secure attachments support
mental processes that enable
the child to regulate
emotions, reduce fear, attune
to others, have self-
understanding and insight,
empathy for others and
appropriate moral reasoning
 Secure attachment is
associated with higher
grades
and standardized test scores compared
to insecure attachment.
 Secure attachment is also
associated with greater emotional
regulation, social competence, and
willingness to take on
challenges, and with lower levels of
ADHD and delinquency, each of which
in turn is associated with higher
achievement.
 Characterized by children who become
anxious and seek parents but then struggle
to get away, are reluctant to explore the
environment, become upset easily and
exhibit frustration with their parents'
responses
to them.
 These children tend to be ‘clingy’ but also
unable to be comforted by care when it is
offered. Children who are insecure
attached, do not show their need for
comfort and develop strategies to comfort
themselves.
 likely to be stressed
 They are also more likely to have
emotional and behavioural problems.
 develop a range of mental health problems
REASONS/CAUSES FOR INSECURE
ATTACHMENTS
Factors That Affect Attachment Security
What factors affect attachment security? Are there
some issues greater than others?
(1) First, having the opportunity to develop a close
personal relationship with one or only a few
caregivers is crucially important.
(2) Warm responsive parenting should lead to
greater attachment security.
(3) As babies actively contribute to the attachment
relationship, an infant’s characteristics should
make a difference in how well he/she develops.
(4) Family circumstances influence attachment
quality. Stressors, such as anxiety and instability,
job loss, failing marriage, financial difficulties,
may interfere with the sensitivity of parental care
5. Poverty
6. Parental mental health difficulties
7. -Exposure to neglect, domestic violence or other
forms of abuse
8. Alcohol/drug taking during pregnancy
9. -Multiple home and school placements
10. Premature birth
11.Abandonment
12.Family bereavement

8. Which children are more likely to show insecure attachment
-Children in areas of social and economic deprivation -Children in care
-Adopted children whose early experiences of trauma continue to affect their lives
-Disabled children
-Children with medical conditions or illness
-Children who have moved home frequently during the early years e.g. forces families
-Refugees and children who have been traumatised by conflict or loss
BUT …
insecure attachments may occur within non-vulnerable children as well
The importance of attachment quality can be significant. How do such attachments
develop?
Role of the teacher
Attachment influences students’ school success. This is true of students’ attachment
to their parents, as well as to their teachers.
Support for children who have attachment disorders will include work on:
• raising self-esteem • pro-social skills • emotional literacy • forming friendships • resilience •
building trust and empathy.
What you can do to promote the development of healthy attachment:
In general: (both teachers and parents can do this)
 Smile and look children in the eyes as you greet them
 Spend time with the child. Quantity matters. During this time, get on the floor, listen
and establish eye contact.
 Use touch to comfort-even as a school teacher, it is appropriate gently touch a
shoulder, or hold hands.
 Help children learn appropriate social-emotional language (how close to stand, how to
use eye contact, when to touch, how to touch).
 Remember that there are many styles of forming and maintaining relationships-a shy
child is not an unattached child. If you sense a child is having a hard time engaging
others, help facilitate this by actively including her or pairing her with another child
who has a matching temperament.

9. Individual teachers role :
A teacher’s relationship with each child is important for raising achievement levels as well
as for improving socio-emotional well-being. Teachers need to learn how to deal
constructively with children who have insecure attachment to parents. It is a challenge
not to act in ways that confirm insecure children’s working models. Insecure children seek
positive, warm, trusting relationships, but do not have the skills to create them. This means
it is up to the teacher to change children’s views of relationships and meet their
socio-emotional needs.
Recommendations for how teachers can improve their relationships with students and foster
school bonding:
1. Increase sensitivity and warm, positive interactions with students. Teacher sensitivity
refers to accurate detection and interpretation of children’s cues, provision of comfort,
and responsiveness to distress. One way teachers become more
sensitive to children is to increase their knowledge of child development. Teachers who
know more about child development are more sensitive in their interactions with
children.
2. Be well prepared for class and hold high expectations for students. This is one way
that teachers show they care about student achievement, in addition to increasing sensitivity
and being responsive. Students feel their teachers cared for them if they helped each student
academically, like asking if they needed help, calling on them, making sure they understood
content, teaching in a special way, and making class interesting. Non-caring teachers finish
their task, teach while students are not paying attention, and do not answer questions or
explain things.
3. Be responsive to students’ agendas by providing choice whenever possible. This may
help students feel greater rapport with teachers.
4. Use induction rather than coercive discipline. Induction involves explaining the reason
for rules and pointing out the consequences of breaking rules. Coercive discipline
involves using threats, imposing the teacher’s superior power, and taking advantage of
the teacher’s ability to control resources like recess time, grades, or detentions.
Coercion interferes with caring relationships. High school students
are more likely to feel school bonding if their school does not have harsh discipline
policies, like expelling students for relatively minor infractions.
Children who are disciplined with induction—particularly victim-centered induction in
which the adult points out how the child’s behavior has made someone else feel—are
likely to become prosocial and emotionally positive.
5. Help students be kind, helpful, and accepting of one another. Peer culture is a key
component of school bonding . Students tend to feel greater school
bonding if peers get along with each other. Building a strong sense of community in the
school and creating a caring classroom climate where teachers are warm, use inductive
discipline, encourage cooperation among students,Teachers can also help children become
more prosocial by providing children with opportunities to care for and help each other.
6. Teachers can increase prosocial behavior through modeling, such as complimenting
students, respecting students, and avoiding hurting their feelings
7. Teachers can increase prosocial behavior by praising and expressing gratitude for
kindnesses, such as “you are a nice person” or “I really appreciate that you took the trouble to
do that”
8. The school psychologist or counselors should be able to help teachers repair a difficult
relationship with a specific child.

10. School-wide policies
The six approaches described above can be implemented by individual teachers within the
confines of their own classrooms, regardless of the larger school context. However, some
school policies and procedures can facilitate, or undermine, teacher–student relationships
and school bonding. We make six additional recommendations for improving school-wide
policies:
1. Implement school-wide interventions.
2. Provide a variety of extracurricular activities that are accessible to students. High
school students feel more connected when there is a high rate of participation in
extracurricular activities
3. Keep schools small: students feel more connected to their schools if the school is small
In contrast to school size, class size may not affect school bonding. In fact, classrooms that
are too small can result in children not having
enough opportunity to find a peer buddy.
4. Provide continuity of people and place. Attachment takes time to develop. This
requires that teachers and students stay together long enough to form relationships.
(a) Keep students together so peer groups are stable. Some secondary schools attempt
to do this by having teams of children attend multiple classes together.
(b) Keep children with the same teacher or team of teachers for multiple years.
5. Facilitate transitions to new schools or teachers. If children must move from one school
to another, they should be helped to make connections with children, families, and
teachers as they transition. Two procedures that help are to place new students with the
same teacher their older siblings had and to place children with friends. Other
procedures might include hosting informal family nights with teachers at the school,
hosting school visits in the spring for children who will enter the new school in the fall,
and assigning an older student as a “buddy” to show the new student around.
6. Nurture groups and Circle Time in school provide a safe environment and structure for
children with attachment disorders to experience success and develop interpersonal skills.
Conclusions
The first job of schools is to care for children. It is morally and practically wrong to assert
that schools should only concentrate on academic goals; children do not learn academically if
they are not cared for. All students want to learn, although not necessarily the content they
are asked to learn in school. Caring for children prepares them to be receptive to learning
such content.