PY 352 Lecture Notes - Lecture 26: The Roots, 18 Months

• School: University of Alabama
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PY 352
• Professor: Jeffrey G Parker

Document Summary

During the evolution of the human species, it would have been the babies who stayed close to their mothers that would have survived to have children. Both infants and mothers have evolved a biological need to stay in contact with each other. Babies are born with the tendency to display certain innate behaviors (social releasers) which help ensure proximity and contact with the mother or attachment figure (e. g. crying, smiling, crawling etc. ) Attachment behaviors are instinctive and activated by real, imagined, and symbolic threats to proximity to caregivers, such as times of separation, insecurity and fear. Beyond survival: an orientation to explore and understand: eventual autonomy, openness to experience, emotional depth and robustness. The development of attachments: asocial phase, 0 to 6 weeks, both social and nonsocial stimuli produce positive responses and seldom any protest. Indiscriminate attachment: 6 weeks to 6-7 months, babies enjoy human company to nonhuman but e(cid:374)joy just a(cid:271)out a(cid:374)yo(cid:374)e"s attention.