Assignment: PSYCHOLOGY

I need 6 substantial posts (comments)

Each post should be at least 100-200 words and be considered substantive which displays critical thinking and moves our conversation forward in a scholarly way. It is also required that students utilize properly cited scholarly resources in Main Forum postings. A scholarly approach to discussions will frequently involve references to the weekly readings, learning objectives, and scholarly information sources in a manner that sheds new light upon the topic of the discussion. To create a substantive posting, remember “ABC” – Acknowledge other student postings, Build upon the ideas with scholarly material and Conclude with a follow-up question for the classroom.

Chapter 4

CULTURE AND ATTACHMENT

Attachment  refers to the special bond that develops between the infant and his or her primary caregiver and provides the infant with emotional security. Many psychologists believe that the quality of attachment has lifelong effects on our relationships with loved ones. Once attached, babies are distressed by separation from their caregiver (separation distress or anxiety). There is evidence that seven- to nine-month-old infants in every culture studied show distress when they are separated from their primary caregiver (Grossman & Grossman,  1990 ).

Bowlby’s Theory of Attachment

Bowlby’s ( 1969 ) evolutionary theory of attachment proposes that infants must have a preprogrammed, biological basis for becoming attached to their caregivers. This innate behavioral repertoire includes smiling and cooing to elicit physical attachment behaviors on the part of the caregiver. He argues that the attachment relationship between caregiver and child functioned as a survival strategy: Infants had a greater chance of survival if they remained close to the caregiver for comfort and protection.

Attachment as a survival strategy is illustrated in a study in Nigeria of Hausa infants and their caregivers (Marvin, VanDevender, Iwanaga, LeVine, & LeVine,  1977 ). The researchers report that the attachment relationship protected infants from the dangers of their environment, which included open fires, tools, and utensils that were easily accessible. Infants explored their environment, but only when they were in close proximity to an attachment figure. Similarly, among the Dogon of Mali, infants were always kept in close proximity with the mother (being held most of the time) and infants did not roam freely, thus avoiding dangers such as open fires, snakes, and animal droppings (True, Pisani, & Oumar,  2001 ).

Bowlby and Ainsworth’s Classification System of Attachment

Based on Bowlby’s attachment theory, Mary Ainsworth’s ( 1967 ,  1977 ) study of mothers and infants in Uganda led to the tripartite classification system of attachment relationships. Based on her careful observations of 26 mother-infant pairs over a span of one year, she described three attachment styles:  secure ,  ambivalent , and  avoidant . The latter two attachment styles she labeled as “insecurely attached.” Infants who are securely attached become distressed when their mother leaves but are easily comforted by her when she returns. Infants who are ambivalent also experience distress when their mother leaves but when she returns they send mixed signals—they want to be comforted by her yet, at the same time, appear to have a difficult time letting her soothe them. Infants who are avoidant do not seem to be distressed when their mother leaves and when she returns these infants will actively avoid reuniting with their mother and instead focus their attention elsewhere. Ainsworth later replicated her results in a sample of Baltimore mothers and their infants. In her samples, she found that approximately 57 percent of mothers and infants were classified as securely attached, 25 percent as ambivalent, and 18 percent as avoidant.

Studies from other cultures have found a similar distribution of attachment classifications; others have found considerable differences. And some attachment styles are not reported in certain cultures. For example, no avoidant infants were found in True et al.’s ( 2001 ) study of the Dogon of Mali. Mali mothers kept their infants close to them throughout the day and practiced constant, responsive nursing (nursing on demand when the infant is hungry or distressed). This type of caregiving, True et al. argued, “prevents” avoidant attachment to the mother. These findings highlight the importance of understanding the attachment system in the context of parenting practices specific to each culture.

Assignment PSYCHOLOGY

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Cross-Cultural Studies on Attachment

Since Ainsworth’s early studies, hundreds of studies of attachment have been conducted in cultures all over the world. To measure attachment, the Strange Situation, developed by Ainsworth, is the most widely used measure. In the Strange Situation, infants are separated from their mothers for a brief period of time. The separation is thought to trigger the attachment system in the infant. The quality of attachment is derived partly from an assessment of the infant’s reaction to the separation and subsequent reunion with the mother.

Although this method has been used extensively across cultures, the cross-cultural validity of this method and the meaning of the attachment classifications themselves have been questioned. For instance, the meaning of the separation may differ across cultures (Takahashi,  1990 ). Japanese infants are rarely separated from their mothers, and the separation during the Strange Situation may represent a highly unusual situation that may imply something different for Japanese infants and their mothers than for U.S. infants and their mothers. It may also be the case that subtle attachment behaviors (for instance, those that characterize avoidant relationships) are difficult even for well-trained coders to observe in infants from different cultures (Crittenden,  2000 ; van IJzendoorn & Sagi,  1999 ).

In addition to criticisms leveled at the measurement of attachment, cross-cultural researchers have questioned the appropriateness of the different categories of attachment. For instance, researchers studying Chinese infants and their mothers question the validity of the avoidant category as an indication of insecure attachment (Hu & Meng,  1996 , cited in van IJzendoorn & Sagi,  1999 ). Chinese mothers emphasize early independence in their infants and, at the same time, stress their reliance on nonparental (usually the grandparent) caregivers. These factors, rather than an insecure relationship between the mother and her infant, may be responsible for why babies show avoidant attachment in China

Important information for writing discussion questions and participation

Hi Class,

Please read through the following information on writing a Discussion question response and participation posts.

Contact me if you have any questions.

Important information on Writing a Discussion Question

• Your response needs to be a minimum of 150 words (not including your list of references)
• There needs to be at least TWO references with ONE being a peer reviewed professional journal article.
• Include in-text citations in your response
• Do not include quotes—instead summarize and paraphrase the information
• Follow APA-7th edition
• Points will be deducted if the above is not followed

Participation –replies to your classmates or instructor

• A minimum of 6 responses per week, on at least 3 days of the week.
• Each response needs at least ONE reference with citations—best if it is a peer reviewed journal article
• Each response needs to be at least 75 words in length (does not include your list of references)
• Responses need to be substantive by bringing information to the discussion or further enhance the discussion. Responses of “I agree” or “great post” does not count for the word count.
• Follow APA 7th edition
• Points will be deducted if the above is not followed

• Remember to use and follow APA-7th edition for all weekly assignments, discussion questions, and participation points.
• Here are some helpful links
• Student paper example
• Citing Sources
• The Writing Center is a great resource

Welcome to class

Hello class and welcome to the class and I will be your instructor for this course. This is a -week course and requires a lot of time commitment, organization, and a high level of dedication. Please use the class syllabus to guide you through all the assignments required for the course. I have also attached the classroom policies to this announcement to know your expectations for this course. Please review this document carefully and ask me any questions if you do. You could email me at any time or send me a message via the “message” icon in halo if you need to contact me. I check my email regularly, so you should get a response within 24 hours. If you have not heard from me within 24 hours and need to contact me urgently, please send a follow up text to.

I strongly encourage that you do not wait until the very last minute to complete your assignments. Your assignments in weeks 4 and 5 require early planning as you would need to present a teaching plan and interview a community health provider. I advise you look at the requirements for these assignments at the beginning of the course and plan accordingly. I have posted the YouTube link that explains all the class assignments in detail. It is required that you watch this 32-minute video as the assignments from week 3 through 5 require that you follow the instructions to the letter to succeed. Failure to complete these assignments according to instructions might lead to a zero. After watching the video, please schedule a one-on-one with me to discuss your topic for your project by the second week of class. Use this link to schedule a 15-minute session. Please, call me at the time of your appointment on my number. Please note that I will NOT call you.

Please, be advised I do NOT accept any assignments by email. If you are having technical issues with uploading an assignment, contact the technical department and inform me of the issue. If you have any issues that would prevent you from getting your assignments to me by the deadline, please inform me to request a possible extension. Note that working fulltime or overtime is no excuse for late assignments. There is a 5%-point deduction for every day your assignment is late. This only applies to approved extensions. Late assignments will not be accepted.

If you think you would be needing accommodations due to any reasons, please contact the appropriate department to request accommodations.

Plagiarism is highly prohibited. Please ensure you are citing your sources correctly using APA 7th edition. All assignments including discussion posts should be formatted in APA with the appropriate spacing, font, margin, and indents. Any papers not well formatted would be returned back to you, hence, I advise you review APA formatting style. I have attached a sample paper in APA format and will also post sample discussion responses in subsequent announcements.

Your initial discussion post should be a minimum of 200 words and response posts should be a minimum of 150 words. Be advised that I grade based on quality and not necessarily the number of words you post. A minimum of TWO references should be used for your initial post. For your response post, you do not need references as personal experiences would count as response posts. If you however cite anything from the literature for your response post, it is required that you cite your reference. You should include a minimum of THREE references for papers in this course. Please note that references should be no more than 5 years old except recommended as a resource for the class. Furthermore, for each discussion board question, you need ONE initial substantive response and TWO substantive responses to either your classmates or your instructor for a total of THREE responses. There are TWO discussion questions each week, hence, you need a total minimum of SIX discussion posts for each week. I usually post a discussion question each week. You could also respond to these as it would count towards your required SIX discussion posts for the week.

I understand this is a lot of information to cover in 5 weeks, however, the Bible says in Philippians 4:13 that we can do all things through Christ that strengthens us. Even in times like this, we are encouraged by God’s word that we have that ability in us to succeed with His strength. I pray that each and every one of you receives strength for this course and life generally as we navigate through this pandemic that is shaking our world today. Relax and enjoy the course!