An infant explores a novel toy confidently while the caregiver is present, then immediately seeks the caregiver when a stranger enters and the room becomes stressful. This behavior best illustrates which concept from Bowlby's attachment theory?
AImprinting
BThe secure base and safe haven functions
CObject permanence
DStranger anxiety as a pathological response
Bowlby proposed that the attachment figure serves two complementary roles: a secure base from which the infant confidently explores the environment, and a safe haven to which the infant retreats when threatened. Exploration in the caregiver's presence and proximity-seeking under stress are the observable signatures of this dual function. Imprinting is a related but distinct concept from ethology; object permanence is a Piagetian cognitive concept.
Question 2 True / False
Bowlby's attachment theory is fundamentally a theory about love and emotional warmth between infants and their biological mothers.
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: False
Attachment theory is not primarily about love or warmth — it is a behavioral-motivational system theory grounded in evolutionary biology. Bowlby argued that proximity-seeking to a caregiver is a biologically selected behavior because it increases survival, not merely because caregivers are emotionally important. Attachment can form with any consistent primary caregiver, and the behavioral system is analytically distinct from general affiliation or warmth.
Question 3 Short Answer
What is the internal working model in Bowlby's theory, and why does it matter beyond infancy?
Think about your answer, then reveal below.
Model answer: An internal working model is a cognitive-emotional schema — a mental representation of the self as worthy or unworthy of care, and of others as reliably responsive or not — built from repeated early interactions with caregivers. Bowlby proposed that these models operate largely outside conscious awareness and shape expectations, emotional regulation strategies, and relationship behavior throughout life.
The internal working model is why early attachment experiences have long-term effects: they create templates that are applied to new relationships. A child who learns that caregivers are reliably responsive develops an expectation of trustworthiness that generalist future relationships. This is the theoretical bridge between infant attachment patterns and adult relationship functioning — addressed further in attachment styles and later developmental topics.