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Introduction
The primary definition of attachment theory is based on the role of attachment in personal development and it particularly specifies that developing a sense of attachment to another individual is responsible for providing a sense of security and stability needed for development as a personality (Buss, 2015).
Therefore attachment theory can be considered as a conceptual underpinning of the attachment behavioural system which regulates infant behaviour in terms of maintaining contacts and seeking proximity with other individuals for psychological or physical safety (Card, 2017). However, Jerome Kagan has presented explicit criticisms for attachment theory in his works which can be illustrated as follows.
- The foremost criticism of attachment theory in Jerome Kagan’s ‘Three Pleasing Ideas’ is observed in the examples highlighting ambiguities related to the impact of early experience among infants on long term psychological development (Csikszentmihalyi, 2014). The criticism suggests that behavioural attitudes developed by infants in their first developmental stage could not be associated with indefinite stability the use of these abstract processes fails to generalize the outcomes across various species and the ambiguity pertaining to the theorization of abstract processes is reflective of the limitations of attachment theory. The objective of pleasure as the underlying motive of the majority of human actions is also reflective of criticism of the attachment theory.
It can be observed that while the impact of attachment in the infancy stage could be identified in behavioural components, the objective of pleasure could be responsible for changes in the behaviour of an individual (Larsen, et al., 2017). the feeling of pleasure or reduction of pain in determining the course of action.
- One of the primary criticisms drawn by Jerome Kagan against attachment theory in ‘On Attachment’ is the influence of temperamental qualities of infants on their behaviour with unprecedented situations and social behaviour with peers in the later stage of their life without considering the effect of attachment on parents (Neisser, 2014). Another formidable criticism of the attachment theory is identified in the general inclination of a human for findings answers to significant questions that are uncomplicated alongside depicting a strain of anxiety.
Therefore attachment theory has been assumed as a premature solution without any generalization, in particular, to explain the deviant social behaviour among older children. Furthermore, the work of Bowlby in presenting the original concept for attachment has been criticized for the lack of a suitable instrument to measure the quality of attachment owing to limited consideration for the temperament of the infant (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2014). Another concern could be presented in the form of references to the implications of biologically prepared actions for responding to novel actions as compared to dependence on attachment to parent in the context of the Strange Situation experiment.
- The attachment theory and theories of temperament overlap in terms of their consideration for the final objective of personal development and physical as well as psychological security of the infant (Smith, 2015). Theories of temperament reflect on the capabilities of an infant to respond to stressful situations which demand security and safety.
On the other hand, the attachment theory specifies the development of the capabilities to deal with stressful situations through the support of parents. In the case of theories of temperament their impact could be identified in the development of early stages of attachment (Thibaut, 2017). Therefore, the influence of temperaments on the overall attachment security could be identified as a notable indicator of overlap between attachment theory and the theories of temperament.
- The difference between attachment theory and the theories of temperament can be identified in the lack of consideration for gender in the case of the former. The case of attachment theory reflects on the later social development of an infant through the extent of involvement with a caregiver while the theories of temperament vary according to gender and social environment (Wickens, et al., 2015). Therefore, the theories of temperament are able to provide a streamlined interpretation of the reasons for deviant behaviour among older children as compared to the attachment theory.
The execution of the attachment theory in various constrained environments is also reflective of the lack of environmental influence on developing attachment (Buss, 2015). The difference between attachment theory and theories of temperament could also be identified in their contradicting nature as observed in examples of the uncertainty of determining the temperament of a child on the basis of the quality of parenting.
Reference
Buss, D., 2015. Evolutionary psychology: The new science of the mind. Psychology Press.
Card, S.K., 2017. The psychology of human-computer interaction. CRC Press.
Csikszentmihalyi, M., 2014. Toward a psychology of optimal experience. In Flow and the foundations of positive psychology (pp. 209-226). Springer Netherlands.
Freud, S., 2017. Group psychology and the analysis of the ego. e-now.
Larsen, R.J., Buss, D.M., Wismeijer, A., Song, J. and van den Berg, S.M., 2017. Personality psychology: Domains of knowledge about human nature. McGraw Hill Education.
Neisser, U., 2014. Cognitive psychology: Classic edition. Psychology Press.
Seligman, M.E. and Csikszentmihalyi, M., 2014. Positive psychology: An introduction. In Flow and the foundations of positive psychology (pp. 279-298). Springer Netherlands.
Smith, J.A. ed., 2015. Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to research methods. Sage.
Thibaut, J.W., 2017. The social psychology of groups. Routledge.
Wickens, C.D., Hollands, J.G., Banbury, S. and Parasuraman, R., 2015. Engineering psychology & human performance. Psychology Press.
