Fiducia TogetherAttachment in psychology
The psychological research on early bonds, and how it is criticised.
Please note: This page explains a word or a process in education. It is general information about the system, the law and the guidance in England — not advice about your child, your school or your exam. If a decision is going against you, get advice from one of the free services we link to before you agree to anything or miss a deadline. If you are revising, check your own exam board's specification: boards word things differently and yours is the one that marks you.
What it is
The core studies: Bowlby's monotropic theory and maternal deprivation, Ainsworth's strange situation identifying secure, insecure-avoidant and insecure-resistant types, Harlow's monkeys and Lorenz's imprinting.
Where it applies
GCSE and A Level psychology. The care-practice version is in attachment.
How it works
Bowlby argued a child forms one primary attachment with lasting consequences. Later work found multiple attachments are normal and outcomes are less fixed than he claimed.
Cultural variation in the strange situation results is a standard criticism: the classifications may reflect Western child-rearing norms.
How to use it in your work
Always pair a study with an evaluation point — ethics for Harlow, cultural bias for Ainsworth, determinism for Bowlby.
Avoid stating maternal deprivation as established fact. Say what Bowlby claimed and what later evidence showed.
Where to get help
Your teacher and your board's specification — these qualifications vary more between boards than the traditional GCSEs do, and much of the grade is coursework marked against stated criteria.
Revise this with a song
These are ours. We write revision songs because a lot of people remember a tune when they cannot remember a page, and because revising out loud in the kitchen beats staring at a highlighter.
- The Psychology Song The GCSE and A Level psychology topics, set to music.
Where to read more
Last reviewed 2026-08-28 by Fiducia Together · Next review due 2027-08-28
Please note: This page explains a word or a process in education. It is general information about the system, the law and the guidance in England — not advice about your child, your school or your exam. If a decision is going against you, get advice from one of the free services we link to before you agree to anything or miss a deadline. If you are revising, check your own exam board's specification: boards word things differently and yours is the one that marks you.