Lorenz and Harlow: Animal Studies on Attachment
Lorenz (1952)
Lorenz’s research suggests that organisms have a biological propensity to form attachments to a single subject.
Lorenz conducted an experiment in which goslings were hatched either with their mother or in an incubator. Once the goslings had hatched, they proceeded to follow the first moving object that they saw between 13 and 16 hours after hatching; in this case, Lorenz.
It supports the view that having a biological basis for an attachment is adaptive as it promotes survival.
This would explain why goslings imprint after a matter of minutes due to their increased mobility. Human babies are born immobile and, therefore, there is less call for them to form an attachment straight away, and so, this develops later (8-9 months).
Harlow (1958)
Harlow conducted research with eight rhesus monkeys which were caged from infancy with wire mesh food-dispensing and cloth-covered surrogate mothers, to investigate which of the two alternatives would have more attachment behaviors directed towards it.
Harlow measured the amount of time that the monkeys spent with each surrogate mother and the amount time that they cried for their biological mother.
Harlow’s findings revealed that separated infant rhesus monkeys would show attachment behaviors towards a cloth-covered surrogate mother when frightened, rather than a food-dispensing surrogate mother. Monkeys were willing to explore a room full of novel toys when the cloth-covered monkey was present but displayed phobic responses when only the food-dispensing surrogate was present.
Furthermore, Harlow reviewed infant monkeys that were reared in a social (non-isolated) environment and observed that these monkeys went on to develop into healthy adults, while the monkeys in isolation with the surrogate mothers all displayed dysfunctional adult behavior, including:
- Being timid
- Unpredictable with other monkeys
- They had difficulty with mating
- The females were inadequate mothers
Implications of Animal Studies of Attachment
Lorenz (1952)
The fact that the studied goslings imprinted irreversibly so early in life suggests that this was operating within a critical period, which was underpinned by biological changes. The longevity of the goslings’ bond with Lorenz would support the view that, on some level, early attachment experiences do predict future bonds. The powerful instinctive behavior that the goslings displayed would suggest that attachments are biologically programmed into species according to adaptive pressures; goslings innately follow moving objects shortly after hatching, as this would be adaptive given their premature mobility.
Harlow (1958)
The rhesus monkeys’ willingness to seek refuge from something offering comfort rather than food would suggest that food is not as crucial as comfort when forming a bond. The fact that isolated monkeys displayed long-term dysfunctional behavior illustrates, once more, that early attachment experiences predict long-term social development. Despite being fed, isolated monkeys failed to develop functional social behavior, which would suggest that animals have greater needs than just the provision of food.
Evaluating Animal Studies of Attachment
Strengths
Humans and Monkeys are Similar
Green (1994) states that, on a biological level at least, all mammals (including rhesus monkeys) have the same brain structure as humans; the only differences relate to size and the number of connections.
Important Practical Applications
Harlow’s research has profound implications for childcare. Due to the importance of early experiences on long-term development, it is vital that all of children’s needs are cared for; taking care of a child’s physical needs alone is not sufficient.
Weaknesses
Results Cannot Be Generalized to Humans
It is questionable whether findings and conclusions can be extrapolated and applied to complex human behaviors. It is unlikely that observations of goslings following a researcher or rhesus monkeys clinging to cloth-covered wire models reflects the emotional connections and interaction that characterizes human attachments.
Research is Unethical
The use of animals in research can be questioned on ethical grounds. It could be argued that animals have a right not to be researched or harmed. The pursuit of academic conclusions for human benefits could be seen as detrimental to non-human species.