Classical conditioning is when the infant is receiving food, and it gives them pleasure, so when the mother (caregiver) feeds the infant, the infant feels instant pleasure. This is when association or connection is formed between the caregiver and the food, so when the caregiver is near the child then feel pleasure which is then expressed as attachment behavior. Operant conditioning main uses are that if an individual acts on the environment in a certain way, they could...
Classical conditioning is when the infant is receiving food, and it gives them pleasure, so when the mother (caregiver) feeds the infant, the infant feels instant pleasure. This is when association or connection is formed between the caregiver and the food, so when the caregiver is near the child then feel pleasure which is then expressed as attachment behavior.
Operant conditioning main uses are that if an individual acts on the environment in a certain way, they could be rewarded or punished in some way, sometimes they will do this action again. An example could be when an infant is hungry it is seen as an uncomfortable state for them. Helping with this uncomforted sate will make them more comfortable and will be learned through negative reinforcement. Over the time the feeling of being comfortable by a form of feeding then becomes associated with primary caregiver aka mother or parent. Attachment has been learnt, Dollard and Millar the two key psychologists then used what is known as a secondary hypothesis to explain the process of learning an attachment through the two conditioning theories which are operant and classical. Secondary hypothesis is when the primary drive is essential for survival, such as the infant getting fed when hungry and also they become associated with a secondary drive which is known as emotional attachments. The two theorists made this study to explain that attachment is two way process.
