"Winnie The Pooh And All-all-all" Types Of Attachment

2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 15:43

Eeyore donkey loved his

the tail and "was tied to it."

Everyone's favorite fairy tale about Winnie the Pooh and his friends is not only a storehouse of quotes and aphorisms, but also a clear illustration of the types of attachment. By all indications, the cheerful Winnie the Pooh has a reliable attachment, the melancholic Eeyore shows an unreliable avoidant type of attachment, and the nervous Piglet is more likely to have an unreliable anxious-ambivalent attachment.

But first, a little about the very phenomenon of attachment, which arises at an early age. An emotional connection is established between the child and the adult, most often the mother, which is especially pronounced when the child seeks comfort when experiencing anxiety and fear, in cases of novelty of the situation, danger, stress. Affection gives the child a sense of security, safety, comfort. Since the infant's psyche is just being formed, and he does not yet have the ability to self-regulation, attachment to an adult from the first months of life becomes a catalyst for mental development.

In the formation of this or that type of attachment, both the infant's temperament and other biologically determined characteristics play a role, as well as the way the significant person interacts with the child, the sensitivity and responsiveness of an adult. An important factor is also the type of attachment that this adult developed in his early childhood in relation to his parent (s), since this early attachment pattern is transferred to meaningful relationships in later life.

The different types of attachment differ in the degree of trust in the world, a sense of security, and a willingness to explore the environment, seeking support from the mother or her substitute. In addition, modern research confirms that a secure type of attachment facilitates the integration of a child into the environment of peers, while insecure attachment creates obstacles in communication with other children and adults.

Let's now return to the heroes of the tale and try to consider the types of attachment using their example.

Winnie the Pooh is active, cheerful, adventurous, he easily makes contact and does not expect a catch from others. The bear is quite pleased with himself and does not suffer from any complexes, and his self-esteem is, perhaps, even slightly higher than his real abilities. “My spelling is lame. It is good, but for some reason it is lame”- Vinnie answers to Owl's question about whether he can write. But he does not take self-irony.

Winnie gives the impression of a versatile, harmonious character with reliable type of attachment … If you fantasize about his childhood, then we can assume that the bear mother carefully perceived the signals of her child, interpreted them correctly and reacted to them in a timely manner, was sensitive, gentle, emotional. She probably gave Vinnie enough freedom, encouraged his exploratory behavior, fun and little pranks, but was always ready to hug, calm down and take care of the child when he was afraid of unfamiliar animals or an unusual situation.

As has been confirmed in the course of numerous experiments in which children aged from one to one and a half years participated, babies with a reliable type of attachment react by crying, calling and looking for her when they part with their mother (or with her substitute), experiencing obvious discomfort. But when mom returns, they joyfully greet her, hold out their hands to her, ask for consolation, and after a short time resume their game, interrupted by the departure of the mother.

A completely different type of attachment was formed in the donkey. Eeyore-Eeyoresuffering from depressive symptoms. Below are some examples of the donkey's sayings:

- Sorry sight. A heartbreaking sight. Nightmare! (wading across the lake) Well, I thought so. From this side it is no better …

- Good morning, Winnie the Pooh. If it's good at all. Which I personally doubt …

Melancholic, withdrawn, dissatisfied with himself and others, Eeyore, most likely, was brought up by rather cold, detached parents. It may also be that the adults caring for the donkey were constantly changing. This suggests that Eeyore formed avoidant attachment (one of two types of insecure attachment).

In carrying out the experiments mentioned above, the children of this group are not upset when separated from their mother (or her substitute), but ignore her when they meet. In their relationship, there is alienation and a lack of a sense of security in the child. It is paradoxical, but true: despite the absence of protest and a vivid reaction to parting, children experience this moment as stress, as evidenced by the indicators of physiological and psychological changes in the reactions of this group of subjects. It turns out that a child with an avoidant type of insecure attachment experiences the whole gamut of feelings that children with a secure attachment do, but does not demonstrate them outwardly.

Attachment avoidance pattern is a behavioral strategy for a child that helps him adjust to an early environment. The baby wants to be closer to the parents, but they do not respond to his needs, so increasing the distance is a compromise - this way the child can stay in contact with the parents without annoying them. You can observe how the child restrains his natural behavioral manifestations: does not protest when parting with the parent, does not shout or cry, does not cling to him. Children with avoidant attachment often protect themselves from their affects (strong feelings) through cognitive processes.

In adolescence and adulthood, such a person may look detached, withdrawn, dry, preferring reading books to live communication, he likes to philosophize on abstract topics, operate with abstract concepts, but can hardly express his own feelings. To the question "Do you love me?" such a person with a high degree of probability will prefer to answer evasively: “What is love? How to evaluate or measure it?"

Another kind of insecure attachment - anxious-ambivalent, is more related to the image Piglet. In the fairy tale, he is portrayed as nervous, anxious, fearful, a little insecure and dependent on others. Children of this group differ in that they react angrily to the departure of the mother (or her substitute), but do not make contact with her when they meet. They resist when she picks up, although they obviously demand attention. The child demonstrates an ambivalent attitude towards the mother and lack of a sense of security. Children with anxious-ambivalent attachment are characterized by increased emotionality, when feelings overwhelm the mind and disrupt cognitive processes.

On the example of Piglet, it can be assumed that ambivalence, or duality, could arise in the relationship between him and his mother as a result of hypertrophied guardianship on her part. Perhaps the mother tied him to herself beyond measure, excessively controlled and weakly noticed the child's desire to separate from her and explore the world around him. It is possible that the pig mother raised Piglet alone, and the child, to some extent, was a reliable emotional base for her, which she was afraid of losing.

Mom's anxiety, combined with the baby's natural impulses, makes Piglet both want to be separated from mom and resist separation.

Of course, the individual characteristics of the child make a certain contribution to interaction and to the formation of attachment. In all fairness, it should be noted that a restless baby who has trouble eating or sleeping, constantly screaming will be a test even for a very sensitive mother.

At the same time, according to modern researchers, the consolidation of an unreliable attachment pattern is more likely to occur in cases when a child feels the need for intimacy and safety, is anxious in frightening situations, and the adult either does not respond or does not respond adequately. Of course, here it is worth talking not about isolated episodes, but about repetitive situations in the child's life. Children who are regularly or for a long time separated from significant adults, brought up in orphanages or mentally unhealthy (unstable) parents are at risk.

So, the three types of attachment considered (reliable, unreliable avoidant, and unreliable anxious-ambivalent) are a kind of adaptation strategies that allow the child to adapt to the environment, and are within the framework of the norm. Outside of this review, there is one more type - disorganized attachment; and various attachment disorders. I will describe them in a separate article, since in all these cases it is worth talking about the lack of an adaptation strategy in the child due to various circumstances.