Choose one of the two discussions below to write your Post.
Option 1: Temperament
Your textbook offers Rothbart’s dimensions of parenting in Table 3.1 (Chapter 3, p. 116). You can also find an online assessment of temperament based on the work Chess & ThomasLinks to an external site., which assesses these traits that make up a person’s temperament:
1. Activity level (physical energy)
2. Distractibility (tendency to get distracted by events in environment)
3. Intensity (energy level of a positive or negative response)
4. Need for physical routine (predictability in biological functions)
5. Sensory sensitivity (reaction to sensory changes in environment)
6. Initial reaction (approach/withdrawal to a situation)
7. Adaptability (how long it takes to adjust to a new situation)
8. Persistence (attention span)
9. Usual mood (general tendency toward happy or unhappy demeanor)
Do you think your temperament has remained “stable” through your life (suggesting genetic influences)? Or do you think your temperament has changed from the time you were small (suggesting environmental influences)? Offer your explanation of how and why your basic temperament has changed…or has remained stable.
Option 2: Attachment and Forming Close Relationships
Do you find yourself recreating relationships with the same characteristics with which you were handled when you were a child? Take a guess at the attachment style you feel you have currently; then take this quiz.Links to an external site.
Are your results surprising? Is your current attachment style the same as the one you think you had early in life?
Why do you think it is the same…or different? Use concepts from Chapter 4 in your textbook support your reasoning.
Expert Solution Preview
Introduction:
In this post, I will be addressing Option 2: Attachment and Forming Close Relationships. I will discuss the relevance of attachment styles in our current relationships and how they may be influenced by our past experiences. Furthermore, I will analyze my own attachment style and compare it to my perceived attachment style from early life, using concepts from Chapter 4 of the textbook to support my reasoning.
Answer:
Attachment styles play a crucial role in shaping our behaviors and interactions within close relationships. These styles are influenced by our early life experiences and can impact our current relationships. Upon taking the attachment style quiz, I was not surprised by my results, as they aligned with my perceived attachment style from early life.
According to Chapter 4 of the textbook, attachment styles are formed based on interactions with primary caregivers in early childhood. These interactions shape our beliefs about trust, security, and intimacy in relationships. I believe that my current attachment style is similar to the one I had early in life because of the consistency in my upbringing and the continuity of my relationships.
As a child, I had a secure attachment style, characterized by a sense of trust, comfort, and security in my relationships. This was a result of consistently responsive and nurturing caregiving. These early experiences laid the foundation for my current attachment style, which I still perceive as secure.
In my adult relationships, I find myself recreating the same characteristics that I experienced in my childhood relationships. I seek partners who are reliable, trustworthy, and supportive, mirroring the secure base I had during my upbringing. This tendency to seek familiar relationship patterns aligns with the attachment theory concept of internal working models, which suggests that our early experiences shape our expectations and behaviors in subsequent relationships.
In conclusion, my current attachment style is consistent with the one I perceived from early life. This similarity can be attributed to the stability and consistency of my upbringing, which fostered a secure attachment style. The concept of internal working models supports the idea that our early experiences influence our attachment styles and subsequent relationship patterns. Overall, understanding attachment styles can provide valuable insights into our own behaviors and interactions within close relationships.
