In psychology, the term affectional bond is a type of attachment behavior one individual has for another individual, typically a mother for her child, in which the two partners tend to remain in proximity to one another.

Contents

• 1 Five criteria
• 2 See also
• 3 References
• 4 External links

Five criteria

Bowlby referred to attachment bonds as a specific type of a larger class of bonds that he and developmental psychologist Mary Ainsworth described as “affectional” bonds. Ainsworth (1989) established five criteria for affectional bonds between individuals, and a sixth criterion for attachment bonds:

1. An affectional bond is persistent, not transitory.
2. An affectional bond involves a particular person who is not interchangeable with anyone else.
3. An affectional bond involves a relationship that is emotionally significant.
4. The individual wishes to maintain proximity or contact with the person with whom he or she has an affectional tie.
5. The individual feels sadness or distress at involuntary separation from the person.

A true attachment bond, however, has an additional criterion: the person seeks security and comfort in the relationship.

See also

• Attachment theory
• Attachment disorder
• Human bonding
• Animal love
• Pair bonding

References

1. ^ Bowlby, J. (2005). The Making and Breaking of Affectional Bonds. Routledge Classics. ISBN 0-415-35481-1. 
2. ^ Bowlby, J. (1958). “The Nature of the Childs Tie to his Mother.” International Journal of Psychoanalysis 39: 350-373.

External links

• Universality of Human Social Attachment as an Adaptive Process
• Attachment Security in Infancy and its Consequences for Development of the Individual

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Attachment theory

Theory

Affectional bond • Attachment in adults • Attachment in children • Attachment disorder • Attachment measures • Attachment parenting • Attachment theory • Human bonding • Maternal deprivation • Object relations theory • Reactive attachment disorder

Notable Theorists

Mary Ainsworth • John Bowlby • Erik Erikson • Sigmund Freud • Harry Harlow • Jerome Kagan • Melanie Klein • Konrad Lorenz • Tinbergen • Rene Spitz

Controversy

Attachment therapy • Candace Newmaker

Retrieved from “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affectional_bond”
Categories: Attachment theory | Love | Interpersonal relationships | Human development