old experiment: what Punch tells us about attachment theory
The Conversation • • general
Key Points:
- A baby macaque monkey named Punch, abandoned by his mother and rejected by his troop, has formed a strong attachment to an orangutan plushie provided by zookeepers at Ichikawa City Zoo in Japan, echoing the findings of 1950s psychologist Harry Harlow's experiments on attachment.
- Harlow’s experiments showed that infant rhesus monkeys preferred clinging to a soft, comforting surrogate mother over a wire surrogate that provided food, challenging the behaviorist view that attachment is based solely on physical nourishment.
- These findings laid the foundation for modern attachment theory, which emphasizes the importance of emotional nourishment, care, and kindness from caregivers for healthy child development, rather than just meeting physical needs.
- Punch’s attachment to his plush
