The post in question addresses the issues of attachment styles and their connection with rational constructivist reasoning in infants. Some of the points and ideas suggested in the post are arguable and can present certain theoretical or methodological limitations. For example, according to Xu & Kushnir (2013), infants are rational constructive learner and can use probabilistic reasoning to create and test hypothesis; however, there is still no evidence on how sophisticated their “probabilistic-inference abilities” can be (Xu & Kushnir, 2013, p. 31). Another theoretical limitation is based on the lack of knowledge about the origin of the hypotheses tested by young infants.
Methodological limitations in most of these studies include insufficient sample size and the lack of involvement of clinical population. Although studies by Cassidy et al. and Salande and Hawkins have used the sample size that was large enough to achieve the required level of statistical power, further research is necessary to focus on larger populations (Cassidy et al., 2013; Salande & Hawkins, 2017). In turn, the article provided on the NSPCC Learning website provides limited information on how educators can use attachment styles to establish contact with children, although it does state the importance of understanding attachment styles (NSPCC, 2021). In the reference to Kuther the author of the post mentions that “different parenting styles in different cultures give a wide variation in the expected percentage of attachment styles seen” (2020). However, there is absence of information on the cultures and studied and patterns of parenting styles examined in the research conducted by Kuther. Therefore, it can be argued that future research might benefit from focusing on the theoretical and methodological limitations presented above.
References
Cassidy, J., Jones, J. D., & Shaver, P. R. (2013). Contributions of attachment theory and research: A framework for future research, translation, and policy. Development and Psychopathology, 25(4), 1415-1434.
Kuther, T. L. (2020). Lifespan development in context (2nd ed.). Routledge.
NSPCC. (2021). Attachment and child development. NSPCC Learning. Web.
Salande, J. D., & Hawkins, R. C. (2017). Psychological flexibility, attachment style, and personality organization: Correlations between constructs of differing approaches.Journal of Psychotherapy Integration, 27(3), 365-380. Web.
Xu, F., & Kushnir, T. (2013). Infants are rational constructivist learners. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(1), 28-32.