Welcome to this module on

Love, Loss and Grief

Meet the doggo

Bruno is a good boy. He is here to assist you in understanding how he feels about us ‘hoomans’.

Pet Bruno to see what he has to say.

Henlo hooman!

I heard you want to know more about how humans express their emotions. Let me show you the objectives of this course now.

Why do we need this course?

By completing this module, you will be able to:

Explain the emotional attachments we share with our pets

Describe how such emotions influence our feelings of grief when we lose our pets

Why do people keep pets?

Comfort

Stress relief

Lifestyle

Loyalty

Unconditional love

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Emotional Attachment

Pets usually bring in emotions and attachment with them.

I always wait for my owner to come home, so that I can wiggle my tail and jump around her. It makes me happy.

John Bowlby’s Theory

Cultural differences in attachment

Theories of Attachment

Ainsworth describes attachment as a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space. Let’s understand more about it here.

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Mary Ainsworth’s Theory

Thank you for your interest in the 'Proof of Concept'. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg (1988) mention two main types of cultures:

Individualist cultures value independence with each working to their own individual goals. For example, USA and Europe (Western Cultures).

Collectivist cultures value cooperation with each working towards the family or group goals. For example, Japan and Israel (Eastern Cultures).

While there was some variation across cultures, researchers found that the most common attachment style was Secure attachments. The conclusion reached by Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg was that there are innate characteristics that underpin infant and caregiver interactions.

However, the significant variations of insecure attachments demonstrate that universality is limited. Implications include the linking of the variation in attachment to child-rearing practices and environmental factors.

Ainsworth expanded on Bowlby’s theory by suggesting that the basis for forming bonds was based on how responsive and consistently the primary care giver responded to the infant’s needs.

She identified three attachment styles:

Children with a secure attachment feel confident that the attachment figure will be available to meet their needs.

Children with an insecure attachment do not orientate to their attachment figure while investigating the environment. They are independent of the attachment figure both physically and mentally.

Children that adopt an ambivalent behavioural style towards the attachment figure typify the third attachment style. Often, they exhibit clingy and dependent behaviour but will reject the attachment figure when they engage in interaction.