A Level Psychology OCR Practice Exam

What was a key finding in Harlow's study of attachment in rhesus monkeys?

1. Monkeys prefer food over maternal comfort.

2. Monkeys bond with their mothers primarily through play.

3. Contact comfort plays a significant role in forming attachments.

4. Monkeys are indifferent to their mother's presence.

The correct answer is: Contact comfort plays a significant role in forming attachments.

Harlow's study with rhesus monkeys provided critical insights into the nature of attachment, significantly emphasizing the importance of contact comfort. In his experiments, Harlow observed that infant monkeys preferred to cling to a soft, cloth-covered surrogate mother, rather than a wire mother that provided food. This demonstrated that the monkeys prioritized comfort and emotional security over nutritional needs, highlighting that warm, tactile contact was crucial for their emotional development. This finding challenged previous assumptions that attachment was primarily built through the provision of food and nourishment. Instead, Harlow illustrated that the physical and emotional comfort provided by a caregiver is vital for developing attachment bonds, supporting the idea that affection and nurturing play central roles in social and emotional development in primates. The other options lack the empirical support that Harlow’s findings provide. For instance, the idea that monkeys prefer food over comfort does not reflect the results of Harlow’s experiments, where comfort was clearly the priority. Additionally, while play is significant in monkey behavior, Harlow's experiments highlighted attachment that stemmed mainly from comfort rather than active engagement in play. Finally, suggesting that monkeys are indifferent to their mother’s presence contradicts the core findings of Harlow's work, which underscored that the mother figure is a source of security