The interplay of culture and cognition on attachment formation in Western versus non-Western contexts

• Main Authors: Lim, Emma Yuki, Baledram, Nashua
• Other Authors: Victoria Leong
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Social Sciences; Attachment theory; Culture; Western; Non-Western; Cognition; Caregiver sensitivity; Internal working model; Caregiver infant dyad; Critical review; Insecure attachment
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/177847
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Attachment formation in caregiver-infant dyads has been of interest, with much research citing its long-lasting influence on the infant’s future relationships and the detrimental effects of insecure attachment on an infant’s future outcomes. However, despite a trend of insecure attachment being more commonly observed in non-western cultures, less research has been done to understand how cultural practices alongside caregiver and infant cognitive processes shape attachment formation, thus potentially contributing to the prevalence of insecure attachment in non-western cultures. This critical review argues that cultural and cognitive factors interact with each other to form the infant’s understanding of the world which thereby contributes to attachment formation. As such, the concept of healthy attachment differs depending on the cultural context of the individual through the infant’s interpretation of their experiences from a cultural and cognitive perspective. An extensive consolidation of papers on insecure attachment, cultural practices, and cognitive processes was analysed to identify trends, gaps and limitations in the current literature. As expected, a bias for western perspectives in attachment theory was found, as well as the potential adaptiveness of certain attachment patterns within non-western cultures. The review has thus suggested several potential areas in which future research can look into to develop a more holistic understanding of attachment theory.