Attachment theory is an important concept in developmental psychology. Attachment refers to the profound emotional link that a newborn develops with his or her principal caregiver, often the mother. Thus, the attachment is an important tie that binds the infant and the primary caregiver (Waters et al., 2000). It is important to realize that attachment endures over time and it leads the infant to experience significant pleasure safety, comfort, and joy in the company of the caregiver (Lewis & Rudolf, 2014). The baby often feels distressed when such a caregiver is absent. A consistent primary caregiver is critical for the optimal development of the child. The movie "Three Men and a Baby" presents a perfect case for attachment between an infant and a caregiver. Three men Tom, Steve, and Danson, are living happily in a lofty New York City apartment. However, their lives are disrupted when a baby called Mary arrives, and their lives take a twist. Tom and Steve have to take care of the baby despite having little knowledge about baby care. The baby's mother had left her at their doorstep since it was apparently Ted's, their friend who had traveled to Turkey to shoot a movie. The two men take turns to take care of the baby, eventually forming an attachment to the newborn. As they feed the baby and change her clothes, they slowly form an attachment to her. The movie, "Three Men and a Baby," portrays the concept of attachment in the baby's development process.
John Bowlby made a substantial influence to the advancement of the attachment concept. He was a psychoanalyst who viewed mental problems as emanating from early childhood. His philosophy of attachment postulates that humans are born biologically alligned to form relationship with those around them. According to Bowlby, forming attachments helps infants to survive. Bowlby was influenced significantly by ethological theory, particularly by Lorenz's study of imprinting in 1935. Lorenz demonstrated that attachment was innate in young ducklings and that it was essential for survival. Bowlby was convinced that attachment behaviors are primarily instinctive and will be activated by any conditions that potentially threaten the achievements of proximity, such as insecurity, fear, and separation (Van der Graaff et al., 2014). Moreover, he postulated that the fear of strangers is an essential natural survival mechanism.
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There are essential experiences that make infants to be attached to their primary caregivers, particularly mothers. Rapid responses to crying and initiating social play are some of the most significant promoters of attachment behavior in infants (Ainsworth, 1976). The person who is most involved in these important activities is the one the baby will develop the primary attachment. Thus, this is how infants get attached to their mothers, who offer primary care. In the movie "Three Men and a Baby," Tom and Steve respond to the cries of the baby and initiate social play. Additionally, they are actively involved in feeding the baby. As a result, the baby feels secure with them and develops an attachment to them. Infants develop either secure or insecure attachment depending on their experiences with their caregiver. Moreover, they develop secure attachment through repeated positive experiences with a particular caregiver (Fearon et al., 2010). Thus, caregivers are required to ensure that their interaction with the baby remains positive and beneficial to the baby. Such interaction should improve the comfort, safety, and joy of the baby. This way, the baby will learn to trust that other people will always take care of them. This process implies that the interaction of the baby with a caregiver may have long-term implications for the child. On the other hand, infants whose experiences with a caregiver are unpredictable or negative usually develop an insecure attachment. Caregivers who fail to respond to the distress calls of the infant or fail to initiate social plays may fail to establish a good relationship with an infant (Chris, 2002). Children who are insecurely attached tend to learn that adults are unreliable and they do not trust easily. The movie “Three Men and a Baby” demonstrates both secure and insecure attachment. Baby Mary develops a secure attachment with Tom and Steve because they respond to her cries and they play with her. As such, the baby learns to trust them as primary caregivers. However, the newborn develops an insecure attachment to Mrs. Hathaway, the landlady. When asked by the two men to nurse the baby while they are away to work, she fails to take proper care of her. When Tom and Steve arrived at their apartment, they find the baby bound and gagged. This experience shows that Mrs. Hathaway failed in taking good care of the baby. Therefore, it is demonstrable that infants can develop either secure or insecure attachment based on whether their experiences with the caregiver are positive or negative.
Erik Erikson also proposed a psychoanalytic theory of psychological development that comprises eight stages, right from infancy to adulthood. In each of the eight stages, individuals experience a particular psychosocial crisis that could present a negative or positive consequence for personality development (Vendell, 1996). Trust vs. mistrust is an essential stage in infancy. At this particular stage, the infant is not sure whether the world in which he or she lives is hospitable. To resolve this uncertainty, he or she looks towards the primary caregiver for consistency of care. Therefore, caregivers should always offer consistent, predictable, and reliable care to the infants to enable them to develop a sense of trust. Trust is vital for infants because it will allow them to feel secure even when they feel threatened (Viney, 1997). Success in this particular stage leads to the virtue of hope. Through the development of trust, the babies will have confidence that as new crises emerge, there will always be a possibility that other people will rise to the occasion and provide support (Thompson, 1998). On the other hand, mistrust will lead to the development of fear, which can significantly affect the personality development of the child. Essentially, attachment in babies is more than just a feeling; it is an integral part of their healthy development. This is because attachment is a reciprocal relationship between the baby and the primary caregiver. As such, a healthy attachment can only form when the primary caregiver, often a mother, can accurately read the infant' cues and subsequently meet the infant's needs. Primary caregivers who are caring are essential to an infant's development in terms of socio-emotional development.
Consistency is an essential aspect of providing care to the infants. Inconsistent and unpredictable care leads the infant to develop a sense of mistrust. Mistrust may have a negative implication on the child's personality development (Lowenstein, 2010). The child may grow up with little or no confidence in the world around them or even in their abilities to influence events. Sensitive caregiving is appropriate for taking care of infants because it focuses on effectively responding to the signals of the child. Such an upbringing provides a secure base on which the infant can explore the environment around him or her (Cassidy & Berlin, 1994). The anxiety associated with separation may affect the child’s comfort and joy, leading to mistrust. Primary caregivers should always realize that building a secure attachment with an infant solely depends on the quality of the non-verbal communication that occurs between the newborn and the primary caregiver. Therefore, primary caregivers can effectively enable the infants to feel secure by understanding and responding to their cues such as movements, cries, gestures, and sounds. It is always important for caregivers to understand how they can better participate in the attachment process. Building secure attachment is essential because it provides the infant with the best foundation for life. Secure attachment fosters an eagerness to learn, trust, healthy self-awareness, as well as consideration for others.
The baby in the movie “Three Men and a Baby” learns to trust the two men, Tom and Steve. The men seek to provide consistent care to the child by responding promptly to her signals. They are able to feed her, change her clothes and play with her in a way that promotes trusts and develops a primary attachment between them and the baby (Batra, 2013). However, there are instances where they leave her with the landlady. Apparently, the baby is uncomfortable with her as she ends up leaving her alone. Such absence is not suitable for baby Mary who requires protection. The two gentlemen in the movie realize that the attachment process is not only interactive but also dynamic. They interact with the baby while responding to her non-verbal emotional cues. Such positive interactions help to make the baby feel secure and comfortable in their arms. This process is demonstrated by the way Tom and Steve end up falling in love with the baby to an extent they are determined to keep her with them. When Mary's mother arrives to take her, the men realize that they will miss the baby and they proceed to look for her at the airport. They wanted to convince her mother to allow the baby to stay with them because they had established a strong bond with the baby.
The interaction between the men and the baby was very positive for baby Mary. The men provided the care that the abandoned baby needed. Tom and Steve came to her rescue at her time she needed it the most. In my opinion, Mary grew up a confident lady with the ability to trust those around her given her healthy relationship with the strangers she met in her infancy. The primary relationship between a baby and a primary caregiver is the basis for all other links in the child's life. The movie showed that babies have an innate ability to engage adults to fall in love with them. Besides, the film demonstrates the significance of attachment between babies and their primary caregivers.
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