Lesson 4.1.3.2

4.1.3.2 Explanations of attachment: learning theory and monotropic theory Quiz: AQA Psychology, Unit 1

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

In partnership with Revision Ninja

Lesson 4.1.3.2, Explanations of attachment: learning theory and monotropic theory: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA Psychology (7182), Unit 1: Introductory topics in Psychology, written with Revision Ninja.

Host it live on the board and students join with a game code on their own devices, or revise alone with Free Play. The answers are revealed in the game.

Host this setFree Play

The 20 questions

  1. According to learning theory, how is an attachment first formed?

    • Through the association of a caregiver with food
    • Through observing other people model attachment behaviour
    • Through a critical period of imprinting in the first days
    • Through an innate biological tendency that appears at birth

  2. Which process does learning theory use to explain how an attachment is maintained once formed?

    • Imprinting during a critical period of development, in which the young learn to follow the first moving object they see
    • A genetic blueprint for social bonds, which is inherited in full from the parents and does not need any learning at all
    • Operant conditioning, through reinforcement such as the reduction of hunger or distress
    • Mirror neurons that copy caregiving behaviour, so the infant reproduces the adult's actions without any conscious choice

  3. Which concept is central to Bowlby's monotropic theory?

    • A series of equal attachments to many people from birth, with each caregiver providing the same level of security and comfort
    • A bond formed only through feeding from a bottle, with the caregiver who gives the most milk becoming the main attachment
    • A single primary attachment figure who is special and distinct from other attachments
    • A bond formed by copying a parent's behaviour, which the child reproduces through observation and reward over many years

  4. What is a critical period in Bowlby's theory?

    • A period in which infants learn to speak
    • A time-limited window in early childhood when attachment can form most easily
    • A short period after birth in which feeding must occur
    • A lifelong period in which attachment can be formed at any time

  5. What is an internal working model in Bowlby's theory?

    • A set of rules taught by parents about feeding, covering when and how much a child should eat at each meal
    • A detailed memory of every event from infancy, stored in full so that each childhood experience can be recalled later
    • A genetic blueprint that determines personality, passed on from parents to children and fixed from the moment of birth
    • A mental template of relationships, formed from early experience

  6. Which feature of attachment does Bowlby's monotropic theory suggest is innate?

    • The tendency to avoid all strangers after the age of one
    • A biological tendency to form a special bond with one caregiver
    • The skill of imitating a parent's words
    • The ability to learn to associate food with a caregiver

  7. An infant stops crying as soon as the mother who feeds them enters the room. Which explanation from learning theory fits best?

    • The infant is imprinting on the mother during a critical period
    • The infant has learned to imitate the mother's calming behaviour
    • The infant has an innate monotropic bond with the mother
    • The mother has become a conditioned stimulus associated with food

  8. A child seeks comfort from one caregiver far more than from any other, even when other adults offer food. Which theory best explains this?

    • Social learning theory, which proposes imitation of the most admired adult
    • Learning theory, which proposes that the caregiver who feeds is the main attachment figure
    • Bowlby's monotropic theory, which proposes a special primary attachment figure
    • Vicarious reinforcement, which proposes that children learn by watching others being rewarded

  9. A child who had consistent early attachments expects others to respond warmly to them as an adult. Which concept best explains this expectation?

    • Internal working model
    • Conditioned response
    • Critical period
    • Imprinting

  10. Bowlby argued that a child's attachment to a primary carer could be disrupted by long separation. Which concept does this link to most closely?

    • Maternal deprivation during a critical period
    • Vicarious reinforcement by peers
    • Imitation of a model's behaviour
    • Operant conditioning of food rewards only

  11. Which evidence most challenges the learning theory explanation of attachment?

    • Bandura's finding that children imitated an aggressive adult
    • Ainsworth's finding that most infants were securely attached to their mothers
    • Lorenz's finding that goslings followed the first moving object
    • Harlow's finding that infant monkeys preferred a cloth mother who provided no food

  12. Which finding challenges the idea that attachment is always a single monotropic bond?

    • Harlow found that monkeys preferred one soft surrogate, which they clung to whenever they were frightened or uncertain
    • Schaffer and Emerson found that many infants formed attachments to several people, not just one
    • Ainsworth found that most infants were securely attached to their mothers, with almost no insecure attachments in the sample
    • Lorenz found that geese imprinted on only one object, which they followed for the rest of their lives without change

  13. Which strength of Bowlby's monotropic theory is most often identified?

    • It shows that attachment forms only through imitation of the parent, with each behaviour copied from an adult model
    • It has been shown to explain every form of adult behaviour, including work habits, hobbies and political opinions
    • It proves that all attachments are formed through food rewards, so comfort and warmth have no role in forming bonds
    • It explains the importance of a special bond and links early attachment to later relationships through an internal working model

  14. Which statement about the critical period in monotropic theory is accurate?

    • It is a time when no attachments can form at all
    • It applies only to animals and not to human infants
    • It is a time when attachment can form easily
    • It lasts only a few hours after birth

  15. Learning theory explains how attachment forms when food is repeatedly paired with a caregiver. Which process is involved?

    • Imprinting
    • Classical conditioning
    • Operant conditioning alone
    • Monotropy

  16. A baby who was never fed by a particular person still forms a strong bond with them through play. Which explanation best fits this result?

    • Learning theory, because play is a primary reinforcer for attachment
    • Monotropic theory, because the bond is innate and not based on feeding
    • Learning theory, because the bond must be based on feeding
    • Imprinting, because the infant copied the person's play

  17. Which limitation applies to learning theory's explanation of attachment?

    • It does not explain why attachment to a caregiver can develop even when that caregiver does not provide food
    • It has no connection with any experimental evidence at all, because all its claims come from personal observation
    • It cannot explain any behaviour in infants, since learning theory only applies to adults who have formed relationships
    • It assumes attachment is determined by genes only, with no role for feeding, reinforcement or any other learning

  18. A researcher finds that infants separated from a primary attachment figure show more distress than when separated from other familiar adults, even though all give food. Which conclusion is best supported?

    • The bond with a primary figure appears special, which fits monotropic theory better than learning theory
    • Learning theory better explains the results because all adults provide food equally and so feeding is the key factor
    • The results show that distress has no connection with attachment, because the infants reacted in the same way to everyone
    • The results show that imitation is the main cause of attachment, since the infants copied the distress of the adults

  19. Which is the strongest argument for combining learning theory and monotropic theory?

    • Learning theory explains innate bonds, while monotropic theory explains conditioning by food
    • The two theories cannot be combined because they make opposite predictions in every case
    • Monotropic theory explains all reinforcement, so learning theory is not needed
    • Learning theory explains how bonds are reinforced, while monotropic theory explains the special innate bond

  20. Bowlby proposed that an internal working model guides behaviour in adulthood. Which prediction follows from this?

    • Adults whose early attachments were secure are more likely to expect warm and reliable responses from partners
    • Adults' relationships are unaffected by early experience, because the model changes after age five
    • Adults form relationships only with people who are similar to their first carers in every case
    • Adults always repeat the exact behaviour of their parents

All AQA Psychology quizzes