John Bowlby Internal Working Model Of Caregiving

For a child to be securely attached to an adult, a caregiver must be willing to provide a certain amount and quality of care. The caregiving system is the other side of the story. The caregiving instinct in humans, as well as animals, is remarkable. One has to stop and think how and why caregivers are even willing to sacrifice their own life for their children? (George & Solomon, 2008). Few studies have looked deeply into the roots of the caregiving system, especially before one becomes a parent.

Not many people are aware that John Bowlby (1969/1982; 1973) talked about two reciprocal behavioral systems: attachment and caregiving. He referred to them as “the attachment-caregiving social bond” (Bowlby, 1969/1982, p. 377). However, his theoretical work was mainly focused on attachment – which later formed the theoretical base for caregiving as well. Both behavioral systems are related to each other, however, each half of the social bond is distinct and separate in many ways. The focus on the
Recently in the literature, the concept of an “internal working model of caregiving” has also been introduced (Mayseless, 2006). Like other IWMs, the IWM of caregiving is internalized from previous experiences (e.g. with one’s parents) and is goal-corrected – it functions to serve specific goals. Bowlby does not only limit the caregiving system to parent-child relationships. It includes many manifestations including caring for siblings, pets, students, and clients. As a way to assess this IWM of caregiving, a growing area of research has been developing to explore “parenting representations” (i.e. the internal world of parents’ thoughts and emotions). Other terms for this concept include “mental model of caregiving”, “internal representation of caregiving”, and “parenting buds”. This research is delving into this rising area of