Harlow

[Insomniac]

What was the experiment that Harlow did with monkeys?

[MonsieurHulot]

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Harlow%27s+monkey+experiment

[yearningforsimplicity]

Harlow wanted to see what an infant rhesus monkey valued more in a maternal figure; whether it just longed to have milk (physical nourishment) from the mother or whether it craved the comfort and warmth of a maternal figure. To determine which of these was most valued, Harlow set up two "mother figures" - one of whom was made of wire and was hard to touch but had a milk bottle attached to her, the other was a cloth mother who was more soft and was entirely covered in cloth. He carried out a series of conditions and for e.g. when the monkey was faced with a fear-provoking stimulus, it straight away ran to the cloth mother. Even when it was hungry and scared at the same time, it still clung onto the cloth mother. It only ever went to the wire mother for food. When placed in a situation where it could explore the environment, the monkey stayed close to the cloth mother before actually venturing out and exploring the surroundings. The main finding was that infant rhesus monkeys long for comfort and warmth from the mother (even more-so than food) and that this aspect of the infant-maternal/caregiver relationship is essential for a healthy attachment to be formed and for normal social and emotional development