Physical Underpinnings

Overall, the findings of this experiment are really no surprise to me at all. If we consider the essentials of how to properly take care of a human baby, the results in the experiment are all the same principles that keep a human baby healthy and happy. If a parent or caregiver does not give a child more than just their basic needs, the children will not grow up with a lot of stimulation or interaction, which has negative psychological consequences. When we consider the physical underpinnings that create attachment as well as the dynamics of the parent-child relationship, the observations and results of the experiment are easily applicable to why we need both our biological needs as well as our emotional and physical comfort needs to be met, because

Babies naturally require a lot of attention which is more than just feeding them or enforcing good hygiene. Harry Harlow’s principle of “contact comfort” is something that has been ingrained in us since our infancy. Babies have no other way of communicating with us other than by crying. After you check all the baby’s vitals (such as if they are hungry, need a diaper change, etc.,) a good way to make a baby stop crying is if you cuddle, hold, kiss, or sing to the baby until the baby stops crying or until the baby falls asleep. A way to greet or comfort a loved one is also to hug them. Even in a professional sense, a handshake is still warm and inviting on some level. Contact is sometimes very important in establishing meaningful connections with others. In a physical sense, I cannot see how the wire surrogate mother would be so appealing to the baby monkeys, as actual rhesus monkey mothers have body heat, fat, and fur. The wire was probably cold (even with the