They have taught us the science of why we primates love individuals who treat us badly, why the mistreatment can at times increase the love. They have taught us about why being abused as a child increases the risk of your being an abusive adult.
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- Did the study show that though?
Yes, Harry Harlow’s studies, along with later developmental research, did help lay the foundation for understanding why abuse and neglect can paradoxically increase attachment—and how childhood mistreatment can raise the risk of later abusive behavior.
Here’s how the evidence supports those two points:
🔁 1. Why mistreatment can increase attachment (especially in children and primates)
What Harlow showed:
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Infant monkeys preferred comfort and proximity (the terrycloth surrogate) over food.
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Even when the terrycloth “mother” occasionally frightened or rejected them, the monkeys clung to her more intensely, not less.
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This paradoxical behavior mimics patterns seen in human abusive relationships, especially between children and abusive caregivers.
Follow-up human research:
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Developmental psychologists (e.g. Bowlby, Ainsworth) showed that infants form strong attachments even to neglectful or abusive caregivers.
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This is part of what’s called “disorganized attachment”—where the child seeks closeness for safety but is also afraid of the source.
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Evolutionary logic: in early life, attachment ensures survival, even if the caregiver is harmful. So the need to attach can override the harm.
🧬 2. How early abuse increases the risk of becoming abusive later
Evidence beyond Harlow:
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Harlow’s monkeys raised in isolation or with abusive surrogates often became socially dysfunctional adults, unable to form healthy bonds.
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Some became aggressive or neglectful parents themselves.
Human studies confirm this link:
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Longitudinal and meta-analytic data (e.g., Widom, 1989; Kaufman & Zigler, 1987) show that abused children are statistically more likely to:
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Develop mental health issues
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Engage in substance abuse
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Perpetuate intergenerational cycles of abuse (though not all do)
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Key point: The risk is elevated but not deterministic. Many abused children do not grow up to be abusers—protective factors like stable relationships, therapy, and resilience matter.
✅ Summary:
So yes, Harlow’s work helped reveal mechanisms behind both:
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Why love and attachment can intensify under abuse (especially in early life),
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And how early trauma can biologically and behaviorally predispose individuals to repeat harmful patterns—especially in caregiving roles.
Would you like citations or a visual flowchart showing this cycle?