The sequence protest, despair, detachment is associated with which theorist's work on object loss?

The sequence protest, despair, detachment is associated with which theorist's work on object loss?

• A. Freud
• B. Erikson
• C. Skinner
• D. Bowlby

Answer: (D)

Infants’ response to separation from an attachment figure unfolds in stages: protest, seeking contact and reunion; despair, when the caregiver remains unreachable and the child shows hopeless withdrawal; and detachment, where the child pulls back emotionally and loses interest in the caregiver. This progression illustrates how the loss of an attachment object triggers a grief-like process within Bowlby’s attachment framework. He proposed that early bonds shape expectations and behavior, so when a caregiver is absent or inaccessible, these staged reactions reflect the child’s attempt to cope with the loss. This sequence is distinct from Freud’s broader ideas about object loss, Erikson’s psychosocial stages, or Skinner’s behaviorism, making Bowlby the best fit for describing this particular pattern.

Infants’ response to separation from an attachment figure unfolds in stages: protest, seeking contact and reunion; despair, when the caregiver remains unreachable and the child shows hopeless withdrawal; and detachment, where the child pulls back emotionally and loses interest in the caregiver. This progression illustrates how the loss of an attachment object triggers a grief-like process within Bowlby’s attachment framework. He proposed that early bonds shape expectations and behavior, so when a caregiver is absent or inaccessible, these staged reactions reflect the child’s attempt to cope with the loss. This sequence is distinct from Freud’s broader ideas about object loss, Erikson’s psychosocial stages, or Skinner’s behaviorism, making Bowlby the best fit for describing this particular pattern.