Abstract
Bowlby’s attachment theory was supported by ethnographic studies of Southern African hunter-gatherers, which revealed extremely close mother-child relationships. Nevertheless, later studies of Central African hunter-gatherers demonstrated the importance of multiple caregivers. Subsequently, it has been suggested that there is a need to reexamine attachment theory. This study aimed to examine the attachment behavior of young hunter-gatherer Baka children in Central Africa and their participation in group activities. Participatory observations were conducted and videos of playful song and dance (sɔ̀lɔ) were recorded and qualitatively analyzed, along with interactions between the young children and their caregivers. The results supported the notion of the mother as the primary attachment figure but also demonstrated the presence of multiple attachment figures. These findings were obtained via an ethnographic approach (i.e., describing and analyzing interactions through naturalistic observation). Rather than speculating about the relative importance of the mother-child attachment and presence of multiple caregivers, we discuss instead the need to rethink the concept of attachment and understand the early caregiver-child relationship from a different perspective.
