Updated for AQA 2025 Spec – Teaching from SEPTEMBER 2025 onwards

This fully editable lesson covers Bowlby’s Monotropic Theory of Attachment for AQA A-Level Psychology (2025 Specification), focusing on the evolutionary explanation of attachment, monotropy, social releasers, the critical period and the internal working model.

Students explore Bowlby’s explanation of attachment as an innate and adaptive behaviour, the importance of the primary attachment figure, the principles of continuity and accumulated separation, and the distinction between critical and sensitive periods. The lesson develops AO1, AO2 and AO3 through retrieval practice, application, Think, Pair, Share activities, exam practice and structured evaluation.

What’s Included:

• Fully editable lesson PowerPoint
• Retrieval and Think, Pair, Share activities
• Evolutionary explanation of attachment and natural selection
• Monotropy and the role of the primary attachment figure
• Principles of continuity and accumulated separation
• Social releasers and their role in attachment formation
• Critical and sensitive periods
• Internal working model and its influence on later relationships and parenting
• Key terminology activity and separate worksheet
• AO2 application task with suggested answer and marking guidance
• Detailed AO3 evaluation activity and separate worksheet
• Strength, limitation or both evaluation task with answers
• Research evidence from Schaffer and Emerson, Suess et al., Brazelton et al. and Bailey et al.
• Social sensitivity, temperament and links to Issues and Debates
• Genuine 16-mark AQA exam question with structured essay planning and model responses
• Separate exam practice worksheet
• Plenary activity

Updated for the AQA 2025 specification, with structured opportunities to develop knowledge, application, evaluation and exam skills.

If you’re looking for the 2019 specification version of this topic, please visit my shop.