2 - Types of Attachment Flashcards
What did they investigate in the strange situation?
Infants responses to several scenarios including :
Exploring the new environment
Separation from the caregiver
Reunion with the caregiver
Response to a stranger
What are the 3 types of attachment?
Type A - insecure - avoidant
Type B - secure attachment
Type C - insecure - resistant
State the percentages of the population that were each those of attachment
Insecure avoidant - 20%
Secure attachment - 70%
Insecure resistant - 10%
Describe insecure avoidant babies
Ignore their caregiver and play independently
No signs of distress when caregiver is absent
Continue to ignore when they return
Distressed when completely alone
Comforted by stranger just as easily as their caregiver
Describe securely attached babies
Play happily while caregiver is present
Use them as a safe to explore
Clearly distressed when caregiver leaves
Seeks immediate contact with their caregiver when they return
Caregiver easily comforts them
Wary of the stranger but accepts some comfort when caregiver is absent
Describe insecure resistant babies
Fussy when caregiver is present
Cry more than other babies
Will not explore the room or play with toys very much
Distressed when caregiver leaves
Seeks contact with them in on return , but also show anger and resist contact
Ambivalent towards the caregiver and strongly resists the strangers attempts to make contact
What are the positives of the strange situation?
It had been replicated many times over the years. It is easy to replicate this study because it has a high level of control and standardised procedures.
What are the disadvantages of the strange situation?
Some psychologists analysed over 200 strange situation videotapes and have proposed a fourth attachment style : insecure - disorganised attachment. They found that a small number of infants did not display a consistent pattern of behaviour and so fitted into none of the three categories.
Validity of some measures have been questioned, for instance, proximity seeking could be a measure of insecurity rather than security.
Artificial, so may not reflect the infants real world behaviour. It was found that babies’ attachment behaviours were much stronger in a lab setting than at home.
It has only ever been carried out using mothers as the caregiver. Children might be insecurely attached to their mothers but securely attached to their fathers. It is not measuring a child’s attachment style, but their attachment to one individual.
This methodology was developed in the USA and so may be culturally biased. Attachment behaviour that is seen as healthy in the USA may not be seen as such in all cultures e.g. In Germany, behaviours such as crying due to separation anxiety are seen as spoilt.
