Ainsworth's Strange situation

Question 1

The Strange Situation was developed by Mary Ainsworth (1969) - what was the aim?

Answer 1

Aim was to be able to observe key attachment behaviours as a means of assessing the quality of the child’s attachment to a caregiver

Question 2

The Strange Situation procedure

Answer 2

Controlled observation designed to measure the security of attachment a child displays towards a caregiver. It takes place in a room with quite controlled conditions with a two-way mirror through which psychologists can observe the infants behaviour.

Question 3

The behaviours used to judge attachment included?

Answer 3

proximity seeking
exploration and secure-base behaviour
stranger anxiety
separation anxiety
response to reunion

Question 4

proximity seeking

Answer 4

an infant with a good attachment will stay fairly close to the caregiver

Question 5

Exploration and secure-base behaviour

Answer 5

good attachment enables a child to feel confident to explore, using their caregiver as a secure base

Question 6

stranger anxiety

Answer 6

one of the signs of becoming closely attached is the display of anxiety when a stranger approaches

Question 7

separation anxiety

Answer 7

another sign of becoming attached is to protest at separation from the caregiver.

Question 8

response to reunion

Answer 8

with the caregiver after a short period of time under controlled conditions.

Question 9

Ainsworth et al.’s Findings

Answer 9

identified 3 main types of attachment:
secure attachment
insecure-avoidant attachment
insecure-resistant attachment

Question 10

secure attachment (type B)

Answer 10

These children explore happily but regularly go back to their caregiver. They usually show moderate separation distress and moderate stranger anxiety. Require and accept comfort in the reunion stage.

Question 11

insecure-avoidant attachment (type A)

Answer 11

these children explore freely but do not seek proximity or show secure base behaviour. They show little or no reaction when their caregiver leaves and make little contact when they return.They also show little stranger anxiety. They don’t require comfort at the reunion stage.

Question 12

insecure-resistant attachment (type C)

Answer 12

These children seek greater proximity than others and so explore less. They show huge stranger and separation distress but they resist comfort when reunited with their carer.

Question 13

AO3- support for validiity

Answer 13

Attachment type as predicted by the Strange Situation is strongly predictive of later development. Babies assessed as secure typically go on to have better outcomes in many areas, ranging from success at school to romantic relationships and friends in adulthood. Insecure-resistant attachment is associated with the worst outcomes including bullying in later childhood and adult mental health problems. This is evidence for the validity of this concept because it can explain subsequent outcomes.

Question 14

AO3- good reliability

Answer 14

The Strange Situation shows very good inter-rater reliability. In other words, different observers watching the same child in the Strange Situation generally agree on what attachment type to classify them with. This may be bc it takes places under controlled conditions and bc the behavioural categories are easy to observe

Question 15

AO3- there is at least one more attachment type

Answer 15

Main and Solomon pointed out that a minority of children display atypical attachments that do not fall within types A, B or C behaviour. This atypical attachment is commonly known as disorganised attachment .Disorganised children display an odd mix of resistant and avoidant behaviours