Ainsworth's Strange Situation

Question 2

What is the Strange Situation?

Answer 2

A systematic way to test the nature of attachment between infant and caregiver

Question 3

What are the 7 stages of the Strange Situation?

Answer 3

1. Infant and caregiver play
2. Stranger enters
3. Caregiver leaves
4. Caregiver returns and stranger leaves
5. Caregiver leaves
6. Stranger returns
7. Caregiver returns

Question 4

Which 4 types of behaviours was the Strange Situation testing for?

Answer 4

1. Separation anxiety
2. Stranger anxiety
3. Secure-base behaviour 4. Reunion behaviour

Question 5

What is a secure attachment? And stats

Answer 5

• Shows secure-base behaviour. Happily explores but regularly returns to their caregiver.
• Moderate levels of stranger anxiety. Friendly when with mother, some distress when left alone
• Moderate separation anxiety
• Reunion behaviour - Require and accept comfort from caregiver on return.

UK - 60-75%, US 66%

Question 6

What is an insecure-avoidant attachment? and stats

Answer 6

• Does not use mother as a secure base and comfortable to explore
• Low levels of separation and stranger anxiety. Plays normally when stranger is present
• Shows little interest when mother returns

UK - 20-25%, USA 22%

Question 7

What is an insecure-resistant attachment? And stats

Answer 7

• Not confident to explore and seeks greater proximity to caregiver
• Extreme levels of separation and stranger anxiety. Intense distress and cannot be soothed
• Reunion behaviour- seeks mother and rejects her

UK- 12%, US - 3%

Question 8

2 Strengths of the strange situation and counter

Answer 8

Good predictive validity:
Predicts the babies later development. Research has shown that those with secure attachments tend to have better outcomes in both childhood (eg. bullying) and adulthood (eg. mental health).
Suggests the strange situation measures something meaningful in a babies development. COUNTER - Strange situation not actually measuring attachment. Kagan (1982) suggested that genetically influenced anxiety levels could account for variations in attachment behaviour in the strange situation and later development.

Good inter-observer reliability:
- Bick et al. (2012) looked at inter-rater reliability in a team of trained Strange Situation observers. Found agreement on attachment type for 94% tested babies.

Question 9

2 Limitations of Ainsworth’s Strange Situation

Answer 9

Culturally biased test:
Test of attachment based on Western ideals that sees secure attachment as the most desirable, in other countries this may not be the case. Takahashi (1986) found Japanese babies displayed very high levels of separation anxiety leading to a disproportionate amount of babies labelled as insecure resistant. Anxiety response not due to insecure attachment but the unusual nature of mother-baby separation.

More than 3 types of attachment:
Some children do not fall neatly into the 3 categories. Van Ijzendoorn (1999) meta-analysis of over 80 US Strange situation studies and found 15% children fell into Insecure disorganised category. Child has an inconsistent way of coping with the stress