Ainsworth's Strange Situation

Question 1

What was ainsworth’s method?

Answer 1

Studied 100 middle class American infants and their mothers. The strange situation method is controlled observation that consists of a set of predetermined activities, in which the mother and baby are watched. All the activities lasted about 3 minutes apart from the first one.

Question 2

What were the 8 stages in strange situation?

Answer 2

1. Mother and child are introduced to the room
2. mother and child are left alone and the child can investigate the toys
3. A stranger enters the room and talks with the mother and then approaches the child.
4. The mother leaves the room and the stranger interacts with the child.
5. Mother returns and greets the child
6. the child is left on its own
7. The stranger returns and interacts with the child
8. Mother returns and greets the child and stranger leaves

Question 3

What are the 4 categories observed in strange situation?

Answer 3

Separation anxiety-the child’s behaviour when mother leaves
The infants willingness to explore
Stranger anxiety-the infants response to the stranger
Reunion behaviour-the way the mother was greeted on the return

Question 4

What were the results of the strange situation?

Answer 4

70% were securely attached
20% were insecure avoidant
10% were insecure resistant

Question 5

What is the securely attached infant in strange situation?

Answer 5

Happy to explore
Infant is weary of the stranger
Infant is distressed when caregiver leaves
Infant is joyful on reunion with caregiver

Question 6

What was the insecure avoidant in strange situation?

Answer 6

Will explore but unenthusiastic about toys and mother
Treats stranger same as mother (avoids contact)
Infant is not concerned by mothers absence
Infant is avoidant in reunion with mother

Question 7

What is insecure resistant in strange situation?

Answer 7

Unwilling to explore
High stranger fear and won’t be comforted by them
Infant is very distressed when caregiver leaves
Upon reunion the infant will go to the mother but will resist to be comforted

Question 8

What is the conclusion of strange situation?

Answer 8

Ainsworth suggested that the crucial feature determining quality of attachment is the mother’s sensitivity

Question 9

What is the sensitive mother?

Answer 9

Sees things from her baby’s perspective and correctly interprets signals and responds sensitively to baby’s needs

Question 10

What is the insensitive mother?

Answer 10

Interacts almost exclusively in terms of her own wishes moods and activities

Question 11

Why is the strange situation not a suitable measurement of all types of attachment inc cultures?

Answer 11

Takahashi found that when babies in Japan were tested using the strange situation there was a lot of insecure resistant attachments and no insecure avoidant. This is because in Japan babies are not used to being left so when they were in the strange situation they got very distressed and appeared to have insecure resistant attachments. This means that the strange situation is not a suitable method to study attachment types in all cultures as it was developed in the USA and based on American child rearing practices

Question 12

How is strange situation strong because of its methodology?

Answer 12

Ainsworth and her colleagues set up the strange situation and had clear behavioural categories that they were measuring. This makes mistakes very unlikely and the study would appear to measure exactly what it claims to measure (high internal validity).

This also means that the strange situation is easily repeatable and has been done by multiple researchers, including Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg who found secure attachment was the more common attachment in all countries studied.

Thus is a reliable way of measuring attachment types

Question 13

What research questions strange situation?

Answer 13

Main and Solomon analysed over 200 strange situation videotapes and proposed further attachment type: insecure disorganised which was categories by a lack of consistent patterns of social behaviour. This finding suggests that ainsworths original claims are flawed but also that if different researchers can interpret the behaviour in different ways then the method of analysis must be flawed. This means claims regarding attachment types that use strange situation should be approached with caution and there may be a better more appropriate way of measuring such behaviour in infants