Attachment - Ainsworth Flashcards
What is Ainsworth strange situation?
Ainsworth performed a study investigating relationship between a mother and her baby and discovered three types of attachments. Children were isolated from their parents and their strange anxiety when introduced to someone new.
What was the strange situation method?
The mother and the infant are placed in a room together.
There are toys in the room and the caregiver and child spend some time alone in the room.
After the child has had time to explore her surroundings a stranger enters the room.
The mother leaves her baby with the stranger
After a few minutes, she returns to comfort her child.
What are some criticisms of the strange situation?
Some researchers have pointed out that child’s temperament may have had a strong influence on attachment.
Others have noted that attachment varies from culture to culture. This factor was not accounted for in Ainsworth research. .\
What were the three types of attachment that Ainsworth concluded?
Secure avoidant and resistant.
What is secure attachment?
Considered the healthiest the toddler prefers the parent figure figure is used as a secure base to explore the environment securely attached would distressed when their care give us left the room but when they returned, they were happy to see them who are sensitive and responsive to their needs.
What is avoidant attachment?
The child is unresponsive to the parent does not use the parent as a secure base. Does the toddler react to the same to stranger the parents does return. The child is slow to show. positive reaction avoidant children were more likely to have a caregiver who was insensitive and attentive to their needs.
What is resistance attachment?
Children tend to show clingy behaviour but then they reject the attachment figures attempt to interact with them.
These children do not explore the toys in the room because they are too fearful. during separation they become extremely disturbed and angry with the parents when the parents return the children are difficult to comfort. This is caused by inconsistent level of response to the child.
What did Belksly propose for the existence of similar attachment types in different cultures?
Insecure attachment types are associated with weak adult relationships and early sexual activity which could be useful in circumstances such as famine where the needful rapid reproduction rises.
What is the child rearing impact?
If different patterns of attachment types of found across cultures, it would indicate their attachment types are learned and not biological.
This would mean the attachment types are learn to expose it to different cross cultural child wearing practices.
What are social attitudes?
There are cross cultural differences in how attachment styles are viewed e.g. in Britain insecure of avoidant attachment is seen negatively in Germany. It is valued as independence.
What does Balby say about the evolution of attachment?
Attachment evolved because it has a survival value we would expect to see the same patterns across different cultural groups.
What did Mali observe?
Australian aboriginal infants who are discouraged from exploring because of the threat and distractions of food so they tend to stay close to their mothers and use them as secure bases.
Because of the differences in Australian aboriginal child rearing practices these infants were incorrectly labelled as insecure attached and many were placed in care.
