Attachment: Cultural variations in attachment Flashcards
What are cultural variations of attachment?
The ways that different groups vary in terms of social practices, and the effects of these practices on their development and behaviour.
What is ethnocentricism?
Seeing the world from one’s own cultural perspective and believing that this one perspective is both normal + correct.
Who studied cultural variations in attachment?
Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg (1988)
What was the aim of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s study?
To investigate inter – cultural and intra – cultural differences within attachment types using the strange situation methodology.
What was the procedure of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s study?
Meta – analysis of 32 studies of attachment behaviour (over 2,000 SS classifications in 8 different countries) were interested in identifying inter-cultural differences (different between different cultures) + intra-cultural differences (differences in the findings from studies conducted in the same culture).
What were the findings of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s study?
Found differences between cultures/countries were small + secure attachment was the most common classification in every country, insecure – avoidant was the next most common in every county except for Israel + Japan (both classified as collectivist counties at the time of the study). Variation within cultures as 1.5 x greater than variation between cultures. The global pattern across cultures appears to be similar to those found in the US. Secure attachment is the “norm” thus, supporting the idea that secure attachment is the best for healthy social + emotional development that attachment ins an innate + biological process.
What was the conclusion of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s study?
Despite cultural variations in infant care arrangements, the strongest attachments are still formed with the infant’s mother.
What are the 4 AO3 points for cultural variations in attachment?
Takahashi’s research - middle class Japanese attachment types
Takahashi’s research - findings can be explained by different childcare practices in Japan
-Meta-analysis is culturally biased
+High reliability
(AO3) Outline Takahashi’s research into middle class Japanese attachment types.
(Use as supporting evidence)
Takahashi (1990) used the strange situation to study 60 middle class Japanese infants and their mothers and found that similar rates od secure attachment to the US however, no evidence of insecure – avoidant attachment + high rates of insecure – resistant attachment (32%). The Japanese infants were particularly distressed when being left alone, their response was so extreme that 90% of the studies were stopped.
(AO3) How can Takahashi’s findings be explained by different childcare practices in Japan
Infants rarely experienced separation from their mothers or other attachment figures in Japan therefore, infants were more distressed in the SS than US infants thus, appearing to be insecurely attached.
(-AO3) Why is Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s meta-analysis culturally biased?
US is individualist, Japan is collectivist therefore, the continuity hypothesis is different. Americans define social competence as independence and regulation of emotions. Japanese believe it’s inhibition of emotional expression and being group – oriented. Japanese infants appear to be insecurely attached in SS when it’s not necessarily true it’s due to cultural bias/ ethnocentrism in attachment theory + the methodology of the SS.
