ATTACHMENT - types of attachment

Question 1

outline the aims of Ainsworth’s ‘strange situation’?

Answer 1

observe key attachment behaviours to assess the quality of a baby’s attachment to a caregiver.

Question 2

outline the procedure of Ainsworth’s ‘strange situation’?

Answer 2

• controlled observation procedure to measure the security of attachment a baby displays towards a care giver
• takes place in = lab w two way mirrors
• caregiver and infant were observed in 7 different scenarios lasting 3 minutes

Question 3

what was assessed in the ‘strange situation’?

Answer 3

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

Question 4

What are the seven episodes? in order?

Answer 4

1. the baby is encouraged to explore = tests exploration and secure base
2. A stranger comes in, talks to the caregiver and approaches the baby = tests stranger anxiety
3. The caregiver leaves the baby and stranger together = test separation and stranger anxiety
4. The caregiver returns and the stranger leaves = tests reunion behaviour and exploration/secure base
5. The caregiver leaves the baby alone = test separation anxiety
6. Stranger returns = tests strange anxiety
7. The caregiver returns and is reunited with the baby = test reunion behaviour.

Question 5

what is proximity seeking?

Answer 5

When an infant with good attachment will stay close to the caregiver

Question 6

what is exploration and secure base behaviour?

Answer 6

Good attachment enables a child to feel confident to explore.

Question 7

What is stranger anxiety?

Answer 7

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

Question 8

What is separation anxiety?

Answer 8

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

Question 9

What is response to reunion?

Answer 9

How the child reacts upon becoming reunited with the caregiver.

Question 10

What are the findings of the strange situation?

Answer 10

There are three types of attachment ways that babies behaved.
type A
type B
type C

Question 11

What is Type A?

Answer 11

INSECURE AVOIDANT
- babies explore freely
- do not seek proximity or show secure base behaviour
- show little or no reaction when caregiver leaves
- show little stranger anxiety
- little effort to make contact when caregiver returns

• 20 to 25% of infants = in the study.

Question 12

What is Type B?

Answer 12

SECURE ATTACHMENT
- explore happily but regularly go back to their caregiver
- moderate separation distress + moderate stranger anxiety
- accept comfort from caregiver at reunion stage

• 60 to 75% of infants = in the study

Question 13

What is Type C?

Answer 13

INSECURE RESISTANT ATTACHMENT
-baby seek greater proximity than others and so explore less
-High levels of stranger and separation distress
-Resist comfort when reunited with their caregiver

• 3% of infants = in the study

Question 14

Give STRENGTHS of the Strange situation?

Answer 14

• outcome predicts aspects in a baby’s later development
  eg research has shown that babies assessed as TYPE B, tend to have better outcomes than others, in both childhood and adult hood. For example better achievement in school and less involved in bullying.

This suggests that the strange situation measures something real and meaningful in a baby’s development.

• good reliability
  there is good inter-rater reliability
  eg Johanna Bick et al (2012) found that a team of trained observers found agreement on an attachment in 94% of cases. This high level of reliability may be because the procedure takes place under controlled conditions and because behaviours involve large movements and are therefore easy to observe.

Therefore we can be confident that attachment type assessed by the strange situation does not depend on subjective judgements.

Question 15

Give LIMITATIONS of the Strange Situation?

Answer 15

• Jerome kagan (1982) suggested that genetically influenced anxiety levels could account for variations in attachment behaviour in the strange situation and later development. This means that the strange situation may not actually measure attachment.
• not a valid measure of attachment in different cultural contexts

eg the strange situation was developed in Britain and the US.
japanese = Takahashi (1986)- babies displayed very high levels of separation anxiety and so a disproportionate number was classified as insecure resistant. Takahashi suggests = this response was due to the unusual nature of the experience in Japan where mother- baby separation is very rare.
This means it is very difficult to know what the strange situation is measuring when used outside Europe and the US.