Attachment - types of attachment (strange situation)

Question 1

Who developed the strange situation?

Answer 1

Ainsworth and Bell

Question 2

What are the five categories used to judge attachment quality
PROCEDURE

Answer 2

1. Proximity seeking - well attached babies stay close to caregiver
   2 . Exploration and secure base behaviour - good attachment makes baby confident to explore, using the caregiver as point of safety
2. Stranger anxiety - displayed by well attached babies
3. Separation anxiety - displayed by well attached babies
4. Response to reunion with the caregiver after separation for a short period of time - well attached babies are enthusiastic

Question 3

What are the 7 episodes that each last 3 mins
PROCEDURE

Answer 3

1. Baby is encouraged to explore by caregiver
2. Stranger enters and talks to the caregiver, approaches baby
3. Caregiver leaves
4. Caregiver returns, stranger leaves
5. Caregiver leaves baby alone
6. Stranger returns
7. Caregiver returns

Question 4

What are the 7 episodes that each last 3 mins
PROCEDURE

Answer 4

1. Baby is encouraged to explore by caregiver
2. Stranger enters and talks to the caregiver, approaches baby
3. Caregiver leaves
4. Caregiver returns, stranger leaves
5. Caregiver leaves baby alone
6. Stranger returns
7. Caregiver returns

Question 5

What does insecure avoidant attachment mean

Answer 5

The child learns that their best bet is to shut down their feelings and become self-reliant

Question 6

What does insecure resistant attachment mean

Answer 6

The young child who can signal his distress but has great difficulty getting effective comfort from the caregiver.

Question 7

What does secure attachment mean

Answer 7

An attachment where a child feels comforted by the presence of their caregiver

Question 8

Findings and conclusions

Answer 8

Secure attachment - happy to explore but seeks proximity to caregiver
Shows moderate separation anxiety and stranger anxiety
Requires and accepts comfort from caregiver on reunion

Insecure avoidant attachment - explores freely but does not seek proximity
Shows little/no separation and stranger anxiety
Avoids contact at the reunion stage

Insecure resistant attachment - explores less and seeks greater proximity
Shows considerable stranger and separation anxiety
Resists comfort when reunited with caregiver

Question 9

One strength is that it has good predicitive validity

Answer 9

Attachment type predicts later development e.g secure babies have greater success at school

In contrast insecure resistant attachment associated with worst outcome e.g bullying and adult mental health problems

Evidence for validity of the concept as it can explain/predict future outcomes

Question 10

One strength is that it has good inter-rater reliability

Answer 10

Different observers watching same babies generally agree on attachment type. Bick found 94% agreement in one team

Could be because the SS takes place under controlled conditions as behavioural categories are easy to observe

Meaning we can be confident that attachment type of a baby identified in SS does not just depend on who is observing them

Question 11

One limiation is that it may be a culture bound test

Answer 11

Might not have the same meaning in countries outside europe and US where it was created

Cultural differences in children’s experiences mean they respond differently i.e japanese babies show anxiety because they are not used to being left by caregiver

Meaning it is difficult to know what the SS is measuring in some countries/cultures

Question 12

Other attachment types

Answer 12

Main and Soloman identified a fourth category of attachment - disorganised (mix of resistant and avoidant behaviours)

However are unsual and have generally experienced some form of severe neglect/abuse associated with later pyschological disorders