Cultural Variation

Question 1

Key study: Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988) - Aim

Answer 1

To investigate cross-cultural variations in attachment.

Question 2

Key study: Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988) - Method

Answer 2

Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988) conducted a meta-analysis of 32 studies from eight different countries that
used Ainsworth’s strange situation. In total, the results of over 1990 infants were included in the analysis.

Question 3

Key study: Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988) - Findings

Answer 3

• Great Britain (75%) and Sweden (75%) has the highest percentage of secure attachments.
• West Germany (35%) and Netherlands (26%) had the highest percentage of insecure-avoidant attachments.
• Israel (29%) and Japan (27%) had the highest percentage of insecure-resistant attachment.
• Most common type of attachment among all countries is secure attachment.
• Most of the studies came from US (18) and this is an issue as cultural differences can influence findings.

Question 4

Key study: Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988) - Conclusion

Answer 4

Since the global trend seems to reflect the US norm of secure attachment being the most common, it adds weight to the argument that secure attachment is the optimal attachment type for healthy development.

Question 5

Cultural Similarities: Tronick et al. (1992)

Answer 5

The Efe tribe, located in Zaire, Africa, live in extended family groups where the infants are looked after and even breastfed by different women within the social group. However, infants tend to sleep with their own mothers at night. Although the childrearing practices differ greatly from the Western norms, the infants still showed a preference for a primary attachment figure at 6 months old, supporting Van Izjendoorn and Kroonenberg’s main findings that secure attachment is the most common globally.

Question 6

Cultural Differences: Grossman and Grossman (1991)

Answer 6

In German culture, child rearing practices favour independence from a young age whereby infants do not seek interpersonal contact with their parents. As a result, infants from this country appear to be insecurely attached in the strange situation since they do not seek proximity to their mothers or joy upon reunion.

Question 7

Strength

Answer 7

Comparison is aided by the standardised methodology. The use of the strange situation as a procedure means that a comparison can be made across cultures, and the reliability is therefore high.

Question 8

Strength

Answer 8

Large sample size of 1990 infants. Increases population validity.

Question 9

Weakness

Answer 9

A criticism of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s research is that they may have been comparing countries and not, in fact, cultures. For example, they compared Great Britain with Israel in their meta-analysis. Within each country there may be many different subcultures, each with their own unique ways of rearing children. Interestingly, the researchers noted that variance within countries was far greater then between countries. It therefore stands to reason that they did, in fact, collect data on subcultures within countries they investigated rather than the whole nation.

Question 10

Weakness

Answer 10

One weakness of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s research is that their sample was biased. 27/32 of the studies in the meta-analysis were carried out in individualistic cultures. Therefore, their results are biased towards individualistic culture norms and values so we cannot accurately generalise the results of the collectivist cultures, lowering the population validity of the findings. That being said, the overall sample size of over 1990 infants is a strength as much research in this area use comparatively small numbers.

Question 11

Weakness

Answer 11

An issue with Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s research is that the strange situation methodology was developed in America and therefore the results may be culturally biased. Ainsworth’s strange situation may be more suitable for use solely with Western cultures as it reflects their values and norms. Using a methodology of assessment beyond the sample for which it was designed is referred to as an imposed etic. This matters because attachment behaviours mean different things for different cultures and so the results may not be valid when used with samples from non-Western cultures.

Question 12

Weakness

Answer 12

There is an alternative explanation for universal attachment which does not consider the effect of culture. According to Bowlby, attachments occur globally due to innate mechanisms which aid survival of the infant. This is a biologically driven process which occurs in the initial months after birth and is not modified by the culture in which one is brought up in. However, Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg counter this argument and suggest that some of the similarities seen cross-culturally could be due to mass exposure to similar media forums such as television rather than inborn tendencies.