Cultural Variations Flashcards
What is culture and cultural variations?
Culture: The rules, customs, morals, and ways of interacting which bind together a group of people
Cultural variations: The differences in norms and values between people in different groups
Who did research on cultural variations in attachment?
Van IJzendoorm and Kroonenberg
What is the difference between collectivist culture and individualistic culture?
Collectivist culture:
- Emphasis on group effort and cooperation
- Focus on interpersonal development of infants
- Mothers react favourably to family-oriented and social behaviour
- Japan, China and Israel
Individualistic culture:
- Emphasis on personal achievement
- Focus on developing initiative and independence in infants
- Mothers react favourably to independence
- UK, USA, Germany
Outline Van IJzendoorm and Kroonenberg’s key study
Aim: To investigate whether the proportions of secure, insecure-avoidant, and insecure-resistant children were the same across all cultures and if there were inter (between cultures) and intra (within culture) variations in attachment
Method: Meta-analysis, 32 studies which used strange situation technique to observe infant attachments types in 8 different countries
Results:
- Differences due to cross-cultural variations are relatively small
- Secure attachment = most common
- Insecure-avoidant = second most common except Japan and Israel (both collectivist cultures)
- Collectivist culture = more resistant than avoidant infants - Japanese children very rarely left by their mother, so separation and stranger distress is seen as that of an insecure-resistant attachment
- Individualistic cultures = more avoidant than resistant infants - German parents seek ‘independent, non-clingy infants, who do not make demands on their parents, but obey their commands, so they become more independent and less concerned with the absence of their parents
- Intracultural (within) differences far bigger than intercultural (between) differences in attachment
Conclusion: Secure attachment is the universal norm which supports Bowlby’s view that attachment is a predetermined process, however
proportions of each attachment types are not identical around the world, so attachment must be partly influenced by cultural norms such as child rearing practices
Outline one strength of Van IJzendoorm and Kroonenberg’s research
P: Use of meta-analysis.
Ev: Combined results of numerous different studies (32) into cultural variations in attachment = very large sample (nearly 2000 babies and their primary attachment figures)
Ex: Can calculate an overall effect size (of culture) and how this influenced the development of different attachment types in children around the world
L: Comparing large sample increases internal validity of research by reducing impact of anomalous results caused by poor methodology or ‘unusual’ participants = results generalisable to wider population
CA: Internal validity is still questionable as Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg did not conduct the individual studies themselves (secondary data) = no real control as they were not present during each investigation
Outline two/three limitations of Van IJzendoorm and Kroonenberg’s research
P: Alternative explanations for cultural similarities in attachment
Ev: Bowlby says attachment will be the same for all individuals because it is a predetermined, innate process
Ex: Whereas, Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg suggest that mass media such as books and television programs advocate certain notions of parenting which cause small cross-cultural differences
L: Therefore, there is a lack of agreement between psychologists regarding attachment development
P: Method to assess attachment (the strange situation) may be biased
Ev: The method used was deeply rooted in Western culture and the attachment types were created from an individualistic viewpoint
Ex: This means the assumption that all behaviours are universal across all cultures may leads to imposed etic May not be appropriate to impose this viewpoint universally as a method of attachment assessment
L: This means that research using the strange situation may lack validity in other cultures and perhaps another method of attachment assessment should be considered
P: The Strange Situation lacks validity.
Ev: Kagan suggested attachment type is more related to temperament than to the relationship with the primary attachment figure.
Ex: The Strange Situation may not be assessing attachment but rather measuring anxiety levels
L: Therefore we may not actually know very much about cultural variation in attachment, questioning the validity of Ainsworth’s findings
