cultural variations Flashcards
Who studied cultural variations?
Van Ijzendoorn
Simonella
Jin
Describe Van Ijzendoorn’s procedure
Meta analysis of 32 studies where strange situation was used
8 countries
15 in USA
1990 children
Describe Van Ijzendoorn’s findings across cultures
Secure was most common
75% secure in BRITAIN
50% secure in CHINA
Resistant was least common
3% in BRITAIN
30% in ISRAEL
Avoidant most common in GERMANY and least common in JAPAN
Describe Van Ijzendoorn’s research within cultures
Variations within the same country were 150% greater than between
USA - one study found 46% secure and another found 90%
Describe Simonella’s research
ITALY 76 babies using SS 50% secure 36% avoidant Lower rate of secure than many studies Mothers work longer hours
Describe Jin’s research
KOREA 87 babies Proportions similar to others Most insecure were resistant Only one was avoidant Similar to JAPAN Japan and Korea have similar parenting styles
What can we conclude from cultural research?
Secure attachment is norm - supports Bowlby’s idea that attachment is innate
Cultural practices have influence
Evaluation - large samples
2000 babies
Large comparison groups
Internal validity
Reduces impact of anomalous results
Evaluation - samples unrepresentative of cultures
Comparisons between countries not cultures
Many different parenting styles within a country
Poverty vs wealth
Van Ijzendoorn - TOKYO (urban) similar to WESTERN countries
Evaluation - method is biased
SS - british theory, american researcher Can this be applied to other cultures? Imposed etic Germany - independence is normal Not avoidant
Evaluation - alternative explanation for cultural similarity
Bowlby - attachment is innate and universal
Van Ijzendoorn - small cross cultural differences reflect effects of mass media
Evaluation - strange situation lacks validity
Kagan - attachment type is related to temperament
Lacks validity as measurement tool
We may actually know little about cultural variations
