Cultural Variations in Attachment

Question 1

van Izjendoorn & Kroonenberg

van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988) conducted a study to look at the proportions of secure, insecure-avoidant and insecure-resistant attachment across a range of countries. They also looked at the differences within the same countries to get an idea of variations within a culture.

Answer 1

Procedures
The researchers located 32 studies of attachment where the Strange Situation had been used to investigate the proportions of infants with different attachment types. This 32 studies were conducted in a country; 15 were in the USA. Overall the 32 studies yielded results from 1,990 children. The data for these 32 studies were meta-analysed, results being combined and weighted for sample size.

Findings
There was a wide variation between the proportions of attachment types in different studies. In all countries secure attachment was the most common classification. However the proportion varied from 75% in Britain to 50% in China. Insecure-resistant was overall the least common type although the proportions range from 3% in Britain to around 30% in Israel. Insecure-avoidant attachments were observed most commonly in Germany and least commonly in Japan.
An interesting finding was that variations between results of studies within the same country where actually 150% greater than those between countries. In the USA, for example, one study found only 46% securely attached compared to one sample as high as 90%.

Question 2

Other studies of cultural variations (Simonella et al. abd Jin et al.)

Answer 2

An Italian is study:
Simonella et al. (2014) conducted a study in Italy to see whether the proportions of babies of different attachment types still matches those found in previous studies. The researchers assessed 76 12-month-olds using the Strange Situation. They found 50% were secure, with 36% insecure-avoidant. This is a lower rate of secure attachment than has been found in many studies. The researchers suggest this is because increasing numbers of mothers of very young children work long hours and use professional childcare.
These findings suggest that cultural changes can make a dramatic difference to patterns of secure and insecure attachment.

A Korean study:
Jin et al. (2012) conducted a study to compare the proportions of attachment types in Korea to other studies. The Strange Situation was used to assess 87 children.
The overall proportions of insecure and secure babies were similar to those in most countries, with most infants being secure. However, more of those classified as insecurely attached were resistant and only one child was avoidant. This distribution is similar to the distribution of attachment types found in Japan (van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg 1988).
Since Japan and Korea have quite similar child-rearing styles this similarity in attachment types might be explained in terms of child-rearing style.

Question 3

Conclusions

Answer 3

Secure attachment seems to be the norm in a wide range of cultures, supporting Bowlby’s idea that attachment is innate and universal and this type is the universal norm. However, the research also clearly shows that cultural practices have an influence on attachment type.

Question 4

Evaluation (large samples, samples tend to be unrepresentative of culture, method of assessment is biased)

Answer 4

+ A strength of combining the results of attachment studies carried out in different countries is that you can end up with a very large sample. For example, in the van Ijzendoorn meta-analysis, there was a total of nearly 2000 babies and their primary attachment figures. Even studies like those of Simonella et al. and Jin et al. had large comparison groups from previous research, although their own samples were smaller.
This overall sample size is a strength because large samples increase internal validity by reducing the impact of anomalous results caused by bad methodology or very unusual participants.

• The meta-analysis by van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg claimed to study cultural variations whereas, in fact, the comparisons were between countries not cultures. Within any country there are many different cultures each with different child-rearing practices. For example, one sample might over-represent people living in poverty, the stress of which might affect caregiving and hence patterns of attachment. An analysis by van Ijzendoorn & Sagi (2001) found that distributions of attachment type in Tokyo (an urban setting) were similar to the Western studies, whereas a more rural sample had an over-representation of insecure-resistant individuals.
  This means that comparisons between countries (such as Italy or Korea) may have little meaning; the particular cultural charcteristics (and thus the caregiving styles) of the sample need to be specified.
• Cross-cultural psychology includes the ideas of etic and emic. Etic means cultural universals whilst emic means cultural uniqueness.
  The Strange Situation was designed by an American researcher (Ainsworth) based on a British theory (Bowlby’s). There is a question over whether Anglo-American theories and assessments can applied to other cultures. Trying to apply a theory/technique designed for one culture to another culture is known as imposed etic.
  An example of imposed etic may be the idea that a lack of separation anxiety and lack of pleasure on reunion indicate an insecure attachment in the Strange Situation. In Germany this behaviour might be seen more as independence than avoidance and hence not a sign of insecurity within the cultural context (Grossmann & Grossmann 1990).