Cultural variations in attachment

Question 1

Who conducted a meta-analysis of cultural variations of the three attachment types?

Answer 1

Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg (1988).

Question 2

How many studies did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg include in their meta-analysis?

Answer 2

32 different studies.

Question 3

How large were each study Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s meta-analysis?

Answer 3

Each study contained at least 35 mother-infant pairs.

Question 4

How old were all the babies used in Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s meta-analysis?

Answer 4

Infants were all under 2 years (below Bowlby’s idea of the critical period).

Question 5

In Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s meta-analysis, how many countries were studied?

Answer 5

8 different countries.

Question 6

Is a meta-analysis ethical?

Answer 6

Very ethical as you don’t actually carry out any unethical methods.

Question 7

How many mother-infant pairs were studied in Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s meta-analysis?

Answer 7

A total of 1,990 pairs.

Question 8

Of all 8 countries used in the meta-analysis, where were the most from?

Answer 8

15 of the 32 studies were from the United States.

Question 9

What investigative method was used in Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg’s meta-analysis?

Answer 9

All 32 studies used Ainsworth’s Strange Situation.

Question 10

Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg (1988) conducted a meta-analysis, what is a meta-analysis?

Answer 10

A process in which a large number of studies, all researching the same question with the same method, are reviewed together and combined in order to see the overall effect size.

Question 11

What did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg find in their meta-analysis?

Answer 11

• Secure attachment was the most common classification in all countries studies, Britain 75% and China 50%.
• Insecure-resistant was least common attachment type, Britain 3% and Israel 30%.
• Insecure-avoidant was most common in Germany and least common in Japan.
• Intracultural differences were 3x greater than intercultural differences.

Question 12

What did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg find about secure attachments?

Answer 12

They were the most common classification in all countries studied, however, the proportion varied dramatically, it was 75% in Britain and 50% in China.

Question 13

What was the most common type of attachment in China?

Answer 13

Secure - 50%.

Question 14

What was the most common type of attachment in Britain?

Answer 14

Secure - 75%.

Question 15

What did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg was the least common attachment type?

Answer 15

Insecure-resistant.

Question 16

What did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg find about insecure-resistant attachments?

Answer 16

They were the overall least common attachment type, however, proportions varied highly. It was as low as 3% in Britain and up to 30% in Isreal.

Question 17

Where were insecure-avoidant attachments observed most commonly?

Answer 17

Germany.

Question 18

Where were insecure-avoidant attachments observed least commonly?

Answer 18

Japan.

Question 19

What did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg find about insecure-avoidant attachments?

Answer 19

They were most common in Germany and least common in Japan.

Question 20

What did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg find about intracultural differences?

Answer 20

They were greater than intercultural differences by 3 times.

Question 21

What are intracultural differences?

Answer 21

Differences within communities inside a singular country.

Question 22

What are intercultural differences?

Answer 22

Differences between countries as a whole.

Question 23

Why did Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg find such high intracultural differences?

Answer 23

Due to immigration and the spread of cultures into different countrys around the world.

Question 24

Who conducted a study in Italian culture?

Answer 24

Simonella et al. (2014).

Question 25

What did Takeshi find?

Answer 25

(In Japan) 90% of studies had to be stopped by the mothers as they thought the infants were too distressed, showing extreme Type C behaviours.

Question 26

What did Grossman and Grossman (1990) find?

Answer 26

That Germany had a high rate of Type A attachments because the German culture values independence.

Question 27

Who conducted a study in German culture?

Answer 27

Grossman and Grossman (1990).

Question 28

Who conducted a study in Korean culture?

Answer 28

Jin et al. (2012).

Question 29

Why have Germans been found to have such high rates of Type A attachments?

Answer 29

Because the German culture values independence.

Question 30

Which countries showed relatively high insecure-resistant attachment types?

Answer 30

Israel (30%) and Japan / China (just less).

Question 31

Describe Simonella et al’s study and findings (2014):

Answer 31

They assessed 76 12-month old babies using the Strange Situation, finding 50% were secure and 36% were insecure-avoidant. This rate is lower than found in many studies, it was suggested this was due to increasing numbers of mothers using professional childcare.

Question 32

Describe Jin et al’s study and findings (2012):

Answer 32

They used the Strange Situation on 87 children in Korea, the overall proportions were similar to those in most countries, with most infants being secure. However there was only one child Insecure-avoidant, this distribution was similar to that found in Japan by Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg (1988).

Question 33

What is the conclusion for cultural variations in attachment?

Answer 33

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

Question 34

Nature vs Nurture for attachment styles:

Answer 34

Nature = Cultural differences (Jin, Grossman and Grossman).
Nurture = Secure always most common, universal through humans (Jin).

Question 35

AO3 - Temperament.

Answer 35

Kagan (1986) suggested the Strange Situation is assessing temperament rather than attachment type.

Question 36

AO3 - Sample size.

Answer 36

The meta-analysis of Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg allowed for a massive sample size of over 2000 babies and their caregivers. This means there was little effect on the data caused by anomalous values, increasing the internal validity of the data.

Question 37

AO3 - Culture.

Answer 37

The meta-analysis claimed to study cultural variations, whereas the comparison was between countries not cultures. Within a country there are many different cultures, it is not ecologically valid to assume that differences are only varying internationally rather than intranationally.

Question 38

AO3 - Imposed etic.

Answer 38

The Strange Situation was designed by an American researcher (Ainsworth) based on a British theory (Bowlby). It is questionable that Anglo-American theories can be applied to other cultures, this is known as Imposed etic.

Question 39

AO3 - Alternative explanation.

Answer 39

The strange situation puts babies in a very confusing circumstance which they likely cannot comprehend. Kagan (1986) proposed that attachment types are based upon temperament rather than attachment relationships.