psychology types of attachment Flashcards
what was the strange situation procedure
ainsworth strange situation-controlled observation to measure security of attachment baby displays to caregivers, takes place in room with controlled conditions with two way mirror and or cameras through which researchers can observe the babys behaviour
proximity seeking-baby with good quality attachment will stay fairly close to caregiver
exploration and secure base behaviour-good attachment enables baby to feel confident to explore using caregiver as secure base
stranger anxiety-display of anxiety when stranger approaches
separation anxiety-protest at separation from caregiver
response to reunion-babies securely attached greet caregivers return with pleasure and seek comfort
baby encouraged to explore-tests exploration and secure base
stranger comes in talks to caregiver and approaches baby-tests stranger anxiety
caregiver leaves baby and stranger together- tests separation and stranger anxiety
caregiver returns and stranger leaves-tests reunion behaviour and exploration and secure base
caregiver leaves baby alone-tests separation anxiety
stranger returns-tests tranger anxiety
caregiver returns and is reunited with baby-tests reunion behaviour
what were the findings from the strange situation
secure attachment-explore happily but reguarly go back to caregiver, show moderate separation distress and moderate stranger anxiety, securely attached babies require and accept comfort from caregiver in reunion stage, about 60-75% british babies classified as secure
insecure avoidant attachment- babies explore freely but dont seek proximity or show secure base behaviour, show little or no reaction when caregiver leaves and little stranger anxiety, make little effort to make contact when caregiver returns and may avoid such contact, about 20-25% british babies classified as insecure avoidant
insecure resistant-seek greater proximity and explore less, show high levels of stranger and separation distress but resist comfort when reunited with caregiver, around 3% british babies classified as insecure resistant
what is good predictive validity
outcome predicts number of aspects of babys later development
large body research shown babies and toddlers assessed as type b- secure have better outcomes than others, childhood-less involvement in bullying better achievement in school, adulthood- better mental health, insecure resistance and not falling into types a b or c tend to have worst outcomes
strange situation measures something real and meaningful in babys development
strange situation measures something important associated with later development, not all believe that this something is attachment
kagan-genetically influenced anxiety levels could account for variations in attachmentbehaviour in strange situation and later development
strange situation may not actually measure attachment
what is good reliability
good inter rater reliability (agreement between different observers)
bick-tested inter rater reliability for team of trained observers and found agreement on attachment type in 94% cases
high level of reliability may be because procedure takes place under controlled conditions and because behaviours involve large movements and therefore easy to observe
we can be confident that attachment type as assessed by strange situation doesnt depend on subjective judgements
what is the test may be culture bound
may not be valid measure of attachment in different cultural contexts
developed in britain and us
babies have different experiences in different cultures and these can affect their responses to strange situation
takahashi-babies displayed very high levels of separation anxiety and so disproportionate number classified as insecure resistant, suggests this anxiety response was not due to high rates of attachment insecurity but to unusual nature of experience in japan where mother baby separation is very rare
very difficult to know what the strange situation is measuring when used outside europe and us
