Schaffer and Emmerson (1964)

Question 1

What were the aims of this experiment?

Answer 1

To find the age at which formed attachments were formed and how intense they were

Question 2

What was the procedure?

Answer 2

• sixty infants from working class backgrounds in Glasgow were studied
• at the start of the investigation, infants ranged from 5 weeks to 23 weeks old
• they were studied until the age of one year
• mother’s visited every four weeks
• at each visit mothers reported their infants’ response to separation in severe everyday situations( like being left alone in a room/ with other people
• the mother was then asked to asses the intensity of protests for example, a full blooded cry or a whimper
• this was then rated on a four- point scale
• finally the mother was asked to say whom the protest was directed at

Question 3

what were the findings?

Answer 3

• the study found that attachments were more likely to form with careers who were sensitive to the baby’s singnals
• infants from the age of 21- 24 weeks had more stranger anxiety than specific attachment as seen in the graph (slope is steeper)

Question 4

What were the conclusions?

Answer 4

That being more attached, sensitive and responding is more important in attachment development rather than physical care.