Schaffer’s Stages Of Attachment

Question 1

What are the 4 stages of attachment

Answer 1

(Schaffer and Emmerson)

1. Asocial stage
2. Indiscriminate attachment
3. Specific attachment
4. Multiple attachments

Question 2

Stage 1: Asocial stage

Answer 2

• 1st few weeks
• babies show signs that they prefer to be with other people
• show preference for the company of familiar people & more easily comforted by them
• baby is forming bonds with certain people & these form the basis of later attachements

Question 3

Stage 2: Indiscriminate attachment

Answer 3

• from 2 to 7 months; start to display more obvious and observable social behaviours
• clear preference for being with other humans rather than inanimate objects
• recognise and prefer the company of familiar people
• BUT usually accept comfort from any person
• don’t usually show separation anxiety when caregiver leaves or stranger anxiety in presence of unfamiliar people

Question 4

Stage 3: specific attachement

Answer 4

• from 7 months babies start to display the classic signs of attachment towards 1 person
• signs include: stranger anxiety, especially when their attachment figure is absent and separation anxiety
• the person who the baby forms a specific attachment to = primary attachment figure
• they offer the most interaction and responds to the baby’s signals with most skill

Question 5

Stage 4: multiple attachments

Answer 5

• after the baby shows attachment beh towards one person they usually extend it to multiple attachments with other people they regularly spend time with
• these relationships are called ‘secondary attachments’
• Schaffer & Emmerson; found by the age of 1 the majorly of babies had developed multiple attachments

Question 6

Evaluate Schaffers stages of attachment - strengths

Answer 6

STRENGTH:
Good external validity; most observations were made by parents during ordinary activities and reported to the researchers
- the alternative would be that the researchers be present to record observations {would have distracted the babies or made them feel anxious} therefore beh naturally
COUNTERPOINT:
Issues with mothers as observers, objective, biased in reporting, beh not recorded accurately

STRENGTH:
Practical application; in day care
- Schaffer and EM research says that day care with an unfamiliar adult may be problematic during the specific attachment stage.
- means that parents use of day care can be planned using the stages of A

Question 7

Limitations

Answer 7

LIMITATION:
Validity of the measures they used to assess attachement in the Asocial stage
- young babies have poor co-ordination and are fairly immobile
- if babies less than 2 months felt anxiety in everyday situations they might have displayed this in subtle, hard to observe ways
- difficult for mothers to observe + report the signs of anxiety + A in this age group
Babies might actually be quite social but are reported as asocial