Types Of Attachment Flashcards
What is the type of attachment that we are looking at
Ainsworth ‘Strange Situation’
Who was the Strange Situation developed by
Ainsworth and Bell
What was the aim of the Strange Situation
Be able to observe key attachment behaviours as a means of assessing the quality of a baby’s attachment to a caregiver
What was the procedure of the Strange Situation
Took place in a room with controlled conditions, with a 2 way mirror and/or cameras through which psychologists can observe the baby’s behaviour
What type of observation procedure was the Strange Situation
A controlled observation procedure
What did the Strange Situation procedure measure
The security of attachment a baby displays towards a caregiver
What were the behaviours used to judge attachment
.proximity seeking
.exploration and secure base behaviour
.stranger anxiety
.separation anxiety
.response to reunion
What is the judgement of proximity seeking
A baby with a good quality caregiver will stay fairly close to them
What is the judgement of exploration and secure base behaviour
Good attachment = baby to feel confident to explore knowing that they are safe as they feel secure with the caregiver
What is the judgement of stranger anxiety
One of the signs of becoming closely attached is a display of anxiety when a stranger approaches
What is the judgement of separation anxiety
Sign of becoming attached is to protest when separating from caregiver
What is the judgement of response to reunion
Babies who are securely attached greet the caregivers return with pleasure and seeks comfort
How many episodes does the procedure have and how long do they last
8 episodes, 3 minutes each
What was being tested when ‘mother sits on chair and baby is placed on the floor and is free to explore with the toys’
Exploration
What was being tested when a strange enters and sits on the second chair and talks briefly with the mother’
Stranger anxiety
What was being tested when ‘the stranger approaches and tries to interact and play with the infant’
Stranger anxiety
What was being tested when ‘the mother leaves so the infant and stranger is alone in the room. The stranger comforts if infant is upsets and offers to play with them’
Stranger and separation anxiety
What was being tested when ‘the mother returns and the stranger leaves’
Response to reunion
What was being tested when ‘the mother leaves again and the baby is left in the room alone’
Separation anxiety
What was being tested when ‘the stranger re enters and offers to play and comfort the baby’
Stranger anxiety
What was being tested when ‘the mother returns and the stranger leaves’
Response to reunion
What 3 types of of attachments were found from this procedure
Secure, insecure-avoidant and insecure resistant
What is secure attachment
Explore happily but regularly go back to caregiver, moderate separation distress and moderate stranger anxiety, require and accept comfort from the caregiver in the reunion stage
What is insecure-avoidant attachment
Explore freely, don’t seek proximity or show secure base behaviour , shows little to no reaction when caregiver leaves, little stranger anxiety, little effort to make contact when caregiver arrives
What is insecure-resistant attachment
They seek greater proximity than others and so they explore less, they show high levels of stranger and separation distress but they resist comfort when reunited with their caregiver
What is a strength (with counterpoint) of the Stranger Situation
It’s outcome predicts a number of aspects of the baby’s later development. The research shows that babies and toddlers assessed as ‘secure’ tend to have better outcomes than others, both in child and adulthood. Securely attached babies tend to have a better mental health in adulthood. Insecure-resistant attachment tend to have the worst outcomes
What is the counterpoint of the good predictive validity strength
Not all psychologists believe that this something (the something that the strange situation measures) is attachment. This means that the Strange Situation may not actually measure attachment
What is a strength (without counterpoint) of Stranger Situation (SS)
It has a good inter-rather reliability (agreement between different observers). Bick tested it for the the SS for a team of trained observers and found agreement of 94% of cases. This may be because of the controlled conditions and easy observations. This means we can be confident that SS isn’t based on subjective judgments
What’s the limitation of stranger situation
It may not be a valid measure of attachment in different cultural contexts. SS was developed in Britain and the US and so it may be culturally bound. One reasons because babies in different cultures have different experiences and may have different responses to SS. This means that it is difficult to know the SS is measuring in different cultures
