Types Of Attachment

Question 1

The strange situation - procedure

Answer 1

Developed by Mary Ainsworth - aim to observe key A beh - to assess the quality of a baby’s A to a C.G

Procedure:
- controlled observation procedure, measure the security of A a baby displays towards a C.G
- room with controlled conditions {lab} with 2 way mirror / cameras so psychologists can observe

Question 2

What were the behaviours used to judge attachment

Answer 2

Proximity seeking - good A means baby will stay close to a C.G
Exploration + secure-base beh - good A enables baby to feel confident to explore, using C.G as a secure base i.e point of contact
Stranger anxiety - display of anxiety when a stranger approaches
Separation anxiety - protest at separation from the C.G
Response to union - securely A babies greet the C.G return with pleasure + seek comfort

Question 3

What are the seven episodes of the strange situation

Answer 3

1. Baby is encouraged to explore {tests exploration + secure base}
2. Stranger comes in, talks to C.G + approaches the baby {tests stranger anxiety}
3. C.G leaves the baby + stranger together {tests separation + stranger anxiety}
4. C.G returns + stranger leaves {tests reunion beh + exploration/secure base}
5. C.G leaves baby alone {separation anxiety}
6. Stranger returns {stranger anxiety}
7. C.G returns and is reunited with the baby {reunion beh}

Question 4

Findings - 3 types of attachment

Answer 4

1. Secure A (type B) -> explore happily, regularly go back to C.G, moderate separation + stranger anxiety, accept comfort from C.G in reunion stage
2. Insecure-avoidant A (type A) -> explore freely, don’t seek proximity, little reaction when C.G leaves, little stranger anxiety, little effort to make contact when C.G returns
3. Insecure-resistant A (type C) -> seek greater proximity, explore less, high levels of stranger + separation anxiety, resist comfort when reunited with C.G

Question 5

Evaluate the strange situation + types of attachment - strengths

Answer 5

STRENGTH:
Outcome predicts a number of aspects of baby’s later dev
Research; type B babies tend to have better outcomes than others in childhood + adulthood
- better mental health in adulthood + better achievement in school
- insecure-attachment babies have worse outcomes
Suggests that the S.S measures something real in baby’s dev
COUNTERPOINT:
Not all psychologists believe that A is being measured in S.S - other factors such as genetically influenced anxiety

STRENGTH:
Good inter-rater reliability; Bick et al tested the I.R.R and found agreement on A type in 94% of cases
- high level of reliability; beh involved large movements easy to observe + done in a lab
- confident that A type doesn’t depend on subjective judgments

Question 6

Limitations

Answer 6

LIMITATION:
May not be a valid measure of A in different cultural contexts;
S.S developed in the USA + Britain; may be culture bound {only valid for use in certain cultures}
- babies have different experiences in different cultures, may effect beh in S.S.
- Takahashi et al; babies displayed high levels of separation anxiety so many classified as insecure-resistant
- suggested that this anxiety response was not due to high rates of A insecurity but to the nature of Japan where mother-infant separation is rare
Hard to know what the S.S is measuring when used outside Western Europe and the USA