types of attachment - ainsworth's 'strange situation'

Question 1

who developed it & when

Answer 1

mary ainsworth & silvia bell (1970)

Question 2

aim

Answer 2

be able to observe key attachment behaviours as a means of assessing the quality of a baby’s attachment to a caregiver

Question 3

describe the ‘strange situation’

Answer 3

• controlled observation designed to test attachment security in babies
• they are assessed on their response to playing in an unfamiliar room, being left alone, left with stranger & reunited with caregiver

Question 4

how did the researchers observe the behaviour

Answer 4

via a two-way mirror and/or cameras

Question 5

name the 5 behaviours used to judge the attachment

Answer 5

1. proximity seeking
2. exploration & secure-base behaviour
3. stranger anxiety
4. separation anxiety
5. response to reunion

Question 6

define proximity seeking

Answer 6

baby with good quality attachment will stay fairly close to caregiver

Question 7

define exploration & secure-base behaviour

Answer 7

good attachment enables a baby to feel confident to explore, using caregiver as secure base
eg. a point of contact will make them feel safe

Question 8

define stranger anxiety

Answer 8

one of signs of becoming closely attached is displaying anxiety when a stranger approaches

Question 9

define separation anxiety

Answer 9

another sign of becoming attached is to protest at separation from caregiver

Question 10

define response to reunion

Answer 10

babies who are securely attached greet caregiver’s return with pleasure & seek comfort

Question 11

how many episodes were in the procedure

Answer 11

7

Question 12

how long did each episode last

Answer 12

3 minutes

Question 13

describe each episode & what it was testing

Answer 13

caregiver & baby enter unfamiliar playroom
1. baby is encouraged to explore = exploration & secure base
2. stranger comes in, talks to caregiver & approaches the baby = stranger anxiety
3. caregiver leaves baby & stranger together = separation & stranger anxiety
4. caregiver returns & stranger leaves = reunion behaviour & exploration/secure-base
5. caregiver leaves baby alone = separation anxiety
6. stranger returns = stranger anxiety
7. caregiver returns & is reunited with baby = reunion behaviour

Question 14

who identified 3 main types of attachment & when

Answer 14

ainsworth et. al (1978)

Question 15

name the 3 main types of attachment

Answer 15

type A: insecure-avoidant attachment
type B: secure attachment
type C: insecure-resistant attachment

Question 16

describe type A: insecure-avoidant attachment

Answer 16

• babies explore freely & don’t seek proximity/show secure-base behaviour
• show little/no reaction when caregiver leaves & little stranger anxiety
• make little effort to make contact when caregiver returns & may even avoid it

Question 17

describe type B: secure attachment

Answer 17

• babies explore happily but regularly go back to caregiver (proximity-seeking & secure-base behaviour)
• usually show moderate separation distress & stranger anxiety
• require & accept comfort from caregiver in reunion stage

Question 18

describe type C: insecure-resistant attachment

Answer 18

• seek greater proximity than others = explore less
• high levels of stranger & separation anxiety
• resist comfort when reunited with caregiver

Question 19

what percentage of (british) babies are classified as insecure-avoidant attachment

Answer 19

20-25%

Question 20

what percentage of (british) babies are classified as secure attachment

Answer 20

60-75%

Question 21

what percentage of (british) babies are classified as insecure-resistant attachment

Answer 21

3%

Question 22

AO3 +) outcome predicts many aspects of a baby’s later development
-) not all psychologists believe this something is attachment

Answer 22

E:
- lots of research has shown that babies classed as type B (secure) often have better outcomes
- later childhood (eg. good grades, less involvement in bullying) and adulthood (McCormick et al. 2016, Kokkinos 2007)
- also tend to go on to have better mental health in adulthood, according to Ward et al. 2006

T: suggests the strange situation measures something real and meaningful in a baby’s development

HOWEVER: not all psychologists believe this something is attachment
- kagan (1982) suggested genetically influenced anxiety levels could account for variations in attachment behaviour in the strange situation and later development

Question 23

AO3 +) good inter-rater reliability

Answer 23

E:
- Bick et al. (2012) measured inter-rater reliability for the strange situation for a team of trained observers and found agreement on attachment type in 94% of cases
- may be because the procedure takes place under controlled conditions & behaviours (eg. stranger anxiety, proximity seeking) involve large movements and so are easy to observe (eg. crying, crawling away)

T: confident that attachment type assessed by the strange situation doesn’t depend on subjective judgments

Question 24

AO3 -) may not be a valid measure of attachment across different cultural contexts

Answer 24

E:
- developed in Britian and the US, which are individualist cultures
- may be culture-bound, as babies have different experiences in different cultures which may affect their responses to the strange situation
- Takahashi (1986) conducted the study in Japan and found babies displayed very high levels of separation anxiety = disproportionate number were classed as insecure-resistant (Type C)
- Takahashi (1990) suggested this anxiety response was due to the unusual nature of the experience in Japan where mother-baby separation is very rare

T: difficult to know what the strange situation is measuring outside of Europe and the US