Van Ijzendoorn

Question 1

What is the aim?
(AO1)

Answer 1

To see if there are variations in attachment between cultures using the strange situation. Also to look for differences within a culture

Question 2

What is the sample?
(AO1)

Answer 2

32 strange situation studies from 8 cultures. 1990 children in total. All children were under the age of 2 and had no SEN. Only used mother and baby studies and ones that used the 3 types of attachment.

Question 3

What is the procedure?
(AO1)

Answer 3

Meta analysis using secondary data. Cross-cultural study comparing attachment behaviour. The Strange Situation monitors a child’s behaviour as a parent and stranger leave, enter and try to interact with the child. Compared results across cultures.

Question 4

What are the results?
(AO1)

Answer 4

• secure attachments were the most common across all cultures studied.
• secure attachments were the highest in Great Britain (75%) and the lowest in China (50%)
• avoidant attachments were most common in West Germany (35.3%)
• resistant attachments were most common in Israel (28.8%) and in Japan (27.1%)

Question 5

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Answer 5

Large sample of 1990 children - more representative to a wider population’s attachment type around the world.

Question 6

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Answer 6

not ethnocentric - 8 different cultures (both collectivist and individualistic) - more representative of worldwide effects of parenting on attachment.

Question 7

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Answer 7

EVs (such as age) eliminated to ensure the results are comparable - more valid results about how culture effects attachment.

Question 8

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Answer 8

all use the same standardised strange situation procedure - easy to repeat to test if results about culture and attachment are reliable.

Question 9

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Answer 9

procedure is ethnocentric as it’s only based on Ainsworth’s strange situation. Research suggests that this procedure doesn’t work for Japanese children (validity issues).

Question 10

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Answer 10

Main and Soloman - 4th type of attachment (disorganised) isn’t accounted for - results about attachment type are reductionist.

Question 11

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Answer 11

publication bias is an issue as only certain studies about attachment types get published (not significant = not published). Lowers validity because the meta-analysis doesn’t include all possible results (biased)

Question 12

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Answer 12

cross-cultural studies are useful because they answer the nature vs nurture debate. This may influence how we raise/look after children.

Question 13

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Answer 13

too much focus on US (18/32) very few studies in collectivist cultures used (China only had 1 study - fluke? ) Results about attachment types are less generalisable to other cultures.