Cultural Variations in Attachment

Question 1

Describe Van Ljzendoorn’s meta-analysis

Answer 1

Meta-analysed 32 Strange Situation studies across 8 countries, and examined the differences both between cultures and within cultures

Question 2

Where did Van Ljzendoorn find greater variations in attachments: between cultures or within cultures?

Answer 2

Within cultures

Question 3

Where did Van Ljzendoorn find Secure Attachment was highest and lowest?

Answer 3

• Highest= UK at 75%
• Lowest= China at 50%

Question 4

Where did Van Ljzendoorn find Insecure Avoidant Attachment was the highest and lowest?

Answer 4

• Highest= Germany at 35%
• Lowest= Non-Western countries, like Japan

Question 5

Where did Van Ljzendoorn find Insecure Resistant Attachment was highest?

Answer 5

• Highest = Irasel at 29%, but it was also high in non-Western countries, such as Japan and China

Question 6

Describe Grossmann’s German Strange Situation Study

Answer 6

• Assessed 49 infants in a longitudinal Strange Situation study and found high levels of insecure avoidant attachment
• He attributed this to cultural factors (e.g. encouraged independence from a young age)

Question 7

Describe Takahashi’s Japanese Strange Situation Study

Answer 7

• Compared the attachment types of 60 Japanese infants to those of American infants, and found higher levels of insecure resistant attachment in Japan
• He also only identified one Japanese child as insecure avoidant.

Question 8

Describe Simonelli’s Italian Strange Situation Study

Answer 8

• Compared the proportions of attachment types across a range of previous studies in Italy, and found increasing levels of insecure avoidant attachment and a lower rate of secure attachment
• He attributed this to changing cultural factors (e.g. more mums working)

Question 9

Why do the researchers who carried out most studies on Cultural Variations in Attachment boost its internal validity?

Answer 9

They are mostly indigenous researchers (e.g. Grossmann, Takahashi), which reduces some of the potential issues of cross-cultural researcher, such as a misunderstanding of language, enhancing validity

Question 10

What is a strength of Van Ljzendoorn’s Meta-Analysis?

Answer 10

It used a large and varying sample size across both Western and non-Western countries, enhancing population validity and arguably allowing for cross-cultural conclusions

Question 11

Why is it useful to employ The Strange Situation as a research method in relation to Cultural Variations in Attachment?

Answer 11

• It allows for easy replicability, increasing the reach of further comparisons and research opportunities

Question 12

Why may it be inappropriate to utilise The Strange Situation in studies of Cultural Variations in Attachment?

Answer 12

It imposes an etic when utilised in countries of a different cultural context than the Western one it was designed for

Question 13

What is a limitation of Van Ljzendoorn’s Meta-Analysis?

Answer 13

The use of disproportionate studies- for example, 18 studies from America were used, yet only 1 from China. The use of singular studies in vast countries may not be generalisable or representative, especially as Van Ljzendoorn found greater variation within cultures than between cultures

Question 14

Give 2 examples of potential confounding variables within studies that utilise The Strange Situation that may interfere with the findings of Cultural Variations in Attachment

Answer 14

• Availability of interesting toys
• Room size