Lesson 2: Types Of Attachment Flashcards
1
Q
What is the Strange Situation?
A
- Methodology used by Ainsworth to investigate differences in attachments between infants and their caregivers.
- Was a controlled observation
- They investigated infants in 3 minute episodes:
Mother & Baby
Stranger Enters
Mother Leaves
Mother Returns - They recorded an infants
Proximity Seeking
Stranger anxiety
Separation Protest
Reunion Joy
2
Q
What are Type A Babies?
A
- Insecure Avoidant
- 20% of babies
- ignore their caregiver and play independently whilst exploring the room
- no separation protest and no reunion joy (ignores attachment figure)
- distress when left alone but comforted by stranger (no stranger anxiety)
- Caregiver and Stranger treated in the same way
3
Q
What are Type B Babies?
A
- Secure
- 70%
- Play happily while caregiver is present and use them as a safe base whilst exploring
- baby is distressed when caregiver leaves (separation protest)
- seeks immediate contact with caregiver when they return (reunion joy)
- Wary of strangers (stranger anxiety) but accepts comfort when caregiver is absent
4
Q
What are Type C Babies?
A
- Insecure Resistant
- 10%
- Fussy and cry more
- Will not explore the room
- Very clingy
- Extreme Separation protest
- Resist comfort from caregiver (No reunion joy)
- Extreme Stranger Anxiety
5
Q
Evaluation of the Strange Situation (+)
A
- Replicated over many years, high level of control and standardised procedures.
6
Q
Evaluation of the Strange Situation (-)
A
- Culturally Biased as healthy attachment in the US is not the same in another country, e.g Germany views crying babies as spoilt and so they are not rewarded.
- Validity can be argued as proximity seeking could be about insecurity rather than security
- Gender Biased as it only uses mothers as primary attachment figure. Infants can be differently attached to both of their parents, so the situation doesn’t measure overall attachment
- It is Artificial, and does not reflect real world behaviour (lacks ecological validity)
