Schaffer's stages of attachment Flashcards
(11 cards)
Stage one - Asocial
-first few weeks
baby’s behaviour towards people and inanimate objects is quite similar
some preference for familiar people (more easily calmed by them )
babies are also happier in the presence of other people
Stage Two - Indiscriminate attachment
- what age does this stage occur?
what behaviour is displayed?
why is it called indiscriminate?
-2-7 months
babies now display more observable social behaviour, with a preference for people rather than inanimate objects
they recognise and prefer familiar people
babies do no show stranger or separation anxiety
Attachment is indiscriminate because it’s the same towards all
Stage three specific attachment ?
what age does this stage occur?
what behaviour is experienced at this stage?
who has the baby formed a specific attachment to?
from around 7 months
Stranger anxiety and separation anxiety when separated from one particular person. Baby is said to have formed a specific attachment with the primary attachment figure
this is in most cases the person who offers the most interaction and responds to the baby’s signals with the most skill (65% the mother)
stage four multiple attachments ?
when does this stage occur?
Secondary attachments with who?
In Schaffer and Emerson’s study, what percentage of babies had a secondary attachment within a month of forming a primary attachment?
By one year
secondary attachments with other adults form shortly after
In Schaffer and Emerson’s study, 29% of babies had secondary (multiple) attachments within a month of forming a primary (specific) attachment
by the age of one year the majority of infants had multiple secondary attachments
explain the procedure of Schaffer and Emerson- stages of attachment
- how many babies, where from?
what did the researcher’s do?
what was measured and how?
60 babies from Glasgow, most from working -class families. Researchers visited babies and mothers at home every month for a year and again after 18 months
separation anxiety measured by asking mothers about their children’s behaviour during everyday separations (e.g. adult leaving the room)
stranger anxiety was measured by asking mothers questions about their children’s anxiety response to unfamiliar adults
explain the findings and conclusions of the study?
- what was concluded about babies development of attachment?
-who tended to take the role of specific attachment?
Babies developed attachments through a sequence of stages, from asocial through to a specific attachment to multiple attachments - as outlined above
the specific attachment tended to be to the person who was most interactive and sensitive to babies’ signals and facial expressions (i.e. reciprocity)
this was not necessarily the person the baby spent most time with
Strength of Schaffer and Emerson’s study - high external validity
- who were most of the observations done by?
-what would the alternative of this be and the impact?
Most of the observations (not stranger anxiety) were made by the parents during ordinary activities and reported to researchers
the alternative would have be to have observers present in the babies’ homes. this may have distracted the babies or made them feel more anxious
this means it is highly likely that the participants behaved naturally whole being observed
counterpoint to Schaffer and Emerson’s study
- why was having the mothers as the reporter a possible problem
Mothers may have been biased in what they reported e.g. they might not have noticed when their baby was showing signs of anxiety or may have misremembered it
this means that even if babies behaved naturally their behaviour may not have been accurately recorded
Limitation - poor evidence for the asocial stage
- what makes it difficult for babies behaviour to be studied?
because of their stage of physical development young babies have poor co-ordination and are fairly immobile
this makes it difficult for mothers to accurately report signs of anxiety and attachment for this age group
this means the babies might actually be quite social but, because of flawed methods, they appear to be asocial
strength - real world application to day care
how can the developmental stages link to childcare?
In the early stages (asocial and indiscriminate attachments) babies can be comforted by any skilled adult
but if a child starts day care later, during the stage of specific attachments, care from an unfamiliar adult may cause distress and longer-term problems
this means that Schaffer and Emerson’s stages can help parents making decisions about day care
evaluation extra
Schaffer and Emerson based their staged on a single but large-scale study of babies development conducted in working-class Glasgow
But, child rearing practices vary considerable according to cultural and historical context - e.g. multiple attachments the norm in collectivist cultures
Van ljzendoorn
This means that some of the observations from this study may not generalise to other populations
