The strange situation Flashcards
what were the stages of the strange situation?
- researcher introduced parent and baby to play room then leaves
- parent is seated, baby plays with toys
- stranger enters, is seated, and talks to the parent
- parent leaves, stranger responds and comforts baby
- parent returns, comforts, stranger leaves
- parent leaves
- stranger enters and offers comfort
- parent returns, greets baby, offers comfort, and plays
how long did each ‘episode’ last?
3 minutes
who were participants in the study?
106 middle class infants
what is proximity seeking?
staying fairly close to the caregiver
what is secure base behaviour?
being confident to explore using a caregiver as a secure base
what is stranger anxiety?
anxiety when a stranger approaches
what is separation anxiety?
being upset when separated from a caregiver
what is reunion behaviour?
accepting comfort when the caregiver returns
what is secure attachment?
high willingness to explore using a caregiver as a secure base
little separation and stranger anxiety
enthusiastic reunion behaviour
what is insecure avoidant attachment?
high willingness to explore
no separation or stranger anxiety
avoids contact with caregiver on reunion
what is insecure resistant attachment?
low willingness to explore
high stranger and separation anxiety
seeks and rejects caregiver on reunion but maintains proximity
what did Belsky and Rovine (1987) say?
attachment type is formed by the child’s innate temperament and how the parent responds to them
what are strengths of the strange situation?
good reliability (inter rater and test retest)
good validity - securely attached infants seen to be more successful
what are limitations of the strange situation?
lacks validity - only assesses the mother
ethical issues
low ecological validity
may be culture bound
there is at least one more attachment type
low external validity
low population validity
what attachment type did Main and Solomon (1986) identify?
disorganised attachment (mix of resistant and avoidant behaviours)
