Ainsworth strange situation

• Attachment styles are classified as secure (B), insecure-avoidant (A), or insecure-resistant/anxious (C).
• Strange situation was developed by Mary Ainsworth
• Behaviours to judge attachment

  • Proximity seeking
  • Exploration and secure-base behaviour
  • Stranger anxiety
  • Separation anxiety
  • response to reunion
• • Secure attachment: is most desirable types, associated with psychologically healthy outcomes.
  • Insecure-avoidant attachment: is characterised by low anxiety and weak attachment.
  • Insecure-resistant: is characterised by strong attachment and high anxiety.
• Ainsworth: Strange situation

  1. Child encouraged to explore: testing exploration secure base behaviour
  2. Stranger enters and tries to interact with child: stranger anxiety
  3. Care-giver leaves child and stranger together: separation and stranger anxiety
  4. Caregiver returns and stranger leaves: reunion, exploration and secure-base behaviour.
  5. Caregiver leaves child alone: to test separation anxiety
  6. Stranger returns: tests stranger anxiety
  7. Caregiver returns and is reunited: tests reunion behaviour
• Secure: Moderate separation distress and stranger anxiety. Require and accept comfort on reunion. Explore happily using caregiver as secure base. 60-75% of British teenagers.
• Insecure-avoidant: Explore freely but don't use caregiver as secure base low separation distress and stranger anxiety. Do not require comfort at reunion stage. 20-25 % of infants
• Insecure resistant: Seek great proximity and rarely explore. Huge separation distress and stranger anxiety. Resist comfort when reunited with caregiver. 3%
• A03: Validity support

  Strange situation is valid because it can explain subsequent outcomes, babies classified as secure typically go onto have better outcome. Insecure-resistant attachment is associated with the worst outcomes.
• A03: Is anxiety really due to attachment history.

  Ainsworth thought the main influence on anxiety was attachment. Kegan argues it is temperament that has a more importance influence. This could then be a confounding variable in the strange situation.
• A03: Test may be culture-bound.

  Culture bound: When something does not have the same meaning outside the country it was developed in.

  Two reasons

  • cultural differences in childhood mean children are likely to respond differently
  • Care-givers from different cultures behave differently

  Takahasi : test doesn't really work in Japan as mothers are so rarely separated from their babies so separation anxiety is high in all, also upon reunion mothers pick babies up making it hard to observe
• A03: Good reliability

  There is high inter-rater reliability and controlled conditions so makes it easier to observe behaviour categories.

  There is at least one more attachment type

  Main and Solomon identified a minority of children who show atypical attachment and do not fit ABC type. They display a mix of insecure resistant and avoidant behaviours- referred to as disorganised attachment. Most likely experienced neglect or abuse and most develop psychological disorders by adulthood.