Strange Situation

• Who created the Strange Situation experiment?

  Ainsworth and Bell (1970)
• What was the purpose of the Strange Situation experiment?

  To asses the quality of attachment in infants
• How was the quality of attachment assessed?

  Placing an infant in two situations

  • Mild stress - encourage infant to seek comfort
  • Novelty - encourage exploration behaviour

  Four specific parts analysed during the close observation:

  • Separation anxiety
  • Infant's willingness to explore
  • Stranger anxiety
  • Reunion behaviour
• Who was involved in the study?

  100 middle-class American infants and their mothers
• What were the groups the infants were categorised into?

  Type A: Avoidant insecure (22%)

  Type B: Securely attached (66%)

  Type C: Resistant insecure (12%)
• What were characteristics of avoidant insecure infants?

  Avoidant infants did not orientate to their mother while investigating the room, show little distress when separated from their mother and may actively avoid their mother upon reunion, also avoided the stranger

  • mothers sometimes ignore their infants
• What were characteristics of securely attached infants?

  Trust, exploration, distress upon separation, joy upon reunion, moderate avoidance of stranger

  • mothers were sensitive
• What were characteristics of resistant insecure infants?

  Clingy, resisted to explore, intense distress when mother was absent, but reject + lack of interest upon reunion, ambivalent behaviour towards stranger

  • mothers behave inconsistently towards their infants
• CONCLUSION of the Strange Situation

  • There are significant individual differences between infants
  • Most American children are securely attached
  • There is a distinct association between the mothers' behaviour and the infants' attachment type - suggests mothers' behaviour may be important in determining attachment type
• What is the internal working model of insecure avoidant?

  • Dismissive
  • Feeling unacceptable and unworthy of love
• What is the internal working model of securely attached?

  • Positive self-image
  • Feeling worthy of being in relationships
  • Trust in people
• What is the internal working model of insecure resistant?

  • Negative self-image
  • Feel the need to exaggerate emotional responses
  • Trust issues
  • Clingy
• Strengths of Strange Situation study

  • Good internal validity
  • all the variables are tightly controlled (controlled observation - strictly timed
  • Good reliability
  • results were consistent + repeatable (retested child + caregiver had same results)
  • Good predictive validity
  • Childhood attachment type can predict later relationships, forms internal working model (Hazan & Shaver love quiz)
• Weaknesses of Strange Situation study

  • Poor external / ecological validity
  • Artificial test, mother aware of observation so may change behaviour, child may not behave the same in other situations
  • Cultural bias
  • Study conducted in USA, may not be suitable for children from other cultures
• Securely attached children characteristics

  • Self-directed
  • Eager to learn
  • Higher in social competence
  • Higher in self-confidence / self-esteem
• Insecure avoidant children characteristics

  • Socially withdrawn
  • Distant and detached
  • Hesitant about participating in events
  • Likely to be bullied
• Insecure resistant children characteristics

  • Anxious
  • Likely to be bullies
  • Inconsistent behaviour
• Securely attached adults characteristics

  • Positive relationships
  • Trust in enduring love
• Insecure avoidant adults characteristics

  • Less likely to develop intimate relationships (e.g. one night stands often)
  • Fear intimacy / closeness
• Insecure resistant adults characteristics

  • Preoccupied by love but have trouble finding true love
  • Fear abandonment
  • Expectations of rejection and anxiety during relationships
• What did Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg carry out?

  A meta analysis of all the studies that used the Strange Situation Test
• How many studies did Van ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg review?

  32 studies that contained over 2000 Strange Situation studied
• How many countries were included in the meta-analysis?

  8 different countries, a mix of Western and non-Western cultures
• Which attachment type was most common across all countries?

  Secure attachment - is it innate?
• What countries have Western cultures and what insecure attachment type was more common?

  USA, UK, Germany

  • Insecure avoidant was more common
• What countries have non-Western cultures and what insecure attachment type was more common?

  Israel, Japan, China

  • Insecure resistant was more common
• What did Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg find in terms of variation within cultures?

  There was a 1.5 x bigger difference within cultures in 1 country than between cultures in different countries (*shows similarity in attachment cultures between countries)
• Statistics of different attachment types in different countries

  West Germany

  • Avoidant 35%
  • Secure 57%
  • Resistent 8%

  Japan

  • Avoidant 7%
  • Secure 68%
  • Resistent 27%

  Israel

  • Avoidant 5%
  • Secure 64%
  • Resistent 29%
• Why was there such a difference in insecure attachment between cultures?

  Cultural norms and caregiving practices influence attachment styles
• What was the focus of Takahashi's 1990 study?

  Japanese infants in the Strange situation
• Why did 90% of Takahashi's studies have to be stopped?

  Infants became very distressed at separation
• What cultural characteristic influenced German infants in Grossmann's 1991 study?

  Interpersonal distance with parents
• How does the culture of German infants affect their behavior?

  They tend not to engage in proximity-seeking
• What was the main finding of Sagi's 1994 study on Israeli infants?

  They became very distressed at separation
• Why do Israeli infants get anxious around strangers according to Sagi's study?

  Strangers were unusual in their kibbutz upbringing
• What are the key findings from the studies of Takahashi, Grossmann, and Sagi regarding cultural influences on infant behavior?

  • Takahashi: Japanese infants distressed at separation
  • Grossmann: German infants maintain interpersonal distance
  • Sagi: Israeli infants anxious around strangers
• Strengths of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg's cross cultural study of attachments?

  • All studies were based on the Strange Situation technique, all had controlled variables so findings could be compared (good internal validity)
  • They obtained a mix of collectivist and individualist cultures for comparison, good cross-cultural study, aim achieved
• What is a weakness of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg's study?

  Results were not entirely reliable
• Why is the technique used in the study considered a weakness?

  It was based on secondary data
• What ethical issue arose from the study's technique?

  Children were put in highly stressed situations