Cultural variations in attachment

• Van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg

  Located 32 studies where the strange situation has been used to asses attachment types in 8 countries
• Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg


  • 32 studies (15 in USA)
  • 8 countries
  • 1990 children
  • Meta analysed
• Findings- Type B


  Highest

  UK - 75%

  Lowest

  China - 50%
• Findings - Type A


  Highest

  Germany - 35%

  Lowest

  Japan - 5%
• Findings - Type C


  Highest

  Japan - 27%

  Lowest

  UK - 3%
• EVALUATION - strength - Indigenous psychologists


  • Most of the studies were conducted by indigenous psychologists
  • e.g Ijzendoorn and krooneberg
  • Cross cultural problems can be avoided e.g language barriers and bias
  • Higher validity

  COUNTERPOINT

  • Not all the studies were conducted this way
  • Outsiders from America did some
• EVALUATION - Weakness - Confounding variables

  • Studies in different countries not usually matched for methodology

  Different factors

  • Poverty and social class
  • Environmental factors (room size, different toys)
• EVALUATION - weakness - Imposed ethic

  • Imposing test for one culture on another
  • Different results only due to cultural differences