ainsworth strange situation

• strange situation

  Ainsworth procedure to assess infant attachment
• secure attachment

  child explores freely, seeks caregiver proximity
• insecure avoidant

  child explores freely, shows little proximity
• insecure resistant

  child explores less, seeks greater caregiver proximity
• separation anxiety

  distress displayed when caregiver leaves
• stranger anxiety

  fear displayed in presence of unfamiliar adult
• reunion behaviour

  child‘s response when caregiver returns
• expectation behaviours

  assessed when child is encouraged to explore
• moderate separation distress

  displayed by securely attached infants
• indifferent separation distress

  displayed by insecure avoidant infants
• intensely distressed

  displayed by insecure resistant infants
• inter-rater reliability

  agreement among observers in attachment classification
• cultural bias

  study may not represent non western attachment styles
• controlled conditions

  standardized enviorment for observing infant behaviour
• proximity seeking

  desire to be near caregiver for security
• secure base behaviour

  using caregiver as a source of comfort
• separation anxiety assessment

  evaluates distress when caregiver departs
• stranger anxiety assessment

  evaluates fear when left with a stranger
• comfort seeking

  child‘s need for reassurance from caregiver
• attachment patterns

  distinct behaviours observed in different attachment styles
• ainsworth findings

  identified three main types of attachment
• aims of ainsworth

  aimed to investigate individual variation in infant attachments

  observed through two way mirror

  strange situation test lasted 20 mins, used on infants (12-18 months)

  consists of 7 episodes

  controlled observation
• findings of ainsworth

  found distinct patterns on how the infants behaved

  3 main types of attachment

  insecure avoidant, insecure resistant and secure attachment

  60-75% of british toddlers - secure attachment

  3% of british toddlers - insecure resistant
• 2 strengths of strange situation

  strange situation shows very good inter-rather reliability

  bick et al. found 97% of agreement in one team, this may be because strange situations take place under controlled conditions and because behavioural categories are easy to observe so they were confident infants show high levels of seperation anxiety
• 2 limitations of ainsworth

  artificial intelligence ways that i distort behaviour (mums may act different when being observed compared to how they are at home)

  culturally bias towards westernised ideas of attachment, it wa designed by an american psychologist so it could be argued that other cultures have different attachment behaviours like japanese people
• how many episodes are in Ainsworth‘s strange situation study?

  7 episodes
• what happens in the first episode of ainsworth strange situation

  child and caregiver enter an unfamiliar room
• what occurs on the second episode of ainsworth’s strange situation

  stranger comes in, tries to interact
• what is the third episode of ainsworth situation about?

  caregiver leaves child with stranger
• what happens in the fourth episode of ainsworths strange situation?

  caregiver returns and stranger leaves
• what occurs in the fifth episode of ainsworths strange situation?

  caregiver leaves child alone
• what happens in the sixth episode of ainsworths strange situation?

  stranger returns
• what happens in the final episode of ainsworths strange situation?

  caregiver returns, reunited with caregiver
• what is the first category used to judge attachment?

  proximity seeking
• what does proximity seeking indicate in infants?

  well attached infants stay close to caregiver
• what is the second category used to judge attachment

  exploration and secure base behaviour
• how does good attachment affect a child's exploration?

  child confidently explores using caregiver as safety
• what is the third category used to judge attachment?

  stranger anxiety
• what does stranger anxiety indicate in infants?

  it is showed by well attached infants
• what is the fourth category used to judge attachment?

  separation anxiety