7.1.2 Ainsworth's Strange Situation

• Attachment in child psychology refers to the emotional bond formed between a child and their caregiver
• An emotional bond is a key component of attachment, characterized by mutual affection and responsiveness.
• Match the attachment component with its description:

  Security ↔️ A sense of safety and protection

  Emotional Bond ↔️ Connection characterized by mutual affection

  Proximity Seeking ↔️ Tendency to stay close to caregiver
• Mary Ainsworth is known for her contributions to Attachment Theory, particularly through the Strange Situation procedure.
• Order the episodes of Ainsworth's Strange Situation experiment:

  1️⃣ Caregiver and infant enter the room

  2️⃣ Caregiver sits and observes the infant play

  3️⃣ A stranger enters and approaches the infant

  4️⃣ Caregiver leaves, stranger remains

  5️⃣ Caregiver returns, stranger leaves

  6️⃣ Caregiver leaves again, infant alone

  7️⃣ Stranger returns

  8️⃣ Caregiver returns and comforts the infant
• Match the attachment style with its description:

  Secure ↔️ Seeks comfort, easily soothed

  Anxious-Resistant ↔️ Distressed by separation, resists comfort

  Anxious-Avoidant ↔️ Avoids caregiver, shows no distress

  Disorganized ↔️ Inconsistent behavior, may show fear
• What age range was Mary Ainsworth's Strange Situation designed for?

  12-18 months
• Sequence the episodes of the Strange Situation experiment.

  1️⃣ Caregiver and infant enter the room

  2️⃣ Caregiver observes the infant play

  3️⃣ A stranger enters

  4️⃣ Caregiver leaves, stranger remains

  5️⃣ Caregiver returns, stranger leaves

  6️⃣ Caregiver leaves again, infant alone

  7️⃣ Stranger returns
• By observing the child's reactions in the Strange Situation, researchers can categorize infants into different attachment styles
• The Strange Situation was developed to assess attachment patterns in infants using structured observation.
• What is the first step in the Strange Situation procedure?

  Caregiver and infant enter
• When the caregiver leaves and the stranger remains, the child's behavior is assessed to measure separation anxiety
• The Strange Situation identifies only two attachment styles: secure and insecure.

  False
• Match the attachment style with its characteristic behavior.

  Secure ↔️ Seeks comfort upon reunion

  Anxious-Resistant ↔️ Highly distressed by separation

  Anxious-Avoidant ↔️ Ignores caregiver during reunion

  Disorganized ↔️ Exhibits contradictory behaviors
• What is the primary role of attachment in child development?

  Sense of security
• Proximity seeking is a key component of attachment, where the child stays close to the caregiver during stress.
• A child who feels securely attached to their caregiver will explore their environment while checking back to ensure the caregiver is still present
• What is Mary Ainsworth best known for in attachment theory?

  Strange Situation procedure
• Proximity seeking refers to a child's tendency to stay close to their caregiver
• A securely attached child will explore their environment while checking back to ensure their caregiver is still present.
• Who developed the Strange Situation procedure?

  Mary Ainsworth
• A secure attachment style is characterized by comfort with independence and interdependence
• What is the behavior of an anxious-resistant child during separation in the Strange Situation?

  Excessive crying
• An anxious-avoidant child minimizes attachment behaviors and ignores the caregiver during separation.
• Match the episode of the Strange Situation with its description:

  Episode 1 ↔️ Caregiver and infant enter the room

  Episode 4 ↔️ Caregiver leaves, stranger remains

  Episode 8 ↔️ Caregiver returns, comforts infant
• Infant reactions in the Strange Situation are categorized into four attachment styles
• How many episodes are there in the Strange Situation procedure?

  Eight
• During Episode 4 of the Strange Situation, the caregiver leaves the room, and the stranger remains.
• Order the episodes of the Strange Situation procedure:

  1️⃣ Caregiver and infant enter the room

  2️⃣ Caregiver leaves, stranger remains

  3️⃣ Caregiver returns, stranger leaves

  4️⃣ Caregiver leaves again, infant alone

  5️⃣ Stranger returns

  6️⃣ Caregiver returns, comforts infant
• A securely attached child actively seeks comfort from the caregiver
• What behavior does an anxious-avoidant child exhibit when the caregiver returns?

  Ignores the caregiver
• Disorganized attachment is characterized by contradictory and inconsistent behaviors.
• Who developed the Strange Situation experiment?

  Mary Ainsworth
• The Strange Situation experiment identifies four primary attachment styles in infants: Secure, Anxious-Resistant, Anxious-Avoidant, and Disorganized
• Match the attachment style with its example behavior:

  Secure ↔️ Seeks comfort upon reunion

  Anxious-Resistant ↔️ Excessively cries during separation

  Anxious-Avoidant ↔️ Ignores caregiver upon reunion

  Disorganized ↔️ Shows unpredictable behavior
• Securely attached infants are comfortable with both independence and interdependence.
• What is a common behavior of anxious-resistant infants during separation?

  Excessive crying
• Anxious-avoidant infants show little distress when the caregiver leaves
• What characterizes the behavior of disorganized infants?

  Inconsistent actions
• Arrange the episodes of the Strange Situation experiment in chronological order:

  1️⃣ Caregiver and infant enter the room

  2️⃣ Caregiver sits, infant plays

  3️⃣ A stranger enters

  4️⃣ Caregiver leaves, stranger remains

  5️⃣ Caregiver returns, stranger leaves

  6️⃣ Caregiver leaves again, infant alone

  7️⃣ Stranger returns

  8️⃣ Caregiver returns and comforts infant