Stages of attachment

• Schaffer and Emerson:

  AIM: investigate formation of early attachments, which age they develop, emotional intensity.

  PROCEDURE: 60 babies from Glasgow from working-class families. Mother and baby visited every month for the first year, and again at 18 months.

  FINDINGS: by 40 weeks, 80% of babies had a specific attachment and almost 30% displayed multiple attachments.
• Asocial stage (first few weeks):

  • Baby's behaviour towards inanimate objects and humans is similar.
  • Some preference for familiar adults. Babies are also happier in the presence of other humans.
• Indiscriminate attachment (2-7 months):

  • Babies now display more observable social behaviours, with a preference for people rather than inanimate objects.
  • They recognise and prefer familiar adults. Babies do not show stranger or separation anxiety.
  • Attachment is indiscriminate because its the same towards all.
• Specific attachment (from 7 months):

  • Stranger anxiety and separation anxiety when separated from one specific adult.
  • Baby is said to have formed a specific attachment with the primary caregiver. This person who offers the most interaction and responds to baby's signals with the most skills
• Multiple attachments:

  • Secondary attachments with other adults form shortly after.
  • In Schaffer and Emerson’s study 29% of the babies had secondary attachments within a month of forming a primary attachment.
  • By the age of one year the majority of infants had multiple secondary attachments.
• STRENGTHS:

  • Ecological validity - carried out in family homes and most observations were done by parents during ordinary activities and reported to researchers later.
  • Control of interpersonal variables - longitudinal studies have better internal validity as they do not have the problem of individual differences.
• Limitations:

  • Longitudinal studies are time consuming and a cross-sectional design is quicker.
  • The sample isn’t representative enough - only 60 babies from working class families.
  • Babies are too young to interact with other humans as they haven’t developed enough which makes them difficult to analyse.
  • It’s unclear when babies first form multiple attachments.
  • Cultural bias - not all children behave this way.
  • Attachment isn't clear, its familiarity.
  • Too simplistic - look at more types of behaviours, not enough variation in behaviours.