Schaffers stages of attachment

• What are the four stages of attachment?

  1. Asocial stage (first few weeks)
  2. indiscriminate attachment (2-7months)
  3. specific attachment (form around 7 months)
  4. multiple attachments (by 1 year)
• explain stage 1: asocial stage (first few weeks)

  • babies behaviour towards people and inanimate objects is quite similar
  • some preference for familiar people (more easily calmed by them)
  • babies are also happier in the presence of other people
• explain stage 2: indiscriminate attachment (2-7 months)

  • babies now display more observable social behaviour, with a preference for people rather than inanimate objects
  • they recognise and prefer familiar people
  • babies dont show stranger or separation anxiety
  • attachment is indiscriminate because its the same towards all
• explain stage 3: specific attachment (from around 7 months)

  • stranger and separation anxiety when separated from the primary attachment figure
  • this is in most cases the person who offers the most interaction and responds to the baby’s signals with the most skill (the mother in 65% of cases)
• explain stage 4: multiple attachments (by 1 year)

  • secondary attachments with other adults from shortly after
  • in Schaffer and Emerson’s study 29% of babies has a secondary (multiple) attachments within a month of forming a primary (specific) attachment
  • by the age of 1 the majority of infants had multiple secondary attachments
• who researched the stages of attachment

  Schaffer and Emerson (1964)
• procedure of Schaffer and Emerson 1964

  • 60 babies from Glasgow, most from working class families
  • researchers visited babies and mothers at home every months for a year and again at 18 months
  • separation anxiety was measured by asking mothers about their children’s behaviour during everyday separations (e.g. adults leaving the room)
  • stranger anxiety was measured by asking mothers questions about their children’s anxiety in response to unfamiliar adults
• findings of Schaffer and Emerson 1964


  babies developed attachments through a sequence of stages, from asocial through to a specific attachment, then to multiple attachments
• conclusion of Schaffer and Emerson 1964


  the specific attachment tended to be the person who was most interactive and sensitive to the babies signals and facial expressions (reciprocity). this was not necessarily the person the baby spent most time with
• One Strength of Schaffer and Emerson’s study is that it has high external validity 


  Most of the observations were made by parents during ordinary activities and reported to researchers. The alternative would be to have observers present in the babies homes. This may have distracted the babies or made them feel more anxious. This means its likely that the participants behaved naturally while being observed
• one strength of Schaffer and Emerson’s study is that it has external validity: counterpoint


  mothers may have been biased in what they reported e.g. they might not have noticed when their baby was showing signs of anxiety or may have misremembered it. this means that even if babies behaved naturally their behaviour may not have been recorded acrruately
• one limitation is poor evidence for the asocial stage


  because of their stage of physical development, young babies have poor coordination and are fairly immobile. this makes it difficult for mothers to accurately report signs of anxiety and attachment for this age group. this means the babies might actually be quite social but, because of flawed methods, they appear to be asocial
• another strength is real world application to day care


  in the early stages (asocial and indiscriminate) babies can be comforted by any skilled adult. but if a child starts day care later, during the specific stages of attachments, care from an unfamiliar adult may cause distress and longer term problems. this means that Schaffer and Emerson’s stages can help parents making day care decisions