Schaffer's Stages of Attachment

• Schaffer and Emerson sought to investigate the development of early attachment, particularly at the age where they develop emotional intensity
• They had 60 babies most from skilled working class families. The babies and others were vistied at home once per month for a year and again at 18 months.
• They asked mothers about protest in 7 separate situations such as separation from mother and stranger anxiety.
• Between 25 and 32 weeks of age 50% showed separation anxiety towards a particular adult
• By 40 weeks most infanrs had developed specific attachments and some had developed multiple attachments.
• The asocial stage occurs in the first few weeks of infancy
• Indiscriminate stage occurs at about 2-7 months
• The specific attachment happens after 7 months
• Asocial Stage - Recognising and forming bonds; behave towards objects and people similarly; Some preference for familiar adults
• Indiscriminate Stage - More social behaviour; Preference for people and familiar people; Accepts comfort from any adult.
• Specific Stage - Stranger and separation anxiety; Specific attachment to primary caregiver.
• Multiple Attachement - Attachment behaviour is expanded to familar adults; formation of secondary attachments.
• By 1 year most infants form secondary attachments.
• Strength - External Validity

  • Observations made by parents during everydday activites - Researcher may have made babies anxious.

  Highly likely that the babies behaved naturally.
• Counterpoint - External Validity

  • Mothers may have been biased in terms of what they noticed and what was reported - Social Desirability bias or misremembering

  This means that even if behaviour was natural, it may not have been recorded accurately.
• Limitation - Studying Asocial

  • Young babies lack coordination and may have felt anxiety and shown this in hard-to-observe way
  • This would have made the reports back to researchers inaccurate.

  Babies may be social, but we would be unable to tell.
• Strength - RWA

  • Asocial and indiscriminate day care is straightforward as they can be comforted by any adult.
  • Daycare may be difficult during the specific stage

  Daycare can be planned using this theory.