Ainsworth's Strange Situation

• Ainsworth's strange situation

  it was developed as a method to assess the quality of a child's attachment to a caregiver. it is a controlled observation procedure (in a controlled lab environment) with a two-way mirror which psychologists can observe the infant's behaviour
• Ainsworth's strange situation procedure

  five categories were used to judge attachment quality:

  1. proximity seeking - well attached infants stay close to caregiver
  2. exploration and secure base behaviour - good attachment makes a child confident to explore, using the caregiver as a point of safety.
  3. stranger anxiety
  4. separation anxiety
  5. response to reunion with caregiver
• Ainsworth's strange situation procedure part 2

  the procedure has seven 'episodes', each lasted three minutes

  1. child is encouraged to explore by caregiver
  2. stranger enters and talks to caregiver
  3. caregiver leaves
  4. caregiver returns, stranger leaves
  5. child is alone
  6. stranger returns
  7. caregiver returns
• secure attachment, 60-75% British toddlers


  also known as type B. characterised through:

  1. child happy to explore but seeks proximity with caregiver (secure base).
  2. shows moderate separation and stranger anxiety.
  3. requires and accepts comfort from caregiver on reunion.
• insecure-avoidant attachment, 20-25% British toddlers


  also known as type A. characterised through:

  1. child explores freely but doesn't seek proximity (no secure base).
  2. shows little/no separation or stranger anxiety.
  3. does not require comfort at reunion.
• insecure-resistant attachment, 3% British toddlers


  known as type C. characterised through:

  1. child explores less and seeks greater proximity.
  2. shows considerable stranger and separation anxiety.
  3. resists comfort when reunited with caregiver.
• limitation of Ainsworth's strange situation - may be a culture bound test


  the test may not have the same meaning outside Western Europe and the USA. cultural differences in children's experiences mean they respond differently, as well as caregivers behaving differently. takahashi notes that Japanese mothers are rarely separated from infants, thus infants show high levels of separation anxiety.
• limitation of Ainsworth's strange situation - temperament may be a confounding variable


  ainsworth assumed that the main influence on separation and stranger anxiety was the quality of attachment. but kagan, suggests that temperament may have a larger influence on behaviour. this challenges the validity of the research as its intention is to measure the quality of attachment not the temperament of the child.
• strength of Ainsworth's strange situation - very good inter-rater reliability


  different observers watching the same children generally agree on attachment type. bick found 94% agreement on one team. this may be because the strange situation takes place under controlled conditions and because the behavioural categories are easy to observe. so we can be confident that the attachment type of an infant identified in the situation doesn't just depend on who is observing them.
• Another strength of Ainsworth's study is there is predictive validity of attachment types in the Strange Situation. 


  Attachment type predicts later development. For example, secure babies typically have greater success as school and more lasting romantic relationships. In contrast, insecure-resistant attachment is associated with the worst outcomes, e.g. bullying and adult mental health problems. This is evidence for the validity of the concept as it can explain future outcomes