ainsworth strange situation

• what did Ainsworth do?

  developed a way to measure the quality of attachment between an infant and caregivers - measuring tool called the strange situation
• what kind of observation is the strange situation?

  controlled observation
• what was it designed to do?

  measure the security of attachment a child displays towards its caregiver when a placed in a situation that provokes mild anxiety
• where does the experiment take place?

  in a room with quiet controlled conditions with a two-way mirror through which psychologists can observe the child's behaviour
• how is security of attachment measured?

  using the 5 attachment behaviours
• what are the five attachment behaviours?

  1. proximity seeking

  2. exploration & secure base behaviour

  3. stranger anxiety

  4. separation anxiety

  5. response to reunion with caregiver
• describe proximity seeking

  an infant with a good attachment will stay fairly close to the caregiver
• describe exploration & secure base behaviour

  a good attachment enables the child to explore confidently but use the caregiver as a 'safe base'. - returning to show toys & gain their attention
• describe stranger anxiety

  one of the signs of being closely attached to a caregiver is showing anxiety when a stranger approaches
• describe separation anxiety

  another sign of being attached is to protest at separation from the caregiver
• describe response to a union

  attachment means that the child will show pleasure upon being reunited after separation
• what are the three main types of attachments ainsworth identified?

  ● Secure Attachment (Type B)

  ● Insecure-Avoidant (Type A)

  ● Insecure-Resistant (Type C)
• how many children were classed as type B (secure attachment)?

  60-75% of british toddlers
• describe secure attachment

  thought of as the most desirable attachment type, associated with healthy psychological outcomes
• how is secure attachment shown in the strange situation

  child explores happily but regularly goes back to caregiver (proximity seeking + secure base)

  moderate separation + stranger anxiety

  needs and accepts comfort from the caregiver at the reunion stage
• how many children were classed as type A (insecure avoidant attachment)?

  20-25% of british toddlers
• describe insecure avoidant attachment

  characterised by low anxiety but weak attachment
• how is insecure avoidant attachment shown in the strange situation?

  child explores but doesn't show proximity seeking + secure base behaviour

  little or no separation distress

  little stranger anxiety

  doesn't require comfort from the caregiver
• how many children were classed as type C (insecure resistant attachment)

  3% of British toddlers
• describe insecure resistant attachment


  strong attachment but high anxiety
• how is insecure resistant attachment shown in the strange situation

  - child seeks greater proximity so explores less

  - shows huge separation and stranger anxiety

  - child resists comfort from the caregiver
• give 2 strengths of ainsworths strange situation

  :) good predictive validity - research evidence supporting the idea that attachment type does predict later development - e.g. securely attached babies tend to have greater success and more lasting romantic relationships

  :) good inter-rater reliability - the controlled conditions and clear behavioural categories lead to high levels of agreement between researchers e.g. Bick et al - found 94% agreement in one team - we can be confident that attachment type selected doesn't depend upon who is observing the child
• give 2 weaknesses of ainsworths strange situation

  lacks IRL application in identifying quality of attachment - research suggests that some children don't fit into 3 attachment types e.g. main and solomon suggest some children display 'disorganised attachment,' attachment types may be invalid

  lacks generalisability - strange situation only measures attachment in USA/western europe - german babies are encouraged to be independent when they play and explore so are likely to appear as type A in the strange situation