cross cultural variations of attachment

• what are factors that can affect the type of attachment?

  · Sensitivity hypothesis

  · Temperament hypothesis
• what is sensitivity hypothesis

  Ainsworth argued that mothers who were sensitive to their infants' needs, who could read their moods/feelings and respond to them effectively were more likely to produce securely attached infants

  In contrast, mothers who were less sensitive and responsive to their infants, who ignored them or were impatient were more likely to have insecurely attached infants
• what is the temperament hypothesis?

  Kagan argued Ainsworth's explanation placed too much emphasis on the role of the mother and ignored the natural innate temperament of the child.

  According to this hypothesis, infants are born with different individual characteristics relating to how active, emotional and sociable they are naturally.​

  It is this rather than the mother that dictates the attachment type
• attachment in Japan


  The mother-child bond is especially strong in Japanese culture. In many cases, a Japanese woman will quit her job after becoming a mother, especially in the early years. Co-sleeping is common in Japan -- and children may sleep in the same room with their parents and grandparents until they are as old as 12. When it comes to eating, the mother will often feed the baby directly, rather than allowing the child to do it himself. Mothers typically choose the clothes for their children and dress young children rather than encouraging them to do it themselves early on. Mothers are also often responsible for disciplining the children, but rarely display anger -- and instead explain the consequences of a child's actions as reasons for self-restraint​

  It's rare to leave an infant alone and their mothers rarely leave them in the care of others.​
• attachment in germany


  Grossmann et al (1985) say that German parents seek 'independent, non-clingy infants, who do not make demands on parents, but obey their commands.' As a result of this, German parents raise their children to be independent and to deal with situations alone rather than asking for assistance from their primary caregiver.

  Parents value independence. Parenting focuses on making the child as independent as possible ​(behaviours exhibited by securely attached children would be considered 'clingy')
• attachment in israel


  Israeli children were reared in a Kibbutz by metapelts (Kibbutzim nurse) so were used to being separated from their mother. Although they were used to be separated from their primary caregiver, they were not used to strangers. ​

  Israeli Kibbutz- Kibbutz life is very 'family centred' and so children are raised at home by their parents​
• attachment in america


  America promotes autonomy, after the first 6 months an infant sleeps in his or her own crib or room, which requires the infant to self-regulate and self-soothe. American babies tend to sleep solitary and, in general, spend much more of their time alone. They spend considerable time sitting in playpens or play seats with their toys. Many parents feel that social time is stressful for babies and that infants need "downtime" to rest and recover.​
• how are there cross cultural variations in attachment?

  The ways members of a society/culture vary in terms of their social practices​. these variations can effect infant behaviour/development and attachment type
• what was the aim of Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)

  To investigate cross-cultural differences in attachment type through meta-analysis of research, comparing findings of the Strange Situation research conducted in other cultures​
• what was the procedure of Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)

  · They used Ainsworth's Strange situation​

  · Laboratory Experiment/Structured Observation​

  · Room set up like playroom, 2 chairs, toys (age specific)​

  · Situation video recorded (cameras)​

  Compared the findings of 32 studies across 8 different countries that used the strange situation to measure attachment type. ​

  Specifically comparing Western (Germany, America and Britain) and non-western cultures (Japan, China and Israel)
• what were the findings of Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)

  It was found that secure attachment was the main attachment type found in all cultures. The lowest percentage of secure attachments was found in China and the highest found in Britain.
• what was the conclusion of Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)

  There are cross-cultural differences in attachment types. This could be due to cultural practices, cultural expectations of parents returning to work, cultural expectations of child independence. However, there are greater differences within cultures than between cultures.
• evaluation of Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)

  · Strange Situation is easy to replicate​

  · Low ecological Validity​

  · Not all children fit into one attachment type​

  · Only assesses the relationship with mother​

  · High demand characteristics​

  · High control over EVs
• strengths of Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)

  · Combining results together can lead to large sample numbers - the meta-analysis carried out by Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg consisted of nearly 2000 babies and their PCG. This is a strength because large samples increase internal validity by reducing the impact of anomalous results...makes the research more accurate.
• weaknesses of Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)

  · Comparing cultures using the same 'strange situation' can be problematic - attachment categorisations can be ethnocentric​ - E.g. the strange situation was designed by Ainsworth (American) based on Bowlby's theory (British). In the strange situation separation anxiety and lack of pleasure on reunion indicate an insecure attachment, whereas in Germany it is considered a reflection of independence. ​ This is a weakness because it causes psychologists to question whether Anglo-American theories and assessments can be applied to other cultures. Therefore, research into cross culture variations in attachment type may lack validity

  · Using the laboratory, controlled Strange Situation technique can be criticised as lacking ecological validity - E.g. The 'playroom' environment in which the infant was interacting in was artificial and both strange and unfamiliar to the infant's everyday environment. This is a weakness because it is possible that the experiment was not measuring what it intended to measure and therefore the findings cannot be generalised past the study to real life attachments.​
• Sensitivity hypothesis


  Ainsworth argued that mothers who were sensitive to their infants' needs, who could read their moods/feelings and respond to them effectively were more likely to produce securely attached infants
• Temperament hypothesis


  Kagan argued Ainsworth's explanation placed too much emphasis on the role of the mother and ignored the natural innate temperament of the child
• Japan


  • The mother-child bond is especially strong
  • Co-sleeping is common
  • Mothers often feed the baby directly
  • Mothers choose the clothes and dress young children
  • Mothers are responsible for disciplining the children, but rarely display anger
• It's rare to leave an infant alone and their mothers rarely leave them in the care of others in Japan
• Germany


  • Parents seek 'independent, non-clingy infants, who do not make demands on parents, but obey their commands'
  • Parents raise their children to be independent and to deal with situations alone rather than asking for assistance from their primary caregiver
• Israel


  • Israeli children were reared in a Kibbutz by metapelts (Kibbutzim nurse) so were used to being separated from their mother
  • Kibbutz life is very 'family centred' and so children are raised at home by their parents
• America


  • Promotes autonomy, after the first 6 months an infant sleeps in his or her own crib or room
  • American babies tend to sleep solitary and spend much more of their time alone
  • Many parents feel that social time is stressful for babies and that infants need "downtime" to rest and recover
• The ways members of a society/culture vary in terms of their social practices can effect infant behaviour/development and attachment type
• Van Ijendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988)


  1. Compared the findings of 32 studies across 8 different countries that used the strange situation to measure attachment type from a meta-analysis

  2. Specifically compared Western (Germany, America, Netherlands, Sweden and Britain) and non-western cultures (Japan, China and Israel)
• Across all cultures secure attachment is most common with Great Britain having the most securely attached at 75% but the lowest being in Japan at 50%
• Western cultures including Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Sweden & USA have significantly lower figures of insecure-resistant than Eastern cultures of Japan, China & Israel whose percentage of insecure-resistant is much higher
• Infants from Japan & Israel have much lower insecure-avoidant than other cultures
• Secure attachment is most common in all countries therefore the norm
• Strengths of the research

  • Combining results together can lead to large sample numbers
  • Easy to replicate cross-culturally
• Weaknesses of the research

  • Lacks ecological validity as it uses an artificial setting of a laboratory
  • Meta-analysis could be seen as biased due to unequal numbers of studies from each country
• One problem with researching cross-cultural variations in attachment is that it may raise ethical issues as some children become very distressed when separated from the mother