Schaffers Stages of attachment

• what is stage 1 known as?

  asocial stage
• what is stage 2 known as?

  indiscriminate attachment
• what is stage 3 known as?

  specific attachment
• what is stage 4 known as?

  multiple attachment
• asocial stage (stage 1)?

  • 0-8 weeks
  • prefer faces to non faces
  • preference to familiar individuals
  • smile at anyone
  • happier with humans
• indiscriminate attachment (stage 2)?

  • 2-7 months
  • recognise and prefer familiar people
  • smile more at familiar over non familiar
  • prefer people over non inanimate
  • accept comfort from any adult
• specific attachment (stage 3)?

  • 7-12 months
  • primary attachment to specific individual
  • show stronger stranger/seperation anxiety
  • use familiar adults as secure base
• multiple attachments (stage 4)?

  • 1 year onwards
  • form secondary attachment (e.g father/grandparents)
• A03- poor evidence for asocial stage?


  • young babies have poor coordination/ fairly immobile
  • if babies less than 2 months showed anxiety, displayed in subtle ways (hard to observe)
  • difficult to report signs of anxiety in this stage
  • babies could be social but flawed methods suggest asocial
  • lowers validity
• A03- good external validity?


  • observations made by mother NOT researchers --> could cause distraction anxiety
  • highly likely participants acted natural during obervations

  HOWEVER:

  • mothers unlikely to be objective observers (bias towards report)
  • babies might act natural but results not recorded accurately
• A03 - practical application in daycare?

  • during indiscriminate stage babies can be comforted by any adult
  • specific attachment is problematic as attachment formed and shows signs of stranger and seperation anxiety
  • parents use of daycare can be planned using stages