procedure of the strange situation

• The security of attachment in one- to two-year-olds was investigated using the strange situation paradigm in order to determine the nature of attachment behaviors and styles of attachment
• Ainsworth and Bell (1971) conducted a controlled observation recording the reactions of a child and mother (caregiver), who were introduced to a strange room with toys
• About 100 middle-class American infants and their mothers participated in the strange situation.
• The strange situation procedure was designed to be novel enough to elicit exploratory behavior and yet not so strange that it would evoke fear and heighten attachment behavior at the outset
• The room was set up with a clear 9 x 9-foot floor space divided into 16 squares for recording location and movement
•  One end housed a chair laden with toys, while the other had chairs for the mother and a stranger
• The baby was placed centrally, free to move around
• The mother and stranger were pre-instructed on their roles.
• The child is observed playing for 20 minutes while caregivers and strangers enter and leave the room, recreating the flow of the familiar and unfamiliar presence in most children’s lives.
• Ainsworth & Bell observed from the other side of a one-way mirror, so the children did not know they were being observed.
• The infant’s behavior was observed during eight pre-determined  ‘episodes’ of approximately 3 minutes each.
• 1. Mother, baby, and experimenter: The mother, accompanied by an observer, carried the baby into the room, and then the observer left.  This episode lasts less than one minute
• 2.Mother and baby alone: The mother places the baby in a designated area, then sits quietly, only interacting if the baby initiates. This episode lasts for three minutes.
• 3.A stranger joins the mother and infant: A stranger enters the room, sitting silently for a minute, then conversing with the mother for another minute before gradually approaching the baby with a toy. After the third minute, the mother discreetly exits the room.
• 4.Mother leaves baby and stranger alone: If the baby was contentedly playing, the stranger didn’t intervene. If the baby was inactive, the stranger attempted to engage him with the toys.If the baby was upset, the stranger sought to distract or soothe him. If comfort couldn’t be provided, the episode was cut short; otherwise, it continued for three minutes.
• 5.Mother returns, and the stranger leaves: The mother enters and momentarily pauses at the doorway, allowing the baby to react to her presence spontaneously. The stranger discreetly exited.The subsequent actions of the mother were not pre-determined, except for instructions that once the baby resumed playing with toys, she would leave again, pausing to say “bye-bye.” The duration of this episode wasn’t fixed.
• 6. Mother leaves; infant left completely alone: The baby was left by themself for three minutes unless their distress level necessitated shortening this time frame.
• 7.Stranger returns: The stranger returned, acting as in the fourth episode for three minutes unless the baby’s distress led to a premature ending. Ainsworth & bell had originally designed a different approach for the seventh episode, which was tested on the initial 14 participants (infants) but resembled the more straightforward method reported here and used for the remaining participants.
• 8.Mother returns, and the stranger leaves: The mother comes back, the stranger exits, and once the mother-child reunion is noted, the scenario is concluded.
• 1. test- secure- base and exploration
  2. tests- stranger anxiety
  3. test- separation and stranger anxiety
  4. test- reunion behaviour, exploration and secure-base
  5. test- separation anxiety
  6. test- stranger anxiety
  7. test- reunion behaviour