The Strange Situation; assessing attachment types
- Created by: emmarhianne
- Created on: 26-03-17 15:16
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- Types of attachment: The Strange Situation
- Mary Ainsworth developed a reliable way to assess children's attachment style; Strange Situation
- Caregiver and infant enter room, caregiver sits while infant plays, stranger enters and talks to caregiver and approaches child with a toy, caregiver leaves infant alone with stranger and stranger interacts with child, mother returns to greet and comfort child and stranger leaves,then mother leaves, stranger returns and tries to engage with child, mother returns + greets and picks up child, stranger leaves again.
- Secure attachment: Distressed when mother leaves, avoidant of stranger when alone but friendly with mother, positive and happy when mother returns, uses mum as safe base to explore, mothers were particularly sensitive to child's needs.
- Insecure-avoidant: Infant shows no sign of distress when mum leaves, infant is comfortable with stranger and plays normally, infant shows little interest when mother returns, mother and stranger can comfort equally, sometimes mother ignored child's needs.
- Insecure-resistant: Infant shows sign of intense distress when mother leaves, infant avoids stranger showing intense fear, child approaches mother but resists contact, may even push away, infant cries a lot more and explores less, mothers sometimes responded to needs and other times ignored.
- Insecure-avoidant: Infant shows no sign of distress when mum leaves, infant is comfortable with stranger and plays normally, infant shows little interest when mother returns, mother and stranger can comfort equally, sometimes mother ignored child's needs.
- Secure attachment: Distressed when mother leaves, avoidant of stranger when alone but friendly with mother, positive and happy when mother returns, uses mum as safe base to explore, mothers were particularly sensitive to child's needs.
- Controlled observation which took part in a laboratory; observed through a two-way mirror; behaviour observed against a number of criteria.
- Caregiver and infant enter room, caregiver sits while infant plays, stranger enters and talks to caregiver and approaches child with a toy, caregiver leaves infant alone with stranger and stranger interacts with child, mother returns to greet and comfort child and stranger leaves,then mother leaves, stranger returns and tries to engage with child, mother returns + greets and picks up child, stranger leaves again.
- A strength is that it has given us a reliable way to measure attachment; in one study it was found the inter-rater reliability was 94% when measuring attachment type; confident its the attachment type being measured not it being dependant on who is observing.
- However, it takes place in a controlled situation, it may be an unrealistic measure as the child might show different attachment behaviours if it was set in a familiar setting, questions whether it is really assessing attachment.
- Questioned whether the ** is measuring the attachment type or quality of relationship to caregiver; Main and Weston found children behave differently depending on which parent the were with. So ** might be assessing quality of attachment rather than infants actual attachment type; lowers validity.
- Some may argue it is not accurate measurement in cultures other than USA; based on American child rearing practices and values; using ** in different cultures may produce an inaccurate attachment type as it has not considered other child rearing practices in other cultures; Germany: independent; insecure-avoidant- this could be secure in their culture.
- Mary Ainsworth developed a reliable way to assess children's attachment style; Strange Situation
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