As such, it is difficult and time-consuming to assess in homes and unconstrained outdoor settings. The Strange Situation is a semi-structured laboratory procedure that allows us to identify, without lengthy home observation, infants who effectively use a primary caregiver as a secure base .
What is the Strange Situation test in child psychology?
an experimental technique used to assess quality of attachment in infants and young children (up to the age of 2). The procedure subjects the child to increasing amounts of stress induced by a strange setting, the entrance of an unfamiliar person, and two brief separations from the parent.
What is the basic purpose of the Strange Situation Procedure quizlet?
The strange situation is a controlled observation procedure designed to measure the security of attachment a child displays towards a caregiver . It takes place in a room with quite controlled conditions with a two way mirror see which psychologists can observe the infants behaviour.
What does Strange Situation measures?
Ainsworth's Strange Situation (1970) used structured observational research to assess & measure the quality of attachment . It has 8 pre-determined stages, including the mother leaving the child, for a short while, to play with available toys in the presence of a stranger & alone and the mother returning to the child.
How did the Strange Situation work?
In this procedure of the Strange Situation the child is observed playing for 21 minutes while caregivers and strangers enter and leave the room, recreating the flow of the familiar and unfamiliar presence in most children's lives. The situation varies in stressfulness and the child's responses are observed.
What was the sequence of events in the Strange Situation test?
-A sequence of events that a child is in a unfamiliar room w/ mother, stranger enters,mother leaves:The child is classified . “secure base” is what the attached parent serves as from which the child ventures+returns. You just studied 7 terms!
What is one criticism of the Strange Situation as a measure of attachment?
The biggest flaw of Ainsworth's strange situation is the fact that it may not measure the attachment type of the infant but rather the quality of the relationship between the infant and caregiver . A study conducted by Main and Weston concluded that infants behave differently depending on which parent they are with.
What are the 4 stages of attachment?
For example, Schaffer and Emerson suggested that attachments develop in four stages: asocial stage or pre-attachment (first few weeks), indiscriminate attachment (approximately 6 weeks to 7 months), specific attachment or discriminate attachment (approximately 7-9 months) and multiple attachment (approximately 10 ...
What are the 4 types of attachment?
Bowlby identified four types of attachment styles: secure, anxious-ambivalent, disorganised and avoidant .
Is the Strange Situation valid?
Although, as Melhuish (1993) suggests, the Strange Situation is the most widely used method for assessing infant attachment to a caregiver, Lamb et al. ... This means that it lacks validity , as it does not measure a general attachment style, but instead an attachment style specific to the mother.
Why is the Strange Situation culturally biased?
The Strange Situation was created and tested in the USA, which means that it may be culturally biased (ethnocentric), as it will reflect the norms and values of American culture . For example, the belief that attachment is related to anxiety on separation. This may not be the case in other cultures, e.g. Japan.
What are some effects of depriving attachment?
Children with poor attachments tend to display poor socioemotional affects, such as, poor social, coping, and problem solving skills, tantrums, clingy, withdrawn, or aggressive behaviors , etc. These negative effects, often impacts the child throughout their developmental years.
What does insecure attachment look like?
Signs of disorganized attachment include: Depression and anxiety . Frequent outbursts and erratic behaviors (which stems from the inability to clearly see and understand the world around them or properly process the behavior of others or relationships) Poor self-image and self-hatred.
When was the Strange Situation developed?
The American-Canadian psychologist Mary Ainsworth (1913-1999) developed the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) to measure mother-child attachment and attachment theorists have used it ever since. When Ainsworth published the first results of the SSP in 1969 , it seemed a completely novel and unique instrument.
What is disorganized attachment in adults?
Adults with a disorganized attachment style lack a coherent approach towards relationships . On the one hand, they want to belong. They want to love and be loved. While on the other hand, they are afraid to let anyone in. They have a strong fear that the people who are closest to them will hurt them.
What are the 3 attachment styles?
Based on these observations, Ainsworth concluded that there were three major styles of attachment: secure attachment, ambivalent-insecure attachment, and avoidant-insecure attachment .
