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ainsworths strange situation - Coggle Diagram
ainsworths strange situation
controlled observation procedure designed to measure the security of attatchemt a child displays towards a caregiver
sample= 100 americannmiddle-class families with infants aged between 12-18 months. done in room with 2-way mirror where psychologist can observe infants behaviours
identified 3 types of attatchment
insecure avoidant
20% of US infants
explores unfamiliar environment but does not return to mother as base, low separation anxiety, low stranger anxiety, little reaction on mothers return, does not seek proximity and avoids intimacy
caregivers uninterested in infants, often rejecting them and tending to be self-centred and rigid in their behaviour
insecure resistant
10% of US infants
infant does not explore and stays close to mother, high separation anxiety, high stranger anxiety, not easily comforted by mother and seek and reject her, resist mothers attempts to comfort them on reunion
caregivers behave inconsistently
secure attachment
70% of US infants
explores unfamilioar environment returning to mother for base, moderate separation anxiety, moderate stranger anxiety, seeks proximity and easily comforted in presence and shows joy on reunion
seen as normal/best
caregivers very sensitive to their needs and responded in emotionally expressive way
evaluation
strength-method of assessing infant uses controlled observation and systematic procedures by using pre determined behavioural categories and video recordings. additionally had several observers observing and coding the same infant so had inter-rater reliability and is a reliable method of assessing attachment
limitation- practical issues with ethics of strange situation. argued mothers often leave children with babysitters so not unethical how can be questioned as deliberately exposing child to stressful situation to see how they will react therefore limits its use as a method of assessing attachment