Ainsworth's strange situation

Ainsworth's strange situation

1. 8 episodes-each 3 minutes apart from last one which was 30 s

2. Total of 106 being observed.

3. 5 categories recorded-every 15 seconds measured on scale of 1-7

4. Episodes with caregiver and stranger,episodes with separation, episodes alone and reunion episodes.

5. Type A-insecure avoidant= 15% ignored the mother and were indifferent to her presence -little stress when she left and not bothered when she returned.

   • Type B- secure= 70% played contently when mother was prsent-distressed when she left but comforted easily on reunion.
     • Type C- insecure resistant= 15% were fussy-distressed when she left and sought comfort on her return but also showed anger/resistance to contact.

6. Positive Evaluation:strage situation shows good inter rater reliability( different observers generally agreed -Bick found 94% agreement in 1 team-likely to be due to the controlled conditions)

7. Negative Evaluation:may be a culture bound exp. (children and caregiver behave differently in different cultures-japanese kids show high separation anxiety )--temperment may be a confoudning variable (personality may influence separation protest and stranger anxiety)--there may be other attachment types (may be disorganised attachment types-mix of a few-questions usefulness)