Types of Attachment

Types of Attachment

1. Mary Ainsworth

   • found that 70% of US sample of infants were securely attached, 10% insecure resistant, 20% insecure avoidant
     • Mothers who were sensitive to their baby's needs were more likely to have secure attachments - Maternal Sensitivity Hypothesis
   • Strange situation, observation of behaviours:
     • Exploration
     • Separation behaviour
     • Stranger anxiety
     • Reunion behaviour
     • Evaluation
       • + Standardised, can be replicated, more reliable
       • - Ethically questionable, putting children in distress
         • Mary's defence, normal stress for childcare
       • - Lacks ecological validity

2. Cultural Variations in Attachment, Van Ijzendoorn

   • Meta-analysis
   • Insecure resistant more common in collectivist societies e.g. Japan, Insecure avoidant more common in individualistic societies e.g. USA
   • - Strange Situation developed in USA, individualistic society, can it be generalised?
   • - Nearly all the studies were from individualistic cultures
   • concluded attachment varies more within a culture than between, secure attachment is the most common