Shaffer and Emerson's Glasgow study 1964

Shaffer and Emerson's Glasgow study 1964

1. Findings

   • PA not always formed with person spent longest with infant
   • Sensitive mothers had a more intensley attached infant
   • Quality of attachment matters most in the formation
   • 65% of first attachments were to mothers
   • 3% of fathers were first attachment & 27% joint
   • 29% of infants within a month of attachmnet had multiple attachments
     • In 6 months 29% rose to 78%
   • By thw age of 1, 1/3 of infants had 5 or more attachments

2. Procedure

   • 60 infants from working class homes
   • Studied for 1 year
   • Mothers reported baby's response in 7 every day scenarios
   • 4 point scale of intensity of protest
   • Mother reported who she thought protest was to
   • Stranger anxiety measured using researcher

3. 4 Stages of attachment

   • Indiscriminate (same respnses, reciprocity, interaction synchrony)
     • IN
   • The beginning (comforted by anyone, no SA, no preference to person
     • The beginning
   • Discriminate (joy at reunion, SEP ANX occur, stra anx
     • Dinosaurs
   • Multiple (Attached to multiple people,, soon after first attachment)
     • Multiplied

4. Evaluation

   • Longitudinal study (drop outs, low validity, specific ptps left)
   • Self report (subjective, ptp varibles impact test, low validity)
   • Small sample (low population validity)
   • No account for other cultures (only use in individualistic cultures)
   • Naturalistic observation (ecological validity)