Schaffer's stages of attachment

Schaffer's stages of attachment

1. Schaffer & Emerson

   • investigate the formation of early attachments
     • method
       • 60 babies - 31 male, 29 female
         • from Glasgow, skilled working class families
           • visited every month in the first year
             • then again at 18 months
               • mother questioned about: separation anxiety and stranger anxiety
     • findings
       • between 25 - 32 weeks
         • 50% showed separation anxiety
           • with one attachment figure
       • 40 weeks
         • 80% of babies had a specific attachment
         • 30% showed multiple attachments

2. stages of attachment

   • Schaffer & Emerson
     • stage 1
       • asocial stage (first few weeks)
         • babies how similar attachments to non/ human objects. but prefer human. happier in the presence of a human
     • stage 2
       • indiscriminate attachment (2-7 months)
         • more observable social behaviour. preference to people over objects, recognise familiar adults. accept comfort from any adult do not show separation or stranger anxiety.
     • stage 3
       • specific attachment (7+ months)
         • show stranger and separation anxiety. formed a specific attachment (primary attachment figure) who responds to the baby's signals
     • stage 4
       • multiple attachments (1 year +)
         • form attachments with adults they see regularly - secondary attachments

3. evaluation - Schaffer & Emerson

   • good external validity +
     • not a lab experiment
     • all apart from stranger anxiety carried out by the parents
       • no artificial behaviour
   • longitudinal design +
     • same children followed up and observed regularly
       • better internal validity
       • no confounding variables - individual differences between participants
   • limited sample characteristics -
     • all the families form the same district and social class
       • over 50 years ago
     • can't be generalised to today

4. evaluation - stages of attachment

   • the asocial stage
     • hard to study
     • asocial even though important interactions take place
     • babies have poor coordination and are immobile
       • not strong evidence
   • conflicting evidence on multiple attachments
     • not clear when they are capable of having multiple attachments
     • some say after forming a primary attachment other say before
   • measuring multiple attachment
     • babies have playmates and attachment figures
       • showing anxiety when someone leaves does not indicate an attachment
         • so how do we really know if a baby has an attachment

5. evaluation +

   • Shaffer & Emerson used limited behavioural measures
     • are separation and stranger anxiety too crude a measurement of attachment