Research into cultural variations in attachment

AO1 - van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg - meta analysis

Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg 1988 conducted a meta analysis of 32 studies from 8 different countries that had used Ainsworth’s strange situation. In total, the results of over 1990 infants were included in their analysis.

their research produced several key findings in relation to the distribution of attachment in different countries with secure attachment being the most common type of attachment in all cultures examined.

Japan and Israel (collectivist cultures) showed higher levels of insecure resistant attachment whereas Germany (individualistic culture) showed higher levels of insecure-avoidant attachment.

AO1 - efe tribe

Kronick et al 1992 studied the efe tribe from Zaire who live in extended family groups . the infants are looked after and breastfed by different women within the social group but infants sleep with their own mothers at night.

although childrearing practices differ from western norms, the infants still showed a preference for a primary attachment figure at 6 months old, echoing the notion that secure attachment is the most common globally.

AO3 - comparing countries not cultures

Criticism of Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenbergs research is that they may have been comparing countries and not, in fact, cultures

for example they compared Great Britain to israel in their meta-anlaysis. Within each country there may eb different sub cultures, each with their own ways of rearing children.

interestingly the researchers noted that variance within countries was far greater than between countries. It therefore stands to reason that they did, in fact, collect data on subcultures within the countries they investigated rather than the whole nation.

Additon of AO3 - quite simple - biased

Additionally, the sample used in their investigation was biased with 27/32 of the studies in their meta analysis carried out in individualistic cultures

therefore, their results are biased towards individualistic norms and values so cannot accurately generalise the results to collcetivoots cultures, lowering the population validity of the findings.

Individualistic Culture

A culture that emphasizes personal independence, individual achievement, and self-expression. People in individualistic cultures (e.g., the UK, USA) are generally motivated by personal goals rather than group goals.

Collectivist Culture

A culture that values group membership, interdependence, and cooperation. In collectivist cultures (e.g., China, Japan), individuals are more likely to prioritize the goals of the group (such as family or community) over their own personal desires.

AO3 - culture bias in Ainsworth strange situation

Furthermore, Van ijzerdoorn and kroonenberg’s research further highlights the culture bias demonstrated in Ainsworth strange situation, by reporting significant differences in the distribution of attachment types (secure, insecure-avoidant, insecure-attachment) in different cultures.

for example, Germany has the highest rate of insecure avoidant attachment which may be the result of different child rearing practices and not a more ‘insecure’ population. In Germany there is a general desire to keep some interpersonal distance between parents and infants; therefore, parents would generally discourage proximity seeking behaviours within the strange situation which might bias the results of attachment research in Germany which therefore incorrectly categorises children as ‘insecure’.

This suggests that the meta analysis research investigating cultural variations should be treated with caution as the underlying methodology of the studies (the strange situation) suffers from a significant culture bias.

using a methodology for `assessment beyond the sample for which it was designed is referred to as an imposed etic. This matters because attachment behaviours mean different things for different cultures and so the results may not be valid when used with samples from non western cultures.