Ainsworth's Strange Situation

Who conducted this experiment?

Ainsworth and Bell

When did they carry out this experiment?

1971

What were the mothers and infants introduced to?

a strange room with toys

Sample?

100 middle-class American infants and their mothers participated in the strange situation

What was the procedure designed to be novel enough to elicit?

exploratory behaviour without being so strange that it would evoke fear and heighten attachemtent behaviour at the outset

How was the room set up?

9×9 foot floor space divided into 16 squares for recording location and movement

Who were pre-instructed on their roles?

the mother and stranger

What intervals did the observers note the behaviours displayed in?

15-second intervals

The 5 identified behaviours?

exploration, proximity seeking, separation anxiety, reunion and stranger anxiety

Exploration?

how much the baby explores and moves around the room

Proximity seeking?

how close the baby stays to the mother

Separation anxiety?

the emotional response seen in the child when the caregiver leaves

Reunion?

the baby’s emotional response when the caregiver returns

Stranger anxiety?

the baby’s emotional response to a stranger

Ainsworth’s strange situation: How is exploration and proximity seeking tested?

the child is encouraged to explore by the caregiver

Ainsworth’s strange situation: How is stranger anxiety tested (1)?

a stranger enters the room and tries to interact with the child

Ainsworth’s strange situation: How is separation and stranger anxiety tested?

the caregiver leaves the child alone with the stranger

Ainsworth’s strange situation: How is reunion tested (1)?

the caegiver returns and the stranger leaves the room

Ainsworth’s strange situation: How is separation anxiety then tested again?

the caregiver leaves the room again; the child is left alone in the room

Ainsworth’s strange situation: How is stranger anxiety tested again?

the stranger returns to the room and interacts with the child

Ainsworth’s strange situation: How is reunion tested again?

the caregiver returns and the stranger leaved the room again

The 3 types of attachment?

secure, insecure avoidant and insecure resistant

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Exploration - Secure attachment?

moderate

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Exploration - Insecure-avoidant attachement?

high

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Exploration - Insecure-resistant attachment?

lows

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Proximity seeking - secure?

moderate

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Proximity seeking - insecure-avoidant?

low

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Proximity seeking - insecure-resistance?

high

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Separation anxiety - secure?

moderate

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Separation anxiety - insecure-avoidant?

low

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Separation anxiety - insecure-resistant?

high

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Reunion - secure?

easily comforted

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Reunion - insecure-avoidant?

indifferent

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Reunion - insecure-resistant?

resist comfort

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Stranger anxiety - secure?

moderate

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Stranger anxiety - insecure-avoidant?

low

Ainsworth’s strange situation: Stranger anxiety - insecure-resistant?

high

Findings: percentage of securely attached infants?

66%

Findings: percentage of insecure-avoidant attached infants?

22%

Findings: percentage of insecure-resistant attached infants?

12%

Strength - P: what was there a high degree of control over?

extraneous variables

Strength - Ex: 2 examples of what Ainsworth controlled?

the toys available and when the caregiver and stranger entered/left the room

Strength - Ev: what does this high degree of control over extraneous variables mean for the target behaviours?

the target behaviours were not influenced by other factors, allowing for an accurate comparison of results from child to child

Strength - L: Therefore, what does this research have a high level of?

internal validity - as they measured what they intended to

Weakness - P: what is wrong with the sample?

not representative

Weakness - Ev: what was the sample used?

100 middle class American infants and their mothers

Weakness - Ex: what are the issues with this sample (2)?

low population validity (small sample) and cultural bias (middle-class Americans)

Weakness - L: therefore, what can’t be done with the results?

can’t be generalised across cultures and all classes in America

Strength - P: is the experiment overt or covert?

covert

Strength - Ev: who was unaware their behaviour was being watched?

the babies - Ainsworth watched them behind a one way mirror

Strength - Ex: Therefore, what had no influence over the babies behaviour?

Ainsworth’s presence - will gain a more accurate insight

Strength - L: Why will Ainsworth gain a more accurate insight through using covert observation techniques?

the Babies behaviour will be more natural as it eliminates any demand characteristics

Weakness - P: What type of experiment is it?

lab experiment

Weakness - Ev: where does this experiment take place?

in a lab, so an unnatural and artificial environment for the baby

Weakness - Ex: what could this artificial environment cause infants to display?

out of the ordinary behaviours - so the results aren’t generalisable to real-world situations

Weakness - L: therefore, what does this experiment have a low level of?

low ecological validity