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Child Psychology

Ainsworth and Bell (1970) the Strange Situation: procedure and attachment types

  • 3 things to know
  • Component 03

Overview

Recall questions on the aim, sample and method of Ainsworth and Bell's 1970 Strange Situation study, its eight episodes, the behaviours rated, exploratory play, the three attachment types and how securely attached infants behave.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

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Key term

Describe the sequence of episodes.

Key term

Who took part in Ainsworth and Bell's study?

Key term

Name the three attachment types Ainsworth identified.

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    State the aim of Ainsworth and Bell (1970).

    Model answer

    They aimed to investigate how one-year-olds balance attachment behaviour against exploration, and how that balance changes under the mild stress of a stranger's presence and of being separated from the mother.

  2. 2

    Who took part in Ainsworth and Bell's study?

    Model answer

    Fifty-six infants aged between 49 and 51 weeks took part, all from white middle-class families in Baltimore in the United States.

  3. 3

    What method was used?

    Model answer

    It was a controlled observation carried out in a purpose-built laboratory playroom, watched through a one-way mirror by two observers who dictated a running commentary every 15 seconds.

  4. 4

    How many episodes made up the procedure, and how long did they last?

    Model answer

    There were eight episodes, the first lasting about half a minute and each of the others about three minutes.

  5. 5

    Describe the sequence of episodes.

    Model answer

    The mother and baby are shown into the room; the baby explores with the mother present; a stranger enters and approaches the baby; the mother leaves the baby with the stranger; the mother returns and the stranger goes; the mother leaves the baby entirely alone; the stranger returns; and finally the mother returns again.

  6. 6

    Which behaviours were rated by the observers?

    Model answer

    Proximity and contact seeking, contact maintaining, avoidance of the mother, resistance to contact and search behaviour during separation, alongside exploratory play and crying.

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