Active learning ideas
The 'Strange Situation' is perhaps the most famous procedure in developmental psychology. Developed by Mary Ainsworth, it provides a standardised way to measure the quality of attachment between an infant and caregiver. Students learn to identify the three main attachment types: secure, insecure-avoidant, and insecure-resistant. This topic is central to the AQA specification and requires a deep understanding of the specific behaviours associated with each type.
Activity 01
Students act out the 8 stages of the Strange Situation in small groups. One student plays the mother, one the infant, and one the stranger. They must demonstrate the specific behaviours (e.g., proximity seeking, stranger anxiety) at each stage.
How does the Strange Situation measure attachment security?
Activity 02
Groups are given attachment data from different countries (e.g., Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg's meta-analysis). They must identify which countries have higher rates of avoidant or resistant attachment and brainstorm cultural reasons why.
What are the characteristics of the three main attachment types?
Activity 03
Students discuss whether the 'secure' label is a value judgement. They consider if an 'avoidant' child in Germany might actually be seen as 'independent' and 'successful' within that culture's norms.
How do child-rearing practices across cultures influence attachment?
A few notes on teaching this unit
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Insecure attachment means the parent is 'bad'.
Explain that attachment type is often a reflection of the child's adaptation to the parent's consistent style of care, not necessarily a sign of 'bad' parenting. Discussing how different environments might favour different attachment styles helps remove the stigma.
The Strange Situation is a natural observation.
Clarify that it is a controlled observation in a laboratory setting. This is why it can be replicated easily, but it may lack ecological validity. Comparing it to home-based observations helps students understand the trade-off between control and realism.
Methods used in this brief
Caregiver-Infant Interactions
An introduction to the development of attachment, focusing on reciprocity and interactional synchrony. Students will review Schaffer and Emerson's stages of attachment.
8 methodologies
Animal Studies of Attachment
Reviewing the foundational animal research by Lorenz and Harlow. Students will debate the ethical implications and the generalisability of these findings to human attachment.
8 methodologies
Deprivation and Institutionalisation
Analysing Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation and the effects of institutionalisation, drawing heavily on the Romanian orphan studies.
8 methodologies