Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 18, 2026

Examining Recall Memory in Infancy and Early Childhood Using the Elicited Imitation Paradigm
06:35

Examining Recall Memory in Infancy and Early Childhood Using the Elicited Imitation Paradigm

Published on: April 28, 2016

Attachment behavior at home and in the laboratory: Q-sort observations and strange situation classifications of

B E Vaughn1, E Waters

  • 1Department of Family & Child Development, Auburn University, AL 36849.

Child Development
|December 1, 1990
PubMed

Insights

Secure infant attachment in the Strange Situation correlated with better home security and sociability. Anxious-avoidant infants showed distinct patterns compared to anxious-resistant infants, highlighting attachment differences.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Infant Behavior
  • Attachment Theory

Background:

  • Attachment patterns are crucial for infant development.
  • The Strange Situation procedure and Attachment Q-set are key assessment tools.
  • Understanding the relationship between home and lab-based attachment measures is important.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare attachment classifications using the Strange Situation and Attachment Q-set in 1-year-old infants.
  • To examine the association between secure-base behavior at home and Strange Situation classifications.
  • To investigate differences between anxious-resistant and anxious-avoidant attachment styles.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized Attachment Q-set data from home observations and Strange Situation classifications for 58 infants.
  • Scored security, dependency, and sociability from Q-sort reports.
  • Conducted comparative analyses between securely and anxiously attached groups, and between anxious-resistant and anxious-avoidant subgroups.

Main Results:

  • Secure attachment (Group B) was linked to higher Q-sort security scores (better home secure-base behavior) and sociability.
  • No significant association was found between secure attachment and dependency scores.
  • Descriptive Q-set item analyses supported the secure-base interpretation of Strange Situation security classifications.

Conclusions:

  • Infant attachment security observed in the home environment aligns with Strange Situation classifications.
  • Sociability is associated with secure infant attachment, while dependency is not.
  • Attachment Q-set data provides valuable insights into the nuances of infant-caregiver interactions and attachment security.

More Related Videos

Behavioral Assessment of Hearing in 2 to 4 Year-old Children: A Two-interval, Observer-based Procedure Using Conditioned Play-based Responses14:05

Behavioral Assessment of Hearing in 2 to 4 Year-old Children: A Two-interval, Observer-based Procedure Using Conditioned Play-based Responses

Published on: January 23, 2017

The Other End of the Leash: An Experimental Test to Analyze How Owners Interact with Their Pet Dogs08:59

The Other End of the Leash: An Experimental Test to Analyze How Owners Interact with Their Pet Dogs

Published on: October 13, 2017

Related Concept Videos

Naturalistic Observations02:30

Naturalistic Observations

If you want to understand how behavior occurs, one of the best ways to gain information is to simply observe the behavior in its natural context. However, people might change their behavior in unexpected ways if they know they are being observed. How do researchers obtain accurate information when people tend to hide their natural behavior? As an example, imagine that your professor asks everyone in your class to raise their hand if they always wash their hands after using the restroom. Chances...
Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood03:34

Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood

Attachment is a long-standing connection or bond with others. While Attachment Theory was conceived in developmental psychology to describe infant-caregiver bonding, it's been extended into adulthood to include romantic relationships.
Behaviorism01:28

Behaviorism

The field of behaviorism was pioneered by figures such as Ivan Pavlov, John B. Watson, and B.F. Skinner fundamentally shifted the focus of psychology to the observable and controllable aspects of human and animal behavior. This shift marked a critical evolution in the discipline, emphasizing scientific rigor and experimental methodology.
The core premise of behaviorism is its focus on observable behavior rather than internal thoughts or feelings. This approach argues that true scientific...
Piaget's Stage 1 of Cognitive Development01:14

Piaget's Stage 1 of Cognitive Development

The sensorimotor stage, the initial phase of Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development, spans the first two years of a child's life. During this period, infants actively engage with their surroundings, building cognitive awareness through direct interaction with the world. This interaction is primarily based on sensory perception and motor actions, allowing infants to gradually understand basic physical properties and predict how objects interact within their environment.
Exploration...
Attachment01:20

Attachment

Attachment is vital for infant development, as warm social interactions support growth and well-being. In a classic 1958 study by Harry Harlow, the significance of warmth and comfort in forming attachments was examined. Harlow separated newborn monkeys from their mothers and provided two artificial "mothers": one made of cold wire and the other covered in soft cloth. Despite the wire mother offering food, the infant monkeys preferred the comfort of the cloth mother, demonstrating that physical...
Relationship with Parents: Attachment01:28

Relationship with Parents: Attachment

Parent-child interactions lay the foundation for how we understand relationships throughout life. These interactions are not uniform across families; instead, they are shaped by a range of environmental, emotional, and behavioral factors unique to each caregiver-child dynamic. Social psychologists study these early relationships to understand how patterns formed in infancy influence social functioning and interpersonal behavior in adulthood.Attachment Theory and Early Relational ModelsJohn...