Question

In a study of attachment formation by Ainsworth and her colleagues (1978), some mothers were less responsive to their babies' signals than others. One group of mothers seemed to be reluctant to hold their babies, showed less warmth and affection than other mothers, and were more rejecting and angry. When their babies were tested in the strange situation test, the children tended to fit which category of attachment?

a. Securely attached
b. Anxious ambivalent
c. Avoidant
d. Disorganized/disoriented

Answer 1

Children of mothers who were less responsive and more rejecting and angry typically developed an avoidant attachment style, marked by indifference towards the parent and a lack of preference between a parent and a stranger.

Step-by-step explanation:

In Ainsworth’s study, babies whose mothers were less responsive, reluctant to hold them, and were more rejecting and angry, tend to develop an avoidant attachment style. In the Strange Situation test, these children are observed to be unresponsive to the parent, do not use the parent as a secure base, and show no preference between a parent and a stranger. They did not seek comfort from the caregiver upon their return, indicating a likely history of insensitive and inattentive responses from the caregiver to their needs.