Outline the Strange Situation as a method of assessing attachment. Briefly explain two limitations to this method.

The strange situation is a method first used by Ainsworth to assess infant attachment. The infant and mother are observed in a controlled environment and they experience a series of 3-minute stages. The mother and child interact normally.A stranger enters the situation.The mother leaves the situation (leaving the child and the stranger alone). The mother returns to the situation. The method observes and records the child's response and behaviour in these stages. This involved looking at their proximity-seeking behaviour, their reaction to the stranger, their separation anxiety and there behaviour on the return of the mother (avoidance or clinginess for example). This observation allows the child's attachment type to be measured so they can be attributed either a secure, an insecurely-avoidant or an insecurely-resistant attachment. The strange situation does have limitations. Firstly, the method generally looks at the mother as the main attachment figure. However, this may not be representative of the child's attachment type as it discounts the type of attachment a child may have with other caregivers, especially if the mother is not the primary caregiver or attachment figure for a particular child. Secondly, the variables measured in the strange situation may be limited as they do not account for the temperament of the child or other potential environmental factors which may influence the child's attachment type.