The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture

Alessandra Simonelli; Francesca De Palo; Marilena Moretti; Paola Merlin Baratter; Alessio Porreca

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11

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The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture

Alessandra Simonelli, Francesca De Palo, Marilena Moretti, Paola Merlin Baratter, Alessio Porreca

Published in American Journal of Applied Psychology (Volume 3, Issue 3)

Received: 5 March 2014 Accepted: 5 May 2014 Published: 10 May 2014

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Abstract

The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP; Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, Wall, 1978) is the most widely used procedure to assess attachment in early childhood (Bowlby, 1969, 1973, 1980). Indeed, this method finds very large application in many fields of research and, particularly, in the intercultural study of attachment. The intercultural applications of the SSP, are referred to various Western cultures and cultures other than the Western one, such as, for instance, the African, Chinese, Japanese and Israeli ones. In this research 76 12-month-old infants were observed in the SSP in order to assess the distribution of infant-mother attachment in the Italian culture, and to compare the pattern classification with other national (Ammaniti et al., 1994; Tambelli et al. 2008) and international non-clinical samples (van IJzendoorn et al., 1992; Schuengel et al., 1999). Results: Results show a significant lower proportion of Secure attachment and more Insecure Avoidant one in the Italian group than in US samples of meta-analytic studies. From a socio-cultural perspective, a possible explanation for the obtained results can be found in the peculiar changes which have come about in child-rearing procedures, especially in first infancy. This behavioral organization could show an adjustment strategy within a context which is not exclusively dyadic anymore, but which requires an ability to find resources even in a condition characterized by daily separations, multiple interactions and repeated caregiving micro-modifications.

Published in	American Journal of Applied Psychology (Volume 3, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11
Page(s)	47-56
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2014. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Strange Situation Procedure, Attachment Bond, Secure Attachment, Cultural Issues in Attachment

References

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APA Style

Alessandra Simonelli, Francesca De Palo, Marilena Moretti, Paola Merlin Baratter, Alessio Porreca. (2014). The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture. American Journal of Applied Psychology, 3(3), 47-56. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11

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ACS Style

Alessandra Simonelli; Francesca De Palo; Marilena Moretti; Paola Merlin Baratter; Alessio Porreca. The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture. Am. J. Appl. Psychol. 2014, 3(3), 47-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11

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AMA Style

Alessandra Simonelli, Francesca De Palo, Marilena Moretti, Paola Merlin Baratter, Alessio Porreca. The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture. Am J Appl Psychol. 2014;3(3):47-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11,
  author = {Alessandra Simonelli and Francesca De Palo and Marilena Moretti and Paola Merlin Baratter and Alessio Porreca},
  title = {The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture},
  journal = {American Journal of Applied Psychology},
  volume = {3},
  number = {3},
  pages = {47-56},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajap.20140303.11},
  abstract = {The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP; Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, Wall, 1978) is the most widely used procedure to assess attachment in early childhood (Bowlby, 1969, 1973, 1980). Indeed, this method finds very large application in many fields of research and, particularly, in the intercultural study of attachment. The intercultural applications of the SSP, are referred to various Western cultures and cultures other than the Western one, such as, for instance, the African, Chinese, Japanese and Israeli ones. In this research 76 12-month-old infants were observed in the SSP in order to assess the distribution of infant-mother attachment in the Italian culture, and to compare the pattern classification with other national (Ammaniti et al., 1994; Tambelli et al. 2008) and international non-clinical samples (van IJzendoorn et al., 1992;  Schuengel et al., 1999). Results: Results show a significant lower proportion of Secure attachment and more Insecure Avoidant one in the Italian group than in US samples of meta-analytic studies. From a socio-cultural perspective, a possible explanation for the obtained results can be found in the peculiar changes which have come about in child-rearing procedures, especially in first infancy. This behavioral organization could show an adjustment strategy within a context which is not exclusively dyadic anymore, but which requires an ability to find resources even in a condition characterized by daily separations, multiple interactions and repeated caregiving micro-modifications.},
 year = {2014}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture
AU  - Alessandra Simonelli
AU  - Francesca De Palo
AU  - Marilena Moretti
AU  - Paola Merlin Baratter
AU  - Alessio Porreca
Y1  - 2014/05/10
PY  - 2014
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11
T2  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JF  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JO  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
SP  - 47
EP  - 56
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5672
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11
AB  - The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP; Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, Wall, 1978) is the most widely used procedure to assess attachment in early childhood (Bowlby, 1969, 1973, 1980). Indeed, this method finds very large application in many fields of research and, particularly, in the intercultural study of attachment. The intercultural applications of the SSP, are referred to various Western cultures and cultures other than the Western one, such as, for instance, the African, Chinese, Japanese and Israeli ones. In this research 76 12-month-old infants were observed in the SSP in order to assess the distribution of infant-mother attachment in the Italian culture, and to compare the pattern classification with other national (Ammaniti et al., 1994; Tambelli et al. 2008) and international non-clinical samples (van IJzendoorn et al., 1992;  Schuengel et al., 1999). Results: Results show a significant lower proportion of Secure attachment and more Insecure Avoidant one in the Italian group than in US samples of meta-analytic studies. From a socio-cultural perspective, a possible explanation for the obtained results can be found in the peculiar changes which have come about in child-rearing procedures, especially in first infancy. This behavioral organization could show an adjustment strategy within a context which is not exclusively dyadic anymore, but which requires an ability to find resources even in a condition characterized by daily separations, multiple interactions and repeated caregiving micro-modifications.
VL  - 3
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Author Information

Alessandra Simonelli

Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padua, Padova Pd Italy
Francesca De Palo

Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padua, Padova Pd Italy
Marilena Moretti

Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padua, Padova Pd Italy
Paola Merlin Baratter

Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padua, Padova Pd Italy
Alessio Porreca

Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, University of Padua, Padova Pd Italy

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Alessandra Simonelli, Francesca De Palo, Marilena Moretti, Paola Merlin Baratter, Alessio Porreca. (2014). The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture. American Journal of Applied Psychology, 3(3), 47-56. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11

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ACS Style

Alessandra Simonelli; Francesca De Palo; Marilena Moretti; Paola Merlin Baratter; Alessio Porreca. The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture. Am. J. Appl. Psychol. 2014, 3(3), 47-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11

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AMA Style

Alessandra Simonelli, Francesca De Palo, Marilena Moretti, Paola Merlin Baratter, Alessio Porreca. The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture. Am J Appl Psychol. 2014;3(3):47-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11,
  author = {Alessandra Simonelli and Francesca De Palo and Marilena Moretti and Paola Merlin Baratter and Alessio Porreca},
  title = {The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture},
  journal = {American Journal of Applied Psychology},
  volume = {3},
  number = {3},
  pages = {47-56},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajap.20140303.11},
  abstract = {The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP; Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, Wall, 1978) is the most widely used procedure to assess attachment in early childhood (Bowlby, 1969, 1973, 1980). Indeed, this method finds very large application in many fields of research and, particularly, in the intercultural study of attachment. The intercultural applications of the SSP, are referred to various Western cultures and cultures other than the Western one, such as, for instance, the African, Chinese, Japanese and Israeli ones. In this research 76 12-month-old infants were observed in the SSP in order to assess the distribution of infant-mother attachment in the Italian culture, and to compare the pattern classification with other national (Ammaniti et al., 1994; Tambelli et al. 2008) and international non-clinical samples (van IJzendoorn et al., 1992;  Schuengel et al., 1999). Results: Results show a significant lower proportion of Secure attachment and more Insecure Avoidant one in the Italian group than in US samples of meta-analytic studies. From a socio-cultural perspective, a possible explanation for the obtained results can be found in the peculiar changes which have come about in child-rearing procedures, especially in first infancy. This behavioral organization could show an adjustment strategy within a context which is not exclusively dyadic anymore, but which requires an ability to find resources even in a condition characterized by daily separations, multiple interactions and repeated caregiving micro-modifications.},
 year = {2014}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - The Strange Situation Procedure: The Role of the Attachment Patterns in the Italian Culture
AU  - Alessandra Simonelli
AU  - Francesca De Palo
AU  - Marilena Moretti
AU  - Paola Merlin Baratter
AU  - Alessio Porreca
Y1  - 2014/05/10
PY  - 2014
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11
T2  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JF  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
JO  - American Journal of Applied Psychology
SP  - 47
EP  - 56
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5672
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajap.20140303.11
AB  - The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP; Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, Wall, 1978) is the most widely used procedure to assess attachment in early childhood (Bowlby, 1969, 1973, 1980). Indeed, this method finds very large application in many fields of research and, particularly, in the intercultural study of attachment. The intercultural applications of the SSP, are referred to various Western cultures and cultures other than the Western one, such as, for instance, the African, Chinese, Japanese and Israeli ones. In this research 76 12-month-old infants were observed in the SSP in order to assess the distribution of infant-mother attachment in the Italian culture, and to compare the pattern classification with other national (Ammaniti et al., 1994; Tambelli et al. 2008) and international non-clinical samples (van IJzendoorn et al., 1992;  Schuengel et al., 1999). Results: Results show a significant lower proportion of Secure attachment and more Insecure Avoidant one in the Italian group than in US samples of meta-analytic studies. From a socio-cultural perspective, a possible explanation for the obtained results can be found in the peculiar changes which have come about in child-rearing procedures, especially in first infancy. This behavioral organization could show an adjustment strategy within a context which is not exclusively dyadic anymore, but which requires an ability to find resources even in a condition characterized by daily separations, multiple interactions and repeated caregiving micro-modifications.
VL  - 3
IS  - 3
ER  -

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