Chapter 3: Attachment

schaffer’s stages attachment Schaffer’s stages of attachment 3.3

76–77

Schaffer and Emerson (1964) demonstrated that children go through various stages of
attachment. Complete the table by putting the phrases below into the correct stage.

STAGE AGE DESCRIPTION OF BEHAVIOUR

Stage 1: 0–8 weeks
ASOCIAL

Stage 2: 2–7 months

INDISCRIMINATE
ATTACHMENT

Stage 33: 7–12 months

SPECIFIC
ATTACHMENTS

Stage 4: 1 year onwards

MULTIPLE
ATTACHMENTS

• Show separation anxiety.

• Use familiar adults as secure base.
• Recognise specific faces.
• Happier in presence of humans than when alone.
• Preference for familiar individuals.
• Recognise and prefer familiar people.
• Smile more at familiar than unfamiliar faces.
• Primary attachment to one particular individual
(the person who shows most sensitivity to their signals).
• Behaviour between humans and non-human objects quite similar.
• Show stranger anxiety.
• Smile at anyone.
• Form secondary attachments with familiar adults with whom they spend time (e.g. father, grandparents).
• Prefer faces to non-faces.
• Accept comfort from any adult.
• Preference for people rather than inanimate objects.

AQA Psychology Year 1 & AS ACTIVITY Cara Flanagan, Jo Haycock, Diana Jackson-Dwyer © Illuminate Publishing 2015