Tutorial 4

Human Development

Lecturer:
____________
Lesson Plan

(A) Questionnaire
(B) Attachment

Linus and his security blanket

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(A) AA Scale

1) Complete the Revised AA scale (Collins, 1996)

 Read each of the 18 statements and rate the extent to which it
describes your feelings about close relationships in general. That is,
we want you to think about how you feel in all close relationships
including your romantic relationships, friendships, and family
relationships.

 Use the scale below and indicate the degree to which each
statement is characteristic of you by placing a number between 1
and 5 in the space provided to the right of each statement.

1----------2----------3----------4----------5
Not at all Very
characteristic characteristic
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(B) AA Scale

2) Scoring ：
 C - Mean of 6 items: 1, 6, 8*, 12,13*, 17* = ? (M = 3.77)
 D - Mean of 6 items: 2*, 5, 7*, 14, 16*, 18* = ? (M = 3.44)
 A - Mean of 6 items: 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 15 = ? (M = 2.23)
For reverse* items = (6 - your score)

 Close - A higher score indicates greater feelings of

comfort with closeness and intimacy.
 Depend - A higher score indicates more comfort with
depending on others and a belief that others will be
available when needed.
 Anxiety - A higher score indicates greater worry about
being rejected or unloved.
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(A) AA Scale

3) The scale authors defined three AA styles as follows:

 Secure = high scores on Close and Depend, low score on Anxiety

I find it relatively easy to get close to others and am comfortable depending on them
and having them depend on me. I don't often worry about being abandoned or about
someone getting too close to me.

 Anxious = high score on Anxiety, moderate scores on Close and Depend

I find that others are reluctant to get as close as I would like. I often worry that my
partner doesn't really love me or won't want to stay with me. I want to merge
completely with another person, and this desire sometimes scares people away.

 Avoidant = low scores on Close, Depend, Anxiety

I feel somewhat nervous and uncomfortable when being too close to others. I find it
difficult to trust them completely and to allow myself to depend on them. I even want
to escape from intimacy with my love partners.

Source <https://www.statisticssolutions.com/adult-attachment-scale-aas/>
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Lesson Plan

(A) Questionnaire
(B) Childhood Attachment

Linus and his security blanket

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(B) Attachment

1) Attachment (John Bowlby)

– refers to the close & emotional
bond
__________ that develops between infants
and their caregivers
John Bowlby

2) Separation anxiety
– Emotional distress seen in infants at ~ 6 – 8
months of age when they are separated from
people who have been emotionally attached

– “The Strange Situation” Ainsworth (1978)

designed a lab procedure to measure attachment

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Mary Ainsworth
(B) Attachment

3) Patterns of Attachment
– Secure (~50 – 66%)
• Visibly upset when mother leaves, accepts comfort and goes back to
exploration after mother’s return

– Avoidant (~20 – 25%)

• Shows little to no signs of distress or responses at the mother's presence or
absence

– Resistant (~10 – 15 %)
• Shows protest when mother leaves and remains upset and difficult to console
when she returns

– Disorganized / disoriented (~ 5 – 10%)

• Shows no consistent pattern; child seems confused and is unsure of reaction at
mother’s returns
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**Assigned Readings – Pastorino & Doyle-Portillo (pp.376-
379)

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