Schaffer and Emerson Study: The 4 Stages of Attachment

By 18 months, 87% of babies had formed multiple attachments beyond their primary caregiver, revolutionising our understanding that quality of interaction—not quantity of time—determines attachment strength in early childhood development.

Introduction

Understanding how children form emotional bonds with their caregivers is fundamental to supporting healthy development in early years settings, schools, and families. The Schaffer and Emerson study, conducted in Glasgow during the 1960s, revolutionised our understanding of attachment development by identifying four distinct stages that children progress through during their first 18 months of life.

This groundbreaking research challenged prevailing theories about infant attachment and provided evidence that children naturally develop multiple meaningful relationships rather than bonding exclusively with one caregiver. Their findings continue to inform modern early years practice, parenting approaches, and childcare policies worldwide.

The study’s identification of specific attachment stages helps parents recognise normal developmental patterns, supports early years professionals in creating responsive environments, and guides policymakers in developing evidence-based childcare frameworks. By understanding these stages, we can better support children’s emotional security while fostering their natural capacity for forming multiple, meaningful relationships.

The research particularly highlighted that quality of interaction matters more than quantity of time spent together—a finding that transformed how we think about working parents, childcare arrangements, and the valuable role of multiple caregivers in a child’s life. Understanding John Bowlby’s attachment theory provides essential context for appreciating how Schaffer and Emerson’s empirical research expanded our knowledge of attachment theory in early years psychology.

What Was the Schaffer and Emerson Study?

The Schaffer and Emerson study, officially titled “The Development of Social Attachments in Infancy,” was a pioneering longitudinal research project conducted between 1963 and 1964 in Glasgow, Scotland. Led by developmental psychologists Rudolph Schaffer from the University of Glasgow and his research collaborator Peggy Emerson, this study followed 60 babies from working-class families throughout their first 18 months of life.

Study Background and Context

The research took place during a transformative period in developmental psychology when prevailing theories suggested that infants formed attachments primarily based on who fed them—known as the “cupboard love” theory. This behaviorist perspective proposed that babies became attached to caregivers simply because they associated them with food and physical comfort.

Schaffer and Emerson set out to test these assumptions by conducting systematic observations of how attachments actually develop in real family environments. Their choice to study working-class families in Glasgow provided insights into attachment patterns across a relatively homogeneous socioeconomic group, though this also became one of the study’s later critiques.

The timing of their research was significant, as it coincided with John Bowlby’s theoretical work on attachment and preceded Mary Ainsworth’s Strange Situation experiments by several years. While Bowlby provided the theoretical framework, Schaffer and Emerson offered crucial empirical evidence about how attachment patterns unfold in natural settings.

Research Methods Used

The study employed a longitudinal observational approach, with researchers making monthly visits to participating families’ homes over the 18-month period. This naturalistic methodology was revolutionary for its time, as most psychological research was conducted in laboratory settings that might not reflect real-world behavior.

During each visit, researchers conducted structured interviews with mothers about their babies’ behavior, particularly focusing on separation anxiety and social responsiveness. They developed systematic measurement tools to assess:

• Separation protest intensity: How distressed babies became when left with different caregivers
• Stranger anxiety: Babies’ reactions to unfamiliar people
• Social responsiveness: Preference for human company over objects
• Attachment behaviors: Seeking comfort, proximity-seeking, and reunion behaviors

Why This Research Mattered

The Schaffer and Emerson study provided the first systematic evidence for how attachment relationships develop over time in natural family settings. Their research was groundbreaking because it challenged three major assumptions prevalent in 1960s psychology:

Challenging “Cupboard Love” Theory: The study revealed that babies didn’t necessarily form their strongest attachments with the person who fed them most frequently. Instead, attachment quality depended on the caregiver’s responsiveness and sensitivity to the baby’s needs.

Evidence for Multiple Attachments: Contrary to theories suggesting babies could only form one primary attachment, Schaffer and Emerson found that 87% of babies had formed multiple attachments by 18 months, including relationships with fathers, siblings, and grandparents.

Developmental Stages Identification: The research identified four distinct stages of attachment development, providing a framework that professionals could use to understand normal developmental progression and individual variation.

Their findings laid the foundation for modern understanding of attachment development and influenced decades of subsequent research. The study’s emphasis on quality over quantity in caregiving relationships has particular relevance for contemporary families navigating work-life balance and childcare decisions.

The Four Stages of Attachment Development

Schaffer and Emerson’s most significant contribution was identifying four distinct stages that characterise how infants develop attachment relationships. These stages provide a roadmap for understanding normal emotional development and help caregivers recognise typical patterns while respecting individual variation.

Stage 1 – Asocial Stage (0-6 weeks)

During the first six weeks of life, babies show limited social responses and react similarly to both humans and inanimate objects. This doesn’t mean newborns are completely antisocial—rather, their capacity for social discrimination is still developing as their visual and cognitive systems mature.

What Parents Observe: Newborns seek comfort from anyone who provides it, showing little preference between familiar and unfamiliar caregivers. They respond to soothing voices, gentle touch, and feeding from any responsive adult. Crying often stops when basic needs are met, regardless of who provides the care.

Developmental Significance: This stage establishes the foundation for later attachment development. Babies are learning basic trust through consistent, responsive caregiving. While they don’t yet discriminate between caregivers, they’re beginning to associate human contact with comfort and safety.

Modern Understanding: Contemporary research suggests that even newborns show some social preferences, such as recognising their mother’s voice and scent. However, Schaffer and Emerson’s broad characterisation of this stage remains useful for understanding that specific attachment preferences develop gradually rather than being present from birth.

The asocial stage represents a critical period for establishing basic trust and safety. Consistent, responsive caregiving during these early weeks helps babies regulate their emotional and physiological states, creating the foundation for secure attachment relationships to develop.

Stage 2 – Indiscriminate Attachment (6 weeks – 7 months)

Between six weeks and seven months, babies begin showing clear preference for human company over objects but will accept comfort and care from any friendly caregiver. This stage marks the beginning of social attachment behavior, though babies haven’t yet developed strong preferences for specific individuals.

Key Developments: The social smile emerges around 6-8 weeks, indicating babies’ growing capacity for social interaction. Babies become more responsive to human voices, faces, and social cues. They may cry when left alone but are easily comforted by any responsive adult.

Behavioral Indicators: Babies smile more readily at people than objects, show excitement when adults approach, and demonstrate clear preference for social interaction over solitary activities. However, they don’t yet show distress when familiar caregivers leave, and they readily accept care from unfamiliar but responsive adults.

Implications for Childcare: This stage has important implications for early childcare arrangements. Babies can successfully bond with multiple caregivers during this period, making it an optimal time for introducing additional care providers if needed. The key factor is ensuring all caregivers are responsive and attentive to the baby’s needs.

Supporting Development: Caregivers can support healthy attachment development during this stage by maintaining responsive, consistent care patterns. Regular interaction, eye contact, talking, and singing help strengthen the baby’s growing social connections. Understanding that babies don’t yet show separation distress can help parents feel confident about brief separations when necessary.

This stage demonstrates babies’ innate social nature while highlighting their flexibility in forming relationships. The absence of separation anxiety during this period provides opportunities for multiple caregivers to establish positive relationships with babies.

Stage 3 – Specific Attachment (7-9 months)

The third stage represents a major developmental milestone when babies form their first specific attachment relationship, typically with their primary caregiver. This period marks the emergence of separation anxiety and stranger anxiety, indicating that babies now understand the difference between familiar and unfamiliar people and have developed a clear preference for their attachment figure.

Primary Attachment Formation: Most commonly, babies form their primary attachment with the person who is most responsive to their needs rather than the person who spends the most time with them or provides the most physical care. This finding was revolutionary, as it demonstrated that attachment quality depends on sensitivity and responsiveness rather than mere presence or feeding.

Separation Anxiety Emerges: Babies begin showing distress when their primary attachment figure leaves, even briefly. This anxiety indicates healthy attachment development—babies now understand that their caregiver exists even when not visible and actively seek reunion. The intensity and duration of separation distress varies significantly between individual babies.

Stranger Anxiety Develops: Babies become wary of unfamiliar people, often showing distress when approached by strangers or even previously familiar but infrequently seen relatives. This wariness serves an important protective function, helping babies stay close to trusted caregivers who can provide safety and care.

Modern Applications: Understanding this stage helps parents and early years professionals recognise that separation anxiety is a normal, healthy developmental milestone rather than a problem to be eliminated. Managing separation anxiety in children requires patience, consistency, and gradual exposure to new situations and people.

Individual Variation: While most babies experience this stage between 7-9 months, some may show these behaviors earlier or later. Cultural factors, temperament, and caregiving patterns all influence the timing and intensity of specific attachment formation. The key indicator is the baby’s clear preference for one particular caregiver during times of distress.

This stage reflects significant cognitive and emotional development, as babies now maintain mental representations of their caregivers and actively seek specific relationships for comfort and security.

Stage 4 – Multiple Attachments (10+ months)

The final stage involves the formation of secondary attachments with other important figures in the baby’s life. Schaffer and Emerson found that 87% of babies had developed multiple attachments by 18 months, typically including relationships with fathers, siblings, grandparents, and regular caregivers.

Secondary Attachment Development: After forming a secure primary attachment, babies expand their emotional connections to include other responsive caregivers. These secondary attachments don’t diminish the primary relationship but rather demonstrate babies’ capacity for multiple, meaningful bonds.

Role of Fathers: The research revealed that fathers often became important attachment figures despite spending less time in caregiving activities than mothers. The quality of interaction during father-child time proved more significant than the quantity, with playful, responsive interactions fostering strong paternal attachments.

Extended Family Connections: Grandparents, siblings, and other family members frequently became attachment figures when they provided consistent, responsive care. These relationships often served different functions—some attachments provided security and comfort, while others offered stimulation and play.

Hierarchical Organization: While babies form multiple attachments, research suggests these relationships are often organised hierarchically, with the primary attachment figure serving as the main source of comfort during distress. However, babies may prefer different attachment figures for different needs—seeking one person for comfort and another for play or exploration.

Contemporary Relevance: This stage has particular significance for modern families with dual-career parents, diverse family structures, and various childcare arrangements. The research supports the benefits of high-quality childcare and the positive role of multiple consistent caregivers in children’s lives.

The multiple attachments stage demonstrates children’s remarkable capacity for forming meaningful relationships while maintaining the security of their primary attachment bond. This flexibility supports healthy social and emotional development across diverse family contexts.

Key Findings That Changed Psychology

The Schaffer and Emerson study produced several groundbreaking discoveries that fundamentally altered understanding of child development and attachment formation. Their empirical findings challenged established theories and provided evidence-based insights that continue to influence practice today.

Quality Over Quantity Discovery

Perhaps the most revolutionary finding was that attachment quality depended on caregiver responsiveness rather than the amount of time spent together or who provided physical care like feeding. Babies formed their strongest attachments with caregivers who were most sensitive and responsive to their emotional and communication needs.

Challenging Behaviorist Theories: This discovery directly contradicted the prevailing “cupboard love” theory, which suggested babies attached to whoever fed them. Instead, Schaffer and Emerson found that babies often formed primary attachments with caregivers who were highly responsive during interactions, even if they didn’t provide routine physical care.

Responsiveness Defined: The researchers identified key components of responsive caregiving including quick responses to baby’s distress, accurate interpretation of baby’s signals, appropriate and consistent responses to baby’s needs, and engaging in reciprocal social interaction during alert periods.

Modern Applications: This finding supports contemporary understanding of responsive caregiving techniques and validates the experiences of working parents who may worry about time spent away from their children. Quality interaction during available time proves more important than constant presence.

Professional Implications: For early years practitioners, this research emphasises the importance of tuned-in, sensitive responses to individual children’s needs rather than focusing primarily on routine care tasks. Building meaningful connections through responsive interaction creates the foundation for secure relationships.

Multiple Attachments Are Normal

Contrary to theories suggesting babies could only form one primary attachment, Schaffer and Emerson discovered that forming multiple attachment relationships was not only possible but typical and beneficial for healthy development.

Statistical Evidence: By 18 months, 87% of babies in the study had formed multiple attachments beyond their primary relationship. These secondary attachments developed shortly after the primary attachment was established, usually within 1-4 months.

Attachment Hierarchy: While babies formed multiple attachments, these relationships appeared to be organised hierarchically. The primary attachment figure typically remained the preferred source of comfort during distress, while secondary attachment figures might be preferred for play, exploration, or specific activities.

Individual Differences: The study revealed significant individual variation in attachment patterns. Some babies developed multiple strong attachments simultaneously, while others formed sequential attachments over time. Factors influencing this variation included family composition, caregiving arrangements, and individual temperament.

Benefits of Multiple Attachments: Research suggested that multiple attachments provided several advantages including increased emotional security through multiple sources of comfort, diverse learning opportunities through different interaction styles, greater social competence through varied relationship experiences, and enhanced resilience through multiple supportive relationships.

This finding has particular relevance for contemporary families navigating various childcare arrangements and family structures, providing reassurance that children can thrive with multiple loving, responsive caregivers.

Critical Period Identification

The research identified 7-9 months as a critical period for primary attachment formation, when most babies develop their first specific attachment relationship. This timing corresponded with important cognitive developments including object permanence and stranger awareness.

Developmental Readiness: The emergence of specific attachment at 7-9 months aligned with babies’ growing cognitive abilities to maintain mental representations of caregivers and understand that people continue to exist even when not visible. This cognitive development enabled babies to form more sophisticated emotional bonds.

Individual Variation: While 7-9 months represented the typical timing, individual babies showed considerable variation in when they reached this developmental milestone. Factors influencing timing included temperament, caregiving consistency, family circumstances, and biological factors.

Sensitive Period Implications: The identification of this sensitive period influenced understanding of adoption, foster care, and early intervention practices. However, subsequent research has shown that while early attachment formation is important, humans retain capacity for forming secure attachments throughout life.

Modern neuroscience research has supported and expanded upon Schaffer and Emerson’s observations about critical periods, revealing how early experiences shape brain development and emotional regulation systems that influence relationship patterns throughout life.

How the Study Was Conducted

Understanding the methodology behind the Schaffer and Emerson study helps evaluate its contributions and limitations while appreciating the innovative approaches the researchers used to study attachment development in natural settings.

Research Strengths

The study incorporated several methodological strengths that enhanced the validity and significance of its findings, particularly for the time period when most psychological research was conducted in artificial laboratory environments.

Longitudinal Design Benefits: Following the same 60 babies over 18 months allowed researchers to track individual developmental patterns and identify common stages of attachment formation. This approach provided insights into the process of attachment development rather than just snapshots of behavior at single time points.

Naturalistic Home Environment: Conducting observations in families’ homes rather than laboratory settings increased the ecological validity of the findings. Babies’ behavior in familiar environments with their regular caregivers provided more accurate insights into actual attachment patterns than artificial testing situations.

Large Sample for the Era: Sixty participants represented a substantial sample size for 1960s developmental research, particularly for a longitudinal study requiring extensive time and resources. This sample size provided sufficient data to identify patterns while allowing for individual variation analysis.

Multiple Data Sources: The researchers combined maternal interviews with direct behavioral observations, providing triangulated evidence for their findings. This approach helped validate parental reports with observed behaviors and reduced reliance on single data sources.

Cultural Specificity: Focusing on working-class Glasgow families provided detailed insights into attachment patterns within a specific cultural and socioeconomic context, allowing for in-depth analysis of how attachment develops within particular social conditions.

The study’s naturalistic approach and longitudinal design established important methodological precedents for subsequent attachment research and demonstrated the value of studying development in real-world contexts.

Study Limitations and Criticisms

While groundbreaking, the Schaffer and Emerson study had several limitations that must be considered when evaluating its findings and contemporary relevance.

Cultural and Temporal Constraints: The research focused exclusively on white, working-class families in 1960s Glasgow, limiting the generalizability of findings across different cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups. Family structures and caregiving patterns in 1960s Scotland may not reflect contemporary diverse family arrangements.

Observer Effects: Regular monthly visits by researchers may have influenced family behavior and parent-child interactions. Parents might have modified their caregiving practices when researchers were present, potentially affecting the naturalistic quality of observations.

Subjective Measures: Heavy reliance on maternal interviews and reports introduced potential bias, as mothers’ perceptions of their babies’ behavior might not always accurately reflect actual attachment patterns. Social desirability bias could have influenced how mothers described their relationships with their children.

Sample Homogeneity: The lack of socioeconomic, ethnic, and cultural diversity in the sample limited understanding of how different family contexts might influence attachment development. This homogeneity makes it difficult to generalise findings across diverse populations.

Historical Context: The study took place when gender roles were more rigidly defined, with mothers typically providing primary care while fathers worked outside the home. Contemporary family arrangements with dual-career parents, single-parent families, and diverse caregiving arrangements may produce different attachment patterns.

Methodological Impact on Later Research

Despite its limitations, the Schaffer and Emerson study established important methodological precedents that influenced subsequent attachment research and developmental psychology more broadly.

Longitudinal Research Models: The study demonstrated the value of following children over time to understand developmental processes, inspiring numerous subsequent longitudinal studies in attachment research. This approach became standard practice for understanding how relationships develop and change.

Naturalistic Observation Methods: The emphasis on studying families in their natural environments influenced later researchers to balance laboratory control with ecological validity. Many contemporary studies combine controlled observations with naturalistic data collection.

Multiple Informant Approaches: The use of both parental reports and observational data established the importance of triangulating information from multiple sources, a practice that became standard in developmental research.

The study’s methodological innovations, combined with its significant findings, established it as a foundational piece of attachment research that continues to influence how researchers study early relationships and development.

Schaffer vs. Bowlby vs. Ainsworth

Understanding how the Schaffer and Emerson study relates to other foundational attachment research helps clarify its unique contributions and place within the broader theoretical framework of attachment theory.

How Schaffer Built on Bowlby’s Work

The Schaffer and Emerson study provided crucial empirical support for many of John Bowlby’s theoretical propositions while also challenging some of his key assumptions about attachment formation and organisation.

Supporting Bowlby’s Core Ideas: The research confirmed several of Bowlby’s central tenets including the biological basis of attachment behavior, the importance of caregiver sensitivity in attachment formation, the existence of a sensitive period for attachment development, and the evolutionary significance of attachment for infant survival and development.

Challenging Monotropy: However, Schaffer and Emerson’s finding that babies naturally develop multiple attachments challenged Bowlby’s concept of monotropy—the idea that infants form one primary attachment that is qualitatively different from all others. While they found evidence for attachment hierarchies, the research demonstrated that babies could form multiple meaningful attachment relationships.

Expanding Understanding: The study expanded Bowlby’s theoretical framework by providing detailed empirical evidence about how attachment develops over time. While Bowlby described the importance of attachment, Schaffer and Emerson showed exactly how this process unfolds through identifiable developmental stages.

Refining Caregiver Roles: The research supported Bowlby’s emphasis on maternal sensitivity while also revealing the important role of fathers and other caregivers in attachment formation. This finding helped broaden understanding beyond the mother-child dyad to include diverse family relationships.

Connection to Ainsworth’s Research

The Schaffer and Emerson study complemented Mary Ainsworth’s Strange Situation research by providing longitudinal, naturalistic data about attachment development, while Ainsworth’s work offered systematic laboratory-based assessment of attachment quality.

Methodological Complementarity: While Schaffer and Emerson studied attachment development in natural home environments over time, Ainsworth developed controlled laboratory procedures to assess attachment quality at specific time points. Together, these approaches provided comprehensive insights into both the process and outcomes of attachment formation.

Confirming Developmental Patterns: Ainsworth’s identification of individual differences in attachment quality (secure, anxious, avoidant) aligned with Schaffer and Emerson’s observations of variation in how babies responded to separation and reunion with caregivers.

Theoretical Integration: Both research programs supported the importance of caregiver sensitivity in attachment formation. Schaffer and Emerson showed that responsive caregivers became preferred attachment figures, while Ainsworth demonstrated that sensitive caregiving predicted secure attachment classification.

Timeline Significance: The Schaffer and Emerson study preceded Ainsworth’s Strange Situation procedure by several years, providing foundational evidence about normal attachment development that informed Ainsworth’s later work on individual differences in attachment quality.

Modern Synthesis of Attachment Theories

Contemporary attachment theory integrates insights from Bowlby’s theoretical framework, Schaffer and Emerson’s developmental research, and Ainsworth’s quality assessments into a comprehensive understanding of how attachment relationships form and function.

Integrated Understanding: Modern attachment theory recognises that children develop multiple attachment relationships organised in hierarchical networks, with primary attachment figures serving as preferred sources of comfort during distress while secondary attachments provide additional security and diverse relationship experiences.

Developmental Perspective: Current understanding incorporates Schaffer and Emerson’s developmental stages while recognising that attachment patterns can change over time based on caregiving experiences and life circumstances. The stages provide a general framework while allowing for individual variation and cultural differences.

Quality and Quantity Balance: Contemporary research supports Schaffer and Emerson’s finding that relationship quality matters more than quantity of time spent together, while also recognising that some minimum level of consistent contact is necessary for attachment formation.

This integrated perspective recognises attachment as a complex, multifaceted system that develops through identifiable stages while showing individual variation in quality and organisation across diverse cultural and family contexts.

What This Means for Parents Today

The Schaffer and Emerson study findings continue to provide valuable guidance for contemporary parents navigating attachment relationships, childcare decisions, and supporting their children’s emotional development in today’s diverse family contexts.

Understanding Normal Development

Parents can use knowledge of the four attachment stages to understand their child’s developmental progression and recognise that certain behaviors represent normal, healthy development rather than problems requiring correction.

Stage-Appropriate Expectations: Understanding that separation anxiety typically emerges around 7-9 months helps parents recognise this as a positive developmental milestone indicating secure attachment formation rather than problematic clinginess. Similarly, stranger anxiety represents normal protective behavior rather than antisocial tendencies.

Individual Variation Is Normal: While the study identified typical age ranges for each stage, individual children may progress through these stages at different rates based on temperament, family circumstances, and cultural factors. Some children may show separation anxiety earlier or later than the 7-9 month typical range while still developing healthy attachments.

Recognising Secure Development: Parents can look for signs of healthy attachment development including their child using them as a secure base for exploration, seeking comfort when distressed, showing joy during reunions after separations, and gradually developing relationships with other caregivers while maintaining their primary bond.

When to Seek Support: Understanding normal attachment development helps parents identify when professional guidance might be helpful. Persistent absence of attachment behaviors, extreme separation distress that doesn’t improve over time, or significant regression in attachment behaviors may warrant consultation with early childhood professionals.

Modern research has confirmed that while the basic stages identified by Schaffer and Emerson remain relevant, contemporary understanding includes greater appreciation for cultural variations in attachment expression and the influence of family context on developmental timing.

Supporting Secure Attachment

The study’s emphasis on quality over quantity in caregiving provides practical guidance for parents about how to build strong attachment relationships regardless of their specific circumstances or time constraints.

Responsive Interaction Strategies: Parents can focus on being emotionally present and responsive during available time rather than worrying about the total amount of time spent with their child. Key strategies include following the child’s cues and interests, responding promptly and appropriately to distress, engaging in reciprocal interaction during play and daily activities, and maintaining consistent, predictable responses to the child’s needs.

Quality Time Practices: Even brief interactions can strengthen attachment when they involve focused attention and emotional attunement. Parents can maximise attachment building through activities like reading together with full attention, engaging in floor play following the child’s lead, having conversations during routine activities like bathing or diaper changes, and providing comfort and co-regulation during distressing moments.

Building Emotional Connection: The research supports the importance of emotional responsiveness in attachment formation. Parents can strengthen their emotional connection by learning to read their child’s emotional signals accurately, validating their child’s feelings even when setting boundaries, sharing positive emotions through play and affection, and maintaining calm, reassuring presence during their child’s difficult moments.

Understanding how to build secure attachment with your child provides detailed strategies for creating the responsive, sensitive caregiving that fosters healthy attachment relationships.

Multiple Caregivers and Childcare

The study’s finding that 87% of babies develop multiple attachments provides reassurance for families using various childcare arrangements and validates the positive role of multiple caregivers in children’s lives.

Benefits of Multiple Attachments: Children can benefit from relationships with various caring adults including enhanced emotional security through multiple sources of comfort, exposure to different interaction styles and learning opportunities, increased social competence through diverse relationship experiences, and greater resilience through expanded support networks.

Childcare Quality Indicators: When selecting childcare, parents can apply Schaffer and Emerson’s findings by looking for caregivers who demonstrate responsiveness to individual children’s needs, maintain consistent, warm relationships with children over time, support rather than compete with parent-child relationships, and create environments where children can develop secure relationships while maintaining their primary attachments.

Supporting Transitions: Understanding that children can form multiple attachments helps parents approach childcare transitions with confidence while supporting their child’s adjustment. Strategies include gradual introduction to new caregivers when possible, maintaining open communication with childcare providers about the child’s needs and preferences, recognising that some initial distress during transitions is normal, and celebrating the child’s growing capacity for multiple relationships.

Work-Life Balance: The research finding that attachment quality depends more on responsiveness than time quantity can help working parents focus on making their available time with their children emotionally rich and responsive rather than feeling guilty about time spent working.

This research validates diverse family arrangements while emphasising the importance of ensuring all caregivers provide responsive, consistent care that supports children’s attachment security and emotional development.

Applications in Early Years Practice

The Schaffer and Emerson study continues to influence early years practice by providing evidence-based understanding of how children develop attachment relationships and what professionals can do to support healthy emotional development in group settings.

Key Person Approach

The study’s findings about attachment formation directly support the key person approach used in many early years settings, where each child is assigned a primary caregiver who takes particular responsibility for their emotional well-being and attachment security.

Research Foundation: Schaffer and Emerson’s discovery that babies attach to the most responsive caregivers rather than those who spend the most time with them provides theoretical support for the key person system. When one practitioner focuses on being particularly responsive to a child’s needs, they can become an important attachment figure even within a group care environment.

Implementation Strategies: Effective key person approaches incorporate several elements supported by the research including the key person taking primary responsibility for specific children’s care routines, being the main source of comfort and support during distressing moments, maintaining consistent presence and predictable responses for their key children, and building strong relationships with families to support attachment security across home and setting.

Supporting Multiple Attachments: The research finding that children benefit from multiple attachments validates the role of other practitioners and staff in children’s emotional lives. While maintaining the key person relationship, children can also develop meaningful connections with other adults in the setting, providing additional security and diverse interaction opportunities.

Transition Support: Understanding attachment stages helps key persons support children through settling-in periods by recognising that some separation distress is normal and indicates healthy attachment, gradually building trust through consistent, responsive interactions, and working with parents to support children’s adjustment to multiple caregiving environments.

Supporting Children Through Transitions

Knowledge of attachment stages and individual variation helps early years practitioners provide targeted support for children experiencing various transitions, from daily arrivals and departures to major life changes.

Daily Transitions: Understanding that separation anxiety typically peaks between 7-18 months helps practitioners normalise children’s distress during daily separations while providing appropriate support. Strategies include maintaining consistent goodbye routines, providing comfort objects from home, offering immediate attention and comfort from the key person, and celebrating reunions to reinforce the security of the parent-child relationship.

Settling-in Procedures: The research supports gradual settling-in processes that allow children time to develop trust in new caregivers before experiencing longer separations. Effective approaches include starting with short visits while parents are present, gradually increasing time spent with practitioners, following the child’s pace rather than rigid timelines, and ensuring the key person is available during early settling-in sessions.

Major Life Transitions: Children experiencing significant changes such as family breakdown, house moves, or new siblings may show temporary changes in their attachment behaviors. Practitioners can provide additional support by maintaining extra consistency in their responses, offering increased comfort and reassurance, communicating closely with families about changes in the child’s needs, and recognising that regression in attachment behaviors may be temporary and normal.

Understanding helping children settle into nursery environments requires appreciation of individual differences in attachment patterns and developmental timing.

Working with Different Attachment Styles

The Schaffer and Emerson study’s recognition of individual variation in attachment development helps practitioners understand and respond appropriately to children displaying different attachment patterns and needs.

Observational Skills: Practitioners can use knowledge of attachment stages to observe and assess children’s attachment behaviors, including how children use adults as secure bases for exploration, their responses to separation and reunion, their comfort-seeking behaviors when distressed, and their relationships with different caregivers in the setting.

Individualised Responses: Understanding that children may be at different attachment stages or have different attachment experiences helps practitioners tailor their approaches. Some children may need more support during separations, others may require help warming up to new people, and some may benefit from additional help regulating emotions during transitions.

Supporting Attachment Security: Practitioners can promote secure attachment relationships by being consistently responsive to individual children’s needs, maintaining predictable routines and responses, supporting children’s exploration while being available for comfort, and working collaboratively with families to ensure consistency across environments.

Professional Development: Understanding attachment theory helps practitioners reflect on their own responses to children and develop the emotional skills needed to provide secure, responsive care. This includes learning to regulate their own emotions, recognising their impact on children’s emotional states, and developing capacity for attuned, sensitive interactions.

Modern Research and Cultural Considerations

While the Schaffer and Emerson study provided foundational insights into attachment development, subsequent research has expanded and refined understanding by examining attachment patterns across diverse cultural contexts and contemporary family structures.

Cross-Cultural Validation

Research conducted since the 1960s has examined whether the attachment stages identified by Schaffer and Emerson apply universally across different cultural contexts or reflect specific Western, individualistic family patterns.

Universal Patterns: Many aspects of the Schaffer and Emerson findings have been replicated across diverse cultural contexts. The basic sequence of attachment development—from limited social discrimination to specific attachment formation to multiple relationships—appears consistent across cultures, suggesting these patterns reflect fundamental human developmental processes.

Cultural Variations: However, research has also revealed important cultural differences in how attachment behaviors are expressed and valued. For example, some cultures emphasise interdependence and group harmony over individual attachment relationships, while others prioritise early independence and self-reliance. These variations affect how attachment behaviors are interpreted and supported.

Timing Differences: The specific timing of attachment stages may vary across cultures based on different caregiving practices, family structures, and developmental expectations. Some cultures may encourage earlier independence, while others may extend the period of close physical proximity between caregivers and children.

Assessment Considerations: The recognition of cultural variation has led to development of culturally sensitive assessment tools and recognition that attachment behaviors may be expressed differently across cultural contexts while still serving the same fundamental functions of promoting safety and emotional regulation.

Contemporary research emphasises the importance of understanding attachment within specific cultural contexts rather than applying universal standards that may not reflect diverse family values and practices.

Contemporary Family Structures

The 1960s Glasgow families studied by Schaffer and Emerson represented relatively traditional family structures with clearly defined gender roles and typically two-parent households. Modern research has examined how attachment develops within contemporary diverse family arrangements.

Single-Parent Families: Research indicates that children in single-parent families can develop secure attachments when the available caregiver provides responsive, consistent care. The quality of the relationship remains more important than family structure, though single parents may benefit from additional support networks.

Same-Sex Parent Families: Studies of children raised by same-sex couples have found similar attachment patterns to those in heterosexual-parent families, with children forming secure attachments based on caregiver responsiveness rather than gender composition of the family.

Blended Families: Children in stepfamilies and blended family arrangements can develop multiple meaningful attachments with biological parents, stepparents, and other family members. The research supports the possibility of forming new attachment relationships throughout childhood and adolescence.

Extended Family Involvement: Many contemporary families involve grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other extended family members in regular caregiving, creating attachment networks that extend beyond the nuclear family structure studied by Schaffer and Emerson.

Diverse Caregiving Arrangements: Modern families may use various combinations of parental care, family daycare, centre-based childcare, and relative care. Research supports the Schaffer and Emerson finding that children can thrive with multiple caregivers when all provide responsive, consistent care.

Understanding supporting diverse family structures requires recognition that secure attachment can develop within various family configurations when children receive responsive, consistent care from their primary caregivers.

Digital Age Considerations

Contemporary children grow up in environments that include digital technology and screen-based interactions, raising questions about how modern technology affects attachment development and parent-child relationships.

Screen Time and Attachment: Research suggests that excessive screen use by caregivers can interfere with the responsive, attuned interactions that support secure attachment development. When caregivers are frequently distracted by devices, they may be less able to read and respond to children’s emotional and communication cues.

Technology as Connection Tool: However, technology can also support attachment relationships when used thoughtfully. Video calls can help maintain connections between children and distant caregivers, while photos and recordings can provide comfort objects that support attachment security.

Digital Native Generation: Children growing up with technology may develop different patterns of attention and interaction, but their fundamental need for responsive, caring relationships remains unchanged. The principles identified by Schaffer and Emerson about the importance of sensitive, responsive caregiving continue to apply in digital environments.

Balancing Screen Time: Current recommendations emphasise limiting screen time for young children while ensuring that caregivers remain emotionally available and responsive during interactions. The quality of caregiver-child interaction remains more important than the specific context in which it occurs.

Future Research Directions: Ongoing research continues to examine how digital technology affects attachment development and how families can use technology in ways that support rather than interfere with secure attachment relationships.

The core insights from the Schaffer and Emerson study about the importance of responsive, sensitive caregiving remain relevant in digital age parenting, though families must navigate new challenges in maintaining emotional connection and availability.

Conclusion

The Schaffer and Emerson study fundamentally transformed our understanding of how children develop emotional bonds, providing evidence that challenged 1960s assumptions about attachment formation. Their discovery of four distinct attachment stages—from the asocial period through to multiple attachment formation—continues to guide modern early years practice, parenting approaches, and childcare policies.

The research’s most significant contribution lies in demonstrating that attachment quality depends on caregiver responsiveness rather than time spent together or who provides physical care. This finding reassures working parents while emphasising the crucial importance of sensitive, attuned interactions during available time. The discovery that 87% of babies naturally develop multiple meaningful attachments validates diverse family structures and childcare arrangements while supporting the benefits of responsive care from various loving adults.

For contemporary families and professionals, the study provides a developmental roadmap that normalises separation anxiety as a healthy milestone, supports evidence-based early years practices, and reinforces that secure attachment can flourish within various family configurations when children receive consistent, responsive care from their primary caregivers.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Schaffer and Emerson’s theory?

Schaffer and Emerson’s theory identifies four stages of attachment development in infancy: asocial (0-6 weeks), indiscriminate attachment (6 weeks-7 months), specific attachment (7-9 months), and multiple attachments (10+ months). Their 1964 Glasgow study of 60 babies revealed that attachment quality depends on caregiver responsiveness rather than feeding or time spent together, challenging prevailing “cupboard love” theories.

What are the 4 stages of attachment?

The four stages are: Asocial Stage (0-6 weeks) where babies show limited social discrimination; Indiscriminate Attachment (6 weeks-7 months) where babies prefer humans but accept care from anyone; Specific Attachment (7-9 months) where babies form clear preferences and show separation anxiety; and Multiple Attachments (10+ months) where babies develop secondary relationships with fathers, siblings, and other caregivers.

What did Schaffer and Emerson find about the role of the father?

Schaffer and Emerson discovered that 75% of babies formed attachments with their fathers by 18 months, despite fathers spending less time in direct caregiving than mothers. The quality of father-child interactions during available time proved more important than quantity. Fathers often became preferred attachment figures for play and exploration, demonstrating that responsive, engaging interactions create strong bonds regardless of traditional caregiving roles.

What are some of Schaffer and Emerson’s criticisms?

Key criticisms include cultural bias (studying only white, working-class Glasgow families), temporal limitations (1960s family structures may not reflect modern arrangements), observer effects (monthly visits potentially influencing family behavior), reliance on subjective maternal reports rather than objective measures, and limited generalisability across diverse socioeconomic and ethnic groups. The sample’s homogeneity restricts applicability to contemporary diverse family structures.

Is Schaffer and Emerson nature or nurture?

Schaffer and Emerson’s findings support both nature and nurture perspectives. The nature element appears in the universal developmental stages observed across babies, suggesting biological programming for attachment formation. The nurture component is evident in how caregiver responsiveness and sensitivity determine attachment quality and timing. Their research demonstrates that while babies are biologically predisposed to form attachments, environmental factors significantly influence when and how these relationships develop.

How does the Schaffer and Emerson study relate to modern childcare?

The study’s finding that babies can form multiple secure attachments supports modern childcare arrangements, including nurseries, childminders, and extended family care. Quality childcare providers who demonstrate responsiveness and consistency can become important attachment figures without compromising parent-child relationships. The research validates that children benefit from multiple caring relationships when all caregivers provide sensitive, responsive interactions.

What is separation anxiety according to Schaffer and Emerson?

Separation anxiety emerges during the specific attachment stage (7-9 months) when babies develop clear preferences for primary caregivers and show distress when separated. Schaffer and Emerson identified this as a normal, healthy developmental milestone indicating secure attachment formation rather than problematic behavior. The intensity and duration vary between individual children but typically peaks between 12-18 months before gradually decreasing.

How long did the Schaffer and Emerson study last?

The Schaffer and Emerson study was an 18-month longitudinal research project conducted between 1963-1964. Researchers made monthly visits to 60 Glasgow families’ homes, following babies from birth to 18 months of age. This extended timeframe allowed them to track individual developmental patterns and identify common stages of attachment formation, providing crucial insights into the process rather than just snapshots of behavior.

References

Ainsworth, M. D. S., Blehar, M. C., Waters, E., & Wall, S. (1978). Patterns of attachment: A psychological study of the strange situation. Lawrence Erlbaum.

Bowlby, J. (1944). Forty-four juvenile thieves: Their characters and home-life. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 25, 19-53.

Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss: Vol. 1. Attachment. Basic Books.

Bowlby, J. (1973). Attachment and loss: Vol. 2. Separation: Anxiety and anger. Basic Books.

Bowlby, J. (1980). Attachment and loss: Vol. 3. Loss: Sadness and depression. Basic Books.

Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Parent-child attachment and healthy human development. Basic Books.

Bretherton, I. (1992). The origins of attachment theory: John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth. Developmental Psychology, 28(5), 759-775.

Schaffer, H. R., & Emerson, P. E. (1964). The development of social attachments in infancy. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 29(3), 1-77.

Van der Horst, F. C. P. (2011). John Bowlby: From psychoanalysis to ethology. Wiley-Blackwell.

Van IJzendoorn, M. H., & Kroonenberg, P. M. (1988). Cross-cultural patterns of attachment: A meta-analysis of the strange situation. Child Development, 59(1), 147-156.

Further Reading and Research

Recommended Articles

• Ainsworth, M. D. S., & Bell, S. M. (1970). Attachment, exploration, and separation: Illustrated by the behavior of one-year-olds in a strange situation. Child Development, 41(1), 49-67.
• Bretherton, I., & Munholland, K. A. (1999). Internal working models in attachment relationships: A construct revisited. In J. Cassidy & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications (pp. 89-111). Guilford Press.
• Main, M., & Solomon, J. (1986). Discovery of an insecure-disorganized/disoriented attachment pattern. In T. B. Brazelton & M. W. Yogman (Eds.), Affective development in infancy (pp. 95-124). Ablex Publishing.

Suggested Books

• Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Parent-child attachment and healthy human development. Basic Books.
  • Bowlby’s accessible exploration of how early relationships create the foundation for lifelong emotional health and relationship patterns
• Cassidy, J., & Shaver, P. R. (Eds.). (2016). Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.
  • Comprehensive academic resource covering current attachment research, assessment methods, and clinical applications across the lifespan
• Johnson, S. M. (2019). Attachment in psychotherapy. Guilford Press.
  • Practical guide for understanding how attachment theory applies in therapeutic settings and personal growth, with case studies and intervention strategies

Recommended Websites

• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
  • Evidence-based resources for parents and professionals on early childhood development, attachment, and trauma-informed care
• Center on the Developing Child – Harvard University
  • Research-based information on early childhood development, attachment, and the impact of early experiences on lifelong health and learning
• The Attachment Project
  • Comprehensive resource offering articles, assessments, and practical tools for understanding attachment styles and relationship patterns

Kathy Brodie

Kathy Brodie is an Early Years Professional, Trainer and Author of multiple books on Early Years Education and Child Development. She is the founder of Early Years TV and the Early Years Summit.

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Early Years TV Schaffer and Emerson Study: The 4 Stages of Attachment. Available at: https://www.earlyyears.tv/schaffer-and-emerson-stages-of-attachment/ (Accessed: 27 November 2025).