The Ability to Negotiate the Environment: An Aspect of Infant Competence as Related to Quality of Attachment

Abstract

CASSIDY, JUDE. The Ability to Negotiate the Environment: An Aspect of Infant Competence as Related to Quality of Attachment. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1986, 57, 331-337. This preliminary study explored the relation between the quality of attachment to mother and a previously unexamined aspect of competence-the ability to negotiate the environment-which includes such skills as those needed to maneuver successfully around toys and furniture, to cross distances and reach for objects without stumbling or falling, and to position oneself in a comfortable and appropriate position in relation to toys during play. Videotapes of 65 18-month-olds and their mothers in Ainsworth's Strange Situation provided the basic data. A checklist was devised for scoring difficulties negotiating the environment during the initial 6 min of free play in the Strange Situation. Quality of attachment, based on the remainder of the same Strange Situation, was assessed by a second pair of coders blind to the hypothesis of the study. Results matched expectations. A 1-way analysis of variance of 3 attachment groups (1 securely and 2 insecurely attached) revealed significant differences, with securely attached infants having the least difficulty in negotiating the environment. These betweenattachment-group differences remained significant after controlling for individual differences in overall amount of exploratory behavior. The findings, which must be viewed as preliminary given some methodological limitations of the study, are discussed in light of 3 alternative hypotheses as to what may mediate the phenomenon.