Abstract
van IJzendoorn and Kroonenberg meta-analysed Strange Situation studies worldwide — attachment distributions show cultural shifts in averages and large variation within each country.
van IJzendoorn, M. H., & Kroonenberg, P. M. (1990). Infant Behavior and Development, 13(4), 469–485. DOI
Key findings
- Cross-cultural map — Secure, avoidant, and resistant profiles appear across cultures — the paradigm travels, not identically.
- Cultural averages — Country means differ — what is common in one nation is not the global default.
- Within-nation spread — Individual variation inside each sample often exceeds between-country gaps — labels from one clip risk error.
- Method caution — Meta-analysis of one observational paradigm — not every caregiving culture maps to the same codes.
Limits
1990 meta-analysis — later replication debates; use as pattern map, not individual diagnosis.
Application
When you label someone from one reunion clip — culture and local variance matter as much as the average curve. See Attachment and bonding lineage.