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in the Strange Situation, such as approaching the caregiver with head averted or suddenly
freezing in mid-approach.
Classification according to attachment style yields results that appear to be relatively stable
through childhood and adolescence. This may be because parenting styles tend to persist and
child/adolescent behaviors garner predictable parental responses (Kalsner & Pistole, 2003).
Grossmann and Grossmann (1991), using a modification of the Strange Situation, found 86
percent convergence between their ratings of six-year-olds and the ratings of the same
children during infancy. Given this support for continuity of attachment in childhood, many
researchers have proposed that attachment style has correlates in adulthood, including adult
romantic relationships, general interpersonal relationships, and parenting relationships
(Feeney, Noller, & Hanrahan, 1994; Hazan & Shaver, 1994).
A major contribution to the classification of adult attachment was made by Hazan and Shaver
(1987). Drawing on the three basic attachment styles described in the child development
literature, they devised a descriptive paragraph for each style. More recently other self-report
measures have been devised based on Hazan and Shavers original work (Brennan, Clark, &
Shaver, 1998; Collins & Read, 1990; Feeney, Noller, & Hanrahan, 1994), including several
Likert rating scales with various individual statements based on the original, forced-choice
paragraphs.
Bartholomew and Horowitz (1991) expanded the number of attachment style classifications,
resulting in the definition of four types of attachment style. The secure person has a positive
view of self and others, whereas the preoccupied person (similar to other descriptions of
anxious/ambivalent) has a negative model of self and a positive model of others. The
avoidant category is divided into two types. The fearful-avoidant person, with a negative
view of both self and others, has a sense of unworthiness and avoids close involvement with
others in order to protect against anticipated rejection by others. The dismissive-avoidant
person, who has a positive view of self but negative view of others, has a sense of loveworthiness combined with an avoidance of close relationships to protect against
disappointment and maintain a sense of independence and invulnerability.