Family Observation Essay
Context of Observation
With her mother's permission, I observed my cousin's 33–month–old female daughter named Clara.
This observation occurred at my grandparents' house, who are Clara's great–grandparents. My
grandma frequently babysits Clara and her older and younger sisters, so she is familiar with the
house. It was Thanksgiving when I did the observation with Clara, so she was surrounded by a
combination of familiar faces as well as people that she infrequently sees. For example, I only see
her during major holidays due to the fact I now live out of state, and while she has interacted with
me, I am more or less a stranger to her due to the infrequent nature of our interactions. All of the
Oswald family members came to Thanksgiving this year, so my grandparents small house was
packed with many people. Additionally, it was constantly noisy in the small house, with lots of
different activities occurring throughout the day.
Observations
Attachment
To begin with, one of the most interesting things I observed with Clara is how clearly her behavior
demonstrated a secure attachment with her parents. While my grandmother's home was a familiar
place to Clara, adding so many family members, and family members she did not know, made the
situation somewhat unfamiliar with her. It was interesting to see how she interacted with myself, my
mother, and my fiancГ©, all of us whom do not have much interaction with Clara, at the beginning
of Thanksgiving. When we tried to interact with her, she would stare suspiciously at us, and then run
to her parents or grandmother. When we tried to interact with her in her "secure base", she would
bury her head into the shoulder of whoever was holding her.
Eventually, the cycle of going back to the secure base and exploring got bigger and bigger. As she, I
assume, continued to get confirmation that the unfamiliar situation was safe, and her secure base
was there to protect her, she would feel more comfortable venturing out, exploring the house more,
and interacting with unfamiliar faces. She would check in with her parents, grandparents, or aunts
by sitting on their lap for a little while, but as the night went on, the duration between these
check–ins became longer, and they also became
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