strange situation

n. An experimental arrangement and procedure in which a 9' by 9' room with two doors and three chairs and a standard set of toys is used as a setting to investigate the attachment behavior of infants. The standard procedure is for the caregiver with the infant to be greeted by an experimenter, be shown into the room, and be seated, encouraging the child to play with the toys. A stranger to the child enters and leaves the room, the mother leaves and returns twice, and the stranger is left alone with the infant in a standard series of events designed to stress the child mildly so as to observe the infant's reactions and relationship with the caregiver.