Mary Ainsworth
Measured how we learn to bond.
A developmental psychologist who, with John Bowlby, defined attachment styles and the idea of the secure base.
techniques
The secure base lets a child venture out, knowing there is somewhere safe to return.
Who they were
Mary Ainsworth turned attachment from theory into observable science. Through her “Strange Situation” studies of infants and caregivers, she identified secure, anxious and avoidant patterns — early templates that echo through adult love and friendship. Her concept of the secure base explains how trusted closeness lets us explore the world with courage.
Famous books
What they left on the shelf
Terms they cared about
Ideas worth knowing
Their techniques
How the work was done
Their big idea
Attachment Assessment
Mary Ainsworth devised the Strange Situation, a careful observation of how infants respond to brief separations from a parent. From it she identified distinct patterns of attachment, revealing how a child's sense of security is built in everyday moments of care.
Questions in their spirit
What they’d ask you
Sit with one. Answer online, or in the app.
Carry the idea forward
Ainsworth — What they’d ask you
Psipas asks you one small, honest question at a time — and builds the picture from your answers.