Which term refers to the infant's fear of unfamiliar people that typically emerges around eight months?

Which term refers to the infant's fear of unfamiliar people that typically emerges around eight months?

• A. Stranger Anxiety
• B. Separation Anxiety
• C. Fear of the Unknown
• D. Stranger Fear

Answer: (A)

Stranger anxiety is the infant’s fear of unfamiliar people that typically appears around eight months. This reflects an important stage in social-emotional development: as babies form a strong attachment to their primary caregiver, they become more wary of strangers because they rely on known faces for safety. This reaction—crying, clinging, or turning away when a new person approaches—is normal and shows healthy attachment and recognition. Over time, most children outgrow this wariness as they gain more experience with a variety of people and become more confident in unfamiliar situations. Separation anxiety is about distress when the caregiver leaves, not the presence of new people. Fear of the Unknown isn’t a standard label for this milestone, while “stranger fear” is sometimes used, the common term most aligned with this exact early development is stranger anxiety.

Stranger anxiety is the infant’s fear of unfamiliar people that typically appears around eight months. This reflects an important stage in social-emotional development: as babies form a strong attachment to their primary caregiver, they become more wary of strangers because they rely on known faces for safety. This reaction—crying, clinging, or turning away when a new person approaches—is normal and shows healthy attachment and recognition. Over time, most children outgrow this wariness as they gain more experience with a variety of people and become more confident in unfamiliar situations. Separation anxiety is about distress when the caregiver leaves, not the presence of new people. Fear of the Unknown isn’t a standard label for this milestone, while “stranger fear” is sometimes used, the common term most aligned with this exact early development is stranger anxiety.