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.