5 Flashcards
Who proposed the theory of Maternal Deprivation?
Bowlby
Define maternal deprivation
Child and caregiver (mother) are separated and their attachment bond is disrupted, which is believed to negatively affect the child’s intellectual and emotional development
Outline how maternal deprivation occurs
- Child and caregiver separated for extended period
- Child becomes deprived of emotional care
Can deprivation sometimes occur without separation?
Yes - sometimes poor care from a present caregiver can also lead to a deprivation of emotional care
When did Bowlby believe that children were vulnerable to maternal deprivation?
Critical period of first 2.5 yrs (with lesser risk continuing up to 5yrs)
Did Bowlby believe that maternal deprivation has negative consequences?
Yes - thought to negatively affect intellectual and emotional development
What intellectual effect did Bowlby suggest maternal deprivation can have?
Delayed intellectual development : shown in low IQ
Give a piece of research evidence to support the idea that maternal deprivation negatively effects intellectual development
Goldfarb (1947)
Aim:
- To investigate whether the Maternal Deprivation Hypothesis is correct in suggesting childhood separations can impair intellectual development
Procedure:
- Sample: wartime orphans
- Group 1: first few months in orphanage, then fostered
Group 2: first 3 yrs in orphanage, then fostered
Findings:
- Lower IQ in those who remained in institutions for longer
Conclusion:
- Maternal deprivation can stunt intellectual development, evident in low IQs
What emotional effect did Bowlby suggest maternal deprivation can have?
Impaired emotional development, which may lead to the development of disorders, e.g. AFFECTIONLESS PSYCHOPATHY
Define affectionless psychopathy
Inability to experience guilt or strong emotions towards others
What type of people commonly have affectionless psychopathy?
Criminals - can complete crimes with no remorse
Give a piece of research evidence to support the idea that maternal deprivation negatively effects emotional development
Bowlby’s 44 Juvenile Thieves Study (1944)
Aim:
- To investigate whether the Maternal Deprivation Hypothesis is correct in suggesting childhood separations can impair emotional development and trigger disorders
Procedure:
- Sample = 88 children, age 5-16, attend guidance clinic
- Group 1: Experimental group. 44 children referred for theft
Group 2: Control group. 44 children referred for other reasons
- Interviewed ppts + families to determine: type of upbringing (deprived?) and whether ppts were affectionless psychopaths
Findings:
- Group 1: Higher level of separation from mothers in childhood (86%) and higher level of affectionless psychopaths (32%)
- Group 2: Lower level of separation from mothers in childhood (4%) and no affectionless psychopaths
Conclusion:
- Early life separations can cause maternal deprivation, which can have negative effect on emotional development + cause disorders
Give 2 positive evaluation points for Bowlby’s Maternal Deprivation Theory
Research support
- Concept of damaged intellectual development supported by Goldfarb
- Concept of damaged emotional development support by Bowlby
- This research support increases the theory’s validity
Practical applications
- Theory has highlighted important considerations for childcare, that can reduce deprivation
- E.g. ‘Attachment + Family Centred Care Programme’ encourages parents to remain in contact and routine with hospitalised children, so attachment isn’t lost and child isn’t emotionally deprived
Give 3 negative evaluation points for Bowlby’s Maternal Deprivation Theory
Research to refute
- Hilda Lewis (1954) replicated the 44 thieves study using 500 young people
- Didn’t find any link between early separation (deprivation) + criminality or affectionless psychopathy
- Suggests Bowlby was wrong, maternal deprivation doesn’t hinder emotional development
Methodological issues with supporting research
Bowlby:
- May have had observer bias + interviewer bias (particularly as he was a deprived child)
- Didn’t observe any other variables (e.g. poverty) that linked to delinquency, so may have ignored third intervening variable - reductionist
Goldfarb:
- Confounding variables, as all children in wartime orphanages had varying levels of trauma, so intellectual development may be result of this, not of deprivation
Alternative explanation
- Effects of deprivation may actually be effects of privation
- Goldfarb’s orphans + Bowlby’s thieves suffered separation at a such a young age that they may never have formed attachments
- The lack of development may be due to the ppts suffering privation
Define privation
Child-caregiver attachment is never formed