Attachment- Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation

Question 1

What is maternal deprivation

Answer 1

refers to the loss of maternal care with no substitute caregiver.

Question 2

What four things does the theory of maternal deprivation propose

Answer 2

“Mothers love in infancy is just as important for a child’s mental health as vitamins and minerals are for physical health”;

Separation from the mother (maternal deprivation) would result in severe damage to a child’s social, emotional and cognitive development;

Maternal deprivation could potentially lead to a number of long-term effects, including: affectionless psychopathy, developmental retardation, delinquency, increased aggression and depression;

The effects of maternal deprivation were irreversible and could not be counteracted by later care.

Question 3

What is affectionless psychopathy

Answer 3

An inability to show affection or concern for others.
Such individuals act on impulse with little regard for the consequences of their actions.
For example, showing no guilt for antisocial behaviour.

Question 4

What is developmental retardation

Answer 4

Significantly impaired intellectual and adaptive functioning throughout life. I.e. they will become underachievers.

Question 5

What did Goldfarb do and what did he find

Answer 5

Those who spent a few months in an orphanage compared to those who spent 3 years in an orphanage before being fostered.

RESULTS: longer time in the orphanage worsened IQ scores, less developed social skills and more likely to be aggressive.

Question 6

What is delinquency

Answer 6

Is the tendency for young people commit minor crimes.
E.g. trespassing, vandalism, shoplifting.

If a child is deprived of their caregiver, Bowlby suggested they may turn to crime to compensate for their lost relationship.
It could also be because they cannot feel empathy and empathising with a potential victim helps us resist the urge to commit crime

Question 7

What is depression

Answer 7

Low mood, withdrawal from activities, disinterest in normal activities, disengaged from others.

Question 8

What is aggression

Answer 8

Displaying anti social behaviour towards others eg fighting

Question 9

In Bowlby’s 44 thieves study, who was the sample

Answer 9

88 children was selected from the clinic where Bowlby worked.
Of these, 44 were juvenile thieves and had been referred to him because of their stealing.
Bowlby selected another group of 44 children to act as ‘controls’

Question 10

How were the 44 thieve assessed

Answer 10

IQ test upon arrival at the clinic by a psychologist who then assessed their emotional attitudes towards the IQ test;

Social worker interviewed a parent to record details of the child’s early life (e.g., periods of separation);

Psychiatrist (Bowlby) then conducted interviews with the child and accompanying parent.

Question 11

What did bowlby find in his 44 thieves research piece

Answer 11

More than half of the juvenile thieves had been separated from their mothers for longer than six months during their first five years. Control group only had 2/44.

32% showed ‘affectionless psychopathy’, whereas none of the control group were affectionless psychopaths.

86% of the affectionless psychopaths had experienced a long period of maternal separation before the age of 5 years.

17% of those not diagnosed as affectionless psychopaths had experienced maternal separation

Question 12

More than ____ of the juvenile thieves had been separated from their mothers for longer than _ months during their first five years. Control group only had _/44.
- 44 thieves

Answer 12

Half
6
2

Question 13

__% showed ‘affectionless psychopathy’, whereas none of the control group were affectionless psychopaths.
- 44 thieves

Answer 13

32

Question 14

__% of the affectionless psychopaths had experienced a long period of maternal separation before the age of 5 years
- 44 thieves

Answer 14

86

Question 15

__% of those not diagnosed as affectionless psychopaths had experienced maternal separation.
-44 thieves

Answer 15

17

Question 16

Evaluation, research
- Bowlby

Answer 16

There is evidence to support Bowlby’s theory of maternal deprivation.

Bowlby’s 44 thieves study suggests that… prolonged early separation in childhood caused young kids to grow up and become affectionless psychopaths.
Through interviews, he found 86% of his identified affectionless psychopaths had experienced this.

This supports the idea that early separation has later emotional consequences, increasing the credibility of the maternal deprivation theory.

Question 17

Evaluation, issues with evidence

Answer 17

However, there are methodological problems with Bowlby’s study as the findings were correlational. This means we cannot establish CAUSE and EFFECT.

For example, it may not be the case that just separation caused affectionless psychopathology, other variables like ……. may have played a part.

Therefore, this research does not necessarily support the MDT.

Question 18

Evaluation, contradictory research

Answer 18

Furthermore, an issue with Bowlby’s theory of maternal deprivation is there is contradictory evidence.

There is evidence that shows that children who have experienced MD CAN recover, such as the Czech Twins (studied by Koluchova) who lost their mother after birth.
The boys were fostered by maternal Aunt for first year then returned to father and stepmother. However, they banished them to cellar for next 5.5 years and weren’t rescued until they were 7 years old.
By age 14, their IQ had normalised (100); by 21 they were enlisted in national service, were emotionally stable and in their 30’s they were married with kids.

Hence, this disproves the idea that the effects of maternal deprivation were not reversible, reducing the credibility of the theory.

Question 19

Evaluation, practical application

Answer 19

A further advantage of Bowlby’s theory of maternal deprivation is there are practical applications which have stemmed from the theory.

For instance, Bowlby’s findings regarding the negative impact of early separation from caregivers has contributed to changes in the prison system and the introduction of mother and baby units.
There are currently 64 places across the country where babies can stay with their mother for up to 18 months to safeguard their future wellbeing.

This means that Bowlby’s research into the MDT has helped improve the way authorities support infants (plus the key worker system for children in day care, children’s homes etc).

Question 20

Evaluation, theoretical flaws

Answer 20

What is deprivation anyway? Criticisms that Bowlby confused the effects of deprivation with the effects of privation.

Michael Rutter (1976) claimed that, when Bowlby talked of ‘deprivation’ he was muddling two concepts together.
Rutter drew a distinction between deprivation (meaning the loss of attachment figure AFTER attachment has developed) and privation (the failure to form any attachment in the first place).

Rutter claimed that the severe long-term damage Bowlby associated with deprivation is actually more likely to be the result of privation.