Attachment - Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation Flashcards
What is deprivation?
Refers to the loss of emotional care that is normally provided by a primary caregiver
What is the value of maternal care?
Children need a warm, intimate and continuous relationship with a mother figure to ensure normal mental health - as important for children as vitamins are for their physical health!
When is and what is the critical period?
The first 2 and a half years of life is a critical period for psychological development…if the child is separated for an extended period from their mother in this time Bowlby believed the damage was inevitable.
Bowlby’s 44 thieves 1944 procedure.
Bowlby analysed case histories of 88 emotionally maladjusted children attending a child guidance clinic - half had been caught stealing (the 44 ‘thieves’) and the other half were a control group.
Bowlby suggested 14 of the ‘thieves’ were affectionless psychopaths - they lacked normal signs of affection, shame or sense of responsibility.
Bowlby’s 44 thieves 1944 findings.
Bowlby found that, of the 14 individuals diagnosed as affectionless thieves, 12 had experienced frequent early separations from their mothers.
Almost none of the control group had experienced early separations, whereas 39% of the thieves had. This suggests that early separations are linked to affectionless psychopathy.
What are the real-world applications of Bowlby’s theory?
P: Bowlby’s work has had a positive impact on the way children looked after in hospitals.
E: Prior to Bowlby’s research, children were separated from their parents when they went into hospital. However, Bowlby’s research led to major changes. Parents are encouraged to visit their children and there is greater flexibility in terms of visiting hours.
E: This demonstrates the positive application to improve the lives of children.
What is the difference between deprivation and privation
P: Rutter (1981) claimed that Bowlby did not make it clear whether the child’s attachment bond had formed but been broken (deprivation), or had never been formed in the first place (privation).
E: Rutter believes that the lack of an attachment bond would have far more serious consequences for the child than the loss of attachment bond.
E: This is important because there is a key distinction between deprivation and privation, and a lack of clarity may affect the validity of research findings.
