Attachment - Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation

Question 1

what is meant by maternal deprivation?

Answer 1

when a child and caregivers are separated for repeated or long periods of time e.g. infant going to hospital - wold cause long term effects of Childs emotional and social development - only if happens in critical period

Question 2

who investigated into maternal deprivation?

Answer 2

Bowlby 44 thieves study

Question 3

what was bowlbys procedures into maternal deprivation?

Answer 3

interviewed 44 thieves, 14 of which were affection-less psychopaths and 44 emotionally disturbed about their early lives

Question 4

what were bowlbys findings into maternal deprivation?

Answer 4

86% of the affection-less psychopaths thieves experienced early and prolonged separations from mother. concluded early operations from mother are associated with later problems in social and emotional development - lead to anti-social behaviour - affection-less psychopath.

Question 5

what challenges bowlbys theory of maternal deprivation? 1

Answer 5

bobbly studied group of children hospitalised with TB under 4 years old and listed by family once a week- NO difference between forming relationships in future than normal children

Question 6

what challenges bowlbys theory of maternal deprivation? 2

Answer 6

bowl by actually investigated the effects of privation not deprivation - probation when don’t have an opportunity to form attachment - kids from 44 thieves study

Question 7

what challenges bowlbys theory of maternal deprivation? 3 BUT

Answer 7

deprivation doesn’t lead to personal damage - geese reunited and then could mate BUT animal study so cannot extrapolate

Question 8

what practical applications has bowlbys theory led to?

Answer 8

encourage parents to stay overnight in hospitals

Question 9

what is meant by institutionalisation?

Answer 9

children are raised outside of family and in orphanages

Question 10

what were the concerns with orphanages?

Answer 10

lack of sensitive, one to one care - hard for children to form attachment in that critical period

Question 11

who did research into the effects of institutional care?

Answer 11

Rutter et al

Question 12

what were the procedures of rutter el al’s research into institutional care?

Answer 12

natural experiment of 165 Romanian children who spent early lives in orphanages, cognitive, social and physical development was assessed at ages 4,6,11 and 15 compared to British adopted children

Question 13

what were the findings of rutter et als study into institutional care?

Answer 13

Romaninan children adopted after 6 months showed disinhibited attachments e.g. attention seeking, lack of fear to strangers, inappropriate contact

Question 14

what are the conclusions of rutter et all study?

Answer 14

institutionalisation can have short term negative effects which may persist long term

Question 15

what 4 effects do institutions have?

Answer 15

• disinhibited attachments
• problems with peers
• physical underdevelopment
• cognitive impairment

Question 16

what strengths have research into the effects of institutionalisation got?

Answer 16

practical applications - changes in adoption polices e.g. first week of birth, improves lives of children

Question 17

what is a weakness of research into the effects of institutionalisation got? 1

Answer 17

poor generalisability - Romanian orphanages were particularly bad - cannot associate to all situations - adoption house.

Question 18

what is a weakness of research into the effects of institutionalisation got? 2

Answer 18

longitudinal study - families who were not forming attachments with child may have withdrew from research making results biased