Bowlbys theory of maternal deprivation Flashcards
What did Bowlby propose?
Prolonged emotional deprivation would have long-term consequences in terms of emotional development
What is the value of maternal care?
Its not enough to simply keep a child well-fed and safe - he believed infants/children needed a ‘warm, intimate, and continuous’ relationship with a mother to ensure continuing normal mental health
He said ‘mother-love in infancy and childhood is as important for mental health as are vitamins and proteins for physical health’
What time frame does maternal deprivation affect children?
In the critical period - separation will only have detrimental effects if this happens before about 2 1/2 years and if there is no mother substitute available (Bowlby felt there was a continuing risk up to 5 years old)
What are the long term consequences of maternal deprivation?
Emotional maladjustment or even mental health problems such as depression
What was Bowlbys study on maternal deprivation?
44 juvenile thieves
What were the procedures of Bowlbys study?
Analysed case histories of his patients at the Child Guidance Clinic in London - all children attending were emotionally maladjusted
Studied 88 patients - 44 of them were caught stealing
Bowlby suggested the ‘thieves’ were affection less psychopaths - lacked normal signs of affection, shame or sense of responsibility
What were the findings of Bowlbys study?
Those individuals diagnosed as affectionless thieves had experienced frequent early separations from their mothers
Out of the affectionless thieves (12/14) 86% had experienced frequent separations compared with 17% of the other thieves (5/30)
Almost none of the control participants experienced early separations whereas 39% of all the thieved had - often consisted of continual or repeated stays in foster homes or hospitals
How can emotional deprivation (not just physical) affect children?
Example: a mother who is depressed may be physically present but unable to provide suitable emotional care
Marian Radke-Yarrow et al studied mothers who were severely depressed and found 55% of their children (mean age 32 months) were insecurely attached compared with 29% of the non-depressed group
Why Rutter criticise Bowlbys findings?
Bowlby did not make it clear whether the Childs attachment bond had formed but bee broken or had never formed in the first place
Deprivation vs privation
Rutter argues the lack of an attachment bond would have potentially far more serious consequences (privation) than the loss of an attachment bond (deprivation)
This lack of clarity negatively affects the validity of Bowlbys findings
Why might Bowlbys theory be overly deterministic?
Many Romanian orphans recovered well when adopted into loving families, suggesting effects of deprivation are not always irreversible
