Psychodynamic Contemporary Debate Flashcards
What is a Primary Care Giver?
The person who is most responsible for an infant’s health, development and well-being
Why is the mother being the PCG a debate?
It used to be assumed that if the baby was fed, clean and kept warm, it would develop without any problem. However, longitudinal studies showed that children who were raised in loving homes formed attachments easier than orphans
What implications must be included in the essay?
Social, Ethical and Economic
What is the first theme of this debate?
Does the mother have a special attachment or can it be someone else?
What did Freud write about an infant’s relationship with their mother?
The relationship is ‘unique, without parallel, laid down unilaterally for a whole lifetime as the first and strongest love object’
Who does Freud think should be the PCG?
What does Freud think happens to children not raised by their mother?
The mother, to have another adult take this role could ‘damage future psychological health and wellbeing’
What is Bowlby’s internal working model?
How the PCG treats the child is how the child will build relationship later in life. It is a template for all future relationships
What is Bowlby’s theory called?
The Monotropic Theory or the Evolutionary theory
What bond does Bowlby believe all infants require in order to develop an internal working model and emotional maturity?
What does it do?
A Monotropic bond. The bond keeps the parent and infant close, helping the infant develop skills and bond with others.
When does attachment take place according to Bowlby?
The critical period. This is from when the infant is born to when the child is 2.5 years old
What is a strength of Bowlby’s Monotropic theory?
The need for monotropy seems universal. Ugandan infants form a primary attachment despite multiple carers, and Israeli communal farm infants still bond specially with their biological mothers despite limited time together.
What is a weakness of Bowlby’s Monotropic theory?
The importance of monotropy is overemphasised. Some think that having a network of attachments is more beneficial
What are the 4 stages of attachment according to Schaffer and Emerson?
- Asocial
- Indiscriminate attachments
- Discriminate attachments
- Multiple attachments
When do the 4 stages of attachment occur?
Asocial - 0-3 months
Indiscriminate attachment - up to 7 months
Discriminate attachment - up to 11 months
Multiple attachments - 2 years+
What have brain scans shown about the father being the secondary care-giver?
the child has less emotional brain activity but high levels of thinking and planning
What have brain scans shown about the father being the primary care-giver?
The child has equal emotional brain activity to if the mother was the PCG and the levels of thinking and planning are still high
What did Rutter believe about attachment and who should be the PCG?
The mother is not uniquely special in how the infant shows attachment. Rutter retested Bowlby’s 44 thieves study on the Isle of Wight and found that boys from homes with psychological disorders, stress, and arguments were four times more likely to turn to crime, but separation due to death/illness did not increase the likelihood of crime.
What is the second theme of this debate?
How important is the mother in breast feeding? Can attachment be formed without it?
What does the NHS and WHO recommend about breastfeeding?
They recommend that all babies are exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of their life
What is Oxytocin?
A hormone that creates a feeling of ‘bonding’
When is oxytocin released?
During breastfeeding, eye contact during breastfeeding increases the amount of oxytocin released
Why is oxytocin important?
Lots of oxytocin means that the baby has been interacted with a lot, meaning the baby develops trust and emotional stability
Why would Freud argue that mothers need to breastfeed?
Freud would say that breastfeeding is a pivotal occupation of an infant in the oral stage
What was Harlow’s monkey experiment?
Harlow’s rhesus monkey study showed the importance of comfort in caregiving bonds. Given a choice between a warm cloth ‘mother’ and a wire ‘mother’ that provided food, the baby monkey consistently sought comfort with and clung to the cloth ‘mother’ when frightened.
What did Harlow’s study suggest?
Even if the mother provides nourishment, other care-givers e.g. the father, can be a source of comfort
What are issues with Harlow’s study?
The behaviour shown might not reflect human behaviour as humans are more complex
What is the third theme of this debate?
Should mothers be at home with their children or make use of daycare?
What does Belsky suggest about daycare?
Children who spend early, extensive and continuous time in the care of non-relatives are more likely to show later behavioural problems, such as aggressiveness and disobedience
What are the controversial findings of Aric Sigman about daycare?
Children have higher levels of cortisol (stress hormone) when in daycare, therefore being at home with the mother is ‘healthier’
What does the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine say about childcare outside the family?
Mothers with young children increasingly go to work. Governments support this as it reduces poverty and contributes to the GDP.
Children in nursery have higher levels of cortisol, which could impact brain development and emotional development
