Bowlby's maternal deprivation theory

• What is love equated to in being important in a child's healthy development?

  Physical nutrition
• What is the critical period and what happens if a child receives no love during that time?


  • The first 2.5 years of a child's life
  • They will become emotionally disturbed
• A lack of a 'warm, intimate and continuous relationship' causes what?

  Emotional deprivation
• What are the potential negative long-term consequences of emotional deprivation?

  • Impeded intellectual development
  • Emotional maladjustment
  • Mental health issues
• Quote from Bowlby about maternal deprivation:

  "Mother-love in infancy is as important for mental health as are vitamins and proteins for physical health"
• How does emotional maladjustment present itself in later life?

  • Attachment disorders
  • Inability to form long-lasting bonds with others
  • e.g. affectionless psychopathy
• What is Bowlby's definition of affectionless psychopathy?

  • Seemingly unable to show love or concern for others
  • Act on impulse
  • Seemingly don't suffer from any sense of shame, remorse or responsibility from engaging in hurtful/antisocial actions
• What is the key study in maternal deprivation theory?

  • 44 Juvenile Thieves (1944)
• What was the aim of 44 Juvenile Thieves (1944)?

  To determine whether there is a link between maternal deprivation in infancy and adolescent delinquency
• What was the sample of 44 Juvenile Thieves (1944)?


  88 emotionally disturbed children -> all receiving treatment at London Child Guidance Clinic

  • 44 thieves/juvenile delinquents
  • 44 non-thieves (control group)
• What was the method of 44 Juvenile Thieves (1944)?


  • Quasi experiment
  • Independent measures
• What was the procedure of 44 Juvenile Thieves (1944)?

  • Psychologist gave each child mental tests to assess intelligence + noted emotional attitude of child
  • Social worker interviewed child's mother + recorded preliminary details about child's early psychiatric history
  • Bowlby received results of both reports -> interviewed child + mother himself
  • Team reviewed school + other reports, discussing conclusions
  • Most children met psychiatrist on weekly basis for 6 weeks
  • Mothers talked about their problems with social worker
• What were the findings of 44 Juvenile Thieves (1944)?


  • 2/44 thieves = diagnosed as normal
  • 14/44 thieves (32%) = affectionless (lacked affection + no warmth/feeling towards others -> lied, stole + no loyalty/friendship)
  • 12/14 (86%) experienced deprivation
  • Control group = 0 affectionless but more depressed children
  • 17/44 thieves (39%) had periods of separation >6 months before age 6 -> only 2 children in control group had this experience
  • 12/17 were affectionless
• What were the conclusions of 44 Juvenile Thieves (1944)?


  • Maternal deprivation in child's early life = permanent emotional damage
  • Deprivation = affectionless character + potential for criminal behaviour
• Maternal deprivation theory A&E point 1: research support for Bowlby's idea that maternal care is fundamental to a child's development

  • Spitz + Wolf (1946) = institutionalised children became depressed due to maternal deprivation in a few months
  • Skodak + Skeels (1949) = institutionalised children = poor IQ test scores -> when moved to diff. institution shared by loving adults with cognitive deficiencies, IQs rose by almost 30 points
  • Bifulco et al. (1992) = 25% women who experienced temporary separation from mothers for a year/whose mothers had died developed depression + anxiety disorders
• Maternal deprivation theory A&E point 2: theory weakened by study not being replicable

  • Lewis (1954) -> failed to replicate Bowlby's findings in her study of 500 institutionalised people -> no suggestion that affectionless psychopathy/criminality/attachment disorders were predicted by long-term maternal deprivation
  • Did Bowlby make a Type 1 error (small sample size)?
  • Rutter: Type 1 error = possible! -> privation = issue, not maternal deprivation?
• Maternal deprivation theory A&E point 3: Bowlby's theory + research may not be 100% accurate BUT they resulted in positive real-life applications

  • Theory led to more research into impacts of institutionalisation + move away from institutionalising children
  • If not possible, children are assigned a key worker in any UK group home = 'mother substitute' = focused attention + emotional support
  • Robertson: work on deprivation of children in hospital -> led to parents no longer being banned from visiting hospitalised children + accommodation provided for parents of children with long-term illnesses