Bowlby’s Theory of Maternal Deprivation

• Bowlby, 1953: '"Mother love in infancy is just as important for a child's mental health, as vitamins and minerals are for physical health"'
• Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation

  Prior to his theory of attachment, Bowlby (1951) developed the theory that a strong attachment to a mother figure was essential for the psychological, emotional and intellectual development of babies and toddlers. Loss of an existing attachment, 'maternal deprivation', could result in serious and long-lasting problems even affectionless psychopathy.
• The critical period

  The first 2.5 years of life, which were crucial if the child was separated from their primary attachment figure (often the mother) for an extended period of time and in the absence of substitute care, as damage was inevitable.
• Brief separations

  Do not have any long lasting effects according to Bowlby
• Deprivation

  Occurs if the child is separated from the person he/she has made a primary attachment with for an extended period of time in the absence of substitute emotional care
• Separation

  Short period of time
• Deprivation

  Long period of time
• Intellectual development

  • Bowlby believed that if children were deprived of maternal care for too long during the critical period they would suffer mental retardation, characterised by abnormally low IQ. This has been demonstrated in studies of adoption, where children who remained in institutions had lower IQs than those who were fostered and had a higher standard of emotional care.
• Emotional development


  • Bowlby identified affectionless psychopathy as the inability to experience guilt or strong emotion for others. This prevents the person developing normal relationships and is associated with criminality. Affectionless psychopaths cannot appreciate the feelings of victims and so lack any remorse for their actions.
• Bowlby drew on a number of sources of evidence for maternal deprivation
• Bowlby's evidence included studies of orphaned children, children growing up in orphanages, and children separated from their mothers during the Second World War
• The study had a poor research design, as Bowlby herself carried out the interviews, knowing what she hoped to find
• Some studies have found no link between criminality and maternal deprivation
• Some cases of very severe deprivation have had good outcomes

  • Koluchova (1976) reported the case of twin boys from Czechoslovakia who were isolated from the age of 19 months until they were seven years old, but subsequently recovered fully when looked after by two loving adults
• Although most psychologists are very critical of the theory of maternal deprivation, some research has provided some support for the idea that maternal deprivation can have long-term effects
• Rutter (1983) claimed that Bowlby was confusing two concepts: deprivation (the loss of the primary attachment figure after attachment has developed) and privation (the failure to form any attachment in the first place)
• Rutter claimed that the severe long-term damage Bowlby associated with deprivation is more likely the result of privation
• The conflicting research and issues with Bowlby's study design mean that conclusions about the effects of maternal deprivation should be drawn cautiously