Maternal deprivation

• 44 Theives study (1944)

  88 emotionally maladjusted children from his patients in Child Guidance Clinic London, 44 caught stealing, others were control group, found individuals he diagnosed ‘affectionless’ had experienced frequent early maternal separation, 12/14 affectionless thieves experienced this compared to only 5/30 of other thieves, early parental separation linked to psychopathy
• Bowlby (1951, 1953)

  prolonged emotional deprivation has long term consequences for emotional development, has main effect if separation happens before 2.5 years (crit period) and if there is no mother substitute available
• Doesnt have to be physical maternal deprivation, can be emotional

  • Marian Radke-Yarrow et al (1985) - 55% of children of severely depressed mothers were insecurely attached, compared to 29% of non-depressed group
• Antonia Bifulco et al (1992)

  studied women who had separated from mother's for >1yr. 25% later depressed or had anxiety disorders, compared to only 15% who grew up without separation
• Childcare majorly changed in hospitals after research (James Robertson 1952, 2yr old Kaura extreme distress after 8 day hospitalisation and separation from home)
• Barrett (1997)

  Some securely attached children able to cope far better with separation. Shows affect of separation varies due to individual differences
• Michael Rutter (1981) Maternal Deprivation Reassessed book

  • critised Bowlby, unclear in Bowlby’s theory whether PAF attachment had been formed then broken, or never formed in first place. Rutter argues lack of attachment bond may be more serious than loss of one