debate-the mother as primary caregiver

• should be PCG-Feeding


  women breastfeed their child,this is seen as essential for childs development.

  This is going to have to be every 2 hours,so mother must be around her newborn child.

  its practical for the mother to be around,everyone else has limited support to give.
• NHS recommendations


  breastfeeding should happen for at least the first 6 months of their lives.

  It offers the healthiest start for infants,offers protection from numerous infections and diseases.

  It an also build a strong physical and emotional bond between mother and baby,important for emotional support.

  (should be PCG-Feeding)
• Bartick et al


  its better for the mother physical health to breast feed and that if over 90% of new mothers in the US breast fed their babies then it could avert over 5000 cases of breast cancer.

  Beneficial for the child in the long run-wont see their mother sick.

  (should be PCG-Feeding)
• Doesnt need to be PCG-Feeding


  Behaviourists claimed that infants were classically conditioned to associate their mother with a sense of pleasure.

  Food:unconditioned stimulus Pleasure:unconditioned response

  Mother is associated with feeding and hence becomes a conditioned stimulus producing a conditioned response of pleasure.
• Harlow


  placed infant monkeys with 2 wire mothers.One had a feeding bottle the other had a cloth.The monkeys spent most of their time with the mother who was covered with cloth,especially when frightened.

  Food doesnt create an emotional bond,comfort does

  (doesnt have to be PCG-Feeding)
• Springham


  chest feeding kit.

  fathers can induce lactation so men could nurse their own babies.They are given a course of hormones at the start of the pregnancy which means once the baby is born they are able to chest feed their child

  (doesnt have to be PCG-Feeding)
• should be PCG-Freuds views on the importance of the mother


  Freud believed that the mother-infant relationship is the greatest importance in the oral stage of the psychosexual stages.Infants rely on their mother to satisfy the needs of their libido.If not satisfied can lead to overindulgence/frustration.
• Freud


  a mothers love acts as a prototype for every relationship the infant will go on to have in their lifetime.

  If needs are unsatisfied,it causes separation anxiety.

  (should be PCG-Freuds view on the importance of the mother)
• Efe tribe

  monotropy

  Efe women share the care of infants in the tribe and take turns to breast feed them,however infants return back to mothers at night and form a stable bond with their own mother.

  (should be PCG-Freuds view on the importance of the mother)
• doesnt need to be PCG-Freuds view on the importance of the mother.


  Freuds ideas about gender roles are outdated,they reflect the societal views in the early half of the 20th century.

  When women didnt have the right to vote.

  If freud had written today,he may have portrayed a different picture of the fathers role.
• Freud


  Recognised the importance of the role of the father.

  'I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a fathers protection'

  Fathers are also needed in a boys development(oedipus complex)

  (doesnt need to be the PCG-Freuds view on the importance of the mother)
• Feminism


  Freuds view around women was around before women could even vote.In the UK in 2023 we had a women PM,there is now a different attitude towards women.

  (doesnt need to be PCG-Freuds view on the importance of the mother)
• should be the PCG-Deprivation damage


  Separation from mothers causes damage to a childs development.
• Bowlby


  Early and prolonged separation between a child and mother can have long lasting effects.Separation is likely to lead to affectionless characters.

  These views were put into the maternal deprivation hypothesis,the attachment to one caregiver has special importance to survival.

  Monotropy(emotional bond towards one person)

  (should be PCG-Deprivation damage)
• Velhurst


  compared adopted children from the UK and Romania.

  In Romania children living in orphanages had poor hygiene,insufficient food,little care.

  Those who lived in such institutions for over 6 months had higher rates of social problems including autistic features,overactivity.

  3-4x more likely to experience emotional problems as adults,lower employment rates.

  (should be PCG-Deprivation damage)
• doesnt have to be PCG-Deprivation damage


  a maternal relationship is not exclusive to a mother-any strong emotional bond can be created through anyone.
• Bowlby


  used the term maternal-this was never exclusive to the childs mother.

  Mother substitutes are just as effective.

  He studied children who were very ill with TB and spent many years in hospital with little contact with their families-however these children did not have problems in later life.

  Those who had a strong attachment to their mothers(or substitute)were more resiliant.

  (doesnt have to be the PCG-Deprivation damage)
• Oxana Malaya


  Raised by a pack of dogs.

  She walked on all 4s,barked,ate raw meat.

  Bond was so strong to the pack,police had to distract them to remove her safely.

  She now has learnt to speak and walk.

  (doesnt have to be PCG-Deprivation damage)
• should be PCG-Mothers not fathers


  men are not biologically equipped to form such an intense emotional relationship.

  Women have hormones such as oestrogen that underlies caring behaviour so women are more oriented towards emotional relationships than men.

  Socially,men are seen as feminine if they are sensitive.
• Heerman


  men are less sensitive to infant cues than mothers.

  (should be PCG-Mothers not fathers)
• Frodi


  showed videos of infants crying and found no differences in the biological response of men and women.

  (should be PCG-Mothers not fathers)
• Pisapia et al


  brains of mean and women react differently to infant cries.Womens brain activity suggested an immediate alertness to the noise of the infant crying,while mens brain activity didnt change.

  (Should be PCG-Mothers not fathers)
• doesnt have to be PCG-Mothers not fathers


  men are capable of forming close attachments to their children,single parent families.The view that men are unemotional is outdated.

  Changing of gender roles meant that men and women feel freer to take on roles traditionally reserved by a specific gender.
• Gettler


  fathers testosterone levels drop in order to help him to respond more sensitively to his childs needs when having a child.

  Fathers who spent alot of time with their children had lower testosterone levels

  (doesnt have to be PCG-Mothers not fathers)
• AKA tribe-Hewlett


  men are responsible for childcare whilst mothers search and hunt for food.

  Fathers are in within arms reach of their child 47% of the time and even breastfeed their children.

  (doesnt have to be PCG-Mothers not fathers)