Institutionalisation

• Rutter claimed that severe long term damage was not due to maternal deprivation but was due to privation.
• Privation is the lack of an attachment.
• An institution is a place where children live for long periods of time.
• Can cause severe damage to emotional wellbeing and can affect the development of an individual.
• Longitudinal studies were used to follow children after they have been adopted to see if effects are permanent.
• Disinhibited Attachment:

  • attention seeking
  • poor peer relationships
  • mental retardation
  • depression
  • behavioural problems
  • poor family relationships
• STUDY- 2011

  • 165 Romanian orphans that were adopted in Britain
  • 111 were adopted before the age of 2 years
  • ALL adopted before 4 years old
  • Compared to a control group of 52 British children
• STUDY- 2011

  • Physical, cognitive, social development assessed at ages 4,7,11,15