Critical period is a limitation

• A limitation of Bowlby’s theory of maternal deprivation is the idea of a critical period
• E- Rutter drew a distinction between the 2 types of negative experiences, deprivation and Privation. Privation refers to the faliure to form any attachment in the first place whilst deprivation means the loss of the primary attachment figure after attachment
• E- Rutter argued that Bowlby failed to distinguish between:

  • separation from an attachment figure
  • loss of an attachment figure
  • complete lack of privation
• E- Ritter suggests that the long-term issues with emotional development are usually due to privation as opposed to deprivation
• L- this means that Bowlby may have incorrectly classified the children as deprived and therefore questions the validity of his work