Bowlby's maternal deprivation hypothesis Flashcards
what is Bowlby’s maternal deprivation hypothesis?
the idea that if an intimate attachment does not form at a young age it could lead to negative consequences such as affectionless psychopathy
what experiment did Bowlby conduct?
Maternal deprivation experiment (1944)/ 44 juveniles study
what were the aims of the experiment?
to test the maternal deprivation hypothesis
what were the procedures?
- Bowlby analysed the case histories of a number of patients in the child guidance clinic where he worked - all the children attending the clinic were maladjusted
- he studied 88 of these children - half had been caught stealing (44 thieves) and the other half were a control group
- Bowlby suggested that some of these thieves were affectionless psychopaths - they lacked normal signs of affection, shame or a sense of responsibility
what were the findings?
- 86% of the affectionless psychopaths (12 out of 14) received frequent early separations in contrast to 17% (5 out of 30) of the control group and other thieves
- furthermore almost none of the control participants had experienced early separation whereas 39% of all thieves received early separations. These early separations consisted of continual or repeated stays in foster homes or hospitals where children were scarcely visited by their families
what is the conclusion?
That lack of attachment and care at a young age can lead to emotionless psychopathy and lead to emotional maladjustment and bad mental health
what did Bowlby argue was important for development?
Mother-love in infancy and childhood was important for mental health as vitamins and proteins were for physical health
what did Bowlby believe about the critical period
potential damage from separation could be avoided if there was a mother substitute
separation could lead to negative consequences if this happened in the critical period
