Disruption of Attachment

Separation

When a child is temporarily away from a caregiver they are attached to, typically for hours or days, not a long-term absence.

Deprivation

The loss of something desired or needed, such as 'maternal deprivation' referring to the absence of the mother or primary attachment figure, often implying a long-term or permanent loss.

Maternal Deprivation Hypothesis

John Bowlby's theory suggesting that prolonged separation from the primary caregiver during the critical period (first 3 years) can negatively impact a child's emotional, social, intellectual, and physical development.

What method did Bowlby (1944) use?

• Case studies were completed on the backgrounds of 44 adolescents who had been referred to the clinic where Bowlby worked because they’d been stealing.

• There was a control group of 44 ‘emotionally disturbed’ adolescents who didn’t steal

What were the results of Bowlby’s case studies?

• 17 of the thieves had experienced frequent separations from their mothers before the age of two, compared with 2 in the control group.

• 14 of the thieves were diagnosed as ‘affectionless psychopaths’ (they didn’t care about how their actions affected others).

• 12 of these 14 had experienced separation from their mothers

What was the conclusion of Bowlby’s (1944) case studies?

Deprivation of the child from its main carer during early life can have very harmful long-term consequences

What were the evaluations of Bowlby’s (1944) case studies?

• The results indicate a link between deprivation and criminal behaviour. However, it can’t be said that one causes the other.

• There may be other factors (e.g. poverty) that caused the criminal behaviour.

• Although case studies provide a lot of detailed information, the study relied on the respective data, which may be unreliable

What was the method of Robertson and Robertson (1968) study?

• In a naturalistic observation, several children who experienced short separations from their carers were observed and filmed.

• For example, a boy called John aged around 18 months stayed in a residential nursery for nine days while his mother had another baby

What were the results of Robertson and Robertson’s (1968) study?

• For the first day or two, John protested at being separated from his mother. He then started trying to get attention from the nurses, but they were busy with other children so he gave up trying.

• After another few days, he began to show signs of detachment- he was more active and content than he had been previously at nursery. But, when his mother came to collect him, he was reluctant to be affectionate

What were the results of Robertson and Robertson’s (1968) study?

• For the first day or two, John protested at being separated from his mother. He then started trying to get attention from the nurses, but they were busy with other children so he gave up trying.

• After another few days, he began to show signs of detachment- he was more active and content than he had been previously at nursery. But, when his mother came to collect him, he was reluctant to be affectionate

What were the conclusions of Robertson and Robertson’s (1968) study?

The short-term separation had terrible effects on John, including possible permanent damage to his attachment to his mother

What were the evaluations of Robertson and Robertson’s (1968) study?

• John’s reaction might have been due to the separation- it could have been down to his new environment or the fact that he was getting much less attention than he used to.

• There would have been little control of variables, and it would have been difficult to replicate each individual situation.

• However, as the study took place in a natural setting, the results will have ecological validity but will be less reliable

What were the strengths of Bowlby’s maternal deprivation hypothesis?

• Other evidence supports Bowlby’s claims.

• Goldfarb (1943) found that orphanage children who were socially and maternally deprived were less intellectually and socially developed

What were the limitations of Bowlby’s maternal deprivation hypothesis?

The evidence can be criticised. Bowlby linked the thieves’ behaviour to maternal deprivation, but other things were not considered, e.g. whether the poverty they grew up in Goldfard’s study may have been most harmed by the social deprivation in the orphanage rather than the maternal deprivation

How can the effects of disruption of attachment be reversed?

One of Bowlby’s assumptions of his maternal deprivation hypothesis was that the consequences were not reversible. However, further has shown has shown that even when deprivation has harmful effects, these may be reversed with appropriate, good-quality care

What research did Skeels and Dye (1939) do?

They found that children who were socially deprived (in an orphanage) during their first two years of life quickly improved their IQ if they were transferred to a school where they got one-to-one care

What did Koluchova (1976)- the case study of Cezch Twin Boys find?

• This is the case of twin boys whose mother died soon after they were born. Their father remarried and their stepmother treated them very cruelly. They were often kept locked in a cellar, had no toys and were often beaten

• They were found when they were seven with rickets (a bone development disease caused by a lack of vitamin D), and very little social or intellectual development

• They were later adopted and made much progress. By adulthood, they had average intelligence and normal social relationships

Attachment Figures

Individuals to whom a child forms a strong emotional bond, crucial for their development and well-being.

Separation Anxiety

The fear of being separated from the primary caregiver, which can lead to behaviors like clinginess and school avoidance.

Bowlby's 44 Juvenile Thieves Study

A study by Bowlby on adolescents who had stolen, showing a correlation between early separations from mothers and later criminal behavior.

Ecological Validity

The extent to which research findings can be generalised to real-world settings, as seen in naturalistic observations like Robertson and Robertson's separation study.

Reversibility of Effects

The idea that the harmful consequences of attachment disruption can be mitigated or reversed with appropriate care, as shown in studies like Skeels and Dye's research.

Koluchova's Czech Twin Boys Case

A case study demonstrating the potential for recovery from severe deprivation through proper care and support, leading to improved intelligence and social relationships.