Attachment and maternal deprivation

Bowlby's research had a profound impact on the way care was delivered to mothers in postnatal wards and to children in hospitals and residential institutions. Some of his main principles were:

• the first 5 years are the most important
• the child's relationship with their parent (mother) has a big effect on the child's overall development
• separation from the parent (mother) is a major source of emotional distress
• this separation has a long lasting effect, well into later life
• the attachment bonds between the infant and parent is monotropic
• Bowlby thought that the period between 6 months and 3 years is a critical or sensitive period for attachment formation
• if a child were deprived of a mother or mother figure they were more likely to show delinquent behaviour in later life

Well that was then, this is now.

Whilst Bowlby did not say that the most important figure was the mother, he did emphasise the importance of a single, central mother figure. Later research has shown that infants can form strong bonds with a number of carers and it is the quality and consistency of these relationships that are important.