MATERNAL DEPRIVATION

AYENI O.O

INTRODUCTION
Maternal deprivation is when a child is deprived
of the normal maternal care.
Extrinsic/ Social Handicap a person whose
opportunities at healthy development are
hampered by certain elements in his/ her
environment E.G
Loss of parents
Maternal deprivation
Poverty
Discrimination Racial, ethnic and gender
INTRODUCTION
As it is commonly used, the term
maternal deprivation is ambiguous as it
is unclear whether the deprivation is
that of the biological mother, of an
adoptive or foster mother, a consistent
care giving adult of any gender or
relationship to the child, of an
emotional relationship.
INTRODUCTION
The maternal deprivation thesis of
Bowlby(1965) suggested that it is
essential for the mental health of an infant
and young child to experience a warm,
intimate and continuous relationship with
the mother (or permanent mother
substitute).
Maternal deprivation hypothesis
Based on Bowlbys ideas:
Attachment is important for survival
Prototypes for later relationships
Predicts developmental difficulty if the
attachment relationship goes wrong:
General developmental problems
Specific issues with social development
Core Theory Bowlbys Theory
In the 1950s John Bowlby developed a theory of
Attachment
From birth infants are biologically programmed
to cry, cling, make eye contact , smile and
recognise human faces and sounds.
The mother is also programmed to respond to
these behaviours mutual attachment
Both mother and infant feel anxiety when
separated.

Core Theory Bowlbys Theory
He believed that by six to eight
months infants shows separation
anxiety and stranger fear
demonstrating its attachment to its
mother.
Instinctively bond with one key figure
- MONOTROPY
Core Theory Bowlbys Theory
He believed the attachment between a caregiver
and infant had to happen at least in the first 3
years of the infants life.
He called this the CRITICAL PERIOD for
attachment.
The mother provides security and a safe base
from which the child can explore the world.
This relationship acts as a role model for all
future relationships - essential for childs
psychological well being.
Core Theory Bowlbys Theory
If a child did not form an attachment
in the first 5 years of life, they would
suffer negative psychological effects,
especially in adulthood
He called this MATERNAL
DEPRIVATION
If a child never experiences the
opportunity to form any sort of bond it
causes PRIVATION
How do early attachments affect
relationships?
Children that form no attachments (privation)
can grow up having significant problems with
relationships due to poor social and language
skills.
Children who experience deprivation (because
they are separated from an attachment figure)
can grow up to suffer from problems such as
depression (where they withdraw from others)
or emotionless psychopathy (where they show a
lack of consideration of others).
Children who develop and maintain attachments
are more likely to grow up to have productive
relationships.
Lack of moral
constraints on
behaviour
Disruption to
attachment process
Inability to form
relationships with
others
Delinquent or
criminal
behaviour
w
w
w
.
p
s
y
c
h
l
o
t
r
o
n
.
o
r
g
.
u
k

Bowlby J (1944). "Forty-four
juvenile thieves: Their characters
and home life

Comparison of delinquent (i.e. criminal)
and disturbed children
32% of delinquents had an affectionless
character
Apparent inability to relate to others
86% of these had experienced maternal
deprivation

Mary Ainsworth in 1962 indicates:
"Although in the early months of life it
is the mother who almost invariably
interacts most with the child... the role
of other figures, especially the father,
is acknowledged to be significant
hence, Paternal deprivation. The term
'parental deprivation ' would have been
more accurate if the child has been...
deprived of interaction with a father-
figure as well as a mother-figure
Spitz (1945)

Children in orphanages
Signs of depression
Apathy, withdrawal, helplessness, low
appetite
Survival rates of children raised in
prison better than those raised in
orphanages
long term consequences of
maternal deprivation
delinquency,

reduced intelligence,

increased aggression,

depression,

affectionless psychopathy

Maternal deprivation syndrome
Factors that contribute to maternal deprivation
syndrome
Young age of parent (teenage parents)
Unplanned or unwanted pregnancy
Lower levels of education (especially failure to
complete high school)
Lower socioeconomic status
Absence of the father
Absence of a support network (family, close
friends, or other support)
Mental illness, including severe postpartum
depression
Symptoms

Decreased or absent linear growth ("falling
off" the growth chart)
Lack of appropriate hygiene
Interaction problems between mother and
child
Weight less than the 5th percentile, or an
inadequate rate of weight gain

Causes
Institutionalization
Mother- Child separation
Multiple mothering
Distortion of quality of care
Rejection or child neglect
Care of Motherless Babies
Institutional care
Foster care- Kinship or Non-kinship
Care within the extended family with
supervision
Care within the extended family
without Supervision
Adoption
Institutionalization
Child is kept in a government / NGO
owned institution.
Advantages -provides temporary reprieve
for the family while they are adjusting to
the loss of the childs mother
Disadvantages Multiple mothering,
higher risk of morbidity and mortality,
emotionally maladjusted children.
Fostering
Temporary arrangement in which
foster parents are paid to care for a
child for a period of time. Usually
supervised by workers from the
Social Welfare unit.
Not legally binding.
Disadvantage - Child may be
maltreated and maladjusted.
Adoption
Adoption is a permanent legal
arrangement whereby the care of a
child is taken up by a couple.
Requirements- Couple must be
married, over 21 years of age,
educated
The child takes up the family name
and is entitled to an inheritance when
adoptive parents die.
References
Ainsworth, M. D. S. (1963). The development of infant-mother
interaction among the Uganda. In
B. M. Foss (Ed.), Determinants of infant behavior (pp. 67-104).
New York: Wiley.
Developmental Psychology (1992), 28, 759-775.
Bowlby, J. (1958). The nature of the child's tie to his mother.
International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 39, 350-373.
Bowlby, J. (1944). Forty-four juvenile thieves: Their characters
and home lives. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 25, 19-
52.
Ainsworth, M.D.S., Blehar, M.C., Waters, E. & Wall, S. (1978).
Patterns of attachment. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Dr Eme Owoaje presentation on rehabilitation
www.psychlotron.org.uk
References
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maternal_deprivation
www.virtualpsychology.co.uk/powerpoint/attachment.p
pt
Bowlby J (1951). Maternal Care and Mental Health.
Geneva: World Health Organization
Hodges & Tizard (1989)
Spitz R (1945)."Hospitalism: An inquiry into the
genesis of psychiatric conditions in early childhood".
Psychoanalytic Study of the Child 1: 5374.
Onwuka, Morawo.(2008) Presentaion on maternal
deprivation
Akinsola (2006).A-Z of community health in medical
nursing and health education practice