Bowlby Placed Great Emphasis on the Role of Mothers in Childcare in 1953 - Article Example

Bowlby placed great emphasis on the role of mothers in childcare in 1953: How relevant are his ideas now in the light of subsequent changes to the family? Shakeela Mohammad TMA 01 Personal Identifier number: X2768659 Date In the past century, the lives of families, especially for those individuals living in developed countries, have changed dramatically from the more close-knit traditional family units of agrarian societies. An understanding of how individuals develop within either society was beginning to form in the beginning of the 1900s, developing throughout the century as more and more scientists, psychologists and others began looking into the various elements that contributed to a happy and productive adult. One of these individuals was John Mostyn Bowlby, a British aristocrat of a large family raised according to the ideals of child-rearing at the time. This included very limited time spent with his parents, consisting of approximately an hour per day with his mother and spending the bulk of his time with his siblings and nanny for example, and an early trip to boarding school, where he spent much of his formative years (Milite, 2001). Although this was not considered to be an unusual sort of childhood, the effects he felt as a result, as well as the work he conducted while volunteering at a hospital for maladjusted children fostered in him a desire to understand more about psychology and he entered medical school with this aim in mind. Although his work with children throughout his career was sporadic for a variety of reasons, he eventually compiled his various researches into three volumes investigating child behavior. These three volumes were entitled Attachment, Separation and Loss, published in 1969, 1973 and 1980 respectively. Within these volumes, Bowlby outlined his concepts regarding what he called Attachment Theory, concepts that were heavily criticized at the time of their publishing, but that have since been proven to be incredibly insightful, innovative and accurate. To determine the degree of relevance these ideas might have within the changing family structure of the modern age, it is necessary to first have an understanding of his ideas as well as an understanding of some of the changes that have occurred within the modern family structure. Understanding Bowlby’s ideas entails not only a brief overview of his attachment theory, but also an understanding of the impact this theory had on the psychological community, the objections that have been raised against it and an idea of the research that has been conducted since its publication. In his work with children, Bowlby did not rule out ideas garnered from other disciplines to bring about a deeper understanding of how the child develops and what might lead to maladjusted behavior. He learned of the importance of imprinting to the survival of young birds and related this concept to the development of human children. Basically, attachment theory suggests children will form only one strong attachment, typically to the mother, during the first year of their life, which will prepare them for their future life. “This image becomes the basis for all future close relationships during infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adult life” (Pendry, 1998). By linking biological development with psychology and introducing concepts from a variety of other fields as well, Bowlby opened up an entirely new field of enquiry now generally labeled developmental psychology. Initially, his ideas were criticized for a perceived misunderstanding of Freud’s theories, upon which part of his theory was based, the lack of appropriate methodology, the emphasis placed upon mothers to remain at home with their children and the lack of emphasis on the role of fathers. Subsequent research performed after Bowlby’s theories were published indicate that children can indeed form multiple attachments, but also seem to support the concept that infants must form attachments to adults if they are to be able to achieve a healthy development without the need for interventions (Pendry, 1998). The structure of families has been changing dramatically during the development of these theories. While Bowlby’s theories came from a background based in the concept of a ‘traditional’ urban family structure, the world in which children are growing up in now is much different. The ‘traditional’ family structure involved a father who went to the city every day to work, a mother who would stay home with the children, children who were raised in the home until approximately age 7 when they were sent to boarding schools of one type or another and, depending on the social status of the family, a nanny who would watch over the younger children until they were old enough to enter boarding school. While there were several exceptions to this rule, including families in which the mother worked, the children worked or attended day school and families who worked on the farms, the general rule was understood to place the mother within the home. Rising issues with adolescent misbehavior have drawn increasing attention, though, only within the last 50 years which have been characterized as well by a number of significant disruptions in this ideal of the family unit. “During the same time period, there have been substantial changes in family size and structure, and in the working lives of parents. These trends are likely to have been accompanied by changes in parenting style and parent-adolescent involvement” (“Time Trends”, 2007). With the recent developments, more and more women are returning to the workplace soon after they have had their babies, often but not always without a real choice. Children, especially young children, are being raised in single parent households often struggling to make ends meet. As a result, they have less interaction with each other and this interaction is not necessarily of a beneficial, supportive kind. In addition, these children are often sent to child care facilities for their primary care, which can have detrimental effects if they are not able to establish any kind of attachment to their caregivers due to a lack of time in the classroom or an overabundance of other young children in the room. Although Bowlby’s research indicated that children formed only one attachment to a primary caregiving adult, which has since been shown to be untrue, his ideas remain relevant today. While children can form more than a single attachment, it is also true that the basic concept of attachment theory, which indicates a supportive, nurturing and responsive stable environment and caregiver provided at a young age will help to produce a stable, happy and more capably adjusted adult, is valid. His theories have helped to develop more appropriate and healthy environments for children placed in child care facilities for short or long term care and have had an impact upon the treatment of children in orphanages. This came about as further research revealed that there is indeed a relationship between the psychological health of a young person and the level and type of attachments they experienced as a small child. Understanding of the concept of separation anxiety has led to developments in adolescent psychology as well, as counselors have been more able to determine the root of the child’s primary issues and develop more appropriate treatment options. While his theories also seemed to place an unpardonable shame upon mothers who opted or were forced to enter the workforce rather than tend to their infants, subsequent research into Bowlby’s theory has suggested that the important aspect of the healthy development of a child is in the quality of the attachments that are formed and the length of time the child is able to spend within these environments rather than the specific relational role this individual might have to the child. References Milite, George A. (2001). “Bowlby, John (1907-1990).” Encyclopedia of Psychology. (2nd Ed.). Gale Group. Pendry, Patricia. (August 1998). “Ethological Attachment Theory: A Great Idea in Personality?” Personality Research. Available 2 April 2007 from “Time Trends in Parenting.” (2007). Research Officer Background. University of Oxford. Available 2 April 2007 from Read More