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Contemporary Debate: The mother as the primary caregiver of an infant -…
Contemporary Debate: The mother as the primary caregiver of an infant
The mother should be the primary caregiver of an infant
Feeding
NHS recommends that if possible infants are breastfed for at least the first 6months of their lives
Breastfeeding offers the healthiest start for infants as it protects them from numerous infections and diseases
The NHS also claim it can build a strong physical and emotional bond between mother and baby, important in subsequent emotional development
Argument means that is is practical and essential to the infant’s survival for the mother to be one primary care giver
Means father is limited to a supporting care-giving role
Freud's view on the importance of the mother
Freud believed that the mother-infant dyad was the greatest importance in the initial oral Stage & psychosexual development
Infants depend upon their mother to satisfy the needs of their libido
Over indulgence/frustration leads to emotional problems later in life e.g. neediness/ Pessimism
Freud also claimed that separation anxiety is caused by the infant releasing that their bodily needs that will go unsatisfied if separation is allowed to occur
1938 Freud wrote: the infants relationship with their mother was ‘unique, without parallel, laid down unilaterally for a whole lifetime as the first and strongest love object’ -> Freud is claiming that a mother's love acts as prototype for every relationship the infant will go on to have in their lifetime
Deprivation Damage
Bowlby demonstrated that early a prolonged separation between a child and its mother can have lasting emotional effects → such as separation can lead to an affectionless character
Bowlby developed this into the maternal deprivation hypothesis
Then identified a central role for the mother in healthy emotional development
Bowlby (1969) was influenced by evolutionary theory and proposed that attachment to one caregiver has special importance for survival - monotropy
Mothers not Fathers
It is possible women are the best primary caregivers as most women are just not psychologically equipped to form the intense emotional relationships
Maybe due to biological (oestrogen) or social factors (sex stereotypes)
The mother should not be the primary caregiver of an infant
Feeding
1950s behaviourists promoted the view that infants were classically conditioned to associate their mother with a sense of pleasure: food (unconditioned stimulus) creates pleasure (unconditioned response); mother associated with feeding (conditioned Stimulus) producing pleasure (conditioned response)
Harry Harlow (1959) placed infant monkeys with two wore ‘mothers’. One had a feeding bottle and the other was covered in a soft cloth. -> Monkey's spent most of their time on the cloth ‘mother’, demonstrated food does not create an emotional bond
Schaffer & Emerson (1964) - supported Harlow's findings in a study of human behaviour -> found primary attachments were not formed with person who fed/spent more time with the infant -> strongly attached infants had carers who responded quickly & sensitively their ‘signals' and who offered their child the most interaction
Freud's view on the importance of the mother
Historical context of Freud’s ideas need to be considered:
At the time of writing, women did not have the right to vote
His ideas simply reflects the norms and values that were held by society at the time in the early 1900s
Freud did recognise the importance of the role of the father:
1930 Freud claimed ‘I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection’
The importance of a father in a boy’s development (Oedipus Complex)
Deprivation Damage
Bowlby wrote ‘a child should experience a warm, intimate and continuous relationship with his mother (or permanent mother substitute - one person who can steadily ‘mother’ him) - 1953 -> 'mothering’ is not exclusive to just a mother
Mothers not Fathers
Plenty of evidence that men are capable of forming close attachments with their children
Changing stereotypes meant that men and women feel freer to take on roles traditionally given to the other sex
Getter et al (2011) suggest a father's testosterone level drops in order to help ‘a man respond more sensitively to his children’s needs’
Ethical, Social & Economical Implications
Childcare arrangements have significant economic implications
Increasing industrialisation in the 19th & 20th centuries led to the need for an expanding work force including women
Therefore childcare needed to be provided
Form of support used/offered to parents is time of work following the birth of their infant -> Traditionally only offered to women (maternity leave) but from April 2015 parents are entitled to shared parental leave -> Reflects how parents in the UK are moving away from traditional societal values
Economic costs of childcare at both family & societal levels are significant
March 2014, Family and Childcare Trust reported that the average annual cost to parents sending an infant to nursery full time is £9850 -> UK gov introduced a scheme that allowed parents to claim tax relief on childcare costs
Costs to the treasury of these schemes are significant but may be a greater cost to society if unable to sustain an effective workforce
Conclusions
The view the mother as the primary caregiver is out of date
No conclusive evidence that the primary care-giver has to be female
Mistakenly emphasises the fact that children have one primary carer -> Reality is relied on both parents to care for the child
Bowlby - there is one primary attachment figure but also proposed that secondary attachments provided a vital emotional safety net for when a primary figure is absent
The biggest mistake is thinking that any caregiver is ‘primary'