Bowlby Theory Essay

Evidence of this came from his study of forty-four juvenile delinquents. (Hayes, 1996). His findings from this study proved that there is a correlation between maternal deprivation in babies and subsequent criminal behaviour in adulthood. Bowlby has been criticised by other academics. Michael Rutter (1981) argues that these problems are not due solely to the lack of attachment to a mother figure, as Bowlby claimed, but to factors such as the lack of intellectual stimulation and social experiences which attachments normally provide. (McLeod, 2007). Rutter (1970) in another study of a group of delinquents in the Isle of Wight found no connection between delinquent behaviour and separation from the mother. According to Buchannan (2013), Many feminists have taken issue with attachment theory, describing the attachment field’s prescriptive mothering role as unreasonable, the emphasis on mothering as politically motivated and the rational for focusing on mothering in isolation from context as patriarchal (Contratto, 2002; Morris, 2008).

“The greatest threat to a child’s well-being in the United States is parental incarceration” –The Sentencing Project. A 500% increase has made “The land of the Free” the top country in the world for housing inmates in its “correctional” facilities, with more than 2.2 million currently incarcerated (BJS, 2011). Excusing one’s views on the appropriateness of the justice system and incarceration, it is evident that parental imprisonment disrupts the relationship between a parent and a child tremendously. In addition to the absence of nurturance, economic stresses are heightened which can cause the remaining family to become unstable. Because there has is not a lot of research dedicated to the wellbeing of children who have a parent incarcerated, it is vital that more attention be paid to the nations children. Our goal in this paper is to examine the impact of parental incarceration on children’s development and attachment style.

Incidents like abuse from family members, bullying, neglect, and sexual abuse are the most common. Repeated abuse can lead to psychological damage and emotional scarring. Not only are traumatic psychological experiences causing these juveniles to commit violent crimes. Situations, where children have poor education, a household without discipline, peer pressure, inadequate role models, low income, and substance abuse coupled with the wrong environment, can lead to a life of crime. These negative influences guide these juveniles on the wrong path towards crime. However, it does not mean these juveniles cannot succeed; it is however up to the juvenile to make the correct choices in their

It’s time to get rid of the idea of the “American Dream” we once cherished. The "American Dream" has strayed so far from the true, original meaning and has instead become a convoluted, argumentative point for politicians to use in their speeches. No one can openly oppose it because it captures our faith in advancement as a nation. Opposing it would be unpatriotic no matter how unrealistic it truly is. That is the exact reason this phrase has survived all odds, it provides hope for those without. It is what drives us all, whether we know it or not, even though its nothing but an unreachable dream.

What is the definition of attachment? If you look it up in a dictionary it explains that it is ‘an emotional bond between an infant or toddler and primary caregiver, a strong bond being vital for the child’s normal behavioural and social development’. That strong bond between infant and caregiver is believed to happen between the ages of 6-8 months although Bowlby (1958) suggests that the infants are born into this world pre-programmed to form attachments, they have innate behaviours in the way of crying, smiling, crawling and cooing which will stimulate attention and comforting responses from the caregivers. These behaviours are called social releasers. Kagan et al (1978)

“The so-called traditional family, with a male breadwinner and a female who cares for the home, is a thing of the past” (Siegel, Welsh, & Senna, 2003, p. 194). This particular type of family structure can no longer be considered normal. Sex role changes have created a family in which the mother now plays a greater role in society and the economic process. The number of households that have children living with both parents has substantially declined. “Early social science researchers asserted that the “broken home” was the single most important factor in understanding delinquency” (Burfeind & Bartusch, 2011, p. 185). Less than half of the children born today will live continuously with their mother and father throughout their childhood. A disturbed home environment is believed to have a significant impact on delinquency. Family is the contributing unit towards children’s values and attitudes that mark the paths throughout their lives.

There has been an enormous amount of research, going back almost thirty years, about the relationship between childhood trauma, and juvenile delinquency. Many researches cannot say that there is a direct link between the two, but after much research, researches have found that childhood trauma can perhaps be a predictor for juveniles who later in life commit crimes. Trauma is defined as, “a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from severe mental or emotional stress or physical injury,” because the definition is broad and can range from a variety of different events, for the purpose of this paper, the focus will be on neglect trauma in juveniles (Trauma, 2016). Neglect according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is, “the failure of a parent or other person with the responsibility for the child to provide needed food, clothing, shelter, medical care, or supervision such that the child’s health, safety and well-being are threatened with harm” (Kazemian, 2011).

Sampson and Groves (1989) argued that if we use residential instability for example, this should not be regarded as a direct cause of crime, but as something which ‘fosters institutional disruption, and weakened social controls’ (Sampson et al., 1997: 919) (Sutherland et al. 2013 p. 3). Likewise, it is through that a lack of contact and the loss of trust in neighbours may contribute to criminal behaviour (Sampson et al., 2005). ‘Family disruption’ (lone parents) was added to the list by Sampson (1987) to an illustrative model of crime; this was thought to affect the ability of parents to manage their own children as well as their capacity to provide guardianship of the local community (Sutherland et al. 2013 p.3)

If the attachment figure is disrupted or broken the child will suffer irreversible long term consequences of maternal deprivation including delinquency, reduced intelligence, increased aggression, depression and affectionless psychopathy (an inability to show affection or concern for others. No guilt for anti-social behaviour).

According to researchers, they believe this has a connection to their early environment during their first 18 months of life. This study included 40 children who lived below the federal poverty line. Out of these 40 individuals, 23 had mothers who reported that they worked full time or had two jobs in order to make ends meet during the interview portion of the study (Fearon, 2010, p. 445). When the children were interviewed, many did not directly admit to feelings of resentment towards their mother for not being there, but it was apparent in their responses. Out of the 40 children, 27 showed signs of insecure attachment to their mother based on their ability to trust others, their thoughts on relationships and their insecurity levels overall (Fearon, 2010, p.451). The parents were asked to rate their child on levels of aggression, violence, and defiant and criminal behaviors. It was found that insecure attachment predicted discernibly higher parent reported levels of externalizing behaviors such as aggression, hyperactivity and defiance than their same aged counterparts. The link between insecure attachment and externalizing behaviors is believed to exist due to feelings of neglect and disconnect (Fearon, 2010, pg. 453). These children have a sense that no one in their life cares for them so they act out. They either believe they will not get in trouble for their actions or they seek these actions as a way to gain attention from their parents since they are usually ignored. This relationship is seen more often for children in poverty since both their parents are often at work or they often come from a single parent household where the mother has to work and the parents are likely unable to afford daycare. Due to this instability in their life with their caregivers, food, housing, transportation, etc., children often feel unsafe in

Strain theory describes the idea that there are certain events and conditions in an individual’s life that are disliked and involve the inability to achieve goals, loss of positively valued stimuli, and presentation of negative stimuli (Brezina and Agnew). Child neglect and abuse can be described by this theory, and often is, because of its elements and the effect it has on children. Before the idea of child abuse and neglect causing juvenile delinquency can be argued, juvenile delinquency must be defined. Brezina and Agnew define juvenile delinquency as law violations committed by minors. One of the largest debated consequences of child abuse and neglect is it causes juvenile delinquency in victims. Juvenile offenders are view by the justice system as “‘immature’ in the sense that they are less capable of appreciating the consequences of their actions, less able to exercise self-control and more easily lead astray by others.” Supports of this claim say abuse causes delinquency because weak bonds, low self-control, and confrontation with negative stimuli.

• How does Jean Piaget’s cognitive theory of play and development relate to assessments? – Piaget’s theory works alongside assessments as it states that ‘ a child’s development can be split into stages and a child will not reach the next stage until he/ she is ready to do so’ this fits in because we look at what stage of development the child is in to be able to create and carry out activities that they can learn from. • How does Reggio Emilia’s theory of play and development relate to assessments?

There are four top social risk factors believed for the involvement of crime. Parental behavior plays a large role in a child’s risk of involvement of crime because of the parent’s influence on a child’s development (“Social Risk Factors for Involvement of Crime”). Poor parenting in supervision, maltreatment of a child, or if the parent is a

While the theoretical reasoning that supports the idea that child abuse often leads to crime gives a basis for the concept, much of the evidence that links the two lies in the concrete details. The visible effects of child abuse and neglect that assist with the basis that has been given by the psychological theories lies in observable behavioral and emotional effects of those who are known to have been subject to maltreatment as children. Some children who have a history with abuse do not experience any repercussions while others experience extreme consequences; this is largely because of the certain child’s ability to handle and grow from negative experiences (Child Welfare Information Gateway 3). Children who experience consequences

problems because they tend to lack economic security and adequate time with parents”. The simple statement that raw criminals are products of single-parent adolescence is absurd. What this writer must understand is that it can be extremely difficult for one parent to raise a child by themselves for many reasons. A single-parent must work full time to be able to afford to provide for themselves and their child. They must also be able to still have time to offer an exuberant amount of emotional time for the well being of their child. However, even though this may seem impossible, it can be done.