One symptom of depression is loss of motivation, which can be defined as responsiveness to response-eliciting stimuli and quantified as reward-related behavioral output. Long-term changes in reward-related behavior have been shown to follow early life stress. Most rodent studies investigating the effects of postnatal separation, an early stress,…

One of the major challenges to early childhood professionals is to effectively deal with separation anxiety and assist children in the transfer from home to other environments. This article summarizes, from a psychoanalytic perspective, the developmental stages of psychological separation, and describes techniques for practitioners for dealing…

In his article "The 'Effects' of Infant Day Care Reconsidered," Jay Belsky (see PS 017 108) concludes that maternal employment puts infants at risk for developing emotional insecurity and social maladjustment. After a review of Belsky's and other research, a different conclusion is offered in this paper. It is agreed that infants whose…

Examined the stress vulnerability of infants with disorganized/disoriented attachment patterns by measuring salivatory cortisol levels in 19-month olds following the Ainsworth Strange Situation procedure. Indicates that infants' disorganized attachment behavior reflects a vulnerability to stressful stimulation, suggesting a model of stress…

Attachment and separation are the stuff of which life is made. The bonds between family and child promote resilience, self-regulation, and a positive sense of self. In this article, the author focuses her discussion on the importance of attachment to children's development. She has cited some theories that can help her explain further. For…

Distress in response to brief maternal separations was examined in a sample of 93 predominantly home-reared infants using the Ainsworth strange situation paradigm. At 18 months, the age when separation protests begin to decline, securely attached infants are better able than anxiously attached infants to tolerate maternal separations. (Author/RH)

Examined the feelings of mothers when temporarily leaving their infants--who were perceived to cry excessively--to other caretakers. Found through interviews that the mothers were anxious when separated from the infant, had an intensive perception of the infant's crying, and had difficulty sharing responsibility for the infant. (EV)

Discusses the problems that can occur when parents leave their children at a care facility, especially if the parents linger. Offers suggestions to make the daily separation easier for both parents and children. (ET)

Assessed maternal sensitivity and infants' attachment behavior to test validity of a system of classifying attachment relationships at home. Subjects were 47 mothers of preterm and 42 mothers of full-term infants. Results reaffirm Ainsworth's conceptualization of distinct attachment relationships. (HTH)

Discusses cultural differences in sleeping practices, focusing on how child caregivers can provide developmentally appropriate and culturally sensitive care. Describes co-sleeping as an accepted practice in many cultures with several benefits. Discusses the role of cultural values, beliefs, priorities, and goals and the importance of…

Examines the effect of an unfamiliar peer in a situation requiring a subject's separation from mother in order to play with attractive toys. Observation of 20 children 18 months old and 20 children 30 months old revealed that peer presence facilitated initial separation for both ages, but that age differences in subsequent behaviors existed. (CB)

This article discusses how to transition young children from home to school. The author states that while it's not easy for working parents to place their infant or toddler in childcare, it is a healthy experience for children and their parents. Hopefully, as a parent brings the baby for a little longer stay each day, feelings of mutual trust and…

The purpose of this thesis [Swedish language with English abstract and summary] was to study the reactions of infants when they started attending day care centers and to elucidate the process of adjustment. The theoretical perspective employed is the J. Bowlby/M. Ainsworth attachment theory. U. Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory of human…

Compares a group of well-educated mothers who preferred to be home caring for their infants with a group who preferred to be employed to determine how employment preference affects the development of maternal separation anxiety. (HOD)

Compares the separation distress of 26 19-month-old Downs Syndrome infants in the Strange Situation with that of 43 normal infants who were observed at 12 1/2 and 19 1/2 months to assess whether Downs Syndrome infants responded more similarly to cognitively comparable normals than to age-comparable normals. (HOD)