Mother-Infant Separation and Physical Growth
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2736249 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Gunder, S Gunders, Shulamith M Gunders (corresponding author), John W M Whiting |
| Year | 1968 |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 196 |
| Publication date | 1968-04-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Ethnology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0014-1828 • E-ISSN: 2160-3510 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/3772747 |
| OpenAlex | W2508183361 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 8 |
| References cited | 4 |
This study will explore the effects of periodic separation of an infant from his mother upon his subsequent growth. Such an effect has been experimentally demonstrated on certain species of animals; we will explore whether it also holds true for humans. It has been known for some time that when laboratory rats are handled during infancy they make better experimental animals; they are less afraid of the experimenter and of novel situations. For example, if such rats as adults are placed in an open field such as the top of a lighted table, they defecate and urinate significantly less than non-handled controls (Candland and Campbell, 1962; Denenberg and Whimbey, 1963). They also grow at a faster rate (Reugamer et al. 1954) and attain a greater skeletal size (Weininger 1956) at than their controls. There is considerable support from recent experiments that these effects are related to changes in the adrenal cortex. Rats handled in infancy from days 1 to 21 exhibit a significantly reduced steroid response after they are exposed to noise conditions in adulthood (Levine 1967). The fact that high steroid levels inhibit growth may account for the effects of infant upon ultimate skeletal length and body weight. The standard procedure for handling infant rats is simply to remove them by hand from their home cages and place them in a box for several minutes, after which they are returned to their home cages. This is usually repeated each day for the first three weeks of the animaFs life. Why this simple procedure has such a profound and lasting effect is not clearly under? stood. The fact that other procedures involving rather intense stimulation of rat infants?electrical shock, vibration, and intense cold?have apparently identical effects suggests that the procedure involves similar intense stimulation. The research of Harlow (1960), and others (see Mason 1965) supports this assumption. Infant primates separated from their mothers are reported to show marked anxiety, which is relieved by contact with the mother. Thus it seems that intense physical stimulation and periodic separa? tion from the mother both have a stressful effect, and that stress during an early critical period has a lasting effect upon the adrenal cortex and upon growth. It has previously been shown that both physical stress and mother-infant
Genealogy · Separation (statistics) · Statistics · Early Childhood Education and Development · History · Infant Development and Preterm Care · Mathematics · Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
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| Unique citing works | 8 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,14 |
| Citation span | 1970 - 2010 (41) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 8 |