During
the first half of the 20th century, many psychologists believed that showing
affection towards children was merely a sentimental gesture that served no real
purpose.
A behaviorist, John
Watson, once even went so far as to warn parents, "When you are tempted to
pet your child, remember that mother love is a dangerous instrument." The behaviorist movement dominated psychology and urged
researchers to study only observable and measurable behaviors.
An
American psychologist, Harry Harlow, however, became interested in studying a
topic that was not so easy to quantify and measure: love.
In a
series of controversial experiments conducted in 1960s, Harlow demonstrated the
powerful effects of love. By showing the devastating effects of deprivation on
young Rhesus monkeys, Harlow revealed the importance of a mother's love for
healthy childhood development.
Clinical research has emphasized the importance of
the early mother-child relationship in many aspects of development. Various
forms of psychopathology including certain psychosomatic syndromes have been
attributed to disturbances in this primary mother-child unit.
How about the
animal kingdom – the following pictures are heartwarming. Imprinting is the
connection that is made right after birth or hatching, whereby the newborn
identifies its mother. They learn everything from their mother. Birds migrate according
to the path that was shown by the mother, so it is necessary for survival. Bonding
is the way animals and humans define their mother, when they are first born.
