Maternal Separation Anxiety: Mother-Infant Separation from the Maternal Perspective

Abstract

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. and GNEZDA, M. THERESE. Maternal Separation Anxiety: Mother-Infant Separation from the Maternal Perspective. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1989, 60, 793-802. Mother-infant separation from the maternal perspective is the focus of 2 studies reported here. First, a questionnaire, the Maternal Separation Anxiety Scale (MSAS), was developed and administered to 620 mothers soon after their infants were born and again 3 months later. The scale was highly reliable; factor analytic studies supported a 3-factor solution that served as the basis for forming 3 subscales labeled (1) Maternal Separation Anxiety, (2) Perception of Separation Effects on the Child, and (3) Employment-related Separation Concerns. In Study 2, maternal separation anxiety was assessed using the MSAS and other methods: an interview, an emotional status index (taken at the point of actual separation), and an observational index based on mothers' behavior during departure and reunion from their infants in a structured laboratory setting. Data from this multiplemeasures approach supported the validity of the MSAS and verified the strength of the construct.Developmental and clinical psychologists have viewed the processes of motherinfant separation as central to the understanding of human development, yet, given the undeniable importance of this topic, it is startling to find that the focus of attention in the existing literature is almost exclusively devoted to the infant. Typically, investigators allude to the importance of the mother's behavior, attitudes, and feelings, but observations of mothers have been incidental and findings briefly reported. However, Hinde and McGinnis (1977) observed mother responses to separation from their babies in rhesus mon-keys. They concluded that the animal's capacity for synchronized interaction broke down during the separation period; for a while after reunion the mothers were unable to continue the relationship as they had previously. Although it is unlikely that similar clear-cut effects can be found in human mothers, the data underlined the fact that "it is the couple that has become separated and not just the child, and that both individuals rather than just one must subsequently readjust" (Schaffer, 1977, pp. 97-98). The studies described in this manuscript will focus on the mother's interpretation and experience of the separation event.1The authors wish to thank Keith Widaman for his thoughtful advice on the data analysis and the manuscript preparation. We are indebted to Mary Beth Schirtzinger for her support and helpful editorial work. We gratefully acknowledge the thoughtful comments of the reviewers which greatly improved the quality of the manuscript. Requests for reprints should be se...

The relationship of maternal separation anxiety and differentiation of self to children's separation anxiety and adjustment to kindergarten: A study in Druze families

“…In line with the findings regarding the effect of maternal separation anxiety on both children's ability to separate from their mothers and their autonomy (e.g., Hock, 1984;Hock et al, 1989), Hypothesis 1 suggests that maternal separation anxiety will be: (a) positively correlated with children's separation anxiety and (b) negatively correlated with their adjustment to kindergarten.…”

“…The abundant research on mothers' anxiety regarding separation from their children supports the belief that maternal anxiety is an important psychological construct and is meaningfully related to both maternal behaviors towards the child and other aspects of maternal personality (e.g., DeMeis, Hock, & McBride, 1986;Hock, Hart, Kang, & Lutz, 2004;Hock, McBride, & Gnezda, 1989;Hock & Schirtzinger, 1992;Lutz & Hock, 1995;McBride & Belsky, 1988). Yet, the familial antecedents of maternal anxiety have not been fully explicated, nor has their impact on children's separation anxiety and their adjustment to kindergarten.…”

“…This is perceived as a threat to the child's well-being and/ or to her own psychological equilibrium. Such anxiety may be reflected in feelings of worry, sadness, or guilt that accompany short-term separations (Hock, 1984;Hock et al, 1989Hock et al, , 2004. Extreme levels of maternal separation anxiety are viewed as disturbances in a woman's psychological functioning that contribute to dysfunctional mother-child relationships, to enmeshed relationships with the child, and to overindulgent and overprotective behaviors that gradually weaken the child's attempts to become separated and autonomous.…”

“…Studies investigating the effect of maternal separation anxiety on the child found correlations between the mother's anxiety and the child's ability to separate from her, as well as links between maternal separation anxiety and the child's general adjustment (e.g., Hock, 1984;Hock et al, 1989Hock et al, , 2004. Women with heightened levels of separation anxiety have been found to behave in ways that decrease their toddlers' autonomy (Aber, 1987), and to stay home and take care of their infants in the course of their first year (Hock & Demeis, 1990;McBride & Belsky, 1988).…”

Pre-Conception War Exposure and Mother and Child Adjustment 4 Years Later

“…Separation Anxiety Mothers' separation anxiety was measured using the Maternal Separation Anxiety Scale (MSAS; Hock et al 1989). The MSAS consists of 35 items divided over three subscales: separation anxiety (21 items; e.g., I miss holding or cuddling my child when I am away from him/her), perception of separation effects on the child (7 items; e.g., It will be difficult for my child to adjust to someone else taking care of him/her), and employment-related separation concerns (7 items; e.g., I would resent my job if it meant I had to be away from my child).…”