Family environment and security of attachment to parents have a strong impact on a child’s personal qualities. Fear of the unknown among seven-year-olds going to school for the first time is normal unless it results in a child’s panic and refusal to go to school. Development of separation anxiety disorder (SAD) and aggressive behavior among first-graders is usually caused by experience of negative events, but there is a close link between this process and family variables. Secure attachment to mothers at the age of 15 and 36 months decrease the risk of child’s social and psychological problems (Dallaire & Weinraub 2007), while increase in maternal psychological distress is associated with increase in the child’s separation anxiety (Abdullah et al., 2009). Infant-parents relations play a significant role in development of separation anxiety among first-graders, increasing it in case of high level of mother’s anxiety or decreasing it in case of secure infant-mother attachment.
The effect-and-cause relations between child-parents affection and child’s psychological problems were established in both researches (Abdullah et al., 2009; Dallaire & Weinraub, 2007). The article Maternal Psychological Distress and Separation Anxiety Disorder in Children by Abdulah et al. (2009) is focused on the influence of maternal anxiety on development of Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD) among their children. The research question of this study concerns the significant relationship between maternal anxiety and SAD symptoms in children. The authors admit that other factors of family environment may have an impact on child’s well-being. It is significant that the researchers accept the fact that mothers’ psychological distress is only one of factors influencing the process of child’s socialization and paying attention to the context of the problem. The study is aimed at covering the gap in theoretical knowledge concerning the influence of parental psychological well-being on separation anxiety disorder in their children. Reviewing the materials of the previous researches related to the subject, the authors proved the actuality of the issue. Working with the literature review of the research report, readers realize the obvious gap in theories and make a conclusion that the study is significant for further development of psychological knowledge. Establishing the cause-and-effect relations between the level of maternal disquiet and development of the child’s separation anxiety disorder is important for further planning of the work with children having disorder symptoms and their families. Notwithstanding the fact that the study does not suggest further practical implementation of the materials, the researchers point to the roots of the problem, and report may be used by psychologists and educators in their professional activity.
The article Infant-Mother Attachment Security and Children’s Anxiety and Aggression at First Grade by Dallaire and Weinraub (2007) is focused on infant-mother attachment as the factor protecting a child against the development of anxiety and aggression during the first school year. The research question of this study concerns positive effects of secure infant-mother affection on the process of child’s adaptation to the school environment and negative effects of insecure attachment resulting in aggressive behavioral characteristics of seven-year-olds. Literature review part of the research report provides the historical background of the current study. The topic chosen by the researchers for their study was narrow enough; they specified factors that were most important for the selection of the participants and assessment of the achieved results. Though the research report has a profound theoretical basis and its scientific significance is obvious, the report material may be helpful for education of would-be parents as well.
Abdullah et al. (2009) give direct definition of psychological phenomenon of SAD that is central for their study. Citing the work by Hock & Lutz (1998), the authors define the term of SAD as the child’s and parents’ disquiet concerning the loss of significant others in their lives. It is important that the researchers defined the issue in the introductory part of the research, as it clarified the criteria for selection of the survey participants and analysis of the study results. Dallaire & Weinraub (2007), the authors of the second article did not provide a definition, focusing on the criteria and omitting the definition that guided them in choosing the most important factors. This decision may be explained by the fact that the concepts of the attachment, anxiety and aggressive behavioral characteristics seemed to be obvious and not requiring additional definition to the researchers. The readers might draw conclusions concerning the researchers’ views concerning the concepts from the analysis criteria. The question whether direct definitions were required in the study is rather disputable.
Abdullah et al. (2009) proved the hypothesis that “maternal psychological distress may affect a child’s well-being, and more specifically that maternal anxiety has significant association with SAD symptom in children” (p. 387). Research of maternal psychiatric disorders and its impact on the children’s psychic health is an important point for analysis of causes of the SAD symptom. The researchers concluded that an increase in maternal anxiety is expected to result in an increase in the children’s separation anxiety. This conclusion is significant for solving the problem of the first-graders refusing to attend school. The research is aimed at establishing links between family environment and children’s SAD. 36% of mothers had a physical illness in the past, while 53% had a psychological illness in the past. This high rate of illnesses may be explained by Iran-Iraq and Iraq-Kuwait wars, increasing the citizens’ anxiety. In other countries mothers’ anxiety level is expected to be lower, the frequency of the separation anxiety disorders symptoms among the Iranian first graders provides opportunities for conducting the research, while the researches of schools in other countries would demonstrate other results. This factor does not decrease the effectiveness of the study.
Dallaire and Weinraub (2007) research proves that the relations with mother play an important role in child’s life, considering the positive effect of attachment. Mother’s anxiety results in her overprotecting and over-controlling the child. The researchers concluded that mother-infant attachment insecurity may result in development of anxiety disorders on the condition that it is coupled by negative life events and unhealthy family environment. Secure mother-infant attachment on the contrary prevents the development of the SAD symptoms and aggression towards the classmates among the first-graders. These results were significant for researching the close link between the mother-child relations and the child’s process of socialization. The authors noted that an overprotected child is deprived of opportunity to develop the skills of self-control, while his/her perception of the surrounding world is distorted. Mothers with high level of anxiety feel comfortable controlling life and activity of their children; their maternal instinct is influenced by their psychological problems and affects the child’s psychological well-being.
Abdulah et al. (2009) chose a survey, a non-experimental descriptive research method, collecting data via questionnaires. There was no control group, variables were not manipulated. 120 Iranian first-graders and their mothers participated in the survey, 66 girls and 54 boys answered the questions of Separation Anxiety Assessment Scale questionnaire in a quiet room at school during their school hours. Information about their mothers’ state of health was collected via General Health Questionnaire. Among the parents there were 47% with higher education, 27% with bachelor degree, 20% with elementary education and 6% with master degree and above. 49% of women were employed, the rest 51% were unemployed. The researches mention the cross-sectional nature of the study as its main limitation. That is why the study does not claim comprehensiveness. Abdulah et al. (2009) suggest further research of the role of the parents’ psychopathology in child’s anxiety in clinical and non-clinical settings. I agree that the research is limited due to its cross-sectional character. The life experience of Iranian citizens participating in the survey might result in psychic disorders of not only adults but children as well. Then instability in the socio-economic and political situation in the country could be additional factor resulting in increase of the children’s anxiety.
Dallaire & Weinraub (2007) chose an experimental method for their research, manipulating the independent variable of duration of the Strange Situation laboratory procedure and observing changes in the children’s behaviors. There were 1364 participants, but not all of them completed all assessments, there were only 866 mother-child and 662 father-child full set of assessments available. The socio-economic status of the participants was diverse: 24% of children were from the ethnic minorities families, 11% of mothers had no higher education, 14% of children were born by single mothers. The limitation of the study mentioned by the researches is the gap between the moment when the measurements were made and the moment when the outcome of aggression and separation anxiety was measured. They suggest conducting further research with closer moments of the measurements. More emphasis could be given to the children’s socialization patterns, it would provide opportunities for establishing of the cause-and-effect relations between the attachment to parents and development of the anxiety disorders.
Both articles illuminate the question of the importance of mother-child relations importance for the further process of the child’s socialization. From one side, increase in mother’s anxiety and overprotection of the child may result in increase in the child’s anxiety and development of the separation anxiety symptom. On the other hand, the secure mother-infant attachment is expected to prevent developing of the anxiety disorders among first-graders. Both researches may be useful for parents and teachers, but the research conducted by Abdullah et al. (2009) seems to be more persuasive. First of all, the logical parts of the survey are better organized. Clear definition of the researched phenomenon and goals of the survey are beneficial for logical structuring of the report. Data provided in the research conducted by Dallaire & Weinraub (2007) seems to be less reliable. The psychologists chose an effective method for their survey, but the study contains too many limitations, making the results achieved and conclusions made rather doubtful. The goals chosen by the researchers were difficult to achieve due to the broad time gap between different stages of the experiment and lack of participants’ motivation.
Research by Abdullah et al. (2009) and Dallaire & Weinraub (2007) were useful for deepening my psychological knowledge concerning relationship between infant-parents attachment and first-graders’ anxiety and aggressive behavior. Choosing different aspects and methods for their works, psychologists achieved results that confirm similar hypotheses concerning the significant role of the children-parents relationships in development of separation anxiety disorder among seven-year-old children. Analysis of the effects of parents’ behavior on children’s school achievements are important to understanding how parents can help children refusing to go to school due to their separation anxiety.
References
- Abdullah, R., Bahaman, A.S., Mariani, B.M. et al. (2009). Maternal Psychological Distress and Separation Anxiety Disorder in Children. European Journal of Social Sciences, 8 (3).
- Dallaire, D. D., Weinraub, M. (2007) Infant-Mother Attachment Security and Children’s Anxiety and Aggression at First Grade. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 28.