On 27 Jun 2002, Hank Cetola wrote: > Does anyone remember the name of the syndrome in which > institutionalized babies were dying due to lack of body contact. > They were fed and kept clean but not held. When they were then held > and rocked for a few hours per day the mortality rate dropped. I > think it relates to Harlow's studies on contact comfort.
I tried my file on institutionalization (yes, I have one), my Harlow file, my child psychology text, and even Harlow's little book _Learning to Love_. Nothing. Then I tried the web. And I think I have it. Not a name for the syndrome but the basis for the claim, with a reference even. The source is a page on adoptions, with what appears to be a reasonably scholarly, documented essay on the effects of institutionalization. It's at http://www.comeunity.com/adoption/institutionalism.html Hank's description apparently refers to work by Henry Chapin early in the 20th century. The critical description is: "Once the family foster system was properly established, the high infant mortality rate declined. Photos and data from Chapin's research clearly show how children looked on the day they were removed from institutions and then how they looked six months after they entered a foster home. The most drastic change was weight gain. By 1917, Chapin had concluded that this effect was a consequence of close individual care, especially the holding of infants when they were fed (as opposed to just holding the bottle in an upward position and feeding the infant in its crib without any physical contact)." The reference cited for this is: Chapin, H. D. (1917). Systematized boarding out vs. institutional care for infants and young children. New York Medical Journal, 105, 1009-1011 A biography of Chapin is also cited. It's: Gray, P. H. (1989). Henry Dwight Chapin: Pioneer in the study of institutionalized infants. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 27(1), 85-87. -Stephen ______________________________________________________________ Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470 Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661 Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Lennoxville, QC J1M 1Z7 Canada Dept web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy TIPS discussion list for psychology teachers at http://www.frostburg.edu/dept/psyc/southerly/tips _________________________________________________________ ------- End of forwarded message ------- ______________________________________________________________ Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470 Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661 Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Lennoxville, QC J1M 1Z7 Canada Dept web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy TIPS discussion list for psychology teachers at http://www.frostburg.edu/dept/psyc/southerly/tips _________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470 Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661 Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Lennoxville, QC J1M 1Z7 Canada Dept web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy TIPS discussion list for psychology teachers at http://www.frostburg.edu/dept/psyc/southerly/tips _________________________________________________________ --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
