Re: Research on Extended Crying

["pbs" <rophil@xxxxxxxxx>]

Macall:

There is a fairly extensive developmental literature on crying during
infancy and early childhood (Ann Frodi, Rosemary Campos, Barry Lester,
etc.); even some of the attachment folks raise the issue of parental
responses to crying; also the guy at Harvard Medical School (whose name now
escapes me: Feinberg?; not sure) who has done work on childhood sleep
problems may have something worth evaluating as well.  Not all of it is
directly related to your specific issue of extended crying, but much of it
is relevant.  Good luck.

Roger D. Phillips, Ph.D.
Pinebrook Services for Children & Youth
1033 Sumner Avenue
Whitehall  PA  18052
610 432 3919
610 740 9550 (fax)
rophil@xxxxxxxxx

----------
> From: Macall Gordon <gordon@xxxxxxx>
> To: Child Maltreatment Researchers  
<CHILD-MALTREATMENT-RESEARCH-L@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: Research on Extended Crying
> Date: Wednesday, March 17, 1999 11:49 AM
> 
>      I am a Master's student, doing an independent research project for
> a national non-profit organization. I've been trying to find what
> research has been done (if any) on the psychological/physiological
> effects of letting an infant (or toddler) cry for extended periods of
> time without the response of a parent. This practice is very much a part
> of conventional wisdom of how to get a baby to sleep through the night.
> My sense is that, while it is effective for many families, it may not be
> the best advice for all families in every situation. Some versions of
> this advice recommend allowing even small infants to cry for hours and
> for parents to ignore signs of stress like vomiting or head-banging.
>      Not too long ago, spanking was considered a valuable teaching tool
> until we realized that, if hitting is abusive in the extreme, can it
> ever be used without some damage occurring? Is it damaging to leave a
> baby to cry without the mediation of a parent's presence or response?
>     I'm eager to hear any comments, input or references you may have.
>     Many thanks,
>     Macall Gordon
>