John Bowlby
| Edward John Mostyn Bowlby | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
26 February 1907 London, England |
| Died | 2 September 1990 (aged 83) Skye, Scotland |
| Spouse(s) | Ursula Longstaff |
| Children | Richard Bowlby |
| Parent(s) | Anthony Alfred Bowlby, Mary Bridget Mostyn |
Edward John Mostyn Bowlby (/ˈboʊlbi/; 26 February 1907 – 2 September 1990) was a British psychologist, psychiatrist, and psychoanalyst, notable for his interest in child development and for his pioneering work in attachment theory. A Review of General Psychology survey, published in 2002, ranked Bowlby as the 49th most cited psychologist of the 20th century.
Bowlby was born in London with upper-middle-income family. He was the fourth of six children and was brought up by a nanny in the British fashion of his class at that time. The Bowlby family hired one nanny who was in charge of raising the children in a separate nursery in the house. Nanny Friend took care of the infants and generally had two other nursemaids to help her raise the children. As a result, Bowlby was raised primarily by nursemaid Minnie who acted as a mother figure to him and his siblings.
His father, Sir Anthony Alfred Bowlby, was surgeon to the King's Household, with a tragic history: at age five, Sir Anthony's father, Thomas William Bowlby, was killed while serving as a war correspondent in the Second Opium War.
Bowlby’s parents met at a party in 1897 through a mutual friend. About one year after meeting, Mary (age 31) and Anthony (age 43) decided to get married in 1898. The start of their marriage was said to be difficult due to conflict with Anthony’s sister and physical separation between Mary and Anthony. In order to resolve this prolonged separation, Mary decided to visit her husband for six months while leaving her first born daughter Winnie in the care of her nanny. This separation between Mary and her children was a theme found in all six of her children’s lives as they were primarily raised by the nanny and nursemaids.
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