第十四章 子供への親の愛情の重要性
他方,親の愛情は,それが正しい種類のものである時には,疑いもなく,子供の発達を助長する。母親が温かい愛情を感じない子供(母親から温かい愛情を注いてもらえない子供)は,痩せがちで,神経質になりがちであり,時には盗癖のような欠陥を発達させる(身につける)(のである)。親の愛情は,この危険な世界にあっても自分は安全だという感じを子供に抱かせ,いろいろ実験したり,自分の周囲の環境を探検したりする時に,大胆さを与える。子供の精神生活にとって,自分が温かい愛情の対象になっていると感じることが必要である。なぜなら,子供は本能的に自分が無力であることを,また,自分がどれほど保護を必要としているかを,そして,その保護は愛情のみが確保してくれるということを,気づいている(知っている)からである。子供を幸福に,のびのびとして,物怖じしないように育てたければ,子供のまわり(環境)には温かさが必要であり,それは,親の愛情による以外は手に入れがたいのである。 |
Chapter XIV: The Family in Individual Psychology, n.4We arrive, therefore, at certain conditions which must be fulfilled if the psychological effect of family life upon children is to be good. The parents, and especially the mother, must if possible not be unhappy in their sexual life. Both parents must avoid that kind of emotional relation with their children that calls for a response not suitable in infancy. There must be no kind of preference as between brothers and sisters, but all must be treated with a completely impartial justice. And after the age of three or four, the home should not be the sole environment of the child, but a considerable part of its day should be spent in the society of contemporaries. Given the conditions, the bad effects feared by Freud are, I think, very unlikely to occur.On the other hand, parental affection, when it is of the right sort, undoubtedly furthers a child's development. Children whose mothers do not feel a warm affection for them are apt to be thin and nervous, and sometimes they develop such faults as kleptomania. The affection of parents makes infants feel safe in this dangerous world, and gives them boldness in experimentation and in exploration of their environment. It is necessary to a child's mental life to feel himself the object of warm affection, for he is instinctively aware of his helplessness, and of his need of a protection which only affection can ensure. If a child is to grow up happy, expansive, and fearless, he needs a certain warmth in his environment which is difficult to get except through parental affection. |