Comments on: Moms Need To Lay On The Affection Says Study http://www.ecanadanow.com/health/2010/07/27/moms-need-to-lay-on-the-affection-says-study/ Keeping Canada Connected Sat, 11 Feb 2012 19:05:35 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Daniel Schegh http://www.ecanadanow.com/health/2010/07/27/moms-need-to-lay-on-the-affection-says-study/comment-page-1/#comment-20117 Daniel Schegh Tue, 27 Jul 2010 19:22:52 +0000 http://www.ecanadanow.com/?p=11367#comment-20117 I'm sure affection is great and should be encouraged for all sorts of reasons. However, this study seems to be useless as far as the claimed conclusions. It assumes that correlation = causation. It does have the caveat that other secondary factors might be in effect (feeding habits, etc.), but more importantly it didn't control for heredity. Perhaps "affectionate moms" are genetically prone to be psychologically well with low anxiety and that leads them to (a) be more affectionate, and (b) pass on the low anxiety genes to their children. Perhaps if the child does not have these genes no amount of affection will make up for it. There's no way of knowing which is the case without proper controls such as identical twins brought up in different "affection" environments and adopted children brought up with biological ones in the same "affection" environment. There is no evidence the conclusions are wrong, but there's also none (in the study) that they are right. This is the same mistake made with all of those "play classical music" studies that showed smarter kids but failed to produce anything when other people played such music. It's because people who naturally played classical music on their own were already smarter and passed those genes on. I’m sure affection is great and should be encouraged for all sorts of reasons. However, this study seems to be useless as far as the claimed conclusions. It assumes that correlation = causation. It does have the caveat that other secondary factors might be in effect (feeding habits, etc.), but more importantly it didn’t control for heredity.

Perhaps “affectionate moms” are genetically prone to be psychologically well with low anxiety and that leads them to (a) be more affectionate, and (b) pass on the low anxiety genes to their children. Perhaps if the child does not have these genes no amount of affection will make up for it.

There’s no way of knowing which is the case without proper controls such as identical twins brought up in different “affection” environments and adopted children brought up with biological ones in the same “affection” environment.

There is no evidence the conclusions are wrong, but there’s also none (in the study) that they are right. This is the same mistake made with all of those “play classical music” studies that showed smarter kids but failed to produce anything when other people played such music. It’s because people who naturally played classical music on their own were already smarter and passed those genes on.

]]> By: Tim http://www.ecanadanow.com/health/2010/07/27/moms-need-to-lay-on-the-affection-says-study/comment-page-1/#comment-20116 Tim Tue, 27 Jul 2010 19:17:40 +0000 http://www.ecanadanow.com/?p=11367#comment-20116 Big problem with this study: the data is correlational. The conclusion that the mental health levels were more positive due to increased affection during youth can in no way be supported by the study. The study can say that there is a correlation, but there is no way to determine the actual mechanism for the statistical correlation. It is very possible that people who are more mentally healthy are more likely to remember their childhood fondly (whether or not the recollections are true). The researchers (and the media) need to be more responsible in interpreting these types of studies. Big problem with this study: the data is correlational. The conclusion that the mental health levels were more positive due to increased affection during youth can in no way be supported by the study. The study can say that there is a correlation, but there is no way to determine the actual mechanism for the statistical correlation. It is very possible that people who are more mentally healthy are more likely to remember their childhood fondly (whether or not the recollections are true). The researchers (and the media) need to be more responsible in interpreting these types of studies.

]]> By: Tanya http://www.ecanadanow.com/health/2010/07/27/moms-need-to-lay-on-the-affection-says-study/comment-page-1/#comment-20115 Tanya Tue, 27 Jul 2010 18:51:32 +0000 http://www.ecanadanow.com/?p=11367#comment-20115 Is it possible at all that the no-so-well adjusted participants who had anger issues also possibly had a skewed version of how affectionate their parents had been toward them? Or do these experts not consider such obvious things? Is it possible at all that the no-so-well adjusted participants who had anger issues also possibly had a skewed version of how affectionate their parents had been toward them? Or do these experts not consider such obvious things?

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