撰文：香港註冊心理學家 程衛強
嬰兒約在九個月開始，孩子變得異常癡身，即使媽媽上洗手間，也可能會顯得非常的焦慮，抱緊媽媽不放，甚至放聲大哭。
分離焦慮可以引申出兩種不同的反應。在某些情況下，與照顧者分離時，嬰兒會出現尋求依附的行為，如抱著媽媽不放、用盡方法找尋媽媽、或不論媽媽到那裡就爬到那裡等等（Ainsworth, Bell, & Stayton, 1971）；分離亦可能會衍生出絕望、對抗、分離（Detachment）等行為，視乎分離的時間（Bowlby, 1960; Robertson & Robertson, 1989）。
孩子面對分離的反應，亦會因應不同的環境而有所改變，例如在熟悉的家居環境中，較在一個陌生的環境中，孩子會出現較少的憂慮感（Ross, Kagan, Zelazo, & Kotelchuck, 1975）。
Written by: Hong Kong Registered Psychologist, Ching Wai Keung
Around nine months of age, babies become unusually clingy. Even if the mother goes to the bathroom, the baby may appear extremely anxious, clinging tightly to the mother and even crying loudly.
Separation anxiety can lead to two different types of reactions. In some cases, when separated from the caregiver, the baby will exhibit attachment-seeking behaviors, such as clinging to the mother, trying every possible way to find the mother, or crawling wherever the mother goes (Ainsworth, Bell, & Stayton, 1971). Separation can also result in behaviors such as despair, resistance, and detachment, depending on the duration of the separation (Bowlby, 1960; Robertson & Robertson, 1989).
A child’s reaction to separation can also change depending on the environment. For example, in a familiar home environment, the child will exhibit less anxiety compared to being in an unfamiliar environment (Ross, Kagan, Zelazo, & Kotelchuck, 1975).
在孩子約七個月時，物件恒存概念開始出現，他們明白即使看不見某人或物，不代表他消失了。當孩子能夠建立這個概念，他們的分離焦慮會相對降低。若媽媽能夠經常與孩子溝通、表示出對嬰孩的正面情緒及感覺、並給予適當刺激及協助者，孩子較易掌握並應用物件恒存概念於物件及人身上（Chazan, 1981）。
協助孩子協助分離焦慮，需要一定的時間，讓孩子與照顧者發展出親密的、依附的情感關係（Attachment），並待孩子本身的發展成熟，方能湊效。以兩歲的幼兒來說，他們能夠以照片來緩和他們與照顧者分離的愁情（Passman & Longeway, 1982）；三歲的孩子甚至可以於父母不在場的情況下，在祖父母家過夜。
孩子能否培養出此等「能耐」，取決於照顧者與孩子能否建立出緊密的情感關係，當相互間的關係得以建立，孩子可以透過想像父母的形像，及回憶父母的愛，以安撫他們因分離而出現的焦慮感（Development Through Life, Barbara M. Newman, Philip R. Newman, Wadsworth, 2003）。
round seven months of age, the concept of object permanence begins to emerge in children. They understand that even if they cannot see someone or something, it does not mean that the person or object has disappeared. When children are able to establish this concept, their separation anxiety will relatively decrease. If the mother can frequently communicate with the child, express positive emotions and feelings towards the infant, and provide appropriate stimulation and assistance, the child will more easily grasp and apply the concept of object permanence to both objects and people (Chazan, 1981).
Helping children cope with separation anxiety requires a certain amount of time, allowing the child and caregiver to develop a close, attached emotional relationship (Attachment), and waiting for the child’s own development to mature before it can be effective. For a two-year-old child, they can use photographs to alleviate their feelings of sorrow when separated from their caregiver (Passman & Longeway, 1982); a three-year-old child can even stay overnight at their grandparents’ house without their parents being present.
Whether a child can develop this kind of “resilience” depends on whether the caregiver and the child can establish a close emotional relationship. Once the mutual relationship is established, the child can soothe their anxiety caused by separation by imagining the image of their parents and recalling their parents’ love (Development Through Life, Barbara M. Newman, Philip R. Newman, Wadsworth, 2003).
