A new term for attachment parenting.

Greg Popcak, apparently, wants to call it empirical parenting.

In the absence of empirical, grounded theory, pure theory is an acceptable means of suggesting basic operating principles, but those principles are always weaker than principles founded on grounded theory and always vulnerable to empirical testing.

AND THAT’s WHY I have always been confident that attachment parenting is superior to other forms of parenting.  While other forms of parenting have their good points, because they are not grounded in empirical evidence, their truth claims are always suspect.  By contrast, because attachment parenting is rooted in empiricism, the theory can evolve and certain points may be challenged, but it would be highly unusual, after 20 years of research and over 700+ studies that its truth claims would ever be thrown out wholesale.

Hmmm.  I don’t know why, but it speaks to me!  Greg suggests two books — books I haven’t read yet! — The Science of Parenting by Margot Sutherland and Parenting with Grace by… Greg Popcak.

In a previous post, Greg has more:

Every other parenting model is purely theory driven.  An "expert" pulls together conventional wisdom, and combines it with the philosophical musings of someone like Freud and then makes pronouncements.

Attachment parenting is different.  Attachment theory is grounded theory, meaning that it is theory based not primarily on philosophical musing, but on actual observed laboratory studies (e.g. the Ainsworth attachment studies and the development of the highly valid "Strange Situation Test" of attachment).  Attachment parenting is also strongly supported by recent evidence from neuro-imaging studies and the emerging discipline of interpersonal neurobiology (which, by the way, Pope JPII drew from–at least in part–in his work on motherhood and the Theology of the Body.)

The truth is, there are many other ways to raise a child, but there are no other ways that are more rooted in science, natural law, and Catholic anthropology.  Attachment parenting is not just one way to raise a child out of many.  It is the way that has the most scientific and theological evidence supporting it.  Because of this, it is my positiion that parents have a serious obligation to educate themselves about the order God created in the mother-infant bond and to prayerfully ponder in their hearts the discernable plan God has written for the care of his children and the raising of saints.

No argument here.