Reply to DC parents leave kids in car for wine tasting

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Re children's memory, I am a neuroscientist and may be able to shed some light.

The part of the brain that coordinates storage of memories, the hippocampus, undergoes major reorganization around age 7. This is thought to be why most people have few or no memories from before this time. I think it also explains why a 5yo may perfectly well remember an event from 3 years earlier--they may not after age 7.

As for the PP who remembers a traumatic abandonment at age 3--traumas like that may be encoded differently, we know that fear and anger (mediated by the amygdala) can reinforce memories in adults, so it's likely that a memory of something fearsome may be more able to stick at any age.  My DH also remembers being in a crib left alone to cry, looking at a particular mobile even. But he couldn't, say, tell you the floor plan of the house he lived in at that age.

So this kid may remember the experience or may not. [b]However, CPS/DC is clearly betting that this isn't these parents' first neglectful act, or they wouldn't consider foster care safer for the kids than being home with their parents[/b].  So, sadly, it's probably the case that these kids have a lot of neglect to remember.[/quote]

I think this is exactly it. It's like anytime someone gets caught for anything -- speeding, DUI - whatever. Chances that it is a first time offense are very slim. That may not be relevant in individual court cases, but when making a decision about the wellbeing of children, I think they take this experience into account.[/quote]

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