Forgotten baby syndrome refers to a phenomenon in which young children are mistakenly left in vehicles.

Analysis

Over 25% of parents with children under 3 have lost awareness of the child being present in the car at any point during the drive.[1]: 77  Each year, around the world, dozens of children die of vehicle-related hyperthermia.[lower-alpha 1][3] Because these numbers began to rise after the popularization of air bags[9]: 7  and rear-facing child safety seats,[1]: 76  researchers began to suspect that memory may be the culprit.[10]

According to David M. Diamond, a psychology professor at the University of South Florida who has been studying the phenomenon since 2004, the phenomenon is a consequence of tension between the brain's habit-memory and prospective-memory systems,[11] which is resolved when basal ganglia "habit memory" suppresses the "prospective memory" system of the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex,[1]: 78, 83 [12][13] resulting in a false memory and what he calls "autopilot".[12][13][14] Other psychologists have suggested the phenomenon is functionally similar to forgetting keys in a car[15] or forgetting to post a letter.[16]

Diamond has identified common factors of the phenomenon as "stress, sleep deprivation, and change in routine".[13] Stephen Cowen, a psychology professor at the University of Arizona, has said that stress can render a person "more attentive to the immediate sensory stimuli or threats in your environment but not as attentive to your more distant memory of leaving your children in the car".[17]

Prevention efforts

There have been several efforts to address the phenomenon through technology, including back-seat alert systems (which note when a backseat is opened prior to driving), car-seat alarms (which detect whether a child is buckled in),[8] and end-of-trip reminders.[18] The Association of Global Automakers and the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers have committed to the standardization of rear-seat-occupant alert systems by 2025.[19] Italy and Israel have enacted laws requiring such safety systems.[20]

See also

Notes

Explanatory notes

  1. ↑ In the United States, around 38 children die annually after being left in vehicles.[2][3] A study of Brazilian incidents examining 31 cases (including 21 fatalities) from 2006 to 2015 found that 71% of cases involved a parent forgetting the child.[4] A study of Italian incidents found 8 vehicular-related hyperthermia deaths between 1998 and 2017.[5] A study of Indian cases found 40 fatalities from 2011 to 2020.[6] A study of Canadian incidents found one death per year,[7] with most being a result of being forgotten.[8]

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 Breitfeld, Erika (2020). "Hot-Car Deaths and Forgotten-Baby Syndrome: A Case Against Prosecution" (PDF). Berkeley Journal of Criminal Law. 25: 72–106.
  2. ↑ Null, Jan (May 30, 2023). "Heatstroke Deaths of Children in Vehicles". Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Lee-Kelland, Richard; Finlay, Fiona (2019). "GP3 'Forgotten baby syndrome': a systematic review and analysis of caregiver intention" (PDF). Archives of Disease in Childhood. 104 (Suppl. 3). doi:10.1136/archdischild-2019-epa.69. S2CID 208413251.
  4. ↑ Costa, Driely; Grundstein, Andrew (July 2016). "An Analysis of Children Left Unattended in Parked Motor Vehicles in Brazil". International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 13 (7): 649. doi:10.3390/ijerph13070649. PMC 4962190. PMID 27399747.
  5. ↑ Scozzari, Gitana; Bert, Fabrizio; Gualano, Maria R.; Siliquini, Roberta (February 2020). "Forgotten children in parked vehicles: a review of Italian fatalities". Minerva Pediatrica (in Italian). 72 (1): 55–59. doi:10.23736/S0026-4946.18.05125-3. PMID 29381013. S2CID 34039091.
  6. ↑ Siddiqui, Gulnaz Fatima; Singh, Mukesh Vir; Shrivastava, Anubha; Maurya, Manisha; Tripathi, Ambuj; Siddiqui, Shahid Akhtar (July 2021). "Children Left Unattended in Parked Vehicles in India: An Analysis of 40 Fatalities from 2011 to 2020". Journal of Tropical Pediatrics. 67 (3). doi:10.1093/tropej/fmaa075. PMID 32929468.
  7. ↑ Ho, Karen; Minhas, Ripudaman; Young, Elizabeth; Sgro, Michael; Huber, Joelene F. (April 2020). "Paediatric hyperthermia-related deaths while entrapped and unattended inside vehicles: The Canadian experience and anticipatory guidance for prevention". Paediatrics & Child Health. 25 (3): 143–148. doi:10.1093/pch/pxz087. PMC 7147705. PMID 32296275.
  8. 1 2 Roy, Lillian (August 22, 2022). "'Forgotten baby syndrome' is more common than you think. Here's how technology can help". CTV News.
  9. ↑ Forston, Jacob W.; Fradella, Henry F. (2022). "A Content Analysis of Criminal Cases Concerning Unattended Children in Vehicles Between 1990 and 2021: Empirically-Based Suggestions for Reform" (PDF). Chapman Law Review. 26: 1–55.
  10. ↑ Rudd, Rodney; Prasad, Aloke; Weston, Doug; Wietholter, Kedryn (July 2015). "Introduction and Background". Functional Assessment of Unattended Child Reminder Systems (PDF) (Report). National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. p. 2.
  11. ↑ Pelletiere, Nicole (July 14, 2016). "'Forgotten Baby Syndrome': A Parent's Nightmare of Hot Car Death". ABC News.
  12. 1 2 Rosenblatt, Kalhan (June 27, 2017). "Hot Car Deaths: Scientists Detail Why Parents Forget Their Children". NBC News.
  13. 1 2 3 Thomas, Emily A. (August 18, 2022). "Research Shows That Anyone Could Forget a Kid in a Hot Car". Consumer Reports.
  14. ↑ Groves, Anna (July 26, 2018). "You say it could never happen, but it does. Here are the reasons infants are left in cars". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  15. ↑ Minton, Leslie (May 24, 2018). "Study: Hot cars can hit deadly temperatures in as little as one hour". Arizona State University.
  16. ↑ "Mother suffered 'forgotten baby syndrome', death inquest told". BBC News. March 22, 2017.
  17. ↑ Purtill, Corinne (June 27, 2017). "The neuroscience that explains the awful truth that anyone is capable of accidentally killing their child". Quartz.
  18. ↑ Speck, Emilee (June 16, 2022). "7 apps and smart technology designed to prevent heatstroke deaths in children". Fox Weather.
  19. ↑ Maddireddy, Mihir (September 5, 2019). "Rear-Seat Occupant Alerts Will Be Standard on All Cars by 2025". Car and Driver.
  20. ↑ Stub, Zev (June 27, 2021). "From August 1: Devices to prevent drivers from forgetting kids in cars". Jerusalem Post.
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