Forgotten baby syndrome

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Short description: Phenomenon in which children are mistakenly left in vehicles

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. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Breitfeld, Erika (2020). "Hot-Car Deaths and Forgotten-Baby Syndrome: A Case Against Prosecution". Berkeley Journal of Criminal Law 25: 72–106. https://www.bjcl.org/assets/files/Breitfeld_Final_05.30.pdf. 
  2. ↑ Null, Jan (May 30, 2023). "Heatstroke Deaths of Children in Vehicles". https://www.noheatstroke.org. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lee-Kelland, Richard; Finlay, Fiona (2019). "GP3 'Forgotten baby syndrome': a systematic review and analysis of caregiver intention". Archives of Disease in Childhood 104 (Suppl. 3). doi:10.1136/archdischild-2019-epa.69. https://adc.bmj.com/content/archdischild/104/Suppl_3/A30.2.full.pdf. 
  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. PMID 27399747. 
  5. ↑ Scozzari, Gitana; Bert, Fabrizio; Gualano, Maria R.; Siliquini, Roberta (February 2020). "Forgotten children in parked vehicles: a review of Italian fatalities." (in Italian). Minerva Pediatrica 72 (1): 55–59. doi:10.23736/S0026-4946.18.05125-3. PMID 29381013. https://www.minervamedica.it/en/journals/minerva-pediatrics/article.php?cod=R15Y2020N01A0055. 
  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. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/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. PMID 32296275. PMC 7147705. https://academic.oup.com/pch/article-abstract/25/3/143/5532611. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Roy, Lillian (August 22, 2022). "'Forgotten baby syndrome' is more common than you think. Here's how technology can help". CTV News. https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/forgotten-baby-syndrome-is-more-common-than-you-think-here-s-how-technology-can-help-1.6038102. 
  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". Chapman Law Review 26: 1–55. https://www.chapman.edu/law/_files/publications/clr-vol-26/clr_26-1-1-forston-fradella.pdf. 
  10. ↑ Rudd, Rodney; Prasad, Aloke; Weston, Doug; Wietholter, Kedryn (July 2015). Functional Assessment of Unattended Child Reminder Systems (Report). National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. p. 2. https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/812187_unattendedchildremindersystems.pdf. 
  11. ↑ Pelletiere, Nicole (July 14, 2016). "'Forgotten Baby Syndrome': A Parent's Nightmare of Hot Car Death". ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/forgotten-baby-syndrome-parents-nightmare-hot-car-death/story?id=40431117. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Rosenblatt, Kalhan (June 27, 2017). "Hot Car Deaths: Scientists Detail Why Parents Forget Their Children". NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/hot-cars-and-kids/hot-car-deaths-scientists-detail-why-parents-forget-their-children-n777076. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Thomas, Emily A. (August 18, 2022). "Research Shows That Anyone Could Forget a Kid in a Hot Car". Consumer Reports. https://www.consumerreports.org/car-safety/anyone-could-forget-kids-in-hot-car-forgotten-baby-syndrome-a3901940661/. 
  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. https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2018/07/16/psychology-how-infants-forgotten-cars-and-tips-how-prevent/756523002/. 
  15. ↑ Minton, Leslie (May 24, 2018). "Study: Hot cars can hit deadly temperatures in as little as one hour". Arizona State University. https://news.asu.edu/20180516-discoveries-asu-study-hot-cars-can-hit-deadly-temperatures-within-one-hour. 
  16. ↑ "Mother suffered 'forgotten baby syndrome', death inquest told". BBC News. March 22, 2017. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-39335376. 
  17. ↑ Purtill, Corinne (June 27, 2017). "The neuroscience that explains the awful truth that anyone is capable of accidentally killing their child". Quartz. https://qz.com/1015235/the-neuroscience-that-explains-the-awful-truth-that-anyone-is-capable-of-accidentally-killing-their-child. 
  18. ↑ Speck, Emilee (June 16, 2022). "7 apps and smart technology designed to prevent heatstroke deaths in children". Fox Weather. https://www.foxweather.com/learn/7-apps-and-smart-technology-designed-to-prevent-children-hot-car-deaths. 
  19. ↑ Maddireddy, Mihir (September 5, 2019). "Rear-Seat Occupant Alerts Will Be Standard on All Cars by 2025". Car and Driver. https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a28924249/rear-seat-occupant-alerts-cars-2025/. 
  20. ↑ Stub, Zev (June 27, 2021). "From August 1: Devices to prevent drivers from forgetting kids in cars". Jerusalem Post. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/from-august-1-devices-to-prevent-drivers-from-forgetting-kids-in-cars-672181. 



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