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Bowlby investigated the stories of all the juvenile thieves who went through the London Child Guidance Clinic in the years 1936 to 1939. Although well versed in psychoanalytic theory, he could not, of course, use the psychoanalytic method in such an extensive inquiry. He agrees with the findings of modern research in delinquency which stress the etiological importance of environment, especially the early relationship to the mother.
The precondition for a scientific study is a correct classification. The usual classifications of character are insufficient. Bowlby uses a 'relatively tough and ready' differentiation which is actually a classification of temperaments rather than of characters, namely, a differentiation between normal, depressed, circular, hyperthymic (manic), 'affectionless' and schisoid types. He then proceeds with the story and behavior of his forty-four patients, giving the 'diagnosis' of each in accordance with the above classification. The interesting 'affectionless' type is discussed more in detail. It appears that 'affectionless' behavior often serves the purpose of defending the individual against a depression. In the history of these patients there are, characteristically, early and decisive frustration of love. There is usually an early separation from the mother, this separation occuring typically when the child's capacity for personal relationships