Harlow's Surrogate Mother Experiment

Infant rhesus monkeys were separated from tehir biological mothers at birth and presented with two surrogate mothers. One was made of wire but had a feeding bottle, while the other was covered in a soft terrycloth material but no bottle. The monkeys preferred the terry cloth mother over the bottle, which showed that they preferred comfort over nourishment. Even though the monkeys were receiving emotional comfort, it was at the expense of their nutrition. This study raises many concerns regarding animal ethics and the long-term effects of this experimental manipulation.