Chapter 20 - Social and Personality Development

Attachment

• an enduring emotional bond formed between individuals

contact comfort

• the pleasure that comes from close physical contact in primates

  • the basis of the infant’s first attachment

Harlow’s study on Monkey’s and Contact comfort

• baby monkey showed more time spent with the fake cloth monkey than with the fake wire monkey, even if the fake wire monkey was the one with the food for the baby monkey

  • baby monkey showed how important physical contact is for infant’s

Separation Anxiety

• the distress that most children develop at around 6-8 months old, when their primary caregivers temporarily leave them with strangers (typically the mother)

Strange situation test

• used to test the security of a child’s attachment

• parent-infant “separation and reunion” procedure that is lab tested

how does strange situation study work

done by a sequence of events observed through a one-way mirror

• mother and infant (12-18 months old) enter a room with toys in it

• a stranger enters the room, the mother leaves the room and then returns again

• results in two aspects of the child’s behaviour observed

  • amount of exploration the child engages in while the mom is away

  • child’s reactions to the mom leaving and returning

types of attachment

• secure - cry or protest if the parent leaves the room - shows more attachment to the mother than the stranger

• insecure avoidant - not caring if the mother leaves the room - treating the stranger the same as the mother

• insecure anxious (or Ambivalent) - resisting contact with the mother at reunion but protesting loudly if she leaves, may cry to be picked up and demand to be put down, and may behave as if angry and resists efforts to comfort them

2 types of attachment systems (between parent and child)

• attachment behavioural system - focused on meeting our own needs for security

  • more dominant, since it’s a basic survival instinct

• caregiving behavioural system - focused on meeting the needs of others

introjecting

recognizing that a parent has placed conditions on their approval and affection

• internalizing these conditions for approval

inductive discipline

• explaining the consequences of a child’s actions on other people

  • initiates empathy

temperament

early emerging tendencies for how one reacts to different situations and self-regulates

• biological based, but is still influenced by social/environmental factors including parental care

effortful control

degree to which one is capable of motivated self-regulation

• being able to regulate one’s self emotions without the input of other people

goodness of fit

the similarity between a child’s temperament and the characteristics of their environment

• fit between a child’s temperament and their parents’ supports supports socioemotional growth

  • a parent and a child will get a long more if they are more similar

Conscience

• conscious, emotional, and social influences that cause young children to create and act consistently with internal standards of conduct

• related to the serotonin transporter gene

• children develop a “moral” self by the end of the preschool years

3 stages of moral development (Kohlberg’s Theory)

• preconventional morality - self interest in seeking reward or avoiding punishment

  • very basic and egocentric form of moral reasoning

• conventional morality - following rules or directions for appropriate moral behaviour (from parents, teachers, and the law)

  • directives from parents, teachers, and the law are used as guidelines for moral behaviour

• postconventional morality - considers rules and laws as relative

• this theory overlooks educational, situational, and cultural influences

social intuitionist model

moral judgements are guided by intuitive, emotional reactions and we make arguments that support our reaction

• perceived immorality activates brain areas related to disgust, and this reaction influences subsequent decision-making

what happens during Adolescent Brain Development

• an explosion of synaptic connections and pruning occurs

• changes occur primarily in the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for impulse control and planning

  • decision-making in adolescence

Delay of gratification

putting off immediate temptations in order to focus on longer-term goals

• ex. Idle gambling task

  • those with less developed/damaged prefrontral cortex will choose the deck that has higher value but is more riskier, while those with a matured prefrontal cortex choose the lower risk deck overtime to accumulate winnings

risk taking in adolescence

• the presence of other adolescents increases risk-taking and decreases prefrontal cortex responses to negative feedback

Identity

a clear sense of what kind of person you are, what type of people you belong with, and what roles you should play in society

identity crisis

• curiosity, questioning, and exploring different identities

• trying different goals, fashions, and friends

Friendships

• the biggest shift from childhood to adolescence is the increasing importance of peers

• in children < 12, a mother’s voice activates reward centres in the nucleus accumbens and VMPFC

• in teens > 13, these areas are activated by unfamiliar voices

  • teens find novelty much rewarding than younger kids

Individuation

process of developing own opinions, values, and styles of dress and look

• fights with parents represent a shift from one-sided parental authority to a more reciprocal adult relationship

early ages and Friendships

• ages 6-12, sex/gender is more important than ethnicity or wealth

  • some ritualized boundary violations

    • ex. boys usually chase the girls

• preference for same sex friends increases over late childhood (grade 5 or 6) and into adolescence

• as teens, we re-learn to socialize with the other sex

male and female friendships

male

• appear to be focused on competition and dominance

• higher levels of competition among friends than among strangers

females

• include more agreement, compliance, and self-disclosure

gender roles

the accepted attitudes and behaviours of males and females in a given society

sexual scripts

the set of rules and assumptions about the sexual behaviours of males and females

sexual scripts of males vs. females

• males are often expected to be involved in competition, posturing, and valuing physical sex

  • may be linked to testosterone

• females are often expected to be involved in fostering relationships, being desirable, but “hard to get”

  • changed in last 50 years due to economics, less patriarchy, and “the pill”

sexual orientation and stats

• the consistent preference for sexual relationships with members of the opposite sex (heterosexuality), same sex (homosexuality), or either sex (bisexuality)

• 1.3% of men, and 0.7% of women consider themselves to be homosexuals

• 0.6% of men and 0.9% of women considered themselves to be bisexual

• 4% of Canadians reported being LGBTQ+

Influence of genetics

• the more identical genes you have, the more similar your sexual orientation will be

  • ex. two twins are more likely to both be straight/gay than one being gay and the other heterosexual

Transgender

individuals who experience a mismatch between the gender that they identify with their biological sex

• sexual differentiation of genitals occurs 6-12 weeks post-conception

• sexual differentiation of brain structures occurs in the second half of prenatal development

3 Perspectives that interact to shape development

1. social context that each child lives

2. biological maturation that supports developing social and emotional competencies and underlies temperamental individuality

3. children’s developing representations of themselves and the social world

personality development

continuous interaction between these social, biological, and representational aspects of psychological development

Why has attachment evolved in humans

because they encourage children’s motivation to stay close to those who care for them and benefit from the learning, security, guidance, warmth, and affirmation that close relationships provide

Secure vs. Insecure Attachment in Infants

Parents respond sensitively → infants become securely attached

• reinforces the infants’ confidence that their parents will provide support when needed

Parents act inconsistent or neglectful → infants become insecurely attached

• infants tend to respond avoidantly, resistantly, and in a disorganized manner

• but this is not always the case

  • ex. parent may be tired from work and doesn’t have energy to show affection

Security of attachment

An infant’s confidence in the sensitivity and responsiveness of a caregiver, especially when he or she is needed

• infants can be either:

  • securely attached

  • insecurely attached

Authoritative Parenting

when parents are supportive and show interest in their kids’ activities but are not overbearing and allow them to make constructive mistakes

• high but reasonable expectations for child behaviour, good communication, warm and responsive, and use reasoning instead of emotion towards children’s misbehaviour

Parenting styles that cause less-constructive relationships with children

Authoritarian, uninvolved, and permissive parenting

Family Stress Model

describes how financial difficulties are associated with parents’ depressed moods which leads to marital problems and poor parenting (which contributes to poorer child adjustment)

Child Social Development in Peer Relationships

• learn to initiate and maintain social interactions with other children

• learn skills for managing conflict like turn-taking, compromise, and bargaining

• playing involves coordination of goals, actions, and understanding

Challenges in Peer Relationships in children

• being accepted by other children is an important source of affirmation and self-esteem

• but peer rejection can foreshadow later behaviour problems (especially rejection with aggressive behaviour)

• challenges of bullying, peer victimization, and managing conformity pressures increase with age

Social Comparison and peer relationships in children

important since children evaluate their skills, knowledge, and personal qualities, but can cause them to feel like they aren’t as good as others

Adolescence and Peer relationships

focused on psychological intimacy, involving personal disclosure, vulnerability, and loyalty

• affects a child’s view on the world

Social Referencing

infant looks to the mother’s face when confronted with an unfamiliar person or situation

• shows that infants are aware that other people have perceptions, feelings, and other mental states that are different from their own

• if the mom’s face is:

  • calm and reassuring → infants responds positively and situation feels safe

  • fearful or distressed → infant responds distressed like in danger

Children’s Theory of Mind

understanding of mental states begins very simply, but rapidly expands

• by late preschool years, children can understand that another’s beliefs can be incorrect, memories can affect how you feel, and that one’s emotions can be hidden from others

• young children are very sensitive observers of others

Conscious Development in children

emerges from children’s experiences with parents

• grows through a good fit between the child’s temperamental qualities and how parents communicate and reinforce behavioural expectations

Children and Personality development

temperamental characteristics emerge and change over time as children mature biologically

• newborns aren’t capable of much self-control but develop brain capacities for self-control, which allows for self-regulation

  • a newborn baby crying frequently ≠ grump personality

Gender Schemas

organized beliefs and expectations about maleness and femaleness that guide children’s thinking about gender