Child & Adolescent Psychology - Chapter 7: Infancy, Social and Emotional Development

PSYC 3370

attachment

affectional bond, seeking closeness/contact and distressing when separated

separation anxiety

fear of being seprated from a target of attachment, usually a primary caregiver

secure attachment

• mild distress at separation

• seeking closeness

• readily soothed

avoidant attachment (insecure attachment)

indifference to separation and return

resistant attachment (insecure attachment)

• severe distress to separation

• ambivalent to return

disorganized attachment (insecure attachment)

dazed and contradictory behavior towards attachment figure

attachment phases

• initial pre-attachment phase

• attachment-in-the-making phase

• clear-cut attachment phase

initial pre-attachment phase (attachment phases)

0-3 months

indiscriminate attachment

indiscriminate attachment (initial pre-attachment phase)

display of attachment behaviors toward any person

attachment-in-the-making phase (attachment phases)

3-4 months

preference for familiar figures

clear-cut attachment phase (attachment phases)

6-7 months

intensified dependence on the primary caregiver

contact comfort

harlow’s cloth mother experiment → pleasure from physical comfort points to a drive for it

social smile

human voice/face → smile

autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

developmental disorder

• impaired communication skills

• poor social interactions

• repetitive, stereotyped behavior

mutism

inability or refusal to speak

echolalia

automatic repetition of sounds/words

emotion

state of feeling that has components of

• physiology

• situation

• cognition

stranger anxiety

starts around 6-9 months of age

fear of unfamiliar people/strangers

social referencing

using another person’s reaction a situation to form your own assessment of it

emotion regulation

techniques for controlling your emotional states

personality

enduring characteristics and behavior that make up your unique approach to life

• major traits

• interests

• drives

• values

• self-concept

• abilities

• emotional patterns

self-concept

your impression and evaluation of yourself

temperament

individual differences in styles of reaction to people or situations

present early on

easy/difficult/slow to warm up

• regularity of biological functioning

• response to new stimuli

• adaptability to new situations

• intensity of reaction

• equality of mood

goodness of fit

agreement between the parents’ expectations/demands of a child and their temperament