Emotions and Emotional Development

Vocabulary flashcards about emotions and emotional development in children, based on lecture notes.

Emotions

A complex subjective reaction to something in the environment, generally accompanied by physiological arousal, and often communicated to others by some expression or action. Experienced as either pleasant or unpleasant.

Primary Emotions

Early emotions such as fear, joy, disgust, surprise, sadness, and interest which emerge early in life and do not require introspection or self-reflection.

Secondary or Self-Conscious Emotions

Emotions such as pride, shame, guilt, jealousy, embarrassment, and empathy that emerge later and depend on a sense of self and an awareness of other people's reactions.

Biological Perspective of Emotions

The perspective that emotional expressions are innate and universal, rooted in human evolution, and based on anatomical structures.

Learning Perspective of Emotions

The perspective that explains individual differences in emotional expression, where the frequency with which children smile and laugh is related to their caregivers' behavior.

Functional Perspective of Emotions

The perspective that the purpose of emotions is to help people achieve their social and survival goals, influencing actions and providing feedback.

Reflex Smiles

Smiles usually spontaneous that appear to depend on the infant's internal state. Serves adaptive value for the infant by ensuring caregiver attention and stimulation.

Duchenne Smiles

Involves an upturned mouth and wrinkles around the eyes, reflecting genuine pleasure.

Separation Anxiety

Fear of being separated from mother or other familiar caregiver which tends to peak at about 15 months.

Social Referencing

Looking at the emotional expressions of others to guide behavior in unfamiliar or uncertain situations.

Emotion Regulation

The ability to modify, control, and regulate emotions so they are less frequent and less intense.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy

A therapeutic approach used to treat depression, typically conducted individually or in small groups, to reduce self-consciousness and improve coping mechanisms.

Empathy

An emotional response to another person's emotion, most often distress, involving sharing and understanding the other person's feelings.

Learned Helplessness

A state resulting from the belief that one is helpless to control events in one’s world, often contributing to a sense of personal shortcoming.

Emotional Display Rules

Rules learned by children dictating what emotions to show under what circumstances, often influenced by cultural norms.

Emotional Scripts

Detailed plans for specific types of feelings in given situations.

Childhood Depression

A prolonged state of sadness, dejection, irritability, or loss of interest in activities.

Sympathy

Feelings of pity and sorrow for someone else's misfortune.

Temperament

Constitutionally based individual differences in emotion, motor, and attentional reactivity and self-regulation. Temperament is demonstrated through variations in activity level, smiling, soothability, and fear.

Easy Temperament

A temperament characterized by regularity in routines, adaptability, and generally positive mood.

Difficult Temperament

A temperament characterized by irregularity in routines, slow adaptability, and tendency to react negatively and intensely.

Slow-to-Warm-Up Temperament

A temperament characterized by general inactivity and mild reactions to new situations; given time, negative mood.

Goodness of Fit

The degree to which an individual's temperament is compatible with the