Chapter 3: Infancy

Shared Sleeping

Is different across all cultures- some believe to they can sleep in the same bed with their caregivers, others believe they can sleep in the same room in a crib.

Shared sleeping risk

Parent could roll over onto baby and suffocate them; linked to SIDS

Shared sleeping recommendations

Make sure bedding provides support for baby; crib has side rails so baby doesn’t fall off

SIDS

A condition that occurs when an infant stops breathing, usually during the night, and suddenly dies without apparent cause

SIDS refs

Place baby to sleep on their back (increase access for air); use a pacifier; eliminate exposure to cigarette smoke; have a fan while baby sleeps; breastfeeding; no pillows/stuffed animals

Nutritional needs

At 15 months old- French fries are the most common vegetable; poor dietary patterns early in development results in infants being overweight and more risk for obesity at 3 years old

Breastfeeding outcomes

Breast fed babies do have fewer health problems (infections, allergies, SIDS, etc); breastfeeding mothers are less likely to develop breast and ovarian cancer and diabetes

Reasons to not breastfed

Painful, time consuming, very stressful, not always easy if body isn’t producing enough milk at a time

Parental leave in Sweden

480 days (over 1 year) protected leave; benefits can be shared by both parents

Parental leave across US

0 weeks; mom’s get “up to” 12 weeks unpaid leave

Fine motor skills

Involve more finely tuned movements; grasping, picking things up

Gross motor skills

Involve large muscle activations; crawling, walking

Perception

The interpretation of what is sensed

Newborn vision

At birth- vision is developing; can’t see small things that are far away, estimated about 20/240, show interest in human faces (prefer to look at faces rather than objects at birth)

Vision at 6 months

Vision has already improved (20/40)

Depth perception

Safely test whether an infant would walk off cliff or not (most don’t so can perceive depth)

Sensorimotor stage

The first stage of piaget’s stages; lasts from birth to about 2 years of age; infants construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences with motored actions

Object permanence

Understanding that objects and events continue to exist even when they cannot directly be seen, heard, or touched

A-not-B error

Occurs when infants make the mistake of selecting the familiar hiding place (a) rather than the new hiding place (b) of an object

Phonemes (noticing differences)

When noises change, infants become interested; they turn their heads when syllables change (noticed a difference in sounds)

Bilingual recommendations

Best to expose babies to different languages at an early age because they’ll be able to recognize all different phonemes of different languages

Child-directed speech

Language spoken in a higher pitch than normal, with simple words and sentences; baby talk

Child-directed speech outcomes

Important function of capturing infant’s attention and maintaining communication; linked to greater word production at 2 years of age than standard speech (one-on-one can be helpful for language development)

Primary emotions

Are present in humans and other animals; emerge early in life (first 6 months)

Primary emotion examples

Joy, anger, sadness, fear, disgust

Self-conscious emotions

Require self-awareness and a sense of “me”

Self-conscious emotion examples

Jealousy, empathy, embarrassment, pride, shame, guilt

Self-conscious emotion age of occurrence

2nd half of first year through the second year (1 ½ - over 2 years of age)

Stranger anxiety

An infant’s fear and wariness of strangers; tends to appear during the second half of the first year of life

Separation protest

An infant’s distressed crying when the caregiver leaves

Separation protest age of occurrence

Shown around 7-8 months and peaks at about 15 months

Temperament

Involves individual differences in behavioral styles, emotions, and characteristic ways of responding

Easy child

40 % of kids; generally in a positive mood; quickly establishes regular routines in infancy, adapts easily to new experiences

Difficult child

10 %; reacts negatively and cries frequently, irregular daily routines, slow to accept change

Slow-to-warm-up child

15 %; low activity level, somewhat negative, displays a low intensity of mood

Attachment

A close bond between two people

Strange situation

Assess infant attachment through a series of interdictions, separations, and reunions with the caregiver and an adult stranger

Securely attached babies

Use the caregiver as a secure base from which to explore the environment

Securely attached babies’ behaviors

Explore the room and examine toys that have been placed in it; if things get scare, baby goes back to base (caregiver); caregiver leaves- infant might protest just a bit; caregiver comes back- infant re-establishes positive interactions (smiling, climbing on caregiver)

Insecure avoidant babies

Shows insecurity by avoiding the caregiver

Insecure avoidant babies’ behaviors

Engage in very littler interaction with caregiver; not typically distressed when caregiver leaves room; don’t re-establish contact when caregiver comes back (might even turn their back on them); if contact is made- infant usually looks away/leans away (avoid)

Insecure resistant babies

Often cling to caregiver, then resist the caregiver by fighting against closeness, perhaps by kicking or pushing away

Insecure resistant babies’ behaviors

Cling very anxiously to caregiver, and they don’t explore the playroom; caregiver leaves- baby usually cries really loud and pushes caregiver away when they come back to room

Insecure disorganized babies

Show insecurity by being disorganized and disoriented

Insecure disorganized babies behavior

Babies might seem dazed/confused, maybe even afraid; show really strong patterns of avoidance and resistance; can display being really afraid around the caregiver