Mothers and Fathers: Nature vs Nurture and Chapter 1

eight essential parenting responsibilities

providing a safe environment

providing basic needs

providing self-esteem

teaching children morals and values

developing mutual respect

providing effective and age-appropriate discipline

being involved in the child’s education

knowing the child by communicating with him/her

parent work schedule, parent separation, parents’ past, mental health, socioeconomic status/poverty, etc

what factors might impact parents’ ability to fulfill the eight essential parenting responsibilities?

socioeconomic status

which of the following determinants of parenting behavior play the largest role?

change

becoming a father can be a catalyst for change

relationships change over time and situation

historical or policy shifts can affect change in fathering (paternal leave)

continuity

own experiences impact fathering style; “men’s experiences as fathers are linked to relations with their own fathers”

fathershave a commitment to caring for next generation

nature

refers to innate qualities and predispositions we inherit from our parents, like genetics

nurture

encompasses all the external influences we experience from conception onward, including our upbringing, social interactions, and environment

families

what is critical for a society’s survival?

by learning and passing them on

how do children preserve social and cultural values?

children before the 17th century

were treated as adults and expected to work around age seven, without recognition of unique developmental needs

children after the civil war

experienced compulsory schooling; parents gained a better understanding of why it was important to nurture and guide children’s development, and families moved to cities

early colonial view of children

children were considered evil and in need of firm correction

parenting after the civil war

parenting shifted to a nurturing, child-centered approach that continues today

children prior to the civil war

they were raised in highly religious families and taught a trade

ecological systems theory

this theory provides a framework for examining how individuals are influenced by direct interactions with their environment as well as indirectly by larger social and cultural variables across time

includes individual compared to their microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem

family systems theory

a theory proposed and is based on the work of general systems theory, which emphasizes that events, situations, or people can only be understood within the context of their environment

the whole is more than the sum of its parts

families are described as complex emotional units in which changes in the relationship or roles of its member influence the functioning of the entire system

maintaining family members’ homeostasis

what is the primary goal of a family system?

attachment theory

theory explaining the early bond between an infant and primary caregiver which is crucial for a child’s emotional and psychological development, serving to protect the child and regulate emotions

is best understood within a current relationship environment that exists between parents and children

psychosocial theory

theory that suggests that conscious and unconscious processes are the primary motivators of human behavior

certain inner thought emerge during different developmental stages

learning theory

this theory, behaviorism, and social learning theory represent attempts to explain how people learn from direct experiences with their environment

respondent conditioning

cognitive theory

theory on how human behaviors evolve over time, piaget applied a constructivist approach, and developed the concept of schemas

describes changes in four developmental stages: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational

microsystem

the direct interactions that occur between an individual and their immediate environments

mesosystem

the interactions and relationships that occur between microsystems

macrosystem

the culture of a society, including its beliefs, values, and customs

exosystem

environments that have an indirect effect on the individual

chronosystem

factors of time that influence development

nuclear family

a family consisting of a mother, and father, and their biological children

social learning theory

theory of learning in which individuals learn through their experiences and cognitive processes; learned through observation and modeling

enlightenment

time period where the belief that children were born wicked and immoral were set aside and replaced with ideals that encouraged parents to be more lenient, understanding, and nurturing

child-rearing practices during the middle ages

practices were described as cold, harsh, and uncaring