Week 3: Infant Development

Why does extended evolutionary synthesis matter?

to challenge overly linear or deterministic models of development and consider the person as an active participant in development, continually shaping and being shaped by biological, relational, social, and cultural environments

Developmental plasticity matters. What does this mean?

Experiences and environments can influence how biological potentials are expressed

People have agency. What does this mean?

Developing individuals do not simply respond to environments; they act on, select, and help construct them

Context matters. What does this mean?

Development occurs within relationships, communities, cultures, and environments that can support or constrain an individual's purposes and capacities

Development is not a ladder. What does this mean?

Difference should not automatically be interpreted as deficit, immaturity, or movement toward a single ideal developmental endpoint

What is the first developmental context?

The prenatal period. The fetal brain is already being shaped by biological and environmental inputs before birth

T/F Prenatal stress matters, but its effects are not uniform or deterministic.

True. Outcomes vary substantially across individuals and studies

T/F(prenatal stress and neurodevelopment): Context does not change the meaning and impact of stress.

False. Maternal history, available resources, chronic adversity, culture, trauma, and the timing, severity, chronicity, and predictability of stress all contribute to developmental outcomes

T/F(prenatal stress and neurodevelopment): Timing does not matter.

False. Stress at different points in pregnancy may affect different developmental processes; there is no single established "most vulnerable" period

T/F(prenatal stress and neurodevelopment): Prenatal influence is not destiny.

True. Ongoing neuroplasticity and postnatal experiences, particularly caregiving, interact with prenatal influences to shape later risk and resilience

Preterm birth: 22-24 weeks- periviable/extremely preterm

Highest mortality and neurodevelopmental risk. Among survivors, increased rates of cerebral palsy, cognitive impairment, language and motor delays, and sensory impairment. Outcomes improve substantially with each additional week of gestation

Preterm birth: 25-27 weeks- extremely preterm

Survival rises markedly, but risk for significant neurodevelopmental difficulties remains elevated. Cognitive, motor, attention/executive-function, learning, and behavioral vulnerabilities may persist into school age

Preterm birth: 28-31 weeks- very preterm

Most children survive, and severe disability is less common, but group-level risk remains elevated for language, cognition, attention, executive functioning, motor coordination, and academic difficulties

Preterm birth: 32-33 weeks- moderate preterm

Developmental effects are typically subtler, but risk remains meaningfully higher than for term-born children, including global developmental delay, learning difficulties, social-behavioral concerns, and need for educational supports

Preterm birth: 34-37 weeks- late preterm

Often appears medically "close to term," but is not developmentally equivalent to term birth. Small but reliable increases are seen in developmental delay, ADHD/attention difficulties, executive-function weaknesses, and academic challenges

What is white matter?

myelinated axons

What did Piaget stress?

Children actively construct their own cognitive worlds

Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development: Sensorimotor Stage

-Birth to 2 years

-Infants construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences and develop object permanence

Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development: Object Permanence

-An understanding that objects and events continue to exist when they cannot directly be seen, heard, or touched

-Ex: Peek-a-Boo: a baby who lacks object permanence thinks the face is gone forever, while an older baby knows the face is still hidden behind the hands

Crying

can signal distress; different types of cries signal different things

Cooing

emerges at 2-4 months; gurgling sounds that usually express pleasure

Babbling

allows for social interactions; "ba, ba, ba, ba"

Gesures

emerge at about 8-12 months and promote further language development; showing and pointing

T/F: Do infants understand their first words earlier than they speak them?

True. Although the average age of first words is 12-13 months, babies actually begin to understand the meaning of common words at around 6 to 9 months

Receptive Vocabulary

words the child understands

Expressive Vocabulary

words the child uses

When does the process of learning emotion regulation begin?

Infancy. It is facilitated by responsive, supportive caregiving

Examples of emotions expressed in the first 6 months

Fear, surprise, interest, joy, anger, sadness, disgust

Examples of later-developing emotions

-Jealousy, empathy, embarrassment, pride, shame, and guilt

-Often called self-conscious emotions because they involve the emotional reactions of others

What is one of the earliest emotions?

Fear

Stranger anxiety

-Most frequent expression of fear

-An infant's fear and wariness of strangers

-Appears around 7-8 months

Separation protest

The distressed crying of an infant when the caregiver leaves

Social referencing

-"Reading" the emotional cues in others to help determine how to act in a particular situation

-Ex: If a child falls and looks at mom: 1. "Ahh! Are you okay?"-child cries 2. Not reacting/physically turning around- more calm response from child

Erikson's Psychosocial Stages: Trust vs. Mistrust

-Infancy, 0-1 year

-Central Question: Can I trust the world?

-Key Task: Developing a sense of security through caregivers' reliability and affection

-Positive Outcome: trust--> feeling safe and secure

-Negative Outcome: mistrust--> fear, suspicion, insecurity

Erikson's Psychosocial Stages: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

-Early Childhood, 1-3 years

-Central Question: "Can I do things myself?"

-Key Task: Developing independence and self-control while exploring environment

-Positive Outcome: Autonomy-->confidence, self-esteem, willpower

-Negative Outcome: Shame and Doubt-->dependence, lack of confidence, self-doubt

-Ex: potty training could lead to embarrassment

-Remember individual differences: are there limits due to disability, access, and environment?

Erikson's Psychosocial Stages: Initiative vs. Guilt

-Preschool, 3-5 years

-Central Question: Am I good or am I bad?

Key Task: asserting control and power over the environment by planning activities, playing, and facing new challenges

-Positive Outcome: initiative-->purpose, confidence, and ability to lead others

-Negative Outcome: guilt-->self-doubt, inhibition, and fear of taking action

Purposes/Functions of the Attachment System in Early Social Relationships

-Proximity maintenance between infant and caregiver

-Secure base for ongoing protection

-Safe haven for stress management

Attachment: Sensitivity

the caregiver's observable responses to the child's signals (ex: why are they crying? wet diaper, hungry, want caregiver etc)

Attachment: Mentalizing

The caregiver's internal process of understanding the child's inner world (thoughts, feelings, intentions, desires)

T/F: Mentalizing supports sensitivity

True. If a parent can imagine what the child is feeling, they're more likely to respond in a way that feels attuned

T/F: Sensitivity is the behavioral outcome, while mentalizing is the cognitive-emotional process behind it

True

Attachment Theory (John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth)

explains how early emotional bonds between infants and primary caregivers shape a person's relationships and emotional regulation throughout life

Secure Attachment

-positive models of themselves and others

-low anxiety, low avoidance

-comfortable in relationships and with intimacy

-self-confident

Avoidant (Dismissive) Attachment

-positive models of themselves, negative models of others

-low anxiety, high avoidance

-self-sufficient

-doesn't initiate deep relationships

-avoids intimacy

Anxious (Preoccupied) Attachment

-negative models of themselves, positive models of others

-high anxiety, low avoidance

-desires closeness

-worried about/preoccupied with relationships

Fearful-Avoidant (Disorganized) Attachment

-negative models of themselves, negative models of others

-high anxiety, high avoidance

-desires closeness but has a hard time trusting others

-fears rejections and abandonment

What determines attachment?

-Attachment response is innate

-Attachment style/classification has multiple causes that develop over time(maternal sensitivity, extrinsic risks, personal needs, genetic variation)

Criticisms of Attachment Theory

-By focusing so intensely on the early mother-child bond, we neglect a vast range of important human influences and experiences

-A stable early environment is important, but focusing so much attention on attachment issues can make compelling environmental, social, and racial issues disappear

-We obscure our understanding of the context in which they grew up

Salvador Minuchin

Father of Family Therapy

Temperament

-the innate, biologically rooted behavioral and emotional traits that shape how an individual reacts to the world and regulates their responses

-a set of early-appearing and biologically influenced individual differences that form a core of the emerging personality

-understanding temperament enhances our understanding of social-emotional development and adult functioning

Goodness of Fit Model(Thomas & Chess 1977)

A child's temperament interacts with their environment to influence behavior and developmental outcomes

T/F: Certain characteristics make children more vulnerable to setbacks in adverse contexts. These same characteristics also make them more susceptible to optimal growth in very supportive conditions

True