13. middle childhood: psychosocial development

signs of psychosocial maturation over the years of middle childhood

• children responsibly perform specific chores

• children make decisions about a weekly allowance

• children can tell time and have set times for various activities

• children have homework, including some assignments over several days

• children are punished less often than when they were younger

• children try to conform to peers in clothes, language, and so on

• children voice preferences about their after-school care, lessons, and activities

• children are responsible for younger children, pets, and, in some places, work

• children strive for independence from parents

Erikson’s industry vs. inferiority

• attempt to master many skills

• judge themselves: industrious or inferior, competent or incompetent, productive or useless

• self-pride dependent on view of others

• social rejection is cause and consequence of feeling inferior

parental reactions

• shift from providing physical care to engaging in __, __, and __, especially father-son interaction

• gradual autonomy permitted

• time with parent/s __; time spent alone or with friends __

dialogue, discussion, shared activities, decreases, increases

self-concept

• contains ideas about self that include intelligence, personality, abilities, gender, and ethnic background

• gradually becomes more realistic, specific, and logical

• is dependent on social comparison

social comparison + what it contributes to the development of + what awareness does it include

• tendency to assess oneself against those of other people, especially peers

• contributes to development of realistic, culturally viable self value

• includes awareness of gender, ethnicity, and social prejudice

culture and self-esteem

• unrealistic self-esteem reduces __; with less __, some children are more aggressive and less conscientious

• self-control interacts w __ and __ reactions

• high self-esteem is neither universally valued nor universally criticized

  • children benefit most from praise for __, not __; not for static qualities

effortful control, control, parent, culture, process, person

resilience

• resilience is dynamic, not stable

• resilience is a __ adaptation to stress

• adversity must be significant

positive

dynamic-systems theory

no one is truly untouched by past history or current context; some survive and become stronger

cumulative stress

• repeated stresses, daily hassles, and multiple traumatic experiences may challenge resilience

• social context is crucial

  • __ as protective buffer

  • committed caregiver, especially __

  • daily routine

family, mother

dominant ideas about resilience in 1965, 1970, 1975, 1980, 1985, 1995, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2015

1965: all children have same needs for healthy development

1970: some conditions or circumstances are harmful for every child

1975: all children as NOT the same; some are resilient

1980: nothing inevitably causes harm

1985: factors beyond the family, both in the child and in the community, can harm children

1995: no child is invincible. risks are always harmful

2008: focus on strengths, not risks

2010: strengths vary by culture and national values

2012: genes, family structures, and cultural practices can be either strengths or weaknesses

2015: communities are responsible for child resilience

resilience is possible after disasters because of 3 things

• problem-solving ability and other factors in child

• consistency and care in family

• good schools and welcoming religious institutions in community

child interpretation of events is crucial

• family situation interpretation determines how __

• __ occurs when children feel responsible for entire family

children are affected, parentification

shared and nonshared environments

• __ affect half or more of the variance for almost every trait

• influence of __ shrinks w age

• effect of __ increases

genes, shared environment, nonshared environment

family structure

legal and genetic relationships among relatives living in the same home; includes nuclear family, extended family, stepfamily, and others

family function

• (define); __

• families help children in 5 ways:

way a family works to meet the needs of its members, differential susceptibility

• provide basic physical necessities

• encourage learning

• help development of self-respect

• nurture peer relationships

• foster harmony and stability

family instability

• __ children’s internalizing and externalizing problems

• __ likelihood of emotional difficulties

• may be buffered by __ and other __; African American children

increase, increase, grandparents, relatives

two-parent families (percentage and examples)

69%

• nuclear family

• stepparent family

• adoptive family

• grandparents alone

• two same-sex parents

single-parent families (percentage + examples)

31%

• single mother—never married

• single mother—divorced, separated, widowed

• single father

• grandparent alone

more than two-adult families (percentage + examples)

10%

• extended family

• polygamous family

• these may also be included as two-parent or single-parent family categories

two-parent families

• generally function __

• __ educational, social, cognitive, and behavioral child outcomes

• mate selection effects and parental alliance

• differences btwn __ and __ individuals in marriage, child-bearing, child-rearing, and divorce

• some reported benefits are correlations, not causationa

best, better, high-SES, low-SES

adoptive and same-sex parent families

• typically function well

• __ and __ are major predictor of child well-being

income, stability

stepfathers and single fathers

• fathers who do not live with children become __ involved every year

• __ and nonresidential __ are less likely to provide help

• single fathers experience same challenges as do single mothers

less, stepfathers, biological fathers

single-parent families

• __ is always influential

• on average, structure functions less well for children

  • __ income and stability

  • stress from __ roles

  • benefit from __ support

• more common in US than in many nations

culture, lower, multiple, community

2 factors increase the likelihood of dysfunction in every structure, ethnic group, and nation

low income or poverty, high conflict

family income correlates with __ and __

function, structure

low-SES contributes to increased

family risk factors

any risk factor damages ONLY if it increases __ and __ (family-stress model)

parental stress, adult hostility

children in high-income families are __ likely to have developmental problems in adulthood than children of middle-SES parents

more

conflict

• family conflict harms children, especially when adults fight about __

• __ fighting can also be harmful

• fights are more common in __, __, and __

• although __ have some effect, witnessing conflict has powerful effect

child rearing, sibling, stepfamilies, divorced families, extended families, genes

child culture + how it’s passed down

• particular habits, styles, and values that reflect the set of customs, rules, and rituals that characterize children as distinct from adult society

  • fashion, appearance, peer culture, attitudes, independence from adults

• passed down to younger children from slightly older ones

friendships

• in middle childhood, children value __ more than __

• friendships become more intense and intimate; shared similar interests, values and backgrounds

• by the end of middle childhood, close friendships are almost always between children of the same __, __, __, and __

personal friendship, peer acceptance, sex, age, ethnicity, SES

popular children in the US are __ and __, though some are __

friendly, cooperative, aggressive

3 types of unpopular children in the US

• neglected; ignored, shunned

• aggressive-rejected; actively rejects others, antagonistic, confrontational

• withdrawn-rejected; actively rejected, timid, anxious

bullying

• repeated systematic efforts to inflict harm through physical, verbal, or social attack on a weaker person

• bully-victims

• recognized major and preventable public health problem

4 types of bullying

• physical

• verbal

• relational

• cyberbullying

bullies

• proud, pleased with self, feared by friends and classmates, often popular, not rejected

• often begin in __; skill at picking on others and teach avoidance improves by middle childhood

• __ more often than __; target smaller weaker boys; gay children (suicide)

preschool, boys, girls

3 causes of bullying

• development of externalizing and internalizing problems; inability to express frustration

• attempt to gain social status

• peer and sibling aggression

consequences of bullying

• impaired social understanding, lower school achievement, relationship difficulties for victims and bullies

3 forces that drive emerging interest in moral issues

• child culture

• empathy

• education

children show a variety of skills in 3 things in terms of morality

• making moral judgments

• differentiating universal principles from conventional norms

• becoming more socially perceptive

3 moral rules of child culture in middle childhood

• defend your friends

• don’t tell adults about children’s misbehavior

• conform to peer standards of dress, talk, and behavior

3 things which may impede children’s moral actions and thoughts

hidden curriculum, adult values, peer pressure

Kohlberg’s 3 levels of moral thought + stages associated w them

preconventional moral reasoning: emphasizes rewards and punishments

• 1. avoiding punishment (infancy)

• 2. self-interest (pre-school: 3-7 years)

conventional moral reasoning: emphasizes social rules

• 3. good boy attitude (school-age: 8-13 years)

• 4. law and order morality (school-age: 8-13 years)

postconventional moral reasoning: emphasizes moral principles

• 5. social contract: mutual benefit, reciprocity, morally right does not mean legally right (teens)

• 6. universal principles: morality based on principles that transcend mutual benefit (adulthood)

pros of Kohlberg’s theory

child use of intellectual abilities to justify moral actions was correct

3 cons of Kohlberg’s theory

• culture and gender differences are ignored

• female values of nurturance and relationships are discounted

• differences btwn child and adult morality are not addressed

generosity increases with

age

culture has impact on morality, but national differences are less than __ ones

intracountry

peer effects on morality (Piaget)

• transition from advocating for __ to __ btwn ages of _ to _ years

• discussing a topic may stimulates a process of individual reflection that triggers developmental advances

retribution (revenge), restitution (restoring something that was lost, like through the form of an apology for example), 8, 10