Dev. Psy. CH 8 (Social and Personality Development in the Preschool Years)

psychosocial development

encompasses changes in individuals understanding of themselves as well as their understanding of others

Erik Erikson’s initiative vs. guilt stage

ages 3-6, period in which children experience a conflict between independence of action and the sometimes negative results of that action

self concept

a person’s identity, or set of beliefs about what one is like as an individual

collectivistic orientation

a philosophy that promotes the notion of interdependence (“the nail that stands out gets the hammer”)

individualistic orientation

a philosophy that emphasizes personal identity and the uniqueness of the individual (“squeaky wheel gets the grease”)

race dissonance

phenomena in which minority children indicate preferences for majority values or people

gender identity

the sense one has of being male or female

identification

(Freud’s psychoanalytical perspective), the process through which children attempt to be similar to their same sex parent, incorporating the parent’s attitudes and values

Social learning perspective for ideas about gender

children learn by observing others

Biological perspectives for Gender

gender differences due to hormones and brain structures (part of corpus callosum is proportionately larger in women than men)

Cognitive perspective for Gender

involves terms like gender schema and gender constancy

gender schema

a cognitive framework that organizes information relevant to gender

gender constancy 

(Around 4 or 5 years of age, children develop an understanding of

this) the belief that people are permanently males or females, depending on fixed, unchangeable biological factors

functional play

Age 3, play that involves simple, repetitive activities (for the sake of being ACTIVE rather than an end product)

Development of Friendships

relationships are based on companionship, play, and entertainment

parallel play

Age 2-3, action in which children play with similar toys, in a similar manner, but do NOT interact with each other

constructive play

Age 4, play in which children manipulate objects to produce or build something (ex: build a house out of legos)

onlooker play

action in which children simply watch others at play, but do not actually participate themselves

associative play

(end of preschool years) play in which 2 or more children actually interact with one another by sharing or borrowing toys or materials, although they do not do the same thing

cooperative play

(end of preschool years) play in which children genuinely interact with one another, taking turns, playing games, or devising contests

Theory of mind

knowledge and beliefs about the mental world/how the mind operates, increases during this time due to brain maturation, social interaction, and make believe play)

Diana Baurmind’s 4 types of parenting

Authoritarian, Permissive, Authoritative, Uninvolved

Authoritarian parents

are controlling, punitive, rigid, and cold; their word is law; they value strict, unquestioning obedience from their children and do not tolerate

expressions of disagreement

Permissive parents

provide lax and inconsistent feedback and require little of their children

2 more specific types: Permissive-indifferent and Permissive-indulgent

Permissive-indifferent parents are usually uninvolved in their children’s lives (children tend to be dependent, moody, and have low social skills)

Permissive-indulgent parents are more involved with their children, but they place

little or no limits or control on their behavior (children show low control and low social skills but tend to feel especially privileges→think Regina George and her mom)

Authoritative parents

are firm, setting clear and consistent limits, but try to

reason with their children, giving explanations for why they should behave in a

particular way (children tend to fare best), related to supportive parenting

supportive parenting

encompasses parental warmth, proactive teaching, calm

discussion during disciplinary episodes, and interest and involvement in children’s

peer activities, show better adjustment and are protected from the consequences of

later adversity (type of parenting related to authoritative style)

Uninvolved parents

parents that show virtually no interest in their children

Is spanking a good form of punishment?

No. Can show that violence solves problems and can hurt a parent-child relationship

Cycle-of-Violence Hypothesis

argues that the abuse and neglect that children suffer predisposes them as adults to be abusive (not completely accurate, only 1/3 people who are abused tend to abuse others)

Psychological Maltreatment

abuse that occurs when parents or other caregivers harm children’s behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or physical functioning

Resilience

refers to the ability to overcome circumstances that place a child at high risk

for psychological or physical damage

Moral development

refers to changes in people’s sense of justice, of what is right

and wrong, and in their behavior related to moral issues

Piaget’s View on Moral Development

Stages of Moral Development: Heteronomous morality, Incipient cooperation, Autonomous cooperation

Heteronomous morality 

Piaget moral development earliest stage, ages 4-7, rules are seen as invariant an unchangeable, don’t take intention into account, believe in immanent justice (immediate punishment)

Incipient cooperation stage

Piaget moral development stage, ages 7-10, play using formal rules, still unchangeable, Children become more social and play according to a shared conception of rules

Immanent justice

Characteristic of heteronomous morality stage, the notion that broken rules earn immediate punishment

Autonomous cooperation stage

Piaget moral development final stage, age 10, children become

fully aware that game rules can be modified if the people who play them agree

Social learning approaches to Morality

focus on how the environment influences children’s PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR (helping behavior), moral conduct is learned through reinforcement and modeling, By observing others’ behavior, they begin to learn society’s norms (ABSTRACT MODELING)

Prosocial Behavior

helping behavior that benefits others

Abstract modeling

the process of developing more general rules and principles that underlie behavior by modeling others

Genetic Approach to Morality and Empathy

Most controversial approach: preschoolers have a genetic predisposition to act generously or selfishly

Empathy

the understanding of what another individual feels

Agression

intentional injury or harm to another person, stable trait that usually persist as children age

Instrumental Aggresion

aggression motivated by the desire to obtain a concrete goal (more common in boys)

Relational Aggression

nonphysical aggression that is intended to hurt another person’s feelings (more common in girls)

Social Learning Approach to Agression

Based on observation and prior learning, Remember: Bandura and his Bobo Doll Experiment with preschoolers

Cognitive Approach to Aggression

Certain children come to be inaccurate perceivers which causes them to use aggression

Should young children play violent video games or consume violent content?

No. It leads to increased aggression, thoughts about aggression, desensitization to violence, and decreased empathy toward others experiencing violence

Emotional self-regulation

the capability to adjust emotions to a desired state and level of

intensity, preschoolers learning this

Varying explanations for aggressive behavior

Freud→death drive

Lorenz→have a fighting instinct, like other animals

Sociobiologists→aggression strengthens species and gene pool