HDFS Ch. 7 - Social and Personality Development in Infancy

What is emotion

rapid appraisal of personal significance of situations

what is the function of emotions

emotions function to achieve goals and adapt to the environment, communicate with others and affect peoples behavior, guides our own behaviors

basic emotions

love/joy, interest/surprise, disgust, anger, sadness, fear

when do basic emotions develop

infancy

simple smile

onset, reflexing smiles; influenced by baby’s internal state

social smile

onset, response to wide range of external stimuli

Rouge task

placing mark on child’s forehead and putting them in front of a mirror to see if they connect that it is themselves. The older you get, the more aware you are of yourself. (18-24 months = self recognition)

When does anger emerge

4-6 months

when does sadness emerge

3-5 months

when does wariness emerge

3 months

when does overt fear emerge

7-9 months

stranger anxiety - what role do caregivers play in unfamiliar situations

increasing fearfulness of strangers/unfamiliar people. Caregivers are used as a base for the child to explore the environment

separation anxiety

displays of fear following separation from primary caregiver; over course of childhood, decreases steadily but can reappear in different forms during transitions

self-conscious emotions

pride, shame, guilt, jealousy, embarrassment

when do self-conscious emotions develop

when one understands themselves and others, have a sense of self, understand rules and standards of behavior

emotion contagion

mimic and feel the emotions others express

social referencing

process by which infants look to caregivers for emotional cues to understand and regulate their reactions to unfamiliar situations

social referencing example

children may look to caregiver before approaching a new toy/person

when can infants discriminate expressions

3 months

when can infants discriminate intensity of emotions

4 months

when can infants label emotions

by 2 years old

What does the development of guilt, pride, and shame depend on?

emerging sense of personal responsibility, pride/same require advanced evaluation and attribution

Theory of Mind

knowledge and belief about how the mind works and how it influences behavior

What does the false belief task tell us about theory of mind

assesses child’s ability to understand that others hold beliefs differently to their own

What is empathy

the ability to understand and share the feelings of others

How do we know young children have empathy?

they recognize simple emotions

What parenting strategies can be used as a positive emotional role model for children

warmth and scaffolding, encouraging emotional expression, refocusing attention, helping to solve the problem

temperament

early-emerging biologically based tendency to behave in a specific manner

Thomas and Chess model temperament dimensions

rhythmicity, activity level, approach-withdrawal, adaptability, sensory threshold, predominant quality of mood, intensity of mood, attention span

Thomas and Chess model categorization

easy children have many positive temperamental traits, difficult children have many negative temperamental traits, slow to warm children have negative temperamental traits, but not as many as difficult children

Goodness of fit

a match between a child’s temperament and their environment leads to best developmental outcome.

goodness of fit example

adults adapt to child’s needs

is attachment about hunger/food? Harlow’s monkeys

no, it is about the nurture from the caregiver

Bowlby’s ethological theory of attachment

infants are predisposed to stay close to someone who is better equipped to cope with the world

imprinting

newborns develop attachment to first object they see (critical period)

four categories of attachment types (Mary Ainsworth Strange Situation)

secure, insecure-avoidant, insecure-resistant/ambivalent, insecure-disorganized

how do secure children behave in strange situation

use caregiver as secure base to explore; reunion = seeks contact with caregiver and is comforted

how do insecure-avoidant children behave in strange situation

explores environment, but does not use caregiver as secure base- avoids caregiver; reunion = does not seek contact with caregiver

how to insecure-resistant/ambivalent children behave in strange situation

does not explore even when caregiver is present - clingy; reunion = combines contact seeking with contact avoiding, not easily comforted

how to insecure-disorganized children behave in strange situation

shows variety of disoriented, confused, or contradictory behaviors

what parenting behaviors are related to securely attached children

read cues of infants and respond appropriately

what parenting behaviors are related to insecure-avoidant attachment

not sensitive/responsive; sometimes intrusive. Angry, rejecting, does not seem to enjoy bodily contact with infant

what parenting behaviors are related to insecure-resistant/ambivalent attachment

less sensitive/responsive than mothers of securely attached children; respond to infants needs only sometimes

what parenting behaviors are related to insecure-disorganized attachment

physically abusive parenting, emotionally unavailable parent

what are the benefits of being securely attached

social-emotional competence, empathy, emotional regulation, cognition, effortful control

what is a secure base

caregiver who provides child with sense of safety

what is a separation protest

distress child experiences when separated from caregiver

How does attachment link to your past and future?

attachment style in infancy is stable, it influences adult relationships; change can occur when relationships improve/ideas change, therapy, etc.

cultural differences in attachment

across cultures, most children are securely attached. In Germany, non-clingy behavior is emphasized. In Japan, mothers rarely leave babies

What role to fathers play in child’s life

express warmth typically through play, fathers spend 4/5 times more time playing with than caring for their children

skipped generation families

when grandparents care for child in place of parents, mostly grandmothers who step in for troubled parents

Gender differences and roles

adults stereotype children’s interests based on gender

benefit of head start and child care on later development

improved academic outcomes, social-emotional well-being, and health