Chapter 4 Socioemotional Development in Infancy

Emotion

The feeling or affect that occurs when a person is in a state or interaction that is important to self and well-being.

Infants and emotions

Infants communicate important aspects of their lives through emotions like joy, sadness, interest, and fear.

Biological influences on emotions

Certain brain regions contribute to emotional responses such as distress, excitement, and rage.

Emotional regulation

The ability to control the intensity and duration of emotional reactions.

Early emotions

Emotions expressed in the first 6 months include surprise, interest, joy, anger, sadness, fear, and disgust.

Self-conscious emotions

Emotions such as jealousy, empathy, embarrassment, pride, shame, and guilt that involve awareness of others' emotional reactions.

Basic cry

A rhythmic pattern of crying usually followed by briefer silences and shorter whistles.

Anger cry

A variation of the basic cry which involves more excess air forced through the vocal cords.

Pain cry

A sudden, long, loud cry followed by breath-holding.

Reflexive smile

A smile that does not occur in response to external stimuli, typically appearing during sleep.

Social smile

A smile that occurs in response to an external stimulus, usually seen around 2 months of age.

Stranger anxiety

An infant's fear and wariness of strangers, emerging during the second half of the first year.

Separation protest

The distressed crying of an infant when a caregiver leaves.

Social referencing

The act of reading emotional cues in others to determine how to act in a situation.

Temperament

Individual differences in behavioral styles, emotions, and characteristic ways of responding.

Reactivity

Variations in the speed and intensity of emotional responses.

Self-regulation (temperament)

Variations in the effectiveness of an individual's control over their emotions.

Easy child

A child who is generally positive, quickly establishes routines, and adapts easily to new experiences.

Difficult child

A child who reacts negatively, cries frequently, and has irregular daily routines.

Slow-to-warm-up child

A child with low activity level and mood intensity who is somewhat negative.

Behavioral inhibition

A temperament characterized by shyness, timidity, and initial avoidance or distress in unfamiliar situations.

Effortful control

A dimension of temperament focused on an individual's strategies for emotional regulation.

Goodness of fit

The degree of match between a child's temperament and environmental demands.

Trust vs. mistrust

Erikson's stage during the first year of life where infants learn to trust based on caregiver responsiveness.

Self-recognition

The early development of a sense of self observable by 3 months, becoming more evident in the second year.

Social orientation

Infants' strong interest in their social world, particularly facial expressions and voices.

Attachment

A close emotional bond between two people, typically referring to the bond between infant and caregiver.

Internal working model

Bowlby's concept where infants develop mental representations of their attachment relationships.

Strange Situation

An observational measure of infant attachment developed by Mary Ainsworth to assess attachment security.

Secure attachment

When infants use their caregiver as a secure base for exploration and feel safe in their presence.

Insecure-avoidant attachment

A type of insecure attachment where infants avoid or ignore the caregiver.

Insecure-resistant attachment

An insecure attachment where infants cling to the caregiver but resist closeness.

Insecure-disorganized attachment

A type of insecure attachment characterized by disorientation and strange behaviors.

Developmental cascade model

A model suggesting connections across various developmental domains influence pathways and outcomes.

Reciprocal socialization

The bidirectional influence between children and their parents.

Scaffolding

A parenting technique where parents provide support to help infants learn turn-taking and interaction skills.

Child care policies

Regulations that vary across countries, particularly regarding parental leave and support.

Quality child care

Care that provides a safe environment, appropriate toys and activities, and a low caregiver-to-child ratio.

National Longitudinal Study of Child Care

A study examining how quality of care and parenting influences children's development.