Emotional Development

Emotional Development

Functions of Emotions

Emotion is defined as an expression of readiness to establish, maintain, or change one’s relation to the environment concerning personal importance (Berk, 2013).

Key Aspects of Emotions

  • Basic Emotions:

    • Emotions that are universal and appear early in life:

    • Happiness

    • Interest

    • Surprise

    • Fear

    • Anger

    • Sadness

    • Disgust (Kuther, 2023).

Functions of Emotions

Emotions serve several important functions affecting various domains:

  1. Cognition:

    • Emotions can facilitate essential learning for survival.

    • Conversely, emotions can impair learning.

  2. Social Behavior:

    • Emotions affect the behavior of others.

    • They help regulate one’s own behavior.

  3. Health:

    • Emotions influence well-being and growth.

    • Stress is often related to diseases (Berk, 2013).

Autonomic Nervous System and Emotions

The autonomic nervous system is crucial in responding to emotional stimuli:

  • Sympathetic Nervous System:

    • Directs rapid involuntary response to danger (fight or flight).

    • Increases alertness, heart rate, blood flow to muscles, and oxygen delivery to the brain.

    • A surge of glucose provides quick energy.

  • Parasympathetic Nervous System:

    • Calms the body post-stress (rest and digest).

    • Normalizes blood pressure, breathing, and hormone levels, promoting homeostasis.

Development of Emotional Expression

Emergence of Self-Conscious Emotions

  • Self-conscious emotions depend on cognitive development and awareness of self.

    • Examples include empathy, pride, embarrassment, shame, and guilt, which emerge around 15-18 months.

Emotional Self-Regulation

  • Refers to the ability to adjust and control emotional states (Kuther, 2023).

Emotional Learning and Interaction

Children are naturally inclined to attend to facial displays of emotion:

  • Labeling Emotions: The process of giving names to emotions.

  • Social Referencing: Looking to caregivers' emotional expressions for cues on interpreting situations.

  • Emotional Display Rules: Learn when various emotions should or should not be expressed (Kuther, 2023).

Temperament and Development

Definition and Structure of Temperament

Temperament refers to characteristic differences in emotional reactivity, self-regulation, and activity. It influences environmental reactions and is biologically determined (Kuther, 2023).

Two Models of Temperament

  1. Thomas and Chess:

    • Activity level, rhythmicity, distractibility, approach/withdrawal, adaptability, attention span/persistence, intensity of reaction, threshold of responsiveness, quality of mood.

  2. Rothbart:

    • Activity level, soothability, attention span/persistence, fearful distress, irritable distress, positive affect.

Types of Temperament

  1. Easy (40%)

    • Regular biological rhythms, positive mood, adaptability.

  2. Difficult (10%)

    • Irregular rhythms, intense negative reactions, difficulty adapting.

  3. Slow-to-Warm-Up (15%)

    • Mid irregularity, slow adaptation.

Attachment Theory

Overview of Attachment

Attachment is the emotional bond that develops between caregiver and child, essential for both survival and emotional security (Kuther, 2023).

Stages of Attachment Formation

  1. Indiscriminate Social Responsiveness (Birth - 2 months):

    • Infants respond to any caregiver.

  2. Discriminating Sociability (2 - 6 months):

    • Preference for familiar caregivers.

  3. Attachments (7 - 24 months):

    • Development of specific attachments leading to separation anxiety.

  4. Reciprocal Relationships (24 months and onward):

    • Enhanced understanding and interaction with caregivers.

Measuring Attachment

Ainsworth’s Strange Situation assesses the security of attachment based on how infants respond to separation and reunion with their caregiver (Kuther, 2023).

  • Secure Attachment (60%): Comfort with caregivers, explores with confidence.

  • Insecure Avoidant (20%): Distanced from caregiver, indifferent upon reunion.

  • Insecure Resistant (15%): Mixed responses, difficulty settling down.

  • Insecure Disorganized (5%): Conflicting approach/avoid behavior.

Factors Affecting Attachment Security

  • Opportunities for attachment

  • Quality of caregiving

  • Infant characteristics

  • Family circumstances

  • Parents’ internal working models (Berk, 2013).

Attachment-Related Outcomes

Positive Developmental Outcomes:

  • Childhood: Emotional expressiveness, confidence, ability to manage emotions.

  • Adolescence: Empathy, social competence, emotional regulation (Kuther, 2023).

Temperament and Attachment

Goodness-of-Fit Model: Compatibility between a child’s temperament and parenting strategies influences favorable adjustment (Kuther, 2023).

Conclusion

The emotional climate within a household significantly impacts the development of family relationships, shaping both positive and negative outcomes.