{ chapter 3 – infancy & childhood psychology. infants are born equipped to experience the...
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Chapter 3 – Infancy & Childhood
Psychology
Infants are born equipped to experience the world. As infants grow physically, they also develop perceptions and language.
Nature v Nurture Developmental Psychology is the
specialized study of how an individual’s physical, social, emotional, moral, and intellectual development occurs in sequential interrelated stages throughout the life cycle.
Physical, Perceptual, & Language Development
Developmental Psychologists study the following main issues:
Continuity versus stages of development Stability versus change Nature v nurture
Newborns Capacities
Grasping reflex in response to a touch on the palm of their hands, infants can grasp an object, such as a finger, so strongly that they can be lifted into the air.
Rooting reflex occurs when an alert newborn is touched anywhere around the mouth, he will move his head and mouth toward the source of the touch
Physical Development Average infant birth weight = 7.3 pounds By one year old, average weight = 20-25
pounds Maturation is internally programmed
growth Newborns can’t hold their own head up, but
by about 1 year old, they are walking!!!
Perceptual Development Gibson & Walk (1960) realized infants 6
months old and older recognize cliffs/drop-offs and refuse to go over them
Fantz (1961) completed a study and found that infants prefer to look at human faces and patterned material the most.
Development of Language Language and thought are closely
intertwined Both involve using symbols
Can animals use language? Gardners raised a chimp names Washoe and
taught her to use American Sign Language for the Deaf
By 3 ½ years old, Washoe knew and accurately used 87 signs for words
By 5 years old she was using more than 160 signs!
How children acquire language Children imitate the speech of their parents
and older siblings The first real words usually refer to things
an infant can see or touch Critical period for learning language? The leap to using sounds as symbols occurs
sometime in the second year By 2 years old, a kid’s vocabulary should be
between 500 and 1500 words Speech is telegraphic – they leave words
out, but can still get the point across
As the thought processes of children develop, they begin to think, communicate and relate with others, and solve problems.
Cognitive Development Piaget (20th Century)
Intelligence, or the ability to understand, develops gradually as the child grows
Cognitive & Emotional Development
How Knowing Changes Schemas are mental representations of the
world We construct these and apply and change
them as necessary Assimilation is trying to fit new objects into
our schemas Accommodation is when we change our
schema to fit the characteristics of the new object
Assimilation and accommodation work together to produce intellectual growth
Object permanence happens when a small child realizes an object is till there even when it cannot be seen (peek-a-boo)
Representational thought occurs once object permanence has been achieved. A small child can see something and imitate it later.
The Principle of Conservation means that a child can understand that the quantity did not change even though the appearance did
Usually does not occur until after age 5
Egocentric is when kids can only see and think of the world from their point of view
Piaget’s stages of Cognitive Development Sensorimotor
Birth – 2 years Behavior consists of simple motor responses to
sensory stimuli; lacks concept of object permanence
Preoperational 2-7 years Lacks operations (reversible mental processes);
exhibits egocentric thinking; lacks concept of conservation; uses symbols (such as words or mental images to solve simple problems or to talk about things that are not present
Concrete Operations 7-11 years Begins to understand concept of
conservation; still has trouble with abstract ideas; classification abilities improve; masters concept of conservation
Formal Operations 11 years – onward Understands abstract ideas and
hypothetical situations; capable of logical and deductive reasoning
Emotional Development Experiments with Animals
Imprinting is a sudden, virtually permanent learning process
Baby geese think the first thing they see is their mother
Critical period is a time in development when an animal or human is best able to learn a skill or behavior
Surrogate Mothers Harlow (20th Century) discovered baby
monkeys chose comfort over food when forced to choose between a soft cloth mother figure and a wire one with milk
Human Infants Attachments begin to form to a mother or
surrogate mother at about 6 months old The attachment is strongest between 6
months and 3 years old Stranger anxiety may be displayed even
when the mother is present, but will go away
Separation anxiety occurs whenever the child is suddenly separated from the mother
Ainsworth and Bowlby (1991) conducted an experiment called Strange Situation and found three forms of attachment between children and their mothers:
Secure attachment – infants balance the need to explore and the need to be close
Avoidant attachment – infants avoid or ignore the mother when she leaves and returns
Resistant attachment – infants are not upset when the mother leaves but reject her or act out angrily when she returns
Other psychologists later added the one below: Disorganized attachment – these infants never act
the same way twice
Children face various social decisions as they grow and progress through the stages of life
Parenting Styles Authoritarian Families – parents are the bosses
Parents do not believe that they have to explain their actions or demands
Democratic/Authoritative Families – children participate in decisions affecting their lives
There is a great deal of discussion and negotiation in such families
Permissive/Laissez-faire Families – children have the final say
Parents may attempt to guide the children but give in when the children insist on having their own way
Parenting Styles and Social Development
Effects of Parenting Styles Studies have shown that adolescents who have grown
up in Democratic/Authoritative Families are more confident of their own values and goals than other young people. This comes from two features:
Establishment of limits Responding to the child with warmth and support
Children of democratic families tend to want to make their own decisions
The child is able to assume responsibility gradually The child is more likely to identify with parents who
love and respect him or her than with parents who treat him or her as incompetent
Democratic parents present a model of responsible cooperative independence for the growing person to imitate
Child Abuse Child abuse includes the physical or mental
injury, sexual abuse, negligent treatment, or mistreatment of children under the age of 18 by adults entrusted with their care
Social problem resulting from a variety of causes Many abusive parents were abused Many abusive parents have little patience and
unrealistic expectations Overburdened and stressed parents are more
likely to abuse Low-birth weight infants and children who are
hyperactive, mentally or physically disadvantaged are more likely to be abused
Social Development Socialization is learning the rules of
behavior of the culture in which you are born and raised.
Learning what the rules are Learning when to apply them Learning when to bend them Learning to live with other people and with
yourself
Freud’s theory of psychosocial development Oral Stage
First 18 months of life Infants pleasure seeking focused on the mouth
Anal Stage 1 ½ years – 3 years old Infants pleasure seeking centered on the functions of elimination
Phallic Stage 3-6 years old Infants pleasure seeking focused on the genitals
Latency Stage 6 years – puberty Sexual thoughts are repressed, child focuses on developing social
and intellectual skills Genital Stage
Puberty though adulthood Sexual desires are renewed, individual seeks relationships with
others.
Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development
Trust v Mistrust Early infancy Is my world predictable and supportive?
Autonomy v shame and doubt 1-3 years Can I do things myself or must I rely on
others? Initiative v guilt
3-6 years Am I good or bad?
Industry v Inferiority 6-12 years Am I successful or worthless?
Identity v Role Confusion Early teens Who am I?
Intimacy v Isolation Young adult Shall I share my life with someone or live alone?
Generativity v Stagnation Middle adult Will I succeed in life?
Ego integrity v Despair Older adult Have I lived a full life?
Cognitive-Development Approach Games and Play
Children’s games are serious business They like to make up and stick to the rules A child’s role taking involves trying to be
like adult role models
Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Pre-Conventional
Stage 1 – obedience and punishment Self oriented
Stage 2 – Instrumental Relativist Immediate family
Conventional Stage 3 – Good/Nice girl
Extended family Stage 4 – Law and order
Self-serving view of society Post-Conventional
Stage 5 – Social Contract Interactive view of society
Stage 6 – universal Ethics Principle Balanced cost/benefit analysis of self/society