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The Emotionate Child

The importance of early relationships

Ross A. Thompson

University of California,

Davis

Presented at the Festsymposium in honor of the 90th anniversary of the founding of developmental psychology at the University of Vienna Nov. 22, 2013

Founding of the Vienna Psychological Institute

1922-1923

"Golden age in psychology"

Charlotte Bühler Founding of developmental psychology at the University of Vienna

"to view development from the perspectives of biological function and cultural value, of society and the individual"

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The

emotional

child

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Winer, A. C., & Thompson, R. A. (2013). How poverty and depression impact a child’s social and emotional competence. UC Davis

Center for Poverty Research website: http://poverty.ucdavis.edu/article/impact-poverty-childs-social-and-emotional-competence.

R2 = .59, p < .01

Nature Reviews | Neuroscience

Intermediolateralcolumn (T1–L2)

Hindbrain

Sacral spinal cord

Cardiovascular system

Abdominal viscera

Adrenal medulla

Adrenal cortex

Pituitary

PVN

Median eminence

CRH, AVP and others

ACTH

Preganglionic

Relating to the first neuron in

the two-neuron chains that

mediate autonomic responses.

Postganglionic

Relating to the second neuron

in the two-neuron chains that

mediate autonomic responses.

involve reflex arcs that communicate with areas in the

medulla (for example, the rostral ventrolateral medulla)

and preganglionic sympathetic neurons in the inter-

mediolateral cell column of the spinal cord1 (FIG. 2).

Coordinated modulation of the parasympathetic branch

of the ANS also occurs following stress, to alter the ‘vagal

tone’ to the heart and lungs1 and to help control the dura-

tion of autonomic responses. This parasympathetic

response to stress is mediated by the nucleus ambiguus

and the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus nerve, possi-

bly through input from the nucleus of the solitary tract

(NTS)1 (FIG. 2). In addition, medullary and spinal cord

systems inform higher-order autonomic integrative

sites in the hindbrain (for example, the raphe pallidus,

the lateral parabrachial nucleus and the Kölliker-Fuse

nucleus), midbrain and forebrain (for example, the

dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH))1, which modulate

the autonomic response to stressors in accordance with

Box 1 | HPA axis and autonomic nervous system responses to stress

The sympatho-adrenomedullary (see the left-hand side of the figure) and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA)

(see the right-hand side of the figure) axes are the primary systems for maintaining or reinstating homeostasis during

stress. Stressor exposure results in activation of preganglionic sympathetic neurons in the intermediolateral cell column

of the thoracolumbar (T and L, respectively) spinal cord (shown in blue). These preganglionic neurons project to pre- or

paravertebral ganglia that in turn project to end organs and to chromaffin cells of the adrenal medulla. This sympathetic

activation represents the classic ‘fight or flight’ response that was first characterized by Walter Cannon and colleagues in

the early twentieth century152; it generally increases circulating levels of adrenaline (primarily from the adrenal medulla)

and noradrenaline (primarily from sympathetic nerves), heart rate and force of contraction, peripheral vasoconstriction, and

energy mobilization. Parasympathetic tone can also be modulated during stress. In the parasympathetic system (shown in

red), activation of craniosacral preganglionic nuclei activates postganglionic nuclei located in or near the end organs that

they innervate; parasympathetic actions are generally opposite to those of the sympathetic system.

For the HPA axis, stressor exposure activates hypophysiotrophic neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the

hypothalamus that secrete releasing hormones, such as corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and arginine vasopressin

(AVP), into the portal circulation of the median eminence. These releasing hormones act on the anterior pituitary to

promote the secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), which in turn acts on the inner adrenal cortex (that is, the

zona fasciculata) to initiate the synthesis and release of glucocorticoid hormones (for example, corticosterone in rats and

cortisol in humans). Circulating glucocorticoids then promote the mobilization of stored energy and potentiate numerous

sympathetically mediated effects, such as peripheral vasoconstriction. Moreover, the adrenal cortex is directly innervated

by the sympathetic nervous system, which can regulate corticosteroid release153. Thus, the HPA axis and sympathetic

system have largely complementary actions throughout the body, including energy mobilization and maintenance of

blood pressure during stress.

REVIEWS

398 | JUNE 2009 | VOLUM E 10 www.nature.com/reviews/neuro

REVIEWS

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2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

Toddler & Preschool(2-5 yrs)

Children and Youth(5-17 yrs)

Adult

Pre

va

len

ce

(%

)

Anxiety Disorders

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Toddler & Preschool(2-5 yrs)

Children and Youth(5-17 yrs)

Adult

Pre

va

len

ce

(%

)

Depression

Sources: Costello, Egger, & Angold, 2005; Kessler,

Chin, Demler, & Walters, 2005; Egger & Angold,

2006; and data from the Duke Early Childhood Study,

courtesy Dr. Helen Egger, Duke Univ. Medical Center

Emotionate (i-ˈmō-sh(ə-)nət):

1. characterized by emotional apperception, sensitivity, and/or

insight (an emotionate side to his nature)

2. behaviors reflecting emotional insight or understanding (her

sympathetic response showed that she was an emotionate child)

The emotionate child

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early experience

(security of

attachment)

representations

of people and

relationships

("internal working

models")

social

and emotional

competence;

self-concept

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Secure

attachment

with Mother

age 3

Negative attribution bias Belief that others have negative

intentions in uncertain situations

(e.g., a block tower falls over

when another child runs by)

Social problem solving Number / variety of positive

solutions to social problems

(e.g., how to make friends with

another child)

Loneliness Children’s responses to short

interview questions

(e.g., “Is it easy for you

to make new friends?”)

Negative attribution bias

_

+

_

_

4 ½

yrs

1st

grade

Raikes, H. A., & Thompson, R. A. (2008).

Attachment security and parenting quality predict

children's problem-solving, attributions, and

loneliness with peers. Attachment & Human

Development, 10(3), 1-26. ps < .05 to .01

Positive

self-concept

age 5

Secure

attachment

with mother

age 4

Mother's stress /

depressive

symptoms

age 4

+

_

Goodvin, R., Meyer, S., Thompson, R. A., & Hayes, R. (2008). Self-understanding in early childhood: Associations with

attachment security and maternal emotional risk. Attachment & Human Development, 10(4), 433-450.

R2 = .46, p < .001

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Emotion

understanding

3 ½ years

Secure

attachment

with mother

2 ½ years

Mother-child

emotion conversation

quality

3 ½ years

From Raikes, H. A., & Thompson, R. A. (2006). Family emotional climate, attachment security, and young children's emotion

understanding in a high-risk sample. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 24(1), 89-104, and Raikes, H. A., &

Thompson, R. A. (2008). Conversations about emotion in high-risk dyads. Attachment & Human Development, 10(4), 359-377.

Mother’s depressive

symptoms

2 ½ years

_

Emotional

risks to the

family

2 ½ years

-

-

R2 = .50, p < .01

causes

total emotion

references

outcomes

linking

events

requests for

information

definitions

p < .05 p < .01 p < .005 p < .001

Elements of mother-child emotion conversation:

Ontai, L. L., & Thompson, R. A. (2002). Patterns of attachment and maternal discourse effects on children's emotion

understanding from 3- to 5-years of age. Social Development, 11(4), 433-450.

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• It’s hard when you feel so angry. You’re

going “AAAH, he’s bouncing my guy off

there!” Right?

• How did the other kids feel when you

shut off the game?

• It makes you sad thinking about it,

doesn’t it?

• After you stopped the game, the other

guys said, “You know, Joey wasn’t really

doing so bad.” You thought you were

losing, but you weren’t.

Validation Autonomy

Support

(affirmation)

Constructive emotion

regulation coaching

Security of attachment is significantly associated with the combination of these

measures of conversation quality

p < .05

p < .01

Elaborative explanation

Waters, S., Virmani, E., Thompson, R. A., Meyer, S., Raikes, A., & Jochem, R. (2010). Emotion regulation and attachment:

Unpacking two constructs and their association. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 32(1), 37-47.

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Talking about the consequences

of actions

Talking about people’s emotions

Compromising or bargaining

Moral evaluative statements (“good girl!”)

Justification and reasoning /

Low use of threats, teasing or insistence

Conscience

Development

age 3

Talking about rules

2 ½ years: Mother-child conversation elements

during conflict episodes in the lab

Laible, D. J., & Thompson, R. A. (2002). Mother-child conflict in the toddler years: Lessons in emotion, morality,

and relationships. Child Development, 73(4), 1187-1203.

R2 = .37, p < .01

Prosocial measures . . .

• Helping (neutral experimenter)

• Helping (sad experimenter)

• Sharing

• Empathy (repair)

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Are there reliable individual differences in prosocial

responding by toddlers?

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Low (N=25) Medium (N=43) High (N=19)

Prosocial Groups

Helping-neutral

Helping-sad

Sharing

Empathy

Prosocial

Aggregate

Score

How is prosocial behavior associated with children's

sympathetic concern and personal distress?

for Personal Distress: F (2,80) = 4.78, p < .05 for Sympathic Concern: F (2,75) = 8.08, p < .001

0

5

10

15

20

25

Personal Distress Sympathetic Concern

Low Prosocial

Medium Prosocial

High Prosocial

Aggregate

Score

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What characteristics of children, mothers, and their

relationship are associated with differences in prosocial

behavior?

Prosocial

behavior

(combined)

18 months

Maternal personality

characteristics

Toddler's emotion

understanding

Maternal sensitivity Mother's mind-mindedness

Toddler

temperamental

self-regulation

Picturebook

reading:

emotional

references to

child

Newton, E., Goodman, M., & Thompson, R. (in press). Why do some toddlers help a stranger? Origins of individual

differences in prosocial behavior. Infancy, in press and unpublished data.

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6

Low (N=5) Medium (N=4) High (N=33) Helpers ofconvenience (N=9)

Prosocial Groups

Helping

Sharing

Empathy

Do preschoolers show reliable differences in prosocial

responding at age 4 ½ ?

Prosocial

Aggregate

Score

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Low (N=4) Medium (N=12) High (N=27) Helpers ofconvenience (N=8)

Prosocial Groups

Helping

Sharing

Empathy

Prosocial groups at 6 years of age

Prosocial

Aggregate

Score

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Mother-child conversation about helping and not helping

• References to emotions, needs, and desires – of the (potential)

help recipient or the child -- were frequent for each conversation

type, along with positive or negative moral evaluative statements

• Conversations about not helping at age 4 ½ were shorter but

were more strongly associated with prosocial behavior at age 6,

particularly in mothers’ use of positive moral evaluatives (“That

was nice to do”)

• Shared positive affect between mothers and children at age 4 ½

was also a significant predictor of prosocial behavior at age 6

• Maternal rule-based justifications were never associated with

children's prosocial behavior at any age

Development of the emotionate child

• An emotional connection to another’s experience develops early and

contributes, more than rules and sanctions, to emergent conscience,

helping and sharing, and empathy-related actions

• The content and quality of mother-child conversation enlists this

emotional capacity into representations of people, relationships, and the

self that also support constructive social conduct.

• Early relational experience provides a context of safety and security that

buffers stress, strengthens positive self-regard, and enhances young

children’s positive orientation toward others.

• Both what is said and how it is said is important: positive, emotion-

focused discourse in the context of relational warmth provide young

children with the experience of sensitivity to their own feelings as they

become sensitive to others’ emotions.

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Thanks!

Financial support from The Amini Foundation for the Study of Affects

rathompson@ucdavis.edu

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Toddler & Preschool (2-5 yrs)

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)

Any Psychological Disorder

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Basket Tape Marker Clothespin Cupboard Bin Drawer Cabinet

Proportion s

how

ing t

arget

behavio

r

Prosocial tasks

Experimental

Control

Toddler helping in experimental and control conditions

Newton, E., Goodman, M., & Thompson, R. (in press). Why do some toddlers help a stranger? Origins of individual

differences in prosocial behavior. Infancy, in press