Chapter 3: Child Development

Heredity and Genes Developmental Psychology: The study of progressive changes in behavior and abilities from conception to death Heredity (Nature): Transmission of physical and psychological characteristics from parents to their children through genes DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid): Molecular structure, shaped like a double helix that contains coded genetic information

Genes Specific areas on a strand of DNA that carry hereditary information Dominant: The gene’s feature will appear each time the gene is present Recessive: The gene’s feature will appear only if it is paired with another recessive gene Polygenic: Characteristics that are controlled by many genes working in combination

Figure 3.2 (Top left) Linked molecules (organic bases) make up the “rungs” on DNA’s twisted “molecular ladder.” The order of these molecules serves as a code for genetic information. The code provides a genetic blueprint that is unique for each individual (except identical twins). The drawing shows only a small section of a DNA strand. An entire strand of DNA is composed of billions of smaller molecules. (Bottom left) The nucleus of each cell in the body contains chromosomes made up of tightly wound coils of DNA. (Don’t be misled by the drawing: Chromosomes are microscopic in size and the chemical molecules that make up DNA are even smaller.) Figure 3.2

Figure 3.3 Gene patterns for children of brown-eyed parents, where each parent has one brown-eye gene and one blue-eye gene. Since the brown-eye gene is dominant, 1 child in 4 will be blue-eyed. Thus, there is a significant chance that two brown-eyed parents will have a blue-eyed child. Figure 3.3

Table 3.1 Table 3.1

Temperament Temperament: The physical “core” of personality Includes sensitivity, irritability, distractibility, and mood

Newborns’ Temperaments Easy Children: 40 %; relaxed and agreeable Difficult Children: 10 %; moody, intense, easily angered Slow-to-Warm-Up Children: 15 %; restrained, unexpressive, shy Remaining Children: Do not fit into any specific category (Chess & Thomas, 1968)

Environment (“Nurture”) All external conditions that affect development, especially the effects of learning Sensitive Periods: A period of increased sensitivity to environmental influences; also, a time when certain events must occur for normal development to take place

Developmental Problems Congenital Problems: Problems or defects that occur during prenatal development; “birth defect” Genetic Disorder: Problem caused by inherited characteristics from parents or defects in genes

Teratogens Anything capable of causing birth defects (e.g., narcotics, radiation, cigarette smoke, lead, and cocaine) in a developing fetus Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS): Caused by repeated heavy alcohol consumption during pregnancy

Deprivation and Enrichment Deprivation: Lack of normal stimulation, nutrition, comfort, or love during development Enrichment: When environments are deliberately made more complex, intellectually stimulating, and emotionally supportive during development

The Mozart Effect: Fact or Fiction? Rauscher & Shaw (1998) claimed that after college students listened to Mozart they scored higher on a spatial reasoning test Original experiment done with adults; tells us nothing about children

The Mozart Effect: Hypothesis and Conclusion What effect would listening to other styles of music have? Most researchers unable to duplicate the effect Conclusion: Those who listened to Mozart were just more alert or in a better mood

Developmental Level An individual’s current state of physical, emotional, and intellectual development

Newborns (Neonates) and Their Reflexes Grasping Reflex: If an object is placed in the infant’s palm, she’ll grasp it automatically (all reflexes are automatic responses; i.e., they come from nature, not nurture) Rooting Reflex: Lightly touch the infant’s cheek and he’ll turn toward the object and attempt to nurse; helps infant find nipple or food

More Neonatal Reflexes Sucking Reflex: Touch an object or nipple to the infant’s mouth and she’ll make rhythmic sucking movements Moro Reflex: If a baby’s position is abruptly changed or if he is startled by a loud noise, he will make a hugging motion

Figure 3. 7 Motor development Figure 3.7 Motor development. Most infants follow an orderly pattern of motor development. Although the order in which children progress is similar, there are large individual differences in the ages at which each ability appears. The ages listed are averages for American children. It is not unusual for many of the skills to appear 1 or 2 months earlier than average or several months later (Frankenberg & Dodds, 1967; Harris & Liebert, 1991). Parents should not be alarmed if a child’s behavior differs some from the average. Figure 3.7

Maturation Physical growth and development of the body, brain, and nervous system Increased muscular control occurs in patterns Cephalocaudal: From head to toe Proximodistal: From center of the body to the extremities

Readiness Exists when maturation has advanced enough to allow rapid acquisition of a particular skill

Basic Emotions Anger, fear, joy Take time to develop Appear to be innate

Emotional and Social Development Social Smile: Smiling elicited by social stimuli; not exclusive to seeing parents; occurs at 2-3 months Social Development: Development of self-awareness, attachment to parents or caregivers, and relationships with other children and adults

More on Social Development Self-Awareness: Awareness of oneself as a person; can be tested by having infants look in a mirror and see if they recognize themselves; occurs at about 15 months Social Referencing: Observing other people in social situations to get information or guidance

Figure 3.10 Infants display many of the same emotional expressions as adults do. Carroll Izard believes such expressions show that distinct emotions appear within the first months of life. Other theorists argue that specific emotions come into focus more gradually, as an infant’s nervous system matures. Either way, parents can expect to see a full range of basic emotions by the end of a baby’s first year. By the time babies are 18 months old, they begin to gain control over some of their emotional expressions (Izard & Abe, 2004). Figure 3.10

Separation Anxiety Crying and signs of fear when a child is left alone or is with a stranger; generally appears around 8-12 months

Mary Ainsworth and Attachment Quality of Attachment Secure: Stable and positive emotional bond Insecure-Avoidant: Tendency to avoid reunion with parent or caregiver; anxious or emotional bond Insecure-Ambivalent: Desire to be with parent or caregiver and some resistance to being reunited; also anxious emotional bond

Figure 3.11 In the United States, about two thirds of all children from middle-class families are securely attached. About 1 child in 3 is insecurely attached. (Percentages are approximate.) (From Kaplan, 1998.) Figure 3.11

Play and Social Skills Solitary Play: When a child plays alone even when with other children Cooperative Play: When two or more children must coordinate their actions

Optimal Caregiving Proactive Educational Influences: A parent’s warm, educational interactions with her child Goodness of Fit (Chess & Thomas, 1986): Degree to which parents and child have compatible temperaments Paternal Influences: Sum of all effects a father has on his child

Figure 3. 13 Mother-infant and father-infant interactions Figure 3.13 Mother-infant and father-infant interactions. These graphs show what occurred on routine days in a sample of 72 American homes. The graph on the left records the total amount of contact parents had with their babies, including such actions as talking to, touching, hugging, or smiling at the infant. The graph on the right shows the amount of caregiving (diapering, washing, feeding, and so forth) done by each parent. Note that in both cases mother-infant interactions greatly exceed father-infant interactions. (Adapted from Belsky et al., 1984.) Figure 3.13

Parenting Styles (Baumrind, 1991) Authoritarian Parents: Enforce rigid rules and demand strict obedience to authority; children tend to be emotionally stiff and lacking in curiosity Overly Permissive: Give little guidance, allow too much freedom, or don’t hold children accountable for their actions; children tend to be dependent and immature and frequently misbehave

Parenting Styles (cont.) Authoritative: Provide firm and consistent guidance combined with love and affection; children tend to be competent, self-controlled, independent, and assertive

Types of Child Discipline Power Assertion: Using physical punishment or a show of force Withdrawal of Love: Withholding affection Management Techniques: Combine praise, recognition, approval, rules, and reasoning

Side Effects of Child Discipline Power Assertion: Children tend to be aggressive, violent, defiant, not spontaneous, and hate their parents Withdrawal of Love: Children tend to be self-disciplined, anxious, insecure, and dependent on adults

Spanking No long-term damage if backed up by supportive parenting Frequent spanking leads to increased aggression and more problem behaviors

Language Development Cooing: Spontaneous repetition of vowel sounds by infants; at 6-8 months Babbling: Repetition of meaningless language sounds (e.g., babababa); 7 months Single-Word Stage: The child says one word at a time Telegraphic Speech: Two word sentences that communicate a single idea (e.g., “Want yogurt”)

Figure 3. 14 Infant engagement scale Figure 3.14 Infant engagement scale. These samples from a 90-point scale show various levels of infant engagement, or attention. Babies participate in prelanguage “conversations” with parents by giving and withholding attention and by smiling, gazing, or vocalizing. (From Beebe et al., 1982.) Figure 3.14

Noam Chomsky and the Roots of Language Biological Disposition: Presumed hereditary readiness of ALL humans to learn certain skills such as how to use language Chomsky: Language patterns are inborn Parentese (Motherese): Pattern of speech used when talking to infants Marked by raised voice; short, simple sentences, repetition, and exaggerated voice inflections

Jean Piaget and Cognitive Development Piaget believed that all children pass through a set series of stages during their cognitive development; like Freud, he was a Stage Theorist Transformations: Mentally changing the shape or form of a substance; children younger than 6 or 7 cannot do this

More Piagetian Concepts Assimilation: Application of existing mental patterns to new situations Accommodation: Existing ideas are changed to accommodate new information or experiences

Jean Piaget: Sensorimotor Stage Sensorimotor (0-2 Years): All sensory input and motor responses are coordinated; most intellectual development here is nonverbal Object Permanence: Concept that objects still exist when they are out of sight

Absence of Object Permanence

Presence of Object Permanence

Jean Piaget: Preoperational Stage Preoperational Stage (2-7 Years): Children begin to use language and think symbolically, BUT their thinking is still intuitive and egocentric Intuitive: Makes little use of reasoning and logic Egocentric Thought: Thought that is unable to accommodate viewpoints of others

Preoperational Conservation of Quantity

Jean Piaget: Concrete Operational Stage Concrete Operational Stage (7-11Years): Children become able to use concepts of time, space, volume, and number BUT in ways that remain simplified and concrete, not abstract Conservation: Mass, weight, and volume remain unchanged when the shape or appearance of objects changes Reversibility of Thought: Relationships involving equality or identity can be reversed

Concrete Conservation of Quantity

Concrete Abstract Reasoning

Jean Piaget: Formal Operations Formal Operations Stage (11 Years and Up): Thinking now includes abstract, theoretical, and hypothetical ideas Abstract Ideas: Concepts and examples removed from specific examples and concrete situations Hypothetical Possibilities: Suppositions, guesses, or projections

Formal Abstract Reasoning

Lev Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory Children’s cognitive development is heavily influenced by social and cultural factors A child’s thinking develops through dialogues with more capable persons Zone of Proximal Development: Range of tasks a child cannot master alone even though they are close to having the necessary mental skills; they need guidance from a more capable partner in order to complete the task

Vygotsky’s Scaffolding Adjusting instruction so it is responsive to a beginner’s behavior and so it supports the beginner’s efforts to understand a problem or gain a mental skill

Effective Parenting Have stable rules of conduct (consistency) Show mutual respect, love, encouragement, and shared enjoyment Have effective communication I-Message: Tells children the effect their behavior had on you (Use this) You-Message: Threats, name-calling, accusing, bossing, criticizing, or lecturing (Avoid this)

Consequences Natural Consequences: Effects that naturally follow a particular behavior Logical Consequences: Rational and reasonable effects