Psychology: Brain, Mind, and Culture, 2e by Drew Westen Paul J. Wellman Texas A&M University John Wiley and Sons, Inc. PowerPoint  Presentation: Chapter 14 Social Development

Lecture Outline n Social Development n Attachment n Socialization n Social Cognition n Moral Development © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Social Development n Social Development encompasses the changes in feeling, interpersonal thought, and behavior across the lifespan n Critical issues in social development include  Attachment and its implication for adult functioning  Socialization by parents and peers  Changes in moral reasoning © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Attachment n Attachment refers to an enduring emotional tie between child and caretaker n Attachment involves  Desire of the child to be close to the caretaker  A sense of security around the caretaker  Feelings of distress when the caretaker is absent n Early attachment theories noted that attachment usually is between mother and child and may reflect feeding of the child by the mother © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Harlow’s Studies of “Contact Comfort” n Infant monkeys were raised in isolation (to avoid disease) and were housed with artificial mothers  The monkeys could choose between a wire- mesh “monkey” that provided food or a “mother” covered in terry cloth that did not provide food Harlow noted that the infants clung to the terry cloth mother as though “attached” to that mother These results did not support the idea that attachment is based on feeding © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Origin and Functions of Attachment n Imprinting is the tendency of young animals to follow an animal to which they were exposed during a sensitive period n Bowlby argued that attachment resembles imprinting in that both keep an immature animal close to its caretaker  More likely to be fed, protected from predators, and to be taught life skills  Young are comforted by the caretaker and are distressed in its absence © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Attachment Measurement n Strange Situation experiment:  Mother leaves her child (12-18 months of age) alone in a room of toys  A stranger enters the room for a while  Mother rejoins her child n Mary Ainsworth used this paradigm to assess attachment in the child n Issue was the reaction of the child to the mother upon her leaving and return © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Attachment Patterns n The Strange Situation reveals 4 patterns of attachment :  Securely attached: Child welcomes the mothers return and seeks closeness to her  Avoidant: Child ignores the mother  Ambivalently attached: Child exhibits anger at the mother while seeking to be close to her  Disorganized: Child may approach the other but gaze away from her, and may show odd motor behavior (rocking) and dazed facial expressions © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Determinants of Attachment n Biological: Separation from the caretaker results in distress  The neurotransmitter norepinephrine is increased in infants during separation n Environmental: The sensitivity of the mother to her infant  Mother interacts with infant  Mother provides nurturance  Mother stimulates and encourages infant © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Separation Anxiety © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc. (Figure adapted from Kagan, 1983, p. 198)

Adult Attachment n An issue is whether childhood attachment patterns are evident in adulthood  Researchers find evidence of childhood attachment patterns in adulthood Secure attachment pattern is evident in 60% Avoidant pattern in 25% of adults Anxious attachment is evident in 10% of adults n Adult attachment patterns predict  Whether people want to have children  The attachment pattern of their children  How people cope with stressful life events © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Modifiability of Early Attachment Patterns n Will early attachment problems always result in adult attachment difficulty?  Harlow noted that isolated monkeys with poor attachment made for poor parents  This infant offspring of an isolated mother were ignored or abused  Harlow noted that the poor social skills of an isolate monkey could be helped if the monkey was housed with a normal juvenile monkey who served to teach social skills © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Socialization n Socialization refers to the process by which children learn the beliefs, values, skills, and behavior patterns of their culture n Issues in socialization:  Socialization is interactive  Socialization is a life-long process  Children are biologically prepared for socialization  Socialization is both explicit and implicit © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Parents as Socialization Agents n Styles of parenting:  Authoritarian: Place a high value on obedience and respect for authority  Permissive: Impose minimal controls on their children  Authoritative: Enforce standards, but encourage verbal give-and-take n Parenting style affects children’s behavior  Authoritarian parents produce children with low independence, low self-esteem, and an external locus of control © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Peers as Socializing Agents n Childhood friendship is mostly with same- sex person n Meaning of friendship changes with age  Gratification from friends is important for young children  Older children focus on intimacy with friends Self-disclosure and mutual understanding n Time spent with peers increases with age while time spent with parents decreases into the teen years © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Peer Status n Children develop different status relationships with their peers n Peer relations can be measured using a “peer nomination” method  “Write down the names of the children you like or dislike”  Rejected children are disliked by their peers Show low self-esteem later in life  Neglected children are not mentioned as either liked or disliked Show better academic performance in school © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Socialization of Gender n Gender refers to the psychological meaning of being male or female n Gender roles specify the range of behaviors considered appropriate for females and for males n Gender schemas refer to mental representations that differentiate one sex from another  “Men are more aggressive”  “Women are more nurturing” © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Gender Differences in Aggression © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Social Cognition n Self concept refers to an organized view of ourselves n Methods of assessing self-concept in preverbal children:  Visual self-recognition test: Place a spot of paint on the infants nose and then show the infant their reflection in a mirror If the infant reaches for their nose, the inference is that they recognize that the mirror is a reflection of their self Visual self-recognition is evident by months of age © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Moral Development n Morality refers to the rules that people use to balance the conflicting interests of themselves and others n Kohlberg’s views on moral reasoning:  Changes in moral reasoning reflect changes in cognitive structures  Children actively construct their moral reality  Moral development can be assessed using moral dilemmas (“Heinz and the druggist”)  Moral development occurs in three stages © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc. LevelIssues PreconventionalConcern on avoiding punishment and obtaining reward ConventionalConcern on meeting moral standards learned from others; maintaining law and order PostconventionalConcern on abstract, carefully considered principles

Information Processing View of Moral Development © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc. (Figure adapted from Darley & Schultz, 1990, p. 532).

Psychosocial Theory of Development © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Copyright Copyright 1999 by John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY. All rights reserved. No part of the material protected by this copyright may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission of the copyright owner. © 1999 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.