Children 1 Introduction John W. Santrock

Introduction How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? What Are Some Historical Views of Child Development? What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? What Are the Core Issues in Child Development? What Are the Main Careers in Child Development?

Images of Children Stories of Jeffrey Dahmer and Alice Walker A troubled childhood leads to brutal violence An impoverished and painful childhood leads to creativity and award winning publications

How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Health and Well-Being Children’s health and well-being in many countries is jeopardized Poverty AIDS epidemic Starvation Poor-quality health care Inadequate nutrition and exercise Alcohol and drug abuse

Families and Parenting How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Families and Parenting Family arrangements are changing Families with two working parents Climbing divorce rates, child-care issues Parenting includes providing a safe, supportive, and stimulating environment

Family and Peer Relations How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Family and Peer Relations Maltreated children may experience language delays and emotional difficulties Children learn from family members, peers, books, computers, television, and school

How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Education What is wrong with children’s education today and how can it be made more effective?

Mentoring Reduced unexcused absences from school How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Mentoring Reduced unexcused absences from school Raised classroom performance Improved relationships with parents

Sociocultural Contexts How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Sociocultural Contexts Contexts: settings in which development occurs Historical — Economic Social — Cultural factors Slide 1 of 2

Culture Passed from generation to generation Behavior patterns Beliefs How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Culture Passed from generation to generation Behavior patterns Beliefs Other products Slide 1 of 2

How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Culture Cross-cultural studies —comparisons of one culture with one or more other cultures Slide 1 of 2

How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Ethnicity Characteristics based on cultural heritage, nationality characteristics, race, religion, and language Ethnic identity: sense of membership in an ethnic group Slide 1 of 2

How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Ethnicity Socioeconomic status: people similar in occupational, educational, and economic characteristics Slide 1 of 2

Children’s Ethnicity, Poverty, and Type of Home Environment How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Children’s Ethnicity, Poverty, and Type of Home Environment Sex is a biological dimension Gender is psychological and sociocultural dimension of being female or male

Children’s Ethnicity, Poverty, and Type of Home Environment How Can Children’s Lives Be Improved? Children’s Ethnicity, Poverty, and Type of Home Environment Social policies affect children’s lives Government programs UNICEF and Children’s Defense Fund Child labor laws Poverty rate for families and risk of diseases

Characteristics of Resilient Children Source Characteristic Individual good intellectual functioning appealing, sociable, easygoing disposition self-confidence, high self-esteem talents faith Family close relationship to caring parent figure authoritative parenting: warmth, structure, and high expectations socioeconomic advantages connections to extended supportive family networks Extramarital Context bonds to caring adults outside the family connections to positive organizations attending effective schools Fig. 1.1

Early Views of Children What Are Some Historical Views of Child Development? Early Views of Children In medieval times: no distinction between children and adults Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome held rich conceptions of children’s development Three influential philosophical views

Early Views of Children What Are Some Historical Views of Child Development? Early Views of Children Original sin Tabula rasa Innate goodness Children born into the world as evil beings John Locke: children are like a “blank tablet” Rousseau: children are inherently good

Modern Study of Child Development What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? Modern Study of Child Development Arnold Gesell G. Stanley Hall Sigmund Freud certain characteristics “bloom” with age development follows evolutionary course children rarely aware of motives and reasons for their behaviors

Modern Study of Child Development What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? Modern Study of Child Development John Watson James Mark Baldwin Children shaped into whatever society wishes by environment Pioneer in study of children's thought; genetic epistemology — how child’s knowledge changes over development

What Are Some Historical Views of Child Development? Jean Piaget Adopted and expanded Baldwin’s ideas; cognitive stages identified Children: Pass through cognitive stages from infancy through adolescence Think in qualitatively different ways than adults

Biological and Cognitive Processes What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? Biological and Cognitive Processes Biological processes—changes in individual’s body; genes and hormones Cognitive processes—changes in individual’s thought, intelligence, and language

Socioemotional Processes What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? Socioemotional Processes Changes in an individual’s emotions, personality, and relationships

Biological, Cognitive, and Socioemotional Processes What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? Biological, Cognitive, and Socioemotional Processes All three processes are intricately intertwined Fig. 1.4

Periods of Development What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? Periods of Development Prenatal Infancy Early childhood Middle\late childhood Adolescence Conception to birth Birth to 18-24 months 24 months to 5-6 years (preschool years) 6 years to 11 years (elementary school years) 10-12 years to 18-22 years

Processes and Periods of Development What Are the Developmental Processes and Periods? Processes and Periods of Development Early childhood Middle and late childhood Prenatal period Infancy Adolescence Fig. 1.5 Processes of development

Core Issues in Child Development What Are the Core Issues in Child Development? Core Issues in Child Development Nature and nurture Continuity and discontinuity Discontinuity Continuity

Core Issues in Child Development What Are the Core Issues in Child Development? Core Issues in Child Development Early-later experience issue Focus on which are key determinants of child’s development Hotly debated by developmentalists People in Western cultures contrast with the majority of people in the world

Evaluating the Developmental Issues What Are the Core Issues in Child Development? Evaluating the Developmental Issues Unwise to take extreme position on Nature and nurture Continuity and discontinuity Early and later experiences All characterize development through the human life span

Child Development Careers What Are the Main Careers in Child Development? Child Development Careers Education and Research Clinical and Counseling Medical, Nursing, and Physical Development Families and Relationships

Children 1 The End