1. Chapter 6: Socioemotional Development in Early Childhood 3-1

2. 6-2 The Self Erikson 3 rd Stage: Initiative versus guilt – Initiative and enthusiasm may bring guilt, which lowers self-esteem – Children use their perceptual, motor, cognitive, and language skills to make things happen – On their own initiative, then, children at this stage exuberantly move out into a wider social world

3. 6-3 Emotional Development Expressing emotions – Pride, shame, embarrassment, and guilt are examples of self-conscious emotions During the early childhood years, emotions such as pride and guilt become more common Erikson: Guilt vs Shame

4. 6-4 The Self Self-understanding and understanding others – Self-understanding (4-5 years old): Substance and content of self-conceptions Physical activities (“I ride a bike”)are central component of the self in early childhood Unrealistically positive self descriptions, “I’m always happy”. – Protective Optimism: Preschoolers predict that they can solve impossible puzzles, remember long lists of words, and control their dreams. Helps them try new things

5. 6-5 The Self Understanding others – Children start perceiving others in terms of psychological traits (due to theory of mind). – Other people might lie – Egocentrism Debate continues if children are socially sensitive or egocentric – Young children are not as egocentric as depicted in Piaget’s theory

6. 6-6 Emotional Development Regulating emotions – Plays a key role in children’s ability to manage the demands and conflicts they face in interacting with others – Parents can be described as taking one of two approaches: Emotion-coaching: Monitor child’s emotions, view negative emotions as learning experience. Help label and cope with emotions. – Children better at self-soothing Emotion-dismissing: Deny, ignore, or change negative emotions. Negative emotions are punished—even if there is no misbehavior. – Increased behavioral problems – Ability to modulate emotions benefits children in their relationships with peers.

7. Sex Differences in Emotional Regulation – Boys tend to be aggressive (externalizing) – Girls tend to be anxious (internalizing) Psychopathology is not typical – Children of both sexes usually learn to regulate their emotions as their brains mature and their parents nurture them

8. 6-8 Emotional Development Understanding emotions – Children’s understanding of emotion is linked to an increase in prosocial behavior (peak of anti- social behavior around 2-years-old) – Children begin to understand that the same event can elicit different feelings in different people – By age 5 most children show a growing awareness of the need to manage emotions according to social standards

9. Culture and Motives Goals for emotional regulation that seem to be important in certain cultures: – Overcome fear (United States) – Modify anger (Puerto Rico) – Temper pride (China) – Control aggression (Japan) – Be patient and cooperative (Native American Communities)

10. 6-10 Moral Development Involves the development of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors regarding rules and conventions about what people should do in their interactions with other people

11. Psychoanalytical Theory of (Moral) Development (3-6 years old) Id: Source of our bodily needs, wants, desires, and impulses, particularly our sexual and aggressive drives. Ego: It seeks to please the Id's drive in realistic ways. Phallic stage: Freud’s third stage of development, when the penis becomes the focus of concern and pleasure. Oedipus complex: The unconscious desire of young boys to replace their fathers and win their mothers’ exclusive love.

12. Superego: The judgmental part of the personality that internalizes the moral standards of the parents. Identification: An attempt to defend one’s self-concept by taking on the behaviors and attitudes of someone else. Electra complex (Carl Jung): The unconscious desire of girls to replace their mothers and win their fathers’ exclusive love. Psychoanalytical Theory of Moral Development

13. 6-13 Moral Development Moral feelings – Feelings of anxiety and guilt are central to the account of moral development by Freud. Freud’s theories are not backed by research. – Empathy: identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another. Learning how to identify a wide range of emotional states in others, and to anticipate what kinds of action will improve another person’s emotional state, help to advance children’s moral development

14. 6-14 Moral Development Moral reasoning – Heteronomous morality (peaks 4-7): Children think of justice and rules as unchangeable properties, removed from the control of people. Immanent justice: Concept that if a rule is broken, punishment will be meted out immediately – Autonomous morality (10+): Children become aware that rules and laws are created by people In judging an action, one should consider the person’s intentions as well as the consequences

15. 6-15 Moral Development Moral behavior – (Behavioral) Processes of reinforcement, punishment, and imitation explain the development of moral behavior – (Social) Situation influences behavior School vs home; Alone vs Group. – (Cognitive) Cognitive factors are important in the child’s development of self-control Self-control is limited resource.

16. 6-16 Gender Sex differences: Biological differences between males and females, in organs, hormones, and body shape. Gender differences: Differences in the roles and behaviors that are prescribed by a culture for males and females. – Age 5: Increased awareness of sex and gender differences – Increase of awareness of sex differences, preferences for same-sex playmates and stereotypical gender activities from age 2 to age 8. – Boys have larger groups of friends; Girls prefer small 2-3 member groups.

17. 6-17 Gender Social influences – Social theories of gender Social role theory: Gender differences result from the contrasting roles of women and men. – Accordingly, the behavior of men and women is governed by the stereotypes of their social roles. Psychoanalytic theory: Preschool child develops a sexual attraction to the opposite-sex parent; ultimately identifying with same-sex parent. Social cognitive theory: Children’s gender development occurs through observation and imitation of what other people say and do. – Gender appropriate behavior reinforced.  You throw like a girl. Cognitive influences – Gender schema theory: Gender typing emerges as children gradually develop gender schemas of what is gender-appropriate and gender-inappropriate in their culture

18. 6-18 Parenting Baumrind’s parenting styles – Authoritarian parenting: Restrictive, punitive style in which parents exhort the child to follow their directions and respect their work and effort – Authoritative parenting: Encourages children to be independent but still places limits and controls on their actions – Indulgent (permissive) parenting: Parents are highly involved with their children but place few demands or controls on them – Neglectful parenting: Parent is uninvolved in the child’s life

20. Implications of Parenting Style Children of authoritarian parents tend to: – become conscientious, obedient, and quiet but not especially happy – feel guilty or depressed and blame themselves when things don’t go well – rebel as adolescents and leave home before age 20

21. Children of indulgent parents tend to: – be unhappy and lack self-control, especially in peer relationships – suffer from inadequate emotional regulation – be immature and lack friendships (main reason for their unhappiness) – continue to live at home, still dependent, in early adulthood Implications of Parenting Style

22. Children of neglectful parents tend to: – have low self-esteem – display poor self-control – present a pattern of delinquent behavior – be alienated from family Implications of Parenting Style

23. Children of authoritative parents tend to: – be successful, articulate, happy with themselves, and generous with others – Be well-liked by teachers and peers, especially in societies in which individual initiative is valued Implications of Parenting Style

24. Critique of Baumrind’s Model Her original sample had little economic, ethnic, or cultural diversity. She focused more on attitudes than on daily interactions. Some authoritarian parents are very loving toward their children. Some permissive parents guide their children intensely, but with words, not rules. She overlooked the child’s contribution to the parent-child relationship. Parenting styles in context – Authoritative parenting conveys the most benefits to the child and to the family as a whole – In some cultural groups, aspects of authoritarian parenting correlated with positive outcomes (e.g., school grades)

25. Physical Punishment Physical punishment is linked to lower levels of moral internalization and mental health. Physical punishment increases obedience temporarily, but increases the possibility of later aggression.aggression – Many children who are spanked do not become violent adults; other factors (e.g. poverty, temperament) are stronger influences.

26. Why Avoid Physical Punishment? Setting poor example: children may imitate this physically aggressive behavior. Physical Punishment can instill fear, rage, or avoidance. “Love and Respect” Physical punishments only teaching what not to do rather than what to do. Parents may unintentionally cross line between punishments and abuse (next slide). “I got spanked, and I turned out fine.”

27. 5-27 Adrian Peterson’s Son Parents may unintentionally cross line between punishments and abuse. Peterson - “Never do I go overboard! But all my kids will know, hey daddy has the biggest heart but don’t play no games when it comes to acting right.”

28. Other Forms of Punishment Psychological control: A disciplinary technique that involves threatening to withdraw love and support and that relies on a child’s feelings of guilt and gratitude to the parents. – May negatively impact self-esteem. Time-out: A disciplinary technique in which a child is separated from other people and activities for a specified time. Time-In: Talking about misbehavior. – Handle misbehavior by reasoning with the child, especially explaining the consequences of the child’s actions for others – Ask: How would you feel if… (Perspective taking: helps develop empathy.)

29. 6-29 Parenting Coparenting – Support that parents give each other in raising a child – Whatever you do, do it together.

30. 6-30 Child Maltreatment Types of child maltreatment – Physical abuse – Child neglect: failure to provide basic needs. – Sexual abuse: incest, rape, exploitation – Emotional abuse Context of abuse – About 1/3 of parents who were abused themselves when they were young go on to abuse their own children

31. 6-31 Child Maltreatment Developmental consequences of abuse – Experiencing abuse or neglect as child correlates with the following in Adolescence : Violent behavior Substance abuse Suicide Ideation/Attempts Sexual risk taking Violent romantic relationships

32. 6-32 Sibling Relationships and Birth Order Sibling relationships – Important characteristics Emotional quality of the relationship Familiarity and intimacy of the relationship Variation in sibling relationships Birth order – Compared with later-born children, firstborn children have been described as more adult-oriented, intelligent, helpful, conforming, and self-controlled. After taking into account other predictors (heredity, peer influences), birth order has limited ability to predict behavior.

33. 6-33 Changing Family in a Changing Society Working parents – Children of working mothers engage in less gender stereotyping and have more egalitarian views of gender than do children of nonworking mothers. Children in divorced families – Children from divorced families show poorer adjustment than their counterparts in never- divorced families

34. 6-34 Changing Family in a Changing Society – Many of the problems experienced by children from divorced homes begin during the predivorce period – Frequent visits by the noncustodial parent usually benefit the child – Children with a difficult temperament often have problems in coping with their parents’ divorce – Income loss for divorced mothers is accompanied by increased workloads, high rates of job instability, and residential moves

35. 6-35 Changing Family in a Changing Society Gay male and lesbian parents – Most children from gay or lesbian families have a heterosexual orientation – Research has shown little variation from children raised by heterosexual parents (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry). » Are not more likely to be gay than children with heterosexual parents. » Are not more likely to be sexually abused. » Do not show differences in whether they think of themselves as male or female (gender identity). » Do not show differences in their male and female behaviors (gender role behavior) Cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic variations – Large and extended families more common among minority groups. Families with 3+ children – 19% Latino – 10% Caucasian

36. 6-36 Changing Family in a Changing Society Socioeconomic Status (SES) – Lower-SES parents More concerned that their children conform to society’s expectations Create a home atmosphere in which it is clear that parents have authority over children, among others – Higher-SES parents More concerned with developing children’s initiative and delay of gratification Less likely to use physical punishment

37. Play Play is the most productive and enjoyable activity that children undertake Play is universal – Archeologists find toys that are many thousands of years old – Anthropologists report play in every part of the world

38. 6-38 Peer Relation, Play, and Television Peer relations – Provide a source of information and comparison about the world outside the family – Good peer relations can be necessary for normal socioemotional development Play Therapy – used to allow the child to work off frustrations and to analyze the child’s conflicts and ways of coping with them

39. 6-39 Peer Relation, Play, and Television – Important context for the development of language and communication skills – Types of play Sensorimotor: tummy time/exploration Practice: repeating new skills that may be used later in life Pretense/symbolic: Cops and Robbers/Dress up/Imagination Social: Interaction with peers Constructive: Building things (blocks), creating new arts. Games: Activities that are engaged in for pleasure and have rules

40. Play Rough-and-tumble play: Play that mimics aggression through wrestling, chasing, or hitting, but in which there is no intent to harm. – Expressions and gestures (e.g. play face) signifying that the child is "just pretending” – Particularly common among young males – Ample space, distant adults, and presence of friends increase likelihood – Advances children’s social understanding but increases likelihood of injury – May positively affect prefrontal cortex development

42. Sociodramatic play: Symbolic play in which children act out various roles and themes in stories that they create. Sociodramatic play enables children to: – Explore and rehearse the social roles enacted around them – Test their ability to explain and to convince playmates of their ideas – Practice regulating their emotions by pretending to be afraid, angry, brave, and so on – Develop a self-concept in a nonthreatening context Play

44. 6-44 Peer Relation, Play, and Television Screen Time – 2-4-year-olds watch 2-4 hours of T.V. per day. – Use computers daily. 12% of 2-4-year olds 22% of 5-8-year olds Negatives – Distracts from homework – Teaches sterotypes – Linked to obesity/lower physical acitivties Postivies?

45. 6-45 Peer Relation, Play, and Television Television – Many children spend more time in front of the television set than they do with their parentstelevision – Extent to which children are exposed to violence and aggression on television and video games raises special concerns – Television can also teach children that it is better to behave in a positive, prosocial way – Does violent media(T.V., Movies, Video Games) cause us to be violent people?