1. Psychology 2314 Chapter 4 Psychosocial Development Psychosocial Theory Epigenetic Theory Psychoanalytic Theory Temperament Social Learning Personality Emotional development Still in the face Stranger wariness Synchrony Separation anxiety The Big Five Attachments Sociocultural Persp. Self-awareness Proximal/Distal Parenting

2. Introduction and Emotional Development The first two years of life are characterized by “high emotional responsiveness”. Infants come into the world equipped with basic social predispositions and skills that contribute to their growth and development. Before infants walk and talk, they have a smaller range of emotions than later, when greater mobility coincides with more emotion.

4. The first emotions that can be reliably discerned in infants are distress and contentment. Other early infant emotions include curiosity, pleasure, and anger. Anger becomes evident at about 6 months. During infancy, anger is a healthy reaction and usually occurs in response to frustration. In contrast, sadness indicates withdrawal and is accompanied by an increase in the stress hormone cortisol.

5. *Smiles of pleasure appear during the first days of life; social smiles begin to appear at about 6 weeks and laughter at about 3 or 4 months. Fully formed fear emerges at about 9 months. One expression of this new emotion is stranger wariness, which emerges between 9 and 14 months; another is separation anxiety, or fear of abandonment, which becomes most obvious at 9 to 14 months. During the second year, anger and fear typically decrease and become more targeted toward specific things.

7. The infant’s emerging self-awareness leads to a new consciousness of others. That consciousness fosters the ability to experience emotions bout and express them toward other people. In the classic self-awareness experiment, 9 to 24-month-old babies look in a mirror after a dot of rouge is put on their nose. If the babies react to the mirror image by touching their nose, it is clear they know they are seeing their own face.

8. *Most babies demonstrate this self-awareness between 15 and 24 months. Pride and shame are strongly linked to self- concept. The best way to foster self-esteem is not to simply offer praise for accomplishments but rather to allow children to accomplish things that make them feel proud.

9. Brain Maturation and the Emotions Synesthesia – The stimulation of one sensory stimulus to the brain (sound, sight, touch, taste, or smell) by another. – Common in infants because boundaries between sensory parts of the cortex are less distinct…you can smell how something tastes Cross-modal perception – Infant associates textures with vision, sounds with smells, own body with the bodies of others – Basis for early social understanding…important in cognitive development, i.e. sensorimotor period Synesthesia of emotions – Infant’s cry can be triggered by pain, fear, tiredness, or excitement; laughter can turn to tears. – Infants’ emotions are difficult to predict because of the way their brains are activated.

10. Social Impulses Emotional Self-regulation – Directly connected to maturation of the anterior cingulate gyrus…part of the brain above the corpus callosum, receives input from the thalamus, and is an integral part of the limbic system (the emotional center, also involved in learning and memory) Particular people begin to arouse specific emotions.. implications in behavior theory – Toddlers get angry when a teasing older sibling approaches them or react with fear when entering the doctor’s office. – Memory triggers specific emotions based on previous experiences.

11. Stress Hypothalamus – Regulates various bodily functions and hormone production – May grow more slowly in stressed than in nonstressed infants Abuse (form of chronic stress) – Potential long-term effects on a child’s emotional development – High levels of stress hormones indicative of emotional impairment – Excessive stress in infants must be prevented Stress can be avoided by: – providing new mothers with help and emotional support – involving new fathers in the care of the infant – strengthening the relationship between mother and father

12. Theories About Infant Psychosocial Development Psychoanalytic theory connects biosocial and psychosocial development, emphasizing the need for responsive maternal care. According to Freud, during the first year infants are in the oral stage of psychosexual development, when the mouth is the infant’s prime source of gratification and the mother’s attitudes regarding feeding and weaning are a critical factor in the infant’s psychological development.

13. An oral fixation later in life may occur if a child becomes distressed at this stage. During the 2 nd year, infants are in the anal stage- sensual pleasure is derived from stimulation of the bowels, and toilet training becomes the focal point. Anal fixation can result in anal personality. *A fixation at this stage may result in an anal personality.

14. Erik Erikson, Psychosocial Development Erikson maintains that development occurs through a series of basic crises. Erikson describes the basic crises of infancy and toddlerhood as those of trust v mistrust and autonomy v shame and doubt In Eriksons’s view, parental guidance and protection are the keys to the child’s gaining a healthy sense of autonomy. Infants who fail to develop trust or achieve autonomy may become adults who are suspicious and pessimistic or who are burdened by shame.

15. Social learning The acquisition of behavior patterns by observing the behavior of others Demonstrated in the classic Bobo Doll study by Albert Bandura

16. Infants use their early relationships to build a working model that becomes a frame of reference for organizing perceptions and experiences According to epigenetic theory, every human characteristic is strongly influenced by each person’s unique genotype Temperament refers to “constitutionally based” individual differences in emotions, activity, and self- control Infants are born with distinct temperaments that are genetic in origin and affect their personality

17. Personality traits are generally considered to be primarily learned; temperamental traits are considered to be primarily genetic According to the New York Longitudinal Study (NYLS), infants can be described as possessing one of four temperaments: 1. easy-(40 percent) 2. slow to warm up-(15 percent) 3. difficult-(10 percent) 4. hard to classify-(35 percent) An important factor in healthy psychosocial development is the goodness of fit between the developing child and the caregiving context

18. The Big Five (acronym OCEAN) – Five basic clusters of personality traits that remain quite stable throughout life – Found in many cultures and among people of all ages 1.Openness: imaginative, curious, welcoming new experiences 2.Conscientiousness: organized, deliberate, conforming 3.Extroversion: outgoing, assertive, active 4.Agreeableness: kind, helpful, easygoing 5.Neuroticism: anxious, moody, self-critical

19. Longitudinal study of infant temperament (Fox et al., 2001): Grouped 4-month-olds into three distinct types based on responses to fearful stimulation – Positive (exuberant) – Negative – Inhibited (fearful) Less than half altered their responses as they grew older – Fearful infants were most likely to change – Exuberant infants were least likely to change – Maturation and child rearing has effect on inborn temperament

20. The sociocultural perspective emphasizes the impact of the entire social context. Ethnotheories are culture-and ethnic group specific theories of child rearing There is considerable cultural variation in the use of: proximal (close) parenting-predicts toddlers who later will be more compliant and less self-aware (fathers use this parenting style) than distal (distant, more intellectually focused) parenting- predicts toddlers who are more self-aware but less obedient

22. Development of Social Bonds Researchers have found an impressive synchrony between infant and caregiver, with each partner giving vocal and gestural cues to the other in order to maintain (or to reestablish) coordination in their interaction. Synchrony helps an infant to learn to read other people’s emotions and to develop some of the basic skills of social interaction *A crucial aspect of synchrony is that adults do not merely echo infant emotions; they try to make them more positive

24. Researchers use the still-face technique to study synchrony between infant and caregiver in order to determine whether synchrony is needed for normal development Approaching and following their caregivers are signs of proximity-seeking behaviors, while holding and cuddling are signs of contact- maintaining behaviors are signs of attachment

26. A secure attachment (typeB) is one in which the infant derives comfort and confidence from the caregiver-this is a type of attachment in which the caregiver acts as a base for exploration Insecure-avoidant attachment (Type A)-infants who display insecure attachment may engage in little interaction with their mothers and show no apparent distress when they leave Insecure-resistant/ambivalent attachment(TypeC)- infants show an inconsistent mixture of behavior toward their mothers, such as both resisting and seeking contact Disorganized attachment (TypeD)- found in the most troubled infants

28. Key behaviors to observe: – Exploration of the toys. A secure toddler plays happily. – Reaction to the caregiver’s departure. A secure toddler misses the caregiver. – Reaction to the caregiver’s return. A secure toddler welcomes the caregiver’s reappearance.

29. Contact is a key to attachment Familiarity is another key to attachment Critical periods are the optimal periods when certain events must take place to facilitate proper development Parenting styles will foster attachment in later developmental stages Parenting styles Authoritarian, Authoritative, Permissive, Neglectful

30. Mary Ainsworth has developed laboratory procedure for measuring the security of attachment The procedure called the Strange Situation-infants’ reactions to the comings and going of their mothers and to friendly strangers are monitored Although secure attachments predicts both personality and social development, attachment status can change, either for the better or worse- plastic The emotional expressions of others begin to assume new meaning because infants begin to engage in social referencing; that is, they look to trusted adults for emotional cues in uncertain situations.

31. This becomes important as crawling and walking increase infants’ mobility Researchers have found that although fathers provide less basic care than mothers, they play more, and their child-rearing style tends to be more proximal. Infants tend to look to fathers for fun and to mothers for comfort Infant day-care programs include family day care-when children of various ages are cared for in a paid caregiver’s home Centered day care-children are cared for by several paid caregivers in a place designed for that purpose Children can benefit from nonmaternal care

32. Researchers have identified 5 factors that seem essential to high- quality day care: 1. adequate attention to each infant 2. encouragement of sensorimotor exploration and language development 3. attention to health and safety 4. well-trained and professional caregivers 5. warm and responsive caregivers According to the NICHD Early Child Care Research Network, day care is detrimental only when: 1. mothers are insensitive 2. the day-care quality is poor 3. the infant is in poor-quality day care for more than 20 hours per week

34. Regarding the major theories of development, no single theory stands out as the best interpretation of psychosocial development during infancy. Although the first two years are important, early emotional and social development is influenced by the parent’s behavior, the quality of day-care patterns within the child’s culture, and the child’s inborn traits.

35. Stability and Change The first two years of life provide a poor basis for predicting a person’s eventual traits As people grow older, personality gradually stabilizes…temperament is relatively stable (genetic) We all change with age and experience Development is not static Development progresses and regresses