1. Class Six:
Self, Moral Development, Peer Relationships: Middle Childhood to Early Adolescence

3. Today’s Agenda
Reading Check
Chapters 7-8
Homework

7. Self and Moral Development: Middle Childhood—Early Adolescence
Behaving in accordance with moral values (honesty, dependability, kindness, fairness, respect, self-control, truthfulness, diligence) is widely agreed to make the world a better place
Specifics of values subject to more disagreement
Self concept
Acquiring moral sense is critical for self-concept
Central to successful adult functioning

8. Development of Self Concept
Self-concept constrained cognitive development
Multidimensional self-system is dynamic and changes throughout development
Preschool age: Begin to describe themselves
Early-elementary age: Organizing characteristics of “me-self” into coherent categories
Middle childhood, early adolescence: Abstract trait-like concepts of self, multiple domains
Social comparison builds on perspective taking

9. Structure of Self Concept
Self-concept and self-esteem are separate but closely intertwined
Self-esteem is our feelings about ourselves
Self assessments of specific competencies, and generalized perception of themselves
Children’s general self-concept divided into domains
Academic self-concept
Subdivided by subject areas, math, science, etc.
Nonacademic self-concept
Subdivided into social, emotional, physical

10. Influences on the Development of Self-Concept
Global self-esteem dependent on competence in areas of personal importance
Influenced by social processes
Internalizing the assessments of others
Social comparison
Tend to be motivated by a self-enhancing bias
Children’s self-appraisals become more congruent with others’ appraisals as they get older

11. Influences on Self-Concept

12. Applications: Self-esteem as Cause or Consequence
A strong sense of self-worth and a sturdy moral compass are widely viewed as important for participating in a civil society
Self-esteem touted as holy grail of mental health
Low self-esteem is a correlate of mental health problems, not necessarily causal
No compelling evidence that high self-esteem is precursor for competence
More evidence competent performance results in high self-efficacy
Evidence argues for shift to “skills-first” approach

13. Gender, Race, Ethnicity and Self-Esteem Differences in North America
Older views that marginalized groups have lower self-esteem is not supported by current research
Strong and positive racial or ethnic identity correlates positively with global self-esteem
Small but stable gender difference in self-esteem favoring males, little evidence of self-esteem slide for girls
Great within-group variation

14. Cross-Cultural Differences in the Development of the Self
Construction of the self is a social process
Cultural differences in beliefs, values, expectations
Individualistic cultures value independence more than collectivist cultures
Individualist cultures value being proud of oneself, more central to self- esteem
Collectivist cultures value harmonious relationships, more central to self- esteem
Parenting practices reflect these cultural values
Affects of negative self-evaluation vary depending on cultural values and norms

15. Applications: Where Do We Start?
Self-worth resides inside us but depends on appraisals of significant others
Create a supportive counseling relationship, with empathy, encouragement, respect, and interest
Target skills and awareness that lead to increased social self-efficacy
Help children generate interpretations, solutions to problems, increase perspective-taking skills
Help parents understand the powerful looking glass their words create
Substantive changes do not happen overnight

16. The Moral Self
Acquiring moral values is an important element of self-development
Elements of morality
Capacity to make judgments of right vs. wrong
Preferring to act in ways judged to be right
Morality requires three elements to be present
Emotions
Cognitions
Behavior

17. Classic Theories of Moral Development
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of moral development
Inborn impulses of the id are entirely self-serving
Superego emerges in preschool period
Source of moral emotions (pride, shame, guilt)

18. Classic Theories of Moral Development
Developmental stages in moral reasoning
Piaget: premoral, heteronomous, autonomous

19. Classic Theories of Moral Development
Kohlberg: preconventional, conventional, postconventional
Moral Theories Tend to underestimate the very young, do not distinguish moral, conventional, and personal rules

20. Moral Development in Middle Childhood

21. Morality as an Educational Goal
Historically central to formal education, periodic surges in interest based on social concerns
Many packaged programs available to teachers, but difficult to implement, little evidence moral training has an impact
Recent positive results for character education
Programs need clear goals and sound techniques for implementing goals
Can be effective in encouraging aspects of moral thinking, feeling, and behavior
Continuing concern and criticism around programs

22. Applications: Promoting Morality
Moral development is not just moral reasoning, also involves emotional understanding
Morality composed of three interlocking systems:
Empathy
Identification with moral others
Principles or standards of right and wrong
How do these systems develop?
Empathy develops through caring relationships
Identification develops with exposure to caring and just models
Principles and standards evolve through exposure to ideas in school, home, counseling, friendships

23. Children’s Prosocial Behavior
Prosocial behavior or altruism is to act in ways that intended to benefit someone else
Tends to increase with age
Individual differences stable across age
Multiple factors contribute to prosocial behavior
Emotion: Empathy (“feeling with” another), sympathy (“feeling for” another)
Cognition: Needs-based reasoning, weighing own needs against those of others
Temperament and personality: Social competence, behavioral inhibition
Parenting practices and peer relationships

24. Children’s Antisocial Behavior
Antisocial behavior distinguished by intent to harm or injure another or disregard for the harm
Includes physical, verbal, or social aggression
Instrumental aggression: Using force or threat to obtain possession
Person-directed, social, or relational aggression: Behavior aimed at damaging peer relationships
Overall and instrumental aggression decreases with age, nature of aggression more social
Social information-processing plays a key role
Hostile attributional bias characterizes aggressive individuals

25. Focus on Developmental Psychopathology: Conduct Problems
Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) or conduct disorder (CD) diagnosed in children, adolescents
Diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder (APD) typically reserved for adults
Different pathways of antisocial behavior
Life-course persistent (LCP), antisocial behavior begins early, persists, diversifies, grows serious
Adolescence-limited (AL), difficult or exaggerated reaction in adolescent period
Emphasis on prevention and early intervention
Some oppositional behavior normal in young children

26. Focus on Developmental Psychopathology: When Should a Parent Seek Help?
When child refuses to do what parent asks them to do 8 out of 10 times
When a teacher or day care provider reports child has a problem with aggression toward peers, has difficulty making friends
When parents feel they aren’t successful in helping child reduce aggression
When child has developmental problems making it difficult for him or her to learn social skills

27. Activity
In groups of 2-3, Create a handout of tips you could share with parents focusing on how parents can promote self-concept, moral Development, and pro-social behavior in Children.
Use your text, class PowerPoints and any other resources You’d like to create this one-page handout that should include:
a title
Suggestions Appropriate for middle childhood
At least 5 tips for parents focused on each of the following:
Promoting Self-Concept Development
Promoting Moral Development
promoting pro-social behavior
List of references Consulted
Upload your handout to BlackBoard (in the ‘assignments’ link)

28. The Biology of Sex 23 pairs of chromosomes
23rd pair called sex chromosomes
Females have two large X chromosomes
Males’ pair mismatched, one X and one smaller Y
X and Y chromosomes also differ in function
SRY gene, the sex-determining region of Y
Transforms “indifferent” gonads into testes
Sex differentiation begins at about 5 weeks
Fetus first developed indifferent, unisex gonads
Can become either ovaries or testes
Testes then produce masculinizing hormones
Testosterone, anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH)

29. Sex Role Development Use of terms sex vs. gender
Sex reserved for biologically determined processes
Gender used for socially influenced characteristics
Difficult to apply these conventions consistently
Early gender identity
Learn to label self as male or female by about 2½
Gender stability by 3 or 4 years, realizing gender doesn’t fluctuate over time
Gender constancy may not emerge until 6 or 7, realizing that gender cannot change

30. Gender Identity The role of social processes in gender identity
Active teaching of gendered behavior by others
Different behavior toward girl and boy babies
The role of cognition in gender identity
Logical thinking may help a child understand gender constancy
Accurate information is helpful
The role of biology in gender identity
Biological sex may influence gender identity, even when social input is inconsistent
Some gender-atypical individuals reject assigned identity, adopt identity consistent with biology

32. Sex Differences
Behavior, personality, preferences vary between males and females
Some differences found across life span
Some typify specific developmental periods
Some have changed historically
Average differences usually quite small
Largest factors: Boys and girls spend their time differently, in segregated groups
Groups of boys more active, aggressive play
Groups of girls more cooperative, collaborative
Average difference between genders much smaller than the range of differences within each gender

33. The Role of Biology in Generating Sex Differences
Hormones
Masculinizing hormones (androgens)
Link between boys’ androgen levels and aggressiveness
Hormonal changes at puberty may cause some behavioral differences
Experiences may change hormone levels
Brain structures
Greater lateralization in males than females
Experiences may change brain structures

34. The Role of Cognition Generating Sex Differences
Advances in reasoning
Gender identity partly a function of logical thinking
Self-socialization, intrinsic motivation to learn what it means to be male or female
Information processing emphasizes gender schemas
A gender schema is a network of expectations and beliefs about male and female characteristics
Gender schemas affect how children evaluate behavior, and kinds of behaviors they choose
Knowledge of stereotypes influences children even when they are untrue

35. The Role of Parenting in Generating Sex Differences
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory
Identification with the same-sex parent to resolve the Oedipus/Electra complex
Identification involves imitation
Social learning theories
Different parent behavior with boys and girls
Direct teaching of gendered behaviors
Rewards and punishments for gendered behaviors

36. The Role of Peer Interactions in Generating Sex Differences
Girls spend much of their unstructured time with girls, and boys with boys
Sex-segregated peer groups magnify differences
Within gendered peer groups, children develop more differentiated interaction styles than predicted by biology or parenting
Evidence of social dosage effect; more time in same-gender groups related to increases in gender-related behaviors
Adolescents begin to build cross-gender groups, but different interaction styles can create difficulty

37. A Multidimensional Theory of Sex Differences
Sex role development is multidimensional
Empirical support for several explanations
Each has important limitations
Three categories of variables interact reciprocally
Personal influences; concepts of gender, affective and biological features
Behavioral influences; learning and execution of activities that are linked to gender
Environmental influences; family, peer, societal
Influences interact to mold motivational and self-regulatory structures that determine behavior

38. Peer Relationships The peer group
Emergent properties of groups (e.g., norms) define relationships and interactions
Distinct from social interactions or friendships
Social competence
Affective responses (e.g., empathy)
Cognitive processes (e.g., perspective taking)
Ability to make mature moral judgments
Important criterion for peer group acceptance
Social skills
Discrete, observable behaviors (e.g., making eye contact, using appropriate language)
Important contributors to social competence

39. Analysis of the World of Peers
Sociometry: Measurement of individual status within the peer group
Method of assessing social competence
Uses children’s nomination of their peers to evaluate peer status
Combines positive forces (attraction), negative forces (repulsion), and indifference (absence of attraction or repulsion)
Social preference score = count of positive vs. negative peer nominations or mentions
Social impact score = total of both positive and negative nominations

40. Sociometric Statuses
Popular children are those who receive many positive nominations and few negative
Rejected children are those who receive many negative nominations and few positive
Neglected children are those who receive few nominations, either positive or negative
Average children are those who receive an average number of positive and negative nominations (near their group mean)
Controversial children are those who receive many negative and many positive nominations

41. Individual Characteristics Related to Sociometric Status
Popular: Greater perspective-taking skills, self-regulation, self-control, problem- solving ability
Rejected: Least socially skilled of all groups
Rejected-aggressive: Negativity, disruptiveness
Rejected-withdrawn: Socially anxious and inept
Neglected: Less aggressive and less sociable, but not especially anxious
Average: Lower social competence than popular, but less aggression than rejected- aggressive
Controversial: Difficult to typify because they are few in number, status lacks measurement stability

42. Sociometry Gender and cultural differences
Less tolerance of gender-inconsistent behavior by males, socially withdrawn girls less rejected
Aggression associated with peer rejection, and helpfulness is associated with popularity, across Western and non-Western cultures
Some differences in how adults intervene
Stability of categories and outcomes
Popular and rejected, most extreme categories, also the most stable
Neglected and controversial status categories show most instability

43. Measurement of the Peer Group: Another Level of Analysis
Cliques and crowds are networks of individuals associated with a set of norms, dress, and behaviors
Terms peer group and clique interchangeable
Crowds are larger collectives of multiple cliques
Social category rather than actual friendship groups
More significant in late childhood, early adolescence
Why do cliques form? Satisfy important social needs
Need to establish an identity
Need for acceptance and belonging
Peer group influences are both positive and negative

44. Peer Groups’ Influence on Behavior
Peer groups are important social contexts that reinforce ways of thinking and behaving
Beneficial as well as potentially harmful aspects
Peer relationships are important protective factors
Peer pressure often indirect rather than coercive
Peer groups can limit range of opportunities
Groups form through both influence and selection
Influence: Peer groups cause an individual to conform to the norms of the group
Selection: Individuals choose to affiliate with others who share similar behaviors or attributes

45. Applications: Good Peer Relationships
As children mature, friendships, peer groups, other extrafamilial settings are increasingly important
Protection and risk factors are pervasive
Good peer relationships are powerfully protective
Poor peer relationships play a prominent role in development of antisocial behavior
Assess carefully
More than one route to peer rejection
Careful observation and evaluation required
Skills are not enough
Rejected children have deficits in social skills
Individual training ineffective, include peer group

46. Applications: Gender and Risk
Challenges faced by boys and girls differ
Risks of internalizing disorder greater for girls
Some clinical syndromes more frequent among boys (e.g., ADHD, learning disorders)
Influenced by gender-role expectations
Counselors urged to examine their own schemas
Meeting the special needs of boys
Boys begin to hide feelings of sadness and fear more than girls by 3 to 4 years old
Older boys well schooled in “boy code”
Parents, teachers, and others need to support the full range of boys’ emotional expression

47. Discussion
Suzanna is considered weird by her 3rd grade classmates. She seems to have few social skills. On a sociometric analysis, Suzanna received no positive nominations from her classmates, and a large number of negative nominations. What strategies might you use to Help SuzannA develop peer relationships?
Counseling young boys requires sensitivity to society’s “boy code” and may require special strategies for putting boys at ease in the counseling context. What strategies might be helpful for working with boys in counseling settings?

48. Homework:
Complete Mid-Term (Will be available for downloading through BlackBoard starting on Sunday, March 13th)
Upload your completed exam to BlackBoard by Friday, March 18th at 11:59 p.m.
We will not meet on Monday, March 14th Although you may choose to use the classroom to work on your mid-term during that time
The Honor Code applies to the mid-term exam
You may use textbook, PPT, and other class resources for your mid-term; any other outside references used should be fully cited
Group Two Project: Submit video and questions to Blackboard by March 18th
Everyone: Read chapter 9 & 10 before the next class
Have a great week and spring break!