1. Infancy Social Development

2. Attachment
Attachment- an active and intense emotional relationship between two people
Infants are basically helpless and dependent on others, so feelings of attachment are essential to their survival
Infants usually become most attached to their mothers (their primary caregivers)
Around 8 months some infants develop stranger anxiety- don’t like being around strangers
Same age they can develop Separation Anxiety- don’t like being away from their mothers

3. Contact Comfort
Psychologists long thought that infants were just attached to those who fed them.
Study done in which monkeys had two mothers; one wired and had milk, the other no milk but soft cloth. Monkeys chose to always be with their cloth moms.
Contact Comfort- the instinctual need to touch and be touched by something soft
This need is even stronger than the infant’s need for food
Contact comfort also makes infants more likely to explore as long as they know their mother is close by

4. Imprinting
Imprinting- the process by which some animals form immediate attachments during a critical period
For example, ducks and geese become attached to the first moving object they see
It takes several months for humans to become attached to their main caregivers, it is not immediate like other animals

5. Secure vs Insecure Attachments
When caregivers are affectionate and reliable, infants. become securely attached. Meaning they are very bonded to them
They cry when the caregiver leaves and are happy when they return.
Unresponsive caregivers lead to insecurely attached infants. They don’t mind when the caregiver leaves and don’t really care to make contact with them when they return.
Secure infants usually mature into secure children, who are happier, friendlier, and do better in school than insecure children.

6. Styles of Parenting
Strict
Permissive
Cold
Warm
Demanding
Controlling
Dictatorial
Antagonistic
Lenient
Democratic
Inconsistent
Overindulgent
Indifferent
Careless
Detached
Inattentive
Affectionate
Supportive
Protective
Caring
Research suggest that children fare better with warm parents in the long run. More likely to have a better sense of right and wrong. Children of cold parents usually just try to escape punishment instead.

7. Child Abuse and Neglect
Child abuse-physical, sexual, and psychological- is relatively widespread even though it is seriously underreported.
More health problems and deaths result from neglect than from child abuse
Studies show that children who are abused are at a higher risk of developing psych problems.
Child abuse tends to run in families
But it can be broken. With the care from a non abusive adult, therapy, and having a non abusive partner.

8. Self Esteem
Self Esteem- the value or worth that people attach to themselves
By the age of seven, children begin to value themselves on physical appearance and performance in school
Girls display greater competence in reading and general academic skills
Boys display competence in math and physical skills
The reason may point to people around them suggesting that this is what they are SUPPOSED to be good at
Girls think they will do better on tasks labeled feminine
Boys do better on tasks labeled masculine
People generally live up to the expectations that they have and others have for them

9. Attachment Writing
Imagine a world in which all newborns are raised by robots in a separate facility, where they do not have contact with their parents or other humans.
How is the world depicted in the story different from the world in which we live?
How would your life be different if you had been raised in such a world?

10. Parenting Writing
Brainstorm a hypothetical incident between a parent and child. For example, the child steals a candy bar from the display at the supermarket. (Don’t steal my example)
Consider the four parenting style combinations: warm- permissive, warm-strict, cold-permissive, and cold-strict.
How would a parent from each combination react to the situation?
What are some possible effects on the child based off the parent’s reaction?

11. Questions
Name and describe the two types of anxiety that strike infants around the age of eight months.
What does it mean f or a child to be insecurely attached, and what can be the result for the child?
What do you think children who have been abused are more likely to suffer from psychological problems, such as anxiety, depression, and low self esteem?
How do you think boys and girls can be helped to display competence in areas that they presently do not?
What combination of parenting qualities do you think is best for raising a child? What combination of parenting qualities are you likely to exhibit based on your personality?