Module 17

Infancy & Childhood

INTRODUCTION

• Reactive attachment disorder– psychiatric illness characterized by serious problems in

emotional attachments beginning before age 5

– symptoms include resisting comfort and affection by parents, being overly friendly with strangers, forming poor peer relationships, and engaging in destructive behavior to self and others

• Nature-nurture question– asks how much nature (genetic factors) and how much

nurture (environmental factors) contribute to a person’s biological, emotional, cognitive, personal, and social development

INTRODUCTION (CONT’D)

• Developmental psychologists– Study a person’s biological, emotional, cognitive,

personal, and social development across the life span, from infancy through late adulthood

PRENATAL INFLUENCES

• Nature and nurture– Yehudi Menuhin

• prodigy– child who shows a highly unusual talent ability– genius at a very early age– doesn’t have mental retardation– small percentage of autistic children (who

have some degree of mental retardation) may also show unusual artistic or mathematical abilities

– savants

PRENATAL INFLUENCES

• Prenatal period: three stages– Prenatal period extends from conception to birth and

lasts about 266 days (9 months) – Three successive phases

• germinal• embryonic• fetal

– During prenatal period, a single cell will divide and grow to form 200 billion cells

PRENATAL INFLUENCES

1. Germinal stage• first stage of prenatal development• two-week period following conception

– Ovulation• release of an ovum or egg cell from a women’s

ovaries– Conception or fertilization

• occurs if one of the millions of sperm penetrates the ovum’s outer membrane

• after penetration, outer membrane becomes impenetrable to the millions of remaining sperm

• fertilized ovum is called “zygote”

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

2. Embryonic stage– Second stage of the prenatal period– Spans the 2 to 8 weeks that follow conception– During this stage, cells divide and begin to

differentiate into bone, muscle, and body organs

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

3. Fetal stage– Begins two months after conception and lasts until

birth– Fetus develops vital organs, such as lungs, and

physical characteristics that are distinctly human– During embryonic and fetal stages, the developing

organism is especially vulnerable to toxic agents– Protected by the placenta

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• Placenta and teratogens– Placenta

• organ that connects the blood supply of the mother to that of the fetus

• acts like a filter: allows oxygen and nutrients to pass through while keeping out some toxic or harmful substances

– Teratogen• any agent that can harm a developing fetus

(cause deformities or brain damage)• disease, drug, or other environmental agent

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• Birth defects and amniocentesis– Possible to test during fetal stage for a number of

genetic errors– Amniocentesis

• medical test done between weeks 14 and 20 of pregnancy

• involves inserting a long needle through the mother’s abdominal muscles into the amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus

• fetal cells are analyzed in the fluid

• more than 450 genetic disorders can now be tested and identified

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• Birth defects and amniocentesis– Down’s syndrome

• results from extra 21st chromosome• causes abnormal physical traits• fold of skin at the corner of each eye, wide

tongue, heart defects• abnormal brain development, resulting in

degrees of mental retardation

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• Drugs and prenatal development– Drug use during pregnancy

• caffeine– as little as one cup of coffee a day increases

risk of having an underweight baby• cocaine and other drugs

– pregnant women using drugs such as alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, or opiates had babies with» lower birth weight

» poor feeding habits

» greater risk for developing other problems

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• Drugs and prenatal development– Smoking and nicotine

• 13% of pregnant women smoke• increases the risk of

– ADHD (three times the risk)

– low birth weight

– pre-term deliveries

– possible physical problems

– SIDS

– respiratory infections

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• Drugs and prenatal development– Alcohol

• heavy drinking; fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)• FAS results from a mother drinking heavily during

pregnancy, especially in the first 12 weeks• FAS results in

– short stature, flattened nose, short eye openings, neurological changes, hyperactivity, impulsive behavior, deficits in information processing, drug and alcohol abuse

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• Drugs and prenatal development– Alcohol

• moderate drinking; fetal alcohol effects (FAE)• FAS results from a mother having 7 to 14 drinks

per week during pregnancy• FAE less severe than FAS• FAE results in

– deficiencies in cognitive tasks, academic skills, fine motor speed, and coordination

PRENATAL INFLUENCES (CONT’D)

• The environment and prenatal development– Lead

• levels of lead in the blood system are associated with low IQ scores in children

• likelihood of antisocial acts such as, assaults, truancy, and disorderly conduct

• some lead sources = paint, gasoline, industr– Air pollutants

• prenatal exposure to air pollutants, such as gasoline, diesel, and coal have negative impact on children’s cognitive development

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Genetic development program– Mother contributes 23 chromosomes and father

contributes 23 chromosomes– Each child receives a unique genetic program– Brain growth– Genetic program (after birth) regulates how the brain

develops– Makes thousands of connections between neurons

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Genetic development program– Brain growth

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Sensory development– Faces

• newborns show a preference for their mother’s face over strangers’ faces the first few days after birth

• newborns recognize a person’s eyes• 4 months

– infant can visually distinguish his or her mother’s face from strangers

• 3 to 4 years– visual abilities are equal to those of an adult

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Sensory development– Hearing

• one-month-olds have very keen hearing• can discriminate small sound vibrations• at 6 months, have developed the ability to make

all sounds necessary to learn language– Touch

• have well-developed sense of touch• will turn head when lightly touched on the cheek• touch also elicits other reflexes such as grasping

and sucking

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Sensory development– Smell and taste

• infants at one-day-old can discriminate a few odors such as citrus and floral

• six-week-old infants can smell the difference between their mother and a stranger

• newborns have an inborn preference for both sweet and salt, dislike of bitter-tasting things

– Depth perception• at 6 months, infants have developed depth

perception• visual cliff

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Motor development– Refers to the stages of motor skills that all infants

pass through as they acquire the muscular control necessary for making coordinated movements

– Proximodistal principle• states that parts closer to the center of the

infant’s body develop before parts farther away– Cephalocaudal principle

• states that parts of the body closer to the head develop before parts closer to the feet

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Motor development– Maturation

• refers to developmental changes that are genetically or biologically programmed rather than acquired through learning or life experiences

– Developmental norms• refers to the average age at which children

perform various kinds of skills or exhibit abilities or behaviors

• major milestones in infants’ motor development• crawling, walking

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

• Motor development

– Environmental stimulation

• appropriate stimulation for forming the visual system, learning to speak, emotional development, and motor development

• infants can’t perform complex cognitive, sensory or motor tasks, such as walking, talking, and reading until appropriate areas of their brains develop neural connections

• genetic program needs and interacts with environmental stimulation to develop sensory, motor, and cognitive abilities

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

• Definition– Refers to the influence and interaction of genetic

factors, brain changes, cognitive factors, coping abilities, and cultural factors in the development of emotional behaviors, expressions, thoughts, and feelings

• Temperament– Refers to relatively stable and long-lasting individual

differences in mood and emotional behavior that emerge early in childhood; largely influenced by genetic factors

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Temperament and emotions– Easy babies: happy and cheerful, regular sleeping

and eating habits, adapted quickly to new situations– Slow-to-warm-up babies: more withdrawn, moody,

and tended to take longer to adapt to new situations– Difficult babies: fussy, fearful of new situations, and

more intense in their reactions– No-single-category babies: 35% of sample had

variety of traits and couldn’t be classified into one of the other three categories

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Temperament and emotions– Genetic influence

• infants develop distinct temperaments very early, usually in the first 2 to 3 months of life

• occur largely because of genetic factors rather than learning experiences

– Environmental influence• involves factors such as family influence, poverty

level, educational opportunities, and social class• interact with and can change the infant’s initial

temperament

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Temperament and emotions– Attachment

• close, fundamental emotional bond that develops between the infant and his or her parents or caregiver

• as a child shows closer attachment, he or she shows more distress when parents or caregivers temporarily leave

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Attachment– Separation anxiety

• infant’s distress whenever parents leave

• Kinds of attachments– Secure

• characteristic of infants who use their parent as a safe home base from which they can wander off and explore their environments

– Insecure• characteristic of infants who avoid or show

ambivalence or resistance toward parents

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Attachment– Kind of attachment formed in infancy is thought to be

associated with the success of future adult relationships

– Secure• associated with being better at resolving

conflicts, being more trusting, enjoying relationships, and dealing better with anxiety

– Insecure• associated with being dependent, having poor

social relationships, and showing more anxiety

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

• Piaget’s theory– Cognitive development

• refers to how a person perceives, thinks, and gains understanding of his or her world through the interaction and influence of genetic and learned factors

– Jean Piaget• greatest impact on developmental psychology

with cognitive development• both biologist and psychologist

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Piaget’s theory– Assimilation

• process by which a child uses old methods or experiences to deal with new situations

– Accommodation• process by which a child changes old methods to

deal with or adjust to new situations

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development

1. Sensorimotor stage

2. Preoperational stage

3. Concrete operations

4. Formal operations

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Sensorimotor stage– Birth to age 2

• infants interact with and learn about their environments by relating their sensory experiences to their motor experiences

– Object permanence• develops over a period of 9 months• refers to the understanding that objects or events

continue to exist even if they can no longer be heard, touched, or seen

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Preoperational stage– About age 2 to 7 years

• children learn to use symbols, such as words or mental images, to solve simple problems and to think or talk about things that aren’t present

– Conservation• the fact that even though the shape of some object or

substance changes, the total amount stays the same

– Egocentric thinking• viewing the world only from your own perspective and

having difficulty appreciating someone else’s

NEWBORNS’ ABILITIES (CONT’D)

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Concrete stage– About age 7 to 11 years– Children can perform a number of logical mental

operations on concrete objects (physically present)– Conservation

• children gradually master the concept of conservation during the concrete operations stage

– Classification• ability to classify items by color and size for example

• still have difficulty figuring out relationships among objects that aren’t present or imaginary situations

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Formal operations stage– About age 12 to adulthood– Adolescents and adults develop the ability to think

about and solve abstract problems in a logical manner

– Adolescents develop thinking and reasoning typical of adults

– Ability to think in a logical, systematic, and abstract way is one of the major characteristics of the formal operations stage

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

• Social development– How a person develops a sense of self or a self-

identity, relationships with others, and the kinds of social skills important in personal interactions

• Freud’s psychosexual stages– Five different developmental periods

1. oral

2. anal

3. phallic

4. latency

5. genital

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

• Social development– Individual seeks pleasure from different areas of the

body that are associated with sexual feelings– Freud

• child’s first five years are most important to social and personality development

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Oral stage– Early infancy to 18 months– Pleasure seeking is around the mouth– Sucking, chewing, and biting– If fixated at this stage due to oral wishes being

gratified too much or too little, could continue in adulthood seeking oral gratification

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Anal stage– 1.5 to 3 years– Infant’s pleasure seeking is centered on the anus

and its functions of elimination– If fixated, will exhibit behavioral activities in either

retention or elimination• retention

– may take form of being neat, stingy, or rigid• elimination

– may take form of being generous or messy

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Phallic stage – 3 to 6 years (early childhood)– Pleasure seeking is centered on the genitals– Competes with parent of same sex for affections and

pleasures of the parent of the opposite sex– May result in feelings of inferiority for women and of

having something to prove for men

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Latency stage – 6 to puberty (middle to late childhood)– Child represses sexual thoughts and engages in

nonsexual activities• developing social and intellectual skills

– During puberty, sexuality reappears

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Genital stage – Puberty to adulthood– Individual has renewed sexual desires that he or she

seeks to fulfill through relationships with members of the opposite sex

– Successful resolution of the conflicts in the first three stages will lead to having energy to develop loving relationships and a healthy and mature personality

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Erikson’s psychosocial stages

– Eight developmental periods during which an individual’s primary goal is to satisfy desires associated with social needs1. trust

2. autonomy

3. initiative

4. industry

5. identity

6. intimacy

7. generativity

8. ego integrity

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Erikson’s psychosocial stages– Trust versus mistrust

• early infancy through the first year• if parents are sensitive and responsive to the

child’s needs, basic trust will develop• if parents neglect needs, the child may view the

world as uncaring and learn to become mistrustful

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Erikson’s psychosocial stages– Autonomy versus shame and doubt

• late infancy (1 to 3 years)• battle of wills between parents’ wishes and

child’s desires to do as he or she pleases• if parents encourage the child to explore, a sense

of independence develops• if parents disapprove or punish the child’s

explorations, he or she may develop a feeling that independence is bad and feel shame and doubt

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Erikson’s psychosocial stages– Initiative versus guilt

• early childhood (3 to 5 years)• child develops a number of social skills that are

expected to be used to meet challenges• if parents encourage initiative, the child will

develop the ability to plan and initiate new things• if parents discourage initiative, the child may feel

guilty or uncomfortable or may feel unable to plan the future

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Erikson’s psychosocial stages– Industry versus inferiority

• middle and late childhood (5 to 12 years)• child needs to direct energy into working and

completing tasks• develops a feeling of industry• if child has difficulty applying and completing

work, he or she may develop a feeling of inferiority and incompetence

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Erikson’s psychosocial stages– Identity versus role confusion

• adolescence• if child is successful making the change to

adolescence, he or she will develop a sense of confidence and a positive identity

• if child is unsuccessful, he or she will experience role confusion

• results in having low self-esteem and becoming socially withdrawn

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Bandura’s social cognitive theory– Emphasizes the importance of learning through

observation, imitation, and self-reward– Not necessary to perform any observable behaviors

or receive any external rewards to learn new social skills because many behaviors are self-motivated

– Vulnerability• refers to psychological or environmental

difficulties that make children more at risk for developing later personality, behavioral, or social problems

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Bandura’s social cognitive theory– Resiliency

• refers to various personality, family, or environmental factors that compensate for increased life stresses so that expected problems don’t develop

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Bandura’s social cognitive theory– Gender identity

• refers to the individual’s subjective experience and feelings of being a female or male

– Gender roles• traditional or stereotypical behaviors, attitudes,

and personality traits that parents, peers, and society expect us to have because we’re male or female

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (CONT’D)

• Bandura’s social cognitive theory– Social role theory

• emphasizes the influence of social and cognitive processes on how we interpret, organize, and use information

– Cognitive developmental theory• children develop mental skills and interact with their

environments, learn one set of rules for male behaviors and another set for female

– Gender schemas• sets of information and rules organized around how

either a male or a female should think and behave

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

• Gender roles across culture– Social role theory

• emphasizes social and cultural influences

• states that gender differences between men and women arise from different divisions of labor

– Evolutionary theory• emphasizes genetic and biological forces

• current gender differences are a continuation of the behaviors that evolved from early men and women

• adapted these different behaviors in their attempts to survive the problems of their time