1. Introduction
2. Fact or Fiction?
3. Emotional Development
4. Theories about Infant Socioemotional Development
5. The Development of Social Bonds
6. Closing Thoughts
2
Introduction
Video:
Topic 7
3
Socioemotional Development
Fact or Fiction?
Fiction
Fact
1. Infant fear, as expressed in stranger
wariness, signals abnormal behavior.
2. In part because of inborn temperamental
characteristics, some children are more
difficult to raise and harder to live with.
3. Attachment patterns established in
infancy almost never change.
4. High-quality day care, even during the infant’s first
year, does not lead to negative developmental outcomes.
4
Specific Emotions
How do infants express emotions?
Happy or Content
Angry or Sad
4-8 months - anger
Angry - healthy response to
frustration
6 weeks - social smile
3 months- laughter; curiosity
4 months - full, responsive
smiles
Sadness - indicates
withdrawal
Fearful
9-14 months - with strangers
(stranger wariness; separation
anxiety)
12 months - fear of
unexpected sights and sounds
Click to play video:
Stranger Fear
Pride or Shame
18 months—self-awareness;
pride; shame; embarrassment
Infant Emotions
Click to play video:
Separation Anxiety
Click to play video:
The Emergence of Empathy
5
Self-Awareness
How do younger and older infants react to the “rouge test”?
9 months
baby
self-awareness:
Realization that
one is a distinct
individual.
20 months
baby
9
Self-Awareness
Video:
Developing Self-Awareness
10
Temperament
temperament: Inborn differences between one person
and another in emotions, activity, and self-regulation.
Do Babies’ Temperaments Change?
Inhibited (fearful) at 4 months and...
Fearful at 9,14,24
and 48 months
Variable (sometimes
fearful, sometimes not)
Fearful
(every later time)
42%
Positive
(every later time)
12%
44%
Positive (exuberant) at 4 months and...
5%
15%
80%
Positive at 9,14,24
and 48 months
Variable (sometimes
fearful, sometimes not)
11
Temperament
Video:
Stability of Behavior
12
Psychoanalytical Theory
What are the two main psychoanalytical
views of stages in infancy?
Sexual interest and
pleasure expressed
first in the oral stage,
then the anal stage!
Sigmund Freud
Developmental
crises involve trust
versus mistrust,
followed by
autonomy versus
shame and doubt!
Erik Erikson
13
Behaviorism
social learning: Learning by observing others—both what
they do and how other people react to their behavior.
How do children learn aggression?
Experimental
Group
Watched
model act
aggressively
toward doll
Experienced
frustration
Was placed
in room
with doll
Displayed highly
aggressive behavior
imitating model’s actions
Control
Group
Did not
watch the
model
Experienced
frustration
Was placed
in room
with doll
Displayed less aggression,
mainly limited to
punching doll with fists
14
Behaviorism
Video:
Bandura’s Bobo Doll Study
15
Cognitive Theory
working model: In cognitive theory, a set of
assumptions that the individual uses to organize
perceptions and experiences.
How do early relationships help form a person’s later assumptions?
16
Sociocultural Theory
proximal parenting: Caregiving practices that involve being physically close
to a baby, with frequent holding and touching.
distal parenting: Caregiving practices that involve remaining distant from a
baby, providing toys, food, and face-to-face communication with minimal
holding and touching.
How does infant behavior in rural Cameroon and urban Greece compare?
INFANTS IN RURAL CAMEROON AND URBAN GREECE
Cameroon
Athens, Greece
100%
31%
3%
40%
Self-recognition
3%
68%
Immediate compliance with request
72%
2%
I.Infant—mother play at 3 months
Percent of time held by mother
Percent of time playing with objects
I.Toddler behavior at 18 months
Source: Adapted from Keller et al., 2004
17
Synchrony
synchrony: A coordinated,
rapid, and smooth exchange
of responses between a
caregiver and an infant.
How do infants learn of
others’ emotions?
18
Attachment
attachment: According to Ainsworth, an affectional
tie that an infant forms with a caregiver.
What are patterns of infant attachment?
PATTERNS OF INFANT ATTACHMENT
Type
Name of Pattern
In Play Room
Mother Leaves
Mother Returns
Toddlers in
Category (%)
A
Insecure-avoidant
Child plays happily
Child continues
playing
Child ignores her
10-20
B
Secure
Child plays happily
Child pauses, is not
as happy
Child welcomes her,
returns to play
50-70
C
Insecureresistant/ambivalent
Child clings, is
preoccupied with
mother
Child is unhappy,
may stop playing
Child is angry; may
cry, hit mother, cling
10-20
D
Disorganized
Child is cautious
Child may stare or
yell; looks scared,
confused
Child acts oddly—may
scream, hit self,
throw things
5-10
19
Attachment
Video:
Interview with Gilda Morelli
20
Social Referencing
social referencing: Seeking
information about how to
react to an unfamiliar or
ambiguous object or event
by observing someone else’s
expressions and reactions.
21
Social Referencing
Video:
Social Referencing
22
Infant Day Care
center day care: Child care that occurs in a place especially designed
for the purpose, where several paid adults care for many children.
How much do different countries use center-based care for infants?
Most use of centerbased infant care
In-between use of
center-based infant care
Less use of centerbased infant care
China
Central America
Latin America
Sweden
India
North America
Israel
France
Ethiopia
23
Infant Day Care
Video:
Best Practices in Child Care:
Continuity of Care
24
Closing Thoughts
If you were to give advice to a friend with a newborn,
what would you tell him about the keys to creating a
strong social bond with his infant?
25