Infancy and Childhood
Social Development
Maturation
• Maturation is the
physical development of
a person.
• First you roll over, then
crawl, then walk, then
run.
• Some babies skip
crawling but that can be
bad for cognitive
development.
Stranger Anxiety
Attachment
• An emotional tie with another
person; shown in young children
by their seeking closeness to the
caregiver and showing distress in
separation.
Factors of Attachment
• Body Contact
• Familiarity
• Responsive Parenting
Body Contact
• It was first assumed that infants
became attached to those who
satisfied their need for
nourishment.
Then this guy came along……..
Harry Harlow and his
Discovered that
monkeys preferred
the soft body contact
comfort of a cloth
mother, over the
nourishment of a
hard/wirily mother.
Familiarity
• Attachments based on familiarity are
formed during our critical periods.
.
• In general, a critical period is a limited time in which an
event can occur, usually to result in some kind of
transformation. A "critical period" in developmental
psychology is a time in the early stages of an organism's
life during which it displays a heightened sensitivity to
certain environmental stimuli, and develops in particular
ways due to experiences at this time. If the organism
does not receive the appropriate stimulus during this
"critical period", it may be difficult, ultimately less
successful, or even impossible, to develop some
functions later in life the optimal period shortly after birth
when an organism’s exposure to certain stimuli or
experiences produce proper development
Konrad Lorenz
• Konrad Lorenz studied how goslings (baby
geese) will imprint themselves to a human
if they get human exposure during a
critical period
Same with dogs
Responsive Parenting
Do parents play a part in your attachment?
•Mary Ainsworth Stranger Paradigm
•Van den Boom’s Research
Deprivation of Attachment
• Often withdrawn, frightened and in
extreme cases speechless.
•Harlow’s monkeys would either cower in
fright or act extremely aggressive. Many
could not mate and if they could, the
mothers were unresponsive parents.
•Is there a connection between crime and
lack of childhood attachment?
Daycare
• High Quality daycare has shown no
detrimental effects on children over
the age of two.
•The studies go both ways for children
under the age of two- no clear answer
yet.
Self - Concept
• A sense of one’s identity and selfworth.
When does self-awareness start?
Child Attachment Styles
based on Ainsworth’s (1971) “The
Strange Situation” studies
• Mary Ainsworth studied children's’
attachment styles. She would place a
mother and young child in a room. The
independent variable was a “strange
situation” like a stranger or have the
mother leave the room. The dependent
variable was how the child would react.
Ainsworth’s attachment styles
• Mary Ainsworth would have a stranger enter
the room. Children with a secure
attachment would go to the mother for
comfort when a stranger entered the room.
The child would cry when the mother left but
was happy when the mother returned.
• Most common (66%)
Ainsworth’s attachment styles
• Insecure-avoidant (20%) – not distressed
at mother leaving or stranger arriving;
cool response when mother returns
• Probably caused by distant mothers
Ainsworth’s attachment styles
• insecure- resistant (12%) – clingy to
mother; traumatized by every stage of the
experiment; distrustful of their mothers
• Caused by over-bearing, controlling
mothers
General Parenting Styles
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Based on Diana Baumrind’s studies
They are:
Permissive
Authoritarian
Authoritative
Permissive Parents
• Parents submit to
their children’s
desires, make
few demands and
use little
punishment.
Authoritarian Parents
• Impose rules and
expect obedience.
•“Why, because I said
so!!!!”
•What word that begins
with A describes an
authoritarian?
Authoritative Parents
• Parents are both
demanding and
responsive.
• Exert control by
setting rules, but
explain reasoning
behind the rules.
• Encourage open
discussion.