Infancy
Allyson Bortoletto
4/8/14
Psychology
Tara Holloway
Physical and motor development
Maturation: the internally programmed growth of a child.
 3 months - able to lift her/his head.
 4 months – smile
 5 to 6 months- grasp objects
 5 to 10 months- crawling
 If infant is able to stand then she/he is ready to walk
 Some infants started to walk early- 9 months or i12 to 13 months. The latest is 18 months.
 Because some infants are active from birth, some are quiet, cuddly, or stiff.
 By the end of the year infants will weigh 20 or 25 pounds
Perceptual abilities and intelligence
 Infants prefer looking at human faces and patterned materials.
 At 30 weeks, they will smile readily when they see someone familiar.
 7 or 8 months, infants will be able to recognize the different people.
 Depth perception with checkerboard pattern
Perceptual abilities and intelligence
The development of attachment and
caregiver
Attachment- a caregiver and infant develop a deep, caring, close, and continuing
emotional bond
 At six months, attachment between mothers and infant is developed.
 When they are able to notice one person to another and develop object performance.
 The bond will be stronger between 6 months and 3 years.
 When attachment is that strong, any disruption like strangers can be disturbing for infant.
Emotions
 When mothers and infants develop their attachment and infants’ emotions are altered.
For instance, when 1 year old meets a stranger and mother is around, the child will have
stranger anxiety. But if the mother is nearby the child the anxiety disappears.
 Separation anxiety will take place if the child is immediately separated from the mother.
 But if the separation between the child and the mother continues, the child will develop
psychological disorders.
Psychological disorders
 Secure attachment: welcomes and free of anger after mom comes back after leaving
 Avoidant attachment: avoiding or ignoring her/his mother when she leaves and returns
 Resistant attachment: aren’t upset when mother leave but act angrily when mother
returns
 Disorganized attachment: behave inconsistently. They will be confused and may not to be
upset when mother leaves but avoiding her when she returns
Object performance
Development of communication and
language
 Children will learn and imitate speech from their parents or older siblings.
 At age 1, the child will begin to babble.
For instance (dada and mama)
 At age 2, the child will progress to say many words; speaks more than one word.
For example (more ball, jenny go? And no ball)
 At 2 years old children have a vocabulary of at least 50 words.
Development of communication and
language
 18 months to 5 years of age, children will add 5 to 10 words a day.
 Children’s grammar at age 2 is called telegraphic speech: the kind of verbal words in
which words are left out but meaning is usually clear.
For example (“Where my apple?” “Daddy fall down.” “And daddy goed yesterday.”
 Their ability with words will continue to grow with their thinking and understanding things.
 By age 2 ½, the child should be able to communicate but if not then see a doctor.
Reference
Kasschau, Richard A.. Understanding psychology. New York: Glencoe, 1995. Print.