Three key questions for social development I?
1/ Do infants have personality?
2/ How do infants become social beings?
3/ What is the impact of parenting?
When does an emotional bond begin and how does this manifest itself?
There are emotional bonds from birth - mutual gaze between mother and baby.
When do we see early understanding and how does this manifest itself?
Early understanding: At 3-4 months, can match emotions in voices to faces.
What happens at 3-4 months?
Early understanding: At 3-4 months, can match emotions in voices to faces.
When do we see social referencing and how does this manifest itself?
Social referencing: At 8 – 10 months, can use emotional displays to evaluate a situation.
What happens at 8-10 months?
Social referencing: At 8 – 10 months, can use emotional displays to evaluate a situation.
What is temperament?
Temperament is an early form of personality- behavioural differences between babies.
What scientific study tested temperament?
Thomas & Chess (1977)
What three things is temperament measured with?
Emotion – distress or positive affect
Attention – persistence or distractibility
Activity level – low or high
What are the three types of infants in relation to temperament?
Easy, Difficult and Slow to Warm Up infants.
Frequency of easy infants?
40% of infants
What are the characteristics of easy infants?
Generally cheerful, adapts well to new experiences and regular routines.
Frequency of difficult infants?
10% of infants?
What are the characteristics of difficult infants?
Intense, negative reactions, slow to adapt to new experiences and irregular routines.
What are the characteristics of slow to warm up infants?
Negative mood, slow to adapt to new experiences and mild reactions.
Frequency of slow to warm up infants?
15% of infants
Nature as the origin of temperament?
Significant genetic component – identical twins more similar than fraternal twins (who share less genetic material).
What can early temperaments predict?
Early temperaments can predict personality later in life… Eg, Difficult infants can become more aggressive children.
Nurture as the origin of temperament?
Early on, teratogens and stress can modify temperament.
Also, how well parental response suits infant’s temperament.
Parents and the environment can reinforce or modify temperament.
However – parents often reinforce temperament. Difficult babies less likely to relieve sensitive caregiving.
What is attachment?
Hallmark of social behaviour- we form selective and special relationships with others.
How does attachment begin
It begins with infant-caregiver bond.
What is the behaviourist perspective of attachment?
Behaviourist perspective – close contact with mother associated with relief of hunger.
What was Harlow’s (1959) opposing idea of the behaviourist perspective on attachment?
Harlow (1959) – opposite idea – warm, comforting contact is primary – feeding is a consequence.
What important questions connects feeding and attachment.
Does feeding cause attachment or does attachment cause feeding?
Results and significance of Harlow (1959)?
Newborn monkeys preferred a ‘soft’ artificial mother vs. a ‘wire’ artificial mother with a milk nipple.
Supports the idea that attachment is primary – newborn monkeys sought comfort over food- refutes behaviourist view.
In real-life, sources of comfort are likely to also provide food.
What the results of extreme deprivation of newborn monkeys?
Newborn monkeys isolated for a year from social contact – serious behavioural problems.
Withdrawal from contact, huddling and rocking, abnormal sexual relations, killed offspring.
What were the results of extreme deprivation of orphans?
Late-adopted Romanian orphans – also have dramatic problems. Poor interaction with adoptive parents, overfriendly with strangers.
In the stages of attachment, what happens between 0-6 weeks?
‘Pre-attachment’- recognise mother and distinguish from stanger.
In the stages of attachment, between what ages do we see ‘pre-attachment’.
0-6 weeks
In the stages of attachment, what happens at 6 weeks up to 8 months.
‘attachment in the making’- behave differently around mother than stranger.
In the stages of attachment, at what ages do we see attachment in the making?
6 weeks up to 8 months
In the stages of attachment, what happens at 6 months up to 2 years?
‘Clear attachment’ - attachment has been formed and separation anxiety occurs.
In the stages of attachment, at what ages do we see ‘clear attachment’?
6 months up to 2 years.
In the stages of attachment, what happens between 18-24 months onwards?
‘Reciprocal attachment’- development of representational skills allows toddler to predict mother’s coming and going.
In the stages of attachment, between what ages do we see ‘reciprocal attachment’?
between 18-24 months and onwards
What did Ainsworth et al (1978) study and what happened?
Ainsworth et al. (1978) – Assess differences in attachment styles.
Infant plays with mother and stranger in unfamiliar playroom
Mother leaves room – infant left with stranger.
Stranger leaves room, mother returns.
How does infant respond when mother returns?
In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what were the four variations in attachment?
Secure, avoidant, ambivalent and disorganised.
In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘secure’ described as?
Happy when mother returns and receptive to her contact.
In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘avoidant’ described as?
Avoid or ignore their mother upon her return.
In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘ambivalent’ described as?
Alternate between clinging to mother or angrily rejecting her contact.
In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘disorganised’ described as?
Bahviour is incoherent. May cry after being comforted or reach for mother while looking away.
What are the characteristics of a person who had a secure attachment?
Better friendships as child and teenager.
Better romantic relationships.
Less aggressive and require less discipline.
Higher levels of education.
Why did children with a secure attachment have good social skills when they grow up?
Relation with parent sets up internal working model of how social relationships work.
Positive relationship with mother creates expectations for other relationships.
What promotes secure attachment?
Sensitive caregiving promotes secure attachment – mother is tender and responsive to child’s needs.
How can social or cultural factors effect whether a child has secure attachment or not?
Problems if mother rejects or neglects child.
North America – secure attachment is common
Northern Germany - avoidant pattern is common –parents encourage independence in children.
Japan - mothers are rarely apart from infant.
Can daycare disrupt attachment?
Even though separations are brief with daily reunions, research suggest that infants in daycare are less securely attached – but could have simply adapted to mother’s absence.
However, quality of daycare and parental sensitivity are most important factors.
What are the three dimensions of infant behaviour?
Temperament, attachment and parental style.
What are the four parental styles?
Authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, uninvolved.
Describe the authoritative parental style?
‘firm but fair’ – set reasonable rules and reason with children.
Describe the authoritarian parental style?
strict and punish harshly. Expect obedience without explanation.
Describe the permissive parental style?
affectionate, but discipline is lax.
Describe the uninvolved parental style?
minimal effort, neglect.
What form of parental style is the most effective and what is its effect?
Authoritative parenting is most effective – children are friendly, responsible and self-reliant.
What can be the effects of using the other three ineffective parental styles?
Behavioural and emotional problems associated with other parenting styles.
Children may be aggressive and less socially skilled.
Problems depend on exact type of parenting.
What is the bidirectional influences of a childs personality?
Bidirectional influences – Temperament can influence parenting – but parenting can influence temperament…. Or more generally, does parenting cause the child’s behaviour – or is the parent’s behaviour a response to the child?
Three conclusions for social development I?
1/ Infants have ‘mini personalities’ - differing emotions and behavioural patterns.
2/ Infants form attachments with their caregivers - secure or insecure. Predicts social behaviour in later childhood.
3/ Parents vary in affection and discipline. Parenting style interacts with the child temperament.