Child Development

Nature V. Nurture Debate Nature- your genes or hereditary traits determine your behaviors Nurture- your environment shapes your behavior

Emotional Development Temperament (Nature)- individual differences in attention, arousal, and reactivity to new situations Easy Babies- 40% happy, cheerful, regular eating/sleeping habits Slow to Warm Up- 15% more moody & withdrawn Difficult- 10% fearful & fussy, more serious emotional problems No-Single Category- 35% variety of traits

Emotional Development Attachment- bond between child & caregiver availability & sensitivity of care taker important to develop a strong & secure attachment

Harlow’s Attachment Studies with Monkeys Harlow isolated infant monkeys & placed them with 2 surrogate moms: on made of wire with a nipple and the other made of terry cloth The infants preferred the terry cloth mom When introduced to other monkeys they showed abnormal behaviors

Mary Ainsworth Attachment Studies Infant & mom placed in an unfamiliar room with lots of toys Researchers observe baby’s response to the environment with mom in the room, then mom leaves & then returns Secure Babies Insecure Babies

Cognitive Development Children understanding things through 2 active processes: Assimilation- child uses old method to deal with new situation Accommodation- child changes old method to deal with new situation

Jean Piaget’s Cognitive Development

Jean Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development Sensorimotor (birth-2)- learn about environment by relating it to senses or motor actions (sucking, grasping) Object Permanence (8-9mo.)- baby realizes objects still exist if not seen Preoperational (2-7)- use symbols, solve simple problems Egocentric thinking- only see things from their point of view No conservation skills

Jean Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development Concrete Operational (7-11)- perform logical mental operations on concrete objects Conservation- realize even though a shape of an object may change, the total amount remains the same Classification- classify objects in multiple categories Formal Operations (12- adult)- think about & solve abstract problems

Social Development Eric Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages Each stage is related to a different problem that needs to be resolved If we successfully deal with it then we develop positive personality traits If we are not successful then we may develop social or personality problems

Eric Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages Trust v. Mistrust (birth-1) Autonomy v. Shame & Doubt (1-3) Initiative v. Guilt (3-5) Industry v. Inferiority (5-12) Identity v. Role Confusion (adolescence) Intimacy v. Isolation (20-40) Generativity v. Stagnation (40-65) Integrity v. Despair (65+)

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Stage 1: Obedience & Punishment (1-5) Stage 2: Looking out for #1(5-10) Stage 3: Good Boy/Nice Girl (8-16) Stage 4: Law & Order Stage 5: Justice through democracy Stage 6: Universal Ethical Principal