Social and Personality Development in Infancy

1. Chapter 6: Social and Personality Development in Infancy

2. In This Chapter

3. Theories of Social and Personality DevelopmentPsychoanalytic Perspectives: Freud and Erikson Freud: psychosexual stage related to infant attempts at needs satisfaction • Oral stage • Mother-child symbiotic relationship • Nursing; fixation Erikson: psychosocial stage in which attending to infant needs and social development important • Trust versus mistrust • Relationship goes beyond feeding

4. AttachmentThe Parent’s Attachment to the Infant Synchrony: Opportunity for parent-infant development of mutual, interlocking pattern of attachment behaviors Takes practice to develop Provides developmental benefits

5. Theories of Social and Personality DevelopmentEthological Perspectives: John Bowlby Attachment: Emotional bond in which a person’s sense of security is bound up in the relationship Strong emotional bond-making is innate Bonds maintained by instinctive behaviors that create and sustain proximity

6. AttachmentThe Parent’s Attachment to the Infant Mother’s bond with infant Bond dependent on synchrony Mothers provide more routine caregiving than fathers. After first few weeks, mothers talk to and smile more at baby.

7. AttachmentThe Parent’s Attachment to the Infant Father’s bond with infant The relationship depends on synchrony. Fathers have same repertoire as mothers. After first few weeks, fathers begin to spend more time playing with baby.

8. AttachmentThe Infant’s Attachment to the Parents Characteristics of attachment Safe haven Secure base Proximity maintenance Separation distress Now let’s look at how several theorists operationalize this construct.

9. AttachmentThe Infant’s Attachment to the Parents Establishing attachment: Bowlby’s 4 phases • Nonfocused orienting and signaling (0–3 months) • Focus on one or more figures (3–6 months) • Secure base behavior (6–24 months) • Internal model (24 months and beyond)

10. AttachmentThe Infant’s Attachment to the Parents Establishing attachment: Bowlby’s 4 phases How would you recognize each of Bowlby’s phases? What behaviors would you expect to see?

11. AttachmentThe Infant’s Attachment to the Parents Attachment behaviors

12. AttachmentSecure and Insecure Attachments Mary Ainsworth Protocol: The Strange Situation Attachment styles: Secure attachment Insecure/avoidant attachment Insecure/ambivalent attachment Insecure/disorganized attachment

13. AttachmentStability of Attachment Quality Attachment stability Dependent on consistency of child’s life circumstances Influenced by major upheavals Internal models elaborated from year 1 until the age of 4 or 5

14. AttachmentCaregiver Characteristics and Attachment Caregivers and attachment Several characteristics influence the attachment process: • Emotional availability • Contingent responsiveness

15. AttachmentSecure and Insecure Attachments Insecure attachments • Insecure/avoidant attachment • Insecure/ambivalent attachment • Insecure/disorganized attachment

16. AttachmentCaregiver Characteristics and Attachment Other caregiver characteristics influencing secure attachment • Marital status • Education • Age • SES • Mental health

17. ? ? Questions To Ponder What kind of attachment do you have with your parents? Has it changed since you were a child, or does it reflect the type of attachment you had when you were younger? What factors will influence your choice of childcare if the one or both parents decide to work? What would be best for your child?

18. AttachmentAttachment Quality: Long Term Consequences The securely attached: • More sociable • More positive in relationships with friends • Less clingy and dependent on teachers • Less aggressive and disruptive • More emotionally mature Continues into adolescence • More likely to be leaders • Have higher self-esteem

19. AttachmentAttachment Quality: Long-Term Consequences Attachment quality and consequences • Increased sociability throughout early, middle, and late adulthood • Influence on parenting behaviors • Foundation for future social relationships

20. Figure 6.1 Cross-Cultural Comparisons of Attachment Categories

21. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptDefinitions Personality: Stable patterns in how people relate to those around them Temperament: Basic behavioral and emotional predispositions

22. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptDimensions of Temperament Dimensions of temperament: How are these theorist alike? Different? • Thomas and Chess • Buss and Plomin How might results differ when temperament is viewed as a trait rather than a category?

23. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptOrigins and Stability of Temperament Heredity • Identical twins more alike in temperament than fraternal twins Long-term Stability • Stable across long periods of time

24. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptNeurological Processes Heredity • Basic differences in behaviors related to underlying neurological processes • Neurotransmitters regulate brain responses to new information and unusual situations. • Still difficult to demonstrate conclusively that neurological differences are cause or effect

25. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptOrigins and Stability of Temperament Environment Sandra Scarr • Niche-picking Thomas and Chess • Goodness of fit Synchronous relationships Parental influence with children at temperamental extremes

26. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptUnderstanding Infant Sense of Self

27. Stop and Think! During the same months in which infants are developing an internal model of attachment and exploring their own unique temperament, they are also developing a unique sense of self. What implication does this have for parents and caregivers?

28. Personality, Temperament, and Self-Concept Self-concept The subjective self • Awareness by the child that he is separate from others and endures over time • Appears by 8–12 months at the same time as object permanence Self-concept The objective self • Toddler comes to understand he is an object in the world. • The self has properties, such as gender.

29. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptStudying Self-Awareness Rouge test (Lewis and Brooks) Children at 21 months show self-recognition in a mirror. What does this tell us about children’s development? How do you know?

30. Figure 6.2: The Rouge Test

31. Personality, Temperament, and Self-ConceptThe Emotional Self First, babies learn to identify changes in emotional expression. Gradually they learn to “read” and respond to facial expressions. With age and experience, infants learn to interpret emotional perceptions of others to anticipate actions and guide own behavior.

32. True or False? Nonparental, quality care is beneficial for all children.

33. Effects of Nonparental CareOverview Arrangements vary considerably. Time in care varies. Some children in multiple care settings Younger children less likely to receive nonparental care

34. Figure 6.3 Nonparental Care Arrangements for Children under 6 in the U.S.

35. Effects of Nonparental CareEffects on Cognitive Development High-quality daycare has beneficial effects, especially for children from poor families. Later scores in reading and math related to daycare entry age and poverty

36. Effects of Nonparental CareEffects on Social Development Infant daycare has negative effects on attachment if started under 1 year. Parents whose behaviors are associated with insecure attachment have children who are negatively affected by early daycare. Early day care associated with greater risks for social problems in school-age children

37. Effects of Nonparental Care Research Challenges Complex interaction among numerous variables in all care types Nonparental care varies in quality and structure. Maternal attitudes toward care arrangement vary. Multiple care settings difficult to separate

38. Effects of Nonparental CareWhat’s Responsible? Nonparental care may induce child stress, causing higher levels of cortisol. Variations in ways stress-induced related to child age and temperament Individual and gender differences interact with nonparental care.