FORUM WEEK 5

02 Jun FORUM WEEK 5

Describe Attachment and discuss the relationship between Attachment and Psychological Development in childhood. Why is it important? What happens if Attachment does not securely develop?

 

Criteria/ 300 Level   Forum Rubric

Possible Points

Student Points

 

Initial post

 

Analyzed the   question(s), fact(s), issue(s), etc. and provided well-reasoned and   substantive answers.

20

 

Supported ideas and   responses using appropriate examples and references from texts, professional   and/or academic websites, and other references.  (All references must be   from professional and/or academic sources. Websites such as Wikipedia,   about.com, and others such as these are NOT acceptable.)

20

 

Post meets the 300   word minimum requirement and is free from spelling/grammar errors

Emotional and Social Development

The emotional and social development of infants and young children is essential to lifelong mental well-being. In this lesson, you will learn about Erikson’s psychosocial theory of development, the components of temperament, the features of attachment, and the emergence of self-awareness. These components come together to form the child’s personality and are impacted by parental care, socioeconomic status and other factors.

TOPICS TO BE COVERED INCLUDE:

· The first two stages of Erikson’s psychosocial theory, noting the personality changes that take place during each stage.

· The three underlying components of temperament.

· The unique features of the ethological theory of attachment.

· The emergence of self-awareness in infancy and toddlerhood, along with the emotional and social capacities it supports.

Fundamentals of Emotional Development

Both emotional development and social development contribute to a child’s psychological well-being throughout life and are influenced by biological traits and experiences in the environment, particularly those involving important others such as parents and close caregivers.

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· Social and emotional development are very closely linked to one another; in fact, they share many of the same traits and behaviors. For instance, think about an interaction with a happy baby. The baby smiles and laughs, so you continue playing. The smiles and laughter represent emotional development; however, these are also social behaviors.

Both emotional development and social development contribute to a child’s psychological well-being throughout life and are influenced by biological traits and experiences in the environment, particularly those involving important others such as parents and close caregivers.

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· Social and emotional development are very closely linked to one another; in fact, they share many of the same traits and behaviors. For instance, think about an interaction with a happy baby. The baby smiles and laughs, so you continue playing. The smiles and laughter represent emotional development; however, these are also social behaviors.

The social smile or intentional smile that reflects happy feelings appears about six to 10 weeks and laughter at about three to four months of age.

Anger begins to increase at around four to six months old. Babies want to their control own actions at this time and may express significant frustration.

Fear also begins to increase at around four to six months old. Stranger anxiety and separation anxiety are the most common early manifestations of fear

More advanced or higher-order emotions emerge in toddlerhood with a sense of self-awareness and growing emotional range, such as shame, guilt, pride, and empathy.

Social Development

Social development includes learning the values, knowledge, and skills needed to relate to and get along with others while getting one’s needs met in appropriate ways. Infants have rudimentary social skills largely focused on bonding with parents and caregivers, such as eye contact, smiling, and “conversational” turn taking. Conversational turn taking occurs when the infant and parent “talk” to one another, or the infant waits for a response before continuing to babble, make faces or laugh. Advances in toddlerhood and beyond to form attachments and relationships and help learn skills such as self-control, cooperation, assertion, and responsibility.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory

· EARLY FOUNDATION OF PERSONALITY

· PSYCHOSOCIAL THEORY

· STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT

· POINTS OF CONFLICT

The foundation of personality is laid down early in life as seen in Erikson’s psychosocial theory of personality development. During infancy and toddlerhood, this is driven by the establishment of trust versus mistrust and autonomy versus shame and doubt.

Trust versus Mistrust

The first stage of psychosocial development is defined by the conflict between trust and mistrust. The stage lasts from birth to 18 months of age. At this stage of physical, social, cognitive and emotional development, infants are completely dependent on their parents (and other primary caregivers).

QUALITY CARE CREATES TRUST

MINIMAL CARE DEVELOPS MISTRUST

RESOLUTION OF CONFLICT

Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt

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· The second stage of psychosocial development is defined by a conflict between autonomy and shame or doubt. From ages 18 months to three years, toddlers have strong need or drive for autonomy. Autonomy is independence of action, thought and will. Toddlers need to be allowed and encouraged to explore and use new skills and abilities, like dressing, choosing toys and making choices about food to explore self-confidence.

Temperament

Early individual biologically-based differences in disposition known as temperament are organized by a number of aspects, particularly emotion, attention, and action which interact with the child’s experiences with his or her primary caregivers.

· Temperament

· Reactivity

· Self-Regulation

INHIBITION

BIOLOGICAL BASIS

NATURAL TEMPERAMENT

PROBLEMS CAN PERSIST

Alexander Thomas and Stella Chess

Two early major researchers in personality development and temperament were Alexander Thomas and Stella Chess. Starting in the 1950s, they followed a group of children from infancy to adulthood. They found temperament can increase chances of psychological problems or can help to protect the individual from stress and a poor home life.

TEMPERAMENT TYPES

Thomas and Chess identified nine dimensions yielding three temperament types.

· Easy Child

· Difficult Child

· Slow-to-Warm-Up Child

· Blend

Mary Rothbart’s Temperament and Personality Model

Today, the most accepted model on children’s temperament and personality is the one created by Mary Rothbart. Rothbart’s theory combines traits from Thomas and Chess and other researchers to identify six dimensions of temperament. Rothbart focuses less on body functions and more on the intensity of reactions which can be positive as well as negative than Thomas and Chess did.

REACTIVITY DIMENSIONS

1. Gross Motor

2. Attention Span

3. Fearful Distress

4. Irritable Distress

5. Positive Affect

6. Rhythmicity

SELF REGULATION

SELF-REGULATION

SELF REGULATION: EFFORTFUL CONTROL

SELF REGULATION: ORIENTING/REGULATION

SELF REGULATION LEADS TO FAVORABLE OUTCOMES

DIMENSIONS OF TEMPERAMENT

Stability

Some children’s temperament remains stable through early childhood and later, sometimes even into adulthood. This is particularly true if the child scores on more extreme ends of high or low on attention, irritability, sociability, shyness, and/or effortful control. The temperament of many other children changes as they get older. The reason for these changes is simple; temperament is impacted by both nature and nurture. The temperament of children is shaped by both their inborn genetics, and the environment in which they are raised.

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· While some aspects of temperament are set at birth, many others develop with age, especially gaining effortful control, like delay of gratification or ignoring distraction. These are related to prefrontal lobe development, particularly in areas of the brain that help suppress impulses.

Cultural Differences

· COMPARISON OF TWO CULTURES

· INTERACTIONS OF GENETICS AND CULTURE

· ASIAN MOTHERS

· CAUCASIAN MOTHERS

Cultural Differences can also have a significant effect on the development of temperament. Comparisons between Japanese and Chinese infants and North American infants illustrate these in significant ways; however, it is important to note that in this comparison, there is a correlation between genetics and environment. The children in these two groups share not only environmental factors within the group, but also genetic ones.

Gender Differences

Gender differences can also impact temperament; however, it is important to note that temperament is highly individual, and that parenting can impact the connections between gender and temperament.

In the west, we typically identify boys as being more active, daring, irritable, frustrated, high-intensity, and impulsive.

Girls are generally thought to be more anxious, timid, and to have better effortful control.

Parents encourage each gender along these lines aligned with stereotypes about gender. Studies have shown, for instance, that parents spend more time talking to female children and engaging in active play with male children.

Attachment

The formation of attachment to special people is important for both physical survival and in humans sets the stage for emotional and social well‐being. It is highly related to the type of child‐rearing and caregiving received. The ability to form healthy attachments is essential for lifelong well-being.

FUNDAMENTALS OF ATTACHMENT

EXAMPLES

ATTACHMENT RESEARCH

Ethological Theory of Attachment

John Bowlby’s theory of attachment, the Ethological theory of attachment, is based on his work in ethology, or the scientific study of human and animal behavior. According to Bowlby, the infant’s emotional tie to the caretaker is strongly connected to survival. The infant has innate or inborn behaviors that keep the parent close to protect and care for the newborn. Over time, the relationship becomes deeper and fuller with both cognitive and emotional elements for the parent and child.

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· Imprinting

Bowlby’s theory is influenced by psychoanalytic theory and Konrad Lorenz’s ethological theory of imprinting. Ethology supports the idea that behavior under natural conditions is evolutionarily adaptive–humans and animals behave the way they do because it offers benefits. Lorenz suggested that humans, like other animals, imprinted or experienced a sensitive period in animal infancy where social bonds form. The theory is divided into several distinct stages, marked by different behaviors

Measuring Attachment

Researcher Mary Ainsworth worked closely with Bowlby. Ainsworth developed the Strange Situation technique to observe and the assess quality of attachment between one and two years of age. The Strange Situation technique is based on reasoning that a securely attached child would use the parent as secure base from which to explore their surroundings. When the parent leaves, an unfamiliar adult is less able to fill this role.

Bailey identified one secure attachment pattern and three insecure attachment patterns.

SECURE ATTACHMENT

INSECURE-AVOIDANT ATTACHMent

INSECURE-RESISTANT ATTACHMENT

DISORGANIZED/DISOR

The child uses the parent as secure base; when separated the child may or may not cry. If the child cries, it is because he prefers the parent to a stranger and shows pleasure and happiness when the parent returns.

INSECURE-AVOIDANT ATTACHMENT

The child is unresponsive to the parent. When the parent leaves, the child is not distressed. Insecure-avoidant children behave in the same way toward a stranger as toward the parent and are slow to greet the parent or avoid greeting the parent.

INSECURE-RESISTANT ATTACHMENT

The child seeks closeness before the parent leaves and often fails to explore. The child might appear clingy or unhappy. The child is visibly distressed when the parent leaves, and shows anger, resistance, or anxiety when the parent returns.

DISORGANIZED/DISORIENTED ATTACHMENT

When the parent returns, the child seems confused, and engages in contradictory behaviors. The child may let the parent hold them but look away. This reflects the greatest insecurity and is found most with infants raised with very negative caregiving.

Stability

· STABILITY ESSENTIAL TO ATTACHMENT

· CHILDREN IN STRESSED FAMILIES

· CULTURAL DIFFERENCES

· SECURE VS INSECURE ATTACHMENT

Stability is an essential attachment quality. It can vary depending upon the quality of parenting, as well as socioeconomic status. Infants born into a mid-range socioeconomic status (SES) typically have good life conditions and experience stable attachment. Children of well-adjusted mothers become more secure over time, as they experience high-quality caregiving.