Ch. 10 Emotional Development

Effortful Control

"Attentional focusing and shifting, inhibitory control, perceptual sensitivity, and low-intensity pleasure" - have an ability to keep their arousal from getting too high and have strategies for soothing themselves

Negative Affectivity

"Fear, frustration, sadness, and discomfort" Children are easily distressed; they may fret and cry often Inhibited children fit this category

Criticism of Attachment Theory

- Kagan emphasizes that infants are highly resilient and adaptive, argues that they are evolutionarily equipped to stay on a positive developmental course - Genetic & temperament characteristics - ignores the diversity of socializing agents and contexts that exists in an infant's world

Coping Techniques to Children who experience trauma

- Reassure children of their safety and security - Allow children to retell events and be patient in listening to them - Encourage children to talk about any disturbing or confusing feelings; tell them the are normal feelings after a stressful event - Help children make sense of what happened; children may misunderstand what took place - Protect children from re-exposure to frightening situations and reminders of the trauma; limiting conversations about the event in front of the children

Variations in Child Care

- age of child - type of child care - quality of program - Numbers of hours per week - SES of families with few resources

Basic Cry

A rhythmic pattern that usually consists of a cry, followed by a briefer silence, then a shorter inspiratory whistle that is somewhat higher in pitch than the main cry, then another brief rest before the next cry. Some infancy experts stress that hunger is one of the conditions that incite the basic cry.

Anger Cry

A variation of the basic cry in which more excess air is forced through the vocal cords.

Leaving a Infant to Cry

Argue that an infant cannot be spoiled in the first year of life, a view suggesting that parents should soothe crying infant. Reaction should help infants develop a sense of trust and secure attachment to the caregiver

Fear

Baby's earliest emotion, typically first appears at about 6 months of age and peaks at about 18 months.

Face-to-face play

Begins to characterize caregiver-infant interactions when the infant is about 2 to 3 months of age.

Still-face paradigm

Caregiver alternates between engaging in face-to-face interaction with the infant and remaining still and unresponsive

Biological Foundations & Experiences

Children inherit a physiology that biases them to have a particular type of temperament. - Children may inherit a physiology that biases them to be fearful and inhibited, but they learn to reduce their fear and inhibition to some degree.

Attachment

Close emotional bond between two people

Adolescence's Emotion

Constantly in the state of "storm and stress," but emotional highs and lows do increase during early adolescence - girls are especially vulnerable to depression in adolescence - moodiness is normal

Smiling

Critical as a means of developing a new social skill and is a key social signal.

Separation Protest

Crying when the caregiver leaves. Displayed by infants at approximately 7 to 8 months and peaks at about 15 months

Insecure Disorganized Babies

Disorganized and disoriented - These babies might appear daze, confused, and fearful - Babies must show strong patterns of avoidance and resistance or display certain specified behaviors, such as extreme fearfulness around the caregiver

Emotional Regulation

Effectively managing arousal to adapt and reach a goal. Arousal involves a state of alertness or activation, which can reach levels that are too high for effective functioning.

Primary Emotions

Emotions that are present in humans and other animals; these emotions appear in the first six months of the human infant's development. Ex: surprise, interest, joy, anger, sadness, fear, and disgust

Developmental Social Neuroscience

Examines connections between the socioemotional processes, development, and the brain - attachment is one of the main areas in which theory and research

Emotion

Feeling, or affect, that occurs when a person is in a state or an interaction that is important to him or her, especially to his or her well-being.

Erikson's Theory

First year of life represents the stage of trust versus mistrust. Physical comfort and sensitive care are key to establishing a basic trust in infants

Easy child

Generally in a positive mood, quickly establishes regular routines in infancy, and adapts easily to new experiences - 40%

Harlow's Study

Harlow removed infant monkeys from their mothers at birth; for six months they were reared by surrogate "mothers" One mother was made out of wire and the other cloth. Half of the infant monkeys were fed by wired mother, half by the cloth mother. Regardless of which mother fed them, they clinged on the cloth monkey for comfort and warmth.

Preoccupied/ambivalent

Inconsistence parenting

Stranger Anxiety

Infant shows a fear and wariness of strangers. First appears at about 6 months of age in the form of wary reactions. Age 9, the fear of strangers is often more intense, reaching a peak toward the end of the first year

Ainsworth's Studies

Infants whose mothers responded quickly when they cried at 3 months of age cried less later in the first year of life

Temperament

Involves individual differences in behavioral styles, emotions, and characteristic ways of responding - individual differences in how quickly the emotion is shown, how strong it is, how long it lasts, and how quickly it fades away

Kagan's Behavioral Inhibition

Jerome Kagan regards shyness with strangers as one feature of a broad temperament category called inhibition to the unfamiliar.

Japanese babies...

Less likely than U.S. to display attachment pattern - May show resistance, Japanese mothers rarely let anyone unfamiliar with their babies care for them

Slow-to-warm-up child

Low activity level, is somewhat negative, and displays a low intensity of mood - 15%

Middle and Late Childhood

Many children show marked improvement in understanding and managing their emotions. - improved emotional understanding - marked improvements in the ability to suppress or conceal negative emotional reactions, use of self-initiated strategies for redirecting feelings, increased tendency to take into fuller account the events leading to emotional reactions, development of a capacity for genuine capacity.

Emotion-coaching Parents

Monitor their children's emotions, view their children's negative emotions as opportunities for teaching, assist them in labeling emotions, and coach them in how to deal effectively with emotions. - Less rejecting manner, use more scaffolding and praise, and are more nurturant - Children were better at soothing themselves when they got upset, were more effective in regulating their negative affect, focused their attention better, and had fewer behavior problems

German babies...

More likely than U.S. infants to show avoidant attachment pattern - Caregivers promote them to be independent

Children who regulate their emotion

More likely to improve their use of cognitive strategies for regulating emotion, modulate their emotional arousal, become more adept at managing situations to minimize negative emotion, and choose effective ways to cope with stress.

Crying

Most important mechanism newborns have for communicating with their word. The first cry verifies that the baby's lungs have filled with air.

Strange Situation

Observational measure of infant attachment in which the infant experiences a series of introductions, separations, and reunions with the caregiver and an adult stranger in a prescribed order - Researchers hope that their observations will provide information about the infant's motivation to be near the caregiver and the degree tow which the caregiver's presence provides the infant with security and confidence

Joint Attention

Occurs when the caregiver and infant focus on the same object or event

Insecure Resistance Babies

Often cling to the caregiver and then resist her by fighting against the closeness, perhaps by kicking or pushing away - These babies often cling anxiously to the caregiver and don't explore the playroom. - When caregiver leaves, they often cry loudly and push away if she tries to comfort them on her return

Children Coping with Stress

Older children generate more coping alternatives to stressful conditions and use more cognitive coping strategies. For example, older children are better than younger children at intentionally shifting their thoughts to something that is less stressful. Older children are also better at reframing, or changing one's perception of a stressful situation. Younger children may be disappointed that their teacher did not say hello to them when they arrived at school. Older children may reframe this type of situation and think, "She may have been busy with other things and just forgot to say hello." By age 10 years of age, most children are able to use these cognitive strategies to cope with stress

Bowlby's Stages of Attachment

Phase 1: From birth to 2 months. Infants instinctively direct their attachment to human figures. Phase 2: from to 2 to 7 months. Attachment becomes focused on one figure, usually the primary caregiver, as the baby gradually learns to distinguish familiar from unfamiliar people. Phase 3: From 7 to 24 months; specific attachments develop Phase 4: 24 months on: children become aware of others' feelings, goals, and plans and begin to take these into account in forming their own actions

Biological Influences

Physiological characteristics have been linked with different temperament. - Inhibited temperament is associated with a unique physiological pattern that includes high and stable heart rate, high level of the hormone cortisol, and high activity in the right frontal lobe of the brain

Paternal Interactions

Playing; bounce and tickle them and throw them up in the air

Extraversion/surgency

Positive anticipation, impulsivity, activity level, and sensation seeking" Uninhibited children

Responsible for Maternal Attachment Behavior

Prefrontal cortex likely has an important role, as do the the subcortical regions of the amygdala, and the hypothalamus.

Difficult child

Reacts negatively and cries frequently, engages in irregular daily routines, and is slow to accept change - showed more problems when they experienced low-quality child care - 10%

Self-conscious Emotions

Require self-awareness that involves consciousness and a sense of "me." Ex: jealousy, empathy, embarrassment, pride, shame, and guilt most of these occurring for the first time at some point in the second half of the first year through the second year

Adolescence Attachment

Secure attachment to both parents positively related to peer and friendship relationship

Insecure Avoidant Babies

Shows insecurity by avoiding the mother. These babies engage in little interaction with the caregiver, are not distressed when she leaves the room, usually do not reestablish contact with her on her return, and may even turn their back on her

Emotionally Intelligence

Skilled at perceiving and expressing emotion, understanding emotion, using feelings to facilitate thought, and managing emotions effectively. - Create lifestyles that are emotionally satisfying, predictable, and manageable by making decisions about an occupation, a life partner, and other circumstances.

Reflexive Smile

Smile that does not occur in response to external stimuli and appears during the first moth after birth, usually during sleep.

Social Smile

Smile that occurs in response to an external stimulus, typically a face in the case of the young infant. Social smiling occurs as early as 4 to 6 weeks of age in response to caregiver's voice.

Dating & romantic relationships

Spend lots of time dating or thinking about dating - form of recreation - source of status or achievement - setting for learning about close relationship - function for mate selection

Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love

States that love has three components or dimensions - passion, intimacy, and commitment - Passion is the only ingredient and we are merely experiencing infatuation

Socioemotional Selectivity Theory

States that older adults become more selective about their social networks. This theory argues that older adults deliberately withdraw from social contact with individuals peripheral to their lives while they maintain or increase contact with close friends and family members with whom they have had enjoyable relationships.

Pain cry

Sudden long, initial loud followed by breath holding; no preliminary moaning is present. Stimulated by a high-intensity stimulus

Goodness Of Fit

The match between a child's temperament and the environmental demands the child must cope with

Affectionate Love

Type of love that occurs when individuals desire to have the other person near and have a deep, caring affection for the person

Securely attached babies

Use the caregiver as a secure base from which to explore the environment - infants explore the room and examine toys that have been placed in it - when caregiver departs, infants might protest mildly, and when the caregiver returns these infants reestablish positive interaction

Social Referencing

Used to describe "reading" emotional cues in others to help determine how to act in a specific situation

Emotion-dismissing Parents

View their role to deny, ignore, or change negative emotions.

Mary Ainsworth & John Bowlby stresses

You can't respond too much to infant crying in the first year of life. A quick, comforting response to the infant's cries is an important ingredient in the development of a strong bond between the infant and caregiver.

Falling Out of Love

being in love when love is not returned can lead to depression, obsessive thoughts, sexual dysfunction, inability to work effectively, difficulty in making new friends, and self-condemnation

Bowlby stresses

both infants and their primary caregivers are biologically predisposed to form attachments He argues that the newborn is biologically equipped to elicit attachment behavior.

Dissmissing/Avoidant

caregiver rejection

Maternal Interactions

child-care activities; feeding, changing, diapers, & bathing

Unresolved/disorganized

high fear due traumatic experiences

Inhibition to the Unfamiliar

initial avoidance, distress, or subdued affect shows some continuity from infancy through early childhood

Romantic Love

strong components of sexuality and infatuation, and it often predominates in the early part of a love relationship