Family Midterm

When is not having a father better than having a father (2 ideas/circumstance)

(1) when father demonstrates antisocial behavior, because they child will already have those innate traits, so seeing the father act this way is more harmful than just having the gene or (2) when the father is abusive; in the first case, the child is more likely to develop conduct problems than if no father were present; in the latter, the child's physical and psychological safety is directly affected with antisocial getting a "double whammy" from the genetic effect, and the environmental risk (can have conduct problems)

Under what circumstances is it best to have two fathers? (2 ideas/circumstance)

(1) when men are poor providers, (2) and when men are likely to die young; under these circumstances, reliance upon multiple men who believe the child may be theirs increases the amount of resources available to mother and child (3) resources women need for their children can not be reliably obtained *Two gay men raising a child Child will be well, but the men should find someone to be in the child's life to offer a women's perspective

What is cooperative breeding (2 Ideas)

*"'cooperative breeding' refers to any species with alloparental assistance in both the care and provisioning of young" page 30 *many hands needed for child survival *Mothers have support from allomothers (any group member other than the mother who spends time with the infant to help raise their children *Their help increases the offspring's survival by helping the mother afford long period of dependence and lower levels of maternal commitment than is found in other great apes

What key skills do couples need in order to maintain a functioning system? Be specific (principles 1-4)

**Enhance your love map: A "love map" is that part of one's brain where one stores all the relevant information about one's spouse's life, such as their worries, hopes, and goals in life; their history; and the facts and feelings of their world. **Nurture your fondness and admiration: Nurturing fondness and admiration involves meditating a bit on one's partner and what makes one cherish him or her. **Turn Toward your Partner (Instead of Away): share small moments of connection, being there for each other during the minor events in each other's lives; and responding favorably to one's spouse's bids for attention, affection, humor or support. **Let your partner influence you (accepting influence) Accepting influence means sharing power; making one's spouse a partner in decision, taking their opinions and feelings into account.

What key skills do couples need in order to maintain a functioning system? Be specific (principles 5-7)

**Solve your solvable problems: Learn to distinguish being solvable and perpetual problems, softening the startup (i.e. leading off of the discussion without criticism or contempt) ; learning to make and receive repair attempts (statements or actions that prevent negativity from escalating out of control; efforts the couple makes to deescalate the tension during a touchy discussion); soothing oneself and one's partner; compromising; and being tolerant of each other's faults. **Overcome gridlock: gridlock occurs when a conflict makes one feel rejected by one's partner; they keep talking about it but make no headway; they become entrenched in their positions and are unwilling to budge; no matter how entrenched in gridlock a couple is, all that they need in order to get out of it is motivation and a willingness to explore the hidden issues that are really causing the gridlock. **Create shared meaning: creating an inner life together — a culture rich with symbols and rituals, and an appreciation for the spouses' roles and goals that link them, that lead them to understand what it means to be a part of the family they have become. When a marriage has a shared sense of meaning, conflict is much less intense and perpetual problems are less likely to lead to gridlock

Allomother

*A non-maternal caregiver, crucial in cooperative breeding. *Including siblings, grandparents, friends, kins are all providing support and care in some way *Mother and children could afford a long period of dependence and lower levels of maternal commitment *Resilience on allomother assistance means that maternal commitment is dependent on mother's perceptions of the amount of support they will receive from others

Allele

*Any alternative form of a given gene, one of the different forms of a gene that can exist at a single gene locus (the specific place on a chromosome where a gene is located) *Sometimes, different alleles can result in different observable phenotypic traits, such as different pigmentation

What implications does it (cooperative breeding) have for human infants (4 ideas)

*Babies have to monitor mother to asses her commitment (develop attachment styles from quality of care received) *Assess/attract attention of allomothers/mothers who may change over time *Grow plump and adorable to signal that they are healthy and are more likely to survive *Elicit nurturance to stay safe, fed, and alive - Protect oneself; being charming *mother investment is lower (greater infanticide, especially with low resources, multiple babies, little assistance, etc) *maternal care is contingent on resources *babies must be hardwired to monitor mother/environment/social situation to receive care *Even the youngest of infants need to become psychologically sophisticated (develop models of what to expect, dangerous situations, living with people who are threats around your mom)

Referring to the Bornstein et al study (notes) discuss how the age of the mother relates to a) basic care & protection of the infant,

*Basic care and Protection of the Infant *NO AGE EFFECTS for survival related to physical care *All mothers who were studied tended to be able to keep their child alive and fed *Age doesn't impact meeting physical and social needs to keep baby alive (e.g., bathing, feeding, holding) *Primarily based on resources, rather than age.

Referring to the Bornstein et al study (notes) discuss how the age of the mother relates to b) quality of parenting

*Between adolescence and the ages 25 to 31, older mothers did better, they provided a higher quality of parenting (more sensitive, more intellectually stimulating, more comforting, *After a certain age, the quality of care plateaued. *Planned pregnancies increased frequency mother talked to child, their sensitivity and structuring in mothers under 27 years old *After 27 years, no effect *In 20's lowers risk of fetal loss from spontaneous abortion, ectopic pregnancy and still born *Greater risks are before 15 and after 37 *Mothers who perceive the baby's father as supportive have better mental and physical health and infants who fare better

What implications does it (cooperative breeding) have for the species (4 ideas)

*Brains became adapted for babies to immediately bond with mothers and for social relationships (immediately attract, monitor and bond with others) (Conceptualize what other are thinking, mutually understand, care about states/moods, eager to interpret motives, feelings and intentions) *humans became better at understanding the intentions of others *Gaze easy to read with white backdrop to pupil (eyes are made for easy management of gaze) *Contingent mothering based on resources, if they don't have enough resources, aborting becomes a higher option *Ability to transition to new habitats more readily *greater number of births per mother=greater chance of species survival *longer periods or maturation=larger/more specialized brains

Attachment style C Insecure Ambivalent/Preoccupied/Resistant

*Cling as hard as you can to people, because they are likely to abandon you *Mothers who are inconsistently available and intrusive *Keep a close eye on mother, particularly when worried that her mother will leave *These individuals are often overwhelmed by attachment issues which limits their perspective and exploration. *Passive discussions of childhood memories *Become actively upset *Orientation to attachment figure: Child adopts mixed feelings/emotions toward attachment figure, clingy/dependent to attachment figure but then rejects them when engaging in interaction, does not develop feelings of security, Will exhibit difficulty moving away from attachment figure to explore novel surroundings, When distressed they are difficult to soothe and are not comforted by the attachment figure *Caregiver: Inconsistent level of response to child's needs (sometimes met, sometimes not) *Negative self-image and exaggerate emotional responses to gain attention *Insecure attachment styles are associated with an increased risk of social and emotional behavior problems via the internal working model

Attachment style B Secure/Autonomous

*Feel confident that they will have proximity when they need it and in the way that they need it. *Can talk about childhood experiences (good or bad) in a free, authentic, and coherent way *Orientation to attachment figure: Children are confident that the attachment figure is available to meet their needs, Use the attachment figure as a safe base to explore the environment and seek the attachment figure in times of distress *Caregiver: Responsive and sensitive primary care *Develop a positive working model of themselves (worthy of respect) and have mental representations of others as being helpful

Attachment style D/U Disorganized or Unresolved

*Have characteristics of both avoidants (A) and ambivalents (C) and are given a code for psychological confusion when discussing trauma, loss or abuse *Looked at "unclassifiable children", based off of Ainsworth's contributions; unusual responses of children *Combination of avoiding, reaching out to, and resisting behaviors, Parents were abusive, suffered trauma, recent loss, etc. *Children were in less safe rearing situations *These children have dazed behavior, seem confused or apprehensive in the presence of a caregiver *Display behaviors and feelings of fear *Contradictory behaviors or affects occurring simultaneously/sequentially; stereotypic, asymmetric, misdirected of jerky movements; or freezing and apparent dissociation *Dazed behavior (confused or apprehensive) in the presence of a caregiver *Caregiver: Abusive, suffered recent loss/trauma *Were in less safe rearing situations *At greater risk for psychopathology, stress dysregulation, and low cognitive performance

Attachment style A Insecure Avoidant/Dismissing

*Individuals who pretend they aren't needy by distracting themselves so that they won't feel rejected → makes them upset and causes the caregiver to withdraw even more. *Don't show your distress; distract themselves/focus on something else; suppress certain emotions *These individuals have high self-esteem but it's focused on achievements rather than relationships. *These individuals have the most problem behaviors and child distress. *Overly positive descriptions of relationships without specific memories to support claims *Do not orientate to attachment figure while investigating the environment, physically and emotionally independent from their attachment figure, do not seek them during times of distress *Caregiver Is likely insensitive/rejecting of their needs - causes child to think they are unworthy/unacceptable, might withdraw from helping the child during difficult tasks and is unavailable during times of emotional distress, associated with unresponsive primary care *Child comes to believe that communication of needs has no influence on mother/father

Mom's new partner Role

*Less likely to invest in the stepchildren, but rather in his own children (if he has any), because they are his genes *Will be protective of his new partner and jealous of her ex-husband = Evolutionary Theory's indirect competitive intrasexual strategies *Try to/appear to be financially superior

Divorced mom/Single woman Role

*Line up multiple partners until she finds/chooses the "best mate" primarily based on the mate's resources *look for resources for her biological children *Choosy/ picky *Always thinking long term because it could be done with children

Divorced dad Role

*Pursue a woman with good genes, fertility, and attractiveness *Tries harder to retain a younger female mate than an equally-aged or older female mate *Less picky than his recent ex- wife *More likely to engage in short-term (sex-based) relationships *Will invest in his biological children, though there is always some amount of doubt that they might not be his, because of this he will most likely pursue having more children to increase the chances he passes on his genes.

Mating effort

*Relates to the actual energy one puts forth to secure a mate *" The portion of total reproductive effort that is invested in the initial acquisition of mates as sexual partners" *Specifically relating to locating and courting a mate *Includes competitive strategy (NOT related to rearing children which involves reproductive effort and strategies)

Darwin's theory of natural selection (the 4 basic principles)

*Superfecundity: many more of a species are born in each generation than will survive *Variation: all members have a different combination of traits *Heritable: variation is inherited *Selection: characteristics that result in individual surviving & reproducing are selected as a result of interaction between individuals & their environment & are passed down to future generations (by genes); traits of non-survivors are not.

Epigenetics

*The study of heritable changes in gene expression caused outside of underlying DNA sequence *Regulation of gene expression w/o altering DNA by way of suppression certain proteins. *Provides a framework for understanding how the expression of genes is influenced by experiences and the environment to produce individual differences in behavior cognition, personality, and mental health *How genes are expressed are influenced by what happens in your parents lives *Affects genetic expression without changing the genes (parental history,experiences, smoking, age, occupation exert control on gene expression maternal diet at conception, maternal environment)

Dad's new partner Role

*Will enhance her appearance (an indirect competitive intrasexual strategy) *May use relational aggression

Biosocial Origin Theory

*Women care for infants; men don't - seen as warriors b/c of great strength *different placement in social *structure leads to gender roles → gender roles guide social behavior gender roles, children are socialized and stereotypes are formed *All may look for a mate that is similar to them in traits and background (homophily) *Someone with a high mate value (i.e., attractiveness, intelligence, $$, lack of mental illness, etc.) may help secure the reproductive process

How are gay and lesbian couples different than heterosexual couples? (consult Gottman.com website)

*use more humor and affection when bringing up a disagreement *partners are more positive in how they receive it *more likely to stay positive after the disagreement *use fewer controlling, hostile emotional tactics *Display less belligerence, domineering and fear with each other than straight couples do *Partner's positive comments have more impact on feeling good, while their negative comments are less likely to produce hurt feelings

Papernow's architecture of family STEPS (1-4)

1) Normalize the effects of stepfamily architecture (As time progresses can spend time with the stepparent(s) to build on their trust and relationship slowly so they won't feel overwhelmed about the changes) 2) Gently explore fantasies (Due to the insider/outsider roles the stepparent may feel left out or misplaced in an already functioning family, This in combo with the ideal of how a family should work can set up for major disappointments.) 3) Spend time on one-to-one relationships - compartmentalizing works better than blending (much less time for the couple to build their own middle-ground before the birth of children, so it is beneficial for the couple to have 1:1 time with each other and each of the children so that they can build solid relationships without the pressure of having to play a certain role...Stepparents may also benefit from having time spent away from the family in order to maintain their own middle-ground.) 4) Proactively loosen children's loyalty binds (Children's loyalty binds can also affect their willingness to let another (new) person enter their lives. assure the children that the new spouse is not a replacement for the other parent. This step may take much repetition as a child develops)

5 major challenges in Papernow

1) insider/outsider roles are stuck and intense 2) children bring loses and loyalty binds 3) parenting tasks polarize adults 4) new family culture must be forged out of multiple difference 5)ex-spouses are part of new family

Pappernow's architecture of family STEPS (5-9)

5) Realistic expectations of stepparents and stepchildren (tell children that it is okay not to like/love the new spouse, it is important to respect and be civil to that person.) 6) Follow research-based guidelines for parenting and step parenting (Research shows that children cannot accept authoritative parenting from a stepparent in the early stages of stepfamily development and not until the stepparent has been accepted into a parenting role by the children.) 7) Regulate the amount of change (important not to bombard children with much change throughout the phase of accepting a new family ex money and holidays. The middle ground must be established first.) 8) Lower conflict with the other parent (important that ex-spouses get along as opposed to fighting intense custody battles, research has found that parental conflict post-divorce have more negative effects on children. Co-parenting with the ex-spouse and validating to children of the other parent without speaking badly of them.) 9) Establish boundaries between households (important to keep the relationship with an ex-spouse strictly about the children and their children's welfare and whereabouts. The "Dutch door" concept is helpful to the new spouse where the top half of the door remains open to have conversations about the children and the bottom half closed to be a firm boundary for personal time and personal lives.)

Papernow's architecture of family (divorce) General

According to Papernow, to build and maintain their marriage with a new spouse it is important to have a middle ground, or areas of agreement and easy paths to joint action with little discussion needed. In regards to the children, it is important that they get enough alone time with their parents because of the "loyalty binds" they have towards them. "thickening the middle ground"- creating new bonds so that the earlier, stronger bonds of the parent-child don't create an undertow that derails the new, developing roles of new wife-new husband and new step-parent and children, middle grounds is the process of how this happens.

Papernow Divorce results

Families going through divorce need to mourn and deal with that relationship and come to terms that the romantic relationship is gone, all while trying to come up with a cooperative coparenting relationship. In regards to the children, it is important that they get enough alone time with their parents because of the "loyalty binds" they have towards them. For new partners: don't put partner into a parental role until time has passed (not responsible for discipline), make boundaries that are open for dialogue and discussion,

what is the best age range to be a mother if you want to maximize the health of the fetus, health of the mother, and quality of parenting in terms of language and emotional development? What is the best age to be a father in terms of number of mutations your offspring are exposed to (notes)?

Mother "mid-20s seem to be a particularly good age at which to get pregnant" - Conceiving in the 20's lowers risk of fetal loss from spontaneous abortion, ectopic pregnancy and stillbirth Father 20 years old, "I don't think 36 is the biggest issues, I don't think you need to find a 20 year old to father your children, those of you in your early 20s don't panic, but don't go too long if you want to start a family" Sperm cells divide every 16 days on average At 36, twice the mutations than at 20 years At 70, twice the mutations than at 36 years Older fathers Increases in autism, schizophrenia, epilepsy, bipolar, dyslexia, alzheimer's disease and neurocognitive deficits Lower IQ scores

K vs R parenting strategy

R= where you want to have more children and less investment in each....produce many offspring, each of which has a relatively low probability of surviving to adulthood (i.e., high r, low K). K= fewer children, really investing them..each of which has a relatively high probability of surviving to adulthood (i.e., low r, high K). We are a K species with whales and elephants (cannot have a lot) Even within humans there is a range (has to do with environments)

Under what circumstances is it best to have only one father and why? (2 ideas/circumstance)

Two parents, one father: (1) when the father can provide stable and sufficient resources, and (2) when the parents are in a monogamous relationship; more social support, more education, better psychological well-being *Children have better cognitive & behavioral outcomes than children living in homes with one parent.

Referring to the Bornstein et al study (notes) discuss how the age of the mother relates to c) health of the fetus.

Under 20 → more preterm births, anemia, renal failure, seizures, they smoke more and have less prenatal care than other mothers Conceiving in the 20's lowers risk of fetal loss from spontaneous abortion, ectopic pregnancy and stillbirth "mid-20s seem to be a particularly good age at which to get pregnant" -Dr. Brassard greater risk are before the age 15 and after 37 Pregnancy related hypertension and low birth weight at ages 25-29, highest under 20 and over 40 Older mothers have more chromosomal disorders, prematurity, congenital malfunctions, multiple births, C-sections and births requiring the NICU

Would evolutionary developmental psychology predict fathers to be biased toward investing in their daughter's children over their son's or vice versa? Explain your answer.

Yes, he would be certain the child is hers; with son, although factors such as monogamous relationship with the child's mother and father presence suggest paternity, fathers cannot be completely certain that their son's child is theirs without the use of paternity testing. *Invest in daughter's children because they know it's definitely their child *They help their daughters choose their mates so they know there will be successful reproduction

Evolutionary psychology

parental investment: any investment by the parent in an individual offspring that increases the offspring's chance of surviving (and hence reproductive success) at the cost of the parent's ability to invest in other offspring women are certain a child is theirs, men do not have 100% parental certainty Men use mixed strategy of parental investment invest in their offspring by helping to raise them and providing resources but also seek other mating opportunities as well Women: adopt a strategy of being choosy, hold out for the "best mate" because they are "stuck with the child" find a mate who will have high paternal investment bad mate choices affect women more than men because they have parental certainty

What is the evidence supporting the theory that humans are cooperative breeders (4 ideas)?

§ Having help in the home is correlated with greater numbers of children (mothers make choices to have/keep children based on care available). ( in every study it was alloparents willing to help who permitted mothers to produce more children likely to survive) § Homes with grandmothers/additional help have fatter babies. (signified health) § Hairless-babies can't cling without help and mothers can't hold child and work at same time (mom's can't work with a child clinging to them, they need someone else to hold them during this time) § Allomothers provide provisioning to human infants *Because humans have short interbirth intervals, so short that no woman on her own could manage this.... but since we are cooperative breeders and can get help means a human mother isn't on her own and can have the shorter intervals