5. Early Childhood: Psychosocial Development Flashcards
when is the development of self-regulation skills highly important in early childhood?
during preparation for school
what new developments in emotional self-regulation and understanding occur between ages 2 and 3?
sympathy is displayed towards others in distress; child discusses emotions and their causes and self-evaluative emotions (shame, guilt, pride) appear
what new developments in emotional self-regulation and understanding occur between ages 3 and 6?
Child understands the likley causes and consequences of many basic emotions: controls feelings for social reasons and is aware of basic emotional display rules (e.g. not rejoicing when an opponent loses)
what is social cognition?
An individual’s understanding of human behaviour, human psychology and other elements of social life
what is the theory of mind
Understanding of people’s mental states and the influences of thoughts, feelings and intentions on behaviour
how do children come to understand their own and other minds?
by formulating an implicit theory of the mind
what are the abilities of a child who can exercise theory of mind and social cognition?
ability to attribute beliefs and desires to oneself and others and to understand that others have desires and beliefs that are different from one’s own. They also have the ability to employ this understanding to anticipate the behaviour of others
what are examples of false belief tasks?
deceptive box test (e.g. smarties task), unexpected transfer test (e.g. Sally-anne task)
With regard to false belief tasks, what do children between the age of 3 and 4 begin to understand?
they begin to understand that other people can have a false belief and can thus anticipate their behaviour
what are children between the by the age of 5 and 6’s abilities with regard to completing false belief tasks?
readily on false belief tasks
what are factors that “define play”?
intrinsically motivated, process-oriented, Creative and non-literal, governed by implicit rules, spontaneous and self-initiated, free from major emotional distress
What are Partne’s categories of play?
unoccupied play, solitary play, onlooker play, parallel play, associative play, cooperative play
what is Partne’s unoccupied play?
The child wanders about, watching whatever is of momentary interest, but does not come involved in any activity
what is Partne’s solitary play?
The child plays alone with different toys with no direct or indirect awareness or involvement with other children, even if nearby
What is Partne’s Onlooker play?
the child watches others play without actually entering into the activities; is clearly involved with what is happening and is usually within speaking distance of other participants
what is Partne’s parallel play
Involves two or more children playing side by side in close proximity and with awareness of each other’s presence often with the same toy or enjoying a similar activity; but o not talk or interact except in very minimal ways
what is Partne’s Associative play?
Children engage in common activity and talk about it with each other, but do not assign tasks or roles to particular individuals and are not very clear about their goals
What is Partne’s Cooperative play
Children consciously from into groups to make something, attain a goal, or dramatise a situation; one or two children organise and direct the activity with other children assuming different roles and responsibilities
What are Grusec and Lytton’s types of play?
Functional play, Constructive play, Pretend play, Games and rules
What is Grusec and Lytton’s functional play?
Simple, repetitive movements, sometimes with objects or own body. For example, shovelling sand, pushing a toy, jumping up and down
what is Grusec and Lytton’s Constructive play?
Manipulation of objects in order to construct something. E.g. building with blocks
what is Grusec and Lytton’s pretend play?
Substitutes make-believe, imaginary and dramatic situations for real ones. E.g. playing ‘house’ or ‘superheroes’
what is Grusec and Lytton’s Games and rules play?
Play is more forma and is governed with fixed rules. E.g. Hopscotch or hide-and-seek
what is the importance of pretend play?
promotes cognition and conservation, creativity and cognitive flexibility, theory of the mind, Emotional understanding and self-regulation skills, learning of social roles (including gender roles)
What is the importance of physical play (rough and tumbler play)?
allows for practice of physical and motor skills and social dominance hierarchies
what sort of play materials and activities develop fine and gross motor coordination?
ride-on-toys that are stable (e.g. tricycles or push-along toys), swing sets or trampolines with safety borders and soft surrounds, large outdoor building blocks for making forts and castles, Water table and sandpit for sand and water play, finger painting materials and play dough
what play materials and activities release emotions and express feelings
Acting out feelings though role play with finger puppets or stuffed toys, Give children a safe space to run wild - jumping, rolling and laughing to help release emotions, encourage children to express their feelings through painting and drawing
what play materials and activities enhance imagination and creativity?
reading books and making up stories, play dress-ups with a box of old clothes and props, including crazy hats. play with miniature animals or fantasy figures, try something children have never done before like a bush walk or museum visit
what play materials and activities encourage language, thinking and memory?
playing simple board games based on chance, such as Snakes and Ladders, ask riddles and make up word games such as rhyming games, play simple memory card games
what play materials and activities help with reading and identifying numbers?
Read a picture book out loud and point out pictures, cook simple recipes together and talk about the quantities and the order of doing things, Set out a ‘shop’ and let children ‘buy’ items
what is the correlation between adult-child and child-to-child relationships?
they are qualitatively different and contribute differently to development
How do parent/caregiver-child relationships contribute to child development?
through attachment, internal working models
how do sibling relationships contribute to a child’s development?
through a unique mix of family and interaction
how do peer relationships contribute to child’s development?
Through interaction among social equals
what sort of parent-child relationships are optimal for psychosocial development?
warm, respectful, empathetic and mutually responsive relationship
what can pose a challenge to parent-child relationships in early childhood?
Pre-schooler’s preference for greater autonomy and control of their environment
what shapes and challenges parenting practices?
cultural and societal demands/practices?
what are the parenting styles?
authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, uninvolved
what are the parent behaviours of an authoritative parent?
Make reasonable, age-appropriate demands; promote self-regulation; warm; respective; rational; verbal give-and-take; value discipline, self-reliance and uniqueness
what are the characteristics of a child of an authoritative parent?
independent, socially responsible, self-controlled, explorative, self-reliant
what are the parent behaviours of an authoritarian parent?
Exert strict control; critical evaluation of child’s behaviour and attitudes; little verbal give-and-take; cold; emotionally rejecting; does not promote autonomy
what are the characteristics of a child of an authoritarian parent?
Withdrawn; discontented; distrustful of others
what are the parent behaviours of an permissive parent?
Non-controlling; non-demanding; little punishment or exercising of power; use of reasoning; warm and accepting
what are the characteristics of a child of an permissive parent?
Lacking in self-reliance and self-control
what are the parent behaviours of an uninvolved parent?
Emotionally cold; indifferent; non-controlling; parent-centred rather than child-centred
what are the characteristics of a child of an uninvolved parent?
Disruptions of attachment and peer relationships; behavioural problems
what factors contribute to varying parenting styles?
cultural background, specific circumstances, duration of parenting and birth order, number of children, changes and stresses in family, temperament of child
How should parenting styes be thought of as rather than categories?
as dimensions (a spectrum)
what can inconsistencies between parents lead to?
confusion of playing one against the other
what can singling relationships involve?
closeness and conflict - sibling rivalry and differential parenting
what sort of influences can siblings have an development?
positive or negative, direct and indirect
what are the positive and direct peer influences on cognitive development?
This is known as the sibling tutoring effect. It influences language and problem solving
what are the positive and direct peer influences on social skills and competencies?
social cognition and theory of mind, practising social roles, partners in conflict resolution and negotiation
what are siblings’ role in early childhood development?
socializing agents and cultural educators
what are negative direct influences on early childhood psychosocial development?
antisocial behaviour, risky and deviant behaviour, sibling similarities through social learning
what are older sings considered as?
effective models
what traits to older siblings tend to have?
powerful or high status, warm and nurturing, similar to the observer
what do older siblings provide to early childhood psychosocial development?
materials and settings for shared (deviant) activities, network of potential friends
what are indirect peer influences?
every child has a relationship with their parents that in turn influences the relationship the parents have with other children
what factors do indirect peer influences have on parents?
parents’ experience with other children, parents’ parenting strategies and skills, differential parenting, family resources
who is a peer?
a social equal, often of similar age, who functions at a level of behavioural complexity similar to that of the self
what are the importance of peer relations?
equal-status interactions, mixed-age interactions
who do children in early childhood tend to spend most time with and what do they tend to do?
same-sex peers of roughly similar age engaging in gender typed activities
what does contributions does connecting with peers make on cognitive development?
major advances in language development, major advances in perspective-talking abilities, and hence capacity for cooperative play, prosocial behaviour (and antisocial behaviour) increases, advances in problem-solving ability means improved capacity to tackle conflict
who do certain children prefer to play with?
eachother
what do friends show higher levels of than for non-friends?
cooperation and concern for one another
with regard to conflict, what is the difference between friends and non-friends?
Friends experience just as much conflict as non-friends, but have a stronger will and better skills for solving or overcoming conflict
do friends miss one another?
yes - they show grief when the other moves away
what is friendship largely based on?
shared play and physical proximity
