Attachment And Social Development (7) Flashcards
When do infants gradually come to distinguish themselves?*
First 2-6 months
When is true self-recognition displayed?*
18-24 months (depends on cognitive development and social experiences)
‘Looking glass self’
A child’s self concept is largely determined by the ways other people respond to him/her
Categorical self
A persons categorisation of the self along socially significant dimensions such as age and sex
Self recognition
The ability to recognise oneself in the mirror/photo
The rouge test (recognition in the mirror) age
18-20 months
13-24 months looking in mirror*
Withdrawal - no longer happy at catching their own image in the mirror - acting self consciously
New study of original chimp mirror study found self awareness at…*
15-24 months
3 areas of research for emotional development**
Recognising and expressing facial expressions of emotion
Understanding emotions and empathising
Regulation of emotions
Emotions as innate
Innate key simple expressions over the first year of life
Social smiling from 6 weeks
How old to discriminate between smiling and frowning*
3 months
Social referencing
Infants look to caregiver for information as to how they should respond
Findings of 44 thieves study*
More than half of the thieves had been separated from their mothers for longer than 6months during their first 5 years
(Control group just 2)
Bowlby’s attachment theory
Children are biologically predisposed to develop attachments with caregivers as a means of increasing their own survival
Secure base
Providing an infant with a sense of security that makes it possible for the infant to explore the environment
Attachment theory - 4 stage model**
Pre-attachment
Attachment in the making
Clear cut attachment
Reciprocal relations
Pre-attachment phase - birth to 6 weeks*
Infant produces innate signals that bring others to their side and is comforted by the reaction that follows
Attachment in the making phase - 6 weeks to 6-8 months*
Infants begin to respond preferentially to familiar people
Clear cut attachment phase - 6-8months - 1 and a half-2 years**
Infant actively seeks contact with their regular caregivers and typically shows separation protest/ distress when the caregiver departs
Reciprocal relationships phase - 1 and a half - 2 years on*
Children take an active role in developing working partnerships with their caregivers
5 instinctual behaviours in phases 1&2 that promote the development of attachment
Sucking, cuddling, smiling, looking, crying
Stranger anxiety age
6-12 months
Separation anxiety age*
Emerges at 6 months and peaks at around 15 months
Ainsworth attachment percentages
Secure - 70%
Insecure-resistant - 15%
Insecure-avoidant - 15%
At 3 years 6months securely attached babies*…
Enjoy successful interactions with their peer group
At 3years 6months insecurely attached babies…
Tend to be hostile, impulsive and withdrawn later in childhood
3 predictors of secure attachment*
Mother sensitivity
Synchronous behaviour
Healthy parental interactions
Secure attachment long term social abilities…
Social competence
Social adjustment + self efficacy
Social desirability
Dating competence
Oxytocin
A chemical messenger released in the brain in response to social contact, particularly pronounced with skin-skin contact
Permanent effects of oxytocin
Permanent organisation of the stress handling portion of the baby’s brain promoting lasting attachment characteristics in the adolescent and adult
Oxytocin in securely attached mothers
Greater activation of brain reward regions, including oxytocin associated region
Reality of attachment on development
Children’s development can be better predicted from the combination of their early attachment status and quality of subsequent parenting
Scaffolding
Adults structure and simplify the child’s environment in order to facilitate learning
Infants begin to respond to adults with new and extensive expressions around..
6 weeks
- more mutual eye contact
- social smiling
Mutual interactions begin at.. **
5 months (e.g. lifting arms to be picked up)
9 months to initiate this interaction *
Dyadic interactions **
Subject-subject -> Birth
Subject-object -> 4 months
Triadic interactions **
Occurs towards end of first year
Use of gestures to intentionally communicate
Production occurs just before comprehension of communicative gestures
Ostensive gestures **
8/9 months
Giving or showing objects
Distal pointing
Functions of ostensive gestures and distal pointing **
Imperative (asking for help)
Declarative (drawing others attention)
Interrogative (asks a question)
Informative (report to other)
Phatic (keeping the communication channel open)
When do infants clearly start to recognise themselves in the rouge test
20-24 months (after withdrawal)
Lewis & Brooks-Gunn suggested age of self awareness
15-24 months
Initial unfolding of smiles
During REM sleep - social at 6 weeks
Imprinting hours
12-17hours after hatching
