Exam 4 Flashcards
Functions of the Family
- Survival of Offspring
- Economic Function
- Cultural Training
Family Dynamics
How a family operates as a whole. All members influence each other in multiple ways.
Parenting Syles
- Authoritative
- Authoritarian
- Permissive
- Rejecting/Neglecting
Responsiveness
Degree of parental warmth
Demandingness/Control
Degree of parental control
Influence of child on parenting
Attractive children tend to be treated more affectionately
Bidirectionally of parent-child interactions reinforces parent and child behaviors
Effects of SES on parenting
Low SES:
- more likely authoritarian
- value conformity in children
- low income parents may need to work multiple jobs or jobs with irregular hours; such jobs make it difficult for parents to spend time with their children
High SES:
- better communication between parent and child
- value independence and autonomy
Effects of Divorce on Children
- Greater risk of divorce themselves
- slightly greater risk for emotional disorders
- Harder for young children, afraid of abandonment
- Older children have trouble with adjustment, especially for stepparent
*Quality of contact is more important than frequency of contact for adjustment
How many marriages end in divorce
roughly half
Changes in Friendship (Toddlerhood)
children can make and maintain friendships withers and can identify their “best friends”
Changes in Friendships (Childhood)
children increasing define their friendships in terms of characteristics such as companionships, similarity in attitudes and interests, acceptance, trust, mutual admiration, and loyalty
Changes in Friendships (Adolescence)
- friendships becomes increasingly important source of intimacy and self-disclosure, as well as a source of honest feedback
Factors driving how children choose friends
- proximity
- age
- similar interests
Cliques
- stable friendship groups that children voluntarily form or join.
- 3-9 kids
- members usually same sex, race, personality
- friends tend to belong to same clique but not everyone in the clique is a friend
Measuring Status in Peer Groups
rate how much you like/dislike classmates. nominate those you like the most, like the least, or don’t play with
Sociometric Status
- Popular
- Rejected
- Neglected
- Average
- Contoversial
Stability of Categories
Short Term
- popular and rejected kids tend to stay in same group
- neglected and controversial kids likely to change status
Long Term
- status is likely to change
- average kids stay the same but ~2/3 of others likely to change groups
*stability is highest for rejected kids, stability increase with age
Attachment to parents and social competence
Securely Attached
- positive emotionally, good social skills, more popular with peers, more supportive friendships
Insecurely Attached
- poor peer relationships, less positive emotion, aggressive, whiny, socially withdrawn, less sympathy, trouble resolving conflicts
Gatekeeping
when parents arrange and oversee interactions with peers, preschoolers are more positive and social with peers, have more play partners
Coaching
explicitly telling children how to deal with unfamiliar playmates, or enter a group of children, improves their social competence
Modeling
the ways in which parents interact with other people, deal with conflicts, and how they communicate to their children all provide models
Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development
- Preconventional (6-10)
~ Self-centered reasoning, avoiding punishment
~ upholding laws, obedience to authority - Conventional (14)
~ centers on social relationships
~ do right so you are considered ‘good’ by those close to you - Postconventional
~ centers on universal principles of justice (life and liberty)
Strengths and Weaknesses of Kohlberg’s Theory
Strengths
- positive correlation between level and behavior
Weaknesses
- cross-cultural differences, Kohlberg claimed stages are discontinuous
Domains of Social Judgement
Moral Judgement
- issues of right/wrong (murder, stealing)
Conventional Judgement
- customs or regulations (modes of dress)
Personal Judgement
- individual preferences (choice of friends)
Conscience
internal regulatory mechanism that increases ability to conform to standards of conduct
Factors affecting Conscience
- internalizing parents morals and values, rational explanations for why something is wrong, secure parent/child relationship
- temperament
Basis for Prosocial Behavior
Empathy
- emotional reaction to another person’s emotions
Sympathy
- outcome for empathy for another’s negative state; cognitive concern
Factors affecting Individual Differences in Prosocial Behavior
Biology
- humans are predisposed to be prosocial
- reciprocal altruism
- kin altruism
Temperament
- experience and regulate emotions
Socialization
- model and communicate values
- provide opportunities
- discipline and parenting style
- tv and media
Social Learning Theory
*kids learn to act like a boy or girl
Observational Learning
- what kids see from parents, peers, media
- what kids see is mostly traditional gender-typed models
- more time around same gender
- remember and imitate same gender models more
Direct Teaching
- via systematic differences in how parents treat sons and daughters
- reward gender-appropriate behavior and punish gender-inappropriate behavior
Social Cognitive Theories
children actively construct knowledge of gender in the same way they construct other knowledge about the world
Kohlberg’s Cognitive Developmental Theory
Gender Identity
- 2-3 yrs
- learn you are a member of a category
Gender Stability
- 3-4 yrs
- learn gender is stable over time but based on superficial appearance
Gender Constancy
- 5-7 yrs
- learn gender is consistent across situations, independent of superficial appearance
- can seek out same-gender models and learn “appropriate” behavior
When do kids start to imitate same-sex models
- 5-7 yrs
- once gender constancy is achieved, children can see out same0gender models and learn “appropriate” behavior
Gender Schema
mental representations that incorporate everything the child knows about gender
First Gender Schema
- usually around 3 years old
- children can label other people and their own gender
Maccoby’s Theory of Gender Segregation
combines evolution, biology, learning, and cognitive theories
Gender Segregation
- strong tendency to interact with same-sex and avoid other sex
- gender segregation is natural, toddlers in preschool prefer same-gender playmates
- segregation increases over time and peaks around 8-11 years old
- declines slowly in adolescence
- more time around same sex promote more learning (and therefore knowledge) about own sex
Gender Segregation Socialization
- Peers make fun of cross-gender interactions
- Parents reinforce gender-consistent interaction styles
How do kids develop gender schemas
- children use an in-group/outgroup gender schema to classify other people as being either “the same as me” or not
- the motivation for cognitive consistency leads them to prefer, pay attention to and remember more about others of their own gender
- as a consequence an own-gender schema is formed
Gender Self-Socialization
- cognitive theories stress children’s active self-socialization: individuals use their beliefs, expectations, and preferences to guide how they perceive the world and actions they choose
- self-socialization occurs in gender development when children seek to behave in accord with their gender identity
Early Signs of Prosocial Behavior
- by 14 months, children become emotionally distressed when they see other people who are upset and express verbal and nonverbal concern for an adult who has been hurt
- by 18-25 months, toddlers sometimes share a personal object with an adult whom they have seen being harmed by another
Prosocial Behavior
- voluntary behavior intended to benefit others, such as helping, sharing with, or comforting others
- altruism
Relation between Peer Rejection and Aggression
- rejected children are more likely to be motivated by goals such as ‘getting even’
- rejected children have a harder time finding constructive solutions
- rejected children also tend to be anxious and depressed and to be rated lowest by teachers in their behavioral competence
Direct Instructors
parents who directly teach their kids skills, rules, and strategies and inform or advise them on various issues
Indirect Socializers
parents who provide indirect socialization through their own behaviors with and around kids
