Final Flashcards
Define: ATTACHMENT
an emotional bond w/ a specific person that’s enduring across space and time
Describe Harry Harlow’s experiment on development of attachment.
Results: monkeys deprived of all early social interactions were less able to develop healthy interactions later on
Conclusion: this will be the same in humans, so it’s important for children to develop healthy social interactions early on with parents
Define: ATTACHMENT THEORY
Proposed by: John Bowlby
Children are biologically predisposed to develop attachments with caregivers as a means of increasing the chances of their own survival
Define: SECURE BASE
Bowlby’s term for an attachment figure’s presence that provides an infant/toddler with a sense of security that makes it possible for the infant to explore the environment
What are the 4 phases of Bowlby’s Attachment Theory?
- Preattachment Phase
- Attachment-in-the-making Phase
- Clear-cut attachment
- Reciprocal Relationships
Describe: Pre-attachment Phase of Bowlby’s Attachment Theory
When: Birth-6 weeks
-infant produces innate signals that bring others to his/her side and is comforted by the interaction that follows
Describe: Attachment-in-the-Making Phase of Bowlby’s Attachment Theory
When: 6 weeks- 6/8 months
-infants begin to respond preferentially to familiar people
Describe: Clear-Cut Attachment Phase of Bowlby’s attachment theory.
When: 6/8 months-1.5/2 yrs
-infant actively seeks contact with their regular caregivers and typically show separation protest/distress when the caregiver departs
Describe: Reciprocal Relationships Phase of Bowlby’s attachment theory.
When: 1.5/2 yr and on
-children take an active role in developing working partnerships with their caregivers
Define: INTERNAL WORKING MODEL OF ATTACHMENT
Child develops a mental representation of the self, of attachment figures, and of relationships in general
Function: guides children’s interactions w/ caregivers and other people in infancy and at older ages
Describe: Strange Situation Experiment (Ainsworth)
Objective: Assess infants’ attachment to primary caregivers
Procedure: child is exposed to 7 episodes: 2 separations and reunions with the caregiver and interactions with a stranger when alone and when the caregiver is in the room
Conclusion: 3 Attachment categories
What are the 4 Attachment Categories?
- Secure attachment
- Insecure/resistant (or ambivalent) attachment
- Insecure/avoidant attachment
- Disorganized/disoriented attachment
Define: SECURE ATTACHMENT
A pattern of attachment in which an infant/child has a high-quality, relatively unambivalent relationship with his/her attachment figure
-Child will use caregivers as a secure base for exploration
In the strange situation experiment, how would a SECURELY-ATTACHED child act when the caregiver leaves and returns?
Child will be upset when caregiver leaves but can recover quickly from any distress
Define: INSECURE/RESISTANT/AMBIVALENT ATTACHMENT
Pattern in which infants/young children are clingy and stay close to their caregiver rather than explore the environment
In the strange situation experiment, how would a INSECURELY/RESISTANT/AMBIVALENT-ATTACHED child act when the caregiver leaves and returns?
- Child will be very upset when caregiver leaves and not easily comforted by strangers
- When caregiver returns, child is not easily comforted and will both seek comfort and resist efforts by the caregiver to comfort them
Define: INSECURE/AVOIDANT ATTACHMENT
Pattern in which infants/young children seem somewhat indifferent toward their caregiver and may even avoid the caregiver.
In the strange situation experiment, how would an INSECURE/AVOIDANT-ATTACHED child act when the caregiver leaves and returns?
Child is indifferent when caregiver is in the room, leaves the room, and returns to the room.
-if child becomes upset when left alone, they’re as easily comforted by a stranger as by the caregiver.
Define: DISORGANIZED/DISORIENTED ATTACHMENT
Pattern in which child has no consistent way of coping with stress
-Behavior is often confused or even contradictory, and often appear dazed/disoriented
Infants in the US and Japan differ in types of insecure attachment. All insecurely attached Japanese infants are classified as insecure/resistant. Explain how Japanese culture could have promoted this type of insecure attachment.
Culture emphasizes dependence and closeness between Japanese infants and their mothers.
–>when denied contact w/ their mother in Strange Situation exp, Japanese infants’ response is anger and resentment
How does the degree of secure attachment a parents has to other adults affect the degree their children develop secure attachment?
The more securely attached parents are to other adults, the more securely attached their children become.
PARENTAL SENSITIVITY: function and how it’s exhibited
Function: contributes to the security of an infant’s attachment
Exhibited As:
- responsive caregiving when child is distressed/upset
- helping child to engage in learning situations by providing just enough, but not too much, guidance and supervision
How can temperament of a child affect the security of a child’s attachment?
Differences in temperament may make it more difficult for the parents of some infants to maintain sensitivity over time
What are the long term effects of secure attachment?
- Closer, more harmonious relations w/ peers than do insecurely attached children
- Predicative of positive peer and romantic relationships and emotional health in adolescence
- Predicative of higher graders and involvement in school
Define: SELF
A conceptual system made up of one’s thoughts and attitudes about oneself
At what age do you have a rudimentary sense of self?
First months of life (infants)
At what age do individuals develop the sense of separation anxiety?
8 months
At what age are individuals able to recognize themselves in a mirror? In a photo?
Mirror=18-20 months
Photo=30 months
At what age do individuals first start exhibiting embarrassment, shame, their self-assertive behavior, and language use that indicates their self-awareness?
2 years old
At what age do individuals first start to understand themselves in terms of concrete, observable characteristics related to physical attributes, physical activities/abilities, and psychological traits?
3-4 years old
At what age do individuals start to refine their sense of self due to social comparison?
Elementary school
At what age can individuals start to think in abstract terms?
Adolescents
-in middle teen yrs, they start to agonize over the contradictions in their behavior and characteristics
Define: PERSONAL FABLE
A story that adolescents tell about themselves that involves beliefs in the uniqueness of their own feelings and their immortality
- form of egocentrism
- leads to notion of imaginary audience
Define: IMAGINARY AUDIENCE
Belief that everyone is focused on the adolescent’s appearance and behavior
At what age does an individual’s conception of self become both more integrated and less determined by what other’s think?
Late adolescence/early adulthood
-conceptions of self tend to reflect internalized personal values, beliefs, and standards
Define: CRISIS OF IDENTITY VS IDENTITY CONFUSION (Erik Erikson)
Chief developmental task in adolescence in which numerous aspects of self must be resolved
Aspects include: -values/goals about the future, -political/religious beliefs, -sexual identity
Define: IDENTITY CONFUSION
An incomplete and sometimes incoherent sense of self, with resulting feelings of isolation and depression
Define: IDENTITY FORECLOSURE
When an adolescent prematurely commits to an identity without adequately considering their choices
Define: NEGATIVE IDENTITY
An identity that represents the opposite of what is valued by people around the adolescent
Define: PSYCHOSOCIAL MORATORIUM (Erik Erikson)
A time-out period during which the adolescent is not expected to take on adult roles and can pursue activities that lead to self-discovery
- intended to easy the complexity of achieving an identity in modern society
- only possible in some cultures and only to the more privileged classes
What are the 4 identity-status categories developed by James Marcia?
- Identity-diffusion status
- Foreclosure status
- Moratorium status
- Identity-achievement status
Define: IDENTITY-DIFFUSION STATUS
No firm commitments and no active exploration of options
-Will eventually move on to identity-achievement status
Define: FORECLOSURE STATUS
Not engaged in any identity experimentation and committed to vocational or ideological identity based on the choices/values of others
- Will NEVER move on to identity-achievement status
- tends to be adolescents w/ overly protective or employ a cold, controlling/authoritarian parenting style
Define: MORATORIUM STATUS
Individual is in the phase of experimentation with regard to occupational and ideological choices and has not yet made a clear commitment to them
-Will eventually move on to identity-achievement status
Define: IDENTITY-ACHIEVEMENT STATUS
Individual has completed a period of exploration and has achieved a coherent and consolidated identity based on personal decisions regarding occupation, ideology, and the like.
Define: SELF-ESTEEM
One’s overall evaluation of the worth of one’s self and the feelings that this evaluation engenders
-relates to how satisfied ppl are with their lives and their overall outlook
Of the following domains that affect self-esteem, which ones are deemed to be of higher concern for females, and which for males?
Domains: -Appearance, -Social Behavior, -Competence, -Conduct
Females: Appearance, Social Behavior
Males: Competence, Conduct
What are the factors that contribute to a child’s self-esteem?
- Competence in domains of importance
- Approval and support from others (ex. peer acceptance)
- Hereditary conditions (affects physical appearances, athletic ability, aspects of intelligence, personality)
- Internalized standards formed by child
- Location: school, neighborhood
At what age do children start to become concerned w/ winning their parents love/approval? How is their self-esteem affected by varying parental responses?
Age: 2 yr
Higher self esteem if parents are accepting and involved w/ their child and use supportive yet firm child-rearing practices
Lower self esteem/sense of worthlessness if parents reject rather than condemn child’s unacceptable behavior
China announced a 1-child only program in 1979 which psychologists used to study how the family structure affects children’s development. What were the results of this study?
There’s no difference between the social behavior and personality of only childs and other children-Why: as only childs become more common, they were less likely to be spoiled
What are the 3 functions of families in child rearing?
- Ensure survival of offspring by providing for their needs
- Economic function: provide means for children to get the skills and resources they need to be economically productive adults
- Cultural training: teach children basic values of the culture
What are the 3 factors that influence family dynamics and its ability to child-rear?
- Direct/indirect influence of family members on one another; change in relationships/family structure
- Social support from environment (ex. church)
- Change of dynamics over time as child ages
Why does the feelings of closeness and support between parents and their children decrease during adolescence/puberty?
Adolescents want autonomy (independence) and newfound interests outside the home
Define: SOCIALIZATION
Process through which children acquire the values, standards, skills, knowledge, and behaviors that’re regarded as appropriate to their present and future roles in their particular culture
What are the 3 ways that parents can influence their child’s socialization skill development?
- Act as direct instructors–explicitly teach them skills, rules, and strategies and provide advice
- Act as indirect socializers–transmit skills, rules, and attitudes in the course of everyday interactions w/ children
- Act as providers/controllers of opportunities–via their management of children’s experiences and social lives
What are the 2 important dimensions/degrees of parenting style?
- Level of parental warmth, support, and acceptance vs parental rejection and nonresponsiveness2. Level of parental control and demandingness
What are Baumrind’s 4 parenting styles?
- Authoritative Parenting2. Authoritarian Parenting3. Permissive Parenting4. Disengaged Parenting
Define: Authoritative Parenting
Supportive: parent is accepting and child-centered
Demanding: Parent expects much of child-relationship is reciprocal, responsive; high in bidirectional communication
Define: Authoritarian Parenting
Unsupportive: parent is rejecting and parent-centered
Demanding: Parent expects much of child-Relationship is controlling, power-assertive; high in unidirectional communication
Define: Permissive Parenting
Supportive: parenting is accepting and child-centered
Undemanding: parent expects little of child-Relationship is indulgent; low in control attempts
Define: Disengaged Parenting
Unsupportive: Parent is rejecting and parent-centered
Undemanding: Parent expects little of child-Relationship is rejecting/neglecting; uninvolved