Lecture 9: Development of Self and Peer Relationships Flashcards
The Self- Concept
- An organized set of beliefs about oneself, including personality traits, physical characteristics, abilities, values, and roles
- Any answer to the question “who are you?”
- Rudimentary self-concept emerges around 18 months as evidenced by children passing rouge test
*Children also start using “me” pronoun and calling themselves by name around this age.
Gender Development
Gender and the Self-Concept
*Gender is usually first characteristic present in children’s self-concept and is central to their sense of self
*2.5 – 3 years old: form basic gender identity
- Start identifying as boy or girl and can label others as boys or girls.
Gender Socialization
- Process through which children learn about the social expectations, attitudes, and behaviours associated with girls and boys by internalizing the messages received about gender from caregivers and wider society
- Starts remarkably early!
- Parents of day-old infants describe newborn girls as softer, less strong, more delicate, and quieter than newborn boys
- Is this a perception or is it true that girls are softer and quieter and more delicate than newborn boys? Studies (baby x studies)
Baby X Studies
- Studies in which researchers label the same infant as a “boy” or a “girl” and then observe how adults interact (and describe) with the infant
- Infants labelled as “boys” rated as bigger, stronger, louder and more likely to be encouraged to be active
- Infants labelled as “girls” received more talk and nurturance
- Suggests that caregivers’ perceptions of differences between male and female babies are due to their own associations with gender, rather than actual gender differences. The caregiver has particular ideas about what it means to be female and male. These are not actual real differences but they are simply in the eye of beholder.
More Subtle Gender Socialization
- Study: How does gender shape parents’ expectations about motor skills?
Method: - Parents of 11-month-olds estimated the steepest slope their infants could safely crawl down without falling by setting the angle on a mechanical sloping walkway (estimate their kids motor ability)
- Infants then tested on their actual crawling skills down slopes of different angle
More Subtle Gender Socialization
- 0 = parent perfectly estimated kids motor skill
- positive number = overestimated their kids ability
- neg number = underestimated their kids ability
- Parents of girls tended to underestimate their infant’s crawling abilitybut parents of boys more accurately estimated their ability
- When tested on their actual skills, boys and girls did not differ on the slopes they could safely crawl down
- Suggests that gender differences in motor skills only exist in parent’s perception (they don’t actually exist)
Gender Differences in Toys
- top row = searched “toy for baby girl”
- searched for “toy for baby boy”
More Subtle Gender Socialization (Toys)
Toy purchases
* Boys have more toy trucks and girls have 5x more pink toys by 12-months-old
Play
* Parents present boys with more physical challenges than girls
* More likely to offer girls more help
Language differences
* Parents are more likely to use emotion words with girls than boys in early childhood
* Emotion understanding thus develops earlier in girls (on average girls tend to have better emotional understanding and emotional regulation skills than boys in childhood).
Division of household chores
* Homes in which parents take on more traditional gender roles in completing chores are communicating gender roles
Media exposure
* More TV viewing by preschoolers associated with them more likely saying that people see “boys as better than girls”
Self-Socialization
- Once a child identifies with a gender, they activelyseek out gender-related information and conform their behaviour to this info
- Highlights children’s own role in their gender development - 3-5 year olds: rigid, gender-stereotyped behaviours
- Preference for toys and clothes that are consistent with gender identity (PFD - pink frilly dress) –> this is present regardless if their parent modeles this stereotyped behaviour (even if parent was gender neutral)
- Preference for same-gender playmates
- Cross-cultural (can see this across different cultures)
- Due to lack of gender constancy
- Understanding that gender remains the same regardless of superficial changes to appearance or behaviour.
- boys dont want to have pink because they think that will make them “become a girl” if they play with pink.
Self-socialization
- 6 years old: Rigid, gendered behaviour relaxes because gender constancy is achieved
- Accept more non-gendered appearance and toy preferences in themselves and others (especially girls) - BUT as children get older, they acquire more complex ideas and expectations about gender that include traits, roles, abilities, etc.
- Incorporate these into their self-concepts and adjust their behaviour accordingly
- E.g., girls are quiet and well-behaved; boys are active and good at sports
Gender
Gender plays a role in what kids are internalizing…what they feel they are able to to and not to do.
Implications of Gender Identity
- Gender is a central characteristic that organizes children’s self-concepts
- Adherence to gender stereotypes can unnecessarily limit children’s development in educational aspirations, social development, and emotional expression (might not want to follow a certain educational path because its too “girly”)
- Extent to which a child shows gender-consistent behaviour is associated with level of peer acceptance
- Even though children increase their gender flexibility with age, they tend to reject peers who do not behave in typically gendered ways
- Greater engagement with peers of same gender is powerful way that gender stereotypes and identities are reinforce
Towards Gender Neutrality
- When parents have more egalitarian views and behaviours, children tend to have less traditional gender-role attitudes
- Gender neutral parenting: conscious parenting practice to encourage children to explore and express themselves in a way that is not defined by traditional gender roles
- Common in WEIRD countries
- E.g., not enforcing gender-specific colours, avoiding gender-specific language, encouraging all activities
Gender Development in Cis vs. Transgender Children
Sex: assigned at birth usually based on external genitalia
Cisgender children: Children who identify with their assigned sex
Transgender children: Children who don’t identity with their assigned sex
- Tend to show strong identification and preferences aligned with current gender in a way that is very similar to cisgender children
- Research suggest that transgender identity is not a result of parent socialization and instead seems to be internally drive
Development of the Self-concept
Self concept is a social construction
- Children’s self-concept develops primarily by internalizing others’ perceptions of them
- Direct: others’ describe a child a certain way and the child incorporates that description into their self-concept
- E.g., being told they’re good at math
- Indirect: how children are treated
- E.g. caregiving experiences shape internal working mode. If resistantly attached child = typically has a negative view of themselves.
Self-Concept in Early Childhood
- 3-6 years old
- Gender is central to self-concept
- Concrete, observable characteristics that tend to focus on physical attributes and physical activities (show centration, can only focus on one thing at a time, so tend to only focus on positive aspects).
- Unrealistically positive and confident
- Result of cognitive limitation
- Kids are at pre-operational phase of piaget which means they cannot think abstractly yet and they show centration which is why their self concept tends to be so unrealistically positive.
Example of Self-Concept in Early Childhoo
*I’m 3 years old, I’m a boy, and my name is Jason. I live with my mommy and daddy who really love me. My mommy makes me yummy spaghetti! I am going to get my own baby sister for Christmas! I have blue eyes and a kitty that is orange and a television in my own room, it’s all mine! I know all of my ABC’s, listen: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, L, K, O, P, Q, R, X, Y, Z. I can run real fast. I can kick a soccer ball real far, all the way from one end of the field to the other. I’m really strong. I can lift this chair, watch me
Example Self-Concept in Middle Childhood
“I’m in fourth grade this year. It’s a little tougher than when I was younger, in the “baby” grades. I’m pretty popular, at least with the girls who I spend time with, but not with the super-popular girls who think they are cooler than everybody else. With my friends, I know what it takes to be liked, so I’m nice to people and helpful and can keep secrets…. At school, I’m feeling pretty smart in certain subjects like language arts and social studies, someday I will probably get a job that depends on having good English skills…. But I’m feeling pretty dumb in math and science, especially when I see how well a lot of the other kids are doing”
Self-Concept in Middle Childhood
- 7-12 years old
- Describe self using personality traits and inner qualities
- E.g. “I’m shy”
- Self-concept is more balanced and accurate (due to decentration)
- Includes weakness but still positive overall - Changes in self-concept from early childhood due to:
- Increased cognitive ability to think about multiple qualities simultaneously
- Greater engagement in social comparison and more strongly influenced by the opinions of others
Self-Concept in Adolescence
- 13-18 years old
- Can think of themselves in increasingly abstract ways
- “I’m extroverted, because I’m talkative, friendly, and energetic.” - But also…
- More intense concerns about social acceptance which heavily influence self-concept
- Egocentrism:
- Especially in early-mid adolescence
- Assume that their thoughts and feelings are more unique than they really are
- “You don’t understand me!”
- Imaginary audience: belief that everyone is very focused on their appearance and behaviour - Aware of differences in behaviour in different social settings leading to confusion and many questions about identity (adolescence is a time of existential identity questions).
Example of Self-Concept in Younger Adolescent
*“What am I like as a person? You’re probably not going to understand. I’m complicated! With my really close friends, I am very tolerant, I mean I’m understanding and caring. With a group of friends I’m rowdier. I’m also usually friendly and cheerful, but I can be pretty obnoxious and intolerant if I don’t like how they’re acting…. I really don’t understand how I can switch so fast from being cheerful with my friends, then coming home and feeling anxious, and then getting frustrated and sarcastic with my parents. Which one is the real me?”
Forming an identity
*Forming an identity is the primary psychosocial task of adolescence/ early adulthood
* Identity is formed through a process of:
- Exploration: questioning of parental and societal values and experimenting with various facets of identity
- Including appearance, hobbies, traits, friends, courses, etc.
- Viewed as important and healthy for identity development
- Commitment: consolidation and acceptance of who one is as indicated by the choices one makes
Marcia’s Identity Statuses
diffusion (1st phase) –> not explored and not committed to any identities
moratorium or foreclosure (2nd phase) –> exploration or commitment but not both.
Achievement –> exploration or commitment.
Identity Diffusion
- Lack of exploration of options and no commitments made
- Due to lack of interest in own identity or indecision
- Common in children (identity phase that children are in before forming an identity).
- If persists into late adolescence/adulthood, associated with feeling disconnected, being easily influenced by others, and little sense of purpose (no sense of direction for oneself).
Moratorium
Active exploration of various roles but no commitments yet
* Common in adolescence and early 20s
* Brought about by awareness of multiple selves and exposure to different identity options (like waking up to the world and realizing that there’s more than one way a person could be…personality, hobbies).
* Feelings of confusion and anxiety are normal at this status (not knowing what to choose + invest time in)
* Important phase for identity achievement.
* Healthier for younger adults/adoloscents (foreclosure would be better for older)
Foreclosure
- Commitment to a life path without having explored alternatives
- Due to:
- Parents making decisions for teen without their input
- Teen strongly identifies with a parent and wishes to follow in their footsteps - More likely in teens who are obedient, have a low level of tolerance for uncertainty, and have authoritarian parents
- Potential problem is choosing an identity that is not a good fit
- Can lead to lower life satisfaction and a struggle to maintain the commitment - Most teens are in moratorium or foreclosur
Identity Achievement
Completed phase of exploration and commitment to an internally driven identity
* Associated with most positive mental health and social outcomes
* Usually achieved in early adulthood (early or mid 20s)
* Biggest gains in identity are in post-secondary schooling due to greater exposure to different lifestyles, beliefs, and career options.
Criticisms of Marcia’s Identity Status Theory
- Research into identity statuses conducted in WEIRD samples
- Typical progression and outcomes may differ in non-WEIRD societies
- Identity development is a continuous process, not limited to adolescence
- Life events in adulthood can restart the process
- E.g., losing a job, breakup
Summary of Development of Self
- Gender is a central characteristic that shapes children’s self-concepts and level of peer acceptance
- 2.5 –3 years old: form basic gender identity - Gender identity is formed through gender socialization and self-socialization
- Children’s self-concepts become more abstract and more balanced, as they age and are increasingly shaped by interactions with peers
- Central task of adolescence is developing an identity
- 4 identity statuses determined by level of exploration and commitment
- Diffused, moratorium, foreclosure, identity achievement
- Status has consequences for psychological and social functioning
Play
What is play?
- Voluntary activities done for inherent enjoyment
- Play looks different depending on a child’s age (depends on social skills, motor skills and cognitive skills)
Gender and Choice of Friends
- More likely to be friends with kids of the same gender
- This preference emerges around 3 years of age
- Peaks around age 13 - Age 13: Time with different gender friends increases, especially for girl
Rejected Kids
Rejected-aggressive = their aggresiveness makes them less likeable. The more they are rejected, the more they are agressive = vicious cycle
Friends Buffer Against Negative Experience
- If best friend was not present, more negative experiences associated with increased cortisol and lower self-worth
- But not if best friend was present
Choosing the Wrong Crowd
But also selection effect:
* Children choose peers that are similar to them
* Implies that kids choose and contribute to “the wrong crowd”
Parental Emotional Coaching
- Parents teach kids how to effectively manage emotions to interact with peers and handle conflict
- Study: Parental coaching buffers the level of stress associated with problems in friendships for kids 7-9 years old
- Suggests that relationships with parents may have stronger link to mental health than peer relationships
Social Media Use
- 4.8 hours: Average # of hours a day a US teen uses social media
- 50% of teenagers says they are almost constantly online
- Around 70% of teenagers seem to think that social media is either negative or neutral - even teenagers see there might be back impact.
Causal Evidence for Social Media Harm (study)
*Method: Longitudinal study over 2 years of adolescents 12-15 years old
*Examined effect of social media use on mental health, adjusted for pre-existing mental health problems (had data on pre-existing mental consitions of these kids and could control pre existing mental health conditions).
*Results: Adolescents who spend more than 3 hours per day on social media faced 2x the risk of mental health problems, especially internalizing problems.
- clear linear association between social media use and comorbid mental health problems
- does seem to be a causal role
Social Media and the Teen Brain
- Adolescents are likely more prone to high social media use due to developing limbic system
- Heightened reward processing in limbic system in adolescents (vs. kids or adults) likely leads to heightened sensitive to the positive and negative effects of social media
Frequent Social Media Changes the Teen Brain?
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Method: Longitudinal study over 3 years in 12-13 year old
- Reported on social media use
- Completed a social reward task in an fMRI scanner each year
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Results: Teens who engaged in more frequent social media use showed increased amygdala activation over time in response to social rewards
- Compared to typical decrease in sensitivity - Suggests that frequent social media use may be associated with brain changes to social rewards and punishments
