Module 3: Enculturation & Development Flashcards
enculturation
all the learning you do wihtout instruction, but because of the possibilities and opportunities in your environment, learning and adopting ways of your own culture
- is implicit, and influenced by family, friends, systems (such as schools)
socialization
the systematic formation of an individual through learning and internalization of rules and behavioral patterns under the influence of a culture
- explicit and active process
cultural agents
the people, institutions, and organizations that have to make sure that cultural learning takes place
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory of human development
systems influence the development of an individual
- microsystem
- mesosystem
- exosystem
- macrosystem
- chronosystem
microsystem
immediate environment, such as family, school, and friends
mesosystem
the connections between the microsystems
- either the relationship between home and school, or between family and friends
exosystem
indirect environments, such as parents’ workplace, mass media, and local politics
macrosystem
attitudes and ideologies of culture, religion, and society
- consider cultural values, laws, and political ideologies
chronosystem
the influence of time and history on the other systems
- life events such as moving or historical events such as economic crises
Harkness and Super (2021)
uses the concept of developmental niches to understand enculturation
developmental niches
try to explain how the macrosystems influence a child’s microsystems composing of 3 parts
- the physical and social setting
- customs of child rearing and care
- psychology of caregivers
post-figurative cultures
cultural change is slow
- there is a low influence of peers and socialization takes place mainly as older people transmit their knowledge to their children
co-figurative cultures
cultural change occurs more quickly
- both adults and peers have influence in the socialization process
pre-figurative cultures
cultural change occurs so quicky that adults may need to learn from younger people
- high influence of peers
the six cultures study
a comprehensive cross-cultural study conducted by Whiting and Whiting (1975), where anthropologists collected data related to child-rearing practices and to child behavior from 6 different cultures
the six cultures study results
- a child’s personality and behavior is strongly linked to characteristics of the ecology in which they find themselves
- a mother’s role at work contributes to their child’s social behavior (a family where mothers contribute substantially to their family’s well-being teaches children responsibility and independence)
- economic factors influence child rearing
nuclear family structure
2 parents, 1 child, and possibly siblings
- emotional distance to the nuclear family members is the same, and there is a geographical distance to grandparents
- protypical in many Western countries
extended family structure
includes grandparents and uncles/aunts
- the extended family often lives together (less geographical distance), and these relatives also have a greater role in raising children
- prototypical in many non-Western countries
Baumrind’s 4 parenting styles
- authoritarian
- authoritative
- neglectful/uninvolved
- permissive
authoritarian parenting style
high in control and low in responsiveness
- characterized by obedience and respect for authority
- adult-centered
autoritative parenting style
high in control and high in responsiveness
- characterized by trust, acceptance, and structure
- child-centered
neglectful/uninvolved parenting style
low in control and low in responsiveness
- characterized by a lack of support, encouragement, and involvement
permissive parenting style
low in control and high in responsiveness
- characterized by warmth, nurturing, and lack of control
- child-centered
Grusec and Davidov
proposed a monain-specific approach
- parents react differently depending on their child, situation, and context
domains of parent-child socialization
- protection: parents must make their children feel safe
- control: children must learn to follow the culture’s rules
- reciprocity: children must learn to work together
- guided learning: children need to master specific skills
- group participation: children should learn to participate in social groups and cultural practices
Inglehart and Bakers (2000) modernization theory
states that human social development will eventually converge to Western patterns
Kagitcibasi (1982, 2002)
argued that there is more to it and introduced a model of family change in a study of the motivation to have children
- looked at the economic/utilitarian value and the psychological value of having children
- referred to as the Value of Children study
Kagitcibasi results
found that the economic/utilitarian value of children decreased as socioeconomic development increased
- psychological value did not change
- material independence is not incompatible with emotional interdependnece and proposed 3 prototypical family models
Kagitcibasi’s 3 prototyical family models
- interdependent family: extended family in which people are both economically and psychologically interdependent (common in rural agricultural communities)
- independent family: children have low economic value and high psychological value, where there is no psychological dependence (typical of western nuclear families)
- psychologically dependent family: low economic dependence, but social dependence (typical of urban contexts in collectivistic settings (e.g. Istanbul)
interdependent self
heteronomous + related = follows what others say when making decisions, wants to be close to others
independent self
autonomous + separate = makies its own decisions, wants to be separate from others
autonomous self
makes its own decisions but is emotionally close to others
- typical of urban contexts in collectivist environments
Keller (2007)
examined the influence of the ecological environment on parents’ parenting behavior
- distinction was made between an independent and interdependent prototypical eco-social context
Keller’s socialization goals
- independence: reflected the urban middle class in (post)industrialized societies (WEIRD), where the emphasis is on the pursuit of one’s own goals and uniqueness
- interdependence: seen in rural areas with little income/education, where maintaining social harmony, respect for elders, and obedience is important
- autonomous: a mix between independence and interdependence
Keller’s 3 contexts of mother behavior
- independent contexts
- interdependent contexts
- autonomous-related contexts
independent contexts of mother behavior
prevalence of face-to-face contact (teaching separateness) and object stimulation (teaching autonomous agency); less body contact and body stimulation
- exclusivity of mother-child pair
- the baby is seen as an equal/individual with own will and preferences
- a parental ethnotheory is that both the child and the mother need time alone to unwind
- e.g. Germany
interdependent contexts of mother behavior
more body contact (teaching relatedness) and body stimulation (teaching heteronomous agency); less face-to-face contact and object stimulation
- tight social network, no exclusive mother-child dyad
- the child is seen as an apprentice
- a parental ethnotheory is that the mother and child should have skin-to-skin contact to be happy
- e.g. Cameroon
autonomous-related contexts of mother behavior
there is an exclusive mother-child dyad within a tight social network
- socialization goals are both relational and autonomous
- typical of urban, educated contexts in historically collectivistic contexts
- e.g. San Jose, Costa Rica; Istanbul
Olweus (1993) 3 criteria for bullying
- intentional physical or mental harm
- there is a power imbalance
- the act is repeated over time
temperament
a relatively stable style of interacting with the world that exists from birth
easy temperament
regular, flexible, slightly intense, receptive
difficult temperament
intense, irregular, withdrawn, with negative moods
slow-to-warm-up
time is needed to transition in activities and experiences
goodness of fit
the degree to which a child’s temeperament matches the parents’ expectations and values
specific temperament dimensions
- activity level: gross motor activity
- smiling and laughter: social behavior
- fear: behavioral inhibition
- distress to limitations: showing distress when a goal is blocked
- soothability: how easily a child can be soothed
- duration of orienting: how long a child pays attention to an object when no new stimuli are offered
strange situation test
by Bowlby and Ainsworth and is often used to assess attachment styles
- the child is temporarily separated from the mother and a stranger enters the room
- assessment is based on the child’s reactions to the separation, to the stranger, and to the return of the mother
- may not be a valid assessment of attachment across different cultures
Piaget’s stages of cognitive development
there are cultural differences in the ages at which children reach certain stages
- does not necessarily say anything about the cognitive development of children, but may be due to pressures to learn certain things are not present within some contexts
Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of cognitive development
cognitive development is indistinguishable from culture
- scaffolding and zone of proximal development are central to this theory
zone of proximal development
a zone in which children are not yet able to perform a task independently, but with some help from others they are able to do so
scaffolding
where children are pushed to think on a higher level with support and help from others
Kohlbergs 3 stages of moral reasoning
- preconventional: rules are followed to avoid punishment and obtain a reward
- co-conventional: compliance with rules made based on the approval of others and rules of society
- post-conventional: moral reasoning based on individual principles and conscience
Jensen’s (2011) 3 pronged ethical approach to morality
describes moral development for a broader range of cultures
- ethics of autonomy
- ethics of community
- ethics of divinity
ethics of autonomy
emphasis on individual rights and justice
ethics of community
emphasis on interpersonal relationships and community
ethics of divinity
emphasis on the central role of religious beliefs and spirituality
