Reading Points - midterm 3 Flashcards
marshmallow test
1960s
wait 15 mins to get second
ability to delay immediate gratification for larger rewards
indicator of self control or will power = predicted later life success
followed these kids for 4 decades
-more intelligent etc higher SAT scores. by 30 higher education level, self-esteem and coped better with stress
even carried to 40 years later
scanned = differences in prefrontal cortex between adults with high and low delay as preschoolers = some bio basis
in the wake of the marshmallow test what do schools now promote
social emotional skills -self-control self-regulation ability to get along with others =SEL social emotional learning did improve social skills and also academic achievement
define emotions
neural and physiological responses to the environment, subjective feelings, cognitions related to those feelings and the desires to take action
combination of physiological and cognitive responses to thoughts or experiences
components of emotions
neural responses
physiological factors including heart rate, breating rate and hormone levels
subjective feelings
emotoinal expressions
the desire to take action, including the desire to escape, approach or change people or things in the environment
role of cognition in emotion
do we have the physiological response first then label it fear ot vice-versa?
discrete emotions theory
a theory about emotions in which emotions are viewed as innate and discrete from one another from very ealry in life and each emotoin is believed to be packaged with a specific and discrete set of bodily and facial reactions
-Darwin
emotional responses = largely automatic and not based on cognition
evidence to support discrete emotions theory
infants express a set of recogniseabel, discrete emotions well before they can be actively taught about them
similar eomtional facial expressions have been observed around the world but cultures vary in how they label
vocalizations of basic emotions (anger, joy, sadness) = recognizeable accross different cultural groups
functional perspective
a theory of emotoin arguing that the basic function of emotoins is to promote action toward achieving a goal. in this view, emotions are not discrete from one another and vary somewhat based on the social environment
individuals experience emotoins in order to manage the relationship between themselves and the environment
so emotions are partially a response to how an individual appraises the environment
makes emotions and emotional expression goal driven
appraisals tend to be at the self conscious level (but exceptions = children realised they can fake emotoin to illict response eg cry to get more sympathy when sibling hits them
example of how emotions are goal driven
child wants something to stop
cries
wants someting to keep going
laughs
what do both theories (functional perspective and discrete emotion theory) agree on
cognition and experience shape emotional development
the emergence of positive emotions
happiness - infants express a smile
1 month old = during REM sleep
after 1 month = sometimes smile when gently stroked
may be reflexive = evolved bio state to keep caregiver
some evidence newborns less than a day old smile when being touched
3-8 week = begin to smile to external stimuli
3-4months = laugh and smile - smile more at people than at puppet like balls
also show smiles when they realise they can control events
7months = smile at familiar people (unfamiliar people = distress), selective smiles = motivate parents, strengthens parent child bond as exchange of positive affect
increases over first year of life
late 1st year = laugh at discrepancies (eg dad wearing a silly hat
then language = humour develops further
box 10.1 Basic emotional expressions in infants
internal states but expressed through facial expressions and body movements
early emotion expressions seem to support bio + evo basis
coding = AFFEX (links particular facial expressions and facial movements with particular emotion)
play videos in slow motion (eg kid being vaccinated) to evaluate emotions that can last less than a second
has been used to demonstrate links between children’s emotional expressions and their emotion regulation skills and social behaviour
one study = the more 3-5 yo expressed anger and sadness in a lab task = the more they displayed mutual health and behaviour problems in their classrooms 6 months later
AFFEX - happiness
smiling, either with a closed mouth or with an open upturned mouth; raised cheeks, which in turn make the eyes squint a bit
AFFEX - anger
strongly furrowed brown that comes down in the center, almost making an X of the brow muscles; open square-shaped mouth, sometimes baring teeth; flared nostrils
AFFEX - surprise
eyes wide open; eyebrows raised into arches; mouth open in a round o shape
AFFEX - sadness
downturned corners of the outh, lips pushed together and possibly trembling, slightly furrowed brow
AFFEX - fear
eyes wide open; brows raised in the middle, making a triangle shape; corners of mouth pulled back into a grimace, with mouth wither open or closed
AFFEX - disgust
nose crinkled and nostrils flares; mouth open wide with lips pulled back and possibly with tongue sticking out
social smile
smiles that are directed at people; they first emerge as early as 6-8 weeks
liekly promote care from parents and older adults + strengthen relationships with other people
infants showing a smile when realise they can control events
string to arm of infant
1/2 = controls music, other music is random
infants who caused music = showed more interest and smiling to the music
emergence of fear in infants
4months = wary of unfamiliar events and objects
6/7 months = initial signs of fear begin to appear, strangers in particular
fear of strangers
6/7 months
reflects infants recognise that unfamiliar people do not provide comfort and pleasure tat familiar people do
fear of strangers intensifies and lasts until about 2yo
is varibale - tempermament + context of stranger
strangers experiment
4months, 8 months, 12 months and 16 months
experimenter (stranger) = slowly approach infant whilst mother sat close by
talked and picked up infant
observer rated face by AFFEX (no fear 0-4 fear), also rated distress in vocalisations
no fear at 4m, steep increase at 8m (is clearly in place).
after 8m = infants have more experience with noel situations so maintain some variation but do not become any more distressed
fear of strangers is…
adaptive
babies cnanot escape so must rely on parent to protect them