Social Development I

Question 1

Three key questions for social development I?

Answer 1

1/ Do infants have personality?
2/ How do infants become social beings?
3/ What is the impact of parenting?

Question 2

When does an emotional bond begin and how does this manifest itself?

Answer 2

There are emotional bonds from birth - mutual gaze between mother and baby.

Question 3

When do we see early understanding and how does this manifest itself?

Answer 3

Early understanding: At 3-4 months, can match emotions in voices to faces.

Question 4

What happens at 3-4 months?

Answer 4

Early understanding: At 3-4 months, can match emotions in voices to faces.

Question 5

When do we see social referencing and how does this manifest itself?

Answer 5

Social referencing: At 8 – 10 months, can use emotional displays to evaluate a situation.

Question 6

What happens at 8-10 months?

Answer 6

Social referencing: At 8 – 10 months, can use emotional displays to evaluate a situation.

Question 7

What is temperament?

Answer 7

Temperament is an early form of personality- behavioural differences between babies.

Question 8

What scientific study tested temperament?

Answer 8

Thomas & Chess (1977)

Question 9

What three things is temperament measured with?

Answer 9

Emotion – distress or positive affect
Attention – persistence or distractibility
Activity level – low or high

Question 10

What are the three types of infants in relation to temperament?

Answer 10

Easy, Difficult and Slow to Warm Up infants.

Question 11

Frequency of easy infants?

Answer 11

40% of infants

Question 12

What are the characteristics of easy infants?

Answer 12

Generally cheerful, adapts well to new experiences and regular routines.

Question 13

Frequency of difficult infants?

Answer 13

10% of infants?

Question 14

What are the characteristics of difficult infants?

Answer 14

Intense, negative reactions, slow to adapt to new experiences and irregular routines.

Question 15

What are the characteristics of slow to warm up infants?

Answer 15

Negative mood, slow to adapt to new experiences and mild reactions.

Question 16

Frequency of slow to warm up infants?

Answer 16

15% of infants

Question 17

Nature as the origin of temperament?

Answer 17

Significant genetic component – identical twins more similar than fraternal twins (who share less genetic material).

Question 18

What can early temperaments predict?

Answer 18

Early temperaments can predict personality later in life… Eg, Difficult infants can become more aggressive children.

Question 19

Nurture as the origin of temperament?

Answer 19

Early on, teratogens and stress can modify temperament.
Also, how well parental response suits infant’s temperament.
Parents and the environment can reinforce or modify temperament.

However – parents often reinforce temperament. Difficult babies less likely to relieve sensitive caregiving.

Question 20

What is attachment?

Answer 20

Hallmark of social behaviour- we form selective and special relationships with others.

Question 21

How does attachment begin

Answer 21

It begins with infant-caregiver bond.

Question 22

What is the behaviourist perspective of attachment?

Answer 22

Behaviourist perspective – close contact with mother associated with relief of hunger.

Question 23

What was Harlow’s (1959) opposing idea of the behaviourist perspective on attachment?

Answer 23

Harlow (1959) – opposite idea – warm, comforting contact is primary – feeding is a consequence.

Question 24

What important questions connects feeding and attachment.

Answer 24

Does feeding cause attachment or does attachment cause feeding?

Question 25

Results and significance of Harlow (1959)?

Answer 25

Newborn monkeys preferred a ‘soft’ artificial mother vs. a ‘wire’ artificial mother with a milk nipple.
Supports the idea that attachment is primary – newborn monkeys sought comfort over food- refutes behaviourist view.
In real-life, sources of comfort are likely to also provide food.

Question 26

What the results of extreme deprivation of newborn monkeys?

Answer 26

Newborn monkeys isolated for a year from social contact – serious behavioural problems.
Withdrawal from contact, huddling and rocking, abnormal sexual relations, killed offspring.

Question 27

What were the results of extreme deprivation of orphans?

Answer 27

Late-adopted Romanian orphans – also have dramatic problems. Poor interaction with adoptive parents, overfriendly with strangers.

Question 28

In the stages of attachment, what happens between 0-6 weeks?

Answer 28

‘Pre-attachment’- recognise mother and distinguish from stanger.

Question 29

In the stages of attachment, between what ages do we see ‘pre-attachment’.

Answer 29

0-6 weeks

Question 30

In the stages of attachment, what happens at 6 weeks up to 8 months.

Answer 30

‘attachment in the making’- behave differently around mother than stranger.

Question 31

In the stages of attachment, at what ages do we see attachment in the making?

Answer 31

6 weeks up to 8 months

Question 32

In the stages of attachment, what happens at 6 months up to 2 years?

Answer 32

‘Clear attachment’ - attachment has been formed and separation anxiety occurs.

Question 33

In the stages of attachment, at what ages do we see ‘clear attachment’?

Answer 33

6 months up to 2 years.

Question 34

In the stages of attachment, what happens between 18-24 months onwards?

Answer 34

‘Reciprocal attachment’- development of representational skills allows toddler to predict mother’s coming and going.

Question 35

In the stages of attachment, between what ages do we see ‘reciprocal attachment’?

Answer 35

between 18-24 months and onwards

Question 36

What did Ainsworth et al (1978) study and what happened?

Answer 36

Ainsworth et al. (1978) – Assess differences in attachment styles.
Infant plays with mother and stranger in unfamiliar playroom
Mother leaves room – infant left with stranger.
Stranger leaves room, mother returns.
How does infant respond when mother returns?

Question 37

In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what were the four variations in attachment?

Answer 37

Secure, avoidant, ambivalent and disorganised.

Question 38

In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘secure’ described as?

Answer 38

Happy when mother returns and receptive to her contact.

Question 39

In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘avoidant’ described as?

Answer 39

Avoid or ignore their mother upon her return.

Question 40

In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘ambivalent’ described as?

Answer 40

Alternate between clinging to mother or angrily rejecting her contact.

Question 41

In Ainsworth et al’s 1978 study, what was ‘disorganised’ described as?

Answer 41

Bahviour is incoherent. May cry after being comforted or reach for mother while looking away.

Question 42

What are the characteristics of a person who had a secure attachment?

Answer 42

Better friendships as child and teenager.
Better romantic relationships.
Less aggressive and require less discipline.
Higher levels of education.

Question 43

Why did children with a secure attachment have good social skills when they grow up?

Answer 43

Relation with parent sets up internal working model of how social relationships work.
Positive relationship with mother creates expectations for other relationships.

Question 44

What promotes secure attachment?

Answer 44

Sensitive caregiving promotes secure attachment – mother is tender and responsive to child’s needs.

Question 45

How can social or cultural factors effect whether a child has secure attachment or not?

Answer 45

Problems if mother rejects or neglects child.
North America – secure attachment is common
Northern Germany - avoidant pattern is common –parents encourage independence in children.
Japan - mothers are rarely apart from infant.

Question 46

Can daycare disrupt attachment?

Answer 46

Even though separations are brief with daily reunions, research suggest that infants in daycare are less securely attached – but could have simply adapted to mother’s absence.
However, quality of daycare and parental sensitivity are most important factors.

Question 47

What are the three dimensions of infant behaviour?

Answer 47

Temperament, attachment and parental style.

Question 48

What are the four parental styles?

Answer 48

Authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, uninvolved.

Question 49

Describe the authoritative parental style?

Answer 49

‘firm but fair’ – set reasonable rules and reason with children.

Question 50

Describe the authoritarian parental style?

Answer 50

strict and punish harshly. Expect obedience without explanation.

Question 51

Describe the permissive parental style?

Answer 51

affectionate, but discipline is lax.

Question 52

Describe the uninvolved parental style?

Answer 52

minimal effort, neglect.

Question 53

What form of parental style is the most effective and what is its effect?

Answer 53

Authoritative parenting is most effective – children are friendly, responsible and self-reliant.

Question 54

What can be the effects of using the other three ineffective parental styles?

Answer 54

Behavioural and emotional problems associated with other parenting styles.
Children may be aggressive and less socially skilled.
Problems depend on exact type of parenting.

Question 55

What is the bidirectional influences of a childs personality?

Answer 55

Bidirectional influences – Temperament can influence parenting – but parenting can influence temperament…. Or more generally, does parenting cause the child’s behaviour – or is the parent’s behaviour a response to the child?

Question 56

Three conclusions for social development I?

Answer 56

1/ Infants have ‘mini personalities’ - differing emotions and behavioural patterns.
2/ Infants form attachments with their caregivers - secure or insecure. Predicts social behaviour in later childhood.
3/ Parents vary in affection and discipline. Parenting style interacts with the child temperament.