week 10 - play and peers Flashcards
What are the 2 main approaches to defining play? (Fagan, 1974)
- functional approach: focuses on the purpose of play
- structural approach: describes the behaviours that occur during play
What five essential characteristics of play were identified by Rubin et al. (1983)?
- intrinsically motivated
- freely chosen
- pleasurable
- non-literal
- active engagement
What are Burghardt’s (2011) criteria for recognising play?
- play is incompletely functional
- spontaneous and pleasurable
- differs in form or timing from serious behaviours
- is repeated but not in a stereotypical form
- occurs under conditions of abundance not stress
What is the Contextual Apperception Procedure (Howard, 2002)?
it is a procedure used to understand children’s understanding of play by asking them if a person is playing or working, and how they know
According to Howard et al. (2002), what environmental and emotional cues do children use to identify play?
children identify play when:
- activities are outdoors
- on the floor
- with other children
- when doing what they want
children identify work when activities are:
- indoors
- at a table
- with a grown up
- involve reading, writing, or using paper
What are some of the ways that play supports development? (Golinkoff & Hirsh-Pasek, 2016)
play supports social, cognitive, and physical development, allowing children to express thoughts/feelings, explore the world, learn perspectives, negotiate roles, practice self-controll, develop language, and learn about others
Name 4 types of play, and one benefit of each?
- physical activity play: assists sustained attention
- rough-and-tumble play: assists emotional regulation
- play with objects: promotes social interaction
- pretend play: has varied social and cognitive benefits
What did Parten (1933) study, and what did she find regarding the development of social play?
- observed 2-5 year olds
- identified 6 progressive phases of social play:
- unoccupied
- solitary
- onlooker
- parallel
- associative
- cooperative
she found that children’s play becomes increasingly sophisticated and social as they age
What are criticisms of Parten’s (1933) study?
- the children studied had average or higher IQs and higher socioeconomic backgrounds
- assumed children were oblivious to the observers presence, which may not be true
- the study may be outdated due to changes in social norms
- Parten viewed a lack of face-to-face play as a sign of social incompetence, but modern research acknowledges social play within the use of technology
According to Piaget, how does play develop through the stages of cognitive development?
- sensorimotor (birth-2 years): sensorimotor play
- preoperational (2-7 years): symbolic play and role-playing
- concrete operational (7-11 years): games with rules
- formal operational (11 onwards): games with more social element to rules
What are the critiques of Piaget’s theory of play?
- it underestimates individual differences and variations
- play is not always solely initiated and performed by the child
- the stages may not always be sequential and can be observed at different ages than predicted
- it does not consider cultural differences
what is the ‘training-for-the-unexpected’ hypothesis in evolutionary theory?
play exposes a child to unpredictable situations, allowing them to learn to cope with unpredictable experiences later in life
What is the ‘motor-training’ hypothesis in evolutionary theory?
play prepares the motor system for adult behaviours by enabling modifications to be made in the muscles and nervous system
How can technology, socioeconomic status, and culture influence play?
- technology: there was concern that technology would reduce social interactions but limited evidence suggests this
- socioeconomic status: types of play may vary. e.g., middle-SES children may engage in more pretend play and lower-SES children may engage in more associative play
- culture: some dimensions of social play are universal while others are socially specific
What is the difference between peers and friends
peers are people of the same age and status, while friends are peers with whom individuals have intimate, reciprocated and positive relationships
What are the 3 stages of friendship? (Bigelow & La Gaipa, 1980)
- 7-8 years: reward-cost stage
- 9-10 years: normative stage
- 11-12 years: empathic stage
how do preschool friendships differ from those in middle childhood?
- preschool friendships are based on physical proximity and being playmates
- middle childhood friendships are based on desirable characteristics, shared interest, trust, and loyalty
What are some benefits of friendship?
friendships provide emotional support, social skills, and positive social outcomes
According to Coie et al. (1982), what are the four groups of children based on sociometric status?
- popular: liked and accepted, high impact
- controversial: high impact, average preference
- neglected: low impact
- rejected: low acceptancem high rejection, high impact
What are the characteristics of popular children?
popular children are cooperative, friendly, sociable, helpful, sensitive. They are perceived as socially skilled with emotional and behavioural strengths
What are characteristics of rejected children?
rejected children are disliked by many peers, have difficulty with social situations, may be anxious or depressed. they can be overly aggressive or withdrawn
What are the characteristics of neglected children?
neglected children are withdrawn but relatively socially competent, less sociable and less disruptive than average children, and avoid aggression
What are the characteristics of controversial children?
controversial children are liked by some peers and disliked by others, have characteristics of both popular and unpopular children, and tend to be cooperative, sociable, good at sports, and group leaders
What are some cross-cultural similarities and differences in peer status?
- across cultures, socially rejective children are often aggressive, popular children are prosocial and have leadership skills, and withdrawn children are rejected.
- there are differences in how shy children are viewed
- in some cultures shyness is encouraged, whereas in western cultures, independence and self-assertion is encouraged
