PSYC 2011 Week 8: Social and Emotional Development

• PSYC 2011 Week 8 covers social and emotional development in preschool children
• This includes self-concept and relationships with parents, siblings, and peers, as well as moral development

Development of Self-Concept

• In the early toddler stage (15-18 months), initial concepts of self begin to develop and the self-definition process starts
• Self-definition characteristics include physical features, personal preferences and achievement abilities
• Self and identity development is influenced by biological factors, socialization, personal choices, and life experiences
• Gender identity also develops during this time

Gender Roles

• Social roles consist of cultural guidelines dictating how an individual should behave
• Gender roles, among the first social roles learned, are culturally prescribed roles for a particular gender
• All cultures have gender stereotypes, representing beliefs about how genders differ in personality, interests, and behaviours

Gender Stereotypes

• Instrumental traits (active involvement) are stereotypically associated with men
• Expressive traits (emotional functioning) are stereotypically associated with women

International Views

• College students associate males with being independent, aggressive, not excitable, while females are seen as emotional, home-oriented and kind
• An international survey shows perceptions of males as aggressive and independent, and females as emotional and gentle, vary across cultures

Gender Stereotyping of Activities

• When given a choice of a male or female doll to imitate masculine, feminine or neutral activities, gender stereotyping occurs in girls as early as 24 months and in boys by 31 months

Preschoolers and Gender Stereotypes

• Preschoolers view stereotypes as binding
• For example, a 5-year-old boy liking to iron would be cause to view negatively how much he would like to play with masculine and feminine toys
• Preschoolers who do not conform to traditional gender roles are seen as less likeable, especially adult attitudes towards boys

Gender Identity

• Children start forming and transmitting information on culturally sanctioned behaviours
• Around age 3, children begin to forge a gender identity, representing a person's inner sense of their own gender
• Social, cognitive, and biological aspects all influence gender identity

Social Influences on Gender Identity

• Albert Bandura's social learning theory suggests gender identity develops via reinforcement and observational learning
• Initial gender behaviour is shaped by parents, with other adults, peers and cultural norms following suit
• Observation of adult interactions, peer behaviours, varied treatment based on gender, and subtle social cues all contribute to this

Direct Teaching

• Direct teaching also shapes gender identity, with adults explicitly instructing children on appropriate behaviour and correcting "inappropriate" gender behaviour
• Society reinforces gender roles, with children receiving direct feedback about gender norms

Own Gender Imitation Bias

• Children readily mimic behaviour from those of their own gender
• Neuroscience supports this, showing that own-gender imitation activates reward centers in the brain by neural mechanisms

Additional Influences

• Parents are consistently warm to all children, irrespective of their gender
• Achievement encouragement is similar for both genders, and independence is equally promoted
• Girls are often directed toward dolls and dress-up, rough-and-tumble play is encouraged for boys, construction toys are more common for boys, and helping adults is emphasized for girls

Parental Influences

• Fathers are more likely than mothers to treat sons and daughters differently and encourage gender-based play, pushing sons toward independence while accepting dependence in daughters
• Mothers respond to each child’s individual needs, whereas father's responses are based on gender

Peer Influences

• Peers actively criticize those exhibiting cross-gender play
• Children monitor and police peer gender boundaries during playtime
• Peers use teasing and social exclusion to enforce gender norms

Double Standards

• Boys receive fiercer criticism than girls for cross-gender play
• Doll play results in more ridicule for boys than truck play does for girls
• Girls are given more freedom to cross gender boundaries in play choices

Peer Consequences

• Non-conforming children experience peer rejection
• Gender-nonconforming play can lead to the shunning of social isolation
• Those in violation of gender norms, face being ignored by others

Peer Impact

• Fear of peer rejection can limit a child's play choices
• Social pressure influences future play preferences, with children learning to regulate their behaviour to avoid criticism

Media Influences

• Children's books feature more male protagonists, with title stories and roles commonly dominated by males
• The impact on children's attitudes, performance, or directed behaviour remains unclear
• There is insufficient evidence about whether the media's gender roles truly reflects or actually shapes what is society

TV Effects

• A 1986 study by Kimbal shows a change towards increased stereotyped views after TV was introduced to a small Canadian town in located in a valley

Cognitive Theories of Gender Identity

• Gender identity gradually develops through gender labelling (ages 2-3), stability (preschool years), consistency (ages 4-7), and constancy
• Gender labelling involves understanding and correctly labeling their own and other's genders
• Stability involves understanding gender is consistent over time
• Consistency involves realizing gender remains constant despite changes in situations or personal wishes
• Constancy involves having obtained the knowledge gender is always stable

Gender Fluidity

• Contemporary theorists and researchers tend to question stability and consistency in gender
• The World Professional Association for Transgender Health endorses gender fluidity
• They recommend inclusive identification of gender acknowledging that gender intersects with aspects of human diversity

Gender Relativism

• Gender relativism (Martin, 2023) suggests context impacts the understanding and labeling of masculinity or femininity
• Gender can be a dependent variable in psychological studies
• As an example, 5°C may feel cold in October, but warm in January due to the contrast effect
• As another example, what defines baking as masculine or feminine depends on the specific children who grow up in households solely cooking specific food

Gender Schema Theory

• Gender schema theory involves using gender-based info to decide whether to put effort to learning new activities
• Gender schema affects media selection choices shifting along gender-specific lines, and using gender labels to evaluate toys and activities
• When children are told that those of a specific gender really like an unfamiliar toy, children like it too

Biological Influences on Gender Identity

• Hormones, genes, and brain development play a role in influence children's gender identity and behaviors
• Support for this lies in boys and girls often playing differently, with girls more relational and nurturing while boys enact being more rough-and-tumble

Chromosomal Influences

• A fertilized egg contains 23 pairs of chromosomes
• If the 23rd pair has an X and Y chromosome, testes will develop ~6 weeks post-conception and will produce testosterone in weeks 7-8
• If the 23rd pair has two X chromosomes, ovaries will appear 10 weeks after conception.

Hormone Contributions

• Male and female sex characteristics develop because of hormone influence
• How these hormones contribute to behavioural and social roles is questionable
• You cannot experiment with the hormones secreted during prenatal stage
• Level of sex hormones is directly related to gender identity development during early years although the degree of the connection is not known

Identical Twin Analysis

• Identical twins' instrumental and expressive traits correlate more than fraternal twins' answers
• In prenatal development, malfunctioning adrenal glands expose females to large amounts of androgen hormones
• Growing up, some of these girls chose "masculine" activities (playing with cars instead of dolls) and male friends as well

Overall Thoughts on Gender

• Children's gender identity derives from a socializing influence of people, media, and a child’s behavior

Self-Esteem

• During the preschool years, children take the initiative on individual responsibility such as in dressing
• Children also play adult roles which are also defined as their identity
• Preschoolers explore the environment and are inquisitive to learning answers

Psychosocial Development

• Erik Erikson's theory of psychosocial development suggests that young children realize taking initiative leads to conflicting with others
• This conflict can lead to balancing initiative with willingness to co-operate
• Self-esteem is the by-product of the resolution of this struggle

Defining Self-Esteem

• Self-esteem is the feeling of personal worth
• Those with high self-esteem judge themselves favourably and are highly positive
• Those with low self-esteem, judge themselves negatively and may wish to be someone else
• During this time period, self-esteem is at its peak
• Upon school entry, drops may be observed

Measuring Self-Esteem

• Self-esteem is measured via perception of cognitive and physical competence, acceptance by peers, and acceptance by the mother

Family's Effect as a System

• Early psychological theories viewed parents as powerful, with their behaviors having a lasting relationship with a child
• Current perspectives acknowledge a broader perspective, with both direction and indirect influence
• Other influencing factors include verbal guidance and rules, exemplifying behaviors, and more

Parental Influences

• The child-father relationship can be strongly influential for the child
• Demanding relationships are challenging with less time to devote
• High-strife environments with conflict can hinder cognitive development

Social Systems of Families

• Family social structures are highly influential and dependent on a child's work from an early age
• The neighborhood and religious identities may influence behavior as well
• Extended family contact and religious identity for parents also define the upbringing

Parenting Objectives

• The primary objectives of a parent includes a focus on a child's safety, future, and a sharing of cultural values
• Warmth and responsiveness, control, as well as mental health is considered for the parents
• There can be the influence for the particular child’s needs relative to the relationship to the parents

Warmth and Responsiveness

• Those who are warm generally are involved while understanding their emotional needs
• Children generally feel secure with security from the parental relationship
• Those uninvolved that express hostility are viewed negatively from the child and produce anxiety

Control

• Too much demand from the parent can impose negative influence to the child
• Allowing a child to go their own path could present parental doubt
• This poses the need for structure relative to the children
• Too much imposed or under-controlled parenting can stunt future growth
• Over-control deprives decision making while under-control provides accountability

Parental Styles

• Parenting Styles are determined by parental involvement, which varies between high and low

Cultural Differences

• Cultural identity is a universal aspect of parenting
• Proper amount changes cross-culturally
• Influencing those are European, Asian and Latin countries
• The upbringing of what is taught could have to change based on cultures
• Individualism vs collectivism is an example of changing teachings

Direct Instruction

• Direct instruction is what to do, why, and what to be thinking
• Coaching through linking behavior and emotion as well as how to deal with situations is also crucial

Learning by Observation

• Learning is gained through examples from the family
• Behavior to implement depends on the upbringing of the parent's relationship
• Behavior to inhibit by learning with an older or younger sibling

Reinforcement

• Actions that increase the likelihood of response is how it is presented and is based on an individuals upbringing
• An individual will constantly find new ways to argue on bad behavior

Punishment

• An event that decreases the likelihood of response is punishment
• Can vary with turning off television to no television or spanking
• Can lead to behavioral issues
• Time-outs are an alternative to spanking

Children's Contributions

• Parenting styles and actions are highly influenced by behavior
• Parents must be confident with the behavior taught
• Parenting characteristics are different for all depending on the individual child

Family Configuration

• Roles of grandparents include formal guidance or surrogate
• With same-sex parenting the parental relationship is the most influential with what the children take from the experience
• 9% have children living in family in same-sex families

Sibling Relationships

• First born individuals are generally high performing
• They are "guinea pigs" with parents who are more achieve-oriented
• The scores and behaviors are generally more positive
• Those that are later-born are less concerned about pleasing parental adults
• They are more innovative and social
• Under China's One-Child Policy, only children were not selfish
• They also are noted to be high-strife, depending on emotional ties

Sibling Dynamic

• The dynamic between the sibling may vary due to personal behaviors
• If parents stay responsive to any children, there may be less conflict in relation
• If children are more emotional or enter adolescence, there may be conflict present
• Intervene when the sibling is physical or when parents are favored

Adopted Sibling

• Adjustments to adopted siblings may vary depending on the sibling
• Younger to older balance may vary, and attention must be focused
• Dynamics should be taken into consideration during the rearing

Peer Relationships and Play

• Organized play around theme is beneficial for children taking roles
• Actions such as hitting or pushing others may be seen during play
• Bullying may occur near the age of preschool

Prosocial Behaviours

• Showing compassion in play is not unique to the play
• It is more focused on building and being happy for others
• Some individuals however may show limited capacity for comfort

Make-Believe

• Imaginary play is not unique and can be advanced with objects
• Abstract make-believe is linked with the children's development
• Themes follow the values of what the child wants to be

Culture and Values

• Values and culture of the individuals can vary from person to person
• Cultural traditions can influence these decisions and the child's values

Make-Believe Benefits

• Individuals in this type of play have more developed memories
• A general sense of thoughts for those involved are unique
• It can bring up memories and regulate

Solitary Play

• Play can be solitary for unique circumstances
• There can not always be a sign of maladjustment with social anxiety or general behavior
• There can be play time that can increase this and be beneficial for children
• Parents should be coaches and mediators

Self-Control

• Actions such as being able to rise to the top of actions as a leader is important
• Understanding moral decisions during important action is important
• Learning behavior is learned with moral support

Morality

• Important to learn from actions that are being done
• What could be temptation for individuals can be altered
• It is a skill used throughout development

Influences

• Parental influences are crucial and often forgotten
• Imposing more for control has benefits, you have to know the audience

Temperant

• Emotionality during emotional development influences self-control

Morality and Learning of Rules

• Individuals that hold off and delay satisfaction typically are on the path
• Reminders and parental planning are important