Child Development Lecture 12 PDF

 Lecture overview Peer Relationships Importance of Peer Relationships Peer Acceptance and Popularity: Changing relationships with pa...

 Lecture overview Peer Relationships Importance of Peer Relationships Peer Acceptance and Popularity: Changing relationships with parents Sociometric Techniques They family’s influence Reasons for Popularity Changing Relationships with Parents Long-Term Effects of Peer Status Authoritative Parenting and Social Skills Peer Rejection and Psychological Problems Corregulation Friendship The Influence of Siblings Bullying Sibling Influence in Middle Childhood Effects of Bullying Direct Contributions of Siblings to Moral development Development Kohlberg's theory of moral reasoning Negative Influences of Siblings Level 1: Preconventional morality Indirect Contributions of Siblings to Level 2: Conventional morality Development A New Sense of Self Variety in Family Life Changes in Self-Concept Single-Parent Families in South Africa The Development of Self-Esteem Why Might Children Do Worse in Single-Parent Role of Parents and Peers Families? Physical Appearance and Self-Esteem Family Structure and Developmental Outcomes Parental Support for Autonomy What can improve the outcomes for children in Conclusion single-parent families Changing Relationships with Parents: The Family’s Influence: While school becomes an increasingly significant influence on children during middle childhood, the family still plays a powerful role in shaping their development. Changing Relationships with Parents: As children grow older, their relationships with their parents change. By age seven, children often begin to show affection less openly in public, and parents begin to expect more responsible behavior from their children. Middle childhood introduces new issues between parents and children, such as concerns about school performance, chores, and children’s social lives and activities outside the home.  Changing Relationships with Parents: cont. Authoritative Parenting and Social Skills: Research shows that authoritative parenting (a balance of warmth and firmness) is linked to positive social skills and good adjustment in children during middle childhood, particularly in middle-class communities. Corregulation: Corregulation is the process where parents and children share responsibility for controlling the child’s behavior. As children grow, parents begin to use indirect techniques like reasoning, humor, or appeals to self-esteem and guilt to guide their children’s behavior, rather than direct control. This shift in parental approach encourages cooperation and a gradual transfer of responsibility from parents to children.  The Influence of Siblings Sibling Influence in Middle Childhood: Sibling relationships during middle childhood are often ambivalent, described as "love-hate." Siblings frequently experience conflict but also demonstrate affection, companionship, and support. Direct Contributions of Siblings to Development: Siblings often provide emotional support, confiding in each other and offering protection and comfort, especially during difficult times. Older siblings, especially in some communities, take on caregiving roles, such as feeding, comforting, and disciplining younger siblings. This role is particularly common for older sisters. Older siblings act as teachers of new behaviors, and those who tutor younger siblings tend to perform better academically. These interactions help children develop cognitive skills and understand others' perspectives. The Influence of Siblings cont. Negative Influences of Siblings: Sibling relationships can have negative effects as well. For example, younger siblings growing up with aggressive or difficult siblings may develop poor social relationships. This is more common in disadvantaged neighborhoods where poverty and unemployment are prevalent, potentially leading to additional stressors within sibling relationships. Indirect Contributions of Siblings to Development: Parental treatment: Siblings influence each other’s development through the way they are treated by their parents. Differential treatment, where one sibling receives more warmth and attention than another, can lead to emotional and behavioral problems in the less-favored sibling. Perceived fairness: Children who perceive unequal treatment by their parents are more likely to struggle emotionally, even if the differential treatment is justified by factors such as differences in age or special needs.  Variety in Family Life Family structures and sibling relationships affect children’s development, with children often growing up in a variety of family types including nuclear families, extended families, single-parent families, and sibling-based families. In South Africa, extended family households, where children are raised by relatives in addition to their biological parents, are more common among African and Asian communities compared to white communities. Single-parent families are increasingly common, particularly in South Africa, where 39% of children live with their mothers, and many children live in households where one or both biological parents are absent.  Single-Parent Families in South Africa Children in single-parent families often face more economic and emotional challenges compared to children in two-parent families. Research shows that children from single-parent homes are more likely to have adjustment difficulties and face challenges related to poverty and stability. Many children living in single-parent families face stress due to factors such as economic instability, exposure to stressful situations, and feelings of isolation. Why Might Children Do Worse in Single-Parent Families? According to research, children in single-parent families are exposed to stressors such as economic hardship, lack of supervision, and limited access to resources, which can negatively impact their emotional and psychological well- being. Economic stress, less parental supervision, and exposure to stress are among the major factors contributing to the challenges faced by children in single-parent families.  Family Structure and Developmental Outcomes Studies show that children from single- parent families tend to face more emotional and behavioral problems compared to children raised in two- parent families. This is often due to the lack of stability and emotional support in single-parent households. Research from South Africa suggests that children from single-parent families are more likely to experience difficulties in school and struggle with adjustment issues.  What can improve the outcomes for children in single-parent families? Parental Mental Health: Research indicates that a parent’s mental health plays a significant role in the well-being of children in single-parent families. If parents are mentally well, children are more likely to adjust positively. Quality of Relationships: The quality of relationships between family members is a crucial factor in the child’s adjustment. Healthy relationships between parents and children, as well as cooperative co-parenting, can improve outcomes for children. Financial Support: Adequate financial support, particularly when non-resident parents contribute child support, plays a significant role in reducing emotional and behavioral problems in children from single-parent families. Social Support: Children from single-parent families benefit from strong social support networks, including extended family members, friends, and school staff. This support helps children cope with the challenges they face. Role of Extended Family: In South Africa, many children in single-parent families live in extended families where grandparents, aunts, uncles, or other family members take on caregiving roles, often filling the gap left by an absent parent, particularly the father.  Peer Relationships Importance of Peer Relationships: Peer relationships become increasingly significant during middle childhood, especially as children spend more time with their peers than with their families. These relationships are crucial for the development of personal and social skills. Peer Acceptance and Popularity: Children in middle childhood develop an awareness of peer acceptance and popularity. They begin to form social hierarchies, identifying popular children, rejected children, neglected children, and controversial children within their social groups. Popular children tend to exhibit positive social behaviors, while rejected children often exhibit antisocial behaviors or social withdrawal. Children’s peer acceptance can have lasting impacts on their psychological development and future social relationships.  Peer Relationships cont. Sociometric Techniques: Researchers use sociometric techniques to measure peer acceptance by asking children to rate how much they like or dislike their peers. This helps identify social status categories such as popular, rejected, neglected, and controversial children. Reasons for Popularity: Popular children tend to exhibit positive social behaviors such as friendliness, cooperation, and leadership. These traits are typically valued across different cultures. Rejected children often display aggressive or withdrawn behaviors, which contribute to their lower social status. Long-Term Effects of Peer Status: A child’s peer status in middle childhood can have long-term consequences, including an impact on psychological adjustment and mental health. Children who are rejected by peers are more likely to experience psychological problems, such as depression, anxiety, or antisocial behavior, later in life.  Peer Relationships cont. Peer Rejection and Psychological Problems: Rejection during childhood is associated with a greater risk of developing psychological difficulties. Children who experience rejection may face academic challenges and have trouble forming relationships as they grow older.  Friendship Friendship during middle childhood becomes deep and affectionate, and children start forming close, lasting bonds with friends. Popular children are more likely to have friends, but even less popular children usually manage to find at least one close friend. Friendships help children develop social skills, support each other in times of need, and navigate through challenges.  Bullying Bullying in middle childhood can be physical (e.g., hitting), verbal (e.g., name-calling), or relational (e.g., exclusion or spreading rumors). Relational aggression is a common form of bullying, particularly among girls, and involves damaging someone’s social relationships. Bullies tend to dominate others and often have strong social skills that they use manipulatively. Victims of bullying often exhibit anxiety, low self- esteem, and difficulty asserting themselves. The effects of bullying can lead to significant emotional, social, and academic problems for both the victim and the bully. Effects of Bullying: Bullying can lead to long-term emotional problems for victims, including anxiety, depression, and withdrawal. Victims of repeated bullying often struggle with forming friendships and may suffer academically. Schools need to recognize bullying as a serious issue and take proactive steps to create safe environments.  Moral development Moral development involves children's growing ability to distinguish between right and wrong and to act on that distinction. Kohlberg's theory of moral reasoning provides a framework for understanding how this ability develops. Kohlberg's theory of moral reasoning outlines how people progress through different stages of moral development, largely based on their ability to handle moral dilemmas. These dilemmas often present a conflict between following the law and acting on a personal belief about what is right. Kohlberg's stages of moral reasoning are divided into three broad levels: Preconventional morality (focused on external rewards and punishments) Conventional morality (centered on social rules and expectations) Postconventional morality (guided by internal moral principles)  Kohlberg’s Theory Level 1: Preconventional morality Stage 1: Punishment-and-obedience orientation – Children at this stage determine what is right based on avoiding punishment. They see an action as wrong if it leads to punishment. Stage 2: Instrumental hedonism – Children begin to make moral judgments based on self-interest, doing what will bring personal rewards. Level 2: Conventional morality Stage 3: "Good boy" or "good girl" morality – Moral decisions are made to maintain relationships and gain social approval. Actions are judged based on whether they are seen as kind, helpful, or approved by others. Stage 4: Authority and social-order-maintaining morality – Morality is defined by upholding the laws and rules of society. At this stage, what is right is what conforms to established laws and social norms. Moral reasoning progresses as children’s ability to understand other perspectives improves, which leads them to shift from focusing on personal consequences (preconventional) to upholding social rules (conventional).  A New Sense of Self Changes in Self-Concept: During middle childhood, children start to form a more complex sense of who they are. Their self-concept becomes more refined as they begin to think about themselves in terms of their abilities, personality traits, and how they compare to others. Children at this stage might say things like "I’m good at soccer, but I’m not good at math" or "I’m a nice person, but sometimes I get angry.“ Social comparison becomes an important part of how children define themselves; they start comparing their skills and traits with those of their peers. The Development of Self-Esteem: As children begin to evaluate themselves more critically, their self-esteem can be affected by successes and failures, both academically and socially. Success in school or sports often boosts self-esteem, while frequent failure or rejection by peers can cause self- doubt. Some children start to internalize negative judgments about themselves, leading to potential emotional issues such as anxiety or depression.  A New Sense of Self cont. Role of Parents and Peers: The role of parents is critical during this time. Supportive parenting helps children develop a stable sense of self-esteem. Children who feel supported by their parents and teachers are more likely to have positive self-esteem. Peers also play a role; being accepted by friends can boost self-esteem, while peer rejection can have the opposite effect. Physical Appearance and Self-Esteem: As children become more aware of their physical appearance, they begin to place more importance on how they look. This can affect their self-esteem, especially if they feel they don't meet certain physical standards. This issue is exacerbated by societal and media pressures that emphasize physical appearance. Parental Support for Autonomy: Parents who give children the appropriate balance of autonomy and guidance help foster a healthy sense of self. Children who feel respected and supported in their decisions are more likely to develop positive self-worth  Conclusion Physical growth slows, but athletic skills improve: During middle childhood, children's physical growth rate slows compared to earlier years, but their strength and athletic abilities continue to develop. Cognitive development increases: In terms of cognitive development, children become less egocentric and can think more logically about concrete problems, as described in Piaget's concrete operational stage. Their memory and language abilities also improve, which helps them succeed in formal schooling. Contextual understanding of development: Children's development during middle childhood is easier to understand when considered within their cultural and social contexts. These contexts determine the roles and responsibilities children are expected to adopt at this stage of life. Shift in behavioral control: A shift occurs in how behavior is regulated, with more responsibility moving from parents to peer groups. Peers, including issues like acceptance and friendship, start to have a more significant influence on children's behavior. Moral and self-concept development: Children's growing cognitive abilities allow them to move from Kohlberg's preconventional level of moral reasoning to the conventional level. They also develop a more complex self-concept and a better sense of self-esteem, which helps prepare them for the challenges of adolescence.  For next week Attend tutorial Review exam timetable Start preparing for the exam Reach out to your lecturers – schedule consultations