PGS 341 Chapter 9.docx

Chapter 9: Theories of Social Development Know what theories of social development attempt to account for (from class notes). Theories of social dev attempt to account for important aspects of child dev Such as temperament, personality, attachment, self, peer relationships, morality, and gender. And how these are influenced by the people and individuals around them. Psychoanalytic theories Learning theories Theories of social cognition Ecological theories of development Know the general formulations of Freud?s theory not the specific details (omit most of the stuff on pp.336-339 only need to know the id, ego, and superego definitions from this section). Freud thought even very young children have sexual nature that influences their behavior and their relationships with other people. ID- the earliest personality structure it is unconscious and in operates in the goal of seeking pleasure. The id acts as according to the "pleasure principle", seeking to avoid pain or un pleasure aroused by increases in instinctual tension EGO-the second personality structure to develop it is the rational logical problem solving component of personality. The Ego acts according to the reality principle; i.e. it seeks to please the id?s drive in realistic ways that will benefit in the long term rather than bringing grief SUPER EGO-the third personality structure consisting of internalized moral standards. The Super-ego aims for perfection. It comprises that organized part of the personality structure, mainly but not entirely unconscious. Know the 5 stages of Erickson?s theory that pertain to infants through adolescents. Be able to identify examples of each stage (pp.339-341). Stage 1 - Basic Trust vs. Mistrust--------Developing trust is the first task of the ego the child will let mother out of sight without anxiety and rage because she has become an inner certainty as well as an outer predictability. The balance of trust with mistrust depends largely on the quality of maternal relationship. Stage 2 - Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt --------If denied autonomy, the child will turn against himself all his urges to manipulate and discriminate. Shame develops with the child's self-consciousness. Doubt has to do with having a front and back -- a "behind" subject to its own rules. Left over doubt may become paranoia. The sense of autonomy fostered in the child and modified as life progresses serves the preservation in economic and political life of a sense of justice. Stage 3 - Initiative vs. Guilt---------Initiative adds to autonomy the quality of undertaking, planning, and attacking a task for the sake of being active and on the move. The child feels guilt over the goals contemplated and the acts initiated in exuberant enjoyment of new locomotors and mental powers. The castration complex occurring in this stage is due to the child's erotic fantasies. A residual conflict over initiative may be expressed as hysterical denial, which may cause the repression of the wish or the abrogation of the child's ego: paralysis and inhibition, or overcompensation and showing off. The Oedipal stage results not only in oppressive establishment of a moral sense restricting the horizon of the permissible, but also sets the direction towards the possible and the tangible which permits dreams of early childhood to be attached to goals of an active adult life. After Stage 3, one may the whole repertoire of previous modalities, modes, and zones for industrious, identity-maintaining, intimate, legacy-producing, despair-countering purposes. Stage 4 - Industry vs. Inferiority---------To bring a productive situation to completion is an aim which gradually supersedes the whims and wishes of play. The fundamentals of technology are developed To lose the hope of such "industrious" association may pull the child back to the more isolated, less conscious familial rivalry of the Oedipal time The child can become a conformist and thoughtless slave whom others exploit. Stage 5 - Identity vs. Role Confusion----------The adolescent is newly concerned with how they appear to others. Ego identity is the accrued confidence that the inner sameness and continuity prepared in the past are matched by the sameness and continuity of one's meaning for others, as evidenced in the promise of a career. The inability to settle on a school or occupational identity is disturbing. Know what the book lists as the most significant contributions of psychoanalytic theories to child development (p.341-342). The most important contributions were on the importance of early experience and emotional relationships an emphasis that has now served as a corner tone of the modern-day attachment theory. Another contribution is Freud?s recognition of the role of subjective experience and unconscious mental activity. Know the general formulations of Skinner?s behavioral perspective and Bandura?s social learning theory (good summaries of this from class notes). B. F. Skinner emphasized the role of external factors in shaping personality and social behavior Emphasis is on the continuity in development, proposing that the same principles operate throughout life and that there are no stages Focus is on mechanisms of change (i.e. principles of learning) and proposes that individual differences arise mainly because of different histories of reinforcement and observational learning experiences Has had major impacts in many social areas; e.g. educational, parenting, and clinical. Know what the book considers to be the some of the more important contributions of Skinner and Bandura (pp.345-349). B.F Skinner held that all behavior can be explained in terms of operant conditioning. He discovered the importance of intermittent reinforcement and the powerful reinforcing value of attention. Bandura?s social learning theory originally emphasized imitation as a prime source of learning. His later research established that children can learn simply by observing other people. Bandura has stressed the importance of cognition in social learning. Know the general formulations of theories of social cognition ? focus on Selman?s theory of role-taking (p.350). Omit sections on theories of social problem solving and theories of attribution ? pp.351- 353). The important ability to adopt the perspective of another person, to think about something from others point of view. He proposed that being able to assume the perspective of another person is necessary to understand the person?s thoughts, feelings or motives. If you cannot take another?s view point, you cannot possibly understand that person. How did Bugental apply role-taking to preventing child maltreatment ? Box 9.3 ? p. 364. The intervention involved frequent home visits in which parents were asked to give examples of recent problems they might have had with their children and to indicate what might have been the cause of the problem rather than rather than blaming the children. Know the three theoretical formulations grouped under ecological perspectives: Ecological perspectives Takes a broad view of the environment Relates children?s development to the evolutionary history of the human species The bioecoloigcal model considers multiple levels of environmental influence Emphasizes aspects of behavior that have (or had) an adaptive function. Ethological > evolutionary > bioecoloigcal. Ethological ? evolutionary ? bioecoloigcal and be able to identify examples of each. Ethological ? gender differences in play patterns------The Ethological perspective Studies the evolutionary bases of behavior, attempting to understand behavior in terms of its adaptive or survival value Ex. Imprinting is a form of learning in which the young of some species of newborn birds and mammals become attached to and follow adult members of the species. Is human attachment a similar process? Research has examined gender differences in play patterns. Ethologists argue that gender differences are affected by evolved predispositions, with females having an innate preference for objects that afford opportunities for nurturance; males, for objects that invite movement. Evolutionary ? parental investment theory-------Evolutionary ? parental investment theory Parental investment theory stresses the evolutionary basis of many aspects of parental behavior including the extensive investment parents make in their offspring. Bioecoloigcal ? conceptualizes the environment as a set of nested context, with the child at the center. These context range from the micro system, which includes the activities, roles, and relationships in which a child directly participates on a regular basis, to the chronosystem, the historical context that affects all the other systems. Know the basic findings of the impact of media on children?s development in these areas: Physical inactivity p. 366; social isolation p.366; social inequities p.366 Physical inactivity- watching all those commercials of sweet, fatty foods is believed to contribute to childhood obesity Social isolation - moderate video game playing in fact has no significance effect on children?s social skills and interactions. Social inequities ? families with higher SES use their computers for homework sophisticated games use internet than families with lower SES. Know the 4 ways media violence may impact children p.365-366. Learning and imitation seeing actors engage in aggression teaches new behaviors and inspires imitation of them Viewing violence increases the accessibility of views own aggressive thoughts feelings and tendencies. The third is the simple fact that that media violence is exciting and arousing for most youth. This heightened physiological arousal makes them more likely to react violently to provocations after watching violent films. The 4th is the long term expose to media violence that gradually leads to emotional desensitization a reduction in the level of unpleasant physiological arousal most people experience when observing violence