Slide 1

A Topical Approach to
LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENT

Chapter Ten:
Emotional Development

John W. Santrock

2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

 Slide 2

Exploring Emotion

What are emotions?

Feeling or affect in a state or interaction
characterized by
Behavior that reflects pleasure or displeasure
Conscious feelings: specific, intense
Physiological arousal

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 Slide 3

Exploring Emotion

What are emotions?

Biological rootsbut shaped by culture and
relationships
Facial expressions of basic emotions
Biological nature; same across cultures
When, where, and how to express emotions are
not culturally universal

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 Slide 4

Exploring Emotion

Regulation of emotion
A key dimension of development
Effectively managing arousal to adapt and reach a goal
Involves state of alertness or activation
States (e.g. anger) can be too high for effective
functioning

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 Slide 5

Exploring Emotion

Regulation of emotion
External sources regulate in infancy, childhood
Shift to internal, self-initiated regulation with
increasing age
Better at managing situations
Selects more effective ways of coping
Wide variations in childrens abilities; adolescents
have difficulty managing emotions

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 Slide 6

Exploring Emotion

Regulation of emotion
Parents roles in helping children
Emotion-coaching approach
Monitor childs emotions
Negative emotion is a coaching opportunity
Emotion-dismissing approach
Deny, ignore negative emotions
Linked to poor emotional regulation in child

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 Slide 7

Emotional Competence Skills

Has awareness of own emotional state

Detecting others emotions
Using the vocabulary of emotional terms in socially and
culturally appropriate terms
Having empathic, sympathetic sensitivity to others
Recognizing inner emotions do not reflect outer ones
Adaptively coping with negatives; self-regulatory
Aware of emotions major impact on relationships
Seeing oneself as feeling the way one wants to feel

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 Slide 8

Development of Emotion

Infancy
Primary emotions
Present in humans and animals
Humans: appears in first six months of life: surprise, joy,
anger, sadness, fear, and disgust
Self-conscious emotions
Self-awareness; emerges at 18 mos. or earlier
Empathy, jealousy, and embarrassment

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 Slide 9

Development of Emotion

Emotional expression and social relationships

Infants: two types
Crying most important for communication
Basic cry: rhythmic pattern
Anger cry: variation of basic cry
Pain cry: long, sudden initial loud cry
Smiling: has powerful impact on caregivers
Reflexive smile: innate origins
Social smile: response to external stimuli

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 Slide 10

Development of Emotion

Emotional expression and social relationships

Fear: first appears about 6 mos.; peaks at 18 mos.
Stranger anxiety: fear and wariness of strangers;
intense between 9 and 12 mos.
Affected by social context, strangers characteristics
Individual variations
Separation protest crying when caregiver leaves;
peaks about 15 months of age

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 Slide 11

Separation Protest in Four Cultures

Fig. 10.4 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Slide 12

Development of Emotion

Emotional regulation and coping

Infants use self-soothing strategies for coping
Controversy: how caregivers should respond
By age 2: language allows defining of emotions
Contexts influence emotional regulation

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 Slide 13

Development of Emotion

Early childhood
Young children experience many emotions
Self-conscious emotions
Pride, shame, embarrassment, and guilt
First appear about age 18 months
Ability to reflect on emotions increases with age

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 Slide 14

Development of Emotion

Early childhood
Ages 2 to 4: increased number of ways and terms
to describe emotions
Learn about causes, consequences of feelings
Ages 4 to 5: increased ability to reflect on
emotions
Middle and late childhood
Marked improvement in understanding, managing
emotions

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 Slide 15

Developmental Changes In Emotions

During Middle and Late Childhood

Improved emotional understanding

Marked improvements in ability to suppress or conceal
negative emotional reactions
Use of self-initiated strategies for redirecting feelings
Increased tendency to take into fuller account the
events leading to emotional reactions
Development of a capacity for genuine empathy

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 Slide 16

Development of Emotion

Coping with stress

Older children have more coping alternatives and
use more cognitive coping strategies
Intentional shifting of thoughts
By age 10, most use cognitive strategies
Unsupportive families, traumatic events may lessen
abilities

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 Slide 17

Development of Emotion

Middle and late childhood

Recommendations for helping children cope
Reassure children of safety and security
Allow retelling and discussion of events
Encourage discussion of feelings
Help children make sense of events

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 Slide 18

Development of Emotion

Adolescence
Time of emotional turmoil (storm and stress) but
not constantly
Emotional changes instantly occur with little
provocation
Girls more vulnerable to depression
Adolescent moodiness is normal
Hormonal changes and environmental experiences
involved in changing emotions

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 Slide 19

Self-Reported Extremes of Emotions by

Adolescents and Their Parents

Fig. 10.5 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Slide 20

Development of Emotion

Adulthood and aging

Adapt more effectively when emotionally intelligent
Developmental changes in emotion continue
through adult years
Older adults have more positive emotions, report
better control of emotions
Feelings mellow; fewer highs and lows
Positive connections with friends and family

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 Slide 21

Changes in Positive & Negative Emotion

Across the Adult Years

Fig. 10.6 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Slide 22

Development of Emotion

Adulthood and aging

Socioemotional Selectivity Theory
Older adults become more selective about their social
networks
Emotional satisfaction is highly valued, positive
emotional experiences maximized
More frequent association with neighbors
More motivated to achieve; gain knowledge

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 Slide 23

Model of Socio-emotional Selectivity

Fig. 10.7 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Slide 24

Temperament

Temperament
Tendencies reflecting behavioral style and
characteristic way of responding
Describing and classifying temperament
Chess and Thomas: three basic types
Easy child generally positive mood
Difficult child negative reactions, cries often
Slow-to-warm low intensity mood and activity levels;
somewhat negative

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 Slide 25

Temperament

Describing and classifying temperament

Kagans behavioral inhibition
Inhibition to unfamiliar
Shy/avoidance, subdued, timid child
Extremely uninhibited
Extraverted, social, bold child
Inhibition shows considerable stability from infancy
through early childhood

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 Slide 26

Temperament

Describing and classifying temperament

Rothbart and Bates Classification
Extraversion/surgency
Positive anticipation, impulsivity
Negative affectivity
Easily distressed, fear and frustration often
Effortful control (self-regulation)
Attentional focusing, more cognition used

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 Slide 27

Temperament

Biological Foundations and Experience

Physiological characteristics are associated with
different temperaments
Heredity is aspect of temperaments biological
foundations (twin and adoption studies)
Attributes become more stable over time as self-
perceptions, behavioral preferences, and social
experiences form personality

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 Slide 28

Developmental Connections

Child Adult
Easy temperament Usually well adjusted in life
Poor adjustment, more likely
Difficult temperament to have problems socially, in
school and marriage
Inhibition Low assertiveness, less social
support, job and school delays
Good emotional control Good emotional control

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 Slide 29

Temperament

Developmental contexts
Gender may be important factor that influences
fate of temperament
Many aspects of childs environment encourage or
discourage persistence of temperament
characteristics
Goodness of Fit
Match between childs temperament and environmental
demands

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 Slide 30

Temperament

Goodness of fit and parenting

Some temperament characteristics pose more
challenges than others
Management strategies that worked for one child
may not work for next one
Be sensitive to individual characteristics of child
Structure environment to be as good a fit as possible
Avoid labeling as difficult child

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 Slide 31

Attachment and Love

Attachment
Close emotional bond between two people
Social orientation in infants
Face-to-face play: infant-caregiver interactions
Still-face paradigm: shows infants react differently
to people than objects
Ages 1 to 2: more locomotion, social play with
peers, independence, goal-directed motivation

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 Slide 32

Attachment and Love

Social referencing
Child reads emotional cues in others, reacts
By second year of age: much better at this
Social sophistication and insight reflected in
infants perceptions of others
Advanced social cognitive skills are expected to
influence attachment awareness

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 Slide 33

Attachment and Love

Theories of attachment
Freud: infants attach to person or object providing
oral satisfaction
Harlows study proved otherwise
Erikson: first year of life is critical time for
attachment development
Sense of trust or mistrust sets later expectations
Physical comfort plays a role in development

2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

 Slide 34

Attachment and Love

Theories of attachment
Bowlby: stresses importance of attachment in first
year and responsiveness of caregiver
Develops in series of phases
Phase 1: birth to 2 months
Phase 2: 2 to 7 months of age
Phase 3: 7 to 24 months of age
Phase 4: 24 months and older

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 Slide 35

Attachment and Love

Individual differences in attachment

Ainsworth and the strange situation
Measure of infant attachment to caregiver
Requires infant to move through a series of
introductions, separations, and reunions
Securely attached or insecure
Criticisms:
May not reflect real world behavior
Culturally-biased to Western children

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 Slide 36

Ainsworths Attachment Categories

Securely attached Caregiver is secure base to explore

environment from
Insecure avoidant Shows insecurity by avoiding caregiver
Insecure resistant Clings to caregiver, then resists by
fighting against the closeness
Insecure disorganized Shows insecurity by being
disorganized, disoriented

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 Slide 37

Cross-Cultural Comparison of Attachment

Fig. 10.11 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Slide 38

Attachment and Love

Interpreting differences in attachment

Secure attachment important in first year; provides
foundation for healthy development
Some developmentalists believe too much
emphasis on attachment bond in infancy
Ignores the diversity of socializing agents and contexts
that exists in an infants world
Ignores highly resilient and adaptive infants

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 Slide 39

Caregiving Styles and Attachment

Babys Attachment Caregiver Behavior

Secure Sensitive to signals, available

Avoidant Unavailable or rejecting

Resistant Inconsistent

Disorganized Neglect or physically abuse

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 Slide 40

Attachment and Love

Mothers and fathers as caregivers

Dramatic increase in stay-at-home fathers
Many have career-focused wives
Fathers have ability to nurture, be as sensitive and
responsive as mothers
Maternal interactions: mostly child-care centered
Paternal interactions: more likely to include play,
engage in rough-and-tumble acts

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 Slide 41

Attachment and Love

Child care
Most U.S. children have multiple caregivers
Parental concerns: reduced emotional attachment to
parents, harm to cognitive development, improper
socialization
About 2 million children currently receive formal,
licensed child care
Types of child care vary extensively in United States

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 Slide 42

Attachment and Love

Parental leave
Far more extensive in other countries than United
States
Europe led the way: paid fourteen-week maternity
leave
Most countries: restrictions as to minimal employment
period before leave taken
In the United States: twelve weeks unpaid leave to
care for newborns

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 Slide 43

Attachment and Love

Parental leave
In most European countries:
Working parents get 70% or more of wages and paid
leave averages 16 weeks
Gender-equality family leave policies in Nordic countries
(Denmark, Norway, Sweden)
Sweden: most liberal of all 18 month leave with
benefits for full and part-time workers

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 Slide 44

Attachment and Love

Five types of parental leave from work

Maternity leave: before and after birth
Paternity leave: more important if second child
born
Parental leave: allows either parent
Child-rearing leave: supplements maternity leave
but typically paid at much lower level
Family leave: covers reasons other than birth
United States does not have paid leave policy

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 Slide 45

Attachment and Love

Variations in child care

Many factors affect child care:
Age of child
Type of child care
Quality of program this makes a difference
Number of hours per week the child is in care
High quality may not erase negative effects
SES or families with few resources

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 Slide 46

Attachment and Love

Variations in child care

Ongoing national study in U.S. (NICHD)
Patterns of use: infants being placed sooner
Quality of care: lower for low-income families
Amount of child care: extensive time lessened
attachment sensitivity to mother, more behavioral issues
Family and parenting influences are important

2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

 Slide 47

Attachment and Love

Variations in child care

Child care strategies for parents
Quality of parenting is key to child development
Make decisions that enhance good parenting
Monitor childs development
Take time to find the best child care

2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

 Slide 48

Attachment and Love

Adolescence
Secure attachment to both parents positively
related to peer and friendship relations
Types of attachment to parents
Dismissing/avoidant: caregiver rejection
Preoccupied/ambivalent: inconsistent parenting
Unresolved/disorganized: high fear due to traumatic
experiences

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 Slide 49

Attachment and Love

Adolescence
Dating and romantic relationships
Spend lots of time dating or thinking about it
Form of recreation
Source of status or achievement
A way to learn about close relationships
Function for mate selection

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 Slide 50

Attachment and Love

Adolescence
Dating and romantic relationships
Younger adolescents getting involved
Comfort in numbers; youth hang out in groups
More time in mixed-gender peer groups
Dating involvement linked to later adjustment
Sociocultural contexts influences dating and role
expectations

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 Slide 51

Attachment and Love

Adulthood and attachment

Adults count on romantic partners to be a secure
base to which they can return and obtain comfort,
security in stressful times
Childhood attachment patterns can impact here
Influences choices and behaviors
Secure, avoidant, anxious attachments
Other factors like communication can impact

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 Slide 52

Attachment and Love

Adulthood and romantic love

Also called passionate love or eros
Strong components of sexuality and infatuation
Complex intermingling of emotions
Often predominates early part of love relationship
Affectionate love or companionate love
Have deep, caring affection for person

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 Slide 53

Attachment and Love

Adulthood
Sternbergs triangular theory of love
Stresses three main components/dimensions
Passion: physical, sexual attraction
Intimacy: warmth, closeness, and sharing
Commitment: intent to remain together
Varying combinations create qualitatively different types
of love

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 Slide 54

Sternbergs Triangle of Love

Fig. 10.15 2010 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Slide 55

Attachment and Love

Adulthood
Falling out of love
Collapse of close relationship
Tragic feelings initially
Over time happiness and personal development
may benefit
One-sided relationships are harmful

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 Slide 56

The End

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