Life Span Development Canadian 6th Edition Santrock Solutions Manual Download
Life Span Development Canadian 6th Edition Santrock Solutions Manual Download
Life Span Development Canadian 6th Edition Santrock Solutions Manual Download
Learning Outcomes
Learning Outcome 4: Explain how social contexts influence the infant’s development.
A. Discuss issues concerning parenting, including transition to parenthood, parent-infant interaction
Chapter Outline
Expression of Emotions
Crying
• Crying is the infant’s most important mechanism for communication.
• Babies have at least three types of cries:
o The basic cry is a rhythmic pattern that usually consists of a cry, followed by a briefer
silence, then a shorter inspiratory whistle that is somewhat higher in pitch than the main cry,
then another brief rest before the next cry.
o The anger cry is a variation of the basic cry; however, there is more excess air forced
through the vocal cords.
o The pain cry, which is stimulated by high-intensity stimuli, differs from the other types of
cries. A sudden appearance of loud crying without preliminary moaning and a long initial cry
followed by an extended period of breath holding characterizes the pain cry.
• Most parents, and adults in general, can distinguish between the anger and pain cry. Parents can
distinguish the cries of their own infant better than a strange baby.
•
• Developmentalists increasingly argue that parents should soothe a crying baby. Infants will likely
develop a sense of trust and secure attachment to the caregiver due to responsive caregiving.
Smiling
• Two types of smiles can be distinguished in babies:
o A reflexive smile does not occur in response to external stimuli. It appears during the first
month, usually during irregular patterns of sleep.
o A social smile occurs in response to an external stimulus, which, early in development,
typically is a face. Social smile does not occur until 2 to 3 months of age.
Strange Anxiety
• Stranger anxiety usually emerges gradually around 6 months and escalates until 12 months
though not all infants show distress when they see a stranger.
• Several factors influence whether an infant will display stranger anxiety.
o Infants show less anxiety when in familiar settings (at home or on mom’s lap), when the
stranger is another child, and when the stranger is friendly and outgoing.
Separation Protest
• Separation protest occurs when the infants experience fear of being separated from their
caregivers. They cry when the caregiver leaves.
Emotion Regulation
• Emotion regulation consists of effectively managing arousal to adapt to and reach a goal.
• During the first year of life, infants gradually develop the ability to inhibit, or minimize, the
intensity and duration of emotional reaction, as seen in infants’ soothing themselves through
sucking and withdrawing from excessive stimulation.
• As infants grow older, parents modify their expectations on the children’s emotional regulation
behaviour.
Temperament
Defining and Classifying Temperament
Chess and Thomas’ Classification
• An easy child is generally in a positive mood, quickly establishes regular routines in infancy, and
adapts easily to new experiences (40 percent of children).
• A difficult child tends to react negatively and cry frequently, engages in irregular daily routines,
and is slow to accept new experiences (10 percent of children).
• A slow-to-warm-up child has a low activity level, is somewhat negative, shows low adaptability,
and displays a low intensity of mood (15 percent of children).
What Is Attachment?
• Attachment is a close emotional bond between the infant and the caregiver.
• Freud believed that infants become attached to the person that provides oral satisfaction.
o Harlow’s classic study demonstrated that feeding is not the crucial element in the attachment
process: Contact comfort is more important.
• Erikson considered the first year after birth the key time frame for the development of attachment.
• Bowlby explained from an ethological perspective that the newborn was biologically equipped to
elicit attachment behaviours from the caregiver.
• Four phases characterize the gradual development attachment between infant and caregiver:
o Phase 1 (0-2 months): Infants instinctively direct their attachment to human figures. Infants
indiscriminately respond to people.
o Phase 2 (2-7 months): Attachment becomes focused on one person, usually the primary
caregiver.
Individual Differences
• Mary Ainsworth created the Strange Situation, which is an observational measure of infant
attachment that requires the infant to move through a series of introductions, separations, and
reunions with the caregiver and an adult stranger in a prescribed order.
o In securely attached, infants use the caregiver as a secure base from which to explore the
environment. Ainsworth proposed that being securely attached provides an important
foundation for psychological development later in life. In the Strange Situation, securely
attached infants explore the room and play with the toys when their caregivers are in the
room. When the caregiver leaves, the infant may protest mildly and then reestablishes
positive interactions when the caregiver returns.
o Insecure avoidant babies show insecurity by avoiding the mother during the Strange
Situation. They do not engage very much with the caregiver, yet they cry when she leaves
the room. Avoidant babies do not establish contact when the caregiver returns.
o Insecure resistant babies may cling to the caregiver then resist her by fighting against the
closeness, perhaps by kicking or pushing away. When the caregiver leaves the room, these
infants often cry loudly.
o Insecure disorganized babies are disorganized and disoriented during the Strange Situation.
They often appear dazed, confused, and fearful.
• Critics of the Strange Situation highlight that the isolated, controlled events of the setting might
not necessarily reflect the interactions that would happen in a natural environment. .
• Self Determination Theory holds that children are active agents, naturally inclined to explore their
world through interaction with its various elements.
The Family
The Transition to Parenthood
• Research has found that marital relations change with the birth of a baby (some couples grow
apart, others feel closer to each other, and others experience both sentiments).
Reciprocal Socialization
• Reciprocal socialization is socialization that is bidirectional. Children socialize parents just as
parents socialize children.
• Scaffolding is an important form of reciprocal socialization in which parents time interactions in
such a way that the infant experiences turn-taking with the parents.
Maternal and Paternal Caregiving
• Maternal interactions usually centre around child care activities during infancy. In stressful
circumstances, infants show a stronger attachment to the mother.
• Paternal interactions more likely to include play. When men actively care for their children, they
adapt behaviorally and physiologically. Harmony between the parents seems to be an especially
important key predictor of the father-child relationship. Parental Leaves
• The federal and provincial/territorial governments have various parental leave policies. Under the
current Employment Insurance Act, a couple can split 37 weeks of parental leave, in addition to
17 weeks of maternity leave after birth or an adoption of a child. The province of Quebec has its
own Parental Insurance Plan.
Child Care
• Experts have defined high-quality daycare as one with well-trained and stable staff, a high adult-
child ratio and small group sizes, and positive adult-child and child-child interactions.
• Every province and territory has different child care policies.
• Most important aspect in child care is consistency in environment in home and day care.
Infants with Special Needs
• For infants with special needs family-centred care is important i.e., autism .
Key People
Mary Ainsworth 147 Harry Harlow 157 Bates 150
Jerome Kagan 150
John Bowlby 147
Alexander Chess and Margaret Mahler 154 Sandra Trehub 163
Stella Thomas 150 Ellen Moss 159 John Watson 147
Erik Erikson 153 Mary Rothbart and John Ross Thompson
LO1
The purpose of this lecture-discussion is to note that physiological characteristics have been linked with
different temperaments (Rothbart & Bates, 2006). In particular, an inhibited temperament is associated with
a unique physiological pattern that includes high and stable heart beat, high level of the hormone cortisol,
and high activity in the right frontal lobe of the brain (Kagan, 2008). This pattern may be tied to the
excitability of the amygdala, a structure of the brain that plays an important role in fear and inhibition.
Canadian researchers, Schmidt et al. (2009), reported evidence for a gene-endoenvironment (i.e. resting
frontal brain electroencephalogram EEG asymmetry) interaction in predicting child temperament. Children
who exhibited left frontal EEG asymmetry at 9 months and who possessed the DRD4 long allele were
significantly more soothable at 48 months than the other children who exhibited right EEG asymmetry and
possessed the DRD4 long allele.
Sources:
Rothbart, M. K., & Bates, J. E. (2006). Temperament. In W. Damon & R. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of child
psychology (6th ed.). New York: Wiley.
Kagan, J. (2008). Fear and wariness. In M. M. Haith & J. B. Benson (Eds.), Encyclopedia of infant and
early childhood development. Oxford, UK: Elsevier.
Kagan, J. (1998). Biology and the child. In N. Eisenberg (Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3,
Social, emotional, and personality development (5th ed.) pp. 177-236. New York: Wiley.
Schmidt, L., Fox, N. Perez-Edgar, K. & Hamer, D. (2009). Linking gene, brain, and behavior: DRD4,
Frontal asymmetry, and temperament. Psychological Science, 20, 831-837.
LO3, LO4
With an increasing number of mothers in the workforce, a corresponding number of infants and toddlers
spend time in child care services. The emotional well-being of children is receiving well deserved
attention because early childhood educators now realize that in order to develop optimally, a positive
sense of well-being is central. Wellbeing can be linked to the needs of children of all ages to form positive
relationships with parents, other family members, and with the educarers and teachers who work with
them in a wide range of contexts. Cross (2011) propose that these relationships exert a profound and
lasting effect on the developing child. It is crucial that caregivers provide a secure base so that the child
can develop secure attachments with educarers.
One strategy used in some countries to help promote favourable attachments is the implementation of a
primary caregiver system. A group of researchers found that attachment in infants/toddlers had
strengthened through the use of a primary care giving system whereby the caregiver assumes
responsibility for a small group of children and becomes the main contact between the child and home
(Ebbeck et al. 2015). In other words, primary caergivers, take major responsibility in meeting the care
and educational needs of a small group of infants and toddlers, particularly those under the age of 3 years,
within a larger group of their peers (Theilheimer, 2006).
Sources:
Cross, M. (2011). Children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and communication
problems: There is always a reason (2nd ed.). London: Jessica Kingsley. Ebbeck, M., Yong Phoon, D., Tan-
Studies on the stability of parenting behaviours are necessary to better understand the nature and course of
parenting and, in turn, parental influences on child development (Lindhiem, Bernard & Dozier, 2010).
Canadian researchers examined, first the relative and absolute stability of maternal autonomy support
between infancy and preschool age, and second; the moderating role of child gender, maternal attachment
state of mind, and stressful life events (Matte-Gagné, Bernier; Gagné ,2013). The results suggested that
maternal autonomy support is stable in relative terms; but that its mean level decreases over time.
Moreover, significant relative stability appeared only for mothers of girls, mothers who indicated greater
coherence of mind with respect to attachment, and mothers who experienced fewer relatively stressful life
events. On the other hand, the findings point to the conclusion that having a boy, experiencing more
stressful events, and having an insecure attachment state of mind increase the probability of behaving in
an inconsistent manner with the child. Finally, parents of boys, who experience a great deal of change in
their life and who have an insecure attachment state of mind, are likely to need more help to remain
consistent in their autonomy-supportive behaviour toward their children (Matte-Gagné, Bernier; Gagné,
2013).
Lindhiem, O., Bernard, K. & Dozier, M. (2010). Maternal sensitivity: Within-person variability and the
utility of multiple assessment. Child Maltreatment, 16, 41-50. Matte-Gagné, C., Bernier, A. & Gagné, C.
(2013). Social Development, 22(3), 427-443. .Cassidy, J. (2009). The nature of the child’s ties. In J.
Cassidy & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of attachment (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford. Egeland, B.
(2009). Attachment-based interventions on the quality of attachment among infants and young children.
In R. E. Tremblay, R. deV Peters, M. Boivin, & R. G. Barr (Eds.), Encyclopedia on early childhood
development. Montreal: Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development.
Although the effect of paternal involvement on child development has been well researched with mothers,
in recent decades the focus on fathers has increased substantially (Pleck, 2010). Research has indicated
that the infant-father relationship is not simply an imitation of the infant-mother relationship, but develops
differently (Planap & Braungart-Ricker, 2013). The father-based relationship has a positive outcome on
the child’s emotional, cognitive, and academic development (Pleck, 2010). In fact, Lamb & Lewis(2010)
indicate that the extent of paternal involvement may differ depending on the personality of the father as
well as on the amount of encouragement and support the fathers receive. Specifically, higher marital
satisfaction at 7 months of age predicted increased father involvement with 14 month-old infants (Mehall,
Spinrad, Eisenberg & Gaertner, 2009). In their recent study (Planalp & Braungart-Riecker (2015)
concluded that the fathers’ role identity is consistently related to fathering. The possibility exists that
whether or not the father finds a reasonable amount of satisfaction in his role as a parent is particularly
salient when fathers are deciding how to spend their time with their children.
Lamb (2010) emphasized the fact that both men and women have the capacity to be good parents.
Sources:
Classroom Activities
LO2
Students should explore the relation between Erikson's psychosocial theory and parenting skills. Erikson
thought a child's sense of trust was the cornerstone of all future personality development. Thus, the
interactions between the caregivers and the infant are extremely important.
Logistics:
• Group size: Full class discussion.
• Approximate time: Full class discussion (20 minutes).
Sources:
Belsky, J. (2010). Experiencing the life span (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Worth.
Classroom Activity 2: What are the Child Care Policies in Your Province?
LO4
The purpose of this activity is for students to research the child care policiess in their provinceand compare
those policies to other provinces. There is enormous variability in the provincial policies that regulate
child care. Given that standards for child care are set by provinces, the quality of care also varies
tremendously by province.
• Have students research information about the child care standards in various provinces. You can
assign each student or student group one or two provinces depending on the size of your class. You
can also divide up the assignment by age (e.g., ratios of children to caregivers vary by age of the
child). They should obtain information on the following issues: curriculum requirements, space and
Discuss the answers to the critical thinking multiple-choice questions on Handout 1. The answers are
provided in Handout 2.
In order to prepare students to do Question 1, you will probably want to review rules for interpreting the
adequacy of scientific evidence. Students will need to remember, for example, what inferences are
permissible from correlational and experimental research. In this discussion, you may also want to explore
how the type of questions being asked is related to the type of research that is needed. Descriptive questions
need observational research; questions about patterns or associations are answered with correlational
research; questions about cause and effect need experimental research.
Question 2 asks students to apply the theoretical perspectives. You may want to discuss with them how
well they remember these perspectives, and either provide a review or have them review the theories. In
any case, either give students a list of the key features of each perspective, or have them develop such a list
as an in-class activity.
Logistics:
• Materials: Handout 1 (the critical thinking multiple-choice questions) and Handout 2 (answers).
• Group size: Small groups to discuss the questions, then a full class discussion.
• Approximate time: Small groups (15 to 20 minutes), then 15 minutes for full class discussion.
Classroom Activity 4: Critical Thinking Essay Questions and Suggestions for Helping Students
Answer the Essays
Discuss the students’ answers to the critical thinking essay questions provided in Handout 3. Several
objectives can be met with these questions. First, answering these questions further facilitates students'
understanding of concepts in chapter 6. Second, this type of essay question affords the students an
opportunity to apply the concepts to their own lives, which will facilitate their retention of the material.
Third, the essay format also will give students practice expressing themselves in written form. Ideas to help
students answer the critical thinking essay questions are provided as Handout 4.
Logistics:
• Materials: Handout 3 (essay questions) and Handout 4 (helpful suggestions for the answers).
• Group size: Individual, then full class.
• Approximate time: Individual (60 minutes), then 30 minutes for full class discussion.
LO1
The purpose of this exercise is to get students assessing their perceptions of a common infant emotional
state: crying. Crying is the most important mechanism newborns have for communicating. We also know
that babies have a minimum of three different cries—all indicating a different need (although many mothers
would say there are even more!). Developmental psychologists differ in their beliefs as to the importance
of responding to infants’ cries and the implications it has for subsequent crying. Regardless, it is something
inherent about being an infant, and in being around infants for any period of time.
LO4
The purpose of this exercise is to have students explore their own personal reaction to putting children in
day care. There are more children in daycare today than ever before in history. Our society has come to
accept, and in some ways expect, women working outside the home. The findings of the effects of day care
are mixed, with numerous variables influencing the results. Emotions run high on this topic, as there is a
lot at stake for everyone involved.
The purpose of this exercise is to get students to reflect on their childhood experiences and the
accompanying emotions. Society is far removed from the traditional family life of the 1950s in which the
father went away to work, the mother stayed home and cared for the children, and most families were intact
units that spent dinnertime and vacations together. As the diversity of our lifestyles grows, children are
experiencing any number of different experiences in the formative years of development such as dual-earner
families. They don’t participate in the decision-making process, and they’re not asked how they feel about
their circumstances. Yet, children are affected by their early experiences, and often we believe the impact
lasts well into our adult years.
LO2
This project examines the development of the self in infants. Prior to the start of the research, the project
must be approved by the human subjects review board at your school and the students must get a signed
informed consent form from the infants' parents. See the section entitled Ethics, Human Subjects, and
Informed Consent at the front of this Instructor’s Manual. Students will test an 8-month-old infant and an
18-month-old infant with a mirror recognition task. Each infant will be assessed with two tasks: one will
test for mirror recognition of the self and the other task will assess the infant's mirror recognition of an
object near the infant. The students will then answer the questions about their observations. The task
descriptions, worksheet, and questions are provided on Handout 5.
Questions
1. Does the 8-month-old infant reach for the object? Does the 18-month-old reach for the object? Does
either infant reach for the reflection of the toy in the mirror? If so, which infant?
2. How does the 8-month-old infant react to his or her image in the mirror with the rouge on his or
her nose? How does the 18-month-old infant react to the image in the mirror with the rouge on the
nose? Do the infants of different ages react differently? Explain.
3. Is there a difference in the development of the ability to recognize the self and the ability to
recognize an object in a mirror? If so, why would this be?
• You can expect that the younger child will probably be oriented to the mirror for both tasks. That
is, he or she will attend to the spot on the nose of the reflection and the reflection of the toy behind.
Both the rouge spot on the nose and the real toy are likely to be ignored or discovered accidentally.
The older child is likely to be oriented to the self for the rouge and to the toy behind him or her. He
or she is likely to touch the spot on his or her nose and turn around to look at the real toy. Sex
differences are unlikely to emerge. Maturation of the nervous system and visual system, the
appearance of mental representation and symbolic abilities, and experience with mirrors might all
be factors in this development.
LO3
The purpose of this project is for students to become more familiar with attachment behaviours and to
practice their naturalistic observational techniques. Students can go to either the local shopping mall or a
local park and observe a caregiver with an infant 12 to 18 months old. They should observe for a period of
15 minutes. Using Handout 6 they should describe the behaviours they see. Possible observed behaviours
are: protesting a separation when a mother walks around the shopping cart to get something from the shelf
and resistance or ambivalence when the mother picks the child up after paying for the groceries.
LO4
This activity requires students to visit a daycare centre caring for infants under age 2 and assess aspects of
quality based on course material. The activity culminates in a written evaluation of the centre and realistic
recommendations for improvements.
Students should be encouraged to use course material to develop a checklist of dimensions of quality for
the assessment. Some key dimensions are included below as a guide as well. Information obtained can be
incorporated into a short, written report (5-7 pages). The write-up should include integration of course
material.
Instructors may need to help smooth the way for students to visit a licensed day care centre in the
community. That is, instructors might call ahead with students present and speak with the director of the
centre and explain that students are conducting a class activity and would like to visit the centre for about
a half-hour. If a student works in a centre, another centre should be used for this project in order to get a
more objective picture of the quality variables being assessed. We suggest omitting “in-home” care as this
type of care varies so widely and care providers are less likely to let students visit. This activity may be
conducted with teams of students. Instructors will need to work with students using the procedures given
below to prepare them to be unobtrusive observers.
We suggest having students assess the following dimensions at a minimum and include other dimensions
as they wish:
1. Caregiver-child ratio
2. Staff turnover (Lower turnover is usually an indicator of better quality).
3. Staff training in childcare and child development and emergency procedures such as CPR, etc.
4. Adequacy of nutrition of the food and snacks provided.
5. The appearance of the facility—Do things appear to be clean and organized for the most part? What
procedures are used to keep toys clean and sick children isolated from other children?
6. What costs are involved in placing a child in care at the centre and is there a waiting list for care
and if so, how long is it?
Before students conduct this activity, it is advisable to cover information on daycare quality in class.
Students should read text material on this topic, as well, before undertaking this activity. Instructors also
will need to discuss with students how to unobtrusively conduct field observations without disturbing those
individuals being observed.
Students then conduct site visits and make assessments. There will not be time to simply take notes. Rather
Two men fired from a large advertising firm decide to start a day care for their own sons and eight other
children. In over their heads, the pair of Dads have to quickly learn what it takes to raise children. After
hiring a man who seems to relate very well with the children they begin to build a successful business. Their
day care reviles the elite day car of their former employer, leading to a humorous showdown.
The URLs for general sites, common to all chapters, can be found at the front of this Instructor’s Manual
under Useful Web Sites. At the time of publication, all sites were current and active, however, please be
advised that you may occasionally encounter a dead link.
Temperament
http://www.temperament.com/
1. In chapter 6, the authors describe many claims about social development during infancy. The quality
of the evidence that supports each claim is quite varied. Which of the following claims is LEAST
supported? Which evidence is LEAST convincing according to scientific criteria? Circle the letter of
the best answer and explain why it is the best answer and why the other answers are not as good.
2. In previous chapters, there has been little opportunity to apply the various theories of development you
have learned before. Chapter 6, however, presents research and theorizing motivated by several of these
theories. The authors directly identify some of these, but do not do so for all topics. Listed below are
topics from chapter 6 paired with theoretical perspectives. Decide which of these pairs is accurate.
Circle the letter of the best answer and explain why it is the best answer and why the other answers are
not as good.
3. Attachment is a major topic in the study of infant social development. Which of the following
statements best represents an assumption by researchers, rather than an inference or an observation?
Circle the letter of the best answer and explain why it is the best answer and why the other answers are
not as good.
a. An infant cries when separated from its mother because it is attached to its mother.
b. The most important relationship in an infant's life involves attachment to a primary caretaker.
c. Stressed 12-month-old babies direct their behaviour toward their mothers.
d. Providing an infant with a comfortable, safe environment creates an attachment bond between an
infant and caretaker.
e. Some babies do not look at their mothers or try to be near them in the Strange Situation.
1. In chapter 6, the authors describe many claims about social development during infancy. The quality
of the evidence that supports each claim is quite varied. Which of the following claims is LEAST
supported? Which evidence is LEAST convincing according to scientific criteria? Circle the letter of
the best answer and explain why it is the best answer and why the answers are not as good.
a. The statement caregivers of disorganized babies often neglect or physically abuse their babies
requires at least correlational evidence for support. Main and Solomon's research reported in the
text provides it.
b. Lamb's study reported in the text is an experimental test of the hypothesis that under stress, infants
show stronger attachment to their mothers than their fathers. The research confirmed that tired
infants exposed to a Strange Situation sought their mothers instead of their fathers.
c. Extensive daycare during the first year of an infant's life is associated with negative outcomes later
in life is not the best answer. While the evidence is mixed, there is research that documents the
association between daycare early in infants' lives and later negative outcomes. The contradictions
in the research seem to be satisfactorily resolved by the claim that later outcomes are a function of
the quality of daycare the infants attend.
d. Izard's research represents years of observational study and the development of a meticulous system
for classifying infant facial expressions. Furthermore, longitudinal work has documented that the
expression of emotions by infants follows a predictable developmental course, as indicated in the
table presented in the text.
e. This is the best answer because no evidence is presented to support the claim that during the second
year of life, an infant experiences conflict between autonomy versus shame and doubt. Rather, the
informal observations of a clinical psychologist are described. No systematic research of any type
is cited.
2. In previous chapters, there has been little opportunity to apply the various theories of development you
have learned before. Chapter 6, however, presents research and theorizing motivated by several of these
theories. The authors directly identify some of these, but do not do so for all topics. Listed below are
topics from chapter 6 paired with theoretical perspectives. Decide which of these pairs is accurate.
Circle the letter of the best answer and explain why it is the best answer and why the other answers are
not as good.
3. Attachment is a major topic in the study of infant social development. Which of the following
statements best represents an assumption by attachment researchers, rather than an inference or an
observation? Circle the letter of the best answer and explain why it is the best answer and why the other
answers are not as good.
a. The following statement is an inference: an infant cries when separated from its mother because it
is attached to its mother. It is an explanation offered to account for the observation that infants often
cry when they are separated from their mothers.
b. The most important relationship in an infant's life involves attachment to a primary caretaker is the
assumption. One indication is Kagan's challenge that attachment is not as important as other
researchers think it is. Another is that this point is taken for granted in the text, without evidence
or justification. A third is that if researchers did not believe this, so much work would probably not
have been invested in studying it.
c. The statement that stressed 12-month-old babies direct their behaviour toward their mothers is an
observation and a summary of data collected by Lamb and others in their studies of the correlates
of securely and insecurely attached infants. Simply stated, infants who were classified as insecurely
attached were later seen to be more likely to fuss, cry, or be angry if they were challenged with a
problem or difficult task.
d. Providing an infant with a comfortable, safe environment creates an attachment bond between an
infant and caretaker is an inference from the conclusion of a variety of studies of the causes of
attachment in humans and monkeys. Researchers have tested hypotheses about the causes of
attachment in experimental and correlational studies. They have concluded from this work that
comfort and safety are primary determinants of attachment.
e. The observation that some babies do not look at their mothers or try to be near them in the Strange
Situation is seen in both systematic and casual observations of infants. It is one way that researchers
and caregivers have seen babies behave in the presence of their mothers.
Your answers to this kind of question demonstrate an ability to comprehend and apply ideas discussed in
this chapter.
2. Discuss what we learn about infant cognitive and social development by studying infant smiling and
crying.
3. Analyze your own temperament. Indicate how your temperament can be explained by the Chess and
Thomas approach. Also indicate how stable your temperament has been over the course of your
development and what factors may have contributed to this stability or lack of stability.
4. Explain Erikson's concept of trust versus mistrust. Give a hypothetical situation of a parent-infant
interaction that leads to the infant developing trust and an example in which the infant would develop
mistrust.
5. Compare and contrast Mahler's and Erikson's explanations for the development of independence and
the self during infancy.
7. Indicate and explain the individual differences in attachment, and the relationship of early attachment
to later social interactions.
8. Explain reciprocal socialization. Provide at least two examples of how parents socialize their children
and two examples of how children socialize their parents in your response.
9. What does it mean to think of a family as a system? Illustrate your answer using the concepts of
reciprocal socialization, scaffolding, or attachment.
10. Compare and contrast fathers' and mothers' ability to care for infants, and each parent's typical
caregiving practices.
11. If you were a parent who could choose whether to stay home with your children or place them in
daycare, what factors would you consider in making this decision?
1. Begin by thinking about emotions. In your own words, what are they? How many are there? How easy
or difficult are they to describe and explain? Have you ever felt that others don’t understand your
emotions? After considering the nature of emotions, explain how developmental psychologists study
them, considering the tremendous challenge of this endeavor and the creativity involved in the
methodology.
2. To help you put the significance of these two behaviours in perspective, consider your argument to the
notion that a baby is “just smiling” or “only crying.” In other words, through your discussion convey
the profound developmental issues present in these behaviours.
3. Re-read the Chess and Thomas approach to understanding and explaining temperament. Describe and
analyze yours according to their classification.
4. Preface your explanation with a description of Erikson’s basic theoretical approach to personality.
What is the notion behind the concept of trust vs. mistrust? What does Erikson theorize follows this
concept? Explain the stage and present your examples within this context.
5. Begin by defining independence and what is meant by the notion of self. Compare and contrast from
there.
6. Briefly explain Ainsworth’s approach to attachment and the reasoning behind the Strange Situation.
Having established this basis, discuss the criticisms.
7. What is meant by attachment? Establish an understanding of the concept; then discuss individual
differences, and how attachment relates to subsequent social interaction.
8. Think about your own relationships and the interactions that take place within them. Identify examples
of the bidirectionality of influence. Do you exhibit behaviours or have you developed opinions similar
to those close to you? Have others become more like you in their thinking and mannerisms? With these
images in mind, explain the occurrence of reciprocal socialization in parents and children.
9. Describe a “scene” from your own family—current or childhood. Do you recognize aspects of a system
present in that scene? Continue your discussion by addressing reciprocal socialization, scaffolding,
and/or attachment.
10. Create a chart: “Mom vs. Dad.” Make a list of the particular aspects of caregiving, and note each one’s
involvement, participation, effectiveness, investment, etc.
11. Address each factor presented in the text. How relevant a factor is each to you? What factors would
weigh more heavily in your decision? Why?
This project examines the development of the self in infants. Prior to the start of the research, the project
must be approved by the human subjects review board at your school and you must get a signed informed
consent form from the infants' parents. You will test an 8-month-old infant and an 18-month-old infant with
a mirror recognition task. Each infant will be assessed with two tasks: one will test for mirror recognition
of the self and the other task will assess the infant's mirror recognition of an object near the infant. After
you have completed the tasks, answer the questions about your observations. The task descriptions,
worksheet, and questions are provided below.
Task 1:
Have the mother stand behind the infant and hold an attractive toy above and slightly behind the infant's
head, so that the infant can see the toy in the mirror but cannot see the toy itself. Record whether the
infant reaches for the reflection of the toy in the mirror or turns around and reaches for the toy itself.
Task 2:
For one minute, count the number of times the infant touches its nose while looking in the mirror. Then
have the mother put a dab of rouge on the infant's nose and turn the infant back toward the mirror. For
the next minute count the number of times the infant touches its nose and the number of times it touches
the reflection of its nose.
Child 1 Child 2
Sex ____ Age ____ Sex ___ Age ____
Task 1
Reaches to mirror
Reaches to toy
Task 2
Touches mirror
Touches nose
Questions:
1. Does the 8-month-old infant reach for the object? Does the 18-month-old reach for the object? Does
either infant reach for the reflection of the toy in the mirror? If so, which infant?
2. How does the 8-month-old infant react to his or her image in the mirror with the rouge on his or
her nose? How does the 18-month-old infant react to the image in the mirror with the rouge on the
nose? Do the two infants react differently? Explain.
3. Is there a difference in the development of the ability to recognize the self and the ability to
recognize an object in a mirror? If so, why would this be?
The objectives of this project are for you to become more familiar with attachment behaviours and to
practice your naturalistic observational techniques. Go to either the local shopping mall or a local park and
observe a caregiver with an infant 12 to 18 months old. The observation period should be 15 minutes.
Describe the behaviours you see occurring. Then, you should answer the provided questions.
Talking
Laughing
Tickling
Clinging
Crying
Escaping
Retrieving
Mutual gaze
Hitting
Smiling
Yelling
Questions:
1. What kinds of behaviours did your caregiver-infant pair engage in? Did the infant use the caregiver
as the base for exploration? Was the infant allowed to explore?
2. According to the categories secure and insecure, how did this pair seem? Were interactions
generally positive or generally negative? Did the relationship seem warm and affectionate or
hostile?