Major theories of Child development

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Theories of Child Development
Jean Piaget Lev VygotskyAbraham Maslow
B.F. Skinner Erik Erickson
Howard Gardner
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Why Study Child Parenting Development Theories?

• Theories help people
• Organize their ideas about raising children.
• Understand influences on parenting.
• Discover more than one way to interact with
  children.
• Analyze the benefits and consequences of using
  more than one theory.

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Why Study the Selected Theories?

• The selected theories
• Have been popular and influential.
• Represent different approaches to parent-child
  interaction.
• Offer help in the real world of daily
  child-rearing.
• Make good common sense.

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Child Development

• Definition
• Change in the child that occurs over time.
  Changes follow an orderly pattern that moves
  toward greater complexity and enhances survival.
• Periods of development
• Prenatal period from conception to birth
• Infancy and toddlerhood birth to 2 years
• Early childhood 2-6 years old
• Middle childhood 6-12 years old
• Adolescence 12-19 years old

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Domains of Development

• Development is described in three domains, but
  growth
• in one domain influences the other domains.
• Physical Domain
• body size, body proportions, appearance, brain
  development, motor development, perception
  capacities, physical health.
• Cognitive Domain
• thought processes and intellectual abilities
  including attention, memory, problem solving,
  imagination, creativity, academic and everyday
  knowledge, metacognition, and language.
• Social/Emotional Domain
• self-knowledge (self-esteem, metacognition,
  sexual identity, ethnic identity), moral
  reasoning, understanding and expression of
  emotions, self-regulation, temperament,
  understanding others, interpersonal skills, and
  friendships.

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6th - 15th centuriesMedieval period

• Preformationism children seen as little adults.
• Childhood is not a unique phase.
• Children were cared for until they could begin
  caring for themselves, around 7 years old.
• Children treated as adults (e.g. their clothing,
• worked at adult jobs, could be
• married, were made into
• kings, were imprisoned or
• hanged as adults.)

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16th CenturyReformation period

• Puritan religion influenced how children were
  viewed.
• Children were born evil, and must be civilized.
• A goal emerged to raise children effectively.
• Special books were designed for children.

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17th Century Age of Enlightenment

• John Locke believed in tabula rasa
• Children develop in response to nurturing.
• Forerunner of behaviorism

www.cooperativeindividualism.org/ locke-john.jpg
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18th CenturyAge of Reason

• Jean-Jacques Rousseau
• children were noble savages, born with an innate
  sense of morality the timing of growth should
  not be interfered with.
• Rousseau used the idea of stages of development.
• Forerunner of maturationist beliefs

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19th CenturyIndustrial Revolution

• Charles Darwin
• theories of natural selection and survival of the
  fittest
• Darwin made parallels between human prenatal
  growth and other animals.
• Forerunner of ethology

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20th Century

• Theories about children's development expanded
  around the world.
• Childhood was seen as worthy of special
  attention.
• Laws were passed to protect children,

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Psychoanalytical Theories

• Beliefs focus on the formation of personality.
  According to this approach, children move through
  various stages, confronting conflicts between
  biological drives and social expectations.

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Sigmund Freud

• Psychosexual Theory
• Was based on his therapy with troubled adults.
• He emphasized that a child's personality is
  formed by the ways which his parents managed his
  sexual and aggressive drives.

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• Psychoanalytic Theories
• Freuds Psychosexual Theory
• Personality has 3 parts
• There are 5 stages of psychosexual development
• Oedipus complex allows child to identify with
  same-sex parent
• Fixation is an unresolved
• conflict during a stage of
• development

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Freudian Stages
6 yrs to puberty
Birth to 1½ yrs
1½ to 3 yrs
Puberty onward
3 to 6 years
Phallic Stage Childs pleasure focuses on
genitals
Latency Stage Child represses sexual
interest and develops social and intellectual sk
ills
Anal Stage Childs pleasure focuses on
anus
Genital Stage A time of sexual reawakening
source of sexual pleasure becomes
someone outside of the family
Oral Stage Infants pleasure centers on
mouth
Figure 2.1
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Erik Erikson

• Psychosocial Theory
• Expanded on Freud's theories.
• Believed that development is life-long.
• Emphasized that at each stage, the child acquires
  attitudes and skills resulting from the
  successful negotiation of the psychological
  conflict.

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Psychosocial Theory of Human Development Erik
Erikson
Life is a series of stages. Each individual must
pass through each stage. The way in which a
person handles each of these stages affects the
persons identity and self-concept. These
psychosocial stages are

• Trust vs. mistrust (birth to 1 year)
• Autonomy vs. shame doubt (2 to 3 years)
• Initiative vs. guilt (4 to 5 years)
• Industry vs. inferiority (6 to 11 years)
• Identity vs. role confusion (12 to 18 years)
• Intimacy vs. isolation (young adulthood)
• Generativity vs. stagnation (middle adulthood)
• Integrity vs. despair (older adulthood)

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Eriksons Psychosocial Theory of Human
Development
Ego Integrity vs. Despair
Generativity vs. Stagnation
Intimacy vs. Isolation
Identity vs. Role Confusion
Industry vs. Inferiority
Initiative vs. Guilt
Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt
Trust vs. Mistrust
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Critique of Erik Erikson

• Supporters of this Eriksonian theory, suggest
  that those best equipped to resolve the crisis of
  early adulthood are those who have most
  successfully resolved the crisis of adolescence.
• On the other hand, Erikson's theory may be
  questioned as to whether his stages must be
  regarded as sequential, and only occurring within
  the age ranges he suggests. There is debate as to
  whether people only search for identity during
  the adolescent years or if one stage needs to
  happen before other stages can be completed.

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Cognitive Theories

• Beliefs that describe how children learn

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Jean Piaget - 1896-1980
The behavior of children and the development of
their thinking can only be explained by the
interaction of nature (intrinsic development) and
nurture (extrinsic environmental factors).
Goal of cognitive development Biological
survival Cognitive development as biological
adaptation Adaptation of mental constructs from
experiences Learner as the little
scientist Knowledge originates from the
environment Assimilation accommodation lead
to equilibrium Cognitive development involves
active selection, interpretation, and
construction of knowledge
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Cognitive Development Theory

• Two processes are essential for development
• Assimilation
• Learning to understand events or objects, based
  on existing structure.
• Accommodation
• Expanding understanding,
• based on new information.

Jean Piaget (1896-1980)
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Piaget

• Children pass through specific stages as they
  develop their Cognitive Development skills
• Sensorimotor birth - 2 years infants develop
  their intellect
• Preoperational 2-7 years children begin to
  think symbolically and imaginatively
• Concrete operational 7-12 years children
  learn to think logically
• Formal operational 12 years adulthood
  adults develop critical thinking skills

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Lev Vygotsky - 1896-1934
The cultures in which children are raised and the
ways in which they interact with people influence
their intellectual development. From their
cultural environments, children learn values,
beliefs, skills, and traditions that they will
eventually pass on to their own children.
Through cooperative play, children learn to
behave according to the rules of their cultures.
Learning is an active process. Learning is
constructed.

• Main points
• Development is primarily driven by language,
  social context and adult guidance.

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What is Zone of Proximal Development?

• It is a range of tasks that a child cannot yet
  do alone but can accomplish when assisted by a
  more skilled partner.
• There is a zone of proximal development for each
  task. When learners are in the zone, they can
  benefit from the teachers assistance.
• Learners develop at different rates so they may
  differ in their ability to benefit from
  instructions.

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What is Scaffolding

• Assistance that allows students to complete tasks
  that they are not able to complete independently.
• Effective scaffolding is responsive to students
  needs. In classroom, teachers provide
  scaffolding by
• Breaking content into manageable pieces
• Modeling skills
• Provide practice and examples with prompts
• Letting go when students are ready

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Biological Theories

• Belief that heredity and innate biological
  processes govern growth

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Maturationists G. Stanley Hall and Arnold Gesell

• Believed there is a predetermined biological
  timetable.
• Hall and Gesell were proponents of the normative
  approach to child study using age-related
  averages of children's growth and behaviors to
  define what is normal.

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Ethology

• Examines how behavior is determined by a species'
  need for survival.
• Has its roots in Charles Darwin's research.
• Describes a "critical period" or "sensitive
  period, for learning

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Konrad Lorenz

• Ethologist, known for his research on imprinting.

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Attachment Theory

• John Bowlby applied ethological principles to his
  theory of attachment.
• Attachment between an infant and her caregiver
  can insure the infants survival.

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Behavioral and Social Learning Theories

• Beliefs that describe the importance of the
  environment and nurturing in the growth of a child

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John Watson

• Early 20th century, "Father of American
  Behaviorist theory.
• Based his work on Pavlov's experiments on the
  digestive system of dogs.
• Researched classical conditioning
• Children are passive beings who can be molded by
  controlling the stimulus-response associations.

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B. F. Skinner

• Proposed that children "operate" on their
  environment, operational conditioning.
• Believed that learning could be broken down into
  smaller tasks, and that offering immediate
  rewards for accomplishments would stimulate
  further learning.

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Theory of Behaviorism- B.F Skinner others
Based on Lockes tabula rasa (clean slate)
idea, Skinner theorized that a child is an empty
organism --- that is, an empty vessel ---
waiting to be filled through learning
experiences. Any behavior can be changed
through the use of positive and negative
reinforcement. Behaviorism is based on
cause-and-effect relationships.
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Classical Conditioning
Pavlov's Dogs
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Major elements of behaviorism include

• Positive and negative reinforcement
• Use of stimulus and response
• Modeling
• Conditioning.

B.F. Skinner
Albert Bandura
Ivan Pavlov
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Skinner Box
Operant Conditioning
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Social Learning Theory

• Albert Bandura
• Stressed how
• children learn
• by observation
• and imitation.
• Believed that
• children gradually become more selective in what
  they imitate.

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Banduras Modeling/Imitation
Child observes someone admired
Child imitates behavior that seems rewarded
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Systems Theory

• The belief that development can't be explained by
  a single concept, but rather by a complex system.

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Urie Bronfenbrenner

• Ecological Systems Theory
• The varied systems of the environment and the
  interrelationships among the systems shape a
  child's development.
• Both the environment and biology influence the
  child's development.
• The environment affects the child and the child
  influences the environment.

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Bronfenbrenners Ecological Model

• The microsystem - activities and interactions in
  the child's immediate surroundings parents,
  school, friends, etc.
• The mesosystem - relationships among the entities
  involved in the child's microsystem parents'
  interactions with teachers, a school's
  interactions with the daycare provider
• The exosystem - social institutions which affect
  children indirectly the parents' work settings
  and policies, extended family networks, mass
  media, community resources
• The macrosystem - broader cultural values, laws
  and governmental resources
• The chronosystem - changes which occur during a
  child's life, both personally, like the birth of
  a sibling and culturally, like the Iraqi war.

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Theory of Multiple Intelligence Howard Gardner
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Howard Gardners theory
Howard Gardner defines intelligence as "the
capacity to solve problems or to fashion products
that are valued in one or more cultural setting"
(Gardner Hatch, 1989). Using biological as well
as cultural research, he formulated a list of
seven intelligences. This new outlook on
intelligence differs greatly from the traditional
view that usually recognizes only two
intelligences, verbal and mathematical.
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Who is Howard Gardner?

• Howard Gardner is a psychologist and Professor at
  Harvard University's Graduate School of
  Education.
• Based on his study of many people, Gardner
  developed the theory of multiple intelligences.
• Gardner defines intelligence as ability to solve
  problems or to create products which are valued
  in one or more cultural settings.
• According to Gardner, 8 different types of
  intelligence are displayed by humans.

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Gardners Intelligences
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Logical-Mathematical Intelligence

• consists of the ability to
• detect patterns
• reason deductively
• think logically
• This intelligence is most often associated with
  scientific and mathematical thinking.
• Famous examples Albert Einstein, John Dewey.

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Linguistic Intelligence

• involves having a mastery of language
• This intelligence includes the ability to
  effectively manipulate language to express
  oneself rhetorically or poetically.
• It also allows one to use language as a means to
  remember information.
• Famous examples Charles Dickens, Abraham
  Lincoln, T.S. Eliot, Sir Winston Churchill.

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Spatial Intelligence

• gives one the ability to manipulate and create
  mental images in order to solve problems.
• This intelligence is not limited to visual
  domains--Gardner notes that spatial intelligence
  is also formed in blind children.
• Famous examples Picasso, Frank Lloyd Wright

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Musical Intelligence

• encompasses the capability to recognize and
  compose musical pitches, tones, and rhythms.
• (Auditory functions are required for a person to
  develop this intelligence in relation to pitch
  and tone, but these functions would not be needed
  for the knowledge of rhythm.)
• Famous examples Mozart, Leonard Bernstein, Ray
  Charles.

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Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence

• is the ability to use one's mental abilities to
  coordinate one's own bodily movements.
• This intelligence challenges the popular belief
  that mental and physical activity are unrelated.
• The ability to use your body skillfully to solve
  problems, create products or present ideas and
  emotions.
• An ability obviously displayed for athletic
  pursuits, dancing, acting, artistically, or in
  building and construction.
• You can include surgeons in this category but
  many people who are physically talented"good
  with their hands"don't recognize that this form
  of intelligence is of equal value to the other
  intelligences.
• Famous examples Charlie Chaplin, Michael Jordan.

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Interpersonal Intelligence

• The ability to work effectively with others
• to relate to other people
• display empathy and understanding
• notice their motivations and goals.
• This is a vital human intelligence displayed by
  good teachers, facilitators, therapists,
  politicians, religious leaders and sales people.
• Famous examples Gandhi, Ronald Reagan, Mother
  Teresa, Oprah Winfrey.

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Intrapersonal Intelligence

• The ability for self-analysis and reflectionto
  be able to
• quietly contemplate and assess one's
  accomplishments
• review one's behavior and innermost feelings
• make plans and set goals
• know oneself
• Philosophers, counselors, and many peak
  performers in all fields of endeavor have this
  form of intelligence.
• Famous examples Freud, Eleanor Roosevelt, Plato.
  

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Naturalist intelligence

• designates the human ability to discriminate
  among living things (plants, animals) as well as
  sensitivity to other features of the natural
  world (clouds, rock configurations).
• to make distinctions in the natural world and to
  use this ability productivelyfor example in
  hunting, farming, or biological science.
• Farmers, botanists, conservationists, biologists,
  environmentalists would all display aspects of
  the intelligence.
• Famous examples Charles Darwin, Rachel Carson.

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Can we be more than one?

• Yes!
• Although the intelligences are anatomically
  separated from each other, Gardner claims that
  the eight intelligences very rarely operate
  independently.
• Rather, the intelligences are used concurrently
  and typically complement each other as
  individuals develop skills or solve problems.
• For example, a dancer can excel in his art only
  if he/she has 
• strong musical intelligence to understand the
  rhythm and variations of the music 
• bodily-kinesthetic intelligence to provide him
  with the agility and coordination to complete the
  movements successfully
• interpersonal intelligence to understand how he
  can inspire or emotionally move his audience
  through his movements

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Maslows Theory

• Maslows theory maintains that a person does not
  feel a higher need until the needs of the current
  level have been satisfied. Maslow's basic needs
  are as follows

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Physiological Needs
Basic Human Needs

• Food
• Air
• Water
• Clothing
• Sex

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Safety Needs
Safety and Security

• Protection
• Stability
• Pain Avoidance
• Routine/Order

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Social Needs
Love and Belonging

• Affection
• Acceptance
• Inclusion

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Esteem Needs
Esteem

• Self-Respect
• Self-Esteem
• Respected by Others

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Self-Actualization

• Achieve full potential
• Fulfillment

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