This PowerPoint helps students to consider the concept of infinity.
Edug506 eriksen
1. CHAPTER 13
EMOTIONAL &
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
IN
MIDDLE CHILDHOOD
AGE SIX TO
ELEVEN YEARS
2. Erikson’s Theory Industry v. Inferiority
If early childhood has been positive kids enter
middle childhood ready to turn their energies from
make believe to achieving realistic
accomplishments.
Children’s drive coupled with expectations of
adults sets the stage for the Industry v.
Inferiority struggle
Struggle is resolved on the positive side when
experiences lead children to develop competence at
useful skills and tasks.
3. Self Understanding
Social Comparison-Children become more aware of their
competencies and deficiencies, especially in relation to their peers
“Self Concept” developed by social, cultural, and Cognitive
influences
Influences blend, parental support is vital
Children begin looking at themselves beyond the family and in
the context of social groups
This is the age when self-esteem begins to decline
4. Self Esteem Hierarchy
Academic Competence
School work in various subjects
Social Competence
Relationship with peers
Relationship with parents
Physical Competence and Appearance
Athletic abilities
Physical Appearance
*Note, separate self-esteems do not contribute equally to
general self esteem*
5. Self Esteem
Across age, race, sex, SES individuals w/high self esteem
tend to be well adjusted, sociable and conscientious
Low self-esteem can lead to anxiety, depression, and
anti-social behavior
To protect self-esteem children balance social
comparisons and personal achievements and goals
By fourth grade the majority experience rise in self-
esteem as they discover their abilities.
Berk speculates this is the reason declines in self-esteem
during the early school years are not usually harmful
6. Achievement Related Attributions
Attributions: everyday explanations for the causes of our behavior
(I rode my bike because I believe in myself)
Master Oriented Attributions: Credit success to ability, which
can be improved. Failure caused by insufficient effort. This leads to
industrious/persistent learning style.
Learned Helplessness: Success is due to external factors like luck.
Failure is caused be lack of ability which can not be improved on.
Influences on Achievement- Incremental vs. Fixed View of Ability
Attribution Retraining- intervention to encourage learned-
helplessness children they can over come failure through effort
(p.489)
7. Fostering Resilience in Middle Childhood
“Resilienceis not a preexisting attribute but, rather, a
capacity that develops through childhood experiences”
8. PEER RELATIONS
Peer Groups: Collectives that generate unique values
and standards for behavior and a social structure of
leaders and followers.
First Form in Middle Childhood
Organize on the basis of similarity in:
×Gender ×Ethnicity ×Academic Achievement
×Popularity ×Aggression ×Proximity (being in the same class)
Children who deviate from group codes of dress and
behavior are often excluded. The customs of the
group bind the kids together, creating a sense of
group identity
9. FRIENDSHIPS
One-on-one friendships provide children with
insight into larger social structures.
Friendships become more complex and
psychologically based.
TRUST is the defining feature in a friendship
Children tend to select friends who are: similar in
age, race, sex, ethnicity and SES. Similar personality
traits:
sociability, aggression, depression, hyperactivity, pop
ularity, achievement and prosocial behavior.
10. PEER ACCEPTANCE
Determinants of peer acceptance
Popular-prosocial children are kind and considerate, they
perform well in school, solve social problems constructively &
communicate with peers in sensitive, friendly, cooperative
ways.
Popular-antisocial children are admired for their belligerent
behavior. They may be considered “tough” kids, they cause
trouble and defy adult authority. They are seen as “cool”.
Helping Rejected Children
Coaching, Modeling, Reinforcing Positive Social Skills
Intensive academic tutoring improves school achievement
Interventions with Parents
11. FAMILY INFLUENCES
Parent Child Relationships
Effective parents engage in coregulation – exerting general oversight
while letting children take charge of moment-by-moment decision
making. This depends on a cooperative relationship between parent and
child.
Siblings
Sibling rivalry tends to increase
Parents compare their traits and accomplishments
Siblings attempt to be different from one another
Siblings who maintain warm bonds resolve disagreements
constructively and provide one another with emotional support.
Only Children
Have higher self-esteem
Do better in school
Attain higher levels of education
Form close, high-quality friendships, but are less well accepted in the
peer group
12. FAMILY INFLUENCES
Gay and Lesbian Families
Same level of commitment & effectiveness in child rearing as
heterosexual families
Children do not differ in adjustment or gender-role
preferences
Never-Married Single-Parent Families
Generally increases economic hardship for low-SES mothers
Children who lack a father’s warmth and involvement achieve
less well in school and engage in more antisocial behavior than
children in low-SES, first marriage families
13. FAMILY INFLUENCES: Divorce
All children experience painful emotional reactions during
a divorce
Children with difficult temperaments & boys in mother-
custody homes have more adjustment problems
Best factor for positive adjustment following divorce:
Effective Parenting. Contact with non-custodial parent is
very important and father custody is associated with better
outcomes for sons.
Divorce mediation can promote children’s adjustments
14. GENDER IDENTITY & BEHAVIOR
Gender Typicality – the degree to which a child feels
similar to others of the same gender. Psychological
well-being depends, to a degree, on feeling that they
“fit in” with their same-sex peers.
Gender Contentedness – the degree to which a child
feels comfortable with his or her gender assignment.
Felt Pressure to conform to gender roles – the degree
to which a child feels parents and peer disapprove of
his or her gender-related traits.
15. GENDER TYPING
Achievement Areas
Masculine: Science, Math, Athletics, Mechanical Skills
Feminine: Reading, Spelling, Art & Music
Bleeker & Jacobs, 2004 Study
Mothers’ had early perceptions of their children’s competence
in math
These continued to predict daughters’ self-perceptions and
even career choices into their mid-twenties.
Young women whose mothers regarded them as highly capable
at math were far more likely to choose a physical science career
The child who pretended he or she was an explorer may now show interest in learning where countries are or reading a map. As kids enter school they become more aware of the
Incremental v fixed view of ability
Children begin to display a strong desire for group belonging by the end of middle childhood. Peer contact is very important because it contributes to perspective taking and understanding of themselves and others. Conflicts begin to be resolved more effectively, sharing & helping increases, and aggression declines, especially physical attacks. (Read first half Slide) Group belonging can be satisfied through informal peer groups, or formal ones, such as membership in Scouting, 4-H, and religious youth groups. In these groups, the presences of adults holds in check the negative behaviors that can be associated with informal peer groups. In fact, in formal peer groups children can gain in social and moral maturity, through working on joint projects and helping in their communities. (read 2nd half slide)From experience, I can tell you that When I was in fifth & sixth grade, peer groups seemed to start becoming very important. I was never in one firm group, I seemed to float between a couple. I played softball, so I was a part of the athletes at school. However, I always seemed to be on the outskirts. The athletes seemed to be the most popular kids, and they would hang out and drink and smoke on the weekends. My mom somehow had a sixth sense about it, and she would never let me hang out with them at night. As a result, I was never completely accepted by the group, because I deviated from their “normal” behavior.
Peer groups are important, but (read 1st 3 lines)School age children state that a good friendship is based on acts of kindness. Each person has to be able to support the other. Violations of trust, such as not helping when others need help, breaking promises, & gossiping are serious breaches of friendship.School-age children’s friendships become more selective. Girls demand greater closeness than boys and are more exclusive in their friendships. (READ LAST BULLET)Over middle childhood, high quality friendships tend to stay pretty stable and can last over several years. The impact on children’s development depends on the nature of their friends. Children who bring kindness & compassion to their friendships strengthen each other. But relationships between aggressive children often magnify anti-social tendencies.
Peer acceptance is how likeable a child is, how they are viewed by their peers. I’m sure that looking back, everyone here can think of….There are four categories of peer acceptance. They are POPULAR children, REJECTED children, CONTROVERSIAL children, and NEGLECTED children.2/3 of children fit into one of these 4 categories. The other 1/3 don’t fit into any category, and are considered “average”. WHY is one child liked when another is rejected? Social behavior plays a powerful role. (READ SLIDE)As teachers, …….
Read bullets,Possibly because they have had less opportunities to resolve conflicts through sibling interactions
I just want to touch base on the different family influences that are happening to children during middle childhood that has a direct relation to their emotional and social development. READ SLIDE
From 3rd to 6th grade, boys strengthen their identity with “masculine” traits, but girls identification with “feminine” traits declines. Boys usually stick to masculine activities, but girls experiment with a wider range of options. Besides cooking, sewing and babysitting, girls will also play sports. Girls will also consider future work roles that have been stereotyped for males, such as firefighter, etc. These changes reflect a mixture of social and cognitive forces. Parents and adults also influence this. In Chapter 10, we learned that fathers are far less tolerant when sons, as opposed to daughters, cross gender lines. As Nicole mentioned last weekend, her husband didn’t want their son having a kitchen playset. These messages are very influential, and as teachers, we must be aware of this. (read 1st 2 bullets)This also promotes happiness and satisfaction with oneself. (read 3rd bullet)This pressure reduces the likelihood that children will explore options related to their interests and talents, and they are also often distressed and depressed. I read on the internet about the story about “tutu boy”….
Children quickly learn what academic areas are considered masculine and which are feminine. (Read first bullet) I found this interesting bc, first, I am completely in tune with this. I’ve always hated math and science, and excelled in reading, spelling, art, etc. But also, it struck me regarding my daycare class. At age 2, boys and girls alike love music, art and reading. I know they obviously don’t have any formal schooling, in math or science, but at what age does a love for music or art disappear? And why? Because of societal norms pushed down from adults…from parents to caregivers to teachers. As teachers, I think it’s so important that we become aware of what we’re doing. The stereotypes we hold, the attitudes and behaviors we portray, influence children’s preferences and how well they do at different subjects. (Read 2nd Bullet)Girls also often adopt a more general stereotype of males as smarter than females, which they apply to themselves. In a study of over 2,000 2nd to 6th graders from diverse cultures (Eastern and Western Europe, Japan, Russia, and the US) girls consistently had higher school grades than boys. Yet even though they girls were aware of the higher grades, they discounted their talent.