Laura E. Berk, Illinois State University

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S A M P L E C H A P T E R 6

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DEVELOPMENT THROUGHTHE LIFESPAN, 4/E

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This mother and infant gaze at each other withmutual delight, suggesting that they have formed adeeply affectionate bond. The baby’s sense of trust inhis caregivers is fundamental to all aspects of earlydevelopment.

Emotional and SocialDevelopment in Infancyand Toddlerhood

s Caitlin reached 8 months of age, her parents noticed that she had become more fearful. One evening, when

Carolyn and David left her with a babysitter, she wailed when theyheaded for the door—an experience she had accepted easily a fewweeks earlier. Caitlin and Timmy’s caregiver Ginette also observed anincreasing wariness of strangers. When Ginette turned to go to anotherroom, both babies dropped their play to crawlafter her. And a knock at the door from the mailcarrier prompted them to cling to Ginette’s legsand reach out to be picked up.

At the same time, each baby seemed morewillful. Removing an object from the handproduced little response at 5 months, but at8 months Timmy resisted when his mother,Vanessa, took away a table knife he had man-aged to reach. He burst into angry screams andcould not be consoled by the toys she offered in its place.

Monica and Kevin knew little about Grace’s development duringher first year, except that she had been deeply loved by her destitute,homeless mother. Separation from her, followed by a long journey toan unfamiliar home, had left Grace in shock. At first she was extremelysad, turning away when Monica or Kevin picked her up. She did notsmile for over a week.

But as Grace’s new parents held her close, spoke gently, and satis-fied her craving for food, Grace returned their affection. Two weeksafter her arrival, her despondency gave way to a sunny, easygoing dis-position. She burst into a wide grin, reached out at the sight of Monicaand Kevin, and laughed at her brother Eli’s funny faces. As her secondbirthday approached, she pointed to herself, exclaiming “Gwace!” andlaid claim to treasured possessions. “Gwace’s chicken!” she wouldannounce at mealtimes, sucking the marrow from the drumstick, apractice she brought with her from Cambodia.

Taken together, Caitlin’s, Timmy’s, and Grace’s reactions reflecttwo related aspects of personality development during the first twoyears: close ties to others and a sense of self. We begin with Erikson’spsychosocial theory, which provides an overview of personality devel-opment during infancy and toddlerhood. Then we chart the course ofemotional development. As we do so, we will discover why fear and

Erikson’s Theory of Infant and ToddlerPersonality

Basic Trust versus Mistrust • Autonomy versusShame and Doubt

Emotional Development

Development of Some Basic Emotions •Understanding and Responding to the Emotionsof Others • Emergence of Self-Conscious Emotions • Beginnings of Emotional Self-Regulation

• A Lifespan Vista: Parental Depressionand Children’s Development

Temperament and Development

The Structure of Temperament • MeasuringTemperament • Stability of Temperament •Genetic Influences • Environmental Influences •Temperament and Child Rearing: The Goodness-of-Fit Model

• Biology and Environment: Developmentof Shyness and Sociability

Development of Attachment

Ethological Theory of Attachment • Measuring the Security of Attachment • Stability ofAttachment • Cultural Variations • Factors That Affect Attachment Security • MultipleAttachments • Attachment and LaterDevelopment

• Social Issues: Does Child Care inInfancy Threaten Attachment Securityand Later Adjustment?

• Cultural Influences: The Powerful Roleof Paternal Warmth in Development

Self-Development During the FirstTwo Years

Self-Awareness • Categorizing the Self •Self-Control

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anger became more apparent in Caitlin’s and Timmy’srange of emotions by the end of the first year. Ourattention then turns to individual differences in tem-perament. We will examine biological and environ-mental contributions to these differences and theirconsequences for future development.

Next, we take up attachment to the caregiver, thechild’s first affectionate tie. We will see how the feel-ings of security that grow out of this important bondprovide support for the child’s sense of independenceand expanding social relationships.

Finally, we focus on early self-development. By theend of toddlerhood, Grace recognized herself in mir-rors and photographs, labeled herself as a girl, andshowed the beginnings of self-control. “Don’t touch!”she instructed herself one day as she resisted thedesire to pull a lamp cord out of its socket. Cognitiveadvances combine with social experiences to producethese changes during the second year.

Erikson’s Theory of Infant and Toddler Personality

Our discussion of major theories in Chapter 1 revealedthat psychoanalytic theory is no longer in the main-

stream of human development research. But one of its lastingcontributions is its ability to capture the essence of personalityduring each period of development. Recall that SigmundFreud, founder of the psychoanalytic movement, believed thatpsychological health and maladjustment could be traced to theearly years—in particular, to the quality of the child’s relation-ships with parents. Although Freud’s preoccupation with thechanneling of instincts and his neglect of important experi-ences beyond infancy and early childhood came to be heavilycriticized, the basic outlines of his theory were accepted andelaborated in several subsequent theories. The leader of theseneo-Freudian perspectives is Erik Erikson’s psychosocial theory,also introduced in Chapter 1.

Basic Trust versus MistrustErikson accepted Freud’s emphasis on the importance of theparent–infant relationship during feeding, but he expanded andenriched Freud’s view. A healthy outcome during infancy, Erik-son believed, does not depend on the amount of food or oralstimulation offered but rather on the quality of caregiving:relieving discomfort promptly and sensitively, holding the infantgently, waiting patiently until the baby has had enough milk, andweaning when the infant shows less interest in breast or bottle.

Erikson recognized that no parent can be perfectly in tunewith the baby’s needs. Many factors affect parental responsive-

ness—feelings of personal happiness, current life conditions(for example, additional young children in the family), andculturally valued child-rearing practices. But when the balanceof care is sympathetic and loving, the psychological conflict ofthe first year—basic trust versus mistrust—is resolved on thepositive side. The trusting infant expects the world to be goodand gratifying, so he feels confident about venturing out andexploring it. The mistrustful baby cannot count on the kind-ness and compassion of others, so she protects herself bywithdrawing from people and things around her.

Autonomy versus Shame and DoubtWith the transition to toddlerhood, Freud viewed toilet train-ing as decisive for psychological health. Although Eriksonagreed that the parent’s manner of toilet training is important,he viewed it as only one of many influential experiences. Thefamiliar refrains of newly walking, talking toddlers—“No!”“Do it myself!”—reveal that they have entered a period of bud-ding selfhood. They want to decide for themselves not just intoileting but also in other situations. The conflict of toddler-hood, autonomy versus shame and doubt, is resolved favor-ably when parents provide young children with suitableguidance and reasonable choices. A self-confident, secure2-year-old has been encouraged not only to use the toilet butalso to eat with a spoon and to help pick up his toys. His par-ents do not criticize or attack him when he fails at these newskills. And they meet his assertions of independence with toler-ance and understanding. For example, before leaving for thegrocery store, they give him an extra five minutes to finish hisplay and wait patiently while he tries to zip his jacket.

According to Erikson, the parent who is over- or under-controlling in toileting is likely to be so in other aspects of thetoddler’s life as well. The outcome is a child who feels forcedand shamed or who doubts his ability to control his impulsesand act competently on his own.

4 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

According to Erikson, basic trust grows out of the quality of theearly caregiving relationship. A parent who relieves the baby’sdiscomfort promptly and holds the baby tenderly, during feedingand at other times, promotes basic trust—the feeling that theworld is good and gratifying.

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In sum, basic trust and autonomy grow out of warm, sen-sitive parenting and reasonable expectations for impulse con-trol starting in the second year. If children emerge from thefirst few years without sufficient trust in caregivers and withouta healthy sense of individuality, the seeds are sown for adjust-ment problems. Adults who have difficulty establishing inti-mate ties, who are overly dependent on a loved one, or whocontinually doubt their own ability to meet new challengesmay not have fully mastered the tasks of trust and autonomyduring infancy and toddlerhood.

Emotional Development

Observe several infants and toddlers, noting the emotionseach displays, the cues you rely on to interpret the baby’s

emotional state, and how caregivers respond. Researchers haveconducted many such observations to find out how babiesconvey their emotions and interpret those of others. They havediscovered that emotions play powerful roles in organizing theattainments that Erikson regarded as so important: social rela-tionships, exploration of the environment, and discovery ofthe self (Frijda, 2000; Halle, 2003; Saarni, Mumme, & Campos,1998).

Because infants cannot describe their feelings, determin-ing exactly which emotions they are experiencing is a chal-lenge. Although vocalizations and body movements providesome information, facial expressions offer the most reliablecues. Cross-cultural evidence reveals that people around theworld associate photographs of different facial expressionswith emotions in the same way (Ekman, 2003; Ekman &Friesen, 1972). These findings, which suggest that emotionalexpressions are built-in social signals, inspired researchers to

analyze infants’ facial patterns to determine the range of emo-tions they display at different ages.

Development of Some Basic EmotionsBasic emotions—happiness, interest, surprise, fear, anger, sad-ness, and disgust—are universal in humans and other pri-mates, have a long evolutionary history of promoting survival,and can be directly inferred from facial expressions. Do infantscome into the world with the ability to express basic emotions?Although signs of some emotions are present, babies’ earliestemotional life consists of little more than two global arousalstates: attraction to pleasant stimulation and withdrawal fromunpleasant stimulation. Only gradually do emotions becomeclear, well-organized signals (Camras et al., 2003; Fox, 1991).

According to one view, sensitive, contingent caregiver com-munication, in which parents selectively mirror aspects of thebaby’s diffuse emotional behavior, helps infants construct dis-crete emotional expressions that more closely resemble thoseof adults (Gergely & Watson, 1999). Around 6 months, face,voice, and posture form well-organized signals that vary mean-ingfully with environmental events. For example, Caitlin typi-cally responded to her parents’ playful interaction with a joyfulface, pleasant cooing, and a relaxed posture, as if to say, “This isfun!” In contrast, an unresponsive parent often evokes a sad face,fussy vocalizations, and a drooping body (sending the message,“I’m despondent”) or an angry face, crying, and “pick-me-up”gestures (as if to say,“Change this unpleasant event!”) (Weinberg& Tronick, 1994; Yale et al., 1999). By the middle of the first year,emotional expressions are well-organized and specific and there-fore able to tell us a great deal about the infant’s internal state.

Four emotions—happiness, anger, sadness, and fear—have received the most research attention. Refer to Table 6.1 foran overview of changes in these emotions and others we willtake up in this chapter.

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 5

Approximate Age Milestone

Birth Infants’ emotions consist largely of two global arousal states: attraction to pleasant stimulation and withdrawalfrom unpleasant stimulation.

2–3 months Infants engage in social smiling and respond in kind to adults’ facial expressions.

3–5 months Laughter at active stimuli emerges. Infants perceive facial expressions as organized patterns and can match theemotion in voices and faces.

6–8 months Expressions of basic emotions are well-organized and vary meaningfully with environmental events. Infants startto become angry more often and in a wider range of situations. Fear, especially stranger anxiety, begins to rise.

Attachment to familiar caregivers is clearly evident, and separation anxiety appears. Infants use familiar caregiversas a secure base for exploration.

8–12 months Understanding of the meaning of others’ emotional expressions improves, and social referencing appears. Infantslaugh at subtle elements of surprise.

18–24 months Self-conscious emotions of shame, embarrassment, guilt, and pride emerge. A vocabulary for talking about feelingsdevelops rapidly, and emotional self-regulation improves. Toddlers appreciate that others’ emotional reactions maydiffer from their own. First signs of empathy appear.

Table 6.1 Milestones of Emotional Development During the First Two Years

Happiness. Happiness—first expressed in blissful smilesand later through exuberant laughter—contributes to manyaspects of development. When infants achieve new skills, theysmile and laugh, displaying their delight in motor and cogni-tive mastery. As the smile encourages caregivers to be affection-ate and stimulating, the baby smiles even more. Happinessbinds parent and baby into a warm, supportive relationshipthat fosters the infant’s developing competences.

During the early weeks, newborn babies smile when full,during REM sleep, and in response to gentle touches andsounds, such as stroking of the skin, rocking, and the mother’ssoft, high-pitched voice. By the end of the first month, infantssmile at interesting sights that are dynamic and eye-catching,such as a bright object jumping suddenly across their field ofvision. Between 6 and 10 weeks, the human face evokes a broadgrin called the social smile (Sroufe & Waters, 1976). Thesechanges in smiling parallel the development of infant percep-tual capacities—in particular, babies’ increasing sensitivity tovisual patterns, including the human face (see Chapter 4).

Laughter, which first occurs around 3 to 4 months, reflectsfaster processing of information than does smiling. As withsmiling, the first laughs occur in response to very active stim-uli, such as the parent saying playfully, “I’m gonna get you!”and kissing the baby’s tummy. As infants understand moreabout their world, they laugh at events with subtler elements ofsurprise, such as a silent game of peekaboo (Sroufe & Wunsch,1972).

Around the middle of the first year, infants smile andlaugh more when interacting with familiar people, a preferencethat strengthens the parent–child bond. Like adults, 10- to 12-month-olds have several smiles, which vary with context. Theyshow a broad, “cheek-raised” smile in response to a parent’sgreeting; a reserved, muted smile to a friendly stranger; and a“mouth-open” smile during stimulating play (Bolzani et al.,2002; Dickson, Fogel, & Messinger, 1998).

Anger and Sadness. Newborn babies respond with gen-eralized distress to a variety of unpleasant experiences, includ-ing hunger, painful medical procedures, changes in bodytemperature, and too much or too little stimulation. From 4 to6 months into the second year, angry expressions increase infrequency and intensity. Older infants react with anger in awider range of situations—when an object is taken away, theirarms are restrained, the caregiver leaves for a brief time, or theyare put down for a nap (Camras et al., 1992; Stenberg & Cam-pos, 1990; Sullivan & Lewis, 2003).

Why do angry reactions increase with age? Cognitive andmotor development are involved. As infants become capable ofintentional behavior (see Chapter 5), they want to control theirown actions (Alessandri, Sullivan, & Lewis, 1990). Olderinfants are also better at identifying who caused them pain orremoved a toy. The rise in anger is also adaptive. New motorcapacities enable an angry infant to defend herself or overcomean obstacle (Izard & Ackerman, 2000). Finally, anger motivatescaregivers to relieve the infant’s distress and, in the case of sep-aration, may discourage them from leaving again soon.

Although expressions of sadness also occur in response topain, removal of an object, and brief separations, they are lessfrequent than anger (Alessandri, Sullivan, & Lewis, 1990; Izard,Hembree, & Huebner, 1987). But when caregiver–infant com-munication is seriously disrupted, infant sadness is common—a condition that impairs all aspects of development (see theLifespan Vista box on the following page).

Fear. Like anger, fear rises during the second half of thefirst year. Older infants often hesitate before playing with a newtoy, and newly crawling infants soon show fear of heights (seeChapter 4). But the most frequent expression of fear is to unfa-miliar adults, a response called stranger anxiety. Many infantsand toddlers are quite wary of strangers, although the reactiondoes not always occur. It depends on several factors: the infant’stemperament (some babies are generally more fearful), past ex-periences with strangers, and the current situation (Thompson& Limber, 1991). When an unfamiliar adult picks up the infantin a new setting, stranger anxiety is likely. But if the adult sitsstill while the baby moves around and a parent is nearby, in-fants often show positive and curious behavior (Horner, 1980).The stranger’s style of interaction—expressing warmth, hold-ing out an attractive toy, playing a familiar game, and approach-ing slowly rather than abruptly—reduces the baby’s fear.

6 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

The rise in fear after 6 months of age restrains infants’ compellingdrive to set out on their own. But this 1-year-old will be able toventure off confidently, as long as her mother remains near as asecure base to which she can return should she become toofrightened.

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Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 7

A Lifespan VistaParental Depression andChildren’s Development

Approximately 8 to 10 percent ofwomen experience chronic depres-

sion—mild to severe feelings of sadnessand withdrawal that continue for monthsor years. Often the beginnings of thisemotional state cannot be pinpointed;it simply becomes part of the person’sdaily life. In other instances, depressionemerges or strengthens after childbirthbut fails to subside as the new motheradjusts to hormonal changes in her bodyand gains confidence in caring for herbaby. Julia experienced this type—calledpostpartum depression.

Although less recognized and studied,about 4 percent of fathers also reportdepression after the birth of a child(Deater-Deckard et al., 1998). Eithermaternal or paternal depression caninterfere with effective parenting andseriously impair children’s development.Although genetic makeup increases therisk of depressive illness, social and cul-tural factors are also involved.

Maternal Depression. During Julia’spregnancy, her husband, Kyle, showed solittle interest in the baby that Julia wor-ried that having a child might be a mis-take. Then, shortly after Lucy was born,Julia’s mood plunged. She became anx-ious and weepy, overwhelmed by Lucy’sneeds, and angry that she no longer hadcontrol over her own schedule. WhenJulia approached Kyle about her ownfatigue and his unwillingness to help withthe baby, he snapped that she overre-acted to every move he made. Julia’schildless friends stopped by just onceto see Lucy but did not call again.

Julia’s depressed mood quickly af-fected her baby. In the weeks after birth,infants of depressed mothers sleep poorly,are less attentive to their surroundings,and have elevated levels of the stress hor-mone cortisol (Field, 1998). The moreextreme the depression and the greaterthe number of stressors in a mother’s life(such as marital discord, little or nosocial support, and poverty), the morethe parent–child relationship suffers(Simpson et al., 2003). Julia, for example,rarely smiled at, comforted, or talked toLucy, who responded to her mother’s

sad, vacant gaze by turning away, crying,and often looking sad or angry herself(Herrera, Reissland, & Shepherd, 2004;Stanley, Murray, & Stein, 2004). Eachtime this happened, Julia felt guilty andinadequate, and her depression deep-ened. By age 6 months, Lucy showedmental and emotional symptoms com-mon in babies of depressed mothers—delays in development, an irritable mood,and attachment difficulties (Martins &Gaffan, 2000).

When maternal depression persists,the parent–child relationship worsens.Depressed mothers view their infantsmore negatively than do independentobservers (Hart, Field, & Roitfarb, 1999).And they use inconsistent discipline—sometimes lax, at other times too force-ful. As we will see in later chapters,children who experience these maladap-tive parenting practices often haveserious adjustment problems. Somewithdraw into a depressive mood them-selves; others become impulsive andaggressive (Hay et al., 2003).

Paternal Depression. In a study of a largerepresentative sample of British parentsand babies, researchers assessed depres-sive symptoms in both mothers andfathers shortly after birth and again thefollowing year. Then they tracked thedevelopment of their children into thepreschool years. Like findings on childrenof depressed mothers, paternal depres-sion was strongly associated with chil-dren’s behavior problems—especiallyoveractivity, defiance, and aggressionin boys—even after many other factors,including family SES and maternal de-pression, had been controlled (Ram-chandani et al., 2005).

Although little is known about theprecise effects of paternal depression onparenting, well-adjusted fathers are morepositive, attentive, and involved with theirbabies. At older ages, paternal depres-sion is linked to frequent father–childconflict (Kane & Garber, 2004). Overtime, children subjected to parental neg-ativity develop a pessimistic world view—one in which they lack self-confidenceand perceive their parents and otherpeople as threatening. Children whoconstantly feel in danger are likely tobecome overly aroused in stressful situa-

tions, easily losing control in the face ofcognitive and social challenges (Cum-mings & Davies, 1994). Although childrenof depressed mothers or fathers mayinherit a tendency toward emotional andbehavior problems, quality of parentingis a major factor in their adjustment.

Interventions. Early treatment of paren-tal depression is vital to prevent thedisorder from interfering with the par-ent–child relationship. Julia’s doctorreferred her to a counselor, who helpedJulia and Kyle with their marital prob-lems and encouraged them to interactmore sensitively with Lucy. Therapy thatteaches depressed mothers to engagein emotionally positive, responsive care-giving reduces young children’s attach-ment and developmental problems (VanDoesum, Hosman, & Riksen-Walraven,2005). At times, antidepressant medica-tion is prescribed. In most cases of post-partum depression, mothers bounceback after short-term treatment (Stein-berg & Bellavance, 1999). When a de-pressed parent does not respond easilyto treatment, a warm relationship withthe other parent or another caregivercan safeguard children’s development(Mezulis, Hyde, & Clark, 2004).

This depressed mother appears overwhelmedand unresponsive to her infant. If her dis-engagement continues, the baby is likely tobecome negative and irritable, and eventuallyto withdraw. Over time, this disruption in theparent–child relationship leads to seriousemotional and behavior problems.

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Infant-rearing practices can modify stranger anxiety, ascross-cultural research reveals. Among the Efe hunters andgatherers of Congo, West Africa, where the maternal death rateis high, infant survival is safeguarded by a collective caregivingsystem in which, starting at birth, Efe babies are passed fromone adult to another. Consequently, Efe infants show littlestranger anxiety (Tronick, Morelli, & Ivey, 1992). In contrast, inIsraeli kibbutzim (cooperative agricultural settlements), livingin an isolated community vulnerable to terrorist attacks has ledto widespread wariness of strangers. By the end of the first year,when infants look to others for cues about how to respondemotionally, kibbutz babies display greater stranger anxietythan their city-reared counterparts (Saarni, Mumme, & Cam-pos, 1998).

The rise in fear after 6 months keeps newly mobile babies’enthusiasm for exploration in check. Once wariness develops,babies use the familiar caregiver as a secure base, or point fromwhich to explore, venturing into the environment and thenreturning for emotional support. As part of this adaptive sys-tem, encounters with strangers lead to two conflicting tenden-cies: approach (indicated by interest and friendliness) andavoidance (indicated by fear). The infant’s behavior is a bal-ance between the two.

Eventually, as cognitive development permits toddlers todiscriminate more effectively between threatening and non-threatening people and situations, stranger anxiety and otherfears of the first two years decline. Fear also wanes as toddlersacquire more strategies for coping with it, as you will see whenwe discuss emotional self-regulation.

Understanding and Responding to theEmotions of OthersInfants’ emotional expressions are closely tied to their ability tointerpret the emotional cues of others. We have seen thatwithin the first few months, babies match the feeling tone ofthe caregiver in face-to-face communication. Early on, infantsdetect others’ emotions through a fairly automatic process ofemotional contagion, just as we tend to feel happy or sad whenwe sense these emotions in others. Around 4 months, infantsbecome sensitive to the structure and timing of face-to-faceinteractions. When they gaze, smile, or vocalize, they nowexpect their social partner to respond in kind (Rochat, Striano,& Blatt, 2002). Within these exchanges, babies become increas-ingly aware of the range of emotional expressions (Montague& Walker-Andrews, 2001).

Around 5 months, infants perceive facial expressionsas organized patterns and can match the emotion in a voicewith the appropriate face of a speaking person (see Chapter 4).Responding to emotional expressions as organized wholesindicates that these signals have become meaningful to babies.As skill at grasping others’ intentions and establishing jointattention improves, infants realize that an emotional expres-sion not only has meaning but is also a meaningful reactionto a specific object or event (Moses et al., 2001; Tomasello,1999a).

Once these understandings are in place, infants engage insocial referencing, in which they actively seek emotionalinformation from a trusted person in an uncertain situation.Many studies show that the caregiver’s emotional expression(happy, angry, or fearful) influences whether a 1-year-old willbe wary of strangers, play with an unfamiliar toy, or cross thedeep side of the visual cliff (Repacholi, 1998; Stenberg, 2003;Striano & Rochat, 2000).

Mothers and fathers serve as equally effective sources ofemotional information. In both parents’ absence, babies turnto other familiar caregivers (Camras & Sachs, 1991; Hirshberg& Svejda, 1990). The adult’s voice, either alone or combinedwith a facial expression, is more effective than a facial expres-sion alone in guiding the baby’s behavior (Vaish & Striano,2004). By relying on the adult’s voice, the baby need not turntoward the adult but can focus on evaluating the novel event.The voice also offers both emotional and verbal information.

Parents can capitalize on social referencing to teach theiryoungster how to react to many everyday events. And social ref-erencing lets toddlers compare their own assessments of eventswith those of others. Around the middle of the second year, theyappreciate that others’ emotional reactions may differ from theirown. In one study, an adult showed 14- and 18-month-oldsbroccoli and crackers and acted delighted with one food but dis-gusted with other. When asked to share the food, 18-month-oldsgave the adult whichever food she appeared to like, regardless oftheir own preferences (Repacholi & Gopnik, 1997).

In sum, social referencing helps young children movebeyond simply reacting to others’ emotional messages. Theyuse those signals to guide their own actions and to find outabout others’ internal states and preferences.

Emergence of Self-Conscious EmotionsBesides basic emotions, humans are capable of a second,higher-order set of feelings, including guilt, shame, embarrass-ment, envy, and pride. These are called self-conscious emo-tions because each involves injury to or enhancement of oursense of self. We feel guilt when we have harmed someone andwant to correct the wrongdoing. When we are ashamed orembarrassed, our negative feelings about our behavior make uswant to retreat so others will no longer notice our failings. Incontrast, pride reflects delight in the self ’s achievements, andwe are inclined to tell others what we have accomplished(Saarni, Mumme, & Campos, 1998).

Self-conscious emotions appear in the second half of thesecond year, as 18- to 24-month-olds become firmly aware ofthe self as a separate, unique individual. Toddlers show shameand embarrassment by lowering their eyes, hanging theirheads, and hiding their faces with their hands. They showguiltlike reactions, too: One 22-month-old returned a toy shehad grabbed, then patted her upset playmate. Pride alsoemerges around this time, and envy by age 3 (Barrett, 1998;Garner, 2003; Lewis et al., 1989).

Besides self-awareness, self-conscious emotions require anadditional ingredient: adult instruction in when to feel proud,

8 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

ashamed, or guilty. Parents begin this tutoring early when theysay, “Look how far you can throw that ball!” or “You should feelashamed for grabbing that toy!”

Self-conscious emotions play important roles in children’sachievement-related and moral behaviors. The situations inwhich adults encourage these feelings vary from culture to cul-ture. In most of the United States, children are taught to feelpride about personal achievement—throwing a ball the far-thest, winning a game, and (later on) getting good grades. Butin collectivist cultures, such as China and Japan, calling atten-tion to purely personal success evokes embarrassment and self-effacement. And violating cultural standards by failing to showconcern for others—a parent, a teacher, or an employer—sparksintense shame (Akimoto & Sanbonmatsu, 1999; Lewis, 1992).

Beginnings of Emotional Self-RegulationBesides expressing a wider range of emotions, infants and tod-dlers begin to manage their emotional experiences. Emotionalself-regulation refers to the strategies we use to adjust ouremotional state to a comfortable level of intensity so we canaccomplish our goals (Eisenberg et al., 1995; Eisenberg &Spinrad, 2004). When you remind yourself that an anxiety-provoking event will be over soon, suppress your anger at afriend’s behavior, or decide not to see a scary horror film, youare engaging in emotional self-regulation.

Emotional self-regulation requires voluntary, effortfulmanagement of emotions. This capacity for effortful controlimproves gradually, as a result of development of the cerebral

cortex and the assistance of caregivers, who help children man-age intense emotion and teach them strategies for doing so(Eisenberg & Morris, 2002; Fox & Calkins, 2003). Individualdifferences in control of emotion are evident in infancy and, byearly childhood, play such a vital role in children’s adjustmentthat—as we will see later—effortful control is regarded as amajor dimension of temperament. A good start in regulatingemotion during the first two years contributes greatly toautonomy and mastery of cognitive and social skills (Crocken-berg & Leerkes, 2000).

In the early months of life, infants have only a limitedcapacity to regulate their emotional states. Although they canturn away from unpleasant stimulation and can mouth andsuck when their feelings get too intense, they are easily over-whelmed. They depend on the soothing interventions of care-givers—lifting the distressed baby to the shoulder, rocking, andtalking softly.

Rapid development of the frontal lobes of the cerebralcortex increases the baby’s tolerance for stimulation. Between 2and 4 months, caregivers build on this capacity by initiatingface-to-face play and attention to objects. In these interactions,parents arouse pleasure in the baby while adjusting the pace oftheir behavior so the infant does not become overwhelmed anddistressed. As a result, the baby’s tolerance for stimulationincreases (Kopp & Neufeld, 2003). By 4 months, the ability toshift attention helps infants control emotion. Babies who morereadily turn away from unpleasant events are less prone to dis-tress (Axia, Bonichini, & Benini, 1999). At the end of the firstyear, crawling and walking enable infants to regulate feelingsby approaching or retreating from various situations.

Infants whose parents “read” and respond sympatheticallyto their emotional cues tend to be less fussy, more easilysoothed, and more interested in exploration. In contrast, par-ents who wait to intervene until the infant has becomeextremely agitated reinforce the baby’s rapid rise to intense dis-tress. When caregivers do not regulate stressful experiences forbabies, brain structures that buffer stress may fail to developproperly, resulting in an anxious, reactive child with a reducedcapacity for regulating emotion (Crockenberg & Leerkes, 2000;Nelson & Bosquet, 2000).

Caregivers also provide lessons in socially approved waysof expressing feelings. From the first few months, parentsencourage infants to suppress negative emotion by imitatingtheir expressions of interest, happiness, and surprise moreoften than their expressions of anger and sadness. Infant boysget more of this training than girls, in part because boys have aharder time regulating negative emotion (Malatesta et al.,1986; Weinberg et al., 1999). As a result, the well-known sexdifference—females as emotionally expressive and males asemotionally controlled—is promoted at a tender age. Collec-tivist cultures place particular emphasis on socially appropriateemotional behavior. Compared with North Americans, Japa-nese and Chinese adults discourage the expression of strongemotion in babies (Fogel, 1993; Kuchner, 1989). By the end ofthe first year, Chinese and Japanese infants smile and cry lessthan American infants (Camras et al., 1998).

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 9

Self-conscious emotions appear at the end of the second year. ThisGuatemalan 2-year-old undoubtedly feels a sense of pride as shehelps care for her elderly grandmother—an activity highly valued inher culture.

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Toward the end of the second year, a vocabulary for talk-ing about feelings—“happy,” “surprised,” “scary,” “yucky,” and“mad”—develops rapidly (Bretherton et al., 1986). Although2-year-olds can redirect their attention for short periods whenthey are distressed, they are better able to do so in the presenceof a supportive adult (Grolnick, Bridges, & Connell, 1996).And once they can describe their internal states, they can guidecaregivers to help them. For example, while listening to a storyabout monsters, Grace whimpered, “Mommy, scary.” Monicaput the book down and gave Grace a comforting hug.

ity. Self-regulation, as we have seen, refers to strategies thatmodify that reactivity (Rothbart, 2004; Rothbart & Bates,1998). The psychological traits that make up temperament arebelieved to form the cornerstone of the adult personality.

In 1956, Alexander Thomas and Stella Chess initiated theNew York Longitudinal Study, a groundbreaking investigationof the development of temperament that followed 141 childrenfrom early infancy well into adulthood. Results showed thattemperament can increase a child’s chances of experiencingpsychological problems or, alternatively, protect a child fromthe negative effects of a highly stressful home life. At the sametime, Thomas and Chess (1977) discovered that parentingpractices can modify children’s temperaments considerably.

These findings stimulated a growing body of research ontemperament, including its stability, biological roots, and in-teraction with child-rearing experiences. Let’s begin to explorethese issues by looking at the structure, or makeup, of tem-perament and how it is measured.

The Structure of TemperamentThomas and Chess’s nine dimensions, listed in Table 6.2 on thefollowing page, served as the first influential model of tem-perament. When detailed descriptions of infants’ and chil-dren’s behavior obtained from parent interviews were rated onthese dimensions, certain characteristics clustered together,yielding three types of children:

C The easy child (40 percent of the sample) quickly estab-lishes regular routines in infancy, is generally cheerful,and adapts easily to new experiences.

C The difficult child (10 percent of the sample) is irregularin daily routines, is slow to accept new experiences, andtends to react negatively and intensely.

C The slow-to-warm-up child (15 percent of the sample) isinactive, shows mild, low-key reactions to environmentalstimuli, is negative in mood, and adjusts slowly to newexperiences.

Note that 35 percent of the children did not fit any of these cat-egories. Instead, they showed unique blends of temperamentalcharacteristics.

The “difficult” pattern has sparked the most interestbecause it places children at high risk for adjustment prob-lems—both anxious withdrawal and aggressive behavior inearly and middle childhood (Bates, Wachs, & Emde, 1994;Ramos et al., 2005; Thomas, Chess, & Birch, 1968). Comparedwith difficult children, slow-to-warm-up children presentfewer problems in the early years. However, they tend to showexcessive fearfulness and slow, constricted behavior in the latepreschool and school years, when they are expected to respondactively and quickly in classrooms and peer groups (Chess &Thomas, 1984; Schmitz et al., 1999).

Table 6.2 also shows a second model of temperament,devised by Mary Rothbart, which combines overlappingdimensions of Thomas and Chess and other researchers. For

10 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

Ask YourselfReview

Why do many infants show stranger anxiety in thesecond half of the first year? What factors can increaseor decrease wariness of strangers?

ApplyAt age 14 months, Reggie built a block tower andgleefully knocked it down. But at age 2, he called to hismother and pointed proudly at his tall block tower.What explains this change in Reggie’s emotionalbehavior?

ConnectWhy do children of depressed mothers have difficultyregulating emotion (see page 000)? What implicationsdo their weak self-regulatory skills have for theirresponse to cognitive and social challenges?

ReflectDescribe several recent events in your own life thatrequired you to manage negative emotion. How did youreact in each case? How might your early experiences,gender, and cultural background have influenced yourstyle of emotional self-regulation?

www.ablongman.com/berk

Temperament and Development

From early infancy, Caitlin’s sociability was unmistakable.She smiled and laughed while interacting with adults and,

in her second year, readily approached other children. Mean-while, Monica marveled at Grace’s calm, relaxed disposition. At19 months, she sat contented in a highchair through a two-hour family celebration at a restaurant. In contrast, Timmy wasactive and distractible. Vanessa found herself chasing him as hedropped one toy, moved on to the next, and climbed on chairsand tables.

When we describe one person as cheerful and “upbeat,”another as active and energetic, and still others as calm,cautious, or prone to angry outbursts, we are referring totemperament—early-appearing, stable individual differencesin reactivity and self-regulation. Reactivity refers to quicknessand intensity of emotional arousal, attention, and motor activ-

example, “distractibility” and “attention span and persistence”are considered opposite ends of the same dimension, labeled“attention span/persistence.” This model also includes adimension not identified by Thomas and Chess, “irritable dis-tress,” which distinguishes between reactivity triggered by frus-tration and reactivity due to fear. And it omits overly broaddimensions such as “rhythmicity,” “intensity of reaction,” and“threshold of responsiveness” (Rothbart, Ahadi, & Evans, 2000;Rothbart & Mauro, 1990). A child who is rhythmic in sleepingis not necessarily rhythmic in eating or bowel habits. And achild who smiles and laughs quickly and intensely is not neces-sarily quick and intense in fear, irritability, or motor activity.

According to Rothbart, individuals differ not just in theirreactivity on each dimension, but also in the self-regulatorydimension of temperament, effortful control—the capacity tovoluntarily suppress a dominant response in order to plan andexecute a more adaptive response (Rothbart, 2003; Rothbart &Bates, 1998). Variations in effortful control are evident in howeffectively a child can focus and shift attention, inhibit im-pulses, and manage negative emotion.

Measuring TemperamentTemperament is often assessed through interviews or ques-tionnaires given to parents. Behavior ratings by pediatricians,

teachers, and others familiar with the child and laboratoryobservations by researchers have also been used. Parentalreports are convenient and take advantage of parents’ depth ofknowledge about the child (Gartstein & Rothbart, 2003).Although information from parents has been criticized asbiased, parental reports are moderately related to researchers’observations of children’s behavior (Mangelsdorf, Schoppe, &Buur, 2000). And parent perceptions are useful for understand-ing the way parents view and respond to their child.

Although observations by researchers in the home or lab-oratory avoid the subjectivity of parental reports, they can leadto other inaccuracies. In homes, observers find it hard to cap-ture rare but important events, such as infants’ response tofrustration. And in an unfamiliar lab, fearful children whocalmly avoid certain experiences at home may become tooupset to complete the session (Wachs & Bates, 2001). Still,researchers can better control children’s experiences in the lab.And they can conveniently combine observations of behaviorwith physiological measures to gain insight into the biologicalbases of temperament.

Most physiological research has focused on children whofall at opposite extremes of the positive-affect and fearful-dis-tress dimensions of temperament (refer again to Table 6.2):inhibited, or shy, children, who react negatively to and with-draw from novel stimuli, and uninhibited, or sociable, chil-

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 11

Thomas and Chess Rothbart

Dimension Description Dimension Description

Activity level Ratio of active periods to inactive ones

Rhythmicity Regularity of body functions, such as sleep, wakefulness, hunger, and excretion

Distractibility Degree to which stimulation from the environment alters behavior—for example, whether crying stops when a toy is offered

Approach/ Response to a new object, food, or personwithdrawal

Adaptability Ease with which child adapts to changes in the environment, such as sleeping or eating in a new place

Attention span Amount of time devoted to an activity, and persistence such as watching a mobile or playing with

a toy

Intensity of Energy level of response, such as laughing, reaction crying, talking, or gross motor activity

Threshold of Intensity of stimulation required to evoke responsiveness a response

Quality of mood Amount of friendly, joyful behavior as opposed to unpleasant, unfriendly behavior

Sources: Left: Thomas & Chess, 1977; Right: Rothbart, Ahadi, & Evans, 2000; Rothbart & Mauro, 1990.

Table 6.2 Two Models of Temperament

Reactivity

Activity level Level of gross motor activity

Attention span/ Duration of orienting or interestpersistence

Fearful distress Wariness and distress in response tointense or novel stimuli, including time to adjust to new situations

Irritable distress Extent of fussing, crying, and distresswhen desires are frustrated

Positive affect Frequency of expression of happiness and pleasure

Self-regulation

Effortful control Capacity to voluntarily suppress adominant, reactive response in orderto plan and execute a more adaptiveresponse

dren, who display positive emotion to and approach novelstimuli. As the Biology and Environment box on the followingpage reveals, biologically based reactivity—evident in heartrate, hormone levels, and EEG brain waves—differentiateschildren with inhibited and uninhibited temperaments. Never-theless, parenting practices are crucially important in whetheran inhibited style is sustained over time.

Stability of TemperamentMany studies indicate that young children who score low orhigh on attention span, irritability, sociability, shyness, oreffortful control tend to respond similarly when assessed againseveral months to a few years later and, occasionally, even intothe adult years (Caspi et al., 2003; Kochanska & Knaack, 2003;Pedlow et al., 1993; Rothbart, Ahadi, & Evans, 2000; Ruff &Rothbart, 1996). However, the overall stability of temperamentis low to moderate (Putnam, Samson, & Rothbart, 2000).

A major reason is that temperament itself develops withage. To illustrate, let’s look at irritability and activity level.Recall from Chapter 3 that the early months are a period offussing and crying for most babies. As infants can better regu-late their attention and emotions, many who initially seemedirritable become calm and content. In the case of activity level,the meaning of the behavior changes. At first, an active, wrig-gling infant tends to be highly aroused and uncomfortable,whereas an inactive baby is often alert and attentive. As infantsbegin to move on their own, the reverse is so! An active crawleris usually alert and interested in exploration, whereas an inac-tive baby might be fearful and withdrawn.

These discrepancies help us understand why long-termpredictions from early temperament are most accurately madeafter age 2, when styles of responding are better established(Caspi, 1998; Lemery et al., 1999). In line with this idea,between 21⁄2 and 3, children perform more consistently acrossa wide range of tasks that require effortful control, such aswaiting for a reward, lowering their voice to a whisper, andselectively attending to one stimulus while ignoring competingstimuli. Researchers believe that around this time, areas infrontal lobes involved in suppressing impulses develop rapidly(Gerardi-Caulton, 2000; Rothbart et al., 2003).

Furthermore, 2- and 3-year-olds with fearful or negative,irritable temperaments who experience patient, supportiveparenting are better at managing their reactivity (Warren &Simmens, 2005). They are especially likely to decline in diffi-cultness during the preschool years—findings demonstratingthat child rearing plays an important role in modifying biolog-ically based temperamental traits.

When we consider the evidence as a whole, the low tomoderate stability of temperament makes sense. Many factorsaffect the extent to which a temperamental style persists,including development of the biological systems on whichtemperament is based, the child’s capacity for effortful control,and rearing experiences. But children’s temperaments rarelychange from one extreme to another—that is, shy toddlers sel-dom become highly sociable, and irritable toddlers seldom

become easy-going. With these ideas in mind, let’s turn togenetic and environmental contributions to temperament andpersonality.

Genetic InfluencesThe word temperament implies a genetic foundation for indi-vidual differences in personality. Research indicates that iden-tical twins are more similar than fraternal twins across a widerange of temperamental and personality traits (Caspi, 1998;DiLalla, Kagan, & Reznick, 1994; Emde et al., 1992; Goldsmithet al., 1999; Saudino & Cherny, 2001). In Chapter 2, we notedthat heritability estimates suggest a moderate role for heredityin temperament and personality: On average, half of individ-ual differences have been attributed to differences in geneticmakeup.

Consistent ethnic and sex differences in early tempera-ment exist, again implying a role for heredity. Compared withNorth American Caucasian infants, Japanese and Chinesebabies tend to be less active, irritable, and vocal, more easilysoothed when upset, and better at quieting themselves (Kaganet al., 1994; Lewis, Ramsay, & Kawakami, 1993). Grace’s capac-ity to remain contentedly seated in her highchair through along family dinner certainly fits with this evidence. AndTimmy’s high rate of activity is consistent with sex differences(Garstein & Rothbart, 2003). From an early age, boys tend tobe more active and daring and girls more anxious and timid—a difference reflected in boys’ higher injury rates throughoutchildhood and adolescence.

Nevertheless, genetic influences vary with the tempera-mental trait and with the age of individuals studied. For exam-ple, heritability estimates are higher for expressions of negativeemotion than for positive emotion. And the role of heredity isconsiderably less in infancy than in childhood and later years,when temperament becomes more stable (Wachs & Bates,2001).

Environmental InfluencesEnvironment also has a powerful influence on temperament.For example, persistent nutritional and emotional deprivationprofoundly alters temperament, resulting in maladaptive emo-tional reactivity. Recall from Chapter 4 that even after dietaryimprovement, children exposed to severe, early malnutritionremain more distractible and fearful than their agemates. Andinfants reared in deprived orphanages are easily overwhelmedby stressful events. Their poor regulation of emotion results ininattention and weak impulse control, including frequentexpressions of anger (see pages 000 and 000).

Other research shows that heredity and environment oftencombine to influence temperament, since a child’s approach tothe world affects the experiences to which she is exposed. Tosee how this works, let’s take a second look at ethnic and sexdifferences in temperament.

Japanese mothers usually say that babies come into theworld as independent beings who must learn to rely on their

12 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 13

Development of Shynessand Sociability

Two 4-month-old babies, Larry andMitch, visited the laboratory of

Jerome Kagan, who observed their reac-tions to various unfamiliar experiences.When exposed to new sights and sounds,such as a moving mobile decorated withcolorful toys, Larry tensed his muscles,moved his arms and legs with agitation,and began to cry. In contrast, Mitch re-mained relaxed and quiet, smiling andcooing.

As toddlers, Larry and Mitch returnedto the laboratory, where they experi-enced procedures designed to induceuncertainty. Electrodes were placed ontheir bodies and blood pressure cuffs ontheir arms to measure heart rate; toyrobots, animals, and puppets movedbefore their eyes; and unfamiliar peoplebehaved in unexpected ways or worenovel costumes. While Larry whimperedand quickly withdrew. Mitch watchedwith interest, laughed, and approachedthe toys and strangers.

On a third visit, at age 41⁄2, Larrybarely talked or smiled during an inter-view with an unfamiliar adult. In contrast,Mitch asked questions and communi-cated his pleasure at each new activity. Ina playroom with two unfamiliar peers,Larry pulled back and watched, whileMitch made friends quickly.

In longitudinal research on several hun-dred Caucasian children, Kagan (1998)found that about 20 percent of 4-month-old babies were, like Larry, easily upsetby novelty; 40 percent, like Mitch, werecomfortable, even delighted, with newexperiences. About 20 to 30 percent ofthese groups retained their temperamen-tal styles as they grew older (Kagan, 2003;Kagan & Saudino, 2001). But most chil-dren’s dispositions became less extremeover time. Biological makeup and child-rearing experiences jointly influencedstability and change in temperament.

Physiological Correlates of Shyness andSociability. Kagan believes that individualdifferences in arousal of the amygdala, aninner brain structure that controls avoid-ance reactions, contribute to these con-trasting temperaments. In shy, inhibited

children, novel stimuli easily excite theamygdala and its connections to thecerebral cortex and the sympatheticnervous system, which prepares the bodyto act in the face of threat. In sociable,uninhibited children, the same level ofstimulation evokes minimal neural exci-tation. While viewing photos of unfamil-iar faces, adults who had been classifiedas inhibited in the second year of lifeshowed greater fMRI activity in theamygdala than adults who had beenuninhibited as toddlers (Schwartz et al.,2003). And the two emotional styles aredistinguished by additional physiologicalresponses that are known to be mediatedby the amygdala:

■ Heart rate. From the first few weeks oflife, the heart rates of shy children areconsistently higher than those ofsociable youngsters, and they speedup further in response to unfamiliarevents (Snidman et al., 1995).

■ Cortisol. Saliva concentration of thestress hormone cortisol tends to behigher in shy than in sociable children(Gunnar & Nelson, 1994).

■ Pupil dilation, blood pressure, and skin sur-face temperature. Compared with socia-ble children, shy children show greaterpupil dilation, rise in blood pressure,and cooling of the fingertips whenfaced with novelty (Kagan et al., 1999).

Another physiological correlate ofapproach–withdrawal to people andobjects is the pattern of brain waves inthe frontal lobes of the cerebral cortex.Shy infants and preschoolers showgreater EEG activity in the right frontallobe, which is associated with negativeemotional reactivity; sociable childrenshow the opposite pattern (Calkins, Fox,& Marshall, 1996). Neural activity in theamygdala is transmitted to the frontallobes, probably contributing to thesedifferences. Inhibited children alsoshow greater generalized activation ofthe cerebral cortex, an indicator of highemotional arousal and monitoring ofnew situations for potential threats(Henderson et al., 2004).

Child-Rearing Practices. According toKagan (1998), extremely shy or sociable

children inherit a physiology that biasesthem toward a particular temperamentalstyle. Yet heritability research indicatesthat genes contribute only modestly toshyness and sociability. Experience, too,has a powerful impact.

Child-rearing practices affect thechances that an emotionally reactivebaby will become a fearful child. Warm,supportive parenting reduces shy infants’and preschoolers’ intense physiologicalreaction to novelty, whereas cold, intru-sive parenting heightens anxiety (Rubin,Burgess, & Hastings, 2002). And if par-ents protect infants who dislike noveltyfrom minor stresses, they make it harderfor the child to overcome an urge toretreat. Parents who make appropriatedemands for their baby to approach newexperiences help the child overcome fear(Rubin et al., 1997).

When inhibition persists, it leads toexcessive cautiousness, low self-esteem,and loneliness. In adolescence, persistentshyness increases the risk of severe anxi-ety, especially social phobia—intense fearof being humiliated in social situations(Prior et al., 2000). For inhibited chil-dren to acquire effective social skills,parenting must be tailored to their tem-peraments—a theme we will encounteragain in this and later chapters.

Biology and Environment

A strong physiological response to uncertainsituations prompts this child to cling to herfather. With patient but insistent encourage-ment, he can modify her reactivity and help herovercome her urge to retreat from unfamiliarevents.

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mothers through close physical contact. North American moth-ers typically believe just the opposite—that they must weanbabies away from dependence toward autonomy (Kojima,1986). Consistent with these beliefs, Asian mothers interactgently and soothingly, relying heavily on gestures and (as wesaw earlier) discouraging strong emotion in their babies,whereas Caucasian mothers use a more active, stimulating,verbal approach (Rothbaum et al., 2000a). These differencesenhance early ethnic differences in temperament.

A similar process seems to contribute to sex differences intemperament. Within 24 hours after birth (before they havehad much experience with the baby), parents perceive boys andgirls differently. They rate sons as larger, better coordinated,more alert, and stronger, daughters as softer, weaker, and moredelicate and awkward (Stern & Karraker, 1989; Vogel et al.,1991). These gender-stereotyped beliefs influence parents’treatment of infants and toddlers. Parents more often encour-age their young sons to be physically active and their daughtersto seek help and physical closeness (Ruble & Martin, 1998).

In families with several children, an additional influenceon temperament is at work. Listen to the comments parentsmake, and you will see that they often look for personality dif-ferences in their children: “She’s a lot more active,” “He’s moresociable,” “She’s far more persistent.” As a result, parents oftenregard siblings as more distinct than other observers do. In alarge study of 1- to 3-year-old twin pairs, parents rated identi-cal twins as resembling each other less in temperament thanresearchers’ ratings indicated. And whereas researchers ratedfraternal twins as moderately similar, parents viewed them assomewhat opposite in temperamental style (see Figure 6.1)(Saudino, 2003).

Parents’ tendency to emphasize each child’s unique quali-ties affects their child-rearing practices. In an investigation ofidentical-twin toddlers, mothers treated each twin differently.The twin who received more warmth and less harshness wasmore positive in mood and social behavior (Deater-Deckardet al., 2001). Each child, in turn, evokes responses from care-givers that are consistent with parental beliefs and the child’sdeveloping temperament.

Besides different experiences within the family, siblingshave distinct experiences with teachers, peers, and others intheir community that affect development. And in middlechildhood and adolescence, they often seek ways to differ fromone another. In adulthood, both identical and fraternal twinstend to become increasingly dissimilar (Loehlin & Martin,2001; McCartney, Harris, & Bernieri, 1990). The less contacttwins have with each other, the stronger this effect. In sum,temperament and personality can be understood only in termsof complex interdependencies between genetic and environ-mental factors.

Temperament and Child Rearing: The Goodness-of-Fit ModelAs we have seen, the temperaments of many children changewith age. This suggests that if a child’s disposition interferes

with learning or getting along with others, adults can counter-act the child’s maladaptive behavior.

Thomas and Chess (1977) proposed a goodness-of-fitmodel to describe how temperament and environment cantogether produce favorable outcomes. Goodness of fit involvescreating child-rearing environments that recognize each child’stemperament while encouraging more adaptive functioning.

Difficult children (who withdraw from new experiencesand react negatively and intensely) frequently experience par-enting that fits poorly with their dispositions, putting them athigh risk for later adjustment problems. By the second year,parents of difficult children often resort to angry, punitive dis-cipline, which undermines the development of effortful con-trol. As the child reacts with defiance and disobedience, parentsbecome increasingly stressed (Coplan, Bowker, & Cooper,2002). As a result, they continue their coercive tactics and alsodiscipline inconsistently, at times rewarding the child’s non-compliance by giving in to it (Calkins, 2002). These practicesmaintain and even increase the child’s irritable, conflict-riddenstyle. In contrast, as we have seen, when parents are positive

14 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

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■ FIGURE 6.1 Temperament correlations for identical andfraternal twin pairs, as rated by researchers and parents. Parentsrated 1- to 3-year-old identical twins as resembling each other lessin temperament than did researchers. And whereas researchersrated fraternal twins as moderately similar, parents rated them assomewhat opposing in temperament. The correlations depictedhere are for emotional reactivity. Activity level, shyness, and atten-tion span/persistence yielded a similar pattern of findings.(Adapted from Saudino, 2003.)

and sensitive, which helps infants and toddlers regulate emo-tion, difficultness declines.

Effective parenting, however, depends on life conditions.In a comparison of Russian and U.S. babies, Russian infantswere more emotionally negative, fearful, and upset when frus-trated (Garstein, Slobodskaya, & Kinsht, 2003). Faced with adepressed national economy, which resulted in financial wor-ries and longer work hours, Russian parents may have lackedtime and energy for the patient parenting that protects againstdifficultness.

Cultural values also affect the fit between parenting andchild temperament, as research in China illustrates. In the past,collectivist values, which discourage self-assertion, led Chineseadults to evaluate shy children positively, and several studiesshowed that Chinese children of a decade or two ago appearedwell-adjusted, academically and socially (Chen, Rubin, & Li,1995; Chen et al., 1998).

But rapid expansion of a competitive economy in China,which requires assertiveness and sociability for success, may beresponsible for a recent reversal in Chinese parents’ andteacher’s attitudes toward childhood shyness (Xu & Peng, 2001;Yu, 2002). Among Shanghai fourth graders, the association

between shyness and adjustment also changed over time.Whereas shyness was positively correlated with teacher-ratedcompetence, peer acceptance, leadership, and academic achieve-ment in 1990, these relationships weakened in 1998 and reversedin 2002, at which time they mirrored findings of Westernresearch (see Figure 6.2) (Chen et al., 2005). Cultural contextmakes a difference in whether shy children receive support ordisapproval and whether they adjust well or poorly.

An effective match between rearing conditions and childtemperament is best accomplished early, before unfavorabletemperament–environment relationships produce maladjust-ment. Both difficult and shy children benefit from warm,accepting parenting that makes firm but reasonable demandsfor mastering new experiences. With reserved, inactive tod-dlers, highly stimulating parental behavior—encouraging,questioning, and pointing out objects—fosters exploration. Yetfor highly active babies, these same parental behaviors are toodirective, dampening their play and curiosity (Gandour, 1989;Miceli et al., 1998).

The goodness-of-fit model reminds us that infants haveunique dispositions that adults must accept. Parents can nei-ther take full credit for their children’s virtues nor be blamedfor all their faults. But parents can transform an environmentthat exaggerates a child’s problems into one that builds on thechild’s strengths. As we will see, goodness of fit is also at theheart of infant–caregiver attachment. This first intimate rela-tionship grows out of interaction between parent and baby, towhich the emotional styles of both partners contribute.

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 15

“Goodness of fit” describes the interaction between a child’sbiologically based temperament and the child-rearing environment.This mother’s calm, soothing response to her baby’s fussiness willhelp the child regulate intense emotional reactions and developmore adaptive responses to frustration.

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■ FIGURE 6.2 Changes over time in correlations between shy-ness and adjustment among Chinese fourth graders. In 1990, shyChinese children appeared well-adjusted. But as China’s marketeconomy expanded and valuing of self-assertion and sociabilityincreased, the direction of the correlations shifted. In 2002, shy-ness was negatively associated with adjustment. These findingsare for teacher-rated competence and peer acceptance. Thosefor leadership (holding offices in student organizations) andacademic achievement changed similarly. (Adapted from Chenet al., 2005.)

Development of Attachment

A ttachment is the strong affectionate tie we have with spe-cial people in our lives that leads us to feel pleasure when

we interact with them and to be comforted by their nearness intimes of stress. By the second half of the first year, infants havebecome attached to familiar people who have responded totheir needs, and they single out their parents for special atten-tion. When the mother enters the room, the baby breaks into abroad, friendly smile. When she picks him up, he pats her face,explores her hair, and snuggles against her. When he feels anx-ious or afraid, he crawls into her lap and clings closely.

Freud first suggested that the infant’s emotional tie tothe mother is the foundation for all later relationships. Con-temporary research indicates that—although the quality of theinfant–parent bond is vitally important—later development isinfluenced not just by early attachment experiences, but also bythe continuing quality of the parent–child relationship.

Attachment has also been the subject of intense theoreticaldebate. Turn back to the description of Erikson’s theory at thebeginning of this chapter and notice how the psychoanalyticperspective regards feeding as the primary context in whichcaregivers and babies build this emotional bond. Behaviorism,too, emphasizes the importance of feeding, but for differentreasons. According to a well-known behaviorist account, as themother satisfies the baby’s hunger, infants learn to prefer hersoft caresses, warm smiles, and tender words of comfortbecause these events have been paired with tension relief.

Although feeding is an important context for building aclose relationship, attachment does not depend on hunger sat-

isfaction. In the 1950s, a famous experiment showed that rhe-sus monkeys reared with terrycloth and wire-mesh “surrogatemothers” clung to the soft terrycloth substitute, even thoughthe wire-mesh “mother” held the bottle and infants had toclimb on it to be fed (Harlow & Zimmerman, 1959). Similarly,human infants become attached to family members who sel-dom feed them, including fathers, siblings, and grandparents.And toddlers in Western cultures who sleep alone and experi-ence frequent daytime separations from their parents some-times develop strong emotional ties to cuddly objects, such asblankets and teddy bears, that have never played a role in infantfeeding!

Ethological Theory of AttachmentToday, ethological theory of attachment, which recognizesthe infant’s emotional tie to the caregiver as an evolved re-sponse that promotes survival, is the most widely acceptedview. John Bowlby (1969), who first applied this idea to theinfant–caregiver bond, was inspired by Konrad Lorenz’s studiesof imprinting in baby geese (see Chapter 1). Bowlby believedthat the human infant, like the young of other animal species,is endowed with a set of built-in behaviors that help keep theparent nearby to protect the infant from danger and to provide

16 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

Ask YourselfReview

How do genetic and environmental factors work to-gether to influence temperament? Cite several examplesfrom research.

ApplyAt 18 months, highly active Jake climbed out of hishighchair and had a tantrum when his father insistedthat he sit at the table until the meal was finished. Usingthe concept of goodness of fit, suggest another way ofhandling Jake.

ConnectDo findings on ethnic and sex differences in tempera-ment illustrate genetic–environmental correlation,discussed on page 00 in Chapter 2? Explain.

ReflectHow would you describe your temperament as a youngchild? Do you think your temperament has remainedstable, or has it changed? What factors might beinvolved?

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Baby monkeys reared with “surrogate mothers” from birthpreferred to cling to a soft terrycloth “mother” instead of awire-mesh “mother” that held a bottle. These findings revealthat attachment—the emotional bond between baby andcaregiver—is not simply based on hunger satisfaction, as earliertheorists had assumed.

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support for exploring and mastering the environment (Waters& Cummings, 2000). Contact with the parent also ensures thatthe baby will be fed, but Bowlby pointed out that feeding is notthe basis for attachment. Rather, the attachment bond can bestbe understood in an evolutionary context in which survival ofthe species—through ensuring both safety and competence—is of utmost importance.

According to Bowlby, the infant’s relationship with theparent begins as a set of innate signals that call the adult to thebaby’s side. Over time, a true affectionate bond develops, sup-ported by new cognitive and emotional capacities as well as bya history of warm, sensitive care. Attachment develops in fourphases:

1. Preattachment phase (birth to 6 weeks). Built-in signals—grasping, smiling, crying, and gazing into the adult’seyes—help bring newborn babies into close contact withother humans, who comfort them. Although babies ofthis age recognize their own mother’s smell and voice (seeChapter 3), they are not yet attached to her, since they donot mind being left with an unfamiliar adult.

2. “Attachment-in-the-making” phase (6 weeks to 6–8months). During this phase, infants respond differently toa familiar caregiver than to a stranger. For example, at 4months, Timmy smiled, laughed, and babbled more freelywhen interacting with his mother and quieted morequickly when she picked him up. As infants learn thattheir own actions affect the behavior of those aroundthem, they begin to develop a sense of trust—the expecta-tion that the caregiver will respond when signaled—butthey still do not protest when separated from her.

3. “Clear-cut” attachment phase (6–8 months to 18 months–2 years). Now attachment to the familiar caregiver is evi-dent. Babies display separation anxiety, becoming upsetwhen the adult whom they have come to rely on leaves.Separation anxiety does not always occur; like strangeranxiety (see page 000), it depends on infant temperamentand the current situation. But in many cultures, separa-tion anxiety increases between 6 and 15 months. Besidesprotesting the parent’s departure, older infants and tod-dlers try hard to maintain her presence. They approach,follow, and climb on her in preference to others. And theyuse the familiar caregiver as a secure base from which toexplore.

4. Formation of a reciprocal relationship (18 months–2 yearsand on). By the end of the second year, rapid growth inrepresentation and language permits toddlers to under-stand some of the factors that influence the parent’s com-ing and going and to predict her return. As a result,separation protest declines. Now children start to negoti-ate with the caregiver, using requests and persuasion toalter her goals. For example, at age 2, Caitlin asked Car-olyn and David to read a story before leaving her with ababy-sitter. The extra time with her parents, along with abetter understanding of where they were going (“to have

dinner with Uncle Sean”) and when they would be back(“right after you go to sleep”), helped Caitlin withstandher parents’ absence.

According to Bowlby (1980), out of their experiences dur-ing these four phases, children construct an enduring affec-tionate tie to the caregiver that they can use as a secure base inthe parents’ absence. This image serves as an internal workingmodel, or set of expectations about the availability of attach-ment figures and their likelihood of providing support duringtimes of stress. The internal working model becomes a vitalpart of personality, serving as a guide for all future close rela-tionships (Bretherton & Munholland, 1999). Children contin-ually revise and expand the internal working model as theircognitive, emotional, and social capacities increase; as theyinteract with parents; and as they form other close bonds withadults, siblings, and friends.

Measuring the Security of AttachmentAlthough virtually all family-reared babies become attached toa familiar caregiver by the second year, the quality of this rela-tionship varies. Some children appear secure—certain that thecaregiver will provide affection and support. Others seem anx-ious and uncertain.

A widely used laboratory procedure for assessing the qualityof attachment between 1 and 2 years of age is the Strange Situ-ation, which takes the baby through eight short episodes inwhich brief separations from and reunions with the parentoccur (see Table 6.3 on the following page). In designing it,

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 17

Separation anxiety increases between 6 and 15 months, when clear-cut infant–caregiver attachment develops. But the occurrence ofseparation anxiety depends on infant temperament, context, andadult behavior. Here, the child’s distress at his mother’s departurewill probably be short-lived because his caregiver is supportive andsensitive.

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Mary Ainsworth and her colleagues reasoned that securelyattached infants and toddlers should use the parent as a securebase from which to explore an unfamiliar playroom, and that,when the parent leaves, an unfamiliar adult should be lesscomforting than the parent.

Observing infants’ responses to these episodes, researchershave identified a secure attachment pattern and three patternsof insecurity; a few babies cannot be classified (Ainsworthet al., 1978; Barnett & Vondra, 1999; Main & Solomon, 1990).From the description at the beginning of this chapter, whichpattern do you think Grace displayed after adjusting to heradoptive family?

C Secure attachment. These infants use the parent as asecure base. When separated, they may or may not cry,but if they do, it is because the parent is absent and theyprefer her to the stranger. When the parent returns, theyactively seek contact, and their crying is reduced imme-diately. About 65 percent of North American infants showthis pattern.

C Avoidant attachment. These infants seem unresponsiveto the parent when she is present. When she leaves, theyusually are not distressed, and they react to the stranger inmuch the same way as to the parent. During reunion, theyavoid or are slow to greet the parent, and when picked up,they often fail to cling. About 20 percent of North Ameri-can infants show this pattern.

C Resistant attachment. Before separation, these infantsseek closeness to the parent and often fail to explore.When she leaves, they are usually distressed, and on herreturn they display angry, resistive behavior, sometimeshitting and pushing. Many continue to cry after beingpicked up and cannot be comforted easily. About 10 to 15percent of North American infants show this pattern.

C Disorganized/disoriented attachment. This pattern re-flects the greatest insecurity. At reunion, these infantsshow confused, contradictory behaviors. They might lookaway while being held by the parent or approach her withflat, depressed emotion. Most communicate their emotionwith a dazed facial expression. A few cry out after havingcalmed down or display odd, frozen postures. About 5 to10 percent of North American infants show this pattern.

An alternative method, the Attachment Q-Sort, suitablefor children between 1 and 4 years, depends on home observa-tion (Waters et al., 1995). Either the parent or a highly trainedobserver sorts 90 behaviors (”Child greets mother with a bigsmile when she enters the room,” “If mother moves very far,child follows along”) into categories ranging from highlydescriptive to not at all descriptive of the child. Then a score,ranging from high to low in security, is computed.

The Q-Sort is time-consuming, requiring a nonparentobserver to spend several hours observing the child beforesorting. And it does not indicate patterns of insecurity. But itmay better reflect the parent–infant relationship in everydaylife. Expert observers’ Q-Sorts correspond well with babies’secure-base behavior in the Strange Situation. Parents’ Q-Sorts,however, show little relationship with the Strange Situation(van IJzendoorn et al., 2004). Parents of insecure children,especially, may have difficulty accurately reporting their child’sattachment behaviors.

Stability of AttachmentResearch on the stability of attachment patterns between 1 and2 years of age yields a wide range of findings (Thompson,1998, 2000). A close look at which babies stay the same andwhich ones change yields a more consistent picture. Quality ofattachment is usually secure and stable for middle-SES babies

18 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

Episode Events Attachment Behavior Observed

1 Researcher introduces parent and baby to playroom and then leaves.

2 Parent is seated while baby plays with toys. Parent as a secure base

3 Stranger enters, is seated, and talks to parent. Reaction to unfamiliar adult

4 Parent leaves room. Stranger responds to baby and offers comfort if upset. Separation anxiety

5 Parent returns, greets baby, and offers comfort if necessary. Stranger leaves room. Reaction to reunion

6 Parent leaves room. Separation anxiety

7 Stranger enters room and offers comfort. Ability to be soothed by stranger

8 Parent returns, greets baby, offers comfort if necessary, and tries to reinterest baby in toys. Reaction to reunion

Note: Episode 1 lasts about 30 seconds; each of the remaining episodes lasts about 3 minutes. Separation episodes are cut short if the baby becomes veryupset. Reunion episodes are extended if the baby needs more time to calm down and return to play.Source: Ainsworth et al., 1978.

Table 6.3 Episodes in the Strange Situation

experiencing favorable life conditions. And infants who movefrom insecurity to security typically have well-adjusted moth-ers with positive family and friendship ties. Perhaps manybecame parents before they were psychologically ready but,with social support, grew into the role. In contrast, in low-SESfamilies with many daily stresses, attachment generally movesaway from security or changes from one insecure pattern toanother (Belsky et al., 1996; Vondra, Hommerding, & Shaw,1999; Vondra et al., 2001).

These findings indicate that securely attached babies moreoften maintain their attachment status than insecure babies—atrend also evident in long-term assessments of attachment sta-bility, based on follow-up interviews with adolescents andyoung adults (Waters et al., 2000; Weinfield, Sroufe, & Egeland,2000). The exception is disorganized/disoriented attach-ment—an insecure pattern that remains highly stable (Hesse &Main, 2000; Weinfeld, Whaley, & Egeland, 2004). As you willsoon see, many disorganized/disoriented babies experienceextremely negative caregiving, which may disrupt emotionalself-regulation so severely that confused, ambivalent feelingstoward parents persist for many years.

Cultural VariationsCross-cultural evidence indicates that attachment patternsmay have to be interpreted differently in certain cultures. Forexample, as Figure 6.3 reveals, German infants show consider-

ably more avoidant attachment than American babies do. ButGerman parents value independence and encourage theirinfants to be nonclingy (Grossmann et al., 1985). In contrast, astudy of infants of the Dogon people of Mali, Africa, revealedthat none showed avoidant attachment to their mothers (True,Pisani, & Oumar, 2001). Even when grandmothers are primarycaregivers (as they are with firstborn sons), Dogon mothers re-main available, holding their babies close and nursing promptlyin response to hunger and distress.

Japanese infants, as well, rarely show avoidant attachment(refer again to Figure 6.3) An unusually high number are resis-tantly attached, but this reaction may not represent true inse-curity. Japanese mothers rarely leave their babies in others’care, so the Strange Situation probably creates greater stress forthem than for infants who frequently experience maternal sep-arations (Takahashi, 1990). Also, Japanese parents view theinfant attention seeking that is part of resistant attachment as anormal indicator of infant dependency (Rothbaum et al.,2000b). Despite such cultural variations, the secure pattern isstill the most common attachment quality in all societies stud-ied (van IJzendoorn & Sagi, 1999).

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■ FIGURE 6.3 A cross-cultural comparison of infants’ reactionsin the Strange Situation. A high percentage of German babies seemavoidantly attached, whereas a substantial number of Japaneseinfants appear resistantly attached. Note that these responses maynot reflect true insecurity. Instead, they are probably due to cul-tural differences in values and child-rearing practices. (Adaptedfrom van IJzendoorn & Kroonenberg, 1988.)

Among the Dogon people of Mali, Africa, mothers stay close totheir babies and respond promptly and gently to infant distress.Dogon mothers are almost never overly stimulating or intrusive—practices linked to avoidant attachment. And in Dogon culture,none of the infants were avoidantly attached to their mothers.

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Factors That Affect Attachment SecurityWhat factors might influence attachment security? Researchershave looked closely at four important influences: (1) opportu-nity to establish a close relationship, (2) quality of caregiving,(3) the baby’s characteristics, and (4) family context.

Opportunity for Attachment. What happens when ababy does not have the opportunity to establish an affectionaltie to a caregiver? In a series of studies, René Spitz (1946)observed institutionalized infants whose mothers had giventhem up between 3 and 12 months of age. After being placed ina large ward where each shared a nurse with at least seven oth-ers, the babies lost weight and withdrew from their surround-ings. If a consistent caregiver did not replace the mother, thedepression deepened rapidly.

These institutionalized babies had emotional difficultiesbecause they were prevented from forming a bond with one ora few adults (Rutter, 1996). Another study supports this con-clusion. Researchers followed the development of infants in aninstitution with a good caregiver–child ratio and a rich selec-tion of books and toys. However, staff turnover was so rapidthat the average child had 50 caregivers by age 41⁄2! Many ofthese children became “late adoptees” who were placed inhomes after age 4. Most developed deep ties with their adoptiveparents, indicating that a first attachment bond can develop aslate as 4 to 6 years of age (Tizard & Rees, 1975).

But these youngsters were more likely to display emotionaland social problems, including an excessive desire for adultattention, “overfriendliness” to unfamiliar adults and peers,and few friendships. Adopted children who spent their firsteight months or more in deprived Romanian orphanagesoften display these same difficulties (Hodges & Tizard, 1989;O’Connor et al., 2003). These findings suggest that fully nor-mal development depends on establishing a close, caregiverbond during the early years of life.

Quality of Caregiving. Dozens of studies report thatsensitive caregiving—responding promptly, consistently, andappropriately to infants and holding them tenderly and care-fully—is moderately related to attachment security in diversecultures and SES groups (De Wolff & van IJzendoorn, 1997;Posada et al., 2002, 2004; van IJzendoorn et al., 2004). Incontrast, insecurely attached infants tend to have motherswho engage in less physical contact, handle them awkwardlyor “routinely,” and are sometimes resentful and rejecting(Ainsworth et al., 1978; Isabella, 1993; Pederson & Moran,1996).

Also, in several studies of North American babies, a specialform of communication called interactional synchrony sepa-rated the experiences of secure and insecure babies. It is bestdescribed as a sensitively tuned “emotional dance,” in whichthe caregiver responds to infant signals in a well-timed, rhyth-mic, appropriate fashion. In addition, both partners matchemotional states, especially the positive ones (Feldman, 2003;

Isabella & Belsky, 1991). Earlier we saw that sensitive face-to-face play, in which interactional synchrony occurs, helpsinfants regulate emotion. But moderate adult–infant coordi-nation predicts attachment security, not “tight” coordinationin which the adult responds to most infant cues (Jaffe et al.,2001). Perhaps warm, sensitive caregivers use a relaxed, flex-ible style of communication in which they comfortably acceptand repair emotional mismatches, returning to a synchronousstate.

Cultures vary in the way they view sensitivity toward in-fants. Among the Gusii people of Kenya, for example, mothersrarely cuddle, hug, or interact playfully with their babies, al-though they are very responsive to their infants’ needs. Yetmost Gusii infants appear securely attached (LeVine et al., 1994).This suggests that security depends on attentive caregiving, notnecessarily on moment-by-moment contingent interaction.Puerto Rican mothers, who highly value obedience and sociallyappropriate behavior, often physically direct and limit theirbabies’ actions—a caregiving style linked to attachment secu-rity in Puerto Rican culture. Yet in many Western cultures, suchphysical control predicts insecurity (Carlson & Harwood, 2003).

Compared with securely attached infants, avoidant babiestend to receive overly stimulating, intrusive care. Their mothersmight, for example, talk energetically to them while they arelooking away or falling asleep. By avoiding the mother, these

20 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

This mother and baby are engaging in a sensitively tuned form ofcommunication called interactional synchrony in which they matchemotional states, especially positive ones. Interactional synchronymay support secure attachment, but it does not characterizemother-infant interaction in all cultures.

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infants try to escape from overwhelming interaction. Resistantinfants often experience inconsistent care. Their mothers areunresponsive to infant signals. Yet when the baby begins toexplore, these mothers interfere, shifting the infant’s attentionback to themselves. As a result, the baby is overly dependent aswell as angry at the mother’s lack of involvement (Cassidy &Berlin, 1994; Isabella & Belsky, 1991).

Highly inadequate caregiving is a powerful predictor ofdisruptions in attachment. Child abuse and neglect (topicswe will consider in Chapter 8) are associated with all threeforms of attachment insecurity. Among maltreated infants,disorganized/disoriented attachment is especially high (vanIJzendoorn, Schuengel, & Bakermans-Kranenburg, 1999). Per-sistently depressed mothers and parents suffering from a trau-matic event, such as loss of a loved one, also tend to promotethe uncertain behaviors of this pattern (Campbell et al., 2004;van IJzendoorn, 1995). Observations reveal that they often dis-play frightening, contradictory, and unpleasant behaviors,such as looking scared, teasing the baby, holding the babystiffly at a distance, or seeking reassurance from the upsetchild (Goldberg et al., 2003; Lyons-Ruth, Bronfman, & Par-sons, 1999).

Infant Characteristics. Because attachment is the resultof a relationship that builds between two partners, infant char-acteristics should affect how easily it is established. In Chapter3, we saw that prematurity, birth complications, and newbornillness make caregiving more taxing. In stressed, poverty-stricken families, these difficulties are linked to attachmentinsecurity (Wille, 1991). But when parents have the time andpatience to care for a baby with special needs and view theirinfants positively, at-risk newborns fare quite well in attach-ment security (Cox, Hopkins, & Hans, 2000; Pederson &Moran, 1995).

Babies whose temperament is emotionally reactive anddifficult are more likely to develop later insecure attachments(van IJzendoorn et al., 2004; Vaughn & Bost, 1999). Again,however, caregiving is involved. In a study extending frombirth to age 2, difficult infants more often had highly anxiousmothers, a combination that, by the second year, often re-sulted in a “disharmonious relationship” characterized by bothmaternal insensitivity and attachment insecurity (Symons,2001).

If children’s temperaments determined attachment qual-ity, we would expect attachment, like temperament, to be atleast moderately heritable. Yet the heritability of attachment isvirtually nil (O’Connor & Croft, 2001). In fact, about two-thirds of siblings establish similar attachment patterns withtheir parents, although the siblings often differ in tempera-ment (Dozier et al., 2001). This suggests that most parents tryto adjust their caregiving to each child’s individual needs.

Why don’t infant characteristics show strong relationshipswith attachment quality? Their influence probably depends ongoodness of fit. From this perspective, many child attributescan lead to secure attachment as long as the caregiver behaves

sensitively (Seifer & Schiller, 1995). Interventions that teachparents to interact with difficult-to-care-for infants are highlysuccessful in enhancing both sensitive care and attachmentsecurity (Bakermans-Kranenburg, van IJzendoorn, & Juffer,2003). But when parents’ capacity is strained—by their ownpersonalities or by stressful living conditions—then infantswith illnesses, disabilities, and difficult temperaments are atrisk for attachment problems.

Family Circumstances. Shortly after Timmy’s birth, hisparents divorced and his father moved to a distant city. Anx-ious and distracted, Vanessa placed 1-month-old Timmy inGinette’s child-care home and began working 50- to 60-hourweeks to make ends meet. When Vanessa stayed late at theoffice, a baby-sitter picked Timmy up, gave him dinner, andput him to bed. Once or twice a week, Vanessa went to getTimmy from child care. As he neared his first birthday, Vanessanoticed that unlike the other children, who reached out,crawled, or ran to their parents, Timmy ignored her.

Timmy’s behavior reflects a repeated finding: Job loss, afailing marriage, and financial difficulties can undermineattachment by interfering with parental sensitivity. These stres-sors can also affect babies’ sense of security directly, by expos-ing them to angry adult interactions or unfavorable child-carearrangements (Thompson & Raikes, 2003). (See the SocialIssues box on pages 22–23 to find out how child care affectsearly emotional development.) Social support, especially assis-tance with parenting, reduces parental stress and fosters attach-ment security. Ginette’s sensitivity was helpful, as was the adviceVanessa received from Ben, a psychologist. As Timmy turned 2,his relationship with his mother seemed warmer.

Parents bring to the family context their own history ofattachment experiences, from which they construct internalworking models that they apply to the bonds they establishwith their babies. Monica, who recalled her mother as tenseand preoccupied, expressed regret that they had not had acloser relationship. Is her image of parenthood likely to affectGrace’s attachment security?

To assess parents’ internal working models, researchershave asked them to evaluate childhood memories of attach-ment experiences (Main & Goldwyn, 1998). In studies in sev-eral Western nations, parents who showed objectivity andbalance in discussing childhood experiences, regardless ofwhether they were positive or negative, tended to have securelyattached infants. In contrast, parents who either dismissed theimportance of early relationships or described them in angry,confused ways usually had insecurely attached babies (Sladeet al., 1999; van IJzendoorn, 1995).

But we must not assume any direct transfer of parents’childhood experiences to quality of attachment with their ownchildren. Internal working models are reconstructed memoriesaffected by many factors, including relationship experiencesover the life course, personality, and current life satisfaction.Longitudinal research shows that negative life events can weakenthe link between an individual’s own attachment security in

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 21

22 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

Social IssuesDoes Child Care in InfancyThreaten AttachmentSecurity and LaterAdjustment?

esearch suggests that infants placedin full-time child care before 12

months of age are more likely thaninfants who remain at home to displayinsecure attachment—especially avoid-ance—in the Strange Situation (Belsky,1992, 2001). Does this mean that infantswho experience daily separations fromtheir employed parents and early place-ment in child care are at risk for develop-mental problems? Let’s look closely atthe evidence.

Attachment Quality. In studies reportingan association between child care andattachment quality, the rate of insecurityamong child-care infants is somewhatgreater than among non-child-careinfants—about 36 versus 29 percent(Lamb, Sternberg, & Prodromidis, 1992).But not all investigations report thatbabies in child care differ in attachmentquality from those cared for solely byparents (NICHD Early Child CareResearch Network, 1997; Roggman

et al., 1994). The relationship betweenchild care and emotional well-beingdepends on both family and child-careexperiences.

Family Circumstances. We have seenthat family conditions affect attachmentsecurity. Many employed women find thepressures of handling two full-time jobs—work and motherhood—stressful. Somemothers, fatigued and harried becausethey receive little help from the child’sfather, may respond less sensitively totheir babies, thereby risking the infants’security (Stifter, Coulehan, & Fish,1993). Other employed parents probablyvalue and encourage their infants’ inde-pendence. Or their babies may be un-fazed by the Strange Situation becausethey are used to separating from theirparents. In these cases, avoidance inthe Strange Situation may representhealthy autonomy rather than insecurity(Clarke-Stewart, Althusen, & Goosens,2001).

Quality and Extent of Child Care. Longperiods spent in poor-quality child caremay contribute to a higher rate of inse-cure attachment. In the U.S. NationalInstitute of Child Health and HumanDevelopment (NICHD) Study of Early

Child Care—the largest longitudinalstudy to date, including more than 1,300infants and their families—child carealone did not contribute to attachmentinsecurity. But when babies were exposedto combined home and child-care riskfactors—insensitive caregiving at homealong with insensitive caregiving in childcare, long hours in child care, or morethan one child-care arrangement—therate of insecurity increased. Overall,mother–child interaction was morefavorable when children attendedhigher-quality child care and were inchild care for fewer hours (NICHD EarlyChild Care Research Network, 1997,1999).

Furthermore, when the NICHD sam-ple reached 3 years of age, a history ofhigher-quality child care predicted bettersocial skills (NICHD Early Child CareResearch Network, 2002b). At the sametime, at age 41⁄2 to 5, children averagingmore than 30 child-care hours per weekdisplayed more behavior problems, espe-cially defiance, disobedience, and aggres-sion (NICHD Early Child Care ResearchNetwork, 2003). This does not necessar-ily mean that child care causes behaviorproblems. Rather, heavy exposure to sub-standard care, which is widespread inthe United States, may promote these

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infancy and a secure internal working model in adulthood.And insecurely attached babies who become adults with inse-cure internal working models often have lives that, based onself-reports in adulthood, are filled with family crises (Waterset al., 2000; Weinfield, Sroufe, & Egeland, 2000).

In sum, our early rearing experiences do not destine us tobecome sensitive or insensitive parents. Rather, the way weview our childhoods—our ability to come to terms with nega-tive events, to integrate new information into our workingmodels, and to look back on our own parents in an under-standing, forgiving way—is much more influential in how werear our children than the actual history of care we received(Main, 2000).

Multiple AttachmentsWe have already indicated that babies develop attachments to avariety of familiar people—not just mothers but also fathers,siblings, grandparents, and professional caregivers. Although

Bowlby (1969) acknowledged the existence of multiple attach-ments, he believed that infants are predisposed to direct theirattachment behaviors to a single special person, especiallywhen they are distressed. When anxious or unhappy, mostbabies do prefer to be comforted by their mother. But this pref-erence typically declines over the second year. And when babiesare not distressed, they approach, vocalize to, and smile at bothparents equally (Lamb, 1997).

Fathers. Like that of mothers, fathers’ sensitive caregiv-ing and synchronous interaction with infants predict attach-ment security (Lundy, 2003; van IJzendoorn et al., 2004).Nevertheless, mothers and fathers in many cultures—Aus-tralia, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, and the United States—tend tointeract with babies in different ways. Mothers devote moretime to physical care and expressing affection. Fathers spendmore time in playful interaction (Roopnarine et al., 1990).

Mothers and fathers also play differently. Mothers moreoften provide toys, talk to infants, and gently engage in conven-

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 23

difficulties. In Australia, infants enrolledfull-time in government-funded, high-quality child care have a higher rate ofsecure attachment than infants informallycared for by relatives, friends, or baby-sitters. And amount of time in child careis unrelated to behavior problems in Aus-tralian preschoolers (Love et al., 2003).

Still, some children may be particu-larly stressed by long child-care hours.Many infants, toddlers, and preschoolerswho attend child-care centers for fulldays show a mild increase in saliva con-centrations of the stress hormone corti-sol across the day—a pattern that doesnot occur on days they spend at home.In one study, children rated as highlyfearful by their caregivers experienced anespecially sharp increase in cortisol levels(Watamura et al., 2003). Inhibited chil-dren may find the social context of childcare—constantly being in the companyof large numbers of peers—particularlystressful.

Conclusions. Taken together, researchsuggests that some infants may be at riskfor attachment insecurity and adjust-ment problems due to inadequate childcare, long hours in child care, and thejoint pressures their mothers experiencefrom full-time employment and parent-

hood. But it is inappropriate to use thesefindings to justify a reduction in child-care services. When family incomes arelimited or mothers who want to work areforced to stay at home, children’s emo-tional security is not promoted.

Instead, it makes sense to increase theavailability of high-quality child care, toprovide paid employment leave so par-ents can limit the hours their childrenspend in child care (see pages 00–00),and to educate parents about the vitalrole of sensitive caregiving and child-carequality in early emotional development.Return to Chapter 5, page 000, to reviewsigns of developmentally appropriatechild care for infants and toddlers. Forchild care to foster attachment security,the professional caregiver’s relationshipwith the baby is vital. When caregiver–child ratios are generous, group sizes aresmall, and caregivers are educated aboutchild development and child rearing,caregivers’ interactions are more positiveand children develop more favorably(NICHD Early Child Care Research Net-work, 2002a, 2000b). Child care withthese characteristics can become part ofan ecological system that relieves ratherthan intensifies parental and child stress,thereby promoting healthy attachmentand development.

tional games like pat-a-cake and peekaboo. In contrast, fatherstend to engage in highly arousing physical play with bursts ofexcitement that increase as play progresses, especially withtheir infant sons (Yogman, 1981; Feldman, 2003). Perhaps suchplay helps prepare babies to venture confidently into their sur-rounding world (Paquette, 2004). Through a stimulating, sur-prising play style, fathers teach children how to approachunfamiliar situations, such as play with peers.

In cultures such as Japan’s, where long work hours preventmost fathers from sharing in infant caregiving, play is a vitalcontext in which fathers build secure attachments (Hewlett,2004; Schwalb et al., 2004). In many Western nations, however, astrict division of parental roles—mother as caregiver, fatheras playmate—has changed over the past quarter century inresponse to women’s workforce participation and to culturalvaluing of gender equality. Recent surveys indicate that in dual-earner families, U.S. fathers devote 85 percent as much time, andCanadian fathers 75 percent as much time, as mothers do tochildren—on average, about 31⁄2 hours per day (Sandberg & Hof-

ferth, 2001; Zuzanek, 2000; Pleck & Masciadrelli, 2004). Paternaltime engaged with or accessible to children is fairly similar acrossSES and ethnic groups, with one exception: Hispanic fathersspend more time engaged, probably due to the particularly highvalue that Hispanic cultures place on family involvement (Cab-rera & Garcia-Coll, 2004; Parke et al., 2004; Wilcox, 2002).

Mothers in dual-earner families tend to engage in moreplayful stimulation of their babies (Cox et al., 1992). Whenfathers are primary caregivers, they retain their arousing playstyle (Lamb & Oppenheim, 1989). Such highly involved fatherstypically are less gender-stereotyped in their beliefs; have sym-pathetic, friendly personalities; often had fathers who weremore involved in rearing them; and regard parenthood as anespecially enriching experience (Cabrera et al., 2000; Levy-Shiff & Israelashvili, 1988).

Fathers’ involvement with babies unfolds within a com-plex system of family attitudes and relationships. When bothmothers and fathers believe that men are capable of nurturinginfants, fathers devote more time to caregiving (Beitel & Parke,

At the end of her day in child care, a toddlereagerly greets her mother. High-quality childcare and fewer hours in child care areassociated with favorable mother–childinteraction, which contributes toattachment security.

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1998). A warm marital relationship supports both parents’involvement with babies, but it is especially important forfathers (Lamb & Lewis, 2004). See the Cultural Influences boxabove for cross-cultural evidence documenting this conclu-sion—and also highlighting the powerful role of paternalwarmth in children’s development.

Siblings. Despite a smaller family size, 80 percent ofNorth American and European children grow up with at leastone sibling (Dunn, 2004). The arrival of a baby brother or sis-ter is a difficult experience for most preschoolers, who, realiz-ing that they must now share their parents’ attention andaffection, often become demanding, clingy, and deliberately

naughty for a time. Security of attachment also typicallydeclines, especially for children over age 2 (old enough to feelthreatened and displaced) and for those with mothers understress (Baydar, Greek, & Brooks-Gunn, 1997; Teti et al., 1996).

Yet resentment is only one feature of a rich emotional rela-tionship that starts to build between siblings after a baby’s birth.Older children also show affection and concern—kissing andpatting the baby, and calling out, “Mom, he needs you,” whenthe infant cries. By the end of the first year, babies typicallyspend much time with older siblings and are comforted by thepresence of a preschool-age brother or sister during shortparental absences. And in the second year, toddlers often imitateand join in play with older siblings (Barr & Hayne, 2003).

24 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

Cultural Influences

The Powerful Role ofPaternal Warmth inDevelopment

esearch in diverse cultures demon-strates that fathers’ warmth con-

tributes greatly to children’s long-termfavorable development. In studies ofmany societies and ethnic groups aroundthe world, researchers coded paternalexpressions of love and nurturance—evi-dent in such behaviors as cuddling, hug-ging, comforting, playing, verballyexpressing love, and praising the child’sbehavior. Fathers’ affectionate involve-ment predicted later cognitive, emo-tional, and social competence asstrongly, and occasionally more strongly,than did mothers’ warmth (Rohner &Veneziano, 2001; Veneziano, 2003). Andin Western cultures, paternal warmthprotected children against a wide rangeof difficulties, including childhood emo-tional and behavior problems and ado-lescent substance abuse and delinquency(Grant et al., 2000; Rohner & Brothers,1999; Tacon & Caldera, 2001).

In families where fathers devote littletime to physical caregiving, they expresswarmth through play. In a Germanstudy, fathers’ play sensitivity—acceptingtoddlers’ play initiatives, adapting playbehaviors to toddlers’ capacities, andresponding appropriately to toddlers’expressions of emotion—predicted asecure father–child relationship in child-hood and adolescence (Grossmann etal., 2002). Through play, fathers seemed

to transfer to young children a sense ofconfidence about parental support,which may strengthen their capacity tomaster many later challenges.

What factors promote paternalwarmth? Cross-cultural research revealsa consistent association between theamount of time fathers spend nearinfants and toddlers and their expres-sions of caring and affection (Rohner &Veneziano, 2001). Consider the Akahunters and gatherers of Central Africa,where fathers spend more time in physi-cal proximity to their babies than in anyother known society. Observations revealthat Aka fathers are within arm’s reachof infants more than half the day. Theypick up, cuddle, and play with theirbabies at least five times as often as asfathers in other hunting-and-gatheringsocieties. Why are Aka fathers soinvolved? The bond between Aka hus-band and wife is unusually cooperativeand intimate. Throughout the day, cou-ples share hunting, food preparation,and social and leisure activities. Themore time Aka parents spend together,the greater the father’s loving interactionwith his baby (Hewlett, 1992).

In Western cultures as well, fathers ingratifying marriages spend more timewith and interact more effectively withinfants. In contrast, marital dissatisfac-tion is associated with insensitive pater-nal care (Grych & Clark, 1999; Lundy,2002). Clearly mothers’ and fathers’warm interactions with each other andwith their babies are closely linked. Butpaternal warmth promotes long-term

favorable development, beyond the influ-ence of maternal warmth (Rohner &Veneziano, 2001). Evidence for thepower of fathers’ affection, reported invirtually every culture and ethnic groupstudied, is reason to encourage moremen to engage in nurturing care of youngchildren.

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This Japanese father engages in the exciting,active play typical of fathers in many cultures.In both Western and non-Western nations,fathers’ warmth predicts long-term favorabledevelopment. And in Western societies, itprotects against a range of adjustmentproblems in childhood and adolescence.

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Nevertheless, individual differences in sibling relation-ships emerge soon after the new baby’s arrival. Temperamentplays an important role. For example, conflict is greater whenone sibling is emotionally intense or highly active (Brody,Stoneman, & McCoy, 1994; Dunn, 1994). And maternalwarmth toward both children is related to positive siblinginteraction and to preschoolers’ support of a distressedyounger sibling (Volling, 2001; Volling & Belsky, 1992). Moth-ers who frequently play with their young children and explainthe toddler’s wants and needs to the preschool sibling fostersibling cooperation. In contrast, maternal harshness and lackof involvement are linked to antagonistic sibling relationships(Howe, Aquan-Assee, & Bukowski, 2001).

Refer to Applying What We Know above for ways to pro-mote positive sibling relationships between babies and pre-schoolers. Siblings offer a rich social context in which youngchildren learn and practice a wide range of skills, includingaffectionate caring, conflict resolution, and control of hostileand envious feelings.

Attachment and Later DevelopmentAccording to psychoanalytic and ethological theories, the innerfeelings of affection and security that result from a healthyattachment relationship support all aspects of psychologicaldevelopment. Consistent with this view, an extensive longitu-dinal study found that preschoolers who were securelyattached as babies were rated by their teachers as higher in self-esteem, social skills, and empathy than were their insecurelyattached counterparts. Studied again at age 11 in summercamp, children who had been secure infants continued to bemore socially competent, as judged by camp counselors(Elicker, Englund, & Sroufe, 1992; Matas, Arend, & Sroufe,1978; Shulman, Elicker, & Sroufe, 1994).

For some researchers, these findings seem to indicate thatsecure attachment in infancy causes better development in

later years. Yet contrary evidence exists. In other longitudinalresearch, secure infants sometimes developed more favorablythan insecure infants, but not always (Lewis, 1997; Schneider,Atkinson, & Tardif, 2001; Stams, Juffer, & van IJzendoorn,2002). The exception is disorganized/disoriented attachment,which is uniformly related to high hostility and aggressionduring the preschool and school years (Lyons-Ruth, 1996;Lyons-Ruth, Easterbrooks, & Cibelli, 1997).

What accounts for this inconsistency in findings? Mount-ing evidence indicates that continuity of caregiving determineswhether attachment security is linked to later development

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 25

The arrival of a baby brother or sister is a difficult experiencefor most preschoolers, but it also offers practice in expressingaffectionate caring. As this boy holds and tenderly kisses hisnewborn sister, he begins to build a rich emotional relationship.

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wEncouraging Affectionate Ties Between Infants and Their Preschool Siblings

Suggestion Description

Spend extra time with To minimize the older child’s feelings of being deprived of affection and attention, set aside the older child. time to spend with her. Fathers can be especially helpful in this regard, planning special

outings with the preschooler and taking over care of the baby so the mother can be with theolder child.

Handle sibling misbehavior Respond patiently to the older sibling’s misbehavior and demands for attention, recognizing with patience. that these reactions are temporary. Give the preschooler opportunities to feel proud of being

more grown-up than the baby. For example, encourage the older child to assist with feeding,bathing, dressing, and offering toys and show appreciation for these efforts.

Discuss the baby’s wants By helping the older sibling understand the baby’s point of view, parents can promote and needs. friendly, considerate behavior. Say, for example, “He’s so little that he just can’t wait to be

fed,” or “He’s trying to reach his rattle and can’t.”

(Lamb et al., 1985; Thompson, 2000). Much research showsthat parents who respond sensitively not just in infancy butalso during later years promote many aspects of development:a more confident self-concept, more advanced emotionalunderstanding, more favorable relationships with teachers andpeers, a stronger sense of moral responsibility, and highermotivation to achieve in school (Thompson, Easterbrooks, &Padilla-Walker, 2003). In contrast, children of parents whoreact insensitively over a long period are at risk for a wide arrayof developmental difficulties.

In sum, a secure attachment in infancy launches theparent–child relationship on a positive path. But the effects ofearly attachment security are conditional—dependent on thequality of the baby’s future relationships. A child who experi-ences tender care in infancy but lacks sympathetic ties later isat risk for problems. In contrast, a child whose parental care-giving improves or who has other compensating ties outsidethe immediate family is likely to display resilience, or recoveryfrom adversity (Belsky & Fearon, 2002).

As we conclude our discussion of attachment, consider thediverse factors that affect the parent–child bond: infant andparent characteristics, parents’ marital relationship, outside-the-family stressors, the availability of social supports, parents’views of their own attachment history, and child-care arrange-ments. Although attachment builds within the warmth andintimacy of caregiver–infant interactions, it can be fully under-stood only from an ecological systems perspective (Cummings& Cummings, 2002). Return to Chapter 1, page 00, to reviewecological systems theory. Notice how research confirms thecontribution of each level of the environment to attachmentsecurity.

Self-Development During the First Two Years

Infancy is a rich, formative period for the development ofphysical and social understanding. In Chapter 5, you learned

that infants develop an appreciation of the permanence of ob-jects. And in this chapter, we have seen that over the first year,infants recognize and respond appropriately to others’ emotionsand distinguish familiar from unfamiliar people. That bothobjects and people achieve an independent, stable existence forthe infant implies that knowledge of the self as a separate, per-manent entity is also emerging.

Self-AwarenessAfter Caitlin’s bath, Carolyn often held her in front of the bath-room mirror. As early as the first few months, Caitlin smiledand returned friendly behaviors to her image. At what age didshe realize that the charming baby gazing and grinning backwas herself?

Beginnings of Self-Awareness. At birth, infants sensethat they are physically distinct from their surroundings. Forexample, newborns display a stronger rooting reflect inresponse to external stimulation (an adult’s finger touchingtheir cheek) than to self-stimulation (their own hand contact-ing their cheek) (Rochat & Hespos, 1997). Newborns’ remark-able capacity for intermodal perception (see page 000 inChapter 4) supports the beginnings of self-awareness (Rochat,2003). As they feel their own touch, feel and watch their limbsmove, and feel and hear themselves cry, babies experienceintermodal matches that differentiate their own body fromsurrounding bodies and objects.

Over the first few months, infants distinguish their ownvisual image from other stimuli, although self-awareness is stilllimited—expressed only in perception and action. Whenshowed two side-by-side video images of their kicking legs, onefrom their own perspective (camera behind the baby) and onefrom an observer’s perspective (camera in front of the baby),3-month-olds looked longer at the unfamiliar, observer’s view(Rochat, 1998). By 4 months, infants look and smile more atvideo images of others than at video images of themselves,indicating that they treat another person (as opposed to theself) as a social partner (Rochat & Striano, 2002).

Self-Recognition. During the second year, toddlersbecome consciously aware of the self ’s physical features. Seeingtheir image in a mirror, they may act silly or coy, playfullyexperimenting with the way the self looks (Bullock & Lutken-haus, 1990). In one study, 9- to 24-month-olds were placed infront of a mirror. Then, under the pretext of wiping the baby’sface, each mother rubbed red dye on her infant’s nose. Youngerinfants touched the mirror as if the red mark had nothingto do with them. But 15-month-olds rubbed their strange-looking red noses, a response indicating awareness of theirunique appearance (Lewis & Brooks-Gunn, 1979).

26 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years

Ask YourselfReview

What factors explain stability in attachment pattern forsome children and change for others? Are these factorsalso involved in the link between attachment in infancyand later development? Explain.

ApplyWhat attachment pattern did Timmy display whenVanessa picked him up from child care? What factorsprobably contributed to his response?

ConnectReview research on emotional self-regulation on page000. How do the caregiving experiences of securelyattached infants promote development of emotionalself-regulation?

ReflectHow would you characterize your internal workingmodel? What factors, in addition to your relationshipwith your parents, might have influenced it?

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Around age 2, self-recognition—identification of the selfas a physically unique being—is well under way. Childrenpoint to themselves in photos and refer to themselves by nameor with a personal pronoun (“I” or “me”). But it will takeanother year before children grasp the self as extending overtime. When shown a live video of themselves, 2- and 3-year-olds quickly reached for a Post-It note stuck on top of theirhead as they saw it on the screen. But when they saw the note ina video that was replayed a few minutes later, not until age 4did children remove the note and, when asked who was on TV,say with certainty, “Me” (Povinelli, 2001).

According to many theorists, self-awareness develops asinfants and toddlers increasingly realize that their own actionscause objects and people to react in predictable ways (Harter,1998). In support of this idea, babies whose parents encourageexploration and respond sensitively to their signals tend to beadvanced in self-development (Pipp, Easterbrooks, & Harmon,1992).

As infants act on the environment, they notice effects thathelp them sort out self, other people, and objects (Rochat,

2001). For example, batting a mobile and seeing it swing in apattern different from the infant’s own actions gives the babyinformation about the relation between self and physicalworld. Smiling and vocalizing at a caregiver who smiles andvocalizes back helps clarify the relation between self and socialworld. The contrast between these experiences helps infantsbuild an image of the self as separate from, but vitally con-nected to, external reality.

Self-Awareness and Early Emotional and Social Devel-opment. Self-awareness quickly becomes a central part ofchildren’s emotional and social lives. Recall that self-consciousemotions depend on a strengthening sense of self. Self-awareness also supports initial efforts to appreciate others’perspectives. It is associated with the beginnings of empathy—the ability to understand another’s emotional state and feelwith that person, or respond emotionally in a similar way. Forexample, toddlers start to give to others what they themselvesfind comforting—a hug, a reassuring comment, or a favoritedoll or blanket (Hoffman, 2000). At the same time, theydemonstrate clearer awareness of how to upset others. One 18-month-old heard her mother talking to another adult about anolder sibling: “Anny is really frightened of spiders” (Dunn,1989, p. 107). The innocent-looking toddler ran to the bed-room, returned with a toy spider, and pushed it in front ofAnny’s face!

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 27

This 1-year-old notices the correspondence between her ownmovements and the movements of the image in the mirror, a cuethat helps her figure out that the baby is really herself.

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Encouraging this toddler to help wipe up spilled milk fosterscompliance and the beginnings of self-control. He joins in theclean-up task with an eager, willing spirit, suggesting that he isbeginning to adopt the adult’s directive as his own.

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Categorizing the SelfBy the end of the second year, language becomes a powerfultool in self-development. Because it permits children to repre-sent the self more clearly, it greatly enhances self-awareness.

Between 18 and 30 months, children develop a categoricalself as they categorize themselves and others on the basis of age(“baby,”“boy,” or “man”), sex (“boy” or “girl”), physical charac-teristics (“big,” “strong”), and even goodness versus badness(“I a good girl,” “Tommy mean!”) (Stipek, Gralinski, & Kopp,1990). Toddlers use their limited understanding of these socialcategories to organize their own behavior. For example, chil-dren’s ability to label their own gender is associated with asharp rise in gender-stereotyped responses. As early as 18months, toddlers select and play in a more involved way withtoys that are stereotyped for their own gender—dolls and teasets for girls, trucks and cars for boys. Parents then encouragethese preferences by responding positively when toddlers dis-play them (Fagot, Leinbach, & O’Boyle, 1992). As we will see inChapter 8, gender-typed behavior increases dramatically inearly childhood.

Self-ControlSelf-awareness also contributes to effortful control, the extent towhich children can inhibit impulses, manage negative emotion,and behave in socially acceptable ways. Indeed, a firmer sense of

self may underlie the increasing stability and organization ofeffortful control after age 2 (see page 000). To behave in a self-controlled fashion, children must have some ability to think ofthemselves as separate, autonomous beings who can direct theirown actions. And they must have the representational and mem-ory capacities to recall a caregiver’s directive (“Caitlin, don’ttouch that light socket!”) and apply it to their own behavior.

As these capacities emerge between 12 and 18 months,toddlers first become capable of compliance. They show clearawareness of caregivers’ wishes and expectations and can obeysimple requests and commands. And as every parent knows,they can also decide to do just the opposite! One way toddlersassert their autonomy is by resisting adult directives. But formost, opposition is far less common than compliance with aneager, willing spirit, which suggests that the child is beginningto adopt the adult’s directives as his own (Kochanska, Murray,& Harlan, 2000). Compliance quickly leads to toddlers’ firstconsciencelike verbalizations—for example, correcting the selfby saying “No, can’t” before reaching for a treat or jumping onthe sofa (Kochanska, 1993).

Researchers often study the early emergence of self-control by giving children tasks that, like the situations justmentioned, require delay of gratification—waiting for anappropriate time and place to engage in a tempting act.Between ages 11⁄2 and 3, children show an increasing capacity towait before eating a treat, opening a present, or playing with atoy (Vaughn, Kopp, & Krakow, 1984).

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Helping Toddlers Develop Compliance and Self-ControlSuggestion Rationale

Respond to the toddler with sensitivity and Toddlers whose parents are sensitive and supportive are more compliant encouragement. and self-controlled.

Provide advance notice when the toddler must Toddlers find it more difficult to stop a pleasant activity already under stop an enjoyable activity. way than to wait before engaging in a desired action.

Offer many prompts and reminders. Toddlers’ ability to remember and comply with rules is limited; they needcontinuous adult oversight.

Respond to self-controlled behavior with verbal Praise and hugs reinforce appropriate behavior, increasing its likelihood and physical approval. of occurring again.

Encourage sustained attention (see Chapter 5, Development of attention is related to self-control. Children who can pages 000–000). shift attention from a captivating stimulus and focus on a less attractive

alternative are better at controlling their impulses.

Support language development (see Chapter 5, Early language development is related to self-control. In the second pages 000–000). year, children begin to use language to remind themselves of adult

expectations and to delay gratification.

Gradually increase rules in accord with the As cognition and language improve, toddlers can follow more rules toddler’s developing capacities. related to safety, respect for people and property, family routines,

manners, and simple chores.

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 29

Children who are advanced in development of attentionand language tend to be better at delaying gratification—find-ings that help explain why girls are typically more self-controlled than boys (Cournoyer, Solomon, & Trudel, 1998;Kochanska & Knaack, 2003). Some toddlers already use verbaland other attention-diverting techniques—talking to themselves,singing, or looking away—to keep from engaging in prohibitedacts. And toddlers who experience parental warmth and gentleencouragement are advanced in self-control (Kochanska, Mur-ray, & Harlan, 2000; Lehman et al., 2002). Such parenting seemsto encourage as well as model patient, nonimpulsive behavior.

As self-control improves, parents gradually expand therules they expect toddlers to follow, from safety and respect forproperty and people to family routines, manners, and respon-sibility for simple chores (Gralinski & Kopp, 1993). Still, tod-dlers’ control over their own actions depends on constantparental oversight and reminders. Several prompts (“Remem-ber, we’re going to go in just a minute”) and gentle insistencewere usually necessary to get Caitlin to stop playing so that sheand her parents could go on an errand. Applying What WeKnow on the previous page summarizes ways to help toddlersdevelop compliance and self-control.

As the second year of life drew to a close, Carolyn, Monica,and Vanessa were delighted at their children’s readiness to learn

the rules of social life. As we will see in Chapter 8, advances incognition and language, along with parental warmth and rea-sonable maturity demands, lead preschoolers to make tremen-dous strides in this area.

Ask YourselfReview

Why is insisting that infants comply with parentaldirectives inappropriate? What competencies arenecessary for the emergence of compliance and self-control?

ApplyLen, a caregiver of 1- and 2-year-olds, wonders whethertoddlers recognize themselves. List signs of self-recognition in the second year that Len can observe.

ConnectWhat type of parenting fosters development of emo-tional self-regulation, secure attachment, and self-control? Why, in each instance, is it effective?

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SummaryBErikson’s Theory ofInfant and ToddlerPersonality

What personality changes occur during Erikson’sstages of basic trust versus mistrust and auton-omy versus shame and doubt?

According to Erikson, warm, responsivecaregiving leads infants to resolve the psy-chological conflict of basic trust versusmistrust on the positive side. During tod-dlerhood, the conflict of autonomy versusshame and doubt is resolved favorablywhen parents provide appropriate guidanceand reasonable choices. If children emergefrom the first few years without sufficienttrust and autonomy, the seeds are sown foradjustment problems.

BEmotional Development

Describe changes in happiness, anger, and fearover the first year, noting the adaptive functionof each.

During the first half-year, basic emotionsgradually become clear, well-organized sig-nals. The social smile appears between 6and 10 weeks, laughter around 3 to 4months. Happiness strengthens theparent–child bond and both reflects andsupports physical and cognitive mastery.

Anger and fear, especially in the form ofstranger anxiety, increase in the second halfof the first year. Newly mobile babies use thefamiliar caregiver as a secure base, or pointfrom which to explore. Sadness, while lessfrequent than anger, is common when care-

giver–infant communication is seriouslydisrupted. These reactions have survivalvalue as infants’ motor capacities improve.

Summarize changes during the first two yearsin understanding others’ emotions, expressionof self-conscious emotions, and emotional self-regulation.

The ability to understand the feelings ofothers expands over the first year. Around 5months, babies perceive facial expressions asorganized patterns. Soon after, social refer-encing appears; in uncertain situations,infants actively seek emotional informationfrom caregivers, relying especially on thecaregiver’s voice. By the middle of the sec-ond year, infants appreciate that others’emotional reactions may differ from theirown.

During toddlerhood, self-awareness andadult instruction provide the foundationfor self-conscious emotions, such as guilt,shame, embarrassment, envy, and pride.Caregivers help infants with emotional self-regulation by relieving distress, engaging instimulating play, and discouraging negativeemotion. During the second year, growth inrepresentation and language leads to moreeffective ways of regulating emotion.

BTemperament andDevelopment

What is temperament, and how is it measured?

Children differ greatly in temperament—early-appearing, stable individual differ-ences in reactivity and self-regulation. Threepatterns of temperament—the easy child,the difficult child, and the slow-to-warm-up child—were identified in the New YorkLongitudinal Study. Difficult children,especially, are likely to display adjustmentproblems. Another model of temperament,devised by Mary Rothbart, includes effortful control, the ability to regulate one’s reactivity.

Temperament is assessed using parentalreports, behavior ratings by others familiarwith the child, and laboratory observations.A combination of laboratory and physio-logical measures has been used to distin-guish inhibited, or shy, children fromuninhibited, or sociable, children.

Discuss the role of heredity and environmentin the stability of temperament, including thegoodness-of-fit model.

Stability of temperament is generally low tomoderate. Temperament has a genetic foun-dation, but child rearing and cultural beliefs

and practices have much to do with main-taining or changing it. The goodness-of-fitmodel describes how temperament andenvironment work together to affect laterdevelopment. Parenting practices that createa good fit with the child’s temperament helpdifficult and shy children achieve moreadaptive functioning.

BDevelopment ofAttachment

Describe ethological theory of attachment andthe development of attachment during the first2 years.

The most widely accepted perspective ondevelopment of attachment is ethologicaltheory. It views babies as biologically pre-pared to contribute actively to ties estab-lished with their caregivers, which promotesurvival by ensuring both safety and compe-tence.

In early infancy, a set of built-in behaviorsencourages the parent to remain close to thebaby. Around 6 to 8 months, separationanxiety and use of the parent as a securebase indicate that a true attachment bondhas formed. As representation and languagedevelop, toddlers try to alter the parent’scoming and going through requests andpersuasion. Out of early caregiving experi-ences, children construct an internal work-ing model that serves as a guide for allfuture close relationships.

Describe the Strange Situation and theAttachment Q-Sort, along with factors thataffect attachment security.

The Strange Situation is a laboratory tech-nique for assessing the quality of attachmentbetween 1 and 2 years. Using it, researchershave identified four attachment patterns:secure attachment, avoidant attachment,resistant attachment, and disorganized/disoriented attachment. The AttachmentQ-Sort, an alternative method based onhome observations, yields a score rangingfrom low to high security and is suitable for1- to 4-year-olds.

Securely attached babies in middle-SESfamilies experiencing favorable life condi-tions more often maintain their attachmentpattern than do insecure babies. An excep-tion is the disorganized/disoriented pattern,which is highly stable. Cultural conditionsmust be considered in interpreting themeaning of attachment patterns.

Attachment quality is influenced by theinfant’s opportunity to develop a close affec-tional tie with one or a few adults, sensitivecaregiving, the fit between the baby’s tem-

perament and parenting practices, and fam-ily circumstances. In some (but not all) cul-tures, interactional synchrony characterizesthe experiences of securely attached babies.Parents’ internal working models are goodpredictors of infant attachment patterns,but parents’ childhood experiences do nottransfer directly to quality of attachmentwith their own children.

Discuss infants’ attachments to fathers andsiblings.

Infants develop strong affectionate ties tofathers, whose sensitive caregiving predictssecure attachment. Fathers in a variety ofcultures engage in more exciting, physicalplay with babies than do mothers. Early inthe first year, infants begin to build richemotional relationships with siblings thatmix affection and caring with rivalry andresentment. Individual differences in thequality of sibling relationships are influ-enced by temperament and parentingpractices.

Describe and interpret the relationship between secure attachment in infancy and laterdevelopment.

Continuity of caregiving is the crucial factorthat determines whether attachment secu-rity is linked to later development. Childrencan recover from an insecure attachmenthistory if caregiving improves. Nevertheless,a secure attachment in infancy is importantbecause it launches the parent–child rela-tionship on a positive path.

30 b PART III • Infancy and Toddlerhood: The First Two Years©

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BSelf-DevelopmentDuring the First Two Years

Describe the development of self-awareness ininfancy and toddlerhood, along with the emo-tional and social capacities it supports.

At birth, infants sense that they are physi-cally distinct from their surroundings, anawareness that is promoted by their capacityfor intermodal perception. Around age 2,

self-recognition—identification of the selfas a physically unique being—is well underway. Two-year-olds refer to themselves byname or a personal pronoun and point tothemselves in photos.

Self-awareness leads to toddlers’ first effortsto appreciate others’ perspectives. It is asso-ciated with the beginnings of empathy, theability to feel with another person. As lan-guage strengthens and toddlers comparethemselves to others, between 18 and 30

months they develop a categorical selfbased on age, sex, physical characteristics,and goodness and badness.

Self-awareness also provides the foundationfor the emergence of compliance between12 and 18 months, and an increasing capac-ity for delay of gratification between ages11⁄2 and 3. Children who are advanced indevelopment of attention and language andwho have warm, encouraging parents tendto be more self-controlled.

Chapter 6 • Emotional and Social Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood b 31

attachment (p. 16)

Attachment Q-Sort (p. 18)

autonomy versus shame and doubt (p. 4)

avoidant attachment (p. 18)

basic emotions (p. 5)

basic trust versus mistrust (p. 4)

categorical self (p. 28)

compliance (p. 28)

delay of gratification (p. 28)

difficult child (p. 10)

disorganized/disoriented attachment

(p. 18)

easy child (p. 10)

effortful control (p. 11)

emotional self-regulation (p. 9)

empathy (p. 27)

ethological theory of attachment (p. 16)

goodness-of-fit model (p. 14)

inhibited, or shy, child (p. 11)

interactional synchrony (p. 20)

internal working model (p. 17)

resistant attachment (p. 18)

secure attachment (p. 18)

secure base (p. 8)

self-conscious emotions (p. 8)

self-recognition (p. 27)

sensitive caregiving (p. 20)

separation anxiety (p. 17)

slow-to-warm-up child (p. 10)

social referencing (p. 8)

social smile (p. 6)

Strange Situation (p. 17)

stranger anxiety (p. 6)

temperament (p. 10)

uninhibited, or sociable, child

(p. 11)

Important Terms and Concepts