Psychosocial Development in Middle and Late

Childhood

Chapter 13

Key Questions

How do children develop emotionally during middle childhood?

How does a child’s self-awareness change during the middle-childhood period?

What contributes to positive relationships with peers and parents during middle childhood?

How does the course of moral development change during the middle-childhood years?

Emotional Development

Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory Industry versus Inferiority: the fourth of

Erikson’s psychosocial stages, during which children become increasingly involved in activities important to their culture. Those who do not engage successfully in such activities develop a sense of inferiority.

Prosocial Behavior

Occurs when children help others without obvious benefit to themselves

Characteristics of prosocial behavior: Consistency: Children who show prosocial behavior in

childhood do so in the future. Sociability and adjustment: Prosocial children tend to be

well adjusted and cope well with stress. Cognition: As thinking becomes more logical and less

egocentric, children tend to become more prosocial.

Relating to One’s Self

I-self: that part of the self that thinks and makes judgments

Me-self: that part of the self that is the object of the I-self’s thinking and judging

Changes in Self-Description

Self-descriptions in early childhood: What they look like What they can do Focus on their

friendships

Self-descriptions in middle-childhood: Focus on personality

characteristics Focus on likes and dislikes Focus on intelligence

Social comparison: process of comparing one’s own appearance, traits, abilities, and behaviors with those of others

Changes in Self-Evaluation

Social comparisons increase and influence self-evaluations, which trend toward either the favorable or unfavorable, competent or the incompetent, popular or the unpopular.

Self-Esteem and Competence

Domain-specific attributes: particular areas of competence identified by Susan Harter as important in middle childhood: Physical appearance Scholastic competence Social acceptance Behavioral conduct Athletic competence

Self-Esteem Across the Lifespan

Building Self-Esteem

Parents who are authoritative and democratic during the school years tend to raise children with positive self-esteem.

Adults should recognize and praise children’s efforts honestly. Support and encouragement can help children develop self-esteem.

Understanding Others

Interacting with Peers

Popularity-by-decency: a type of popularity based on being kind and fun to be with

Popularity-by-dominance: a type of popularity based on power

Rejected Children: children who are disliked by their peers

Neglected Children: children who are neither liked nor disliked but who are not included in the social activity of other children

Rejected

Frequently nominated as someone’s best friend and as being dislikedControversial

Average

Popular

Infrequently nominated as a best friend; actively disliked by peers

Receive average number of positive and negative nominations from peers

Frequently nominated as a best friend; rarely disliked by peers

NeglectedInfrequently nominated as a best friend but not disliked by peers

Peer Statuses

Parenting Styles

Parental support: Parents provide emotional availability, warmth, and responsiveness.

Parental behavioral control: Parents set rules and teach socially and culturally appropriate behavior.

Parental psychological control: Parents attempt to control children through manipulation of their thoughts, feelings, and emotions.

Help and Conflict in Sibling Relationships

Siblings help one another in many ways: They may trade clothes, borrow money, help with homework, and defend one another to others.

Conflicts may arise due to sibling rivalry, age differences, or because of privileges the older child may have over the younger ones.

Interacting at School

Bullying: acts of verbal or physical aggression that are chronic and directed toward particular victims Racial bullying: bullying in which children are

targeted because of their race or ethnicity Cyberbullying: bullying through use of e-mail,

social networks, or other technology to attack their victims

Types of Bullies

Aggressive bully: usually initiates the aggressive action by taking overt physical or verbal actions

Follower: less common than the aggressive bully, follows the aggressive bully’s lead. Followers often use this behavior to improve their self-esteem.

Relational bully: uses less direct forms of aggression, such as isolating or excluding another student

Types of Victims

Passive victim: seems to be targeted by bullies for no particular reason

Provocative victim: knows the “right buttons to push” to provoke the bully’s aggression (teasing, being annoying). Victim may be the most rejected member of a class.

Relational victim: victim of more subtle forms of bullying and may also be the target of rumors

Bystanders

Part of the problem Instigate: Encourage bullies in their behavior. Watch: Witness the bullying and do nothing. Are scared: Afraid they may be next. Feel ashamed or powerless: Believe they lack the ability

to do anything.

Part of the Solution Ask for help: Seek help from an adult. Help defuse the problem: Try to reduce tension.

Myths about Bullying

You can’t do anything about bullying because it has gone on forever.

Kids are just mean to each other.

He didn’t mean to hurt anyone.

It was just a bad joke.

It was a one-time thing.

Kids will be kids.

Bullying is wrong, but it isn’t a school issue.

Moral Development

Piaget’s Theory: Autonomous Orientation: Children understand that

individuals participate in making the rules of society.

Kohlber’s Stage Theory: Conventional level: Kohlberg’s second stage of moral

development. Children at this stage conform to social rules in order to maintain social order. Substage 3: aim for interpersonal cooperation Substage 4: work to maintain social order

Distributive Justice

Emotional Intelligence