Page i
Essentials of
Life-Span Development
SIXTH EDITION
John W. Santrock
University of Texas at Dallas
Page ii
ESSENTIALS OF LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENT, SIXTH EDITION
Published by McGraw-Hill Education, 2 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10121. Copyright ©2020 by
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Santrock, John W., author.
Title: Essentials of life-span development / John W. Santrock, University of
Texas at Dallas.
Description: Sixth edition. | New York, NY : McGraw-Hill Education, [2020] |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018035665| ISBN 9781260054309 (alk. paper) | ISBN
1260054306 (alk. paper)
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Page iii
Brief Contents
1 Introduction 1
2 Biological Beginnings 36
3 Physical and Cognitive Development in Infancy 76
©Ariel Skelley/Getty Images
4 Socioemotional Development in Infancy 114
5 Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Childhood 140
6 Socioemotional Development in Early Childhood 168
7 Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle and Late Childhood
197
8 Socioemotional Development in Middle and Late Childhood 226
9 Physical and Cognitive Development in Adolescence 255
©Fuse/Getty Images
10 Socioemotional Development in Adolescence 282
11 Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Adulthood 305
12 Socioemotional Development in Early Adulthood 325
13 Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Adulthood 345
©Rob Crandall/Alamy
14 Socioemotional Development in Middle Adulthood 363
15 Physical and Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood 378
16 Socioemotional Development in Late Adulthood 408
17 Death, Dying, and Grieving 423
McGraw-Hill Education Psychology’s APA
Documentation Style Guide
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Page iv
Contents
©Boris Ryaposov/Shutterstock
1 Introduction 1
Stories of Life-Span Development: How Did Ted Kaczynski
Become Ted Kaczynski and Alice Walker Become Alice
Walker? 1
The Life-Span Perspective 2
The Importance of Studying Life-Span Development 2
Characteristics of the Life-Span Perspective 3
Contemporary Concerns in Life-Span Development 6
Gustavo Medrano, Clinical Psychologist 7
The Nature of Development 11
Biological, Cognitive, and Socioemotional Processes 11
Periods of Development 12
Conceptions of Age 13
Developmental Issues 15
Theories of Development 17
Psychoanalytic Theories 17
Cognitive Theories 19
Behavioral and Social Cognitive Theories 23
Ethological Theory 24
Ecological Theory 25
An Eclectic Theoretical Orientation 26
Research in Life-Span Development 27
Methods for Collecting Data 27
Research Designs 30
Time Span of Research 32
Conducting Ethical Research 34
Summary 35
Key Terms 35
2 Biological Beginnings 36
Stories of Life-Span Development: The Jim and Jim Twins
36
The Evolutionary Perspective 37
Natural Selection and Adaptive Behavior 37
Evolutionary Psychology 38
Genetic Foundations of Development 40
Genes and Chromosomes 41
Genetic Principles 43
Chromosome and Gene-Linked Abnormalities 44
Jennifer Leonhard, Genetic Counselor 47
The Interaction of Heredity and Environment: The Nature-
Nurture Debate 47
Behavior Genetics 47
Heredity-Environment Correlations 48
The Epigenetic View and Gene × Environment (G × E) Interaction
48
Conclusions About Heredity-Environment Interaction 50
Prenatal Development 51
The Course of Prenatal Development 51
Prenatal Tests 55
Infertility and Reproductive Technology 56
Hazards to Prenatal Development 57
Prenatal Care 64
Normal Prenatal Development 65
Birth and the Postpartum Period 65
The Birth Process 65
The Transition from Fetus to Newborn 69
Low Birth Weight and Preterm Infants 69
Linda Pugh, Perinatal Nurse 70
Bonding 72
The Postpartum Period 73
Summary 74
Key Terms 75
3 Physical and Cognitive Development in Infancy 76
Stories of Life-Span Development: Newborn Babies in Ghana
and Nigeria 76
Physical Growth and Development in Infancy 77
Patterns of Growth 77
Height and Weight 78
The Brain 78
Sleep 82
Nutrition 83
Faize Mustafa-Infante, Pediatric Specialist Focusing on
Childhood Obesity 85
Motor Development 86
Page v
Dynamic Systems Theory 86
Reflexes 87
Gross Motor Skills 88
Fine Motor Skills 90
Sensory and Perceptual Development 91
Exploring Sensory and Perceptual Development 91
Visual Perception 93
Other Senses 95
Intermodal Perception 96
Nature, Nurture, and Perceptual Development 97
Perceptual Motor Coupling 98
Cognitive Development 98
Piaget’s Theory 98
Learning, Remembering, and Conceptualizing 102
Language Development 105
Defining Language 106
How Language Develops 106
Biological and Environmental Influences 109
An Interactionist View 112
Summary 112
Key Terms 113
©karelnoppe/Getty Images
4 Socioemotional Development in Infancy 114
Stories of Life-Span Development: Darius and His Father
114
Emotional and Personality Development 115
Emotional Development 115
Temperament 119
Personality Development 123
Social Orientation and Attachment 125
Social Orientation and Understanding 125
Attachment 127
Social Contexts 131
The Family 131
Child Care 135
Wanda Mitchell, Child-Care Director 137
Summary 139
Key Terms 139
5 Physical and Cognitive Development in Early
Childhood 140
Stories of Life-Span Development: Reggio Emilia’s Children
140
Physical Changes 141
Body Growth and Change 141
The Brain 142
Motor Development 142
Nutrition and Exercise 143
Illness and Death 146
Cognitive Changes 147
Piaget’s Preoperational Stage 147
Vygotsky’s Theory 150
Information Processing 153
Helen Hadani, Developmental Psychologist, Toy Designer, and
Associate Director of Research for the Center for Childhood
Creativity 157
Language Development 159
Understanding Phonology and Morphology 159
Changes in Syntax and Semantics 160
Advances in Pragmatics 161
Young Children’s Literacy 162
Early Childhood Education 162
Variations in Early Childhood Education 162
Education for Young Children Who Are Disadvantaged 164
Yolanda Garcia, Director of Children’s Services, Head Start
165
Controversies in Early Childhood Education 165
Summary 166
Key Terms 167
6 Socioemotional Development in Early Childhood
168
Stories of Life-Span Development: Nurturing Socioemotional
Development 168
Emotional and Personality Development 169
The Self 169
Emotional Development 171
Moral Development 172
Gender 174
Families 177
Parenting 177
Darla Botkin, Marriage and Family Therapist 182
Page vi
Child Maltreatment 182
Sibling Relationships and Birth Order 184
The Changing Family in a Changing Society 185
Peer Relations, Play, and Media/Screen Time 191
Peer Relations 191
Play 192
Media and Screen Time 194
Summary 195
Key Terms 196
7 Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle and
Late Childhood 197
Stories of Life-Span Development: Angie and Her Weight
197
Physical Changes and Health 198
Body Growth and Change 198
The Brain 198
Motor Development 199
Exercise 199
Health, Illness, and Disease 200
Sharon McLeod, Child Life Specialist 201
Children with Disabilities 201
The Scope of Disabilities 202
Educational Issues 206
Cognitive Changes 206
Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Theory 207
Information Processing 208
Intelligence 213
Language Development 221
Vocabulary, Grammar, and Metalinguistic Awareness 221
Reading 222
Second-Language Learning and Bilingual Education 223
Summary 225
Key Terms 225
8 Socioemotional Development in Middle and Late
Childhood 226
Stories of Life-Span Development: Learning in Troubled
Schools 226
Emotional and Personality Development 227
The Self 227
Emotional Development 230
Moral Development 232
Melissa Jackson, Child Psychiatrist 233
Gender 236
Families 239
Developmental Changes in Parent-Child Relationships 239
Parents as Managers 240
Attachment 240
Stepfamilies 240
Peers 241
Developmental Changes 242
Peer Status 242
Social Cognition 243
Bullying 243
Friends 245
Schools 246
Contemporary Approaches to Student Learning 246
Socioeconomic Status, Ethnicity, and Culture 248
Ahou Vaziri, Teach for America Instructor 249
Summary 254
Key Terms 254
©amana Images, Inc./Alamy
9 Physical and Cognitive Development in Adolescence
255
Stories of Life-Span Development: Annie, Arnie, and Katie
255
The Nature of Adolescence 256
Physical Changes 257
Puberty 257
The Brain 260
Adolescent Sexuality 262
Lynn Blankinship, Family and Consumer Science Educator
266
Adolescent Health 267
Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, University Professor in Pediatrics
and Director of Community Efforts to Improve Adolescents’
Health 268
Nutrition and Exercise 268
Sleep Patterns 269
Leading Causes of Death in Adolescence 271
Substance Use and Abuse 271
Eating Disorders 272
Adolescent Cognition 274
Piaget’s Theory 274
Adolescent Egocentrism 275
Information Processing 276
Schools 277
The Transition to Middle or Junior High School 278
Effective Schools for Young Adolescents 278
High School 279
Service Learning 280
Summary 280
Key Terms 281
10 Socioemotional Development in Adolescence 282
Stories of Life-Span Development: Jewel Cash, Teen Dynamo
282
Identity 283
What Is Identity? 283
Erikson’s View 284
Developmental Changes 284
Ethnic Identity 286
Families 287
Parental Management and Monitoring 287
Autonomy and Attachment 288
Parent-Adolescent Conflict 289
Peers 290
Friendships 290
Peer Groups 291
Dating and Romantic Relationships 292
Culture and Adolescent Development 294
Cross-Cultural Comparisons 294
Socioeconomic Status and Poverty 296
Ethnicity 296
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Media and Screen Time 298
Adolescent Problems 299
Juvenile Delinquency 299
Depression and Suicide 300
Rodney Hammond, Health Psychologist 301
The Interrelation of Problems and Successful
Prevention/Intervention Programs 303
Summary 304
Key Terms 304
11 Physical and Cognitive Development in Early
Adulthood 305
Stories of Life-Span Development: Dave Eggers, Pursuing a
Career in the Face of Stress 305
The Transition from Adolescence to Adulthood 306
Becoming an Adult 306
The Transition from High School to College 308
Grace Leaf, College/Career Counselor and College
Administrator 309
Physical Development 309
Physical Performance and Development 309
Health 310
Sexuality 313
Sexual Activity in Emerging Adulthood 313
Sexual Orientation and Behavior 313
Sexually Transmitted Infections 316
Cognitive Development 317
Cognitive Stages 318
Creativity 319
Careers and Work 320
Careers 320
Work 321
Summary 324
Key Terms 324
©Stockbyte/PunchStock
12 Socioemotional Development in Early Adulthood
325
Stories of Life-Span Development: Gwenna’s Pursuit and
Greg’s Lack of Commitment 325
Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood 326
Love and Close Relationships 328
Intimacy 328
Friendship 329
Romantic and Affectionate Love 329
Consummate Love 331
Cross-Cultural Variations in Romantic Relationships 331
Adult Lifestyles 332
Single Adults 332
Cohabiting Adults 333
Married Adults 334
Divorced Adults 336
Remarried Adults 337
Gay and Lesbian Adults 337
Challenges in Marriage, Parenting, and Divorce 338
Making Marriage Work 338
Becoming a Parent 339
Janis Keyser, Parent Educator 340
Dealing with Divorce 341
Gender and Communication Styles, Relationships, and
Classification 341
Gender and Communication Styles 342
Gender and Relationships 342
Gender Classification 343
Summary 344
Key Terms 344
13 Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle
Adulthood 345
Stories of Life-Span Development: Changing Perceptions of
Time 345
The Nature of Middle Adulthood 346
Changing Midlife 346
Defining Middle Adulthood 347
Physical Development 348
Physical Changes 348
Health and Disease 351
Mortality Rates 351
Sexuality 352
Cognitive Development 354
Intelligence 354
Information Processing 357
Careers, Work, and Leisure 357
Work in Midlife 358
Page viii
Career Challenges and Changes 358
Leisure 359
Religion and Meaning in Life 360
Religion and Adult Lives 360
Religion and Health 360
Gabriel Dy-Liacco, University Professor and Pastoral
Counselor 361
Meaning in Life 361
Summary 362
Key Terms 362
14 Socioemotional Development in Middle Adulthood
363
Stories of Life-Span Development: Sarah and Wanda, Middle-
Age Variations 363
Personality Theories and Development 364
Adult Stage Theories 364
The Life-Events Approach 366
Stress and Personal Control in Midlife 367
Stability and Change 368
Longitudinal Studies 368
Conclusions 371
Close Relationships 371
Love and Marriage at Midlife 372
The Empty Nest and Its Refilling 373
Sibling Relationships and Friendships 374
Grandparenting 374
Intergenerational Relationships 376
Summary 377
Key Terms 377
©Paul Sutherland/Getty Images
15 Physical and Cognitive Development in Late
Adulthood 378
Stories of Life-Span Development: Learning to Age
Successfully 378
Longevity, Biological Aging, and Physical Development 379
Longevity 379
Biological Theories of Aging 381
The Aging Brain 384
Physical Development 386
Sexuality 389
Health 390
Health Problems 390
Exercise, Nutrition, and Weight 391
Health Treatment 393
Sarah Kagan, Geriatric Nurse 394
Cognitive Functioning 394
Multidimensionality and Multidirectionality 394
Use It or Lose It 398
Training Cognitive Skills 399
Cognitive Neuroscience and Aging 400
Work and Retirement 401
Work 402
Adjustment to Retirement 402
Mental Health 403
Dementia and Alzheimer Disease 403
Parkinson Disease 406
Summary 407
Key Terms 407
16 Socioemotional Development in Late Adulthood 408
Stories of Life-Span Development: Bob Cousy, Adapting to
Life as an Older Adult 408
Theories of Socioemotional Development 409
Erikson’s Theory 409
Activity Theory 410
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory 410
Selective Optimization with Compensation Theory 412
Personality and Society 413
Personality 413
Older Adults in Society 413
Families and Social Relationships 415
Lifestyle Diversity 415
Attachment 417
Older Adult Parents and Their Adult Children 417
Friendship 418
Social Support and Social Integration 418
Altruism and Volunteerism 419
Ethnicity, Gender, and Culture 419
Ethnicity 419
Norma Thomas, Social Work Professor and Administrator
420
Gender 420
Culture 420
Successful Aging 421
Summary 422
Key Terms 422
17 Death, Dying, and Grieving 423
Stories of Life-Span Development: Paige Farley-Hackel and
Ruth McCourt, 9/11/2001 423
Defining Death and Life/Death Issues 424
Determining Death 424
Decisions Regarding Life, Death, and Health Care 424
Kathy McLaughlin, Home Hospice Nurse 427
Death and Sociohistorical, Cultural Contexts 428
Changing Historical Circumstances 428
Death in Different Cultures 428
Facing One’s Own Death 429
Kübler-Ross’ Stages of Dying 429
Perceived Control and Denial 430
Coping with the Death of Someone Else 430
Communicating with a Dying Person 430
Grieving 431
Making Sense of the World 433
Losing a Life Partner 433
Forms of Mourning 434
Summary 435
Key Terms 435
Glossary G-1
References R-1
Name Index N-1
Subject Index S-1
McGraw-Hill Education Psycholog y’s APA
Documentation Style Guide
Page ix
How Would You?
Psychology Professions
Sociocultural factors in research, pg. 8
Risk of birth defects, pg. 57
Attachment in toddlers, pg. 129
Type of caregiving and infant development, pg. 138
Curriculum balance in early childhood education, pg. 166
Parenting styles and young children, pg. 179
Piaget’s contributions, pg. 208
Improving children’s creative thinking, pg. 211
Applying Gardner’s theory of multipleintelligences, pg. 215
Child’s sense of self, pg. 227
Gender and developing academic and social skills, pg. 238
Aggressive children, pg. 243
Adolescent mood swings, pg. 258
Applying Marcia’s theory of identity formation, pg. 285
Dating in early adolescence, pg. 294
Suicide prevention in adolescents, pg. 303
Markers of adulthood, pg. 307
Cohabitation before marriage, pg. 334
Sex in middle adulthood, pg. 354
Leisure and stress reduction in middle age, pg. 359
Young adults and their parents living together, pg. 373
Nursing home quality, pg. 393
Cognitive skills in older adults, pg. 400
Adjustment to retirement, pg. 403
Benefits of a life review in late adulthood, pg. 410
Divorce in late adulthood, pg. 416
Euthanasia, pg. 426
Stages of dying, pg. 429
Education Professions
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory, pg. 26
Domain-specific mechanisms and exceptional students, pg. 38
Concept development in infants, pg. 105
Games and scaffolding, pg. 133
Child-care programs for infants, pg. 137
Application of Vygotsky’s theory, pg. 150
Developmentally appropriate education, pg. 163
Gender development in early childhood, pg. 177
Home maltreatment and school performance, pg. 184
Learning through play, pg. 193
Physical activity in elementary school, pg. 200
Learning disabilities in elementary school, pg. 202
Improving children’s megacognitive skills, pg. 212
Programs for gifted children, pg. 220
Self-concept and academic ability, pg. 229
Self-efficacy, pg. 230
Reducing bullying in school, pg. 245
Applying the jigsaw strategy, pg. 250
Mindset, pg. 253
Page x
Sex education for adolescents, pg. 267
Sleep needs vs. early classes in high school, pg. 271
Adolescent decision-making exercises, pg. 277
Transition to middle school, pg. 278
Service learning, pg. 280
High school graduation, pg. 295
Transition to college, pg. 308
Intellectual development in early adulthood, pg. 318
Cultivating creativity, pg. 319
Work during college, pg. 322
Intelligence changes in middle adulthood, pg. 355
Generativity in middle age, pg. 364
Changes in learning as people age, pg. 383
Older adult students in the classroom, pg. 388
Volunteerism in late adulthood, pg. 419
Social Work Professions
Nonnormative life events, pg. 6
Down syndrome, pg. 45
Drug abuse during pregnancy, pg. 60
Environmental deprivation in childhood, pg. 110
Infant temperament, pg. 122
Obesity risk factors, pg. 201
Coping with a traumatic event, pg. 232
Peer relationships, pg. 242
Conflict in families with adolescents, pg. 289
Juvenile delinquency, pg. 300
Transition to adulthood, pg. 306
Alcohol use on college campuses, pg. 312
Healthy lifestyles for middle-aged adults, pg. 350
Careers in middle adulthood, pg. 359
Divorce in middle age, pg. 372
Importance of a living will, pg. 425
Bereavement, pg. 432
Grief support groups, pg. 434
Health Care Professions
Cross-cultural research in health and wellness, pg. 8
Natural selection and medicine, pg. 38
Genetic abnormalities, pg. 46
Stress during pregnancy, pg. 63
Delivery options for pregnant women, pg. 68
Care for preterm infants, pg. 72
SIDS prevention, pg. 83
Attachment/caregiving style and at-risk infants, pg. 131
Nutrition for young children, pg. 144
Sports leagues for preschool children, pg. 145
Second-hand smoke and young children, pg. 146
Health services for Head Start program, pg. 164
Moral reasoning in young children, pg. 173
Maltreatment prevention with parents, pg. 183
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, pg. 203
Health risks to bullying victims, pg. 244
Effects of poor nutrition on achievement tests, pg. 248
Development norms in puberty, pg. 260
Physical fitness in adolescence, pg. 269
Signs of eating disorders, pg. 273
Culturally sensitive guidelines for adolescent health coverage, pg.
294
Exercise in young adulthood, pg. 312
Prevention of sexually transmitted infections, pg. 317
Romance and sexual functioning, pg. 330
Stress reduction for middle-aged workers, pg. 368
Long-term effects of alcohol abuse and smoking in middle age, pg.
371
Challenges in middle age of caring for a chronically ill parent, pg. 376
Vision changes in late adulthood, pg. 387
Chronic diseases in late adulthood, pg. 390
Quality of medical care for older adults, pg. 393
Memory declines in late adulthood, pg. 405
Limited social contact in older adults, pg. 411
Treatment of chronic illness in older adults, pg. 414
Explaining brain death, pg. 424
Human Development and Family Studies
Professions
Epigenetic view and alcoholism, pg. 49
Risks during prenatal development, pg. 53
Postpartum adjustment, pg. 74
Gross motor milestones, pg. 90
Attention in infants, pg. 103
Language development, pg. 112
Stranger anxiety, pg. 117
Autonomy in toddlers, pg. 125
Concept of conservation and young children, pg. 148
Children’s ideas about gender roles, pg. 176
Parenting styles, pg. 179
Children’s TV viewing, pg. 195
Treatment for ADHD, pg. 204
Advantages of bilingualism, pg. 224
Children’s adjustment to parent’s remarriage after divorce, pg. 241
Body image in adolescent girls, pg. 259
Parental prevention of teen substance abuse, pg. 272
Bicultural identity formation in teens, pg. 287
Sexuality in young adulthood, pg. 314
Attachment and relationship style in adulthood, pg. 327
Making marriage work, pg. 339
Deciding when to have children, pg. 341
Media and the physical changes of middle age, pg. 348
Hormone replacement therapy, pg. 352
Leaving a legacy for the next generation, pg. 365
Benefits of having grandparents in children’s lives, pg. 375
Ageism, pg. 414
Friendship in late adulthood, pg. 418
Hospice, pg. 427
Perceived control over end of life, pg. 430
Page xi
About the Author
John W. Santrock
John Santrock received his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 1973.
He taught at the University of Charleston and the University of Georgia
before joining the Program in Psychology and Human Development at the
University of Texas at Dallas, where he currently teaches a number of
undergraduate courses and has received the University’s Effective Teaching
Award. In 2010, he created the UT-Dallas Santrock undergraduate
scholarship, an annual award that is given to outstanding undergraduate
students majoring in developmental psychology to enable them to attend
research conventions.
John has been a member of the editorial boards of Child Development and
Developmental Psychology. His research on the multiple factors involved in
how divorce affects children’s development is widely cited and used in expert
witness testimony to promote flexibility and alternative considerations in
custody disputes.
John also has authored these exceptional McGraw-Hill texts: Children
(14th edition), Adolescence (17th edition), Life-Span Development (17th
edition), A Topical Approach to Life-Span Development (9th edition), and
Educational Psychology (6th edition).
John Santrock (back row middle) with the 2015 recipients of the Santrock
Travel Scholarship Award in developmental psychology. Created by Dr.
Santrock, this annual award provides undergraduate students with the
opportunity to attend a professional meeting. A number of the students
shown here attended the Society for Research in Child Development
conference.
Courtesy of Jessica Serna
For many years, John was involved in tennis as a player, teaching
professional, and coach of professional tennis players. At the University of
Miami (FL), the tennis team on which he played still holds the NCAA
Division I record for most consecutive wins (137) in any sport. His wife,
Mary Jo, has a master’s degree in special education and has worked as a
teacher and a Realtor. He has two daughters—Tracy, who worked for a
number of years as a technology marketing specialist, and Jennifer, who has
been a medical sales specialist. However, recently both have followed in their
mother’s footsteps and are now Realtors. Tracy has run the Boston and New
York marathons. Jennifer is a former professional tennis player and NCAA
tennis player of the year. John has one granddaughter, Jordan, age 26, who
works at Ernst & Young accounting firm, and two grandsons, Alex, age 13,
and Luke, age 12. In the last two decades, John also has spent time painting
expressionist art.
Dedication:
With special appreciation to my wife, Mary Jo.
Page xii
Connecting research and
results
As a master teacher, John Santrock connects current research and
real-world applications. Through an integrated, personalized
digital learning program, students gain the insight they need to
study smarter and improve performance.
McGraw-Hill Education Connect is a digital assignment and
assessment platform that strengthens the link between faculty,
students, and course work, helping everyone accomplish more in
less time. Connect for Life-Span Development includes assignable
and assessable videos, quizzes, exercises, and interactivities, all
associated with learning objectives. Interactive assignments and
videos allow students to experience and apply their understanding
of psychology to the world with fun and stimulating activities.
Real People, Real World, Real Life
At the higher end of Bloom’s taxonomy (analyze, evaluate, create),
the McGraw-Hill Education Milestones video series is an
observational tool that allows students to experience life as it
unfolds, from infancy to late adulthood. This ground-breaking,
longitudinal video series tracks the development of real children as
they progress through the early stages of physical, social, and
emotional development in their first few weeks, months, and years
of life. Assignable and assessable within Connect for Life-Span
Development, Milestones also includes interviews with
adolescents and adults to reflect development throughout the entire
life span.
Inform and Engage on Psychological
Concepts
At the lower end of Bloom’s taxonomy, students are introduced to
Concept Clips—the dynamic, colorful graphics and stimulating
animations that break down some of psychology’s most difficult
concepts in a step-by-step manner, engaging students and aiding in
retention. They are assignable and assessable in Connect or can be
used as a jumping-off point in class. Accompanied by audio
narration, Concept Clips cover topics such as object permanence
and conservation, as well as theories and theorists like Bandura’s
social cognitive theory, Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, Buss’s
evolutionary theory, and Kuhl’s language development theory.
Page xiii
Prepare Students for Higher-
Level Thinking
Also at the higher end of Bloom’s taxonomy, Power of Process
for Psychology helps students improve critical thinking skills and
allows instructors to assess these skills efficiently and effectively
in an online environment. Available through Connect, pre-loaded
journal articles are available for instructors to assign. Using a
scaffolded framework such as understanding, synthesizing, and
analyzing, Power of Process moves students toward higher-level
thinking and analysis.
Better Data, Smarter Revision,
Improved Results
Students helped inform the revision strategy of Essentials of Life-
Span Development. McGraw-Hill Education’s SmartBook® is the
first and only adaptive reading and learning experience!
SmartBook helps students distinguish the concepts they know from
the concepts they don’t, while pinpointing the concepts they are
about to forget. SmartBook continuously adapts to create a truly
personalized learning path. SmartBook’s real-time reports help
both students and instructors identify the concepts that require
more attention, making study sessions and class time more
efficient.
Content revisions are informed by data collected anonymously
through McGraw-Hill Education’s SmartBook.
STEP 1. Over the course of three years, data points
showing concepts that caused students the most difficulty
were anonymously collected from Connect for Life-Span
Development’s SmartBook.
STEP 2. The data from SmartBook was provided to the
author in the form of a Heat Map, which graphically
illustrates “hot spots” in the text that affect student learning
(see image at right).
STEP 3. The author used the Heat Map data to refine the
content and reinforce student comprehension in the new
edition. Additional quiz questions and assignable activities
were created for use in Connect to further support student
success.
RESULT: Because the Heat Map gave the author empirically
based feedback at the paragraph and even sentence level, he was
able to develop the new edition using precise student data that
pinpointed concepts that gave students the most difficulty.
Page xiv
New to this edition, SmartBook is now optimized for mobile and
tablet and is accessible for students with disabilities. Content-wise,
it has been enhanced with improved learning objectives that are
measurable and observable to improve student outcomes.
SmartBook personalizes learning to individual student needs,
continually adapting to pinpoint knowledge gaps and focus
learning on topics that need the most attention. Study time is more
productive and, as a result, students are better prepared for class
and coursework. For instructors, SmartBook tracks student
progress and provides insights that can help guide teaching
strategies.
Powerful Reporting
Whether a class is face-to-face, hybrid, or entirely online, Connect
for Life-Span Development provides tools and analytics to reduce
the amount of time instructors need to administer their courses.
Easy-to-use course management tools allow instructors to spend
less time administering and more time teaching, while easy-to-use
reporting features allow students to monitor their progress and
optimize their study time.
The At-Risk Student Report provides instructors with one-click
access to a dashboard that identifies students who are at risk of
dropping out of the course due to low engagement levels.
The Category Analysis Report details student performance
relative to specific learning objectives and goals, including
APA outcomes and levels of Bloom’s taxonomy.
Connect Insight is a one-of-a-kind visual analytics dashboard
—now available for both instructors and students—that
provides at-a-glance information regarding student
performance.
The LearnSmart Reports allow instructors and students to
easily monitor progress and pinpoint areas of weakness, giving
each student a personalized study plan to achieve success.
Online Instructor Resources
The resources listed here accompany Essentials of Life-Span
Development, Sixth Edition. Please contact your McGraw-Hill
representative for details concerning the availability of these and
other valuable materials that can help you design and enhance your
course.
Instructor’s Manual Broken down by chapter, this resource
provides chapter outlines, suggested lecture topics, classroom
activities and demonstrations, suggested student research projects,
essay questions, and critical thinking questions.
Test Bank and Computerized Test Bank This comprehensive
Test Bank includes more than 1,500 multiple-choice and
approximately 75 essay questions. Organized by chapter, the
questions are designed to test factual, applied, and conceptual
understanding. All test questions are available within TestGen™
software.
PowerPoint Slides The PowerPoint presentations, now WCAG
compliant, highlight the key points of the chapter and include
supporting visuals. All of the slides can be modified to meet
individual needs.
Page xv
The Essential Approach to
Life-Span Development
In the view of many instructors who teach the life-span development course,
the biggest challenge they face is covering all periods of human development
within one academic term. My own teaching experience bears this out. I have
had to skip over much of the material in a comprehensive life-span
development text in order to focus on key topics and concepts that students
find difficult and to fit in applications that are relevant to students’ lives. I
wrote Essentials of Life-Span Development to respond to the need for a
shorter text that covers core content in a way that is meaningful to diverse
students.
This sixth edition continues my commitment to providing a brief
introduction to life-span development—with an exciting difference.
Recognizing that most of today’s students have grown up in a digital world, I
take very seriously the need for communicating content in different ways,
online as well as in print. Consequently, I’m enthusiastic about McGraw-
Hill’s online assignment and assessment platform, Connect for Life-Span
Development, which incorporates this text, and the captivating Milestones
video modules. Together, these resources give students and instructors the
essential coverage, applications, and course tools they need to tailor the life-
span course to meet their specific needs.
The Essential Teaching and Learning Environment
Research shows that students today learn in multiple modalities. Not only do
their work preferences tend to be more visual and more interactive, but also
their reading and study sessions often occur in short bursts. With shorter
chapters and innovative interactive study modules, Essentials of Life-Span
Development allows students to study whenever, wherever, and however they
choose. Regardless of individual study habits, preparation, and approaches to
the course, Essentials connects with students on a personal, individual basis
and provides a road map for success in the course.
Essential Coverage
The challenge in writing Essentials of Life-Span Development was
determining what comprises the core content of the course. With the help of
consultants and instructors who have responded to surveys and reviewed the
content at different stages of development, I am able to present all of the core
topics, key ideas, and most important research in life-span development that
students need to know in a brief format that stands on its own merits.
The 17 brief chapters of Essentials are organized chronologically and
cover all periods of the human life span, from the prenatal period through late
adulthood and death. Providing a broad overview of life-span development,
this text especially gives attention to the theories and concepts that students
seem to have difficulty mastering.
Essential Applications
Applied examples give students a sense that the field of life-span
development has personal meaning for them. In this edition of Essentials are
numerous real-life applications as well as research applications for each
period of the life span.
In addition to applied examples, Essentials of Life-Span Development
offers applications for students in a variety of majors and career paths.
How Would You . . . ? questions. Given that students enrolled in the life-
span course have diverse majors, Essentials includes applications that
appeal to different interests. The most prevalent areas of specialization
are education, human development and family studies, health professions,
psychology, and social work. To engage these students and ensure that
Essentials orients them to concepts that are key to their understanding of
life-span development, instructors specializing in these fields contributed
How Would You . . . ? questions for each chapter. Strategically placed in
the margin next to relevant topics, these questions highlight the essential
takeaway ideas for these students.
Careers in Life-Span Development. This feature personalizes life-span
development by describing an individual working in a career related to
the chapter’s focus. One example is Jennifer Leonhard, a genetic
counselor. The feature describes Ms. Leonhard’s education and work
setting, discusses various employment options for genetic counselors, and
provides resources for students who want to find out more about careers
in genetic counseling.
Essential Resources
The following resources accompany Essentials of Life-Span Development,
6th edition. Please contact your McGraw-Hill representative for details
concerning the availability of these and other valuable materials that can help
you design and enhance your course (see page xiv).
Instructor’s Manual
Test Bank
WCAG Accessible PowerPoint Slides
Page xvi
Content Revisions
As an indication of the up-to-date nature of this new edition, the text has
more than 1,500 citations from 2017, 2018, and 2019. Also, a special effort
was made to increase the coverage of the following topics in this new edition:
diversity and culture; genetics and epigenetics; neuroscience and the brain;
identity issues, especially gender and transgender; health; technology; and
successful aging. Following are many of the chapter-by-chapter changes that
were made in this new edition of Essentials of Life-Span Development.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Update on life expectancy in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau,
2017)
New projections on the significant increase in older adults in the world
with estimates of a doubling of the population of individuals 60 and over
and a tripling or quadrupling of those 80 and over by 2050 (United
Nations, 2015)
New career profile on Gustavo Medrano, clinical psychologist, who
works at the Family Institute at Northwestern University
Updated data on the percentage of U.S. children and adolescents under 18
years of age living in poverty, including data reported separately for
African American and Latino families (Jiang, Granja, & Koball, 2017)
In the discussion of gender, new content on transgender (Budge &
Orovecz, 2018; Budge & others, 2018; Savin-Williams, 2017)
In the section on contemporary topics, a new topic—technology—was
added and discussed, including an emphasis on how pervasive it has
become in people’s lives and how it might influence their development
In the coverage of cross-cultural studies, a recent study of 26 countries
indicating that individuals in Chile had the highest life satisfaction, those
in Bulgaria and Spain the lowest (Jang & others, 2017)
New description of the positive outcomes when individuals have pride in
their ethnic group, including recent research (Douglass & Umana-Taylor,
2017; Umana-Taylor & others, 2018)
New description of emerging adulthood and the dramatic increase in
studies on this transitional period between adolescence and adulthood
(Arnett, 2016a,b)
Inclusion of a study involving 17-year survival rates of 20- to 93-year-old
Korean adults found that when biological age became greater than
chronological age, individuals were less likely to have died (Yoo &
others, 2017)
New content involving how the information processing approach often
uses a computer analogy to help explain the connection between
cognition and the brain, and how humans process information
New discussion of artificial intelligence and the new emerging field of
developmental robotics that examines various developmental topics and
issues using robots, including a new photograph of a “human-like” baby
robot (Morse & Cangelosi, 2017)
Updated and expanded coverage of research methods, including the
increased use of eye-tracking to assess infants’ perception (van
Renswoude & others, 2018), attention (Meng, Uto, & Hashiva, 2017),
face processing (Chhaya & others, 2018), autism (Falck-Ytter & others,
2018), and preterm birth effects on language development (Loi & others,
2017)
Chapter 2: Biological Beginnings
Editing and updating of chapter based on comments by leading expert on
prenatal development and birth, Janet DiPietro
Updated and expanded discussion of genome-wide association studies,
including research on autism (Ramswami & Geschwind, 2018), attention
deficit hyperactivity disorder (Sanchez-Reige & others, 2018), cancer
(Sucheston-Campbell & others, 2018), obesity (Amare & others, 2017),
and Alzheimer disease (Liu & others, 2018)
Updated and expanded research on how exercise, nutrition, and
respiration can modify the expression of genes (Kader & others, 2018;
Poulsen & others, 2018)
Page xvii
New coverage of the process of methylation, in which tiny atoms attach
themselves to the outside of a gene. Researchers have found that exercise,
diet, and tobacco use can change whether a gene is expressed or not
through the methylation process (Castellano-Castillo & others, 2018;
Martin & Fry, 2018).
Inclusion of recent research indicating that methylation may be involved
in depression (Crawford & others, 2018), breast cancer (Maier & others,
2018), and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (Kim & others, 2018)
Updated and expanded research on gene-gene interaction to include
alcoholism (Chen & others, 2017), obesity (Bordoni & others, 2017), type
2 diabetes (Saxena, Srivastaya, & Banergee, 2018), cardiovascular
disease (De & others, 2017), and Alzheimer disease (Yin & others, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research in which a higher level maternal responsivity
to children with fragile X syndrome’s adaptive behavior improved the
children’s communication skills (Warren & others, 2017)
New content on the number of children born worldwide with sickle-cell
anemia and how stem cell transplantation is being explored in the
treatment of infants with sickle-cell anemia (Azar & Wong, 2017)
Updated description of how research now supports the use of
hydroxyurea therapy for infants with sickle cell anemia
beginning at 9 months of age (Nevitt, Jones, & Howard,
2017)
New career profile on Jennifer Leonhard, genetic counselor
New content on fertility drugs being more likely to produce multiple
births than in vitro fertilization (March of Dimes, 2017)
New coverage of a recent national study in which low birthweight and
preterm birth were significantly higher in assisted-reproduction
technology conceived infants (Sunderam & others, 2017)
Updated data on the average length and weight of the fetus at different
points in prenatal development, including revisions involving these data
in Figure 8
New commentary about neurogenesis being largely complete by about the
end of the fifth month of prenatal development (Keunen, Counsell, &
Benders, 2017)
Discussion of a recent meta-analysis of 15 studies that concluded
smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of children having ADHD
and that the risk is greater if their mother is a heavy smoker (Huang &
others, 2018)
New content about a recent large-scale U.S. study in which 11.5 percent
of adolescent and 8.7 percent of adult pregnant women reported using
alcohol in the previous month (Oh & others, 2017)
Description of recent research in which daughters whose mothers smoked
during their pregnancy were more likely to subsequently smoke during
their own pregnancy (Ncube & Mueller, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found despite the plethora of negative
outcomes for maternal smoking during pregnancy, 23 percent of pregnant
adolescents and 15 percent of adult pregnant women reported using
tobacco in the previous month (Oh & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research in which cocaine use during pregnancy was
associated with impaired connectivity of the thalamus and prefrontal
cortex in newborns (Salzwedel & others, 2017)
Discussion of recent research indicating that cocaine use by pregnant
women is linked to self-regulation problems at age 12 (Minnes & others,
2016)
New research indicating that pregnant women have increased their use of
marijuana in recent years (Brown & others, 2016)
Coverage of the recent concern that marijuana use by pregnant women
may further increase given the increasing number of states that are
legalizing marijuana (Chasnoff, 2017)
New section, “Synthetic Opioids and Opiate-Related Pain Killers,” that
discusses the increasing use of these substances by pregnant women and
their possible harmful outcomes for pregnant women and their offspring
(Haycraft, 2018; National Institute of Drug Abuse, 2018)
New description of recent research indicating that prenatal mercury
exposure in fish is linked to reduced placental and fetal growth, as well as
impaired neuropsychological development (Jeong & others, 2017; Llop &
others, 2017; Murcia & others, 2016)
Revised content on fish consumption by pregnant women, who are now
being advised to increase their fish consumption, especially eating more
low-mercury-content fish such as salmon, shrimp, tilapia, and cod
(American Pregnancy Association, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research that revealed maternal prenatal stress and
anxiety were linked to lower levels of infants’ self-regulation (Korja &
others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that found when fetuses were exposed to
serotonin-based antidepressants, they were more likely to be born preterm
(Podrebarac & others, 2017)
Description of a recent research review that concluded tobacco smoking
is linked to impaired male fertility and increases in DNA damage,
aneuploidy (abnormal number of chromosomes in a cell), and mutations
in sperm (Beal, Yauk, & Marchetti, 2017)
Discussion of a recent research review in which participation in
CenteringPregnancy increased initiation of breast feeding by 53 percent
overall and by 71 percent in African American women (Robinson,
Garnier-Villarreal, & Hanson, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study that revealed regular exercise by pregnant
women was linked to more advanced development in the neonatal brain
(Laborte-Lemoyne, Currier, & Ellenberg, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research in which two weekly 70-minute yoga
sessions reduced pregnant women’s stress and enhanced their immune
system functioning (Chen & others, 2017)
New main heading, “Normal Prenatal Development,” that includes a
description of how most of the time prenatal development occurs in a
normal manner
Coverage of a recent Swedish study that found women who gave birth in
water had fewer vaginal tears, shorter labor, needed fewer drugs for pain
relief and interventions by medical personnel, and rated their birth
experience more positive than women who had conventional spontaneous
vaginal births (Ulfsdottir, Saltvedt, & Gerogesson, 2018)
Inclusion of recent studies in which massage reduced women’s pain
during labor (Gallo & others, 2018; Shahoei & others, 2018; Unalmis
Erdogan, Yanikkerem, & Goker, 2018)
Update on the percentage of U.S. births that take place in hospitals, at
home, and in birthing centers and the percentage of babies born through
cesarean delivery (Martin & others, 2017)
Page xviii
Update on the percentage of births in the United States in which a
midwife is involved (Martin & others, 2017)
New description of global cesarean delivery rates with the
Dominican Republic and Brazil having the highest rates (56
percent) and New Zealand and the Czech Republic the
lowest (26 percent) (McCullough, 2016). The World Health Organization
recommends a cesarean rate of 10 percent or less.
Revised and updated content on cesarean delivery to include the two most
common reasons of why it is carried out: failure to progress through labor
and fetal distress
Updated weights for classification as a low birth weight baby, a very low
birth weight baby, and an extremely low birth weight baby
Updated data on the percentage of births in the United States that are
preterm, low birth weight, and cesarean section (Martin & others, 2017)
Description of recent research indicating that extremely preterm and low
birth weight infants have lower executive function, especially in working
memory and planning (Burnett & others, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research that revealed kangaroo care was effective in
reducing neonatal pain (Mooney-Leber & Brummelte, 2017)
Discussion of a longitudinal study in which the nurturing positive effects
of kangaroo care with preterm and low birth weight infants at one year of
age were still present 20 years later in a number of positive
developmental outcomes (Charpak & others, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study that revealed worsening or minimal
improvement in sleep problems from 6 weeks to 7 months postpartum
were associated with increased depressive symptoms (Lewis & others,
2018)
Description of recent research that found women who had a history of
depression were 20 times more likely to develop postpartum depression
than women who had no history of depression (Silverman & others,
2017)
Inclusion of recent research in which mothers’ postpartum depression, but
not generalized anxiety, was linked to their children’s emotional
negativity and behavior problems at two years of age (Prenoveau &
others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent meta-analysis that concluded that physical exercise
during the postpartum period is a safe strategy for reducing postpartum
depressive symptoms (Poyatos-Leon & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that found depressive symptoms in mothers
and fathers were linked to impaired bonding with their infant in the
postpartum period (Kerstis & others, 2016)
Chapter 3: Physical and Cognitive Development in
Infancy
Revisions based on feedback from leading children’s nutrition expert,
Maureen Black, and leading children’s motor development expert, Karen
Adolph
New discussion of how infant growth is often not smooth and continuous
but rather is episodic, occurring in spurts (Adolph, 2018; Lampl &
Schoen, 2017)
Description of a recent study in which sleep sessions lasted
approximately 3.5 hours during the first few months and increased to
about 10.5 hours from 3 to 7 months (Mindell & others, 2016)
New commentary about how many mothers today are providing their
babies with “tummy time” to prevent a decline in prone skills that can
occur because of the “back to sleep movement” to prevent SIDS
Discussion of a recent research review that revealed a positive link
between infant sleeping and cognitive functioning, including memory,
language, and executive function (Tham, Schneider, & Broekman, 2017)
Updated data on the continuing increase in breast feeding by U.S.
mothers (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016)
Updated support for the role of breastfeeding in reducing a number of
disease risks for children and their mothers (Bartick & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent research review indicating that breastfeeding is not
associated with a reduced risk of allergies in young children (Heinrich,
2017)
Description of recent research indicating a reduction in hospitalization for
breastfed infants and breastfeeding mothers for a number of conditions
Page xix
(Bartick & others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study that found a small increase in intelligence for
children who had been breastfed (Bernard & others, 2017)
Description of recent research in which introduction of vegetables
between 4 to 5 months of age was linked with a lower level of infant
fussy eating at 4 years of age than when they were introduced after 6
months (de Barse & others, 2017)
New career profile on Dr. Faize Mustafa-Infante, pediatrician, who
especially is passionate about preventing obesity in children
Discussion of a recent study that examined a number of predictors of
motor milestones in the first year (Flensborg-Madsen & Mortensen,
2017)
Revision of the nature/nurture section in the content on perceptual
development to better reflect the Gibsons’ view
Expanded and updated criticism of the innate view of the emergence of
infant morality with an emphasis on the importance of infants’ early
interaction with others and later transformation through language and
reflective thought (Carpendale & Hammond, 2016)
Coverage of a recent study in which hand-eye coordination involving
connection of gaze with manual action on objects rather than gaze
following alone predicted joint attention (Yu & Smith, 2017)
New description of Andrew Meltzoff’s (2017) view that infants’ imitation
informs us about their processing of social events and contributes to rapid
social learning
Inclusion of some revisions and updates based on feedback from leading
experts Roberta Golinkoff and Virginia Marchman
Revised definition of infinite generativity to include comprehension as
well as production
New opening commentary about the nature of language
learning and how it involves comprehending a sound system
(or sign system for individuals who are deaf), the world of
objects, actions, and events, and how units such as words and grammar
connect sound and world (Israel, 2019; Mithun, 2019)
Revised definition of infinite generativity to include comprehension as
well as production
Expanded description of how statistical regularity of information is
involved in infant word learning (Pace & others, 2016)
Expanded discussion of statistical learning, including how infants soak up
statistical regularities around them merely through exposure to them
(Aslin, 2017)
New research on babbling onset predicting when infants would say their
first words (McGillion & others, 2017a)
New commentary on why gestures such as pointing promote further
advances in language development
New content on the vocabulary spurt and how it involves the increase in
the pace at which words are learned
Expanded descriptions of the functions that child-directed speech serves,
including providing infants with information about their native language
and heightening differences with speech directed to adults (Golinkoff &
others, 2015)
Coverage of recent research in which child-directed speech in a one-to-
one social context for 11- to 14-month-olds was related to productive
vocabulary at 2 years of age for Spanish-English bilingual infants for both
languages and each language independently (Ramirez-Esparza, Garcia-
Sierra, & Kuhl, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study that revealed both full-term and preterm
infants who heard more caregiver talk based on all-day recordings at 16
months of age had better language skills at 18 months of age (Adams &
others, 2018)
New discussion of recent research in several North American urban areas
and the small island of Tanna in the South Pacific Ocean that found that
fathers in both types of contexts engaged in child-directed speech with
their infants (Broesch & Bryant, 2017)
New emphasis on the importance of social cues in infant language
learning (Ahun & others, 2018; McGillion & others, 2017b; Pace &
others, 2016)
Revised definitions of recasting, expanding, and labeling
New content on the American Association of Pediatrics (2016) recent
Page xx
position statement on co-viewing of videos indicating that infants can
benefit when parents watch videos with them and communicate with
them about the videos
Expanded coverage of how parents can facilitate infants’ and toddlers’
language development
Chapter 4: Socioemotional Development in Infancy
Edits made to chapter based on feedback from leading expert Joan Grusec
Expanded and updated coverage of the brain’s role in infant emotional
development (Bell & others, 2018; Johnson, 2018; Tottenham, 2017)
New introductory comments about the important role that cognitive
processes, in addition to biological and experiential influences, play in
children’s emotional development, both in the moment and across
childhood (Bell, Diaz, & Liu, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study in which maternal sensitivity was linked to
lower levels of infant fear (Gartstein, Hancock, & Iverson, 2017)
Description of a recent study that revealed excessive crying in
3-month-olds doubled the risk of behavioral, hyperactive, and
mood problems at 5 to 6 years of age (Smarius & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study in which maternal sensitivity was linked to
better emotional self-regulation in 10-month-old infants (Frick & others,
2018)
Coverage of a recent study that found depressed mothers rocked and
touched their crying infants less than non-depressed mothers did
(Esposito & others, 2017a)
New description of a study in which young infants with a negative
temperament used fewer attention regulation strategies while maternal
sensitivity to infants was linked to more adaptive emotion regulation
(Thomas & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study that revealed if parents had a childhood
history of behavioral inhibition, their children who also had a high level
of behavioral inhibition were at risk for developing anxiety disorders
(Stumper & others, 2017)
New research that found positive affectivity, surgency, and self-
regulation capacity assessed at 4 months of age was linked to school
readiness at 4 years of age (Gartstein, Putnam, & Kliewer, 2016)
Discussion of recent studies indicating a lower level of effortful control
and self-regulation capacity in early childhood were linked to a higher
level of ADHD symptoms later in childhood (Willoughby, Gottfredson,
& Stifter, 2017) and adolescence (Einziger & others, 2017)
Expanded and updated content on the increasing belief that babies are
socially smarter than used to be thought, including information about
Amanda Woodward and her colleagues’ (Krough-Jespersen &
Woodward, 2016; Liberman, Woodward, & Kinzler, 2017) research on
how quickly infants understand and respond to others’ meaningful
intentions
Discussion of a recent study in which maternal sensitivity and a better
home environment in infancy predicted high self-regulation at 4 years of
age (Birmingham, Bub, & Vaughn, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research in Zambia, where siblings were substantially
involved in caregiving activities, that revealed infants showed strong
attachments to both their mothers and their sibling caregivers with secure
attachment being the most frequent attachment classification for both
mother-infant and sibling-infant relationships (Mooja, Sichimba, &
Bakersman-Kranenburg, 2017)
Description of a recent study that did not find support for the view that
genes influence mother-infant attachment (Leerkes & others, 2017)
Description of recent research that revealed providing parents who
engage in inadequate or problematic caregiving with practice and
feedback focused on interacting sensitively enhances parent-infant
attachment security (Coyne & others, 2018; Dozier & Bernard, 2017,
2018; Woodhouse, 2018; Woodhouse & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that found when adults used scaffolding,
infants were twice as likely to engage in helping behavior (Dahl & others,
2017)
Coverage of a recent study of disadvantaged families in which an
intervention involving improving early maternal scaffolding was linked to
improvement in cognitive skills at 4 years of age (Obradovic & others,
2017)
New content about mothers playing 3 times more often with children than
fathers do (Cabrera & Rossman, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research with low-income families indicating that
fathers’ playfulness at 2 years of age was associated with more advanced
vocabulary skills at 4 years of age while mothers’ playfulness at 2 years
of age was linked to a higher level of emotion regulation at 4 years of age
(Cabrera & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that found negative outcomes on cognitive
development in infancy when fathers were more withdrawn and
depressed and positive outcomes on cognitive development when they
were more engaged and sensitive, as well as less controlling (Sethna &
others, 2018)
Chapter 5: Physical and Cognitive Development in Early
Childhood
Discussion of a recent study of 4-year-old girls that found a nine-week
motor skill intervention improved the girls’ ball skills (Veldman & others,
2017)
Description of recent research indicating that higher motor skill
proficiency in preschool was linked to engaging in a higher level of
physical activity in adolescence (Venetsanou & Kambas, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research that found children with a low level of motor
competence had a lower motivation for sports participation and lower
global self-worth than their counterparts who had a high level of motor
competence (Bardid & others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study that revealed 2 ½-year-old children’s liking
for fruits and vegetables was related to their eating more fruits and
vegetables at 7 years of age (Fletcher & others, 2018)
Updated data on the percentage of U.S. 2- to 5-year-old children who are
obese, which has recently decreased (Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 2017)
New description of the recently devised 5-2-1-0 obesity prevention
guidelines for young children: 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables,
no more than 2 hours of screen time, minimum of 1 hour of physical
activity, and 0 sugar-sweetened beverages daily (Khalsa & others, 2017)
New discussion of a longitudinal study that revealed when young children
were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke, they were more likely to
engage in antisocial behavior at 12 years of age (Pagani & others, 2017)
Updates and revisions based on feedback from leading expert Megan
McClelland
Updating of recent research on young children’s executive function
(Blair, 2017; Muller & others, 2017), including a recent study in which
young children who showed delayed executive function development had
a lower level of school readiness (Willoughby & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research showing the effectiveness of the Tools of the
Mind approach in improving a number of cognitive processes and
academic skills in young children (Blair & Raver, 2014)
New research indicating that parental engagement in mind-mindedness
advanced preschool children’s theory of mind (Hughes, Devine, & Wang,
2017)
Updated and expanded theory of mind content involving various aspects
of social interaction, including secure attachment and mental state talk,
parental engagement, peer relations, and living in a higher socioeconomic
status family (Hughes, Devine, & Wang, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent study of 3- to 5-year-old children that revealed
earlier development of executive function predicted theory of mind
performance, especially for false-belief tasks (Doenyas, Yavuz, & Selcuk,
2017)
Coverage of a recent study in which theory of mind predicted the severity
of autism in children (Hoogenhout & Malcolm-Smith, 2017)
Revisions to the discussion of young children’s language development
based on feedback from leading experts Roberta Golinkoff and Virginia
Marchman
Coverage of a recent multigenerational study that found when both Head
Start children and their mothers had participated in Head Start, positive
cognitive and socioemotional outcomes occurred for the children (Chor,
2018)
Page xxi
Update on the increase in publicly funded preschool programs that now
occurs in 42 states plus the District of Columbia (National Institute for
Early Education Research, 2016)
Description of two recent studies that confirmed the importance of
improved parenting engagement and skills in the success of Head Start
programs (Ansari & Gershoff, 2016; Roggman & others, 2016)
Chapter 6: Socioemotional Development in Early
Childhood
New emphasis on the importance of how extensively young children can
learn by observing the behavior of others, including a recent study in
which young children who observed a peer being rewarded for confessing
to cheating were more likely to be honest in the future themselves (Ma &
others, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research indicating the broad capacity for
self-evaluative emotion was present in the preschool years and
was linked to young children’s empathetic concern (Ross,
2017)
Description of a recent study in which young children with higher
emotion regulation were more popular with their peers (Nakamichi, 2019)
New commentary about connections between different emotions and how
they may influence development, including a recent study in which
participants’ guilt proneness combined with their empathy to predict an
increase in prosocial behavior (Torstevelt, Sutterlin, & Lugo, 2016)
Coverage of a recent study in Great Britain in which gender non-
conforming boys were most at risk for peer rejection (Braun & Davidson,
2017)
Inclusion of a recent research review of a large number of studies that
found authoritarian parenting was associated with a higher level of
externalizing problems (Pinquart, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study in which an authoritarian style, as well as
pressure to eat, were associated with a higher risk for being overweight or
obese in young children (Melis Yavuz & Selkuk, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study that revealed children of authoritative
parents engaged in more prosocial behavior than their counterparts whose
parents used the other parenting styles discussed in the section (Carlo &
others, 2018)
Description of a recent research review in which authoritative parenting
was the most effective parenting style in predicting which children and
adolescents would be less likely to be overweight or obese later in their
development (Sokol, Qin, & Puti, 2017)
New commentary about how in many traditional cultures, fathers use an
authoritarian style; in such cultures, children benefit more when mothers
use an authoritative parenting style
New section, “Further Thoughts about Parenting Styles,” including four
factors than can influence how research on parenting styles can be
interpreted
Coverage of a recent review that concluded there is widespread approval
of corporal punishment by U.S. parents (Ciocca, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent research review of risk factors for engaging in child
neglect that concluded that most risks involved parental factors, including
a history of antisocial behavior/criminal offending, having
mental/physical problems, and experiencing abuse in their own childhood
(Mulder & others, 2018)
Discussion of a longitudinal study that found harsh physical punishment
in childhood was linked to a higher incidence of intimate partner violence
in adulthood (Afifi & others, 2017b)
Description of a recent Japanese study in which occasional spanking at 3
years of age was associated with a higher level of behavioral problems at
5 years of age (Okunzo & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent meta-analysis that found when physical
punishment was not abusive, physical punishment was still linked to
detrimental child outcomes (Gershoff & Grogan-Kaylor, 2016)
Coverage of a recent study that found physical abuse was linked to lower
levels of cognitive performance and school engagement in children (Font
& Cage, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent study that revealed exposure to either physical or
sexual abuse in childhood and adolescence was linked to an increase in
Page xxii
13- to 18-year- olds’ suicide ideation, plans, and attempts (Gomez &
others, 2017)
Description of a longitudinal study in which experiencing early abuse and
neglect in the first five years of life were linked to having more
interpersonal problems and lower academic achievement from childhood
through their 30s (Raby & others, 2018)
Coverage of a large-scale study that found a birth order effect for
intelligence, with older siblings having slightly higher intelligence, but no
birth order effects for life satisfaction, internal/external control, trust, risk
taking, patience, and impulsivity (Rohrer, Egloff, & Schukle, 2017)
Description of recent research indicating that mothers’ and fathers’ work-
family conflict was linked to 4-year-olds’ lower self-control (Ferreria &
others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study in which experiencing parents’ divorce, as
well as child maltreatment, in childhood was linked to midlife suicide
ideation (Stansfield & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent meta-analysis that revealed when their parents had
become divorced, as adults they were more likely to have depression
(Sands, Thompson, & Gavsina, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found interparental hostility was a
stronger predictor of children’s insecurity and externalizing problems
than interparental disagreement and low levels of interparental
cooperation (Davies & others, 2016)
Updated data on the percentage of gay and lesbian parents who are
raising children
Inclusion of recent research that revealed no differences in the
adjustment of school-aged children adopted in infancy by
gay, lesbian, and heterosexual parents (Farr, 2017)
Description of a recent study of lesbian and gay adoptive families
indicated that 98 percent of the parents reported their children had
adjusted well to school (Farr, Oakley, & Ollen, 2016)
Coverage of a longitudinal study that found a multi-component (school-
based educational enrichment and comprehensive family services)
preschool-to-third-grade intervention with low-income minority children
in Chicago was effective in increasing their high school graduation, as
well as undergraduate and graduate school success (Reynolds, Ou, &
Temple, 2018)
Update on the most recent national survey of screen time indicating a
dramatic shift to greater use of mobile devices in young children
(Common Sense Media, 2013)
Inclusion of recent research with 2- to 6-year-olds that indicated increased
TV viewing on weekends was associated with a higher risk of being
overweight or obese (Kondolot & others, 2017)
Description of a recent meta-analysis that found children’s exposure to
prosocial media is linked to higher levels of prosocial behavior and
empathetic concern (Coyne & others, 2018)
Chapter 7: Physical and Cognitive Development in
Middle and Late Childhood
New coverage of the increase in brain connectivity as children develop
and a longitudinal study that found greater connectivity between the
prefrontal and parietal regions in childhood was linked to better reasoning
ability later in development (Wendelken & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study of elementary school children that revealed
55 minutes or more of daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was
associated with a lower incidence of obesity (Nemet, 2016)
Description of a recent meta-analysis that participation in a sustained
program of physical activity improved children’s attention, executive
function, and academic achievement (de Greeff & others, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study with 7- to 13-year-olds in which a 6-week
high-intensity exercise program resulted in improved cognitive control
and working memory (Moreau, Kirk, & Waldie, 2018)
Description of a recent meta-analysis that found children who engage in
regular physical activity have better cognitive inhibitory control (Jackson
& others, 2016)
Inclusion of recent research with 8- to 12-year-olds indicating that screen
time was associated with lower connectivity between brain regions, as
well as lower language skills and cognitive control, while time spent
reading was linked to higher levels in these areas (Horowitz-Kraus &
Hutton, 2018)
Updated data on the percentage of 6- to 11-year-old U.S. children who
are obese (Ogden & others, 2016)
Inclusion of a recent Japanese study that revealed the family pattern that
was linked to the highest overweight/obesity in children was a
combination of irregular mealtimes and the most screen time for both
parents (Watanabe & others, 2016)
Discussion of a recent study in which children were less likely to be
obese or overweight when they attended schools in states that had a
strong policy emphasis on healthy food and beverage (Datar & Nicosia,
2017)
Updated statistics on the percentage of U.S. children who have different
types of disabilities and revised update of Figure 4 (National Center for
Education Statistics, 2016)
Description of a recent research review that found girls with ADHD had
more problematic peer relations than typically developing girls in a
number of areas (Kok & others, 2016)
Coverage of a recent research review that concluded ADHD in childhood
is linked to a number of long-term outcomes (Erksine & others, 2016)
Discussion of a recent study that found childhood ADHD was associated
with long-term underachievement in math and reading (Voigt & others,
2017)
Description of a recent study in which individuals with ADHD were more
likely to become parents at 12 to 16 years of age (Ostergaard & others,
2017)
Coverage of a recent research review that concluded stimulation
medications are effective in treating children with ADHD in the short
term, but that long-term benefits of such medications are not clear (Rajeh
& others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent meta-analysis that found mindfulness training
improved the attention of children with ADHD (Caincross & Miller,
2018)
Inclusion of a recent meta-analysis that concluded physical exercise is
effective in reducing cognitive symptoms of ADHD in individuals 3 to 25
Page xxiii
years of age (Tan, Pooley, & Speelman, 2017)
Coverage of a recent meta-analysis in which exercise was associated with
better executive function in children with ADHD (Vysniauske & others,
2018)
Description of a recent study in which an 8-week yoga program improved
the sustained attention of children with ADHD (Chou & Huang, 2017)
New commentary that despite the recent positive research findings using
neurofeedback, mindfulness training, and exercise to improve the
attention of children with ADHD, it remains to be determined if they are
as effective as stimulant drugs and/or whether they benefit children as
add-ons to stimulant drugs (Den Jeijer & others, 2017)
Updated data on the increasing percentage of children being diagnosed as
having autism spectrum disorder (Christensen & others, 2016)
Inclusion of a recent study that revealed a lower level of working memory
was the executive function most strongly associated with autism spectrum
disorders (Ziermans & others, 2017)
New coverage of two recent surveys in which only a minority of parents
reported that their child’s autism spectrum disorder was identified prior to
three years of age and that one-third to one-half of the cases were
identified after six years of age (Sheldrick, Maye, & Carter, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study in which children’s verbal working memory
was linked to these aspects of both first and second language learners:
morphology, syntax, and grammar (Verhagen & Leseman, 2016)
Inclusion of recent research that found mindfulness-based intervention
improved children’s attention self-regulation (Felver & others, 2017)
Description of the most recent revision of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale
for Children—V, and its increase in the number of subtests and composite
scores (Canivez, Watkins, & Dombrowski, 2017)
Coverage of recent research that found a significant link
between children’s general intelligence and their self-control
(Meldrum & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent two-year intervention study with families living in
poverty in which maternal scaffolding and positive home stimulation
improved young children’s intellectual functioning (Obradovic & others,
2016)
New content on stereotype threat in the section on cultural bias in
intelligence tests (Grand, 2017; Lyons & others, 2018; Williams & others,
2018)
Update on the percentage of U.S. students who are classified as gifted
(National Association for Gifted Children, 2017)
New commentary that vocabulary development plays an important role in
reading comprehension (Vacca & others, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study of 6- to 10-year-old children that found early
bilingual exposure was a key factor in bilingual children outperforming
monolingual children on phonological awareness and word learning
(Jasinsksa & Petitto, 2018)
Discussion of research that documented bilingual children were better at
theory of mind tasks than were monolingual children (Rubio-Fernandez,
2017)
Chapter 8: Socioemotional Development in Middle and
Late Childhood
New description of recent research studies indicating that children and
adolescents who do not have good perspective-taking skills are more
likely to have difficulty in peer relations and engage in more aggressive
and oppositional behavior (Morosan & others, 2017; Nilsen & Basco,
2017; O’Kearney & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a longitudinal study that revealed the quality of children’s
home environment (which involved assessment of parenting quality,
cognitive stimulation, and the physical home environment) was linked to
their self-esteem in early adulthood (Orth, 2017)
New discussion of the recent book Challenging the Cult of Self-Esteem in
Education (Bergeron, 2018) that criticizes education for promising high
self-esteem for students, especially those who are impoverished or
marginalized
Coverage of a longitudinal study that found a higher level of self-control
in childhood was linked to a slower pace of aging at 26, 32, and 38 years
of age (Belsky & others, 2017)
New description of an app that is effective in improving children’s self-
control:
www.selfregulationstation.com/sr-ipad-app/
New discussion of a longitudinal study in which a higher level of emotion
regulation in early childhood was linked to a higher level of externalizing
problems in adolescence (Perry & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study that revealed females are better than males at
facial emotion perception across the life span (Olderbak & others, 2018)
New section, “Social-Emotional Education Programs,” that describes two
increasingly implemented programs: 1) Second Step (Committee for
Children, 2018) and 2) Collaborative for Academic, Social, and
Emotional Learning (CASEL (2018)
New career profile on Dr. Melissa Jackson, child and adolescent
psychiatrist
Substantial revision of the discussion of Kohlberg’s theory of moral
development to make it more concise and clear
New coverage of how we need to make better progress in dealing with an
increasing array of temptations and possible wrongdoings in a human
social world in which complexity is accumulating over time (Christen,
Narvaez, & Gutzwiller, 2018)
Deletion of the section on Gender Role Classification because of
decreasing interest in the topic in recent years
Discussion of a recent study with eighth grade students in 36 countries
that revealed girls had more egalitarian attitudes about gender roles than
did boys (Dotti Sani & Uaranta, 2015)
Description of a recent meta-analysis of attachment in middle/late
childhood and adolescence in which parents of children and adolescents
who more securely attached were more responsive, more supportive of
children’s and adolescents’ autonomy, used more behavioral control
strategies, and engaged in less harsh control strategies (Koehn & Kerns,
2018). Also in this meta-analysis, parents of children and adolescents
who showed more avoidant attachment were less responsive and engaged
is less behavioral control strategies. Regarding ambivalent attachment, no
links to parenting were found.
Inclusion of recent research indicating that when children have a better
Page xxiv
parent-child affective relationship with their stepparent, the children have
fewer internalizing and externalizing problems (Jensen & others, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study of young adolescents in which peer rejection
predicted increases in aggressive and rule-breaking behavior (Janssens &
others, 2017)
Description of a longitudinal study that revealed children who were
bullied at 6 years of age were more likely to have excess weight gain
when they were 12 to 13 years old (Sutin & others, 2016)
Inclusion of a longitudinal study that revealed being a victim of bullying
in childhood was linked to increased use of mental health services five
decades later (Evans-Lacko & others, 2017)
Description of recent longitudinal studies that indicated victims bullied in
childhood and adolescence have higher rates of agoraphobia, depression,
anxiety, panic disorder, and suicidality in the early to mid-twenties
(Arseneault, 2017; Copeland & others, 2013)
Coverage of recent research in which adolescents who were bullied in
both a direct way and through cyberbullying had more
behavioral problems and lower self-esteem than their
counterparts who were only bullied in one of two ways
(Wolke, Lee, & Guy, 2017)
Inclusion of a 2017/2018 update on the Every Student Succeeds Act
(ESSA) with the Trump administration planning to go forward with
ESSA but giving states much more flexibility in its implementation
(Klein, 2017)
Coverage of a recent intervention (City Connects program) with first-
generation immigrant children attending high-poverty schools that was
successful in improving the children’s reading and math skills (Dearing &
others, 2016)
Inclusion of a longitudinal study that involved implementation of the
Child-Parent Center Program in high-poverty neighborhoods of Chicago
that provided school-based educational enrichment and comprehensive
family services from 3 to 9 years of age (Reynolds, Ou, & Temple, 2018).
Children who participated in the program had higher rates of
postsecondary completion, including more years of education, an
associate’s degree or higher, and a master’s degree.
New coverage of a recent research review that concluded increases in
family income for children in poverty was linked to increased
achievement in middle school, as well as higher educational attainment in
adolescence and emerging adulthood (Duncan, Magnuson, & Votruba-
Drzil, 2017)
New content on Teach for America and its efforts to place college
graduates in teaching positions in schools located in low-income areas
and a new career profile on Teach for America instructor Ahou Vaziri
Update on comparisons of U.S. students with their counterparts around
the globe in math and science achievement (Desilver, 2017; TIMMS,
2015)
Coverage of recent research indicating that many parents and teachers
with growth mindsets don’t have children and adolescents with growth
mindsets (Haimovitz & Dweck, 2017)
New research that indicates the following are what parents and teachers
need to do to create growth mindsets in children and adolescents: teach
for understanding, provide feedback that improves understanding, give
students opportunities to revise their work, communicate how effort and
struggle are involved in learning, and function as partners with children
and adolescents in the learning process (Hooper & others, 2016; Sun,
2015)
Inclusion of recent research that found students from lower income
families were less likely to have a growth mindset than were students
from wealthier families but the achievement of students from lower
income families was more likely to be protected if they had a growth
mindset (Claro, Paunesku, & Dweck, 2016)
Discussion of a recent study that revealed having a growth mindset
protected women’s and minorities’ outlook when they chose to confront
expressions of bias toward them in the workplace (Rattan & Dweck,
2018)
Discussion of a recent study in China that found young adolescents with
authoritative parents showed better adjustment than their counterparts
with authoritarian parents (Zhang & others, 2017)
Chapter 9: Physical and Cognitive Development in
Adolescence
Coverage of a recent study of non-Latino White and African American
12- to 20-year-olds in the United States that found they were
characterized much more by positive than problematic development
(Gutman & others, 2017). Their engagement in healthy behaviors,
supportive relationships with parents and friends, and positive self-
conceptions were much stronger than their angry and depressed feelings.
New discussion of three recent studies in Korea and Japan (Cole & Mori,
2017), China (Song & others, 2017), and Saudi Arabia (Al Alwan &
others, 2017), all of which found secular trends of earlier pubertal onset
in recent years
Coverage of a recent U.S study that indicated puberty occurred earlier in
girls with a higher body mass index (BMI) (Bratke & others, 2017) and a
recent Chinese study revealed similar results (Deng & others, 2018)
Description of a recent study that revealed child sexual abuse was linked
to earlier pubertal onset (Noll & others, 2017)
New research that revealed young adolescent boys had a more positive
body image than their female counterparts (Morin & others, 2017)
New content on the role of social media and the Internet in influencing
adolescents’ body images, including one study of U.S. 12- to 14-year-olds
that found heavier social media use was associated with body
dissatisfaction (Burnette, Kwitowski, & Mazzeo, 2017)
Inclusion of research in which onset of menarche before 11 years of age
was linked to a higher incidence of distress disorders, fear disorders, and
externalizing disorders in females (Platt & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found early-maturing girls had higher
rates of depression and antisocial age as middle-aged adults mainly
because their difficulties began in adolescence and did not lessen over
time (Mendle & others, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent study of U.S. college women that found more time
on Facebook was related to more frequent body and weight concern
comparison with other women, more attention to the physical appearance
of others, and more negative feelings about their own bodies (Eckler,
Kalyango, Paasch, 2017)
Page xxv
New research indicating that early-maturing girls are at risk for physical
and verbal abuse in dating (Chen, Rothman, & Jaffee, 2018)
Updated data on the occurrence of various sexual activities engaged in by
adolescents according to age, gender, and ethnicity, including updates
(Kann & others, 2016a)
New commentary that while the majority of sexual minority
adolescents have competent and successful developmental
paths through adolescence, a recent large-scale study revealed
that sexual minority youth engage in a higher prevalence of health-risk
factors compared to nonsexual minority youth (Kann & others, 2016b)
Coverage of a recent national study of 7,000 15- to 24-year-olds’
engagement in oral sex, including the low percentage of youth who use a
condom when having oral sex (Holway & Hernandez, 2018)
Updated data on the percentage of adolescent males and females who
engage in oral sex (Child Trends, 2015)
Description of a recent study that found that early sexual debut was
associated with a number of problems, including sexual risk taking,
substance use, violent victimization, and suicidal thoughts and attempts in
both sexual minority and heterosexual adolescents (Lowry & others,
2017)
Discussion of a recent study of Korean girls in which early menarche was
associated with earlier initiation of sexual intercourse (Kim & others,
2017)
Inclusion of recent research in which adolescents who in the eighth grade
reported greater parental knowledge and more rules about dating were
less likely to initiate sex between the eighth and tenth grade (Ethier &
others, 2016)
Description of a recent study of African American girls that revealed
those for whom religion was very or extremely important were much
more likely to have a later sexual debut (George Dalmida & others, 2018)
Updated data on the percentage of adolescents who use contraceptives
when they have sexual intercourse (Kann & others, 2016a)
Updated data on the continued decline in adolescent pregnancy to an
historic low in 2015 (Martin & others, 2017)
Important new section on the increasing number of medical organizations
and experts who have recently recommended that adolescents use long-
acting reversible contraception (LARC), which consists of intrauterine
devices (IUDs) and contraceptive implants (Allen & others, 2017;
Deidrich, Klein, & Peipert, 2017; Society for Adolescent Medicine, 2017)
New research on factors that are linked to repeated adolescent pregnancy
(Dee & others, 2017; Maravilla & others, 2017)
Coverage of recent surveys that find a large percentage of sexual health
education programs do not cover birth control (Lindberg & others, 2016)
and that sexual health information is more likely to be taught in high
school than in middle school (Alan Guttmacher Institute, 2017)
Inclusion of recent studies and research views that find comprehensive
sex education programs and policies are far more effective in pregnancy
prevention, reduction of sexually transmitted infections, and delay of
sexual intercourse than are abstinence-only programs and policies
(Denford & others, 2017; Jaramillo & others, 2017; Santilli & others,
2017)
New content on the recent increase in abstinence-only-until-marriage
(AOUM) policies and programs in the United States that don’t seem to
recognize that a large majority of adolescents and emerging adults will
initiate sexual intercourse, especially given the recent increase in the age
at which U.S. males and females get married
New position of the Adolescent Society of Health and Medicine (2017)
that states research clearly indicates that AOUM programs and policies
are not effective but, in contrast, research documents that comprehensive
sex education programs and policies are effective in delaying sexual
intercourse and reducing other sexual risk behaviors
Updated commentary on the recent concern about the increased
government funding of abstinence-only programs (Donovan, 2017)
New career profile on Dr. Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, University Professor
in Pediatrics and Director of Community Efforts to Improve Adolescents’
Health
Updated data on the percentage of U.S. adolescents who are obese
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016)
Updated national data on adolescents’ exercise patterns, including gender
and ethnic variations (Kann & others, 2016a)
Page xxvi
Discussion of a recent study that indicated aerobic exercise reduced the
depressive symptoms of adolescents with MDD (Jaworksa & others,
2018)
Inclusion of a recent large-scale study of Dutch adolescents that revealed
physically active adolescents had fewer emotional and peer problems
(Kuiper & others, 2018)
Description of a recent research review that found that among a number
of cognitive factors, memory was the factor that was most often improved
by exercise in adolescence (Li & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study of U.S. eighth, tenth, and twelfth graders from
1991 to 2016 that found psychological well-being abruptly decreased
after 2012 (Twenge, Martin, & Campbell, 2018). In this study,
adolescents who spent more on electronic communication and screens
and less time on non-screen activities such as exercise had lower
psychological well-being.
Update on the low percentage of adolescents who get 8 hours of sleep or
more per night (Kann & others, 2016a)
Inclusion of a recent national study of more than 10,000 13- to 18-year-
olds that revealed that a number of factors involving sleep timing and
duration were associated with an increase in anxiety, mood, substance
abuse, and behavioral disorders (Zhang & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study of college students that revealed
consistently low sleep duration was associated with less effective
attention the next day (Whiting & Murdock, 2016)
Discussion of a recent study of college students in which a higher level of
text messaging activity during the day and at night was
related to a lower level of sleep quality (Murdock, Horissian,
& Crichlow-Ball, 2017)
New content on the increase in adolescents who mix alcohol and energy
drinks, which is linked to a higher rate of risky driving (Wilson & others,
2018)
Updated coverage of the Monitoring the Future study’s assessment of
drug use by secondary school students with 2017 data on U.S. eighth,
tenth, and twelfth graders, including recent increases in marijuana and
nicotine vaping use (Johnston & others, 2018)
Coverage of a recent meta-analysis of parenting factors involved in
adolescents’ alcohol use that indicated higher levels of parental
monitoring, support, and involvement were associated with a lower risk
of adolescent alcohol misuse (Yap & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent large scale national study in which friends’ use
was a stronger influence on adolescents’ alcohol use than parental use
(Deutsch, Wood, & Slutske, 2018)
New research indicating that having an increase in Facebook friends
across two years in adolescence was linked to an enhanced motivation to
be thin (Tiggemann & Slater, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study in which a greater use of social networking
sites was linked to being more narcissistic (Gnambs & Appel, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study in which teacher warmth was higher in the last
4 years of elementary school and then dropped in the middle school years
(Hughes & Cao, 2018). The drop in teacher warmth was associated with
lower student math scores.
Inclusion of new information from the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation’s (2017, 2018) indicating that many adolescents graduate
from high school without the necessary academic skills to succeed in
college or to meet the demands of the modern workplace
New research on the transition to high school, including the greatest
difficulties and factors that provide for improved adaptation to the
transition (Benner, Boyle, & Bakhtiari, 2017; Wigfield, Rosenzweig, &
Eccles, 2017)
Chapter 10: Socioemotional Development in
Adolescence
New commentary that too little research attention has been given to
developmental changes in the specific domains of identity (Galliher,
McLean, & Syed, 2017; Vosylis, Erentaite, & Crocetti, 2018)
New content on the dual cycle identity model that separates out identity
development into two processes: 1) A formation cycle and 2) a
maintenance cycle (Luyckx & others, 2014, 2017)
New discussion of parental (Crocetti & others, 2017) and peer/friend
(Rivas-Drake & Imana-Taylor, 2018; Santos & others, 2017) influences
on adolescent identity development
Updated description of the positive outcomes when individuals have pride
in their ethnic group, including recent research (Anglin & others, 2018;
Douglass & Umana-Taylor, 2017; Umana-Taylor & others, 2017)
New content on identity development and the digital environment that
explores the widening audience adolescents and emerging adults have to
express their identity and get feedback about it in their daily connections
on social media such as Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook (Davis &
Weinstein, 2017; Yau & Reich, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study of Mexican-origin adolescents that found a
positive ethnic identity, social support, and anger suppression helped
them cope more effectively with racial discrimination whereas anger
expressions reduced their ability to cope with the racial discrimination
(Park & others, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research with fifth and eighth graders in which a
higher level of parental monitoring was associated with students’ having
higher grades (Top, Liew, & Luo, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that found better parental monitoring was
linked to lower marijuana use by adolescents (Haas & others, 2018) and
another study that revealed lower parental monitoring was associated with
earlier initiation of alcohol use, binge drinking, and marijuana use in 13-
to 14-year-olds (Rusby & others, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent study that indicated two types of parental media
monitoring–active monitoring and connective co-use (engaging in media
with the intent to connect with adolescents)—were linked to lower media
use by adolescents (Padilla-Walker & others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study that revealed from 16 to 20 years of age,
adolescents perceived that they had increasing independence and a better
relationship with their parents (Hadiwiya & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study of Latino families that revealed a higher
level of secure attachment with mothers during adolescence was linked to
a lower level of heavy drug use (Gattamorta & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that revealed when they had grown up in
Page xxvii
poverty, adolescents engaged in less risk-taking if they had a history of
secure attachments to caregivers (Delker, Bernstein, & Laurent, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent analysis that found secure attachment to the mother
and to the father was associated with fewer depressive symptoms in
adolescents (Kerstis, Aslund, & Sonnby, 2018)
Description of a recent study of Chinese American families that found
parent-adolescent conflict increased in early adolescence, peaked at about
16 years of age, and then declined through late adolescence and emerging
adulthood (Juang & others, 2018)
New research with Latino families indicating that high parent-adolescent
conflict was associated with higher adolescent rates of aggression
(Smokowski & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research on adolescent girls that found friends’ dieting
predicted whether adolescent girls would engage in dieting
or extreme dieting (Balantekin, Birch, & Savage, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that indicated that friendship
quality was linked to the quality of romantic relationships in adolescence
(Kochendorfer & Kerns, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found long-term romantic relationships in
adolescence were both supportive and turbulent, characterized by
elevated levels of support, negative interactions, higher control, and more
jealousy (Lantagne & Furman, 2017)
New main section, “Socioeconomic Status and Poverty”
Inclusion of a recent study that found of 13 risk factors, low SES was the
most likely to be associated with smoking initiation in fifth graders
(Wellman & others, 2017)
Discussion a recent Chinese study in which adolescents were more likely
to have depressive symptoms in low SES families (Zhou, Fan, & Zin,
2017)
Coverage of a U.S. longitudinal study that revealed low SES in
adolescence was linked to having a higher level of depressive symptoms
at age 54 for females (Pino & others, 2018). In this study, low SES
females who completed college were less likely to have depressive
symptoms than low SES females who did not complete college.
Inclusion of a U.S. longitudinal study that found low SES in adolescence
was a risk factor for cardiovascular disease 30 years later (Doom &
others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study of 12- to 19-year-olds indicating that their
perceived well-being was lowest when they had lived in poverty from 0
to 2 years of age (compared to 3 to 5, 6 to 8, and 9 to 11 years of age) and
also each additional year lived in poverty was associated with even lower
perceived well-being in adolescence (Garipy & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study that found these four psychological and
social factors predicted higher achievement by adolescents living in
poverty: 1) academic commitment, 2) emotional control, 3) family
involvement, and 4) school climate (Li, Allen, & Casillas, 2017)
Description of a recent study comparing Asian, Latino, and non-Latino
immigrant adolescents in which immigrant Asian adolescents had the
highest level of depression, lowest self-esteem, and experienced the most
discrimination (Lo & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study of Mexican origin youth that revealed when
adolescents reported a higher level of familism, they engaged in lower
levels of risk taking (Wheeler & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study in which heavy media multitaskers were less
likely to delay gratification and more likely to endorse intuitive, but
wrong, answers on a cognitive reflection task (Schutten, Stokes, &
Arnell, 2017)
Coverage of recent research that found less screen time was linked to
adolescents’ better health-related quality of life (Yan & others, 2017) and
that a higher level of social media use was associated with a higher level
of heavy drinking by adolescents (Brunborg, Andreas, & Kvaavik, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study of 13- to 16-year-olds that found increased
night-time mobile phone use was linked to increased externalizing
problems and decreased self-esteem (Vernon, Modecki, & Barber, 2018)
Updated data on the percentage of adolescents who use social networking
sites and engage in text messaging daily (Lenhart, 2015; Lenhart &
others, 2015)
Coverage of a recent national study of social media indicating how
extensively 18- to 24-year-olds are using various sites such as Snapchat,
Instagram, twitter, and YouTube (Smith & Anderson, 2018)
Updated statistics on the significant decline in juvenile court delinquency
caseloads in the United States in recent years (Hockenberry &
Puzzanchera, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study of more than 10,000 children and adolescence
revealing that a family environment characterized by poverty and child
maltreatment was linked to entering the juvenile justice system in
adolescence (Vidal & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study of middle school adolescents that found peer
pressure for fighting and friends’ delinquent behavior were linked to
adolescents’ aggression and delinquent behavior (Farrell, Thompson, &
Mehari, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that revealed an increase in the proportion of
classmates who engage in delinquent behavior increased the likelihood
that other classmates would become delinquents (Kim & Fletcher, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent study that indicated adolescent delinquents were
high on affiliating with deviant peers and engaging in pseudomature
behavior and low on peer popularity and school achievement (Gordon
Simons & others, 2018)
Coverage of recent research in which having callous-unemotional traits
predicts an increased risk of engaging in delinquency for adolescent
males (Ray & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study of female adolescents in which an increase
in their self-control was linked to decreased likelihood of police contact
(Hipwell & others, 2018)
New content indicating that at 12 years of age, 5.2 percent of females
compared to 2 percent of males had experienced first-onset depression
(Breslau & others, 2017). Also in this study, the cumulative incidence of
depression from 12 to 17 years of age was 36 percent for females and 14
percent for boys.
Recent research that found co-rumination with friends was linked to
greater peer stress for adolescent girls (Rose & others, 2017)
Discussion of recent research indicating that family therapy can be
effective in reducing adolescent depression (Poole & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study that revealed adolescents who were isolated
from their peers and whose caregivers emotionally neglected them were
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at significant risk for developing depression (Christ, Kwak, & Lu, 2017)
Updated coverage of adolescent suicidal thoughts and
behavior in the United States (Kann & others, 2016a)
Discussion of recent research indicating that the most
significant factor in a first suicide attempt during adolescence was a
major depressive episode while for children it was child maltreatment
(Peyre & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study in which a sense of hopelessness predicted an
increase in suicide ideation in depressed adolescents (Wolfe & others,
2018)
Description of two recent studies that revealed child maltreatment during
the childhood years was linked with suicide attempts in adulthood (Park,
2017; Turner & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study that confirmed childhood sexual abuse was a
significant factor in suicide attempts (Ng & others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent meta-analysis that revealed adolescents who were
the victims of cyberbullying were 2½ times more likely to attempt suicide
and 2 times more likely to have suicidal thoughts than non-victims (John
& others, 2018)
Chapter 11: Physical and Cognitive Development in
Early Adulthood
New section, “The Changing Landscape of Emerging and Early
Adulthood,” that describes how today’s emerging and young adults have
very different profiles and experiences than their counterparts from earlier
generations in education, work, and lifestyles (Vespa, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study with U.S. community college students that
found they believe they know when they will be an adult when they can
care for themselves and others (Katsiaficas, 2017)
New coverage of recent trends in first-year college students’ increasing
motivation to be well-off financially, as well as their increased feeling of
being overwhelmed with what they have to do, are depressed, and feel
anxious (Eagan & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study in which a higher level of energy drink
consumption was linked to more sleep problems in college students (Faris
& others, 2017)
Updated data on the incidence of obesity in U.S. adults (Flegal & others,
2016)
Discussion of recent international comparisons of 33 countries in which
the United States had the highest percentage of obese adults (38 percent)
and Japan the lowest percentage (3.7); the average of the countries was
19.5 percent of the population being obese (OECD, 2017)
Coverage of a recent research review in which moderate and vigorous
aerobic exercise resulted in a lower incidence of major depressive
disorder (Schuch & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research that revealed a mortality risk reduction for
individuals who replaced screen time with an increase in daily activity
levels (Wijndaele & others, 2017)
Updated data on binge drinking in college and through early adulthood,
including new Figure 3 (Schulenberg & others, 2017)
Updated data on extreme binge drinking in college students, including
data on not only 10 or more drinks at one time in the last two weeks, but
also 15 or more in the same time frame (Schulenberg & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a longitudinal study that revealed frequent binge drinking
and marijuana use in the freshman year of college predicted delayed
college graduation (White & others, 2018)
Significant updating of the percentage of individuals 18 to 44 years of age
in the United States who report they are heterosexual, gay, lesbian, or
bisexual, as well as the percentages of these men and women who report
about various feelings involving sexual orientation (Copen, Chandra, &
Febo-Vazquez, 2016)
Inclusion of recent research in which sexual activity in adults on day 1
was linked to greater well-being the next day (Kashdan & others, 2018).
In this study, higher reported sexual pleasure and intimacy predicted more
positive affect and less negative affect the next day.
New research indicating that suicide ideation was associated with
entrance into a friends-with-benefits (FWB) relationship as well as
continuation of the FWB relationship (Dube & others, 2017)
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Updated data based on a national survey that found 3.8 percent of U.S.
adults reported that they were gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transsexual
(Gallup, 2015)
New commentary that whether an individual is heterosexual, gay, lesbian,
or bisexual, the person cannot be talked out of his or her sexual
orientation (King, 2017. 2018)
Updated statistics on HIV/AIDS in the United States (Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 2018) and around the world (UNAIDS, 2017)
New discussion of a study that found the search for and presence of
meaning was linked to wisdom in emerging adults (Webster & others,
2018)
Updated data on the percentage of full-time and part-time college students
who work, which has slightly decreased in recent years (National Center
for Education Statistics, 2017)
Updated data on the average number of hours U.S. adults work per week
(Saad, 2014)
Updated data from a recent survey that revealed that employers say that
2017 is the best year for recent college graduates to be on the job market
since 2007 (CareerBuilder, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research in which an increase in job strain increased
workers’ insomnia while a decrease in job strain reduced their insomnia
(Halonen & others, 2018)
Description of a recent study that found depression following job loss
predicted increased risk of continued unemployment (Stolove & others,
2017)
Coverage of a study that revealed heavy drinking from 16 to
30 was linked to higher unemployment in middle age (Berg
& others, 2018)
Chapter 12: Socioemotional Development in Early
Adulthood
Inclusion of a longitudinal study from 13 to 72 years of age in which
avoidant attachment declined across the life span and being in a
relationship predicted lower levels of anxious and avoidant attachment
across adulthood (Chopik, Edelstein, & Grimm, 2018)
Description of a research review that concluded attachment anxious
individuals have higher levels of health anxiety (Maunder & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent research review that concluded insecure attachment
was linked to a higher level of social anxiety in adults (Manning &
others, 2017)
Discussion of recent research that found insecure anxious and insecure
avoidant individuals are more likely than securely attached individuals to
engage in risky health behaviors, be more susceptible to physical illness,
and have poorer disease outcomes (Pietromonaco & Beck, 2018)
Updated data on the number of Americans who have tried Internet
matchmaking and gender differences in the categories males and females
lie about in Internet matchmaking (statisticbrain.com, 2017)
Description of recent research on how romantic relationships change in
emerging adulthood, including different characteristics of adolescent and
emerging adult romantic relationships (Lantagne & Furman, 2017)
New section, “Relationship Education for Adolescents and Emerging
Adults,” that examines the increasing number of relationship education
programs for adolescents and emerging adults, describes their main
components, and evaluates their effectiveness (Hawkins, 2018; Simpson,
Lenohardt, & Hawkins, 2018)
Update on the increasing percentage of U.S. individuals 18 and older who
are single (U.S. Census Bureau, 2017)
Updated data on the continued increase in being older before getting
married in the U.S. with the age for men now at 29.5 years and for
women 27.4 years (Livingston, 2017)
Movement of section on gender and friendships from the section on
“Love” to the new section on “Gender and Relationships”
New section, “Cross-Cultural Differences in Romantic Relationships”,
that includes comparisons of collectivist and individualist cultures (Gao,
2016) as well as intriguing comparisons of romantic relationships in
Japan, Argentina, France, and Qatar (Ansari, 2015)
Inclusion of data from the recent Match.com 2017 Singles in America
national poll that describes Millenials’ interest in having sex before a first
date, interest in marrying but taking considerable time to get to know
someone before committing to a serious relationship, and males interest
in having females initiate the first kiss and asking a guy for his phone
number
Updated data on the percentage of U.S. adults who are cohabiting, which
increased to 18 million people in 2016, an increase of 29 percent since
2007 (Stepler, 2017; U.S. Census Bureau, 2016)
Inclusion of recent research indicating that women who cohabited within
the first year of a sexual relationship were less likely to get married than
women who waited more than one year before cohabiting (Sassler,
Michelmore, & Qian, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study in which cohabiting individuals were not as
mentally healthy as their counterparts in committed marital relationships
(Braithwaite & Holt-Lunstad, 2017)
Description of a recent study of long-term cohabitation (more than 3
years) in emerging adulthood that found emotional distress was higher in
long-term cohabitation than in time spent single, with men especially
driving the effect (Menitz, 2018). However, heavy drinking was more
common in time spent single than in long-term cohabitation.
New discussion of the marriage paradox including research showing that
emerging adults may not be abandoning marriage because they don’t like
marriage or are disinterested in it, but are delaying marriage because they
want to position themselves in the best possible way for developing a
healthy marital relationship (Willoughby, Hall, & Goff, 2015;
Willoughby & James, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study of married, divorced, widowed, and single
adults that revealed married individuals had the best cardiovascular
profile, single men the worst (Manfredni & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study in Great Britain that found no differences in
the causes of breakdowns in marriage and cohabitation (Gravnengen &
others, 2017). In this study, “grew apart”, “arguments”,
“unfaithfulness/adultery”, “lack of respect, appreciation”, and “domestic
violence” were the most frequent reasons given for such breakdowns.
Description of a study of individuals one to 16 years into their marriage
that found an increasing trajectory of tension over the course of the
Page xxx
marriage was consistently linked to an eventual divorce (Birditt & others,
2017)
Updated statistics on divorce rates around the world with Russia
continuing to have the highest rate (OECD, 2016)
Coverage of a study that found individuals who were divorced had a
higher risk of having alcohol use disorder (Kendler & others, 2017)
New content indicating that while the divorce rate in first marriages has
declined, the divorce rate of remarriages continues to increase (DeLongis
& Zwicker, 2017)
Updated data on the average age at which U.S. women give birth, which
occurred more frequently in their 30s than 20s in 2016 for the first time
ever, and the average age of a woman giving birth was 27 years of age in
2016 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2017)
New research that found the frequency of sexual intercourse in the second
to fourteenth years of a marriage was important to marital
satisfaction but that a satisfying sex life and a warm
interpersonal relationship were more important (Schoenfeld &
others, 2017)
New main section “Gender Communication, Relationships, and
Classification”
Extensive new content on transgender (Budge & Orovecz, 2018; Budge
& others, 2017)
Discussion of a variety of terms used to describe transgender individuals
New content indicating that it is much more common to have a
transgender identity of being born male but identifying with being a
female than the reverse (Zucker & Kreukels, 2016)
Inclusion of a recent research review that concluded transgender youth
have higher rates of depression, suicide attempts, and eating disorders
than their non-transgender peers (Connolly & others, 2016)
Chapter 13: Physical and Cognitive Development in
Middle Adulthood
Inclusion of a recent research review that found positive subjective time
perceptions were linked to better health and well-being while negative
subjective time perceptions were associated with lower levels of health
and well-being (Gabrain, Dutt, & Wahl, 2017)
Description of a recent study in which undergraduate students were
shown a computer-generated graph of a person identified as a younger
adult, middle-aged adult, or older adult (Kelley, Soborff & Lovaglia,
2017). When asked which person they would choose for a work-related
task, they selected the middle-aged adult most often.
Update on the percentage of adults 40 to 59 years of age classified as
obese (40.2 percent) (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016)
Coverage of recent research in which an increase in weight gain from
early to middle adulthood was linked to an increased risk of major
chronic diseases and unhealthy aging (Zheng & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research that revealed greater intake of fruits and
vegetables was linked to increased bone density in middle-aged and older
adults (Qui & others, 2017)
Discussion of a Chinese study that found men and women who gained an
average of 22 pounds or more from 20 to 45-60 years of age had an
increased risk of hypertension and cholesterol, as well as elevated
triglyceride levels in middle age (Zhou & others, 2018)
Description of a recent study that revealed a healthy diet in adolescence
was linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular disease in middle-aged
women (Dahm & others, 2018)
New coverage of the American Heart Association’s Life’s Simple 7—the
seven factors that people need to optimize to improve their cardiovascular
health
Description of a study in which optimal Life’s Simple 7 at middle age
was linked to better cardiovascular health recovery following a heart
attack later in life (Mok & others, 2018)
Inclusion of a longitudinal study in which increased respiratory fitness
from early adulthood to middle adulthood was linked to less decline in
lung health over time (Berick others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study of young and middle-aged adults that found
females had more sleep problems than males (Rossler & others, 2017).
However, the good news in this study is that a majority of individuals (72
percent) reported that they did not have any sleep disturbances.
New research indicating that perceiving one’s self as feeling older
predicted an increase in sleep difficulties in middle age over time
(Stephan & others, 2017)
New content on the important role of cortisol in stress and health
(Leonard, 2018; Wichmann & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study of men and women from 21 to 55 years of age
in which married individuals had lower cortisol levels than either their
never married or previously married counterparts (Chin & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent cross-cultural study in China that found that Mosuo
women had fewer negative menopausal symptoms and higher self-esteem
that Han Chinese women (Zhang & others, 2016)
Inclusion of the recent position statement of the North American
Menopause Society (2017) regarding the current status of research on
various aspects of hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
Inclusion of a consensus that there is a slight increase in breast cancer for
women taking hormone replacement therapy (American Cancer Society,
2017; www.breastcancer.org, 2017)
Discussion of recent studies and research reviews that indicate
testosterone replacement therapy does not increase the risk of prostate
cancer (Debruyne & others, 2017; Yassin & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study in which TRT-related benefits in quality of
life and sexual function were maintained for 36 months after initial
treatment (Rosen & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study that found the more frequently middle-aged
and older adults had sex, the better their overall cognitive functioning
was, and especially so in working memory and executive function
(Wright, Jenks, & Demeyere, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research on 24- to 93-year-olds that found everyday
problem solving performance increased from early to middle adulthood
but began to show a decline at about 50 years of age (Chen, Hertzog, &
Park, 2017). In this study, fluid intelligence predicted everyday problem
solving performance in young adults, but with increasing age, crystallized
intelligence became a better predictor.
Coverage of a Danish study across 33 years of individuals 20 to 93 years
Page xxxi
of age that found that those who engaged in a light level of
leisure time physical activity lived 2.8 years longer; those
who engaged in a moderate level of leisure time physical
activity lived 4.5 years longer; and those who engaged in a high level of
leisure time physical activity lived 5.5 years longer (Schnohr & others,
2017)
Discussion of a recent study that found spiritual well-being predicted
which heart failure patients would still be alive five years later (Park &
others, 2016)
New research that indicated adults who volunteered had lower resting
pulse rates and their resting pulse rate improved when they were deeply
committed to religion (Krause, Ironson, & Hill, 2017)
Chapter 14: Socioemotional Development in Middle
Adulthood
Discussion of a recent study in which participating in an intergenerational
civic engagement program enhanced older adults’ self-perceptions of
generativity (Grunewald & others, 2016)
Inclusion of recent research that found a higher level of generativity in
middle age was linked to greater wisdom in late adulthood (Ardelt,
Gerlach, & Vaillant, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study of gender differences in coping with stress
that revealed women were more likely than men to seek psychotherapy,
talk to friends about the stress, read a self-help book, take prescription
medication, and engage in comfort eating (Liddon, Kingerlee, & Berry,
2017). In this study, when coping with stress, men were more likely than
women to attend a support group meeting, have sex or use pornography,
try to fix problems themselves, and not admit to having problems.
Description of recent research that found individuals high in openness to
experience have superior cognitive functioning across the life span, have
better health and well-being (Strickhouser, Zell, & Krizan, 2017), and are
more likely to eat fruits and vegetables (Conner & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research that found conscientiousness was linked to
better health and well-being (Strickhouser, Zell, & Krizan, 2017), being
more academically successful in medical school (Sobowale & others,
2018), having a lower risk of Internet addiction (Zhou & others, 2017),
not being as addicted to Instagram (Kircaburun & Griffiths, 2018), having
a lower risk for alcohol addiction (Raketic & others, 2017), and having a
lower risk of dementia (Terracciano & others, 2017)
Coverage of recent research indicating that being optimistic is linked to
having better psychological adjustment (Kolokotroni, Anagnostopoulos,
& Hantzi, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research in which more pessimistic college students
had more anxious mood and stress symptoms (Lau & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study of married couples that revealed the worst
health outcomes occurred when both spouses decreased their optimism
across a four-year period (Chopik, Kim, & Smith, 2018)
Description of a recent study in which lonely individuals who were
optimistic had a lower suicide risk (Chang & others, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent research review in which the personality trait that
changed the most as a result of psychotherapy was emotional stability,
followed by extraversion (Roberts & others, 2017). In this study, the
personality traits of individuals with anxiety disorders changed the most,
those with substance use disorders the least.
New discussion of the increasing divorce rate in middle-aged adults and
the reasons for the increase (Stepler, 2017), as well as the recent labeling
of divorce in 50+- year-old adults as “gray divorce” (Crowley, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study that found the greatest risks for getting
divorce in middle adulthood were a shorter duration of marriage, lower
marital quality, having financial problems, and not owning a home (Lin &
others, 2018). Also in this study, onset of an empty nest, the wife’s or
husband’s retirement, and the wife or husband having a chronic health
condition were not related to risk for divorce in middle adulthood.
Description of a recent Swiss study of middle-aged adults in which single
divorcees were more lonely and less resilient than their married and
remarried counterparts (Knopfli & others, 2017). Also in this study,
single divorcees had the lowest self-reported health.
New commentary that grandparents especially play important roles in
grandchildren’s lives when family crises such as divorce, death, illness,
Page xxxii
abandonment, or poverty occur (Dolbin-McNab & Yancura, 2018)
New content on how grandparents facilitate women’s participation in the
labor force in many countries
Coverage of a recent study of adult grandchildren in which grandparents
provided more frequent emotional support to the grandchildren when
parents were having life problems and more frequent financial support
when parents were unemployed (Huo & others, 2018)
Chapter 15: Physical and Cognitive Development in Late
Adulthood
Update on life expectancy in the United States, which is now at 79 years
of age, including the narrowing gender difference (U.S. Census Bureau,
2018)
Discussion of recent projections for life expectancy in 2030 for 35
developed countries, with the United States increasing in life expectancy
but having one of the lowest projected increases of all countries in the
study (Kontis & others, 2017). In this study, South Korea is expected to
have the highest life expectancy of the 35 countries in 2030, with South
Korean women the first group to break the 90-year barrier with a
projected life expectancy of 90.8 in 2030.
Coverage of a recent study of U.S. and Japanese
centenarians that found in both countries, health resources
(better cognitive function, fewer hearing problems, and
positive daily living activities) were linked to a higher level of well-being
(Nakagawa & others, 2018)
Update on gender differences in the oldest people alive in the world today
with no men in the oldest 25 individuals
Description of recent research confirming that shorter telomere length is
linked to Alzheimer disease (Scarabino & others, 2017)
Updated and expanded coverage of the diseases that are linked to
mitochondrial dysfunction to include cardiovascular disease (Anupama,
Sindhu, & Raghu, 2018), Parkinson disease (Lason, Hanss, & Kruger,
2018), diabetic kidney disease (Forbes & Thorburn, 2018), and impaired
liver functioning (Borrelli, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research in which at-risk overweight and older adults
lost significant weight and improved their mobility considerably by
participating in a community-based weight reduction program (Rejeski &
others, 2017)
Updated information about some diseases that women are more likely to
die from than men are (Ostan & others, 2016)
Inclusion of a recent study of older adults that revealed walking a dog
regularly was associated with better physical health (Curl, Bibbo, &
Johnson, 2017)
Description of a recent study that found a 10-week exercise program
improved the physical (aerobic endurance, agility, and mobility) and
cognitive (selective attention and planning) functioning of elderly nursing
home residents (Pereira & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study in which relative to low physical fitness
individuals, those who increased from low to intermediate or high fitness
were at a lower risk for all-cause mortality (Brawner & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study of frail elderly adults in which a high-
intensity walking intervention reduced their frailty, increased their
walking speed, and improved their mobility (Danilovich, Conroy, &
Hornby, 2017)
Coverage of recent research on older adults that found poorer visual
function was associated with cognitive decline (Monge & Madden, 2016;
Roberts & Allen, 2016) and having fewer social contacts and engaging in
less challenging social/leisure activities (Cimarolli & others, 2017)
New discussion of a recent Japanese study of older adults (mean age: 76
years) in which having had cataract surgery reduced their risk of
developing mild cognitive impairment (Miyata & others, 2018)
In a recent study of 80- to 106-year-olds, there as a substantial increase in
hearing loss in the ninth and then in the tenth decade of life (Wattamwar
& others, 2017). In this study, although hearing loss was universal in the
80- to 106-year-olds, only 59 percent of them wore hearing aids.
New discussion of a recent study of 65-to 85-year-olds that dual sensory
loss in vision and hearing was linked to reduced social participation and
less social support, as well as increased loneliness (Mick & others, 2018)
Coverage of a recent study of elderly adults that found those who had a
dual sensory impairment involving vision and hearing had functional
limitations, experienced cognitive decline, were lonely, and had
communication problems (Davidson & Gutherie, 2018)
New study indicating that older adults with a dual sensory impairment
involving vision and hearing had more depressive symptoms (Han &
others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent research review that concluded older adults have a
lower pain sensitivity but only for lower pain intensities (Lautenbacher &
others, 2017)
New commentary that although decreased pain sensitivity can help older
adults cope with disease and injury, it also can mask injuries and illnesses
that need to be treated
Coverage of a recent study in which a Mediterranean diet reduced the risk
for cardiovascular disease in older adults (Nowson & others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study that revealed long sleep duration predicted
all-cause mortality in individuals 65 years and older (Beydoun & others,
2017)
Description of a recent Chinese study that found older adults who
engaged in a higher level of overall physical activity, leisure-time
exercise, and household activity were less likely to have sleep problems
(Li & others, 2018)
Description of a recent study that found older adults’ lower level of
selective attention was linked to their inferior driving performance
(Venkatesan & others, 2018)
Inclusion of a recent study that found slow processing speed predicted an
increase in older adults’ falls one year later (Davis & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study of older adults that found playing processing
speed games for five sessions a week across four weeks improved their
processing speed (Nouchi & others, 2017)
Description of a recent experimental study that revealed yoga practice
that included postures, breathing, and meditation improved the attention
and information processing of older adults (Gothe, Kramer, & McAuley,
2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found that when older adults regularly
Page xxxiii
engaged in mindfulness mediation, their goal-directed attention improved
(Malinowski & others, 2017)
Description of a recent study that found a mindfulness training program
improved older adults’ explicit memory (Banducci & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that revealed imagery strategy training
improved older adults’ working memory (Borella & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research in which aerobic endurance was linked to
better working memory in older adults (Zettel-Watson & others, 2017)
Discussion of recent research with young, middle-aged, and older adults
that found all three age groups’ working memory improved with working
memory training but that older adults improved less than young adults
with the training (Rhodes & Katz, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study of older adults that found slower
processing speed was associated with unsafe driving (Hotta
& others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent experimental study in which high-intensity aerobic
training was more effective than moderate aerobic training or resistance
training in improving older adults’ processing speed (Coetsee &
Terblanche, 2017)
Description of a recent study in which self-reflective exploratory
processing of difficult life circumstances was linked to a higher level of
wisdom (Westrate & Gluck, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study of older adults in 10 European countries that
revealed improved memory between 2004 and 2013 with the changes
more positive for those who had decreases in cardiovascular diseases and
increases in exercise and educational achievement (Hessel & others,
2018)
New coverage of a recent Australian study that found older adults who
had retired from occupations that involved higher complexity maintained
their cognitive advantage over their counterparts who worked in less
complex occupations (Lane & others, 2017)
New discussion of a recent study of older adults working in low
complexity jobs who experienced novelty in their work (assessed through
recurrent work-task changes) was linked to better processing speed and
working memory (Oltmanns & others, 2017)
Inclusion of recent research revealed that older adults with type 2 diabetes
had greater cognitive impairment than their counterparts who did not
have the disease (Bai & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study that revealed older adults who continued to
work in paid jobs had better physical and cognitive functioning than
retirees (Tan & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found the following were among the most
important motives and preconditions to continue working beyond
retirement age: financial, health, knowledge, and purpose in life (Sewdas
& others, 2017)
Description of a recent research review in which engaging in low or
moderate exercise was linked to improved cognitive functioning in older
adults with chronic diseases (Cai & others, 2017)
Description of recent research in which participating in physical activity
in late adulthood was linked to less cognitive decline (Gow, Pattie, &
Geary, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found fish oil supplementation improved
the working memory of older adults (Boespflug & others, 2016)
New description of a study that revealed cognitive training using virtual
reality-based games with stroke patients improved their attention and
memory (Gamito & others, 2017)
Updated statistics on the percentage of U.S. older adults in different age
groups in the work force, including 2017 data (Mislinski, 2017)
Inclusion of a recent study that revealed baby boomers expect to work
longer than their predecessors from prior generations (Dong & others,
2017)
Updated data (2017) on the percentage of American workers who are
very confident that they will have a comfortable retirement (Greenwald,
Copeland, & VanDerhei, 2017)
Updated data on the number of people in the U.S. who currently have
Alzheimer disease (5.7 million) (Alzheimer’s Association, 2018)
New content on women being more likely to have the APOE4 gene than
men and commentary about the APOE4 gene being the strongest genetic
predictor of late-onset (65 years and older) Alzheimer disease (Dubal &
Rogine, 2017; Giri & others, 2017)
New content on APP, PSEN1, and PSEN2 gene mutations being linked to
the early onset of Alzheimer disease (Carmona, Hardy, & Guerreiro,
2018)
Inclusion of new content on how epigenetic factors might influence
Alzheimer disease including the role of DNA methylation (Kader &
others, 2018; Marioni & others, 2018; Zaghlool & others, 2018)
Update on drugs that have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration to treat Alzheimer disease, now totaling five drugs
(Almeida, 2018)
Chapter 16: Socioemotional Development in Late
Adulthood
Description of a recent study that supports the activity theory of aging: an
activity-based lifestyle was associated with lower levels of depression in
older adults (Juang & others, 2017)
Coverage of a recent study that found a reminiscence intervention
improved the coping skills of older adults (Satorres & others, 2018)
New commentary by Laura Carstensen (2016) that when older adults
focus on emotionally meaningful goals, they are more satisfied with their
lives, feel better, and experience fewer negative emotions
New recommendations on ways that older adults can become more
socially engaged (Sightlines Project, 2016)
Inclusion of a recent study of individuals 22 to 94 years of age that
revealed on days that middle-aged and older adults, as well as individuals
who were less healthy, used more selective optimization with
compensation strategies, they reported having a higher level of happiness
(Teshale & Lachman, 2016)
Inclusion of a recent meta-analysis that concluded emotional experiences
in older adults are more positive than for younger adults (Laureiro-
Martinez, Trujillo, & Unda, 2017). Also, in this review, it was concluded
that older adults focus less on negative events in the past than younger
adults did.
New description of a study that found older adults with a higher level of
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conscientiousness experienced less cognitive decline as they aged
(Luchetti & others, 2016)
In older adults, higher levels of conscientiousness, openness
to experience, agreeableness, and extraversion were linked
to positive emotions, while neuroticism was associated with
negative emotions (Kalbaugh & Huffman, 2017)
New content indicating that individuals who are extraverted and low in
neuroticism are more likely to live longer (Graham & others, 2017)
Discussion of a recent study of 15- to 105-year-old individuals in 29
European countries that revealed younger individuals engaged in age
discrimination more than did older individuals (Bratt & others, 2018)
Updated data on the significant increase in Internet, smartphone, and
social networking use by U.S. older adults (Anderson, 2017)
Coverage of a recent Hong Kong study that found adults 75 years and
older who used smart phones and the Internet to connect with family,
friends, and neighbors had a higher level of psychological well-being than
their counterparts who did not use this information and communicative
technology (Fang & others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study in which partnered older adults were more
likely to receive Social Security, enjoy relatively higher Social Security
benefits, and less likely to live in poverty (Lin, Brown, & Hammersmith,
2017)
Inclusion of a recent study indicating that the longer older adults had been
married, the better their marital quality, owning a home, and being
wealthier described older adults who were less likely to get divorced (Lin
& others, 2018)
New discussion of recent research focused on the health and well-being
of older adult LGBT individuals, with a focus on comparisons of those
who are married, unmarried partnered, and single (Goldsen & others,
2017)
Updated data on the percentage of men and women 65 years and older
who are divorced, which increased dramatically from 1980 to 2015 (U.S.
Census Bureau, 2016)
Updated data on the dramatic increase in older adult men and women
who are now cohabiting (Brown & Wright, 2017)
Coverage of a recent national study of older adults in which among men,
cohabitors’ psychological well-being fared similarly to married men,
better than daters and the unpartnered (Wright & Brown, 2017). In
contrast, there were few differences in psychological well-being by
partnership status of the women.
New discussion of research indicating that middle-aged adults feel more
positive about providing support for their children than for their aging
parents (Birditt & others, 2018)
Description of a recent study that revealed older adults, compared to
younger adults, reported fewer problems with friends, fewer negative
friendship qualities, less frequent contact with friends, and more positive
friendship qualities with a specific friend (Schlosnagle & Strough, 2017)
Expanded discussion of socioemotional selectivity theory to include the
role of a decreasing amount of time to live as an explanation of
prioritizing meaningful relationships when people get old (Moss &
Wilson, 2017)
Updated data on the number of older adults living in poverty, including
the continuing gender difference that a larger percentage of older adult
women live in poverty (U.S. Census Bureau, 2018)
Coverage of a recent 2016 Nielsen survey that found older adults watch a
staggering amount of television—51 hours, 32 minutes per week, far
more than any other age group (Recode, 2016)
Description of a longitudinal study from 13 to 72 years of age in which
attachment anxiety declined in middle aged and older adults (Chopik,
Edelstein, & Grimm, 2018). Also in this study, attachment avoidance
decreased in a linear fashion across the life span. Being in a relationship
was linked with lower attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance. And
men were higher in attachment avoidance throughout the life span.
Inclusion of a recent study in which 18 percent of older adults stated that
they were often or frequently lonely (Due, Sandholt, & Waldorff, 2017)
Extensive revision and updating of the discussion of volunteering by
older adults
Updated data on the percentage of older adults who engage in
volunteering (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016)
Inclusion of recent research on links between volunteering by older adults
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and improved health (Burr & others, 2018; Carr, Kail, & Rowe, 2018),
better cognitive functioning (Prouix & others, 2018), and less loneliness
(Carr & others, 2018)
Expanded and updating of why volunteering by older adults has positive
outcomes for them (Carr, 2018)
Inclusion of recent research indicating that the life-satisfaction of Latino
older adults was higher than for African American and non-Latino older
adults (Zhang, Braun, & Wu, 2017)
Description of a recent study that revealed four factors emerged as best
characterizing successful aging: proactive engagement, wellness
resources, positive spirit, and valued relationships (Lee, Kahana, &
Kahana, 2017)
Chapter 17: Death, Dying, and Grieving
Inclusion of a recent study in which completion of an advanced directive
was associated with a lower probability of receiving life-sustaining
treatment (Yen & others, 2017)
Recent updates on countries that allow assisted suicide (Belgium, Canada,
Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Switzerland)
Update on the increasing number of states that allow assisted suicide—
California, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington, as
well as Washington, DC
New definition of assisted suicide as a key term and clearer distinctions
made between euthanasia, in which the patient self-administers the lethal
medication and is allowed to decide when and where to do
this, and assisted suicide, in which the physician or a third
party administers the lethal medication
Inclusion of a recent Gallup poll in which 69 percent of U.S. adults said
that euthanasia should be legal, 51 percent said that they would consider
ending their own lives if faced with a terminal illness, and 50 percent
reported that physician-assisted suicide is morally acceptable (Swift,
2016)
New content on recent criticisms of the “good death” concept to move
away from focusing on a single event in time to improving people’s last
years and decades of life (Pollock & Seymour; Smith & Periyakoil, 2018)
New research on the percentage of adult bereavement cases that involve
prolonged grief disorder and ages at which this disorder is more likely to
occur (Lundorff & others, 2017)
Inclusion of a 7-year longitudinal study of older adults in which those
experiencing prolonged grief had greater cognitive decline than those
with normal grief (Perez & others, 2018)
Discussion of a recent study that found individuals with complicated grief
had a higher level of the personality trait neuroticism (Goetter & others,
2018)
New research indicating that cognitive behavior therapy reduced
prolonged grief symptoms (Bartl & others, 2018)
Updated statistics on the percentage of widows in the United States
(Administration on Aging, 2015)
Description of a recent cross-cultural study indicating that depression
peaked in the first year of widowhood for both men and women, but that
depression continued to be present in widowed men for 6 to 10 years
post-widowhood (Jadhav & Weir, 2018)
In a recent study, volunteering reduced widowed older adults’ loneliness
(Carr & others, 2018)
Updated data on cremation with an increase to 51.6 deaths followed by
cremation in the United States in 2017 with a projected increase to 57.5
percent in 2022 (Cremation Association of North America, 2018). In
2015 in Canada, cremation occurred following 70.5 percent of deaths
with a projected increase to 75.1 percent in 2022.
Acknowledgments
The development and writing of Essentials of Life-Span Development has
been strongly influenced by a remarkable group of consultants, reviewers,
and adopters.
Expert Consultants
In writing the sixth edition of Essentials of Life-Span Development, I
benefitted considerably from the following leading experts who provided
detailed feedback in their areas of expertise for Life-Span Development,
Seventeenth Edition:
William Hoyer, Syracuse University
Patricia Miller, San Francisco State University
Ross Thompson, University of California–Davis
Karen Fingerman, University of Texas–Austin
John Richards, University of South Carolina
Bonnie Moradi, University of Florida
Sheung-Tak Cheng, Education University of Hong Kong
Karen Rodrigue, University of Texas–Dallas
Applications Contributors
I especially thank the contributors who helped develop the How Would You . .
. ? questions for students in various majors who are taking the life-span
development course:
Michael E. Barber, Santa Fe Community College
Page xxxvi
Maida Berenblatt, Suffolk Community College
Susan A. Greimel, Santa Fe Community College
Russell Isabella, University of Utah
Jean Mandernach, University of Nebraska–Kearney
General Reviewers
I gratefully acknowledge the comments and feedback from instructors around
the nation who have reviewed Essentials of Life-Span Development.
Eileen Achorn, University of Texas–San Antonio
Michael E. Barber, Santa Fe Community College
Gabriel Batarseh, Francis Marion University
Troy E. Beckert, Utah State University
Stefanie Bell, Pikes Peak Community College
Maida Berenblatt, Suffolk Community College
Kathi Bivens, Asheville Buncombe Technical Community
College
Alda Blakeney, Kennesaw State University
Candice L. Branson, Kapiolani Community College
Ken Brewer, Northeast State Technical Community College
Margaret M. Bushong, Liberty University
Krista Carter, Colby Community College
Stewart Cohen, University of Rhode Island
Rock Doddridge, Asheville Buncombe Technical Community College
Laura Duvall, Heartland Community College
Jenni Fauchier, Metro Community College–Omaha
Richard Ferraro, University of North Dakota
Terri Flowerday, University of New Mexico–Albuquerque
Laura Garofoli, Fitchburg State College
Sharon Ghazarian, University of North Carolina—Greensboro
Dan Grangaard, Austin Community College
Rodney J. Grisham, Indian River Community College
Rea Gubler, Southern Utah University
Myra M. Harville, Holmes Community College
Brett Heintz, Delgado Community College
Sandra Hellyer, Butler University
Randy Holley, Liberty University
Debra L. Hollister, Valencia Community College
Rosemary T. Hornack, Meredith College
Alycia Hund, Illinois State University
Rebecca Inkrott, Sinclair Community College–Dayton
Russell Isabella, University of Utah
Alisha Janowsky, Florida Atlantic University
Lisa Judd, Western Technical College
Tim Killian, University of Arkansas–Fayetteville
Shenan Kroupa, Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis
Pat Lefler, Bluegrass Community and Technical College
Jean Mandernach, University of Nebraska–Kearney
Carrie Margolin, Evergreen State College
Michael Jason McCoy, Cape Fear Community College
Carol Miller, Anne Arundel Community College
Gwynn Morris, Meredith College
Ron Mossler, Los Angeles Community College
Bob Pasnak, George Mason University
Curtis D. Proctor-Artz, Wichita State University
Janet Reis, University of Illinois–Urbana
Kimberly Renk, University of Central Florida
Vicki Ritts, St. Louis Community College–Meramec
Jeffrey Sargent, Lee University
James Schork, Elizabethtown Community and Technical College
Jason Scofield, University of Alabama
Christin E. Seifert, Montana State University
Elizabeth Sheehan, Georgia State University
Peggy Skinner, South Plains College
Christopher Stanley, Winston-Salem State University
Wayne Stein, Brevard Community College–Melbourne
Rose Suggett, Southeast Community College
Kevin Sumrall, Montgomery College
Joan Test, Missouri State University
Barbara VanHorn, Indian River Community College
John Wakefield, University of North Alabama
Laura Wasielewski, St. Anselm College
Lois Willoughby, Miami Dade College–Kendall
Paul Wills, Kilgore College
A. Claire Zaborowski, San Jacinto College
Pauline Davey Zeece, University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Design Reviewers
Cheryl Almeida, Johnson and Wales University
Candice L. Branson, Kapiolani Community College
Debra Hollister, Valencia Community College
Alycia Hund, Illinois State University
Jean Mandernach, University of Nebraska–Kearney
Michael Jason Scofield, University of Alabama
Christin Seifert, Montana State University
The McGraw-Hill Education Team
A large number of outstanding professionals at McGraw-Hill Education
helped me to produce this edition of Essentials of Life-Span Development. I
especially want to thank Ryan Treat, Dawn Groundwater, Ann Helgerson,
and A.J. Laferrera for their extensive efforts in developing, publishing, and
marketing this book. Mary Powers, Vicki Malinee, Janet Tilden, and Jennifer
Blankenship were superb in the production and copyediting phases of the
text.
Page 1
©Blend Images/Ariel Skelley/Getty Images
1
Introduction
CHAPTER OUTLINE
The Life-Span Perspective
The Importance of Studying Life-Span Development
Characteristics of the Life-Span Perspective
Contemporary Concerns in Life-Span Development
The Nature of Development
Biological, Cognitive, and Socioemotional Processes
Periods of Development
Conceptions of Age
Developmental Issues
Theories of Development
Psychoanalytic Theories
Cognitive Theories
Behavioral and Social Cognitive Theories
Ethological Theory
Ecological Theory
An Eclectic Theoretical Orientation
Research in Life-Span Development
Methods for Collecting Data
Research Designs
Time Span of Research
Conducting Ethical Research
Stories of Life-Span Development:
How Did Ted Kaczynski Become
Ted Kaczynski and Alice Walker
Become Alice Walker?
Ted Kaczynski sprinted through high school, not bothering with
his junior year and making only passing efforts at social contact.
Off to Harvard at age 16, Kaczynski was a loner during his college
years. One of his roommates at Harvard said that he avoided
Page 2
people by quickly shuffling by them and slamming the door behind
him. After obtaining his Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of
Michigan, Kaczynski became a professor at the University of
California at Berkeley. His colleagues there remember him as
hiding from social interaction—no friends, no allies, no
networking.
After several years at Berkeley, Kaczynski resigned and moved
to a rural area of Montana, where he lived as a hermit in a crude
shack for 25 years. Town residents described him as a bearded
eccentric. Kaczynski traced his own difficulties to growing up as a
genius in a kid’s body and sticking out like a sore thumb in his
surroundings as a child. In 1996, he was arrested and charged as
the notorious Unabomber, America’s most wanted killer. Over the
course of 17 years, Kaczynski had sent 16 mail bombs that left 23
people wounded or maimed and 3 people dead. In 1998, he
pleaded guilty to the offenses and was sentenced to life in prison.
A decade before Kaczynski mailed his first bomb, Alice
Walker spent her days battling racism in Mississippi. She had
recently won her first writing fellowship, but rather than use the
money to follow her dream of moving to Senegal,
Africa, she put herself into the heart and heat of the
civil rights movement. Walker had grown up knowing
the brutal effects of poverty and racism. Born in 1944, she was the
eighth child of Georgia sharecroppers who earned $300 a year.
When Walker was 8, her brother accidentally shot her in the left
eye with a BB gun. Since her parents had no car, it took them a
week to get her to a hospital. By the time she received medical
care, she was blind in that eye, and it had developed a disfiguring
layer of scar tissue. Despite the counts against her, Walker
overcame pain and anger and went on to win a Pulitzer Prize for
her book The Color Purple. She became not only a novelist but
also an essayist, a poet, a short-story writer, and a social activist.
Ted Kaczynski, the convicted Unabomber, traced his difficulties to growing
up as a genius in a kid’s body and not fitting in when he was a child.
(Top) ©Seanna O’Sullivan; (bottom) ©WBBM-TV/AFP/Getty Images
Alice Walker won the Pulitzer Prize for her book The Color Purple. Like
the characters in her book, Walker overcame pain and anger to triumph and
celebrate the human spirit.
(Top) ©AP Images; (bottom) ©Alice Walker
What leads one individual, so full of promise, to commit brutal
acts of violence and another to turn poverty and trauma into a rich
literary harvest? If you have ever wondered why people turn out
the way they do, you have asked yourself the central question we
will explore in this book.
Essentials of Life-Span Development is a window into the
journey of human development—your own and that of every other
member of the human species. Every life is distinct, a new
biography in the world. Examining the shape of life-span
development helps us to understand it better. In this chapter, we
explore what it means to take a life-span perspective on
development, examine the nature of development, and outline how
science helps us to understand it. ■
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The Life-Span Perspective
Each of us develops partly like all other individuals, partly like some other
individuals, and partly like no other individual. Most of the time we notice
the qualities in an individual that make that person unique. But as humans,
we have all traveled some common paths. Each of us—Leonardo da Vinci,
Joan of Arc, George Washington, Martin Luther King, Jr., and you—walked
at about 1 year, engaged in fantasy play as a young child, and became more
independent as a youth. Each of us, if we live long enough, will experience
hearing problems and the death of family members and friends. This is the
general course of our development, the pattern of movement or change that
begins at conception and continues through the human life span.
In this section we explore what is meant by the concept of development
and why the study of life-span development is important. We outline the
main characteristics of the life-span perspective and discuss various
influences on development. In addition, we examine some contemporary
concerns related to life-span development.
The Importance of Studying Life-Span Development
How might you benefit from studying life-span development? Perhaps you
are, or will be, a parent or teacher. If so, responsibility for children is, or will
be, a part of your everyday life. The more you learn about them, the better
you can raise them or teach them. Perhaps you hope to gain some
insight about your own history—as an infant, a child, an adolescent,
or a young adult. Perhaps you want to know more about what your
life will be like as you grow through the adult years—as a middle-aged adult,
or as an adult in old age, for example. Or perhaps you just stumbled across
this course, thinking that it sounded intriguing. Whatever your reasons, you
will discover that the study of life-span development addresses some
provocative questions about who we are, how we came to be this way, and
where our future will take us.
In our exploration of development, we will examine the life span from the
point of conception until the time when life (at least, life as we know it) ends.
You will see yourself as an infant, as a child, and as an adolescent, and you
will learn about how those years influenced the kind of individual you are
today. And you will see yourself as a young adult, as a middle-aged adult,
and as an adult in old age, and you may be motivated to consider how your
experiences will affect your development through the remainder of your adult
years.
Characteristics of the Life-Span Perspective
Growth and development are dramatic during the first two decades of life, but
development is not something that happens only to children and adolescents.
The traditional approach to the study of development emphasizes extensive
change from birth to adolescence (especially during infancy), little or no
change in adulthood, and decline in old age. Yet a great deal of change does
occur in the decades after adolescence. The life-span approach emphasizes
developmental change throughout adulthood as well as childhood (Park &
Festini, 2018; Schaie & Willis, 2016).
Life Expectancy
Recent increases in human life expectancy have contributed to greater interest
in the life-span approach to development. The upper boundary of the human
life span (based on the oldest age documented) is 122 years. The maximum
life span of humans has not changed since the beginning of recorded history.
What has changed is life expectancy, the average number of years that a
person born in a particular year can expect to live. In the twentieth century
alone, life expectancy increased by 30 years, thanks to improvements in
sanitation, nutrition, and medicine (see Figure 1). In 2016, the life expectancy
in the United States was 79 years of age (U.S. Census Bureau, 2017). Today,
for most individuals in developed countries, childhood and adolescence
represent only about one-fourth of their lives.
Figure 1 Human Life Expectancy at Birth from Prehistoric Time to Contemporary
Times
It took 5,000 years to extend human life expectancy from 18 to 41 years of age.
Laura Carstensen (2015, 2016) recently described the challenges and
opportunities involved in this dramatic increase in life expectancy. In her
view, the remarkable increase in the number of people living to old age has
taken place so quickly that science, technology, and behavioral changes have
not kept pace. She proposes that the challenge is to transform a world
constructed mainly for young people into a world that is more compatible and
supportive for the increasing number of people living to 100 and older.
In further commentary, Carstensen (2015, p. 70) remarked that making
this transformation would be no small feat:
. . . parks, transportation systems, staircases, and even hospitals
Page 4
presume that the users have both strength and stamina; suburbs across
the country are built for two parents and their young children, not
single people, multiple generations or elderly people who are not able
to drive. Our education system serves the needs of young children and
young adults and offers little more than recreation for experienced
people.
Indeed, the very conception of work as a full-time endeavor
ending in the early sixties is ill suited for long lives. Arguably
the most troubling aspect of our current perspective on aging is
that we fret about ways that older people lack the qualities of younger people
rather than exploit a growing new resource right before our eyes: citizens
who have deep expertise, emotional balance, and the motivation to make a
difference.
Certainly recent progress has been made in improving the lives of older
adults. In our discussion of late adulthood, you will read about researchers
who are exploring ways to modify the activity of genes related to aging,
methods for improving brain functioning in older people, medical discoveries
for slowing or even reversing the effects of various chronic diseases, and
ways to prepare for a better quality of life when we get old, including
strategies for staying cognitively sharp, maintaining our physical fitness, and
becoming more satisfied with our lives as older adults. But much more
remains to be accomplished, as described earlier by Laura Carstensen (2015,
2016) and others (Adams, 2017; Couch & others, 2017).
Dimensions of the Life-Span Perspective
The belief that development occurs throughout life is central to the life-span
perspective on human development, but this perspective has other
characteristics as well. According to life-span development expert Paul Baltes
(1939–2006), the life-span perspective views development as lifelong,
multidimensional, multidirectional, plastic, multidisciplinary, and contextual,
and as a process that involves growth, maintenance, and regulation of loss
(Baltes, 1987, 2003; Baltes, Lindenberger, & Staudinger, 2006). In this view,
it is important to understand that development is constructed through
biological, sociocultural, and individual factors working together (Baltes,
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Reuter-Lorenz, & Rösler, 2006). Let’s look at each of these characteristics.
Development Is Lifelong In the life-span perspective, early adulthood is
not the endpoint of development; rather, no age period dominates
development. Researchers increasingly study the experiences and
psychological orientations of adults at different points in their lives. Later in
this chapter we describe the age periods of development and their
characteristics.
Development Is Multidimensional Development consists of biological,
cognitive, and socioemotional dimensions. Even within each of those
dimensions, there are many components (Dale & others, 2018; Moss &
Wilson, 2018; Zammit & others, 2018). The cognitive dimension, for
example, includes attention, memory, abstract thinking, speed of processing
information, and social intelligence. At every age, changes occur in every
dimension. Changes in one dimension also affect development in the other
dimensions.
To get an idea of how interactions occur, consider the development of
Ted Kaczynski, the so-called Unabomber discussed at the opening of the
chapter. When he was 6 months old, he was hospitalized with a severe
allergic reaction, and his parents were rarely allowed to visit him. According
to his mother, the previously happy baby was never the same after his
hospital stay. He became withdrawn and unresponsive. As Ted grew up, he
had periodic “shutdowns” accompanied by rage. In his mother’s view, events
that occurred during her son’s infancy warped the development of his mind
and emotions.
Development Is Multidirectional Throughout life, some dimensions or
components of a dimension expand and others shrink (Kuntzmann, 2019;
Mejia & others, 2017; Sternberg & Hagen, 2018; Strandberg, 2019; Yoo &
others, 2017). For example, when one language (such as English) is acquired
early in development, the capacity for acquiring second and third languages
(such as Spanish and Chinese) decreases later in development, especially
after early childhood (Levelt, 1989). During adolescence, as individuals
establish romantic relationships, their relationships with friends
might decrease. During late adulthood, older adults might become
wiser by being able to call on experience to guide their intellectual
decision making (Hayman, Kerse, & Consedine, 2017; Kuntzmann, 2019;
Rakoczy & others, 2018; Thomas & others, 2018), but they perform more
poorly on tasks that require speed in processing information (Salthouse,
2017).
Development Is Plastic Even at 10 years old, Ted Kaczynski was
extraordinarily shy. Was he destined to remain forever uncomfortable with
people? Developmentalists debate how much plasticity people have in
various dimensions at different points in their development (Erickson &
Oberlin, 2017; Kinugawa, 2019; Park & Festini, 2018). Plasticity means the
capacity for change. For example, can you still improve your intellectual
skills when you are in your seventies or eighties? Or might these intellectual
skills be fixed by the time you are in your thirties so that further improvement
is impossible? Researchers have found that the cognitive skills of older adults
can be improved through training and developing better strategies (Calero,
2019; Willis & Belleville, 2016). However, possibly we possess less capacity
for change when we become old (Salthouse, 2017; Shivarama Shetty &
Sajikumar, 2017). The exploration of plasticity and its constraints is a key
element on the contemporary agenda for developmental research (Kinugawa,
2019; Puts & others, 2017; Schaie, 2016; Walker, 2019).
Developmental Science Is Multidisciplinary Psychologists,
sociologists, anthropologists, neuroscientists, and medical researchers all
share an interest in unlocking the mysteries of development through the life
span. How do your heredity and health limit your intelligence? Do
intelligence and social relationships change with age in the same way around
the world? How do families and schools influence intellectual development?
These are examples of research questions that cut across disciplines.
Development Is Contextual All development occurs within a context, or
setting. Contexts include families, schools, peer groups, churches, cities,
neighborhoods, university laboratories, countries, and so on. Each of these
settings is influenced by historical, economic, social, and cultural factors
(Anguiano, 2018; Lubetkin & Jia, 2017; Nair, Roche, & White, 2018).
Contexts, like individuals, change (Matsumoto & Juang, 2017; Taylor,
Widaman, & Robins, 2018). Thus, individuals are changing beings in a
changing world. As a result of these changes, contexts exert three types of
Page 6
influences (Baltes, 2003): (1) normative age-graded influences, (2) normative
history-graded influences, and (3) nonnormative or highly individualized life
events. Each of these types can have a biological or environmental impact on
development.
Normative age-graded influences are similar for individuals in a
particular age group. These influences include biological processes such as
puberty and menopause. They also include sociocultural, environmental
processes such as beginning formal education (usually at about age 6 in most
cultures) and retirement (which takes place during the fifties and sixties in
most cultures).
Normative history-graded influences are common to people of a
particular generation because of historical circumstances (Heo & others,
2018; Thorvaldsson & others, 2017). For example, in their youth American
baby boomers shared the experience of the Cuban missile crisis, the
assassination of John F. Kennedy, and the Beatles invasion. Other examples
of normative history-graded influences include economic, political, and social
upheavals such as the Great Depression in the 1930s, World War II in the
1940s, the civil rights and women’s rights movements of the 1960s and
1970s, the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001, the integration of computers and cell
phones into everyday life during the 1990s, and time spent on social media in
the twenty-first century (Schaie, 2016; Smith & Anderson, 2018). Long-term
changes in the genetic and cultural makeup of a population (due to
immigration or changes in fertility rates) are also part of normative historical
change.
Nonnormative life events are unusual occurrences that have a
major impact on the individual’s life. These events do not happen to
all people, and when they do occur they can influence people in
different ways (Fredriksen-Goldsen & others, 2017; Shah & others, 2018).
Examples include the death of a parent when a child is young, pregnancy in
early adolescence, a fire that destroys a home, winning the lottery, or getting
an unexpected career opportunity.
Nonnormative life events, such as Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico in 2017, are unusual
circumstances that can have a major influence on a person’s development.
©Mario Tama/Getty Images
Development Involves Growth, Maintenance, and Regulation of
Loss Baltes and his colleagues (2006) assert that the mastery of life often
involves conflicts and competition among three goals of human development:
growth, maintenance, and regulation of loss. As individuals age into middle
and late adulthood, the quest to maintain their capacities and to regulate loss
takes center stage away from growth. Thus, a 75-year-old man might aim not
to improve his memory or his golf swing but to maintain his independence
and to continue playing golf. In other chapters, we will discuss these ideas
about maintenance and regulation of loss in greater depth.
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you explain
the importance of
considering
nonnormative life
events when working
with a new client?
Development Is a Co-Construction of Biology, Culture, and the
Individual Development comes from biological, cultural, and individual
factors influencing each other (Baltes, Reuter-Lorenz, & Rösler, 2006; De la
Fuente, 2019). For example, the brain shapes culture, but it is also shaped by
culture and the experiences that individuals have or pursue. In terms of
individual factors, we can go beyond what our genetic inheritance and
environment give us. We can create a unique developmental path by actively
choosing from the environment the things that optimize our lives
(Rathunde & Csikszentmihalyi, 2006).
Contemporary Concerns in Life-Span Development
Pick up a newspaper or magazine and you might see headlines like these:
“Technology Threatens Communication Skills,” “Political Leanings May Be
Written in the Genes,” “Mother Accused of Tossing Children into Bay,”
“Religious Group Protests Transgender Bathrooms,” “FDA Warns About
Side Effects of ADHD Drug,” “Heart Attack Deaths Higher in African
American Patients,” “Test May Predict Alzheimer Disease.” Researchers
using the life-span perspective explore these and many other topics of
contemporary concern. The roles that health and well-being, parenting,
education, sociocultural contexts, and technology play in life-span
development, as well as how social policy is related to these issues, are a
particular focus of this textbook.
Health and Well-Being
Health professionals today recognize the power of lifestyles and
psychological states in health and well-being (Blake, Munoz, & Volpe, 2019;
Donatelle, 2019; Hales, 2018; Rolfes, Pinna, & Whitney, 2018). Clinical
psychologists are among the health professionals who help people improve
their well-being. Read about one clinical psychologist who helps adolescents
and adults improve their developmental outcomes in the Careers in Life-Span
Development profile.
Page 7Careers in life-span development
Gustavo Medrano, Clinical Psychologist
Gustavo Medrano specializes in helping children, adolescents, and
adults of all ages improve their lives when they have problems
involving depression, anxiety, emotion regulation, chronic health
conditions, and life transitions. He works individually with clients and
provides therapy for couples and families. As a native Spanish
speaker, he also provides bicultural and bilingual therapy for clients.
Dr. Medrano is a faculty member at the Family Institute at
Northwestern University. He obtained his undergraduate degree in
psychology at Northwestern and then became a teacher for Teach for
America, which involves a minimum of two years spent teaching in a
high-poverty area. He received his master’s and doctoral degrees in
clinical psychology at the University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee. As a
faculty member at Northwestern, in addition to doing clinical therapy
with clients, he also conducts research with a focus on how family
experiences, especially parenting, influence children’s and
adolescents’ coping and pain.
Gustavo Moreno, a clinical psychologist who often works with Spanish-
speaking clients.
©Avis Mandel Pictures
Parenting and Education
Can two gay men raise a healthy family? Do children suffer if they grow up
in a divorced family? Are U.S. schools failing to teach children how to read
and write and calculate adequately? We hear many questions like these
related to pressures on the contemporary family and the problems of U.S.
schools (Bullard, 2017; Farr & Goldberg, 2018; Lockhart & others, 2017;
Trejos-Castillo & Trevino-Schafer, 2018). In later chapters, we analyze child
care, the effects of divorce, parenting styles, intergenerational relationships,
early childhood education, relationships between childhood poverty and
education, children with disabilities; bilingual education, new educational
efforts to improve lifelong learning, and many other issues related to
parenting and education (Hallahan, Kauffman, & Pullen, 2019; Morrison,
2018; Powell, 2019; Sandler & others, 2017).
©Robert Maust/Photo Agora
Sociocultural Contexts and Diversity
Health, parenting, and education—like development itself—are all shaped by
their sociocultural context (Cummings & others, 2017; Duncan, Magnuson,
& Votruba-Drzal, 2017; Lansford & Banati, 2018; Suárez-Orozco & Suárez-
Orozco, 2018). To analyze this context, four concepts are especially useful:
culture, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender.
Culture encompasses the behavior patterns, beliefs, and all other
products of a particular group of people that are passed on from generation to
generation. Culture results from the interaction of people over many years
(Goldman & others, 2018; Kim & others, 2018; Ragavan & others, 2018).
A cultural group can be as large as the United States or as small as an isolated
Appalachian town. Whatever its size, the group’s culture influences the
behavior of its members (Erez, Cross-cultural studies compare aspects of
Page 82018; Matsumoto & Juang, 2017).two or more cultures. The
comparison provides
information about the degree
to which development is similar, or universal, across cultures, or is instead
culture-specific (Duell & others, 2018; Goldman & others, 2018; Shapka &
others, 2018; Vignoles & others, 2017). For example, in a recent study of 26
countries, individuals in Chile had the highest life satisfaction, those in
Bulgaria and Spain the lowest (Jang & others, 2017).
Asian American and Latino children are the fastest-growing immigrant groups in the
United States. How diverse are the students in your life-span development class? How are
their experiences in growing up likely similar to or different from yours?
©Skip O’Rourke/Zuma Press Inc./Alamy
Doly Akter, age 17, lives in a slum in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where sewers overflow,
garbage rots in the streets, and children are undernourished. Nearly two-thirds of the
women in Bangladesh marry before they are 18. Doly organized a club supported by
UNICEF in which girls go door-to-door to monitor the hygiene habits of households in
their neighborhood, which has led to improved hygiene and health in the families. Also,
her group has managed to stop several child marriages by meeting with parents and
convincing them that it is not in their daughter’s best interests. They emphasize the
importance of staying in school and how this will improve their daughter’s future. Doly
says that the girls in her UNICEF group are far more aware of their rights than their
mothers ever were. (UNICEF, 2007).
Courtesy of Naser Siddique/UNICEF Bangladesh
Ethnicity (the word ethnic comes from the Greek word for “nation”) is
rooted in cultural heritage, nationality, race, religion, and language. African
Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, European
Americans, and Arab Americans are a few examples of broad ethnic groups
in the United States. Diversity exists within each ethnic group (Hou & Kim,
2018; Kim & others, 2018). In recent years, there has been a growing
realization that research on children’s and adolescents’ development needs to
include more children from diverse ethnic groups (Suárez-Orozco, 2018a, b,
c). A special concern is the discrimination and prejudice experienced by
ethnic minority children (Nieto & Bode, 2018). Recent research indicates that
pride in one’s ethnic identity group has positive outcomes (Douglass &
Umana-Taylor, 2017; Umana-Taylor & others, 2018).
Socioeconomic
status (SES) refers to a person’s position within society based on
occupational, educational, and economic characteristics. Socioeconomic
status implies certain inequalities. Differences in the ability to control
resources and to participate in society’s rewards produce unequal
opportunities (Allen & Goldman-Mellor, 2018; Dragoset & others, 2017;
Singh & Mukherjee, 2018).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you explain the
importance of
examining cross-
cultural research when
searching for
developmental trends in
health and wellness?
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you explain the
importance of
examining sociocultural
factors in developmental
research?
Gender, the characteristics of people as females and males, is another
important aspect of sociocultural contexts. Few aspects of our development
are more central to our identity and social relationships than gender (Dettori
& Rao Gupta, 2018; Ellemers, 2018; Liben, 2017). We discuss sociocultural
contexts and diversity in each chapter.
Page 9
The conditions in which many of the world’s women live are a serious
concern (UNICEF, 2018). Inadequate educational opportunities, violence,
and lack of political access are just some of the problems faced by many
women.
Recently, considerable interest has been generated about a category of
gender classification, transgender, a broad term that refers to individuals who
adopt a gender identity that differs from the one assigned to them at birth
(Budge & Orovecz, 2018; Budge & others, 2018; Savin-Williams, 2017). For
example, individuals may have a female body but identify more strongly with
being masculine than being feminine, or have a male body but identify more
strongly with being feminine than being masculine. We will have much more
to say about gender and transgender later in the text.
Social Policy
Social policy is a government’s course of action designed to promote the
welfare of its citizens. Values, economics, and politics all shape a nation’s
social policy. Out of concern that policy makers are doing too little to protect
the well-being of children and older adults, life-span researchers are
increasingly undertaking studies that they hope will lead to effective social
policy (Akinsola & Petersen, 2018; Aspen Institute, 2018; Lerner & others,
2018; Ruck, Peterson-Badali, & Freeman, 2017; Scales & Roehlkepartain,
2018).
Children who grow up in poverty represent a special concern (Duncan,
Magnuson, & Votruba-Drzal, 2017; Koller, Santana, & Raffaelli, 2018;
Suárez-Orozco, 2018a, b, c; Yoshikawa & others, 2017). In 2015, 19.7
percent of U.S. children under 18 years of age were living in families with
incomes below the poverty line, with African American (36 percent) and
Latino (30 percent) families with children having especially high rates of
poverty (Jiang, Granja, & Koball, 2017). This is an increase from 2001 (16
percent) but slightly down from a peak of 23 percent in 1993. As indicated in
Figure 2, one study found that a higher percentage of children in poor
families than in middle-income families were exposed to family turmoil,
separation from a parent, violence, crowding, excessive noise, and poor
housing (Evans & English, 2002).
Figure 2 Exposure to Six Stressors Among Children in Poor and Middle-Income
Families
One study analyzed the exposure to six stressors among children in poor and middle-
income families (Evans & English, 2002). Poor children were much more likely to face
each of these stressors.
Developmental psychologists are seeking ways to help families living in
poverty improve their well-being, and they have offered many suggestions
for improving government policies (Lansford & Banati, 2018; McQueen,
2017; Motti-Stefanidi, 2018; Suárez-Orozco & Suárez-Orozco, 2018). For
example, the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) was designed in
the 1990s primarily to influence the behavior of adults—specifically, to move
adults off welfare rolls and into paid employment. A key element of the
program was its guarantee that adults participating in the program would
receive more income if they worked than if they did not. How did the
increase in income affect their children? A study of the effects of MFIP found
Page 10
that higher incomes of working poor parents were linked with benefits for
their children (Gennetian & Miller, 2002). The children’s achievement in
school improved, and their behavior problems decreased. A current MFIP
study is examining the influence of specific services on low-income families
at risk for child maltreatment and other negative outcomes for children
(Minnesota Family Investment Program, 2009).
There is increasing interest in developing two-generation educational
interventions to improve the academic success of children living in poverty
(Gardner, Brooks-Gunn, & Chase-Lansdale, 2016). For example, a recent
large-scale effort to help children escape from poverty is the Ascend two-
generation educational intervention being conducted by the Aspen Institute
(2013, 2018; King, Chase-Lansdale, & Small, 2015). The focus of the
intervention emphasizes education (increasing postsecondary education for
mothers and improving the quality of their children’s early childhood
education), economic support (housing, transportation, financial education,
health insurance, and food assistance), and social capital (peer support
including friends and neighbors; participation in community and faith-based
organizations; school and work contacts).
Some children triumph over poverty or other adversities. They show
resilience. Think back to the chapter-opening story about Alice Walker. In
spite of racism, poverty, her low socioeconomic status, and a disfiguring eye
injury, she went on to become a successful author and champion for equality.
Are there certain characteristics that make children like Alice Walker
resilient? Are there other characteristics that influence children like Ted
Kaczynski, who despite his intelligence and education, became a killer? After
analyzing research on this topic, Ann Masten and her colleagues (Masten,
2006, 2014, 2015, 2016a, b; 2017; Masten, Burt, &
Coatsworth, 2006; Masten & Kalstabakken, 2018; Masten &
Palmer, 2018; Motti-Stefanidi & Masten, 2017; Narayan &
Masten, 2018; Narayan & others, 2017) have concluded that a number of
individual factors, such as good intellectual functioning, influence resiliency.
In addition, family and extrafamilial contexts of resilient individuals tend to
share certain features. For example, resilient children are likely to have a
close relationship to a caring parent figure and bonds to caring adults outside
the family.
At the other end of the life span, protecting the well-being of older adults
also creates policy issues (Burns, Browning, and Kendig, 2017; Jennifer,
2018; Volkwein-Caplan & Tahmaseb-McConatha, 2018). Key concerns are
escalating health care costs and the access of older adults to adequate health
care (Cunningham, Green, & Braun, 2018; Kane, Saliba, & Hollmann, 2017).
Ann Masten (far right) with a homeless mother and her child who are participating in her
research on resilience. She and her colleagues have found that good parenting skills and
good cognitive skills (especially attention and self-control) improve the likelihood that
children in challenging circumstances will do better when they enter elementary school.
©Dawn Villella Photography
Concerns about the well-being of older adults are heightened by two
facts. First, the number of older adults in the United States is growing
rapidly. Second, many of these older Americans are likely to need society’s
help (Andrew & Meeks, 2018; Conway & others, 2018; Shankar & others,
2017).
Not only is the population of older adults growing in the United States,
but the world’s population of people 60 years and older is projected to
increase from 900 million in 2015 to 2.1 billion in 2050 (United Nations,
2015). The global population of individuals 80 years and older is expected to
triple or quadruple during the same time frame.
Page 11
Technology
A final focus in our exploration of contemporary topics is the recent
dramatic, almost overwhelming increase in technology at all points in the life
span (Lever-Duffy & McDonald, 2018; Vernon, Modecki, & Barber, 2018).
When we consider the mid-1950s when television was introduced into
people’s lives, to the replacement of typewriters with computers that can do
far more than just print words, later to the remarkable invention of the
Internet and then smartphones, followed by the pervasiveness of social media
and even the expanded use of robots that in some areas can do jobs better
than humans can, it is obvious that our way of life has been forever changed
through technological advances.
We will explore many technology topics in this book. Later in this
chapter you will read about the emerging field of developmental robotics in
our discussion of information processing as well as coverage of different
generations, including the current generation of millennials and their
extensive connection with technology. At various points in the book, we
explore such topics as whether babies should be watching television and
videos, especially how these activities might impair language development;
how too much screen time takes away from children’s exercise and increases
their risk for obesity and cardiovascular disease; how many adolescents
spend more time using various media than they do learning in school and
whether multitasking with different technology devices is helpful or harmful
to academic success; as well as how extensively older adults are adapting to
the expanding role of technology in their daily lives, especially since they did
not grow up using much technology.
The Nature of Development
In this section we explore what is meant by developmental processes and
periods, as well as variations in the way age is conceptualized. We examine
some key developmental issues.
If you wanted to describe how and why Alice Walker or Ted Kaczynski
developed during their lifetimes, how would you go about it? A chronicle of
the events in any person’s life can quickly become a confusing and tedious
array of details. Two concepts help provide a framework for describing and
understanding an individual’s development: developmental processes and
periods.
Biological, Cognitive, and Socioemotional Processes
At the beginning of this chapter, we defined development as the pattern of
change that begins at conception and continues through the life span. The
pattern is complex because it is the product of biological, cognitive, and
socioemotional processes.
Biological Processes
Biological processes produce changes in an individual’s physical nature.
Genes inherited from parents, the development of the brain, height and
weight gains, changes in motor skills, nutrition, exercise, the hormonal
changes of puberty, and cardiovascular decline are all examples of biological
processes that affect development.
Cognitive Processes
Cognitive processes refer to changes in an individual’s thinking,
intelligence, and language. Watching a colorful mobile swinging above the
crib, putting together a two-word sentence, memorizing a poem, imagining
what it would be like to be a movie star, and solving a crossword puzzle all
involve cognitive processes.
Socioemotional Processes
Socioemotional processes involve changes in the individual’s relationships
with other people, changes in emotions, and changes in personality. An
infant’s smile in response to a parent’s touch, a toddler’s aggressive attack on
a playmate, a school-age child’s development of assertiveness, an
adolescent’s joy at the senior prom, and the affection of an elderly couple all
reflect the role of socioemotional processes in development.
Page 12
Connecting Biological, Cognitive, and Socioemotional
Processes
Biological, cognitive, and socioemotional processes are inextricably
intertwined (Diamond, 2013). Consider a baby smiling in response to a
parent’s touch. This response depends on biological processes (the physical
nature of touch and responsiveness to it), cognitive processes (the ability to
understand intentional acts), and socioemotional processes (the act of smiling
often reflects a positive emotional feeling, and smiling helps to connect us in
positive ways with other human beings). Nowhere is the connection across
biological, cognitive, and socioemotional processes more obvious than in two
rapidly emerging fields:
developmental cognitive neuroscience, which explores links between
cognitive processes, development, and the brain (Bell & others, 2018;
Lee, Hollarek, & Krabbendam, 2018; Park & Festini, 2018; Reyna &
others, 2018)
developmental social neuroscience, which examines connections between
socioemotional processes, development, and the brain (Dahl & others,
2018; Steinberg & others, 2018; Suleiman & others, 2017; Sullivan &
Wilson, 2018)
In many instances, biological, cognitive, and socioemotional
processes are bidirectional. For example, biological processes can
influence cognitive processes and vice versa. For the most part, we
will study the different processes of development (biological, cognitive, and
socioemotional) in separate chapters, but the human being is an integrated
individual with a mind and body that are interdependent. Thus, in many
places throughout the book we will call attention to the connections between
these processes.
Periods of Development
The interplay of biological, cognitive, and socioemotional processes (see
Figure 3) over time gives rise to the developmental periods of the human life
span. A developmental period is a time frame in a person’s life that is
characterized by certain features. The most widely used classification of
developmental periods involves an eight-period sequence. For the purposes
of organization and understanding, this book is structured according to these
developmental periods.
Figure 3 Processes Involved in Developmental Changes
Biological, cognitive, and socioemotional processes interact as individuals develop.
The prenatal period is the time from conception to birth. It involves
tremendous growth—from a single cell to a complete organism with a brain
and behavioral capabilities—and takes place in approximately a nine-month
period.
Infancy is the developmental period from birth to 18 or 24 months when
humans are extremely dependent on adults. During this period, many
psychological activities—language, symbolic thought, sensorimotor
coordination, and social learning, for example—are just beginning.
Early childhood is the developmental period from the end of infancy to
age 5 or 6. This period is sometimes called the “preschool years.” During this
time, young children learn to become more self-sufficient and to care for
themselves. They also develop school readiness skills, such as the ability to
follow instructions and identify letters, and they spend many hours playing
with peers. First grade typically marks the end of early childhood.
Middle and late childhood is the developmental period from about 6 to 11
Page 13
years of age, approximately corresponding to the elementary school years.
During this period, children master the fundamental skills of reading, writing,
and arithmetic. They are formally exposed to the world outside the family
and to the prevailing culture. Achievement becomes a more central theme of
the child’s world, and self-control increases.
Adolescence encompasses the transition from childhood to early
adulthood, entered at approximately 10 to 12 years of age and ending at 18 to
22 years of age. Adolescence begins with rapid physical changes—dramatic
gains in height and weight, changes in body contour, and the development of
sexual characteristics such as enlargement of the breasts, growth of pubic and
facial hair, and deepening of the voice. At this point in development, the
pursuit of independence and an identity are prominent themes. Thought is
more logical, abstract, and idealistic. More time is spent outside the family.
Recently there has been increased interest in the transition between
adolescence and adulthood, a transition that has been referred to as emerging
adulthood (Arnett, 2016a, b). Emerging adulthood occurs approximately
from 18 to 25 years of age and is a time of considerable exploration and
experimentation, especially in the areas of identity, careers, and lifestyles.
Early adulthood is the developmental period that begins in the late teens
or early twenties and lasts through the thirties. For young adults, this is a time
for establishing personal and economic independence, becoming proficient in
a career, and for many, selecting a mate, learning to live with that person in
an intimate way, starting a family, and rearing children.
Middle adulthood is the developmental period from approximately 40
years of age to about 60. It is a time of expanding personal and social
involvement and responsibility; of assisting the next generation in becoming
competent, mature individuals; and of achieving and maintaining satisfaction
in a career.
Late adulthood is the developmental period that begins in the
sixties or seventies and lasts until death. It is a time of life review,
retirement from the workforce, and adjustment to new social roles
involving decreasing strength and health.
Late adulthood potentially lasts longer than any other period of
development. Because the number of people in this age group has been
increasing dramatically, life-span developmentalists have been paying more
attention to differences within late adulthood (Bangerter & others, 2018;
Orkaby & others, 2018). According to Paul Baltes and Jacqui Smith (2003), a
major change takes place in older adults’ lives as they become the “oldest-
old,” at about 85 years of age. The “young-old” (classified as 65 through 84
in this analysis) have substantial potential for physical and cognitive fitness,
retain much of their cognitive capacity, and can develop strategies to cope
with the gains and losses of aging. In contrast, the oldest-old (85 and older)
show considerable loss in cognitive skills, experience increased chronic
stress, and are more frail (Baltes & Smith, 2003). Nonetheless, considerable
variation exists in how much of their capabilities the oldest-old retain (Mejia
& others, 2017; Park & Festini, 2018; Ribeiro & Araujo, 2019; Robine, 2019;
Salthouse, 2017).
Conceptions of Age
In our description of developmental periods, we attached an approximate age
range to each period. But we also have noted that there are variations in the
capabilities of individuals of the same age, and we have seen how age-related
changes can be exaggerated. How important is age when we try to understand
an individual?
According to some life-span experts, chronological age is not very
relevant to understanding a person’s psychological development (Hoyer &
Roodin, 2009). Chronological age is the number of years that have elapsed
since birth. But time is a crude index of experience, and it does not cause
development. Chronological age, moreover, is not the only way of measuring
age (MacDonald & Stawski, 2016). Just as there are different domains of
development, there are different ways of thinking about age (Fernandez-
Ballesteros, 2019).
Four Types of Age
Age has been conceptualized not just as chronological age but also as
biological age, psychological age, and social age (Hoyer & Roodin, 2009).
Biological age is a person’s age in terms of biological health. Determining
biological age involves knowing the functional capacities of a person’s vital
organs. One person’s vital capacities may be better or worse than those of
others of comparable chronological age. The younger the person’s biological
Page 14
age, the longer the person is expected to live, regardless of chronological age.
A recent study involving 17-year survival rates of 20- to 93-year-old Korean
adults found that death rates were higher among individuals whose biological
age was greater than their chronological age (Yoo & others, 2017).
(Left) Seventy-four year old Barbara Jordan participating in the long jump competition at
a Senior Games in Maine; (right) A sedentary overweight middle-aged man. Even though
Barbara Jordan’s chronological age is older, might her biological age be younger than
the middle-aged man’s?
(Left) ©John Patriquin/Portland Press Herald/Getty Images; (right) ©Owaki-
Kulla/Corbis/Getty Images
Psychological age is an individual’s adaptive capacities
compared with those of other individuals of the same
chronological age. Thus, older adults who continue to learn,
remain flexible, are motivated, think clearly, and have positive personality
traits are engaging in more adaptive behaviors than their chronological age-
mates who do not do these things (Bercovitz, Ngnoumen, & Langer, 2019;
Fisher & others, 2017; Radoczy & others, 2018; Roberts & others, 2017;
Thomas & others, 2018; Westrate & Gluck, 2017). And a recent study found
that a higher level of conscientiousness was protective of cognitive
functioning in older adults (Wilson & others, 2015).
Social age refers to connectedness with others and the social roles
individuals adopt. Individuals who have better social relationships with
others are happier and tend to live longer than individuals who are lonely
(Antonucci & Webster, 2019; Moss & Wilson, 2018).
From a life-span perspective, an overall age profile of an individual
involves not just chronological age but also biological age, psychological
age, and social age. For example, a 70-year-old man (chronological age)
might be in good physical health (biological age) but might be experiencing
memory problems and having trouble coping with the demands placed on
him by his wife’s recent hospitalization (psychological age) and dealing with
a lack of social support (social age).
Three Developmental Patterns of Aging
K. Warner Schaie (2016) recently described three developmental patterns that
provide a portrait of how aging can involve individual variations:
Normal aging characterizes most individuals, for whom psychological
functioning often peaks in early middle age, remains relatively stable
until the late fifties to early sixties, and then shows a modest decline
through the early eighties. However, marked decline can occur as
individuals near death.
Pathological aging characterizes individuals who show greater than
average decline as they age through the adult years. In early old age, they
may have mild cognitive impairment, develop Alzheimer disease later on,
or have a chronic disease that impairs their daily functioning.
Successful aging characterizes individuals whose positive physical,
cognitive, and socioemotional development is maintained longer,
declining later in old age than is the case for most people.
For too long, only the declines that occur in late adulthood were
highlighted, but recently there has been increased interest in the concept of
successful aging (Benetos, 2019; Fernandez-Ballesteros & others, 2019;
Alonzo & Molina, 2019; Tanaka, 2017; Tesch-Romer & Wahl, 2017).
Age and Happiness
Is there a best age to be? An increasing number of studies indicate that at
Page 15
least in the United States adults are happier as they age (Stone & others,
2010). Consider also a U.S. study of approximately 28,000 individuals from
18 to 88 that revealed happiness increased with age (Yang, 2008). For
example, about 33 percent were very happy at 88 years of age compared with
only about 24 percent in their late teens and early twenties. In a recent study
of individuals from 22 to 93 years of age, older adults reported having more
positive emotional experiences than did young adults (English & Carstensen,
2014).
Why might older people report being happier and more satisfied with
their lives than younger people? Despite the increase in physical problems
and losses older adults experience, they are more content with what they have
in their lives, have better relationships with the people who matter to them,
are less pressured to achieve, have more time for leisurely pursuits, and have
many years of experience that may help them adapt to their circumstances
with greater wisdom than younger adults do (Carstensen, 2015, 2016;
Westrate & Gluck, 2017).
Not all studies, though, have found an increase in life satisfaction with
age (Steptoe, Deaton, & Stone, 2015). Some studies indicate that the lowest
levels of life satisfaction are in middle age, especially from 45 to 54 years of
age (OECD, 2014). Other studies have found that life
satisfaction varies across some countries. For example,
research with respondents from the former Soviet Union and
Eastern Europe, as well as those from South American countries, report a
decrease in life satisfaction with advancing age (Deaton, 2008). Further, older
adults in poor health, such as those with cardiovascular disease, chronic lung
disease, and depression, are less satisfied with their lives than are their
healthier older adult counterparts (Wikman, Wardle, & Steptoe, 2011).
Now that you have read about age variations in life satisfaction, think
about how satisfied you are with your life. To help you answer this question,
complete the items in Figure 4, which presents the most widely used measure
in research on life satisfaction (Diener, 2018).
Figure 4 How Satisfied Am I with My Life?
Source: E. Diener, R. A. Emmons, R. J. Larson, & S. Griffin. “The Satisfaction
with Life Scale.” Journal of Personality Assessment, 48, 1985, 71–75.
Developmental Issues
Was Ted Kaczynski born a killer, or did the events in his life turn him into
one? Kaczynski himself thought that his childhood was the root of his
troubles. He said he grew up as a genius in a boy’s body and never fit in with
other children. Did his early experiences determine his later life? Is your own
journey through life marked out ahead of time, or can your experiences
change your path? Are the experiences you have early in your journey more
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important than later ones? Is your journey more like taking an elevator up a
skyscraper with distinct stops along the way or more like a cruise down a
river with smoother ebbs and flows? These questions point to three issues
about the nature of development: the roles played by nature and nurture,
stability and change, and continuity and discontinuity.
Nature and Nurture
The nature-nurture issue concerns the extent to which development is
influenced by nature and by nurture. Nature refers to an organism’s
biological inheritance, nurture to its environmental experiences.
According to those who emphasize the role of nature, just as a sunflower
grows in an orderly way—unless flattened by an unfriendly environment—so
too a human grows in an orderly way. An evolutionary and genetic
foundation produces commonalities in growth and development (Mader &
Windelspecht, 2019; Starr, Evers, & Starr, 2018). We walk before we talk,
speak one word before two words, grow rapidly in infancy and less so in
early childhood, experience a rush of sex hormones in puberty, reach the
peak of our physical strength in late adolescence and early
adulthood, and then physically decline. Proponents of the
importance of nature acknowledge that extreme environments
—those≈that are psychologically barren or hostile—can depress
development. However, they believe that basic growth tendencies are
genetically programmed into humans (Hoefnagels, 2019; Johnson, 2017).
What are some key developmental issues?
©Rubberball/PictureQuest
By contrast, other psychologists emphasize the importance of nurture, or
environmental experiences, in development (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Chen,
Lee, & Chen, 2018; Rubin & Barstead, 2018). Experiences run the gamut
from the individual’s biological environment (nutrition, exercise, medical
care, drugs, and physical accidents) to the social environment (family, peers,
schools, community, media, and culture) (Kansky, Ruzek, & Allen, 2018;
Petersen & others, 2017).
Stability and Change
Is the shy child who hides behind the sofa when visitors arrive destined to
become a wallflower at college dances, or might the child become a sociable,
talkative individual? Is the fun-loving, carefree adolescent bound to have
difficulty holding down a 9-to-5 job as an adult? These questions reflect the
stability-change issue, involving the degree to which early traits and
characteristics persist or change over time.
The roles of early and later experience are an aspect of the stability-
change issue that has long been hotly debated (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018;
Chatterjee & others, 2018). Some argue that warm, nurturant caregiving
during infancy and toddlerhood predicts optimal development later in life
(Cassidy, 2016). The later-experience advocates see children as malleable
throughout development and believe later sensitive caregiving is just as
important as earlier sensitive caregiving (De la Fuente, 2019; Fingerman &
others, 2017; Joling & others, 2018; Sawyer & Patton, 2018; Taylor & others,
2018).
Developmentalists who emphasize change take the more optimistic view
that later experiences can produce change. Recall that in the life-span
perspective, plasticity, the potential for change, exists throughout the life
span (Antonucci & Webster, 2019; Blieszner, 2018; Lovden, Backman, &
Lindenberger, 2017; Oltmanns & others, 2017; Park & Festini, 2018).
Experts such as Paul Baltes (2003) argue that older adults often show less
capacity for learning new things than younger adults do. However, many
older adults continue to be good at applying what they have learned in earlier
times.
Continuity and Discontinuity
When developmental change occurs, is it gradual or abrupt? Think about
your own development for a moment. Did you gradually become the person
you are today? Or did you experience sudden, distinct changes in your
growth? For the most part, developmentalists who emphasize nurture
describe development as a gradual, continuous process. Those who
emphasize nature often describe development as a series of distinct stages.
The continuity-discontinuity issue focuses on the degree to which
development involves either gradual, cumulative change (continuity) or
distinct stages (discontinuity). In terms of continuity, as the oak grows from a
seedling to a giant tree, its development is continuous. Similarly, a child’s
first word, though seemingly an abrupt, discontinuous event, is actually the
result of weeks and months of growth and practice. Puberty might seem
abrupt, but it is a gradual process that occurs over several years.
In terms of discontinuity, as an insect grows from a caterpillar to a
chrysalis to a butterfly, it passes through a sequence of stages in which
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change is qualitatively rather than quantitatively different. Similarly, at some
point a child moves from not being able to think abstractly about the world to
being able to do so. This is a qualitative, discontinuous change in
development rather than a quantitative, continuous change.
Evaluating the Developmental Issues
Developmentalists generally acknowledge that development is not all nature
or all nurture, not all stability or all change, and not all continuity or all
discontinuity. Nature and nurture, stability and change, continuity
and discontinuity characterize development throughout the life
span (Kinugawa, 2019; Lindahl-Jacobsen & Christensen, 2019).
Although most developmentalists do not take extreme positions on these
three important issues, there is spirited debate regarding how strongly
development is influenced by each of these factors (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018;
Antonnucci & Webster, 2019; Halldorsdottir & Binder, 2017; Kalat, 2019;
Moore, 2017).
Theories of Development
How can we answer questions about the roles of nature and nurture, stability
and change, and continuity and discontinuity in development? How can we
determine, for example, whether memory loss in older adults can be
prevented or whether special care can repair the harm inflicted by child
neglect? The scientific method is the best tool we have to answer such
questions (Smith & Davis, 2016).
The scientific method is essentially a four-step process: (1) conceptualize
a process or problem to be studied, (2) collect research information (data), (3)
analyze data, and (4) draw conclusions.
In step 1, when researchers are formulating a problem to study, they often
draw on theories and develop hypotheses. A theory is an interrelated,
coherent set of ideas that helps to explain phenomena and make predictions.
It may suggest hypotheses, which are specific assertions and predictions that
can be tested. For example, a theory on mentoring might state that sustained
support and guidance from an adult makes a difference in the lives of
children from impoverished backgrounds because the mentor gives the
children opportunities to observe and imitate the behavior and strategies of
the mentor.
This section outlines five theoretical orientations to development:
psychoanalytic, cognitive, behavioral and social cognitive, ethological, and
ecological. These theories look at development from different perspectives,
and they disagree about certain aspects of development. But many of their
ideas are complementary, and each contributes an important piece to the life-
span development puzzle. Although the theories disagree about certain
aspects of development, many of their ideas are complementary rather than
contradictory. Together they let us see the total landscape of life-span
development in all its richness.
Psychoanalytic Theories
Psychoanalytic theories describe development primarily in terms of
unconscious (beyond awareness) processes that are heavily colored by
emotion. Psychoanalytic theorists emphasize that behavior is merely a surface
characteristic and that a true understanding of development requires
analyzing the symbolic meanings of behavior and the deep inner workings of
the mind. Psychoanalytic theorists also stress that early experiences with
parents extensively shape development. These characteristics are highlighted
in the main psychoanalytic theory, that of Sigmund Freud (1856–1939).
Freud’s Theory
Freud was a pioneer in the treatment of psychological problems. Based on his
belief that patients who talked about their problems could be restored to
psychological health, Freud developed a technique called psychoanalysis. As
he listened to, probed, and analyzed his patients, he became convinced that
their problems were the result of experiences early in life. He thought that as
children grow up, their focus of pleasure and sexual impulses shifts from the
mouth to the anus and eventually to the genitals. Consequently, he
determined, we pass through five stages of psychosexual development: oral,
anal, phallic, latency, and genital (see Figure 5). Our adult personality, Freud
Page 18
(1917) claimed, is determined by the way we resolve conflicts between
sources of pleasure at each stage and the demands of reality.
Figure 5 Freudian Stages
Because Freud emphasized sexual motivation, his stages of development are known as
psychosexual stages. In his view, if the need for pleasure at any stage is either
undergratified or overgratified, an individual may become fixated, or locked in, at that
stage of development.
Freud’s followers significantly revised his psychoanalytic theory. Many
of today’s psychoanalytic theorists believe that Freud overemphasized sexual
instincts; they place more emphasis on cultural experiences as determinants
of an individual’s development. Unconscious thought remains a central
theme, but conscious thought plays a greater role than Freud envisioned.
Next, we will outline the ideas of an important revisionist of Freud’s theory
—Erik Erikson.
Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory
Erik Erikson recognized Freud’s contributions but believed that Freud
misjudged some important dimensions of human development. For one thing,
Erikson (1950, 1968) said we develop in psychosocial stages, rather than the
psychosexual stages that Freud described. According to Freud, the primary
motivation for human behavior is sexual in nature; according to Erikson,
motivation is social and reflects a desire to affiliate with other people.
According to Freud, our basic personality is shaped in the first five years of
life; according to Erikson, developmental change occurs throughout the life
span. Thus, Freud viewed early experiences as far more important than later
experiences, whereas Erikson emphasized the importance of both early and
later experiences.
Erik Erikson with his wife, Joan, an artist. Erikson generated one of the most important
developmental theories of the twentieth century. Which stage of Erikson’s theory are you
in? Does Erikson’s description of this stage characterize you?
©Jon Erikson/The Image Works
In Erikson’s theory, eight stages of development unfold as we go
through life (see Figure 6). At each stage, a unique developmental task
confronts individuals with a crisis that must be resolved. According to
Erikson, this crisis is not a catastrophe but a turning point marked by both
increased vulnerability and enhanced potential. The more successfully an
individual resolves these crises, the healthier his or her development will be.
Figure 6 Erikson’s Eight Life-Span Stages
Like Freud, Erikson proposed that individuals go through distinct, universal stages of
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development. In terms of the continuity-discontinuity issue, both favor the discontinuity
side of the debate. Notice that the timing of Erikson’s first four stages is similar to that of
Freud’s stages. What are the implications of saying that people go through stages of
development?
Trust versus mistrust is Erikson’s first psychosocial stage, which is
experienced in the first year of life. Trust during infancy sets the stage for a
lifelong expectation that the world will be a good and pleasant place to live.
Autonomy versus shame and doubt is Erikson’s second stage. This stage
occurs in late infancy and toddlerhood (1 to 3 years). After gaining trust in
their caregivers, infants begin to discover that their behavior is their own.
They start to assert their sense of independence or autonomy. They realize
their will. If infants and toddlers are restrained too much or punished too
harshly, they are likely to develop a sense of shame and doubt.
Initiative versus guilt, Erikson’s third stage of development, occurs
during the preschool years. As preschool children encounter a widening
social world, they face new challenges that require active, purposeful,
responsible behavior. Feelings of guilt may arise, though, if the
child is irresponsible and is made to feel too anxious.
Industry versus inferiority is Erikson’s fourth
developmental stage, occurring approximately in the elementary school years.
Children now need to direct their energy toward mastering knowledge and
intellectual skills. The negative outcome is that the child may develop a sense
of inferiority—feeling incompetent and unproductive.
During the adolescent years individuals face finding out who they are,
what they are all about, and where they are going in life. This is Erikson’s
fifth developmental stage, identity versus identity confusion. If adolescents
explore roles in a healthy manner and arrive at a positive path to follow in
life, then they achieve a positive identity; if not, then identity confusion
reigns.
Intimacy versus isolation is Erikson’s sixth developmental stage, which
individuals experience during early adulthood. At this time, individuals face
the developmental task of forming intimate relationships. If young adults
form healthy friendships and an intimate relationship with a partner, intimacy
will be achieved; if not, isolation will result.
Generativity versus stagnation, Erikson’s seventh developmental stage,
occurs during middle adulthood. By generativity, Erikson means primarily a
concern for helping the younger generation to develop and lead useful lives.
The feeling of having done nothing to help the next generation is stagnation.
Integrity versus despair is Erikson’s eighth and final stage of
development, which individuals experience in late adulthood. During this
stage, a person reflects on the past. If the person’s life review reveals a life
well spent, integrity will be achieved; if not, the retrospective glances likely
will yield doubt or gloom—the despair Erikson described.
Evaluating Psychoanalytic Theories
Contributions of psychoanalytic theories like Freud’s and Erikson’s to life-
span development include an emphasis on a developmental framework,
family relationships, and unconscious aspects of the mind. These theories
have been criticized for a lack of scientific support, too much emphasis on
sexual underpinnings, and an image of people that is too negative.
Cognitive Theories
Whereas psychoanalytic theories stress the unconscious, cognitive theories
emphasize conscious thoughts. Three important cognitive theories are
Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory, Vygotsky’s sociocultural cognitive
theory, and information-processing theory. All three focus on the
development of complex thinking skills.
Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Theory
Piaget’s theory states that children go through four stages of cognitive
development as they actively construct their understanding of the world. Two
processes underlie this cognitive construction of the world: organization and
adaptation. To make sense of our world, we organize our experiences. For
example, we separate important ideas from less important ideas, and we
connect one idea to another. In addition to organizing our observations and
experiences, we must adjust to changing environmental demands (Miller,
2015).
Piaget (1954) described four stages in understanding the world (see
Page 20Figure 7). Each stage is age-related and consists of a distinct way
of thinking, a different way of understanding the world. Thus,
according to Piaget, the child’s cognition is qualitatively different
in one stage compared with another. What are Piaget’s four stages of
cognitive development?
Figure 7 Piaget’s Four Stages of Cognitive Development
According to Piaget, how a child thinks—not how much the child knows—determines the
child’s stage of cognitive development.
Left to right ©Stockbyte/Getty Images; ©BananaStock/PunchStock;
©image100/Corbis; ©Purestock/Getty Images
The sensorimotor stage, which lasts from birth to about 2 years of age, is
the first Piagetian stage. In this stage, infants construct an understanding of
the world by coordinating sensory experiences (such as seeing and hearing)
with physical, motor actions—hence the term sensorimotor.
The preoperational stage, which lasts from approximately 2 to 7 years of
age, is Piaget’s second stage. In this stage, children begin to go beyond
simply connecting sensory information with physical action and are now able
to represent the world with words, images, and drawings. However,
according to Piaget, preschool children still lack the ability to perform what
he calls operations, which are internalized mental actions that allow children
to do mentally what they previously could only do physically. For example, if
you imagine putting two sticks together to see whether they would be as long
as another stick, without actually moving the sticks, you are performing a
concrete operation.
Jean Piaget, the famous Swiss developmental psychologist, changed the way we think
about the development of children’s minds. What are some key ideas in Piaget’s theory?
©Yves DeBraine/BlackStar/Stock Photo
The concrete operational stage, which lasts from approximately 7 to 11
years of age, is the third Piagetian stage. In this stage, children can perform
operations that involve objects, and they can reason logically about specific
or concrete examples. Concrete operational thinkers, however, cannot
imagine the steps necessary to complete an algebraic equation because doing
so would require a level of thinking that is too abstract for this stage of
development.
The formal operational stage, which appears between the ages of 11 and
15 and continues through adulthood, is Piaget’s fourth and final stage. In this
stage, individuals move beyond concrete experiences and think in abstract
and more logical terms. As part of thinking more abstractly, adolescents
Page 21
develop images of ideal circumstances. They might think about what an ideal
parent is like and compare their parents to this ideal standard.
They begin to entertain possibilities for the future and are
fascinated with what they can become. In solving problems,
they become more systematic, developing hypotheses about why something
is happening the way it is and then testing these hypotheses. We will examine
Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory further in other chapters.
Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Cognitive Theory
Like Piaget, the Russian developmentalist Lev Vygotsky (1896–1934)
reasoned that children actively construct their knowledge. However,
Vygotsky (1962) gave social interaction and culture far more important roles
in cognitive development than Piaget did.
Vygotsky’s theory is a sociocultural cognitive theory that emphasizes
how culture and social interaction guide cognitive development. Vygotsky
portrayed the child’s development as inseparable from social and cultural
activities (Daniels, 2017). He stressed that cognitive development involves
learning to use the inventions of society, such as language, mathematical
systems, and memory strategies. Thus, in one culture children might learn to
count with the help of a computer; in another they might learn by using
beads. According to Vygotsky, children’s social interaction with more-skilled
adults and peers is indispensable to their cognitive development (Holzman,
2017). Through this interaction, they learn to use the tools that will help them
adapt and be successful in their culture. Later we will examine ideas about
learning and teaching that are based on Vygotsky’s theory.
Lev Vygotsky was born the same year as Piaget, but he died much earlier, at the age of
37. There is considerable interest today in Vygotsky’s sociocultural cognitive theory of
child development. What are some key characteristics of Vygotsky’s theory?
©A.R. Lauria / Dr. Michael Cole, Laboratory of Human Cognition, University of
California, San Diego
Information-Processing Theory
Information-processing theory emphasizes that individuals manipulate
information, monitor it, and strategize about it. Unlike Piaget’s theory but
like Vygotsky’s theory, information-processing theory does not describe
development as stage-like. Instead, according to this theory individuals
develop a gradually increasing capacity for processing information, which
allows them to acquire increasingly complex knowledge and skills
(Chevalier, Dauvier, & Blaye, 2018; Goldstein, 2019).
Robert Siegler (2006, 2017), a leading expert on children’s information
processing, states that thinking is information processing. In other words,
when individuals perceive, encode, represent, store, and retrieve information,
they are thinking. Siegler and his colleagues (Braithwaite & Siegler, 2018a,
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b; Siegler & Braithwaite, 2017; Siegler & Lortie-Forgues, 2017) emphasize
that an important aspect of development is learning good strategies for
processing information. For example, becoming a better reader might involve
learning to monitor the key themes of the material being read.
Siegler (2006, 2017) also argues that the best way to understand how
children learn is to observe them while they are learning. He emphasizes the
importance of using the microgenetic method to obtain detailed information
about processing mechanisms as they are occurring moment to moment.
Siegler concludes that most research methods indirectly assess cognitive
change, being more like snapshots than movies. The microgenetic method
seeks to discover not just what children know but the cognitive processes
involved in how they acquired the knowledge (Miller, 2015). A number of
microgenetic studies have focused on a specific aspect of academic learning,
such as how children learn whole number arithmetic, fractions, and other
areas of math (Braithwaite & Siegler, 2018a, b; Siegler & Braithwaite, 2017;
Siegler & Lorte-Forgues, 2017).
The information processing approach often uses the computer as an
analogy to help explain the connection between cognition and the brain
(Radvansky & Ashcraft, 2018) (see Figure 8). The physical
brain is described as the computer’s hardware, and cognition as
its software. In this analogy, the sensory and perceptual
systems provide an “input channel,” similar to the way data are entered into
the computer. As input (information) comes into the mind, mental processes,
or operations, act on it, just as the computer’s software acts on the data. The
transformed input generates information that remains in memory much in the
way a computer stores what it has worked on. Finally, the information is
retrieved from memory and “printed out” or “displayed” (so to speak) as an
observable response.
Figure 8 Comparing the Information Processing of Humans and Computers
Psychologists who study cognition often use a computer analogy to explain how humans
process information. The brain is analogous to the computer’s hardware and cognition is
analogous to the computer’s software.
©Creatas/PictureQuest
Computers provide a logical and concrete, but oversimplified, model of
the mind’s processing of information. Inanimate computers and human brains
function quite differently in some respects. For example, most computers
receive information from a human who has already coded the information
and removed much of its ambiguity. In contrast, each brain cell, or neuron,
can respond to ambiguous information transmitted through sensory receptors
such as the eyes and ears.
Computers can do some things better than humans. For instance,
computers can perform complex numerical calculations much faster and more
accurately than humans could ever hope to. Computers can also apply and
follow rules more consistently and with fewer errors than humans and can
Page 23
represent complex mathematical patterns better than humans.
Still, the brain’s extraordinary capabilities will probably not be mimicked
completely by computers at any time in the near future (Sternberg, 2017). For
example, although a computer can improve its ability to recognize patterns or
use rules of thumb to make decisions, it does not have the means to develop
new learning goals. Furthermore, the human mind is aware of itself; the
computer is not. Indeed, no computer is likely to approach the richness of
human consciousness.
Nonetheless, the computer’s role in cognitive and developmental
psychology continues to increase. An entire scientific field called artificial
intelligence (AI) focuses on creating machines capable of performing
activities that require intelligence when they are done by people. And a new
field titled developmental robotics is emerging that examines various
developmental topics and issues using robots, such as motor
development, perceptual development, information processing,
and language development (Faghihi & Moustafa, 2017;
Morse & Cangelosi, 2017). The hope is to build robots that are as much like
humans as possible and in doing so to better understand how humans think
and develop (Vujovic & others, 2017; Wu & others, 2017).
Evaluating Cognitive Theories
Contributions of cognitive theories include a positive view of development
and an emphasis on the active construction of understanding. Criticisms
include skepticism about the pureness of Piaget’s stages and a belief that too
little attention is paid to individual variations.
Above is the humanoid robot iCub created by the Italian Institute of Technology to study
such aspects of children’s development as perception, cognition, and motor development.
In this situation, the robot, the size of a 3.5 year old child, is catching a ball. This robot is
being used by more than 20 laboratories worldwide and has 53 motors that move the head,
arms and hands, waist, and legs. It also can see and hear, as well as having the sense of
proprioception (body configuration) and movement (using gyroscopes).
©Marco Destefanis/Pacific Press/Sipa/Newscom
Behavioral and Social Cognitive Theories
Behavioral and social cognitive theories hold that development can be
described in terms of behaviors learned through interactions with our
surroundings. Behaviorism essentially holds that we can study scientifically
only what can be directly observed and measured. Out of the behavioral
tradition grew the belief that development is observable behavior that can be
learned through experience with the environment (Maag, 2018). In terms of
the continuity-discontinuity issue discussed earlier in this chapter, the
behavioral and social cognitive theories emphasize continuity in development
and argue that development does not occur in stage-like fashion. Let’s
explore two versions of behaviorism: Skinner’s operant conditioning and
Bandura’s social cognitive theory.
Skinner’s Operant Conditioning
According to B. F. Skinner (1904–1990), through operant conditioning the
Page 24
consequences of a behavior produce changes in the probability of the
behavior’s recurrence. A behavior followed by a rewarding stimulus is more
likely to recur, whereas a behavior followed by a punishing stimulus is less
likely to recur. For example, when an adult smiles at a child after the child
has done something, the child is more likely to engage in that behavior again
than if the adult gives the child a disapproving look.
In Skinner’s (1938) view, such rewards and punishments shape
development. For Skinner the key aspect of development is behavior, not
thoughts and feelings. He emphasized that development consists of the
pattern of behavioral changes that are brought about by rewards and
punishments. For example, Skinner would say that shy people learned to be
shy as a result of experiences they had while growing up. It follows that
modifications to an environment can help a shy person become more socially
oriented.
Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory
Some psychologists agree with the behaviorists’ notion that development is
learned and is influenced strongly by environmental interactions. However,
unlike Skinner, they also see cognition as important in understanding
development. Social cognitive theory holds that behavior, environment, and
person/cognitive factors are the key factors in development.
American psychologist Albert Bandura (born in 1925) is the leading
architect of social cognitive theory. Bandura (1986, 2004, 2010a, b, 2012,
2015) emphasizes that cognitive processes have important links with the
environment and behavior. His early research program focused heavily on
observational learning (also called imitation or modeling), which is learning
that occurs through observing what others do. For example, a
young boy might observe his father yelling in anger and
treating other people with hostility; and then later with his
peers, the young boy acts very aggressively, showing the same behavioral
characteristics as his father. Social cognitive theorists stress that people
acquire a wide range of behaviors, thoughts, and feelings through observing
others’ behavior and that these observations form an important part of life-
span development.
Albert Bandura is one of the leading architects of social cognitive theory. How does
Bandura’s theory differ from Skinner’s?
©Dr. Albert Bandura
What is cognitive about observational learning in Bandura’s view? He
proposes that people cognitively represent the behavior of others and then
sometimes adopt this behavior themselves.
Bandura’s (2004, 2010a, b, 2012, 2015) most recent model of learning
and development includes three elements: behavior, the person/cognition, and
the environment. An individual’s confidence in being able to control his or
her success is an example of a person factor; strategies for achieving success
are an example of a cognitive factor. As shown in Figure 9, influences
from behavior, person/cognition, and environment operate interactively.
Page 25
Figure 9 Bandura’s Social Cognitive Model
The arrows illustrate how relations between behavior, person/cognition, and environment
are reciprocal rather than one-way. Person/cognition refers to cognitive processes (for
example, thinking and planning) and personal characteristics (for example, believing that
you can control your experiences).
Evaluating Behavioral and Social Cognitive Theories
Contributions of the behavioral and social cognitive theories include an
emphasis on scientific research and environmental determinants of behavior.
These theories have been criticized for placing too little emphasis on
cognition (Skinner) and giving inadequate attention to developmental
changes.
Ethological Theory
Ethology is the study of the behavior of animals in their natural habitat.
Ethological theory stresses that behavior is strongly influenced by biology, is
tied to evolution, and is characterized by critical or sensitive periods
(Bateson, 2015). These are specific time frames during which, according to
ethologists, the presence or absence of certain experiences has a long-lasting
influence on individuals.
Lorenz’s Research with Greylag Geese
European zoologist Konrad Lorenz (1903–1989) helped bring ethology to
prominence. In his best-known research, Lorenz (1965) studied the behavior
of greylag geese, which follow their mother as soon as they hatch.
Lorenz separated the eggs laid by one goose into two groups. One
group he returned to the goose to be hatched by her. The other
group was hatched in an incubator. The goslings in the first group performed
as predicted. They followed their mother as soon as they hatched. However,
those in the second group, which saw Lorenz when they first hatched,
followed him everywhere as though he were their mother. Lorenz marked the
goslings and then placed both groups under a box. Mother goose and
“mother” Lorenz stood aside as the box was lifted. Each group of goslings
went directly to its “mother.” Lorenz called this process imprinting—the
rapid, innate learning that involves attachment to the first moving object seen.
Konrad Lorenz, a pioneering student of animal behavior, is followed through the water by
three imprinted greylag geese. Describe Lorenz’s experiment with the geese. Do you think
his experiment would have the same results with human babies? Explain.
©Nina Leen/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
John Bowlby (1969, 1989) illustrated an important application of
ethological theory to human development. Bowlby stressed that attachment to
a caregiver over the first year of life has important consequences throughout
the life span. In his view, if this attachment is positive and secure, the
individual will likely develop positively in childhood and adulthood. If the
attachment is negative and insecure, development will likely not be optimal.
Later we will explore the concept of infant attachment in much greater detail.
In Lorenz’s view, imprinting needs to take place at a specific, very early
time in the life of the animal, or else it will not take place. This point in time
is called a critical period. A related concept is that of a sensitive period, and
an example is the time during infancy when, according to Bowlby,
attachment should occur in order to promote optimal development of social
relationships.
Another theory that emphasizes biological foundations of development—
evolutionary psychology—is presented in the chapter on “Biological
Beginnings,” along with views on the role of heredity in development
(Bjorklund, 2018; Lewis & others, 2017; Lickliter, 2018). In addition, we
examine a number of biological theories of aging in the chapter on “Physical
and Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood” (Falandry, 2019; Jabeen &
others, 2018; Jeremic & others, 2018; Kauppila, Kauppila, & Larsson, 2017;
Toupance & Benetos, 2019).
Evaluating Ethological Theory
Contributions of ethological theory include a focus on the biological and
evolutionary basis of development, and the use of careful observations in
naturalistic settings. Criticisms include a belief that it places too much
emphasis on biological foundations and that the concept of a critical and
sensitive period might be too rigid.
Ecological Theory
While ethological theory stresses biological factors, ecological theory
emphasizes environmental factors. One ecological theory that has important
implications for understanding life-span development was created by Urie
Bronfenbrenner (1917–2005).
Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory (1986, 2004; Bronfenbrenner &
Morris, 2006) holds that development reflects the influence of several
environmental systems. The theory identifies five environmental systems:
microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem (see
Figure 10).
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Figure 10 Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory of Development
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory consists of five environmental systems: microsystem,
mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem.
The microsystem is the setting in which the individual lives.
These contexts include the person’s family, peers, school, and
neighborhood. It is in the microsystem that the most direct
interactions with social agents take place—with parents, peers, and teachers,
for example. The individual is not a passive recipient of experiences in these
settings, but someone who helps to construct the settings.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
might you explain a
student’s chronic failure
to complete homework
from the mesosystem
level? From the
exosystem level?
The mesosystem involves relations between microsystems or connections
between contexts. Examples are the relation of family experiences to school
experiences, school experiences to church experiences, and family
experiences to peer experiences. For example, children whose parents have
rejected them may have difficulty developing positive relations with teachers.
Urie Bronfenbrenner developed ecological theory, a perspective that is receiving
increased attention today. His theory emphasizes the importance of both micro and macro
dimensions of the environment in which the child lives.
©Cornell University
The exosystem consists of links between a social setting in which the
individual does not have an active role and the individual’s immediate
context. For example, a husband’s or child’s experience at home may be
influenced by a mother’s experiences at work. The mother might receive a
promotion that requires more travel, which might increase conflict with the
husband and change patterns of interaction with the child.
The macrosystem involves the culture in which individuals live.
Remember from earlier in the chapter that culture refers to the behavior
patterns, beliefs, and all other products of a group of people that are passed
on from generation to generation. Remember also that cross-cultural studies
—the comparison of one culture with one or more other cultures—provide
information about the generality of development.
The chronosystem consists of the patterning of environmental events and
transitions over the life course, as well as sociohistorical circumstances. For
example, divorce is one transition. Researchers have found that the negative
effects of divorce on children often peak in the first year after the divorce
(Hetherington, 2006). By two years after the divorce, family interaction has
become more stable. As an example of sociohistorical circumstances,
consider how the opportunities for women to pursue a career have increased
since the 1960s.
Responding to growing interest in biological contributions to
development, Bronfenbrenner (2004) added biological influences to his
theory and relabeled it as a bioecological theory. Nonetheless, it is still
dominated by ecological, environmental contexts (Gauvain, 2016; Golinkoff
& others, 2017).
Evaluating Ecological Theory
Contributions of ecological theory include its systematic examination of
macro and micro dimensions of environmental systems and its attention to
connections between environmental systems. A further contribution of
Bronfenbrenner’s theory is its emphasis on a range of social contexts beyond
the family, such as peer relations, neighborhood, religious, school, and
workplace environments, as influential in children’s and adolescents’
development (Cross, 2017). The theory has been criticized for giving
inadequate attention to biological factors, as well as placing too little
emphasis on cognitive factors.
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An Eclectic Theoretical Orientation
No single theory described in this chapter can explain entirely the rich
complexity of life-span development, but each has contributed to our
understanding of development. Psychoanalytic theory highlights the
importance of the unconscious mind. Erikson’s theory best describes the
changes that occur in adult development. Piaget’s, Vygotsky’s, and the
information-processing views provide the most complete
description of cognitive development. The behavioral and social
cognitive and ecological theories have been the most adept at
examining the environmental determinants of development. The ethological
theories have drawn attention to biology’s role and the importance of
sensitive periods in development.
In short, although theories are helpful guides, relying on a single theory to
explain development is probably a mistake. Instead, we will take an eclectic
theoretical orientation, which does not follow any one theoretical approach
but rather presents what are considered the best features of each theory. In
this way, it represents the study of development as it actually exists—with
different theorists making different assumptions, stressing different problems,
and using different strategies to discover information. Figure 11 compares the
main theoretical perspectives in terms of how they view important issues in
life-span development.
Figure 11 Summary of Theories and Issues in Life-Span Development
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Research in Life-Span Development
How do scholars and researchers with an eclectic orientation determine that
one theory is somehow better than a different theory? The scientific method
discussed earlier in this chapter provides a guide. Through scientific research,
theories are tested and refined (Gravetter & Forzano, 2019; Smetana, 2018;
Stanovich, 2019).
Generally, research in life-span development is designed to test
hypotheses, which may be derived from the theories just described. Through
research, theories are modified to reflect new data, and occasionally new
theories arise. How are data about life-span development collected? What
types of research designs are used to study life-span development? And what
are some ethical considerations in conducting research on life-span
development?
Methods for Collecting Data
Whether we are interested in studying attachment in infants, the cognitive
skills of children, or social relationships in older adults, we can choose from
several ways of collecting data (Salkind, 2017). Here we outline the measures
most often used, beginning with observation.
Observation
Scientific observation requires an important set of skills (Stanovich, 2019).
For observations to be effective, they must be systematic. We need to have
some idea of what we are looking for. We have to know whom we are
observing, when and where we will observe, how the observations will be
made, and how they will be recorded.
Where should we make our observations? We have two choices: the
laboratory and the everyday world.
What are some important strategies in conducting observational research with children?
©Charles Fox/Philadelphia Inquirer/MCT/Landov
When we observe scientifically, we often need to control certain factors
that determine behavior but are not the focus of our inquiry (Ary & others,
2019; Leary, 2017). For this reason, some research in life-span development
is conducted in a laboratory, a controlled setting where many of the complex
factors of the “real world” are absent. For example, suppose you want to
observe how children react when they see other people behaving
aggressively. If you observe children in their homes or schools, you have no
control over how much aggression the children observe, what kind of
aggression they see, which people they see acting aggressively, or how other
people treat the children. In contrast, if you observe the children in a
laboratory, you can control these and other factors and therefore have more
confidence about how to interpret your observations.
Laboratory research does have some drawbacks, however, including the
following concerns: (1) it is almost impossible to conduct research without
the participants’ knowing they are being studied; (2) the laboratory setting is
unnatural and therefore can cause the participants to behave unnaturally; (3)
people who are willing to come to a university laboratory may not fairly
represent groups from diverse cultural backgrounds; (4) people who are
unfamiliar with university settings, and with the idea of “helping science,”
may be intimidated by the laboratory setting.
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Naturalistic observation provides insights that we sometimes cannot
attain in the laboratory (Babbie, 2017). Naturalistic observation means
observing behavior in real-world settings and making no effort to manipulate
or control the situation. Life-span researchers conduct naturalistic
observations at sporting events, child-care centers, work settings, malls, and
other places people live in and frequent.
Naturalistic observation was used in one study that focused on
conversations in a children’s science museum (Crowley & others, 2001).
When visiting exhibits at the museum with their children, parents were more
than three times as likely to engage boys than girls in explanatory talk. The
gender difference occurred regardless of whether the father, the mother, or
both parents were with the child, although the gender difference was greatest
for fathers’ science explanations to sons and daughters. This finding suggests
a gender bias that encourages boys more than girls to be interested in science.
Survey and Interview
Sometimes the best and quickest way to get information about people is to
ask them for it. One technique is to interview them directly. A related method
is administering a survey (sometimes referred to as a questionnaire)
consisting of a standard set of questions designed to obtain people’s self-
reported attitudes or beliefs about a particular topic. Surveys are especially
useful when information from many people is needed (Ary & others, 2019;
Henslin, 2017). In a good survey, the questions are clear and unbiased,
allowing respondents to answer unambiguously.
Surveys and interviews can be used to study topics ranging
from religious beliefs to sexual habits to attitudes about gun
control to beliefs about how to improve schools. Surveys and
interviews may be conducted in person, over the telephone, by mail, and over
the Internet.
One problem with surveys and interviews is the tendency of participants
to answer questions in a way that they think is socially acceptable or
desirable rather than to say what they truly think or feel. For example, on a
survey or in an interview some individuals might say that they do not take
drugs even though they do.
Standardized Test
A standardized test has uniform procedures for administration and scoring.
Many standardized tests allow performance comparisons; they provide
information about individual differences among people (Kaplan & Saccuzzo,
2018). One example is the Stanford-Binet intelligence test, which is
discussed in detail later. Your score on the Stanford-Binet test tells you how
your performance compares with that of thousands of other people who have
taken the test.
One criticism of standardized tests is that they assume a person’s
behavior is consistent and stable, yet personality and intelligence—two
primary targets of standardized testing—can vary with the situation. For
example, a person may perform poorly on a standardized intelligence test in
an office setting but score much higher at home, where he or she is less
anxious.
Case Study
A case study is an in-depth look at a single individual. Case studies are
performed mainly by mental health professionals when, for either practical or
ethical reasons, the unique aspects of an individual’s life cannot be duplicated
and tested in other individuals. A case study provides information about one
person’s experiences; it may focus on nearly any aspect of the subject’s life
that helps the researcher understand the person’s mind, behavior, or other
attributes. A researcher may gather information for a case study from
interviews and medical records. In later chapters we discuss vivid case
studies, such as that of Michael Rehbein, who had much of the left side of his
brain removed at 7 years of age to end severe epileptic seizures.
A case study can provide a dramatic, in-depth portrayal of an individual’s
life, but we must be cautious when generalizing from this information. The
subject of a case study is unique, with a genetic makeup and personal history
that no one else shares. In addition, case studies involve judgments of
unknown reliability. Researchers who conduct case studies rarely check to
see whether other professionals agree with their observations or findings.
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Mahatma Gandhi was the spiritual leader of India in the mid-twentieth century. Erik
Erikson conducted an extensive case study of Gandhi’s life to determine what contributed
to his identity development. What are some limitations of the case study approach?
©Bettmann/Getty Images
Physiological Measures
Researchers are increasingly using physiological measures when they study
development at different points in the life span (Bell & others, 2018; Freberg,
2019; Suleiman & others, 2017; Steinberg & others, 2018). A physiological
measure that is increasingly being used is neuroimaging, especially
functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), in which electromagnetic
waves are used to construct images of a person’s brain tissue and biochemical
activity (Miller & others, 2018; Park & Festini, 2018; Sullivan & Wilson,
2018). Heart rate has been used as an indicator of infants’ and
children’s development of perception, attention, and memory
(Billeci & others, 2018). Further, heart rate has been used as an
index of different aspects of emotional development, such as stress, anxiety,
and depression (Amole & others, 2017).
Cortisol is a hormone produced by the adrenal gland that is linked to the
body’s stress level and has been measured in studies of temperament,
emotional reactivity, mood, peer relations, and child psychopathology
(Bangerter & others, 2018; Jacoby & others, 2016). As puberty unfolds, the
blood levels of certain hormones increase. To determine the nature of these
hormonal changes, researchers analyze blood samples from adolescent
volunteers (Ji & others, 2016).
Sophisticated eye-tracking equipment is now being used to provide more
detailed information about infants’ perception (Boardman & Fletcher-
Watson, 2017; van Renswoude & others, 2018), attention (Meng, Uto, &
Hashiya, 2017), face processing (Chhaya & others, 2018), autism (Falck-
Ytter & others, 2018; Finke, Wilkinson, & Hickerson, 2017), and preterm
birth effects on language development (Loi & others, 2017).
Yet another dramatic change in physiological methods is the
advancement in methods to assess the actual units of hereditary information
—genes—in studies of biological influences on development (Falandry,
2019; Lai & others, 2017; Toupance & Benetos, 2019; Xing & others, 2018).
For example, in the chapter on physical and cognitive development in late
adulthood you will read about the role of the ApoE4 gene in Alzheimer
disease (Parcon & others, 2018; Park & Festini, 2018).
Research Designs
In addition to a method for collecting data, you also need a research design to
study life-span development. There are three main types of research designs:
descriptive, correlational, and experimental.
Descriptive Research
All of the data-collection methods that we have discussed can be used in
descriptive research, which aims to observe and record behavior. For
example, a researcher might observe the extent to which people are altruistic
or aggressive toward each other. By itself, descriptive research cannot prove
what causes some phenomenon, but it can reveal important information about
people’s behavior and provide a basis for more scientific studies (Ary &
others, 2019; Gravetter & Forzano, 2019).
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Correlational Research
In contrast with descriptive research, correlational research goes beyond
describing phenomena by providing information that helps to predict how
people will behave. In correlational research, the goal is to describe the
strength of the relationship between two or more events or characteristics.
The more strongly the two events are correlated (or related or associated), the
more effectively we can predict one event from the other (Aron, Coups, &
Aron, 2019).
For example, to determine whether children of permissive parents have
less self-control than other children, you would need to carefully record
observations of parents’ permissiveness and their children’s self-control. You
might observe that the higher a parent was in permissiveness, the lower the
child was in self-control. You would then analyze these data statistically to
yield a correlation coefficient, a number based on a statistical analysis that is
used to describe the degree of association between two variables. Correlation
coefficients range from -1.00 to +1.00. A negative number means an inverse
relation. In the above example, you might find an inverse correlation between
permissive parenting and children’s self-control, with a coefficient of, say,
-.30 meaning that parents who are permissive with their children are likely to
have children who have low self-control. By contrast, you might find a
positive correlation of +.30 between parental monitoring of
children and children’s self-control, meaning that parents who
monitor their children effectively have children with good self-
control.
The higher the correlation coefficient (whether positive or negative), the
stronger the association between the two variables. A correlation of 0 means
that there is no association between the variables. A correlation of -.40 is
stronger than a correlation of +.20 because we disregard whether the
correlation is positive or negative in determining the strength of the
correlation.
A word of caution is in order, however. Correlation does not equal
causation (Aron, Coups, & Aron, 2019; Howell, 2017). The correlational
finding just mentioned does not mean that permissive parenting necessarily
causes low self-control in children. It could have that meaning, but it also
could mean that a child’s lack of self-control caused the parents to throw up
their arms in despair and give up trying to control the child. It also could
mean that other factors, such as heredity or poverty, caused the correlation
between permissive parenting and low self-control in children. Figure 12
illustrates these possible interpretations of correlational data.
Figure 12 Possible Explanations for Correlational Data
©Jupiterimages/Getty Images
Experimental Research
To study causality, researchers turn to experimental research. An experiment
is a carefully regulated procedure in which one or more factors believed to
influence the behavior being studied are manipulated while all other factors
are held constant. If the behavior under study changes when a factor is
manipulated, we say that the manipulated factor has caused the behavior to
change. In other words, the experiment has demonstrated cause and effect.
The cause is the factor that was manipulated. The effect is the behavior that
changed because of the manipulation. Nonexperimental research methods
(descriptive and correlational research) cannot establish cause and effect
because they do not involve manipulating factors in a controlled way
(Gravetter & Forzano, 2019).
Independent and Dependent Variables Experiments include two types
of changeable factors: independent and dependent variables. An independent
variable is a manipulated, influential experimental factor. It is a potential
cause. The label “independent” is used because this variable can be
manipulated independently of other factors to determine its effect. An
experiment may include one independent variable or several of them.
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A dependent variable is a factor that can change in an experiment, in
response to changes in the independent variable. As researchers manipulate
the independent variable, they measure the dependent variable for any
resulting effect.
For example, suppose that you wanted to study whether pregnant women
could change the breathing and sleeping patterns of their
newborn babies by meditating during pregnancy. You might
require one group of pregnant women to engage in a certain
amount and type of meditation each day, while another group would not
meditate; the meditation is thus the independent variable. When the infants
are born, you would observe and measure their breathing and sleeping
patterns. These patterns are the dependent variable, the factor that changes as
the result of your manipulation.
Experimental and Control Groups Experiments can involve one or
more experimental groups and one or more control groups. An experimental
group is a group whose experience is manipulated. A control group is a
comparison group that is as much like the experimental group as possible and
that is treated in every way like the experimental group except for the
manipulated factor (independent variable). The control group serves as a
baseline against which the effects of the manipulated condition can be
compared.
Random assignment is an important principle for deciding whether each
participant will be placed in the experimental group or in the control group.
Random assignment means that researchers assign participants to
experimental and control groups by chance. It reduces the likelihood that the
experiment’s results will be due to any preexisting differences between
groups. In the example of the effects of meditation by pregnant women on the
breathing and sleeping patterns of their newborns, you would randomly
assign half of the pregnant women to engage in meditation over a period of
weeks (the experimental group) and the other half to not meditate over the
same number of weeks (the control group). Figure 13 illustrates the nature of
experimental research.
Figure 13 Principles of Experimental Research
Imagine that you decide to conduct an experimental study of the effects of meditation by
pregnant women on their newborns’ breathing and sleeping patterns. You randomly assign
pregnant women to experimental and control groups. The experimental-group women
engage in meditation over a specified number of sessions and weeks. The control group
does not. Then, when the infants are born, you assess their breathing and sleeping
patterns. If the breathing and sleeping patterns of newborns whose mothers were in the
experimental group are more positive than those of the control group, you conclude that
meditation caused the positive effects.
Time Span of Research
Researchers in life-span development have a special concern with the relation
between age and some other variable. To explore these relations, researchers
can study different individuals of different ages and compare them, or they
can study the same individuals as they age over time.
Cross-Sectional Approach
The cross-sectional approach is a research strategy that simultaneously
compares individuals of different ages. A typical cross-sectional study might
include three groups of children: 5-year-olds, 8-year-olds, and 11-year-olds.
Another study might include groups of 15-year-olds, 25-year-olds, and 45-
year-olds. The groups can be compared with respect to a variety of dependent
variables, such as IQ, memory, peer relations, attachment to parents,
Page 33
hormonal changes, and so on. All of this can be accomplished in a short time.
In some studies data are collected in a single day. Even in large-scale cross-
sectional studies with hundreds of subjects, data collection does not usually
take longer than several months to complete.
The main advantage of the cross-sectional study is that the researcher
does not have to wait for the individuals to grow up or become older. Despite
its efficiency, though, the cross-sectional approach has its drawbacks. It gives
no information about how individuals change or about the stability of their
characteristics. It can obscure the hills and valleys of growth and
development. For example, a cross-sectional study of life satisfaction might
reveal average increases and decreases, but it would not show how the life
satisfaction of individual adults waxed and waned over the years. It also
would not tell us whether the same adults who had positive or
negative perceptions of life satisfaction in early adulthood
maintained their relative degree of life satisfaction as they
became middle-aged or older adults.
Longitudinal Approach
The longitudinal approach is a research strategy in which the same
individuals are studied over a period of time, usually several years or more.
For example, in a longitudinal study of life satisfaction, the same adults
might be assessed periodically over a 70-year time span—at the ages of 20,
35, 45, 65, and 90, for example.
Longitudinal studies provide a wealth of information about vital issues
such as stability and change in development and the importance of early
experience for later development, but they do have drawbacks (Almy &
Cicchetti, 2018; Becht & others, 2018). They are expensive and time-
consuming. The longer the study lasts, the more participants drop out—they
move, get sick, lose interest, and so forth. The participants who remain may
be dissimilar to those who drop out, biasing the outcome of the study. Those
individuals who remain in a longitudinal study over a number of years may
be more responsible and conformity-oriented than the ones who dropped out,
for example, or they might lead more stable lives.
Cohort Effects
A cohort is a group of people who are born at a similar point in history and
share similar experiences as a result, such as living through the Vietnam War
or growing up in the same city around the same time. These shared
experiences may produce a range of differences among cohorts (Ganguli,
2017; Heo & others, 2018; Messerlian & Basso, 2018). For example, people
who were teenagers during the Great Depression are likely to differ from
people who were teenagers during the booming 1990s in their educational
opportunities and economic status, in how they were raised, and in their
attitudes toward sex and religion. In life-span development research, cohort
effects are due to a person’s time of birth, era, or generation but not to actual
age.
Cohort effects are important because they can powerfully affect the
dependent measures in a study ostensibly concerned with age (Bell & others,
2017; Ishtiak-Ahmed & others, 2018). Researchers have shown it is
especially important to be aware of cohort effects when assessing adult
intelligence (Schaie, 2013, 2016). Individuals born at different points in time
—such as 1920, 1940, and 1960—have had varying opportunities for
education. Individuals born in earlier years had less access to education, and
this fact may have a significant effect on how this cohort performs on
intelligence tests. Some researchers have found that cross-sectional studies
indicate that more than 90 percent of cognitive decline in aging is due to a
slowing of processing speed, whereas longitudinal studies reveal that 20
percent or less of cognitive decline is due to processing speed (MacDonald &
others, 2003; MacDonald & Stawski, 2015, 2016; Stawski, Sliwinski, &
Hofer, 2013). Another recent example of a cohort effect occurred in a study
in which older adults assessed in 2013–2014 engaged in a higher level of
abstract reasoning than their counterparts assessed two decades earlier in
1990–1993 (Gerstorf & others, 2015).
Cross-sectional studies can show how different cohorts respond, but they
can confuse age changes and cohort effects. Longitudinal studies are effective
in studying age changes, but only within one cohort.
Various generations have been given labels by the popular culture. Figure
14 describes the labels of various generations, the historical period for each
one, and the reasons for their labels. Consider the following description of the
current generation of youth and think about how they differ from earlier
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youth generations:
How does the youth experienced by today’s millennials differ from that of earlier
generations?
©Hero Images/Alamy
Figure 14 Generations, Their Historical Periods, and Characteristics
They are history’s first “always connected” generation. Steeped in
digital technology and social media, they treat their multi-tasking
hand-held gadgets almost like a body part—for better or worse. More
than 8-in-10 say they sleep with a cell phone glowing by
the bed, poised to disgorge texts, phone calls, e-mails,
songs, news, videos, games, and wake-up jingles. But
sometimes convenience yields to temptation. Nearly two-thirds admit
to texting while driving (Pew Research Center, 2010, p. 1).
Conducting Ethical Research
Researchers who study human development and behavior confront many
ethical issues. For example, a developmentalist who wanted to study
aggression in children would have to design the study in such a way that no
child would be harmed physically or psychologically, and the researcher
would need to get permission from the university to carry out the study. Then
the researcher would have to explain the study to the children’s parents and
obtain consent for the children to participate. Ethics in research may affect
you personally if you ever serve as a participant in a study. In that event, you
need to know your rights as a participant and the responsibilities of
researchers to ensure that these rights are safeguarded.
Today, proposed research at colleges and universities must pass the
scrutiny of a research ethics committee before the research can begin. In
addition, the American Psychological Association (APA) has developed
ethics guidelines for its members. This code of ethics instructs psychologists
to protect their research participants from mental and physical harm. The
participants’ best interests need to be kept foremost in the researcher’s mind
(Ary & others, 2019; Kazdin, 2017).
APA’s guidelines address four important issues:
1. Informed consent—All participants must know what their research
participation will involve and what risks might develop. Even after
informed consent is given, participants must retain the right to withdraw
from the study at any time and for any reason.
2. Confidentiality—Researchers are responsible for keeping all of the data
they gather on individuals completely confidential and, when possible,
completely anonymous.
3. Debriefing—After the study has been completed, participants should be
informed of its purpose and the methods that were used. In most cases,
the experimenter also can inform participants in a general manner
beforehand about the purpose of the research without leading participants
to behave in a way they think that the experimenter is expecting.
4. Deception—In some circumstances, telling the participants beforehand
what the research study is about substantially alters the participants’
behavior and invalidates the researcher’s data. In all cases of deception,
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however, the psychologist must ensure that the deception will not harm
the participants and that the participants will be debriefed (told the
complete nature of the study) as soon as possible after the study is
completed.
Summary
The Life-Span Perspective
Development is the pattern of change that begins at conception and
continues through the life span. It includes both growth and decline.
The life-span perspective includes these basic ideas: development is
lifelong, multidimensional, multidirectional, and plastic; its study is
multidisciplinary; it is embedded in contexts; it involves growth,
maintenance, and regulation; and it is a co-construction of biological,
sociocultural, and individual factors.
Health and well-being, parenting, education, sociocultural contexts and
diversity, and social policy are all areas of contemporary concern for
those who study life-span development.
The Nature of Development
Three key developmental processes are biological, cognitive, and
socioemotional. Development is influenced by an interplay of these
processes.
The life span is commonly divided into the prenatal period, infancy, early
childhood, middle and late childhood, adolescence, early adulthood,
middle adulthood, and late adulthood.
We often think of age only in chronological terms, but a full evaluation of
age requires the consideration of biological age, psychological age, and
social age as well.
Three pathways of aging are pathological aging, normal aging, and
successful aging.
In research covering adolescence through late adulthood, many but not all
studies find that older adults report the highest level of life satisfaction.
Three important issues in the study of development are the nature-nurture
issue, the continuity-discontinuity issue, and the stability-change issue.
Theories of Development
According to psychoanalytic theories, including those of Freud and
Erikson, development primarily depends on the unconscious mind and is
heavily couched in emotion.
Cognitive theories emphasize thinking, reasoning, language, and other
cognitive processes. Three main cognitive theories are Piaget’s,
Vygotsky’s, and information processing.
Behavioral and social cognitive theories emphasize the environment’s
role in development. Two key behavioral and social cognitive theories are
Skinner’s operant conditioning and Bandura’s social cognitive theory.
Lorenz’s ethological theory stresses the biological and evolutionary bases
of development.
According to Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory, development
predominantly reflects the influence of five environmental systems—the
microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem.
An eclectic orientation incorporates the best features of different
theoretical approaches.
Research in Life-Span Development
The main methods for collecting data about life-span development are
observation, survey (questionnaire) or interview, standardized test, case
study, and physiological measures.
Three basic research designs are descriptive, correlational, and
experimental.
To examine the effects of time and age, researchers can conduct cross-
sectional or longitudinal studies. Life-span researchers are especially
concerned about cohort effects.
Researchers have an ethical responsibility to safeguard the well-being of
research participants.
Key Terms
behavioral and social cognitive theories
biological processes
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory
case study
cognitive processes
cohort effects
context
continuity-discontinuity issue
correlation coefficient
correlational research
cross-cultural studies
cross-sectional approach
culture
descriptive research
development
eclectic theoretical orientation
Erikson’s theory
ethnicity
ethology
experiment
gender
hypotheses
information-processing theory
laboratory
life-span perspective
longitudinal approach
naturalistic observation
nature-nurture issue
nonnormative life events
normative age-graded influences
normative history-graded influences
Piaget’s theory
psychoanalytic theories
social cognitive theory
social policy
socioeconomic status (SES)
socioemotional processes
stability-change issue
standardized test
theory
Vygotsky’s theory
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©MedicalRF.com/Getty Images
2
Biological Beginnings
CHAPTER OUTLINE
The Evolutionary Perspective
Natural Selection and Adaptive Behavior
Evolutionary Psychology
Genetic Foundations of Development
Genes and Chromosomes
Genetic Principles
Chromosome and Gene-Linked Abnormalities
The Interaction of Heredity and Environment: The
Nature-Nurture Debate
Behavior Genetics
Heredity-Environment Correlations
The Epigenetic View and Gene × Environment (G × E)
Interaction
Conclusions About Heredity-Environment Interaction
Prenatal Development
The Course of Prenatal Development
Prenatal Tests
Infertility and Reproductive Technology
Hazards to Prenatal Development
Prenatal Care
Normal Prenatal Development
Birth and the Postpartum Period
The Birth Process
The Transition from Fetus to Newborn
Low Birth Weight and Preterm Infants
Bonding
The Postpartum Period
Stories of Life-Span Development:
The Jim and Jim Twins
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Jim Springer and Jim Lewis are identical twins. They were
separated at 4 weeks of age and did not see each other again until
they were 39 years old. Both worked as part-time deputy sheriffs,
vacationed in Florida, drove Chevrolets, had dogs named Toy, and
married and divorced women named Betty. One twin named his
son James Allan, and the other named his son James Alan. Both
liked math but not spelling, enjoyed carpentry and mechanical
drawing, chewed their fingernails down to the nubs, had almost
identical drinking and smoking habits, had hemorrhoids, put on 10
pounds at about the same point in development, first suffered
headaches at the age of 18, and had similar sleep patterns.
Jim and Jim do have some differences. One wears his hair over
his forehead, the other slicks it back and has sideburns. One
expresses himself best orally; the other is more proficient in
writing. But, for the most part, their profiles are remarkably
similar.
Another pair of identical twins, Daphne and Barbara, were
called the “giggle sisters” by researchers because after being
reunited they were always making each other laugh. A thorough
search of their adoptive families’ histories revealed
no gigglers. The giggle sisters ignored stress,
avoided conflict and controversy whenever possible,
and showed no interest in politics.
Jim and Jim and the giggle sisters were part of the Minnesota
Study of Twins Reared Apart, directed by Thomas Bouchard and
his colleagues. The study brings identical twins (who are identical
genetically because they come from the same fertilized egg) and
fraternal twins (who come from different fertilized eggs) from all
over the world to Minneapolis to investigate their lives. There the
twins complete personality and intelligence tests, and provide
detailed medical histories, including information about diet and
smoking, exercise habits, chest X-rays, heart stress tests, and
EEGs. The twins are asked more than 15,000 questions about their
family and childhood, personal interests, vocational orientation,
values, and aesthetic judgments (Bouchard & others, 1990).
When genetically identical twins who were separated as infants
show such striking similarities in their tastes and habits and
choices, can we conclude that their genes must have caused these
similarities? Although genes play a role, we also need to consider
other possible causes. The twins shared not only the same genes
but also some similar experiences. Some of the separated twins
lived together for several months prior to their adoption; some had
been reunited prior to testing (in some cases, many years earlier);
adoption agencies often place twins in similar homes; and even
strangers who spend several hours together and start comparing
their lives are likely to come up with some coincidental similarities
(Joseph, 2006).
The Minnesota study of identical twins points to both the
importance of the genetic basis of human development and the
need for further research on genetic and environmental factors.
The examples of Jim and Jim and the giggle sisters stimulate us
to think about our genetic heritage and the biological foundations
of our existence. Organisms are not like billiard balls, moved by
simple, external forces to predictable positions on life’s pool table.
Environmental experiences and biological foundations work
together to make us who we are. Our coverage of life’s biological
beginnings and experiences will emphasize the evolutionary
perspective; genetic foundations; the interaction of heredity and
environment; and charting growth from conception through the
prenatal period, the birth process itself, and the postpartum period
that follows birth. ■
The Evolutionary Perspective
From the perspective of evolutionary time, humans are relative newcomers to
Earth. As our earliest ancestors left the forest to feed on the savannahs and
then to form hunting societies on the open plains, their minds and behaviors
changed, and humans eventually became the dominant species on Earth. How
did this evolution come about?
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Natural Selection and Adaptive Behavior
Charles Darwin (1859) described natural selection as the evolutionary
process by which those individuals of a species that are best adapted to their
environment are the ones that are most likely to survive and reproduce. He
reasoned that an intense, constant struggle for food, water, and resources
must occur among the young of each generation, because many of them do
not survive. Those that do survive and reproduce pass on their characteristics
to the next generation (Audesirk, Audesirk, & Byers, 2017; Johnson, 2017).
Darwin concluded that these survivors are better adapted to their world than
are the nonsurvivors. The best-adapted individuals survive and
leave the most offspring (Mader & Windelspecht, 2018, 2019;
Starr, Evers, & Starr, 2018). Over the course of many generations,
organisms with the characteristics needed for survival make up an increased
percentage of the population (Hoefnagels, 2018, 2019; Mason & others,
2018; Simon, 2017).
How does the attachment of this Vietnamese baby to its mother reflect the evolutionary
process of adaptive behavior?
©Frans Lemmens/age fotostock
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you explain
technology and
medicine working
against natural
selection?
Evolutionary Psychology
Although Darwin introduced the theory of evolution by natural selection in
1859, his ideas have only recently become a popular framework for
explaining behavior (Frankenhuis & Tiokhin, 2018; Knapen, Blaker, & Van
Vugt, 2018). Psychology’s newest approach, evolutionary psychology,
emphasizes the importance of adaptation, reproduction, and “survival of the
fittest” in shaping behavior (Bjorklund, 2018; Legare, Clegg, & Wen, 2018;
Szepsenwol & Simpson, 2018). (“Fit” in this sense refers to the ability to bear
offspring that survive long enough to bear offspring of their own.) In this
view, natural selection favors behaviors that increase reproductive success—
that is, the ability to pass your genes to the next generation (Borraz-Leon &
others, 2018; Raichlen & Alexander, 2017; Suchow, Bourgin, & Griffiths,
2017).
David Buss (2008, 2012, 2015) argues that just as evolution has
contributed to our physical features, such as body shape and height, it also
pervasively influences how we make decisions, how aggressive we are, our
fears, and our mating patterns. For example, assume that our ancestors were
hunters and gatherers on the plains and that men did most of the hunting and
women stayed close to home, gathering seeds and plants for food. If you have
to travel some distance from your home to track and slay a fleeing animal,
you need certain physical traits along with the capacity for certain types of
spatial thinking. Men with these traits would be more likely than men without
them to survive, to bring home lots of food, and to be considered attractive
mates—and thus to reproduce and pass on these characteristics to their
children. In other words, if our assumptions were correct, potentially these
traits would provide a reproductive advantage for males, and over many
generations, men with good spatial thinking skills might become more
numerous in the population. Critics point out that this scenario might or
might not have actually happened.
Evolutionary Developmental Psychology
There is growing interest in using the concepts of evolutionary psychology to
understand human development (Barbaro & others, 2017; Bjorklund, 2018;
Lickliter, 2018). Following are some ideas proposed by evolutionary
developmental psychologists (Bjorklund & Pellegrini, 2002).
One important concept is that an extended childhood period might have
evolved because humans require time to develop a large brain and learn the
complexity of human societies. Humans take longer to become
reproductively mature than any other primate (see Figure 1). During this
extended childhood period, they develop a large brain and have the
experiences needed to become competent adults in a complex society.
Figure 1 The Brain Sizes of Various Primates and Humans in Relation to the Length
Page 39
of the Juvenile Period
Compared with other primates, humans have both a larger brain and a longer childhood
period. What conclusions can you draw from the relationship indicated by this graph?
©Getty Images
Another key idea is that many of our evolved psychological mechanisms
are domain-specific. That is, the mechanisms apply only to a specific aspect
of a person’s psychological makeup. According to evolutionary psychology,
the mind is not a general-purpose device that can be applied equally to a vast
array of problems. Instead, as our ancestors dealt with certain recurring
problems such as hunting and finding shelter, specialized modules evolved
that process information related to those problems: for example, such
specialized modules might include a module for physical knowledge for
tracking animals, a module for mathematical knowledge for trading, and a
module for language.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you apply the
concept of domain-
specific psychological
mechanisms to explain
how a student with a
learning disability in
reading may perform
exceptionally well in
math?
Evolved mechanisms are not always adaptive in contemporary society.
Some behaviors that were adaptive for our prehistoric ancestors
may not serve us well today. For example, the food-scarce
environment of our ancestors likely led to humans’ propensity
to gorge when food is available and to crave high-caloric foods, a trait that
might lead to an epidemic of obesity when food is plentiful.
Evaluating Evolutionary Psychology
Although the popular press gives a lot of attention to the ideas of
evolutionary psychology, it remains just one theoretical approach. Like the
theories described earlier, it has limitations, weaknesses, and critics (Hyde &
DeLamater, 2017). One criticism comes from Albert Bandura (1998), whose
social cognitive theory was described earlier. Bandura acknowledges the
important influence of evolution on human adaptation. However, he rejects
what he calls “one-sided evolutionism,” which sees social behavior as the
product of evolved biological characteristics. An alternative is a bidirectional
view in which environmental and biological conditions influence each other.
In this view, evolutionary pressures created changes in biological structures
that allowed the use of tools, which enabled our ancestors to manipulate the
environment, constructing new environmental conditions. In turn,
environmental innovations produced new selection pressures that led to the
evolution of specialized biological systems for consciousness, thought, and
language.
In other words, evolution gave us bodily structures and biological
potentialities, but it does not dictate behavior. People have used their
biological capacities to produce diverse cultures—aggressive and peace-
loving, egalitarian and autocratic. As American scientist Stephen Jay Gould
(1981) concluded, in most domains of human functioning, biology allows a
broad range of cultural possibilities.
Page 40
Children in all cultures are interested in the tools that adults in their culture use. For
example, this young child is using a machete, near the Angkor Temples in Cambodia.
Might the child’s behavior be evolutionary-based or be due to both biological and
environmental conditions?
©Carol Adam/Getty Images
The “big picture” idea of natural selection leading to the
development of human traits and behaviors is difficult to refute or
test because evolution occurs on a time scale that does not lend
itself to empirical study. Thus, studying specific genes in humans and other
species—and their links to traits and behaviors—may be the best approach
for testing ideas coming out of the evolutionary psychology perspective.
Genetic Foundations of Development
Genetic influences on behavior evolved over time and across many species.
Our many traits and characteristics that are genetically influenced have a long
evolutionary history that is retained in our DNA (Brooker & others, 2018;
Hoefnagels, 2019). In other words, our DNA is not just inherited from our
parents; it’s also what we’ve inherited as a species from the species that came
before our own. Let’s take a closer look at DNA and its role in human
development.
How are characteristics that suit a species for survival transmitted from
one generation to the next? Darwin did not know the answer to this question
because genes and the principles of genetics had not yet been discovered.
Each of us carries a human “genetic code” that we inherited from our parents.
Because a fertilized egg carries this human code, a fertilized human egg
cannot grow into an egret, eagle, or elephant.
Each of us began life as a single cell weighing about one twenty-millionth
of an ounce. This tiny piece of matter housed our entire genetic code—
instructions that orchestrated growth from that single cell to a person made of
trillions of cells, each containing a replica of the original code. That code is
carried by our genes. What are genes and what do they do? For the answer,
we need to look into our cells.
The nucleus of each human cell contains chromosomes, which are
threadlike structures made up of deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA. DNA is a
complex molecule that has a double helix shape, like a spiral staircase, and
contains genetic information. Genes, the units of hereditary information, are
short segments of DNA, as you can see in Figure 2. They help cells to
reproduce themselves and to assemble proteins. Proteins, in turn, are the
building blocks of cells as well as the regulators that direct the body’s
processes (Goodenough & McGuire, 2017; Mason & others, 2018).
Figure 2 Cells, Chromosomes, DNA, and Genes
(Top) The body contains trillions of cells. Each cell contains a central structure, the
nucleus. (Middle) Chromosomes are threadlike structures located in the nucleus of the
cell. Chromosomes are composed of DNA. (Bottom) DNA has the structure of a spiral
staircase. A gene is a segment of DNA.
Each gene has its own designated place on a particular chromosome.
Today, there is a great deal of enthusiasm about efforts to discover the
specific locations of genes that are linked to certain functions and
developmental outcomes (Hoefnagels, 2018; Johnson, 2017). An important
Page 41
step in this direction was taken when the Human Genome Project and the
Celera Corporation completed a preliminary map of the human genome—the
complete set of developmental instructions for creating proteins that initiate
the making of a human organism (Brooker & others, 2018).
Completion of the Human Genome Project has led to use of the genome-
wide association method to identify genetic variations linked to a particular
disease (Yasukochi & others, 2018; Zhu & others, 2018), such as cancer
(Sucheston-Campbell & others, 2018); obesity (Amare & others, 2017);
cardiovascular disease (Olson & others, 2018); depression (Knowles &
others, 2016); suicide (Sokolowski, Wasserman, & Wasserman, 2016);
autism (Ramaswami & Geschwind, 2018); attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder (Sanchez-Roige & others, 2018); glaucoma (Springelkamp & others,
2017); and Alzheimer disease (Liu & others, 2018). To conduct a genome-
wide association study, researchers obtain DNA from individuals who have
the disease and those who don’t have it. Then, each
participant’s complete set of DNA, or genome, is purified from
the blood or other cells and scanned on machines to determine
markers of genetic variation. If the genetic variations occur more frequently
in people who have the disease than in those who don’t have it, the variations
point to the region in the human genome where the disease-causing problem
exists.
One of the big surprises of the Human Genome Project was a report
indicating that humans have only about 30,000 genes (U.S. Department of
Energy, 2001). More recently, the number of human genes has been revised
further downward, to approximately 20,700 (Flicek & others, 2013). Further
analysis proposes that humans may actually have fewer than 20,000 protein-
producing genes (Ezkurdia & others, 2014). Scientists had thought that
humans had as many as 100,000 or more genes. They had also believed that
each gene programmed just one protein. In fact, humans appear to have far
more proteins than they have genes, so there cannot be a one-to-one
correspondence between genes and proteins (Commoner, 2002). Each gene is
not translated, in automaton-like fashion, into one and only one protein. A
gene does not act independently, as developmental psychologist David
Moore (2001) emphasized by titling his book The Dependent Gene. Rather
than being a group of independent genes, the human genome consists of
many genes that collaborate both with each other and with nongenetic factors
inside and outside the body. The collaboration operates at many points. For
example, the cellular “machinery” mixes, matches, and links small pieces of
DNA to reproduce the genes, and that machinery is influenced by what is
going on around it (Halldorsdottir & Binder, 2017; Moore, 2015, 2017).
Whether a gene is turned “on”—that is, working to assemble proteins—is
also a matter of collaboration. The activity of genes (genetic expression) is
affected by their environment (Gottlieb, 2007; Lickliter, 2018; Moore, 2017).
For example, hormones that circulate in the blood make their way into the
cell, where they can turn genes “on” and “off.” And the flow of hormones
can be affected by environmental conditions such as light, day length,
nutrition, and behavior.
Numerous studies have shown that external events outside of the original
cell and the person, as well as events inside the cell, can excite or inhibit gene
expression (Moore, 2017). Recent research has documented that factors such
as stress, exercise, nutrition, respiration, radiation, temperature, and sleep can
influence gene expression (Giles & others, 2016; Kader, Ghai, & Mahraj,
2018; Mychasiuk, Muhammad, & Kolb, 2016; Poulsen & others, 2018;
Stephens & Tsintzas, 2018; Turecki & Meaney, 2016). For example, one
study revealed that an increase in the concentration of stress hormones such
as cortisol produced a fivefold increase in DNA damage (Flint & others,
2007). Another study also found that exposure to radiation changed the rate
of DNA synthesis in cells (Lee & others, 2011). And research indicates that
sleep deprivation can affect gene expression in negative ways such as
increased inflammation, expression of stress-related genes, and impairment of
protein functioning (da Costa Souza & Ribeiro, 2015).
Scientists have found that certain genes become turned on or off as a
result of exercise mainly through a process called methylation, in which tiny
atoms attached themselves to the outside of a gene (Butts & others, 2017;
Castellano-Castillo & others, 2018; Marioni & others, 2018). This process
makes the gene more or less capable of receiving and responding to
biochemical signals from the body (Kader, Ghai, & Mahraj, 2018; Martin &
Fry, 2018). In this way the behavior of the gene, but not its structure, is
changed. Researchers also have found that diet and tobacco may affect gene
behavior through the process of methylation (Chatterton & others, 2017;
Zaghlool & others, 2018). Also, recent research indicates that methylation
may be involved in depression (Crawford & others, 2018); breast cancer
(Parashar & others, 2018); and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (Kim
Page 42
& others, 2018).
Genes and Chromosomes
Genes are not only collaborative; they are enduring. How do they get passed
from generation to generation and end up in all of the trillion cells in the
body? Three processes are central to this story: mitosis, meiosis, and
fertilization.
Mitosis, Meiosis, and Fertilization
All cells in your body, except the sperm and egg, have 46 chromosomes
arranged in 23 pairs. These cells reproduce through a process called mitosis.
During mitosis, the cell’s nucleus—including the chromosomes—duplicates
itself and the cell divides. Two new cells are formed, each containing the
same DNA as the original cell, arranged in the same 23 pairs of
chromosomes.
However, a different type of cell division—meiosis—forms eggs and
sperm (which also are called gametes). During meiosis, a cell of the testes (in
men) or ovaries (in women) duplicates its chromosomes but then divides
twice, thus forming four cells, each of which has only half of the genetic
material of the parent cell (Johnson, 2017). By the end of meiosis, each egg
or sperm has 23 unpaired chromosomes.
During fertilization, an egg and a sperm fuse to create a single cell, called
a zygote. In the zygote, the 23 unpaired chromosomes from the egg and the
23 unpaired chromosomes from the sperm combine to form one set of 23
paired chromosomes—one chromosome of each pair from the mother’s egg
and the other from the father’s sperm. In this manner, each parent contributes
half of the offspring’s genetic material.
Figure 3 shows 23 paired chromosomes of a male and a female. The
members of each pair of chromosomes are both similar and different: Each
chromosome in the pair contains varying forms of the same genes, at the
same location on the chromosome. A gene that influences hair color, for
example, is located on both members of one pair of chromosomes, at the
same location on each. However, one of those chromosomes might carry the
gene associated with blond hair; the other might carry the gene associated
with brown hair.
Figure 3 The Genetic Difference Between Males and Females
Set (a) shows the chromosome structure of a male and set (b) shows the chromosome
structure of a female. The last pair of 23 pairs of chromosomes is in the bottom right
corner of each set. Notice that the Y chromosome of the male is smaller than the X
chromosome of the female. To obtain this kind of chromosomal picture, a cell is removed
from a person’s body, usually from the inside of the mouth. The chromosomes are stained
by chemical treatment, magnified extensively, and then photographed.
©CMSP/Custom Medical Stock Photo-All rights reserved
Do you notice any obvious differences between the chromosomes of the
male and those of the female in Figure 3? The difference lies in the 23rd pair.
Ordinarily, in females this pair consists of two chromosomes called X
chromosomes; in males the 23rd pair consists of an X chromosome and a Y
chromosome. The presence of a Y chromosome is one factor that makes a
person male rather than female.
Sources of Variability
Combining the genes of two parents in their offspring increases genetic
variability in the population, which is valuable for a species because it
provides more characteristics on which natural selection can operate (Mason
& others, 2018; Simon, 2017). In fact, the human genetic process creates
several important sources of variability.
First, the chromosomes in the zygote are not exact copies of those in the
mother’s ovaries and the father’s testes. During the formation of the sperm
and egg in meiosis, the members of each pair of chromosomes are separated,
Page 43
but which chromosome in the pair goes to the gamete is a matter of chance.
In addition, before the pairs separate, pieces of the two chromosomes in each
pair are exchanged, creating a new combination of genes on each
chromosome. Thus, when chromosomes from the mother’s egg and the
father’s sperm are brought together in the zygote, the result is a truly unique
combination of genes.
Another source of variability comes from DNA. Chance events, a mistake
by the cellular machinery, or damage caused by an environmental agent such
as radiation may produce a mutated gene, a permanently altered segment of
DNA (Freeman & others, 2017; Hoefnagels, 2019; Mason & others, 2018).
Even when their genes are identical, however, as for the
identical twins described at the beginning of the chapter, people
vary. The difference between genotypes and phenotypes helps us
understand this source of variability. All of a person’s genetic material makes
up his or her genotype. There is increasing interest in studying susceptibility
genes, those that make the individual more vulnerable to specific diseases or
accelerated aging (J.S. Park & others, 2018; Patel & others, 2018; Scarabino
& others, 2017), and longevity genes, those that make the individual less
vulnerable to certain diseases and more likely to live to an older age
(Blankenburg, Pramstaller, & Domingues, 2018; Dato & others, 2017). These
are aspects of the individual’s genotype.
However, not all of the genetic material is apparent in an individual’s
observed and measurable characteristics. A phenotype consists of observable
characteristics, including physical characteristics (such as height, weight, and
hair color) and psychological characteristics (such as personality and
intelligence).
For each genotype, a range of phenotypes can be expressed, providing
another source of variability (Klug & others, 2017). An individual can inherit
the genetic potential to grow very large, for example, but good nutrition,
among other things, will be essential to achieving that potential.
Genetic Principles
What determines how a genotype is expressed to create a particular
phenotype? This question has not yet been fully answered (Lickliter, 2018;
Moore, 2015, 2017). However, a number of genetic principles have been
discovered, among them those of dominant and recessive genes, sex-linked
genes, and polygenically determined characteristics.
Dominant and Recessive Genes
In some cases, one gene of a pair always exerts its effects; in other words, it
is dominant, overriding the potential influence of the other gene, which is
called the recessive gene. This is the dominant-and-recessive genes principle.
A recessive gene exerts its influence only if the two genes of a pair are both
recessive. If you inherit a recessive gene for a trait from each of your parents,
you will show the trait. If you inherit a recessive gene from only one parent,
you may never know that you carry the gene. Brown hair, farsightedness, and
dimples override blond hair, nearsightedness, and freckles in the world of
dominant and recessive genes. Can two brown-haired parents have a blond-
haired child? Yes, they can. Suppose that each parent has a dominant gene for
brown hair and a recessive gene for blond hair. Since dominant genes
override recessive genes, the parents have brown hair, but both are carriers
of blondness and pass on their recessive genes for blond hair. With no
dominant gene to override them, the recessive genes can make the child’s
hair blond.
Sex-Linked Genes
Most mutated genes are recessive. When a mutated gene is carried on the X
chromosome, the result is called X-linked inheritance. It may have
implications for males that differ greatly from those for females (Freeman &
others, 2017; Mader & Windelspecht, 2018, 2019). Remember that males
have only one X chromosome. Thus, if there is an absent or altered, disease-
relevant gene on the X chromosome, males have no “backup” copy to counter
the harmful gene and therefore may develop an X-linked disease. However,
females have a second X chromosome, which is likely to be unchanged. As a
result, they are not likely to have the X-linked disease. Thus, most individuals
who have X-linked diseases are males. Females who have one abnormal copy
of the gene on the X chromosome are known as carriers, and they usually do
not show any signs of the X-linked disease. Fragile X syndrome, which we
will discuss later in the chapter, is an example of X-linked inheritance
Page 44
(Thurman & others, 2017).
Polygenic Inheritance
Genetic transmission is usually more complex than the simple examples we
have examined thus far (Lickliter, 2018). Few characteristics reflect the
influence of only a single gene or pair of genes. Most are
determined by the interaction of many different genes; they are
said to be polygenically determined (Hill & others, 2018; Zabaneh
& others, 2017). Even a simple characteristic such as height reflects the
interaction of many genes as well as the influence of the environment. Most
diseases, such as cancer and diabetes, develop as a consequence of complex
gene interactions and environmental factors (Schaefer, Hornick, & Bovee,
2018).
The term gene-gene interaction is increasingly used to describe studies
that focus on the interdependent process by which two or more genes
influence characteristics, behavior, diseases, and development (Lovely &
others, 2017; Yip & others, 2018). For example, recent studies have
documented gene-gene interaction in immune system functioning (Heinonen
& others, 2015); asthma (Hua & others, 2016); obesity (Bordoni & others,
2017); type 2 diabetes (Saxena, Srivastava, & Banerjee, 2018); alcoholism
(Chen & others, 2017); cancer (Su & others, 2018); cardiovascular disease
(De & others, 2017); and Alzheimer disease (Yin & others, 2018).
Chromosome and Gene-Linked Abnormalities
In some (relatively rare) cases, genetic inheritance involves an abnormality.
Some of these abnormalities come from whole chromosomes that do not
separate properly during meiosis. Others are produced by defective genes.
Chromosome Abnormalities
Sometimes a gamete is formed in which the combined sperm and ovum do
not have their normal set of 23 chromosomes. The most notable examples
involve Down syndrome and abnormalities of the sex chromosomes. Figure 4
Page 45
describes some chromosome abnormalities, along with their treatment and
incidence.
Figure 4 Some Chromosome Abnormalities
The treatments for these abnormalities do not necessarily erase the problem but may
improve the individual’s adaptive behavior and quality of life.
Down Syndrome Down syndrome is one of the most common genetically
linked causes of intellectual disability; it is also characterized by certain
physical features (Lewanda & others, 2016; Popadin & others, 2018). An
individual with Down syndrome has a round face, a flattened skull, an extra
fold of skin over the eyelids, a thickened tongue, short limbs, and delayed
development of motor and mental abilities. The syndrome is caused by the
presence of an extra copy of chromosome 21. It is not known why the extra
chromosome is present, but the health of the male sperm or female ovum may
be involved.
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you respond
to a 33-year-old
pregnant woman who is
concerned about the risk
of giving birth to a baby
with Down syndrome?
Down syndrome appears approximately once in every 700 live births.
Women between the ages of 16 and 34 are less likely to give birth to a child
with Down syndrome than are younger or older women. African American
children are rarely born with Down syndrome.
Sex-Linked Chromosome Abnormalities Recall that a newborn
normally has either an X and a Y chromosome, or two X chromosomes.
Human embryos must possess at least one X chromosome to be viable. The
most common sex-linked chromosome abnormalities involve the presence of
an extra chromosome (either an X or a Y) or the absence of one X
chromosome in females.
These athletes, several of whom have Down syndrome, are participating in a Special
Olympics competition. Notice the distinctive facial features of the individuals with Down
syndrome, such as a round face and a flattened skull. What causes Down syndrome?
©James Shaffer/PhotoEdit
Klinefelter syndrome is a chromosomal disorder in which males have an
extra X chromosome, making them XXY instead of XY (Skuse, Printzlau, &
Wolstencroft, 2018). Males with this disorder have undeveloped testes, and
they usually have enlarged breasts and become tall (Belling & others, 2017;
Flannigan & Schlegel, 2017). Klinefelter syndrome occurs approximately
once in every 1,000 live male births. Only 10 percent of individuals with
Klinefelter syndrome are diagnosed before puberty, with the majority not
identified until adulthood (Aksglaede & others, 2013).
Fragile X syndrome is a genetic disorder that results from an abnormality
in the X chromosome, which becomes constricted and often breaks (Niu &
others, 2017). The outcome frequently takes the form of an intellectual
disability, autism, a learning disability, or a short attention span (Hall &
Berry-Kravis, 2018; Thurman & others, 2017). This disorder occurs more
frequently in males than in females, possibly because the second X
chromosome in females negates the effects of the other, abnormal X
chromosome (Mila & others, 2017). A recent study found that a higher level
of maternal responsivity to the adaptive behavior of children with FXS had a
positive effect on the children’s communication skills (Warren & others,
2017).
Turner syndrome is a chromosomal disorder in females in which either an
X chromosome is missing, making the person XO instead of XX, or part of
one X chromosome is deleted. Females with Turner syndrome are short in
stature and have a webbed neck (Skuse, Printzlau, & Wolstencroft, 2018). In
some cases, they are infertile. They have difficulty in mathematics, but their
verbal ability is often quite good. Turner syndrome occurs in approximately 1
of every 2,500 live female births (Culen & others, 2017).
XYY syndrome is a chromosomal disorder in which the male has an extra
Y chromosome (Tartaglia & others, 2017). Early interest in this syndrome
focused on the belief that the extra Y chromosome found in some males
contributed to aggression and violence. However, researchers subsequently
found that XYY males are no more likely to commit crimes than are XY
males (Witkin & others, 1976).
Gene-Linked Abnormalities
Abnormalities can be produced not only by an abnormal number of
chromosomes, but also by defective genes. Figure 5 describes some gene-
linked abnormalities and outlines their treatment and incidence.
Figure 5 Some Gene-Linked Abnormalities
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a genetic disorder in which the individual
cannot properly metabolize phenylalanine, an amino acid that naturally
occurs in many food sources. It results from a recessive gene and occurs
about once in every 10,000 to 20,000 live births. Today, phenylketonuria is
easily detected in infancy, and it is treated by a diet that prevents an excess
accumulation of phenylalanine (Medford & others, 2018; Micoch & others,
2018). If phenylketonuria is left untreated, however, excess phenylalanine
builds up in the child, producing intellectual disability and hyperactivity.
Phenylketonuria accounts for approximately 1 percent of individuals who are
institutionalized for intellectual disabilities, and it occurs primarily in Whites.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you explain the
heredity-environment
interaction to new
Page 46
Page 47
parents who are upset
when they discover that
their child has a
treatable genetic defect?
Sickle-cell anemia, which occurs most often in African
Americans, is a genetic disorder that impairs functioning of the
body’s red blood cells. More than 300,000 infants worldwide are
born with sickle-cell anemia each year (Azar & Wong, 2017). Red blood
cells, which carry oxygen to the body’s other cells, are usually shaped like a
disk. In sickle-cell anemia, a recessive gene causes the red blood cell to
become a hook-shaped “sickle” that cannot carry oxygen properly and dies
quickly. As a result, the body’s cells do not receive adequate oxygen, causing
anemia and early death (Patterson & others, 2018; Powell & others, 2018).
About 1 in 400 African American babies is affected by sickle-cell anemia.
One in 10 African Americans is a carrier, as is 1 in 20 Latin Americans.
Recent research strongly supports the use of hydroxyurea therapy for infants
with sickle-cell anemia beginning at 9 months of age (Nevitt, Jones, &
Howard, 2017). Stem cell transplantation also is being explored as a potential
treatment for infants with sickle-cell anemia (Azar & Wong, 2017).
Other diseases that result from genetic abnormalities include cystic
fibrosis, some forms of diabetes, hemophilia, Huntington disease, Alzheimer
disease, spina bifida, and Tay-Sachs disease. Someday, scientists may be able
to determine why these and other genetic abnormalities occur and discover
how to cure them (Huang & others, 2017; Wang & others, 2017).
Genetic counselors, usually physicians or biologists who are well-versed
in the field of medical genetics, may specialize in providing information to
individuals who are at risk of giving birth to children with the kinds of
genetic abnormalities just described (Besser & Mounts, 2017; Valiente-
Palleja & others, 2018). They can evaluate the degree of risk involved and
offer helpful strategies for offsetting some of the effects of these diseases
(Jacher & others, 2017; Omaggio, Baker, & Conway, 2018; Sharony &
others, 2018; Wang & others, 2018). To read about the career and work of a
genetic counselor, see Careers in Life-Span Development.
Careers in life-span development
Jennifer Leonhard, Genetic Counselor
Jennifer Leonhard is a genetic counselor at Sanford Bemidji
Health Clinic in Bemidji, Minnesota. She obtained an undergraduate
degree from Western Illinois University and a master’s degree in
genetic counseling from the University of Arkansas for Medical
Sciences.
Genetic counselors like Jennifer work as members of a health care
team, providing information and support to families with birth defects
or genetic disorders. They identify families at risk by analyzing
inheritance patterns and then explore options with the family. Some
genetic counselors, like Leonhard, specialize in prenatal and pediatric
genetics, while others focus on cancer genetics or psychiatric genetic
disorders.
Genetic counselors hold specialized graduate degrees in medical
genetics and counseling. They enter graduate school with
undergraduate backgrounds from a variety of disciplines, including
biology, genetics, psychology, public health, and social work. There
are approximately 30 graduate genetic counseling programs in the
United States. If you are interested in this profession, you can obtain
further information from the National Society of Genetic Counselors
at www.nsgc.org.
Jennifer Leonhard (right) is a genetic counselor at Sanford Health in Bemidji,
Minnesota.
Courtesy of Jennifer Leonhard
The Interaction of Heredity and
Environment: The Nature-Nurture
Debate
Is it possible to untangle the influence of heredity from that of environment
and discover the role of each in producing individual differences in
development? When heredity and environment interact, how does heredity
influence the environment, and vice versa?
Behavior Genetics
Behavior genetics is the field that seeks to discover the influence of heredity
and environment on individual differences in human traits and development.
Behavior geneticists often study either twins or adoption situations (Charney,
2017; Machalek & others, 2017; Pinheiro & others, 2018; Rana & others,
2018).
In a twin study, the behavioral similarities between identical twins (who
Page 48
are genetically identical) are compared with the behavioral similarities
between fraternal twins. Recall that although fraternal twins share the same
womb, they are no more genetically alike than are non-twin siblings. By
comparing groups of identical and fraternal twins, behavior geneticists
capitalize on this basic knowledge that identical twins are more similar
genetically than are fraternal twins: If they observe that a behavioral trait is
more often shared by identical twins than by fraternal twins, they can infer
that the trait has a genetic basis (Inderkum & Tarokh, 2018; Li & others,
2016; Rosenstrom & others, 2018; Wertz & others, 2018).
However, several issues complicate the interpretation of twin studies. For
example, perhaps the environments of identical twins are more
similar than those of fraternal twins. Parents and caregivers
might stress the similarities of identical twins more than those
of fraternal twins, and identical twins might perceive themselves as a “set”
and play together more than fraternal twins do. If so, the observed similarities
between identical twins might have a significant environmental basis.
In an adoption study, investigators seek to discover whether the behavior
and psychological characteristics of adopted children are more like those of
their adoptive parents, who have provided a home environment, or more like
those of their biological parents, who have contributed their heredity
(Salvatore & others, 2018). Another form of the adoption study compares
adoptees with their adoptive siblings and their biological siblings (Kendler &
others, 2016).
Heredity-Environment Correlations
The difficulties that researchers encounter in interpreting the results of twin
and adoption studies reflect the complexities of heredity-environment
interactions. Some of these interactions are heredity-environment
correlations, which means that individuals’ genes may influence the types of
environments to which they are exposed. In a sense, individuals “inherit”
environments that may be related or linked to genetic “propensities.”
Behavior geneticist Sandra Scarr (1993) described three ways in which
heredity and environment are correlated:
Passive genotype-environment correlations occur because biological
parents, who are genetically related to the child, provide a rearing
environment for the child. For example, the parents might have a genetic
predisposition to be intelligent and read skillfully. Because they read well
and enjoy reading, they provide their children with books to read. The
likely outcome is that their children, given their own inherited
predispositions from their parents and their book-filled environment, will
become skilled readers.
Evocative genotype-environment correlations occur because a child’s
characteristics elicit certain types of environments. For example, active,
smiling children receive more social stimulation than passive, quiet
children do. Cooperative, attentive children evoke more pleasant and
instructional responses from the adults around them than uncooperative,
distractible children do.
Active (niche-picking) genotype-environment correlations occur when
children seek out environments that they find compatible and stimulating.
Niche-picking refers to finding a setting that is suited to one’s abilities.
Children select from their surrounding environment specific aspects that
they respond to, learn about, or ignore. Their active selections of
environments are related to their particular genotype. For example,
outgoing children tend to seek out social contexts in which to interact
with people, whereas shy children don’t. Children who are musically
inclined are likely to select musical environments in which they can
successfully perform their skills.
The Epigenetic View and Gene × Environment (G × E)
Interaction
Notice that Scarr’s view gives the preeminent role in development to
heredity: her analysis describes how heredity may influence the types of
environments that children experience. Critics argue that the concept of
heredity-environment correlation gives heredity too great an influence in
determining development because it does not consider the role of prior
environmental influences in shaping the correlation itself (Moore, 2017). In
this section we look at some approaches that place greater emphasis on the
role of the environment.
Page 49The Epigenetic View
In line with the concept of a collaborative gene, Gilbert Gottlieb
(2007) proposed an epigenetic view, which states that development is the
result of an ongoing, bidirectional interchange between heredity and the
environment. Figure 6 compares the heredity-environment correlation and
epigenetic views of development.
Figure 6 Comparison of the Heredity-Environment Correlation and Epigenetic
Views
Let’s look at an example that reflects the epigenetic view. A baby inherits
genes from both parents at conception. During prenatal development, toxins,
nutrition, and stress can influence some genes to stop functioning while
others become stronger or weaker. During infancy, additional environmental
experiences, such as exposure to toxins, nutrition, stress, learning, and
encouragement, continue to modify genetic activity and the activity of the
nervous system that directly underlies behavior. Heredity and environment
thus operate together—or collaborate—to produce a person’s well-being,
intelligence, temperament, health, ability to pitch a baseball, ability to read,
and so on (Moore, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you apply the
epigenetic view to
explain why one
identical twin can
develop alcoholism
while the other twin
does not?
Gene × Environment (G × E) Interaction
An increasing number of studies are exploring how the interaction between
heredity and environment influences development, including interactions that
involve specific DNA sequences (Bakusic & others, 2017; Grunblatt &
others, 2018; Halldorsdottir & Binder, 2017; Quereshi & Mehler, 2018). The
epigenetic mechanisms involve the actual molecular modification of the
DNA strand as a result of environmental inputs in ways that alter gene
functioning (Knyazev & others, 2018; Rozenblat & others, 2017; Szutorisz &
Hurd, 2018).
One study found that individuals who have a short version of a gene
labeled 5-HTTLPR (a gene involving the neurotransmitter serotonin) have an
elevated risk of developing depression only if they also lead stressful lives
(Caspi & others, 2003). Thus, the specific gene did not directly cause the
development of depression; rather, the gene interacted with a stressful
environment in a way that allowed the researchers to predict whether
individuals would develop depression. A research meta-analysis indicated
that the short version of 5-HTTLPR was linked with higher cortisol stress
reactivity (Miller & others, 2013). Researchers also have found support for
the interaction between the 5-HTTLPR gene and stress levels in predicting
depression in adolescents and older adults (Petersen & others, 2012; Zannas
& others, 2012).
Other research involving interaction between genes and environmental
experiences has focused on attachment, parenting, and supportive child-
rearing environments (Ein-Dor & others, 2018; Labella & Masten, 2018;
Naumova & others, 2016). In one study, adults who experienced parental loss
as young children were more likely to have unresolved attachment issues as
adults only when they had the short version of the 5-HTTLPR gene (Caspers
Page 50
& others, 2009). The long version of the serotonin transporter gene
apparently provided some protection and ability to cope better with parental
loss. Other studies have found that variations in dopamine-related genes
interact with supportive or unsupportive rearing environments to influence
children’s development (Bakermans-Kranenburg & van IJzendoorn, 2011).
The type of research just described is referred to as studies of gene ×
environment (G × E) interaction—the interaction of a specific measured
variation in DNA and a specific measured aspect of the environment (Moore,
2017; Samek & others, 2017).
Although there is considerable enthusiasm about the concept of gene ×
environment interaction (G × E), a research review concluded that this
approach is plagued by difficulties in replicating results, inflated claims, and
other weaknesses (Manuck & McCaffery, 2014). The science of G × E
interaction is very young, and in the next several decades it will likely
produce more precise findings (Fumagalli & others, 2018; Marioni & others,
2018).
Conclusions About Heredity-Environment
Interaction
If an attractive, popular, intelligent girl is elected president of her high school
senior class, is her success due to heredity or to environment? Of course, the
answer is “both.”
The relative contributions of heredity and environment are not additive.
That is, we can’t say that such-and-such a percentage of nature and such-and-
such a percentage of experience make us who we are. Nor is it accurate to say
that full genetic expression happens once, at the time of conception or birth,
after which we carry our genetic legacy into the world to see how far it takes
us. Genes produce proteins throughout the life span, in many different
environments. Or they don’t produce these proteins, depending in part on
how harsh or nourishing those environments are.
To what extent are this young girl’s piano skills likely due to heredity, environment, or
both?
©Francisco Romero/Getty Images
The emerging view is that complex behaviors are influenced by genes in
ways that give people a propensity for a particular developmental trajectory
(Kalashnikova, Goswami, & Burnham, 2018; Knyazev & others, 2018).
However, the individual’s actual development requires more: a particular
environment. And that environment is complex, just like the mixture of genes
we inherit (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Tremblay, Vitaro, & Cote, 2018).
Environmental influences range from the things we lump together under
“nurture” (such as culture, parenting, family dynamics, schooling, and
neighborhood quality) to biological encounters (such as viruses, birth
complications, and even biological events in cells).
In developmental psychologist David Moore’s (2013, 2015, 2017) view,
the biological systems that generate behaviors are extremely complex but too
often these systems have been described in overly simplified ways that can be
misleading. Thus, although genetic factors clearly contribute to behavior and
psychological processes, they don’t determine these phenotypes
independently from the contexts in which they develop. From Moore’s (2013,
2015, 2017) perspective, it is misleading to talk about “genes for” eye color,
intelligence, personality, or other characteristics. Moore commented that in
retrospect we should not have expected to be able to make the giant leap from
DNA’s molecules to a complete understanding of human behavior any more
than we should anticipate being able to easily link air molecules in a concert
hall with a full-blown appreciation of a symphony’s wondrous experience.
Page 51
Imagine for a moment that there is a cluster of genes that are somehow
associated with youth violence. (This example is hypothetical because we
don’t know of any such combination.) The adolescent who carries this
genetic mixture might experience a world of loving parents, regular nutritious
meals, lots of books, and a series of competent teachers. Or the adolescent’s
world might include parental neglect, a neighborhood in which gunshots and
crime are everyday occurrences, and inadequate schooling. In which of these
environments are the adolescent’s genes likely to manufacture the biological
underpinnings of criminality?
If heredity and environment interact to determine the course of
development, is that all there is to answering the question of what causes
development? Are humans completely at the mercy of their genes and their
environment as they develop through the life span? Genetic heritage and
environmental experiences are pervasive influences on development. But in
thinking about what causes development, recall our discussion of
development as the co-construction of biology, culture, and the individual.
Not only are we the outcomes of our heredity and the environment we
experience, but we also can author a unique developmental path by changing
our environment. As one psychologist concluded:
In reality, we are both the creatures and creators of our worlds. We
are . . . the products of our genes and environments. Nevertheless, . . .
the stream of causation that shapes the future runs through our present
choices . . . Mind matters . . . Our hopes, goals, and expectations
influence our future. (Myers, 2010, p. 168)
Prenatal Development
We turn now to a description of how the process of development unfolds
from its earliest moment—the moment of conception—when two parental
cells, with their unique genetic contributions, merge to create a new
individual.
Conception occurs when a single sperm cell from a male unites with an
ovum (egg) in a female’s fallopian tube in a process called fertilization. Over
the next few months the genetic code discussed earlier directs a series of
changes in the fertilized egg, but many events and hazards will influence how
that egg develops and becomes a person.
The Course of Prenatal Development
Prenatal development lasts approximately 266 days, beginning with
fertilization and ending with birth. Pregnancy can be divided into three
periods: germinal, embryonic, and fetal.
The Germinal Period
The germinal period is the period of prenatal development that takes place
in the first two weeks after conception. It includes the creation of the
fertilized egg (the zygote), cell division, and the attachment of the
multicellular organism to the uterine wall.
Rapid cell division by the zygote begins the germinal period. (Recall
from earlier in the chapter that this cell division occurs through a process
called mitosis.) Within one week after conception, the differentiation of these
cells—their specialization for different tasks—has already begun. At this
stage the organism, now called the blastocyst, consists of a hollow ball of
cells that will eventually develop into the embryo, and the trophoblast, an
outer layer of cells that later provides nutrition and support for the embryo.
Implantation, the embedding of the blastocyst in the uterine wall, takes place
during the second week after conception. Figure 7 summarizes these
significant developments in the germinal period.
Page 52
Figure 7 Major Developments in the Germinal Period
The Embryonic Period
The embryonic period is the period of prenatal development that
occurs from two to eight weeks after conception. During the embryonic
period, the rate of cell differentiation intensifies, support systems for cells
form, and organs develop.
The mass of cells is now called an embryo, and three layers of cells form.
The embryo’s endoderm is the inner layer of cells, which will develop into
the digestive and respiratory systems. The ectoderm is the outermost layer,
which will become the nervous system, sensory receptors (ears, nose, and
eyes, for example), and skin parts (hair and nails, for example). The
mesoderm is the middle layer, which will become the circulatory system,
bones, muscles, excretory system, and reproductive system. Every body part
eventually develops from these three layers. The endoderm primarily
produces internal body parts, the mesoderm primarily produces parts that
surround the internal areas, and the ectoderm primarily produces surface
parts. Organogenesis is the name given to the process of organ formation
during the first two months of prenatal development. While they are being
formed, the organs are especially vulnerable to environmental influences
(Rios & Clevers, 2018; Schittny, 2017).
As the embryo’s three layers form, life-support systems for the embryo
develop rapidly. These systems include the amnion, the umbilical cord (both
of which develop from the fertilized egg, not the mother’s body), and the
placenta. The amnion is like a bag or an envelope; it contains a clear fluid in
which the developing embryo floats. The amniotic fluid provides an
environment that is temperature- and humidity-controlled, as well as
shockproof. The umbilical cord, which typically contains two arteries and
one vein, connects the baby to the placenta. The placenta consists of a disk-
shaped group of tissues in which small blood vessels from the mother and the
offspring intertwine but do not join.
Very small molecules—oxygen, water, salt, and nutrients from the
mother’s blood, as well as carbon dioxide and digestive wastes from the
baby’s blood—pass back and forth between the mother and the embryo or
fetus. Large molecules cannot pass through the placental wall; these include
red blood cells and some harmful substances, such as most bacteria, maternal
wastes, and hormones (Cuffe & others, 2017; Dube, Desparois, & Lafond,
2018). Virtually any drug or chemical substance a pregnant woman ingests
can cross the placenta to some degree, unless it is metabolized or altered
during passage, or is too large (Burton & Jauniaux, 2015; Koren & Ornoy,
2018).
One study confirmed that ethanol crosses the human placenta and
primarily reflects maternal alcohol use (Matlow & others, 2013). Another
study revealed that cigarette smoke weakened and increased the oxidative
stress of fetal membranes from which the placenta develops (Menon &
others, 2011). The stress hormone cortisol also can cross the placenta (Parrott
& others, 2014). The mechanisms that govern the transfer of substances
across the placental barrier are complex and not yet entirely understood
(Huckle, 2017; Jeong & others, 2018; Vaughan & others, 2017; Zhang &
others, 2018).
The Fetal Period
The fetal period, which lasts about seven months, is the prenatal period that
extends from two months after conception until birth in typical pregnancies.
Growth and development continue their dramatic course during this time.
Three months after conception (13 weeks), the fetus is about 3 inches
long and weighs about four-fifths of an ounce. It has become active, moving
its arms and legs, opening and closing its mouth, and moving its head. The
Page 53
face, forehead, eyelids, nose, and chin are distinguishable, as are the upper
arms, lower arms, hands, and lower limbs. In most cases, the genitals can be
identified as male or female. By the end of the fourth month of pregnancy (17
weeks), the fetus has grown to about 5.5 inches in length and weighs 5
ounces. At this time, a growth spurt occurs in the body’s lower parts. For the
first time, the mother can feel the fetus move.
By the end of the fifth month (22 weeks), the fetus is about 12 inches
long and weighs close to a pound. Structures of the skin have formed—
including toenails and fingernails. The fetus is more active, showing a
preference for a particular position in the womb. By the end of the sixth
month (26 weeks), the fetus is about 14 inches long and has
gained another 6 to 12 ounces. The eyes and eyelids are
completely formed, and a fine layer of hair covers the head. A
grasping reflex is present and irregular breathing movements occur.
As early as six months of pregnancy (about 24 to 25 weeks after
conception), the fetus for the first time has a chance of surviving outside the
womb—that is, it is viable. Infants that are born early, or between 24 and 37
weeks of pregnancy, usually need help breathing because their lungs are not
yet fully mature. By the end of the seventh month, the fetus is about 16
inches long and weighs about 3 pounds.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you characterize
the greatest risks at each
period of prenatal
development?
During the last two months of prenatal development, fatty tissues develop
and the functioning of various organ systems—heart and kidneys, for
example—steps up. During the eighth and ninth months, the fetus grows
Page 54
longer and gains substantial weight—about 4 more pounds. At birth, the
average American baby weighs 8 pounds and is about 20 inches long.
In addition to describing prenatal development in terms of germinal,
embryonic, and fetal periods, prenatal development also can be divided into
equal three-month periods called trimesters. Figure 8 gives an overview of
the main events during each trimester. Remember that the three
trimesters are not the same as the three prenatal periods we
have discussed. The germinal and embryonic periods occur in
the first trimester. The fetal period begins toward the end of the first trimester
and continues through the second and third trimesters.
Figure 8 Growth and Development in the Three Trimesters of Prenatal Development
(Top) ©David Spears/PhotoTake, Inc.; (middle) ©Neil Bromhall/Science Source;
(bottom) ©Brand X Pictures/PunchStock
The Brain
One of the most remarkable aspects of the prenatal period is the development
of the brain (Andescavage & others, 2017; Ferrazzi & others, 2018). By the
time babies are born, they have approximately 100 billion neurons, or nerve
cells, which handle information processing at the cellular level in the brain.
During prenatal development, neurons move to specific locations and start to
become connected. The basic architecture of the human brain is assembled
during the first two trimesters of prenatal development. In typical
development, the third trimester of prenatal development and the first two
years of postnatal life are characterized by connectivity and functioning of
neurons (Toth & others, 2017; van den Heuvel & others, 2018).
Four important phases of the brain’s development during the prenatal
period involve (1) formation of the neural tube; (2) neurogenesis; (3) neural
migration, and (4) neural connectivity.
As the human embryo develops inside its mother’s womb, the nervous
system begins forming as a long, hollow tube located on the embryo’s back.
This pear-shaped neural tube, which forms at about 27 days after conception,
develops out of the ectoderm (Keunen, Counsell, & Bender, 2017). The tube
closes at the top and bottom ends at about 24 days after conception. Figure 9
shows that the nervous system still has a tubular appearance 6 weeks after
conception.
Figure 9 Early Formation of the Nervous System
The photograph shows the primitive, tubular appearance of the nervous system at six
weeks in the human embryo.
©Claude Edelmann/Science Source
Two birth defects related to a failure of the neural tube to close are
anencephaly and spina bifida. When a fetus has anencephaly (that is, when
the head end of the neural tube fails to close), the highest regions of the brain
fail to develop and the baby dies in the womb, during childbirth, or shortly
after birth (Steric & others, 2015). Spina bifida, an incomplete development
of the spinal cord, results in varying degrees of paralysis of the lower limbs
(Li & others, 2018; Miller, 2018). Individuals with spina bifida usually need
assistive devices such as crutches, braces, or wheelchairs. Both maternal
Page 55
diabetes and obesity also place the fetus at risk for developing neural tube
defects (McMahon & others, 2013; Yu, Wu, & Yang, 2016). Further,
research reveals that a high level of maternal stress during pregnancy is
associated with neural tube defects in offspring (Li & others, 2013). A
strategy that can help to prevent neural tube defects is for women to take
adequate amounts of the B vitamin folic acid (Li & others, 2018;
Viswanathan & others, 2017). A recent large-scale study in Brazil found that
when flour was fortified with folic acid it produced a significant reduction in
neural tube defects (Santos & others, 2016).
In a normal pregnancy, once the neural tube has closed, a massive
proliferation of new immature neurons begins to take place about the fifth
prenatal week (Zhu & others, 2017). The production of new neurons is called
neurogenesis, which continues through the remainder of the prenatal period
although it is largely complete by the end of the fifth month after conception
(Keunen, Counsell, & Benders, 2017). At the peak of neurogenesis, it is
estimated that as many as 200,000 neurons are being generated every minute.
At approximately 6 to 24 weeks after conception, neuronal migration
occurs (Nelson, 2011). Cells begin moving outward from their point of origin
to their appropriate locations and creating the different levels, structures, and
regions of the brain (Miyazaki, Song, & Takahashi, 2016). Once a cell has
migrated to its target destination, it must mature and develop a more complex
structure.
At about the 23rd prenatal week, connections between neurons
begin to form, a process that continues postnatally (Miller, Huppi,
& Mallard, 2016; van den Heuvel & others, 2018). We will have
much more to say about the structure of neurons, their connectivity, and the
development of the infant brain.
Prenatal Tests
Together with her doctor, a pregnant woman will decide the extent to which
she should undergo prenatal testing. A number of tests can indicate whether a
fetus is developing normally; these include ultrasound sonography, fetal
MRI, chorionic villus sampling, amniocentesis, maternal blood screening,
and noninvasive prenatal diagnosis. The decision to have a given test depends
on several criteria, such as the mother’s age, medical history, and genetic risk
factors.
Ultrasound Sonography
An ultrasound test is often conducted seven weeks into a pregnancy and at
various times later in pregnancy. Ultrasound sonography is a prenatal
medical procedure in which high-frequency sound waves are directed into the
pregnant woman’s abdomen (Tamai & others 2018). The echo from the
sounds is transformed into a visual representation of the fetus’s inner
structures. This technique can detect many abnormalities in the fetus,
including microcephaly, in which an abnormally small brain can produce
intellectual disability; it can also determine the number of fetuses (that is,
detect whether a woman is carrying twins or triplets) and give clues to the
baby’s sex (Calvo-Garcia, 2016; Larsson & others, 2018). A recent research
review concluded that many aspects of the developing prenatal brain can be
detected by ultrasound in the first trimester and that about 50 percent of spina
bifida cases can be identified at this time, most of these being severe cases
(Engels & others, 2016). There is virtually no risk to the woman or fetus in
using ultrasound.
A 6-month-old poses with the ultrasound image take four months into the baby’s prenatal
development. What is ultrasound sonography and what can it detect?
©AJ Photo/BSIP/age fotostock
Page 56
Chorionic Villus Sampling
At some point between the 10th and 12th weeks of pregnancy, chorionic
villus sampling may be used to screen for genetic defects and chromosome
abnormalities. Chorionic villus sampling (CVS) is a prenatal medical
procedure in which a tiny tissue sample from the placenta is removed and
analyzed (Carlson & Vora, 2017). The results are available in about 10 days.
Amniocentesis
Between the 15th and 18th weeks of pregnancy, amniocentesis may be
performed. In this procedure, a sample of amniotic fluid is withdrawn by
syringe and tested for chromosomal or metabolic disorders (Jung & others,
2017). The later in the pregnancy amniocentesis is performed, the better its
diagnostic potential. However, the earlier it is performed, the more useful it is
in deciding how to handle a pregnancy when the fetus is found to have a
disorder. It may take two weeks for enough cells to grow so that
amniocentesis test results can be obtained. Amniocentesis brings a small risk
of miscarriage: about 1 woman in every 200 to 300 miscarries after
amniocentesis.
Maternal Blood Screening
During the 16th to 18th weeks of pregnancy, maternal blood screening may
be performed. Maternal blood screening identifies pregnancies that have an
elevated risk for birth defects such as spina bifida and Down syndrome (le
Ray & others, 2018), as well as congenital heart disease risk for children (Sun
& others, 2015). The current blood test is called the triple screen because it
measures three substances in the mother’s blood. After an abnormal triple
screen result, the next step is usually an ultrasound examination. If an
ultrasound does not explain the abnormal triple screen results, amniocentesis
typically is used.
Fetal MRI
The development of brain-imaging techniques has led to increasing use of
fetal MRI to diagnose fetal malformations (Cheong & Miller, 2018; Choudhri
& others, 2018; Ferrazzi & others, 2018; Kang & others, 2017) (see Figure
10). MRI, which stands for magnetic resonance imaging, uses a powerful
magnet and radio images to generate detailed images of the body’s organs
and structures. Currently, high-quality ultrasound is still the first choice in
fetal screening, but fetal MRI can provide more detailed images than
ultrasound (Griffiths & others, 2018). In many instances, ultrasound will
indicate a possible abnormality and fetal MRI will then be used to obtain a
clearer, more detailed image (Bernardo & others, 2017). Among the fetal
malformations that fetal MRI may be able to detect better than ultrasound
sonography are certain abnormalities of the central nervous system, chest,
gastrointestinal tract, genital/urinary organs, and placenta (Manganaro &
others, 2018). In a recent research review, it was concluded that fetal MRI
often does not provide good results in the first trimester of pregnancy because
of small fetal structures and movement artifacts (Wataganara & others, 2016).
Also, in this review, it was argued that fetal MRI can be especially beneficial
in assessing central nervous system abnormalities in the third trimester of
pregnancy.
Page 57
Figure 10 A Fetal MRI.
Increasingly, MRI is being used to diagnose fetal malformations.
©Du Cane Medical Imaging Ltd/Science Source
Fetal Sex Determination
Chorionic villus sampling has often been used to determine the sex of the
fetus at some point between 11 and 13 weeks of gestation. Also, in a recent
study, ultrasound accurately identified the sex of the fetus between 11 and 13
weeks of gestation (Manzanares & others, 2016). Recently, though, some
noninvasive techniques, such as cell-free DNA analysis in blood plasma,
have been able to detect the sex of the fetus at an earlier point (Degrelle &
Fournier, 2018; Skrzypek & Hui, 2017). A meta-analysis of studies
confirmed that a baby’s sex can be detected as early as 7 weeks into
pregnancy (Devaney & others, 2011). Being able to detect an offspring’s sex
as well as the presence of various diseases and defects at such an early stage
raises ethical concerns about couples’ motivation to terminate a pregnancy
(Browne, 2017).
Infertility and Reproductive Technology
Recent advances in biological knowledge have also opened up many choices
for infertile people (Dorfeshan & others, 2018; Florencio & others, 2018;
Liebermann, 2017; Silber, 2017). Approximately 10 to 15 percent of couples
in the United States experience infertility, which is defined as the inability to
conceive a child after 12 months of regular intercourse without
contraception. The cause of infertility can rest with either the
woman or the man, or both (Namgoong & Kim, 2018; Sunderam
& others, 2017). The woman may not be ovulating (releasing eggs to be
fertilized); she may be producing abnormal ova; her fallopian tubes (by
which ova normally reach the womb) may be blocked; or she may have a
condition that prevents implantation of the embryo into the uterus. The man
may produce too few sperm; the sperm may lack motility (the ability to move
adequately); or he may have a blocked passageway (Razavi & others, 2017;
Yu & others, 2018; Zalzali & others, 2018).
Surgery can correct some causes of infertility; for others, hormone-based
drugs may be effective. Of the 2 million U.S. couples who seek help for
infertility every year, about 40,000 try assisted reproduction technologies. In
vitro fertilization (IVF), the technique that produced the world’s first “test
tube baby” in 1978, involves eggs and sperm being combined in a laboratory
dish. If any eggs are successfully fertilized, one or more of the resulting
fertilized eggs is transferred into the woman’s uterus.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you advise a 25-
year-old mother who is
concerned about the
possibility of birth
defects but has no
genetic history of these
types of problems?
Any multiple birth increases the likelihood that the babies will have life-
threatening and costly problems, such as extremely low birth weight (March
of Dimes, 2018). In a recent national study, low birthweight and preterm birth
were significantly higher in infants conceived via assisted-reproduction
technology (Sunderam & others, 2017). However, research reviews conclude
that children and adolescents conceived through new reproductive
technologies—such as in vitro fertilization—are as well-adjusted as their
counterparts conceived by natural means (Golombok, 2011a, b, 2017;
Golombok & others, 2018).
Hazards to Prenatal Development
For most babies, the course of prenatal development goes smoothly. Their
mother’s womb protects them as they develop. Despite this protection,
however, the environment can affect the embryo or fetus in many well-
documented ways.
Page 58
General Principles
A teratogen is any agent that can potentially cause a birth defect or
negatively alter cognitive and behavioral outcomes. The field of study that
investigates the causes of birth defects is called teratology (Boschen &
others, 2018; Stancil & others, 2018). Teratogens include drugs, incompatible
blood types, environmental pollutants, infectious diseases, nutritional
deficiencies, maternal stress, advanced maternal and paternal age, and
environmental pollutants.
The dose, genetic susceptibility, and time of exposure to a particular
teratogen influence both the severity of the damage to an embryo or fetus and
the type of defect:
1. Dose—The dose effect is rather obvious—the greater the dose of an
agent, such as a drug, the greater the effect.
2. Genetic susceptibility—The type or severity of abnormalities caused by a
teratogen is linked to the genotype of the pregnant woman and the
genotype of the embryo or fetus (Cassina & others, 2017; Middleton &
others, 2017).
3. Time of exposure—Teratogens do more damage when they occur at
some points in development than at others. The probability of a structural
defect is greatest early in the embryonic period, when organs are being
formed (Feldkamp & others, 2017; Mazzu-Nascimento & others, 2017).
After organogenesis is complete, teratogens are less likely to cause
anatomical defects. Instead, exposure during the fetal period is more
likely to stunt growth or create problems in the way organs function.
This is especially true for the developing fetal brain, which continues to
form connections throughout pregnancy.
To examine some key teratogens and their effects, let’s begin with drugs.
Prescription and Nonprescription Drugs
Prescription drugs that can function as teratogens include antibiotics, such as
streptomycin and tetracycline; some antidepressants; certain hormones, such
as progestin and synthetic estrogen; and Accutane (isotretinoin), often
prescribed for acne (Brown & others, 2017; Dathe & Schaefer, 2018).
Among the birth defects caused by Accutane are heart defects, eye and ear
abnormalities, and brain malformation. In a recent study, Accutane was the
fourth most common drug given to female adolescents who were seeking
contraception advice from a physician (Stancil & others, 2017). However,
physicians did not give the adolescent girls adequate information about the
negative effects of Accutane on offspring if the girls become pregnant.
Nonprescription drugs that can be harmful include diet pills and high doses of
aspirin.
Psychoactive Drugs
Psychoactive drugs act on the nervous system to alter states of consciousness,
modify perceptions, and change moods. Examples include caffeine, alcohol,
and nicotine, as well as illegal drugs such as cocaine, marijuana, and heroin.
Caffeine People often consume caffeine by drinking coffee, tea, or colas, or
by eating chocolate. Research has been mixed on the effects of caffeine
intake by pregnant women on the fetus (Chen & others, 2016; De Medeiros
& others, 2017). However, the influence of increased consumption of energy
drinks that typically have extremely high levels of caffeine on the
development of offspring has not yet been studied. The U.S. Food and Drug
Administration recommends that pregnant women either not consume
caffeine or consume it only sparingly.
Alcohol Heavy drinking by pregnant women can be devastating to offspring
(Jacobson & others, 2017). Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are a
cluster of abnormalities and problems that appear in the offspring of mothers
who drink alcohol heavily during pregnancy (Del Campo & Jones, 2017;
Helgesson & others, 2018). The abnormalities include facial deformities and
defective limbs, face, and heart (Pei & others, 2017). Most children with
FASD have learning problems, and many are below average in intelligence;
some have an intellectual disability (Khoury & Milligan, 2018). One study
revealed that children with FASD have deficiencies in the brain pathways
involved in working memory (Diwadkar & others, 2012). A recent research
review concluded that FASD is linked to a lower level of executive function
in children, especially in planning (Kingdon, Cardoso, & McGrath, 2016).
And in a recent study, FASD was associated with both externalized and
Page 59
internalized behavior problems in childhood (Tsang & others, 2016). Also, in
a recent study in the United Kingdom, the life expectancy of individuals with
FASD was only 34 years of age, about 42 percent of the life expectancy of
the general population (Thanh & Jonsson, 2016). In this study, the most
common causes of death among individuals with FASD were suicide (15
percent), accidents (14 percent), and poisoning by illegal drugs or alcohol (7
percent). Although mothers of FASD infants are heavy drinkers, many
mothers who are heavy drinkers may not have children with FASD or may
have one child with FASD and other children who do not have it.
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are characterized by a number of physical
abnormalities and learning problems. Notice the wide-set eyes, flat cheekbones, and thin
upper lip in this child with FASD.
©Streissguth, AP, Landesman-Dwyer S, Martin, JC, & Smith, DW (1980).
Teratogenic effects of alcohol in humans and laboratory animals. Science, 209,
353–361.
What are some guidelines for alcohol use during pregnancy? Even
drinking just one or two servings of beer or wine or one serving of hard
liquor a few days a week can have negative effects on the fetus, although it is
generally agreed that this level of alcohol use will not cause fetal alcohol
spectrum disorders (Sarman, 2018). The U.S. Surgeon General recommends
that no alcohol be consumed during pregnancy, as does the French Alcohol
Society (Rolland & others, 2016). And research suggests that it may not be
wise to consume alcohol at the time of conception. Despite such
recommendations, a recent large-scale U.S. study found that
11.5 percent of adolescent and 8.7 percent of adult pregnant
women reported using alcohol in the previous month (Oh &
others, 2017).
Nicotine Cigarette smoking by pregnant women can also adversely
influence prenatal development, birth, and postnatal development (Ostfeld &
others, 2018). Preterm births and low birth weights, fetal and neonatal deaths,
respiratory problems, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS, also known as
crib death), and cardiovascular problems are all more common among the
offspring of mothers who smoked during pregnancy (Zhang & others, 2017).
Prenatal smoking has been implicated in as many as 25 percent of infants
being born with a low birth weight (Brown & Graves, 2013).
Researchers also have found that maternal smoking during pregnancy is a
risk factor for the development of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in
offspring (Pohlabein & others, 2017). A recent meta-analysis of 15 studies
concluded that smoking during pregnancy increased the risk of children
having ADHD and the risk of having ADHD was greater for children whose
mothers were heavy smokers (Huang & others, 2018a). Also, in a recent
study, maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy was linked with
offspring being more likely to smoke cigarettes at 16 years of age (De Genna
& others, 2016). Further, a recent study revealed that daughters whose
mothers smoked during their pregnancy were more likely to subsequently
smoke during their own pregnancy (Ncube & Mueller, 2017). Another study
found that maternal smoking during pregnancy was associated with increased
risk of asthma and wheezing of offspring during adolescence (Hollams &
others, 2014).
Researchers have documented that environmental tobacco smoke is
linked to negative outcomes for offspring (Vardavas & others, 2016). In one
study, environmental tobacco smoke led to an increased risk of low birth
weight in offspring (Salama & others, 2013) and to diminished ovarian
functioning in female offspring (Kilic & others, 2012). Another study
revealed that environmental tobacco smoke was associated with 114
deregulations, especially those involving immune functioning, in the fetal
cells of offspring (Votavova & others, 2012). Maternal exposure to
environmental tobacco smoke during prenatal development also increased the
risk of stillbirth (Varner & others, 2014).
Despite the plethora of negative outcomes for maternal smoking during
pregnancy, a recent large-scale U.S. study revealed that 23 percent of
adolescent and 15 percent of pregnant adult women reported using tobacco in
the previous month (Oh & others, 2017). And a final point about nicotine use
during pregnancy involves the potential effects of the recent dramatic
increase in the use of e-cigarettes (Tegin & others, 2018; Wagner, Camerota,
& Propper, 2017).
Cocaine Does cocaine use during pregnancy harm the developing embryo
and fetus? One research study found that cocaine quickly crossed the placenta
to reach the fetus (De Giovanni & Marchetti, 2012). The most consistent
finding is that cocaine exposure during prenatal development is associated
with reduced birth weight, length, and head circumference (Gouin & others,
2011). In other studies, prenatal cocaine exposure has been linked to impaired
connectivity of the thalamus and prefrontal cortex in newborns (Salzwedel &
others, 2017); impaired motor development at 2 years of age and a slower
rate of growth through 10 years of age (Richardson, Goldschmidt, &
Willford, 2008); impaired language development and information processing,
including attention deficits (especially impulsivity) (Accornero & others,
2006; Richardson & others, 2011); self-regulation problems at age 12
(Minnes & others, 2016); attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (Richardson
& others, 2016); increased behavioral problems, especially externalizing
problems such as high rates of aggression, oppositional defiant disorder, and
delinquency (Minnes & others, 2010; Richardson & others, 2011, 2016);
posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Richardson & others, 2016); and
increased likelihood of being in a special education program that involves
support services (Levine & others, 2008).
Page 60
This baby was exposed to cocaine prenatally. What are some of the possible effects on
development of being exposed to cocaine prenatally?
©Chuck Nacke/Alamy
Some researchers argue that these findings should be
interpreted cautiously (Accornero & others, 2006). Why? Because
other factors in the lives of pregnant women who use cocaine (such
as poverty, malnutrition, and other substance abuse) often cannot be ruled out
as possible contributors to the problems found in their children (Messiah &
others, 2011). For example, cocaine users are more likely than nonusers to
smoke cigarettes, use marijuana, drink alcohol, and take amphetamines.
Despite these cautions, the weight of research evidence indicates that
children born to mothers who use cocaine are likely to have neurological,
medical, and cognitive deficits (Cain, Bornick, & Whiteman, 2013; Field,
2007; Martin & others, 2016; Mayer & Zhang, 2009; Parcianello & others,
2018; Richardson & others, 2011, 2016; Scott-Goodwin, Puerto, & Moreno,
2016). Cocaine use by pregnant women is never recommended.
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
what advice would you
offer to women in their
childbearing years who
frequently abuse drugs
and other psychoactive
substances?
Marijuana An increasing number of studies find that marijuana use by
pregnant women has negative outcomes for offspring (Ruisch & others,
2018). In a recent meta-analysis, marijuana use during pregnancy was linked
to offsprings’ low birth weight and a greater likelihood of being placed in a
neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) (Gunn & others, 2016; Volkow,
Compton, & Wargo, 2017). An earlier study revealed that marijuana use by
pregnant women was associated with stillbirth (Varner & others, 2014).
Another study found that prenatal marijuana exposure was related to lower
intelligence in children (Goldschmidt & others, 2008). And yet another study
indicated that prenatal exposure to marijuana was linked to marijuana use at
14 years of age (Day, Goldschmidt, & Thomas, 2006). In sum, marijuana use
is not recommended for pregnant women.
Despite increasing evidence of negative outcomes, researchers found that
marijuana use by pregnant women increased from 2.4 percent in 2002 to 3.85
percent in 2014 (Brown & others, 2016). And there is considerable concern
that marijuana use by pregnant women may increase further, given the
increasing number of states that have legalized marijuana (Chasnoff, 2017;
Hennessy, 2018).
Heroin It is well documented that infants whose mothers are addicted to
heroin show several behavioral difficulties at birth (Angelotta & Appelbaum,
2017; National Institute of Drug Abuse, 2018). The difficulties include
withdrawal symptoms, such as tremors, irritability, abnormal crying,
disturbed sleep, and impaired motor control. Many infants continue to show
behavioral problems at their first birthday, and attention deficits may appear
later in development. The most common treatment for heroin addiction,
methadone, is associated with very severe withdrawal symptoms in newborns
(Lai & others, 2017). Increasingly, buprenorphine is being used to treat
heroin use during pregnancy (Krans & others, 2016).
Synthetic Opioids and Opiate-Related Pain Killers An increasing
Page 61
number of women are using synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl, and opiate-
related pain relievers obtained legally by prescription, such as OxyContin and
Vicodin, during their pregnancy (Haycraft, 2018). Infants born to women
using these substances during pregnancy are at risk for experiencing opioid
withdrawal (Lacaze-Masmonteil & O’Flaherty, 2018). Other possible
outcomes for children exposed prenatally to these substances are just
beginning to be studied (National Institute of Drug Abuse, 2018). Any
prolonged use of synthetic opioids and opiate-related pain relievers is not
recommended (Food and Drug Administration, 2018a).
Environmental Hazards
Many aspects of our modern industrial world can endanger the embryo or
fetus. Some specific hazards to the embryo or fetus include radiation, toxic
wastes, and other environmental pollutants (Sreetharan & others, 2017; Yang,
Ren, & Tang, 2017).
X-ray radiation can affect the developing embryo or fetus, especially in
the first several weeks after conception, when women do not yet know they
are pregnant. Women and their physicians should weigh the risk of an X-ray
when the woman is or might be pregnant (Rajaraman & others,
2011). However, a routine diagnostic X-ray of a body area
other than the abdomen, with the woman’s abdomen protected
by a lead apron, is generally considered safe (Brent, 2009, 2011).
Maternal Diseases
Maternal diseases and infections can produce defects in offspring by crossing
the placental barrier, or they can cause damage during birth (Cuffe & others,
2017; Koren & Ornoy, 2018). Rubella (German measles) is one disease that
can cause prenatal defects. A recent research review concluded that rubella
exposure during pregnancy is most likely to cause impairments involving the
cardiovascular system and pulmonary system, as well as microcephaly
(Yazigi & others, 2017). Women who plan to have children should have a
blood test before they become pregnant to determine whether they are
immune to the disease (Ogbuanu & others, 2014).
Syphilis (a sexually transmitted infection) is more damaging later in
prenatal development—four months or more after conception. Damage
includes eye lesions, which can cause blindness, and skin lesions (Braccio,
Sharland, & Ladhani, 2016). Penicillin is the only known treatment for
syphilis during pregnancy (Moline & Smith, 2016).
Another infection that has received widespread attention is genital herpes.
Newborns contract this virus when they are delivered through the birth canal
of a mother with genital herpes (Sampath, Maduro, & Schillinger, 2018).
About one-third of babies delivered through an infected birth canal die;
another one-fourth suffer brain damage. If an active case of genital herpes is
detected in a pregnant woman close to her delivery date, a cesarean section
can be performed (in which the infant is delivered through an incision in the
mother’s abdomen) to keep the virus from infecting the newborn (Pinninti &
Kimberlin, 2013).
AIDS is a sexually transmitted infection that is caused by the human
immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which destroys the body’s immune system
(Taylor & others, 2017). A mother can infect her offspring with HIV/AIDS in
three ways: (1) across the placenta during gestation; (2) through contact with
maternal blood or fluids during delivery; and (3) through breast feeding. The
transmission of AIDS through breast feeding is a particular problem in many
developing countries (UNICEF, 2018). Babies born to HIV-infected mothers
can be (1) infected and symptomatic (show HIV symptoms); (2) infected but
asymptomatic (not show HIV symptoms); or (3) not infected at all. An infant
who is infected and asymptomatic may still develop HIV symptoms up to 15
months of age.
The more widespread disease of diabetes, characterized by high levels of
sugar in the blood, also affects offspring (Briana & others, 2018; Haertle &
others, 2017; Kaseva & others, 2018). Women who have gestational diabetes
(a condition in which women without previously diagnosed diabetes develop
high blood glucose levels during pregnancy) have an increased risk of having
very large infants (weighing 10 pounds or more), and the infants themselves
are at risk for diabetes (Mitanchez & others, 2015) and cardiovascular disease
(Amrithraj & others, 2017). Further, a recent study found that maternal
diabetes during pregnancy was linked to offspring having an increased risk
for fatty liver disease at 18 years of age (Patel & others, 2016).
Other Parental Factors
Page 62
So far we have discussed a number of drugs, environmental hazards, maternal
diseases, and incompatible blood types that can harm the embryo or fetus.
Now we will explore other characteristics of the mother and father that can
affect prenatal and child development, including nutrition, age, and emotional
states and stress.
Maternal Diet and Nutrition A developing embryo or fetus depends
completely on its mother for nutrition, which comes from the mother’s blood
(Kominiarek & Peaceman, 2017). The nutritional status of the embryo or
fetus is determined by the mother’s total caloric intake as well as her intake
of proteins, vitamins, and minerals. Children born to malnourished mothers
are more likely than other children to be malformed.
Maternal obesity adversely affects pregnancy outcomes
through increased rates of hypertension, diabetes, respiratory
complications, infections, and depression in the mother (Baugh &
others, 2016; Kumpulainen & others, 2018; Preston, Reynolds, & Pearson,
2018). Research studies have found that maternal obesity is linked to
increased risk of stillbirth (Gardosi & others, 2013) or preterm birth
(Cnattingius & others, 2013), and increased likelihood that the newborn will
be placed in a neonatal intensive care unit (Minsart & others, 2013). A recent
study revealed that at 14 weeks following conception, fetuses of obese
pregnant women had less efficient cardiovascular functioning than fetuses
whose mothers were not obese (Isgut & others, 2017). Further, a longitudinal
study revealed that obesity during pregnancy was associated with long-term
cardiovascular morbidity in adults (Yaniv-Salem & others, 2016). Further,
two recent research reviews concluded that maternal obesity during
pregnancy is associated with an increased likelihood of offspring being obese
in childhood and adulthood (Pinto Pereira & others, 2016; Santangeli, Sattar,
& Huda, 2015). Management of obesity that includes weight loss and
increased exercise prior to pregnancy is likely to benefit both the mother and
the baby (Aubuchon-Endsley & others, 2018; Dutton & others, 2018).
One aspect of maternal nutrition that is important for normal prenatal
development is folic acid, a B-complex vitamin (Li & others, 2018;
Viswanathan & others, 2017). A study of more than 34,000 women found
that taking folic acid either alone or as part of a multivitamin for at least one
year prior to conceiving was linked with a 70 percent lower risk of delivering
at 20 to 28 weeks and a 50 percent lower risk of delivering at 28 to 32 weeks
(Bukowski & others, 2008). Also, as indicated earlier in the chapter, lack of
folic acid is related to neural tube defects in offspring (Kancherla & Oakley,
2018). The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2018)
recommends that pregnant women consume a minimum of 400 micrograms
of folic acid per day (about twice the amount the average woman gets in one
day). Orange juice and spinach are examples of foods that are rich in folic
acid. Also, a recent research study in China found that folic acid
supplementation during pregnancy reduced the risk of preterm birth (X. Liu
& others, 2015).
Fish is often recommended as part of a healthy diet and in general fish
consumption during pregnancy has positive benefits for children’s
development (Golding & others, 2016; Julvez & others, 2016). The Food and
Drug Administration (2018b) recommends that pregnant women increase
their consumption of fish especially because they contain vital nutrients such
as omega-3 fatty acids, protein, vitamins, and minerals such as iron.
However, pollution has made some kinds of fish a risky choice for pregnant
women. Some fish contain high levels of mercury, which is released into the
air both naturally and by industrial processes (Wells & others, 2011).
Mercury that falls into the water can accumulate in large fish, such as shark,
swordfish, king mackerel, and some species of large tuna (American
Pregnancy Association, 2018; Mayo Clinic, 2018). Researchers have found
that prenatal mercury exposure through consumption of some types of fish
during pregnancy is linked to adverse outcomes, including reduced placental
and fetal growth, miscarriage, preterm birth, impaired neuropsychological
development, and lower intelligence (Jeong & others, 2017; Llop & others,
2017; Murcia & others, 2016; Xue & others, 2007).
Page 63
Because the fetus depends entirely on its mother for nutrition, it is important for the
pregnant woman to have good nutritional habits. In Kenya, this government clinic
provides pregnant women with information about how their diet can influence the health
of their fetus and off spring. What might the information about diet be like?
©Delphine Bousquet/AFP/Getty Images
Recently, the American Pregnancy Association (2018) revised its
conclusions about fish consumption during pregnancy, while continuing to
recommend avoidance of high-mercury-content fish such tilefish from the
Gulf of Mexico, swordfish, shark, and king mackerel. The
association and the FDA now recommend that pregnant women
increase their consumption of low-mercury-content fish such as
salmon, shrimp, tilapia, and cod.
Maternal Age When possible harmful effects on the fetus and infant are
considered, two maternal age categories are of special interest: adolescence
and 35 years and older (Gockley & others, 2016; Kawakita & others, 2016;
Kingsbury, Plotnikova, & Naiman, 2018; Tearne & others, 2016). The
mortality rate of infants born to adolescent mothers is double that of infants
born to mothers in their twenties. Adequate prenatal care decreases the
probability that a child born to an adolescent girl will have physical
problems. However, adolescents are the least likely of women in all age
groups to obtain prenatal assistance from clinics and health services.
Maternal age is also linked to the risk that a child will have Down
syndrome (Jaruatanasirikul & others, 2017). A baby with Down syndrome
rarely is born to a mother 16 to 34 years of age. However, when the mother
reaches 40 years of age, the probability is slightly higher than 1 in 100 that a
baby born to her will have Down syndrome, and by age 50 it is almost 1 in
10. When mothers are 35 years and older, risks also increase for low birth
weight, preterm delivery, and fetal death (Koo & others, 2012). Also, in two
studies, very advanced maternal age (40 years and older) was linked to
adverse perinatal outcomes, including spontaneous abortion, preterm birth,
stillbirth, and fetal growth restriction (Traisrisilp & Tongsong, 2015;
Waldenstrom & others, 2015).
We still have much to learn about the role of the mother’s age in
pregnancy and childbirth. As women remain active, exercise regularly, and
are careful about their nutrition, their reproductive systems may remain
healthier at older ages than was thought possible in the past.
Emotional States and Stress When a pregnant woman experiences
intense fears, anxieties, and other emotions or negative mood states,
physiological changes occur that may affect her fetus (Fatima, Srivastav, &
Mondal, 2017). A mother’s stress may also influence the fetus indirectly by
increasing the likelihood that the mother will engage in unhealthy behaviors
such as taking drugs and receiving poor prenatal care.
High maternal anxiety and stress during pregnancy can have long-term
consequences for the offspring (Isgut & others, 2017; Pinto & others, 2017).
One study found that high levels of depression, anxiety, and stress during
pregnancy were linked to internalizing problems in adolescence (Betts &
others, 2014). A research review indicated that pregnant women with high
levels of stress are at increased risk for having a child with emotional or
cognitive problems, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and
language delay (Taige & others, 2007). Further, a recent research review
concluded that regardless of the form of maternal prenatal stress or anxiety
and the prenatal trimester in which the stress or anxiety occurred, during the
first two years of life the offspring displayed lower levels of self-regulation
(Korja & others, 2017).
Maternal depression also can have an adverse effect on birth outcomes
and children’s development (M. Park & others, 2018). A research review
concluded that maternal depression is linked to preterm birth (Mparmpakas &
others, 2013). In one study, researchers discovered that maternal depression
during pregnancy was associated with low birth weight in full-term offspring
(Chang & others, 2014). There is some concern about pregnant women taking
antidepressant medication. For example, a recent study found that taking
Page 64
antidepressants early in pregnancy was linked to an increased risk of
miscarriage (Almeida & others, 2016). In another study, when fetuses was
exposed to serotonin-based antidepressants, they were more likely to be born
preterm (Podrebarac & others, 2017). Further, a recent study revealed that
taking antidepressants in the second or third trimester of pregnancy was
linked to an increased risk of autism spectrum disorders in children (Boukhris
& others, 2016).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, what
advice would you give
to an expectant mother
who is experiencing
extreme psychological
stress?
Paternal Factors
So far, we have discussed how characteristics of the mother—such
as drug use, disease, diet and nutrition, age, and emotional states—can
influence prenatal development and the development of the child. Might there
also be some paternal risk factors? Indeed, there are several (Sigman, 2017).
Men’s exposure to lead, radiation, certain pesticides, and petrochemicals may
cause abnormalities in sperm that lead to miscarriage or diseases such as
childhood cancer (Cordier, 2008). The father’s smoking during the mother’s
pregnancy also can cause problems for the offspring (Agricola & others,
2016; Han & others, 2015). A recent research review concluded that tobacco
smoking is linked to impaired male fertility, as well as increased DNA
damage, aneuploidy (abnormal number of chromosomes in a cell), and
mutations in sperm (Beal, Yauk, & Marchetti, 2017). Also, in one study,
heavy paternal smoking was associated with an increased risk of early
miscarriage (Venners & others, 2005). This negative outcome may be related
to the mother’s exposure to secondhand smoke. In another study, paternal
smoking around the time of the child’s conception was linked to an increased
risk of the child developing leukemia (Milne & others, 2012). Researchers
have found that increasing paternal age decreases the success rate of in vitro
fertilization and increases the risk of preterm birth (Sharma & others, 2015).
Also, a research review concluded that there is an increased risk of
spontaneous abortion, autism, and schizophrenic disorders when the father is
40 years of age and older (Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility
Committee & others, 2012).
In one study, in China, the longer fathers smoked, the higher the risk that their children
would develop cancer (Ji & others, 1997). What are some other paternal factors that can
influence the development of the fetus and the child?
©Ryan Pyle/Corbis/Getty Images
Another way that the father can influence prenatal and birth outcomes is
through his relationship with the mother. By being supportive, helping with
chores, and having a positive attitude toward the pregnancy, the father can
improve the physical and psychological well-being of the mother (Molgora &
others, 2018). Negative behavior by the father also affects the mother: one
study found that intimate partner violence increased the mother’s stress level
(Fonseca-Machado Mde & others, 2015).
Prenatal Care
Although prenatal care varies enormously from one woman to another, it
usually involves a defined schedule of visits for medical care, which typically
includes screening for manageable conditions and treatable diseases that can
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affect the baby or the mother (Flanagan & others, 2018; Goldenberg &
McClure, 2018; Jarris & others, 2017). In addition to medical care, prenatal
programs often include comprehensive educational, social, and nutritional
services (Kroll-Desrosiers & others, 2016; Mazul, Salm Ward, & Ngui,
2017).
Information about pregnancy, labor, delivery, and caring for the newborn
can be especially valuable for first-time mothers (Gabbe & others, 2018; Kim
& others, 2018; R. Liu & others, 2017). Prenatal care is also very important
for women in poverty and immigrant women because it links them with other
social services (Mazul, Salm Ward, & Ngui, 2017). A recent study found that
inadequate prenatal care was associated with very low birth weight (Xaverius
& others, 2016).
An innovative program that is rapidly expanding in the United States is
CenteringPregnancy (Barger, Faucher, & Murphy, 2015; Chae & others,
2017; DeCesare & Jackson, 2015; R. Liu & others, 2017). This program is
relationship-centered and provides complete prenatal care in a group setting
(Heberlein & others, 2016). It replaces traditional 15-minute physician visits
with 90-minute peer group support sessions and self-examination led by a
physician or certified nurse-midwife. Groups of up to 10 women (and often
their partners) meet regularly beginning at 12 to 16 weeks of pregnancy. The
sessions emphasize empowering women to play an active role in
experiencing a positive pregnancy. Research has revealed that
CenteringPregnancy group prenatal care is associated with reduced rates of
preterm birth (Novick & others, 2013), as well as reduced rates
of low birth weight and placement in a neonatal intensive care
unit (Gareau & others, 2016). In another study with adolescent
mothers, CenteringPregnancy was successful in getting participants to attend
meetings, have appropriate weight gain, increase the use of highly effective
contraceptive methods, and increase breast feeding (Trotman & others,
2015). Also, a research review concluded that participation in
CenteringPregnancy increased breast-feeding initiation by 53 percent overall
and by 71 percent in African American women (Robinson, Garnier-
Villarreal, & Hanson, 2018).
The increasingly widespread CenteringPregnancy program alters routine prenatal care by
bringing women out of exam rooms and into relationship-oriented groups.
©MBI/Stockbroker/Alamy Stock Photo
Exercise increasingly is recommended as part of a comprehensive
prenatal care program (Huang & others, 2018b). Exercise during pregnancy
helps prevent constipation, conditions the body, reduces excessive weight
gain, lowers the risk of developing hypertension, and is associated with a
more positive mental state, including a reduced level of depression (Bacchi &
others, 2018; Magro-Malosso & others, 2017). Further, a recent study
indicated that pregnant women who did not exercise three or more times a
week were more likely to develop hypertension (Barakat & others, 2017).
Also, a recent study indicated that two weekly 70-minute yoga sessions
reduced pregnant women’s stress and enhanced their immune system
functioning (Chen & others, 2017). And regular exercise during pregnancy
has benefits for the fetus and infant (Newton & May, 2018). For example, a
recent study found that women’s regular exercise during pregnancy was
linked to more advanced development of the neonatal brain (Laborte-
Lemoyne, Currier, & Ellenberg, 2017).
Normal Prenatal Development
Much of our discussion so far in this chapter has focused on what can go
wrong with prenatal development. Prospective parents should take steps to
avoid the vulnerabilities to fetal development that we have described. But it is
important to keep in mind that most of the time, prenatal development does
not go awry, and development occurs along the positive path that we
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described at the beginning of the chapter.
Birth and the Postpartum Period
The long wait for the moment of birth is over, and the infant is about to
appear. What happens during childbirth, and what can be done to make the
experience a positive one?
Nature writes the basic script for how birth occurs, but parents make
important choices about the conditions surrounding birth. We look first at the
sequence of physical steps through which a child is born.
The Birth Process
The birth process occurs in three stages. It may take place in different
contexts and in most cases involves one or more attendants.
Stages of Birth
The first stage of the birth process is the longest. Uterine contractions are 15
to 20 minutes apart at the beginning and last up to a minute each. These
contractions cause the woman’s cervix to stretch and open. As the first stage
progresses, the contractions come closer together, occurring every
two to five minutes. Their intensity increases. By the end of the
first stage, contractions dilate the cervix to an opening of about 10
centimeters (4 inches) so that the baby can move from the uterus to the birth
canal. For a woman having her first child, the first stage lasts an average of 6
to 12 hours; for subsequent children, this stage typically is much shorter.
The second birth stage begins when the baby’s head starts to move
through the cervix and the birth canal. It terminates when the baby
completely emerges from the mother’s body. With each contraction, the
mother bears down hard to push the baby out of her body. By the time the
baby’s head is out of the mother’s body, the contractions come almost every
minute and last for about a minute. This stage typically lasts approximately
45 minutes to an hour.
After the long journey of prenatal development, birth takes place. During birth the baby is
on a threshold between two worlds. What are the characteristics of the three stages of
birth?
©ERproductions Ltd/Getty Images
Afterbirth is the third stage, during which the placenta, umbilical cord,
and other membranes are detached and expelled. This final stage is the
shortest of the three birth stages, lasting only minutes.
Childbirth Setting and Attendants
In 2015 in the United States, 98.5 percent of births took place in hospitals
(Martin & others, 2017). Of the 1.5 percent of births occurring outside of a
hospital, 63 percent took place in homes and almost 31 percent in free-
standing birthing centers. The percentage of U.S. births at home is the highest
since reporting of this context began in 1989. An increase in home births has
occurred mainly among non-Latino White women, especially those who are
older and married. For these non-Latino White women, two-thirds of their
home births are attended by a midwife.
The person who helps a mother during birth varies across cultures. In
U.S. hospitals, it has become the norm for fathers or birth coaches to be with
the mother throughout labor and delivery. In the East African Nigoni culture,
by contrast, men are completely excluded from the childbirth process. When
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a woman is ready to give birth, female relatives move into the woman’s hut
and the husband leaves, taking his belongings (clothes, tools, weapons, and
so on) with him. He is not permitted to return until after the baby is born. In
some cultures, childbirth is an open, community affair. For example, in the
Pukapukan culture in the Pacific Islands, women give birth in a shelter that is
open to villagers, who may observe the birth.
Midwives Midwifery is a profession that provides health care to women
during pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period (Cohen, Sumersille, &
Friedman, 2018; Faucher, 2018). Midwives also may give women
information about reproductive health and annual gynecological
examinations. They may refer women to general practitioners or obstetricians
if a pregnant woman needs medical care beyond a midwife’s expertise and
skill.
Midwifery is practiced in most countries throughout the world (Arabi &
others, 2018; Miyake & others, 2017). In Holland, more than 40 percent of
babies are delivered by midwives rather than by doctors. However, in 2015 in
the United States only 8 percent of women who delivered a baby were
attended by a midwife, a figure that was unchanged since 2000 (Martin &
others, 2017). Nevertheless, the 8 percent figure for 2013 represents a
substantial increase from less than 1 percent in 1975. A research review
concluded that for low-risk women, midwife-led care was characterized by a
reduction in procedures during labor and increased satisfaction with care
(Sutcliffe & others, 2012). Also, in this study no adverse outcomes were
found for midwife-led care compared with physician-led care.
Doulas In some countries, a doula attends a childbearing woman.
Doula is a Greek word that means “a woman who helps.” A doula
is a caregiver who provides continuous physical, emotional, and
educational support for the mother before, during, and after childbirth
(Kozhimannil & others, 2016; McLeish & Redshaw, 2018). Doulas remain
with the parents throughout labor, assessing and responding to their needs.
Researchers have found positive effects when a doula is present at the birth of
a child (Wilson & others, 2017). One study also revealed that for Medicaid
recipients the odds of having a cesarean delivery were 41 percent lower for
doula-supported births in the United States (Kozhimmanil & others, 2013).
Thus, increasing doula-supported births could substantially lower the cost of
a birth by reducing cesarean rates.
In the United States, most doulas work as independent providers hired by
the expectant parents. Doulas typically function as part of a “birthing team,”
serving as an adjunct to the midwife or the hospital’s obstetric staff.
Methods of Childbirth
U.S. hospitals often allow the mother and her obstetrician a range of options
regarding their method of delivery. Key choices involve the use of
medication, whether to use any of a number of nonmedicated techniques to
reduce pain, and when to have a cesarean delivery.
Medication Three basic kinds of drugs that are used for labor are analgesia,
anesthesia, and oxytocin/Pitocin.
Analgesia is used to relieve pain. Analgesics include tranquilizers,
barbiturates, and narcotics such as Demerol.
Anesthesia is used in late first-stage labor and during delivery to block
sensation in an area of the body or to block consciousness. There is a trend
toward not using general anesthesia, which blocks consciousness, in normal
births because general anesthesia can be transmitted through the placenta to
the fetus (Edwards & Jackson, 2017; Wilson & others, 2018). An epidural
block is regional anesthesia that numbs the woman’s body from the waist
down.
Oxytocin is a hormone that promotes uterine contractions; a synthetic
form called Pitocin™ is widely used to decrease the duration of the first stage
of labor. The relative benefits and risks of administering synthetic forms of
oxytocin during childbirth continue to be debated (Carlson, Corwin, & Lowe,
2017; Shiner, Many, & Maslovitz, 2016).
Predicting how a drug will affect an individual woman and her fetus is
difficult (Eisharkawy, Sonny, & Chin, 2017; Kobayashi & others, 2017). A
particular drug might have only a minimal effect on one fetus yet have a
much stronger effect on another. The drug’s dosage is also a factor (Rankin,
2017). Stronger doses of tranquilizers and narcotics given to decrease the
mother’s pain potentially have a more negative effect on the fetus than do
mild doses. It is important for the mother to assess her level of pain and have
a voice in deciding whether she should receive medication.
Natural and Prepared Childbirth For a brief time not long ago, the idea
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of avoiding all medication during childbirth gained favor in the United States.
Instead, many women chose to reduce the pain of childbirth through
techniques known as natural childbirth and prepared childbirth. Today, at
least some medication is used in the typical childbirth, but elements of natural
childbirth and prepared childbirth remain popular (Bacon & Tomich, 2017;
London & others, 2017).
Natural childbirth is a childbirth method in which no drugs are given to
relieve pain or assist in the birth process. The mother and her partner are
taught to use breathing methods and relaxation techniques during delivery.
French obstetrician Ferdinand Lamaze developed a method similar to natural
childbirth that is known as prepared childbirth, or the Lamaze method. It
includes a special breathing technique to control pushing in the final stages of
labor, as well as more detailed education about anatomy and physiology. The
Lamaze method has become very popular in the United States.
The pregnant woman’s partner usually serves as a coach; the
partner attends childbirth classes with her and helps her with
her breathing and relaxation during delivery. In sum, proponents of current
prepared childbirth methods conclude that when information and support are
provided, women know how to give birth.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
provider, how would
you advise a woman in
her first trimester about
the options available for
her baby’s birth and for
her own comfort during
the process?
Other Nonmedicated Techniques to Reduce Pain The effort to
reduce stress and control pain during labor has recently led to an increase in
the use of some older and some newer nonmedicated techniques (Bindler &
others, 2017; Cooper, Warland, & McCutcheon, 2018; Lewis & others,
2018a, b). These include waterbirth, massage, and acupuncture.
Waterbirth involves giving birth in a tub of warm water. Some women go
through labor in the water and get out for delivery; others remain in the water
for delivery. The rationale for waterbirth is that the baby has been in a fluid-
filled amniotic sac for many months and that delivery in a similar
environment is likely to be less stressful for the baby and the mother (Kavosi
& others, 2015; Taylor & others, 2016). An increasing number of studies are
either showing no differences in neonatal and maternal outcomes for
waterbirth and non-waterbirth deliveries or positive outcomes for waterbirth
(Davies & others, 2015; Taylor & others, 2016). For example, in a recent
Swedish study, women who gave birth in water had a lower risk of vaginal
tears, had a shorter labor, needed fewer drugs for pain relief and fewer
interventions for medical problems, and rated their birth experience more
positively than women who had conventional spontaneous vaginal births
(Ulfsdottir, Saltvedt, & Georgsson, 2018). Also, a recent large-scale study of
more than 16,000 waterbirth and non-waterbirth deliveries found fewer
negative outcomes for the waterbirth newborns (Bovbjerg, Cheyney, &
Everson, 2016). Waterbirth has been practiced more often in European
countries such as Switzerland and Sweden in recent decades than in the
United States, but is increasingly being included in U.S. birth plans.
Massage is increasingly used during pregnancy, labor, and delivery
(Frawley & others, 2017; Withers, Kharazmi, & Lim, 2018). Researchers
have found that massage therapy reduces pain during labor (Gallo & others,
2018; Shahoei & others, 2017). For example, a recent study found that lower
back massage reduced women’s labor pain and increased their satisfaction
with the birth experience (Unalmis Erdogan, Yanikkerem, & Goker, 2017).
Acupuncture, the insertion of very fine needles into specific locations in
the body, is used as a standard procedure to reduce the pain of childbirth in
China, although it only recently has begun to be used for this purpose in the
United States (Mollart & others, 2018; Smith, Armour, & Ee, 2016).
Research indicates that acupuncture can have positive effects on labor and
delivery (Akbarzadeh & others, 2015). For example, in one study
acupuncture was successful in reducing labor pain 30 minutes after the
intervention (Allameh, Tehrani, & Ghasemi, 2015).
Cesarean Delivery
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Normally, the baby’s head comes through the vagina first. But if the baby is
in a breech position, its buttocks are the first part to emerge from the vagina.
In 1 of every 25 deliveries, the baby’s head is still in the uterus when the rest
of the body is out. Because breech births can cause respiratory problems, if
the baby is in a breech position a surgical procedure known as a cesarean
delivery is usually performed. In a cesarean delivery (or cesarean section),
the baby is removed from the uterus through an incision made in the mother’s
abdomen. What are some of the specific causes that influence physicians to
perform a cesarean delivery? The most common causes of cesarean
delivery are failure to progress through labor (which can be slowed
by epidural anesthesia, for example) and fetal distress.
What characterizes the use of waterbirth in delivering a baby?
©Daisy Smith/Alamy
The benefits and risks of cesarean deliveries continue to be debated
(Ladewig, London, & Davidson, 2017). Some critics argue that far too many
babies are delivered by cesarean section in the United States and around the
world (Gibbons & others, 2012). The World Health Organization states that a
country’s cesarean section rate should be 10 percent or less. The U.S.
cesarean birth rate in 2015 was 32 percent, the lowest rate since 2007 (Martin
& others, 2017). The highest cesarean rates are in the Dominican Republic
and Brazil (56 percent); the lowest in New Zealand and the Czech Republic
(26 percent) (McCullogh, 2016).
The Transition from Fetus to Newborn
Much of our discussion of birth so far has focused on the mother. However,
birth also involves considerable stress for the baby. If the delivery takes too
long, the baby can develop anoxia, a condition in which the fetus or newborn
has an insufficient supply of oxygen. Anoxia can cause brain damage.
The baby has considerable capacity to withstand the stress of birth. Large
quantities of adrenaline and noradrenaline, hormones that protect the fetus in
the event of oxygen deficiency, are secreted in the newborn’s body during the
birth process.
Immediately after birth, the umbilical cord is cut and the baby is on its
own. Before birth, oxygen came from the mother via the umbilical cord, but
now the baby can breathe independently.
Almost immediately after birth, a newborn is taken to be weighed,
cleaned up, and tested for signs of developmental problems that might require
urgent attention. The Apgar Scale is widely used to assess the health of
newborns at one and five minutes after birth. The Apgar Scale evaluates
infants’ heart rate, respiratory effort, muscle tone, body color, and reflex
irritability. An obstetrician or nurse does the evaluation and gives the
newborn a score, or reading, of 0, 1, or 2 on each of these five health signs. A
total score of 7 to 10 indicates that the newborn’s condition is good. A score
of 5 indicates that there may be developmental difficulties. A score of 3 or
below signals an emergency and warns that the baby might not survive. The
Apgar Scale is especially good at assessing the newborn’s ability to cope
with the stress of delivery and its new environment (Miyakoshi & others,
2013). It also identifies high-risk infants who need resuscitation. Recent
studies have found that low Apgar scores are associated with long-term
additional support needs in education and educational attainment (Tweed &
others, 2016), risk of developmental vulnerability at 5 years of age (Razaz &
others, 2016), and risk of developing ADHD (Hanc & others, 2018).
Nurses often play important roles in the birth of a baby. To read about the
work of a nurse who specializes in the care of women during labor and
delivery, see Careers in Life-Span Development.
Low Birth Weight and Preterm Infants
Page 70
Three related conditions pose threats to many newborns: low birth weight,
preterm birth, and being small for date. Low birth weight infants weigh less
than 5 pounds and 8 ounces at birth. Very low birth weight newborns weigh
less than 3 pounds and 4 ounces, and extremely low birth weight newborns
weigh less than 2 pounds and 3 ounces. Preterm infants are born three weeks
or more before the pregnancy has reached its full term—in other words, 35 or
fewer weeks after conception. Small for date infants (also called small for
gestational age infants) have a birth weight that is below normal when the
length of the pregnancy is considered. They weigh less than 90 percent of all
babies of the same gestational age. Small for date infants may be preterm or
full term. One study found that small for date infants have a 400 percent
greater risk of death (Regev & others, 2003).
In 2015, 9.6 percent of babies born in the United States were born
preterm (Martin & others, 2017). The preterm birth rate was 8.8 percent for
non-Latino White infants, down from 11.4 percent in 2011 (Martin & others,
2017). In 2015, the preterm birth rate was 13.4 percent for African American
infants (down from 16.7 percent in 2011) and 9.1 for Latino infants (down
from 11.6 percent in 2011) (Martin & others, 2017).
Careers in life-span development
Linda Pugh, Perinatal Nurse
Perinatal nurses work with childbearing women to support health and
growth during the childbearing experience. Linda Pugh, Ph.D.,
R.N.C., is a perinatal nurse on the faculty at The Johns Hopkins
University School of Nursing. She is certified as an inpatient obstetric
nurse and specializes in the care of women during labor and delivery.
She teaches undergraduate and graduate students, educates
professional nurses, and conducts research. In addition, Pugh consults
with hospitals and organizations about women’s health issues and
many of the topics we discuss in this chapter.
Pugh’s research interests include nursing interventions with low-
income breast-feeding women, ways to prevent and ameliorate fatigue
during childbearing, and use of breathing exercises during labor.
Linda Pugh (right) with a mother and her newborn.
©Dr. Linda Pugh
Incidence and Causes of Low Birth Weight
Most, but not all, preterm babies are also low birth weight babies. The
incidence of low birth weight varies considerably from country to country. In
some countries, such as India and Sudan, where poverty is rampant and the
health and nutrition of mothers are poor, the percentage of low birth weight
babies reaches as high as 31 percent. In the United States, there has been an
increase in low birth weight infants in the last two decades, and the U.S. low
birth weight rate of 9.6 percent in 2015 was considerably higher than that of
many other developed countries (Martin & others, 2017). For example, only
4 percent of the infants born in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Korea are low
birth weight, and only 5 percent of those born in New Zealand, Australia, and
France are low birth weight.
Consequences of Low Birth Weight
The number and severity of health problems increase when infants are born
very early and as their birth weight decreases (Linsell & others, 2017; Pascal
& others, 2018). Survival rates for infants who are born very early and very
small have risen, but with this improved survival rate have come an increased
rate of severe brain damage (McNicholas & others, 2014; Rogers & Hintz,
Page 71
2016) and lower level of executive function, especially in working memory
and planning (Burnett & others, 2018).
A “kilogram kid,” weighing less than 2.3 pounds at birth. What are some long-term
outcomes of weighing so little at birth?
©Diether Endlicher/AP Images
For preterm birth, the terms extremely preterm and very
preterm are increasingly used (Kato & others, 2016; Ohlin &
others, 2015). Extremely preterm infants are born before 28 weeks
of gestation, and very preterm infants are born before 33 weeks of gestation.
Low birth weight children are more likely than their normal birth weight
counterparts to develop a learning disability, attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder, autism spectrum disorders, or breathing problems such as asthma
(Brinskma & others, 2017; Ng & others, 2017). Also, one study revealed that
very preterm, low birth weight infants had abnormal axon development in
their brain and impaired cognitive development at 9 years of age (Iwata &
others, 2012). Approximately 50 percent of all low birth weight children are
enrolled in special education programs.
Nurturing Low Birth Weight and Preterm Infants
Two increasingly used interventions in the neonatal intensive care unit
(NICU) are kangaroo care and massage therapy. Kangaroo care involves
skin-to-skin contact in which the baby, wearing only a diaper, is held upright
against the parent’s bare chest, much as a baby kangaroo is carried by its
mother (Raajashri & others, 2018). Kangaroo care is typically practiced for
two to three hours per day over an extended time in early infancy.
Why use kangaroo care with preterm infants? Preterm infants often have
difficulty coordinating their breathing and heart rate, and the close physical
contact with the parent provided by kangaroo care can help stabilize the
preterm infant’s heartbeat, temperature, and breathing (Boundy & others,
2018; Furman, 2018). Preterm infants who experience kangaroo care also
gain more weight than their counterparts who are not given this care (Faye &
others, 2016; Sharma, Murki, & Oleti, 2018). Recent research also revealed
that kangaroo care decreased pain in newborns (Mooney-Leber &
Brummelte, 2017).
Long-term positive effects of kangaroo care have been shown. For
example, one study demonstrated the positive long-term benefits of kangaroo
care (Feldman, Rosenthal, & Eidelman, 2014). In this study, maternal-
newborn kangaroo care with preterm infants was linked to better respiratory
and cardiovascular functioning, sleep patterns, and cognitive functioning
from 6 months to 10 years of age. And in a longitudinal study, positive
effects of kangaroo care with preterm and low birth weight infants that
included higher intelligence and nurturant parenting at one year of age were
still present 20 years later in emerging adults, who also showed reduced
school absenteeism, reduced hyperactivity, lower aggressiveness, and
positive social skills compared with their counterparts who had not received
kangaroo care (Charpak & others, 2018).
Page 72
A new mother practices kangaroo care. What is kangaroo care? What are some outcomes
of kangaroo care?
©iStockphoto.com/casenbina
A U.S. survey found that mothers had a much more positive view of
kangaroo care than did neonatal intensive care nurses and that mothers were
more likely to say that it should be provided daily (Hendricks-Munoz &
others, 2013). There is concern that kangaroo care is not used more often in
neonatal intensive care units (Kymre, 2014; Penn, 2015). Increasingly,
kangaroo care is recommended as standard practice for all newborns
(Johnston and others, 2017; Smith & others, 2017).
Many adults will attest to the therapeutic effects of receiving a massage.
In fact, many will pay a premium to receive one at a spa on a regular basis.
But can massage play a role in improving the developmental outcomes for
preterm infants? One study found that both kangaroo care and massage
therapy were equally effective in improving body weight and reducing length
of hospital stay for low birth weight infants (Rangey & Sheth, 2014).
Many preterm infants experience less touch than full-term
infants do because they are isolated in temperature-controlled
incubators. Research by Tiffany Field and her colleagues (2001,
2007, 2010a, 2017; Diego, Field, & Hernandez-Reif, 2008, 2014; Field,
Diego, & Hernandez-Reif, 2008, 2011) has led to a surge of interest in the
role that massage might play in improving developmental outcomes for
preterm infants. In Field’s first study in this area, massage therapy consisting
of firm stroking with the palms of the hands was given three times per day for
15-minute periods to preterm infants (Field & others, 1986). The massage
therapy led to 47 percent greater weight gain than did standard medical
treatment. The massaged infants also were more active and alert than preterm
infants who were not massaged, and they performed better on developmental
tests.
Tiffany Field massages a newborn infant. What types of infants have massage therapy
been shown to help?
©Dr. Tiffany Field
In later studies, Field demonstrated the benefits of massage therapy for
infants who faced a variety of problems. For example, preterm infants
exposed to cocaine in utero who received massage therapy gained weight and
improved their scores on developmental tests (Field, 2001). In a review of the
use of massage therapy with preterm infants, Field and her colleagues (2004)
concluded that the most consistent findings involve two positive results: (1)
increased weight gain and (2) discharge from the hospital three to six days
earlier. One study revealed that the mechanisms responsible for increased
weight gain as a result of massage therapy were stimulation of the vagus
nerve (one of 12 cranial nerves leading to the brain) and in turn the release of
insulin (a food absorption hormone) (Field, Diego, & Hernandez-Reif, 2011).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you advise
hospital administrators
about implementing
kangaroo care or
massage therapy in the
newborn intensive care
unit?
Bonding
A special component of the parent-infant relationship is bonding, the
formation of a connection, especially a physical bond between parents and
the newborn in the period shortly after birth. In the mid-twentieth century,
U.S. hospitals seemed almost determined to deter bonding. Anesthesia given
to the mother during delivery would make the mother drowsy, interfering
with her ability to respond to and stimulate the newborn. Mothers and
newborns were often separated shortly after delivery, and preterm infants
were isolated from their mothers even more than full-term infants were
separated from their mothers. In recent decades these practices have changed,
but to some extent they are still followed in many hospitals.
Do these practices do any harm? Some physicians believe that during the
“critical period” shortly after birth the parents and newborn need to form an
emotional attachment as a foundation for optimal development in years to
come (Kennell, 2006; Kennell & McGrath, 1999). Although some research
supports this bonding hypothesis (Klaus & Kennell, 1976), a body of research
challenges the significance of the first few days of life as a critical period
(Bakeman & Brown, 1980; Rode & others, 1981). Indeed, the extreme form
of the bonding hypothesis—the idea that the newborn must have close contact
with the mother in the first few days of life to develop optimally—simply is
not true.
Nevertheless, the weakness of the bonding hypothesis should not be used
as an excuse to keep motivated mothers from interacting with their newborns.
Such contact brings pleasure to many mothers and may dispel maternal
anxiety about the baby’s health and safety. In some cases—including preterm
infants, adolescent mothers, and mothers from disadvantaged circumstances
—early close contact is key to establishing a climate for improved interaction
after the mother and infant leave the hospital.
Many hospitals now offer a rooming-in arrangement in which the baby
remains in the mother’s room most of the time during its hospital stay.
Page 73However, if parents choose not to use this rooming-in
arrangement, the weight of the research suggests that this
decision will not harm the infant emotionally (Lamb, 1994).
The Postpartum Period
The weeks after childbirth present challenges for many new parents and their
offspring. This is the postpartum period, the period after childbirth or
delivery that lasts for about six weeks or until the mother’s body has
completed its adjustment and has returned to a nearly prepregnant state. It is a
time when the woman adjusts, both physically and psychologically, to the
process of childbearing (Doering & others, 2017).
Physical Adjustments
A woman’s body makes numerous physical adjustments in the first days and
weeks after childbirth (Doering, Sims, & Miller, 2017). She may have a great
deal of energy or feel exhausted and let down. Though these changes are
normal, the fatigue can undermine the new mother’s sense of well-being and
confidence in her ability to cope with a new baby and a new family life.
A concern is the loss of sleep that the primary caregiver experiences in
the postpartum period (Thomas & Spieker, 2016). In the 2007 Sleep in
America survey, a substantial percentage of women reported loss of sleep
during pregnancy and in the postpartum period (National Sleep Foundation,
2007). The loss of sleep can contribute to stress, marital conflict, and
impaired decision making (Meerlo, Sgoifo, & Suchecki, 2008). In a recent
study, worsening or minimal improvement in sleep problems from 6 weeks to
7 months postpartum were associated with an increase in depressive
symptoms (Lewis & others, 2018).
After delivery, the mother’s body undergoes sudden and dramatic
changes in hormone production. When the placenta is delivered, estrogen and
progesterone levels drop steeply and remain low until the ovaries start
producing hormones again.
Involution is the process by which the uterus returns to its prepregnant
size five or six weeks after birth. Immediately following birth, the uterus
weighs 2 to 3 pounds. By the end of five or six weeks, the uterus weighs 2 to
3½ ounces. Nursing the baby helps contract the uterus at a more rapid rate.
Emotional and Psychological Adjustments
Emotional fluctuations are common for mothers in the postpartum period
(Pawluski, Lonstein, & Fleming, 2017). For some women, emotional
fluctuations decrease within several weeks after the delivery, but other
women experience more long-lasting emotional swings (O’Hara &
Engeldinger, 2018).
As shown in Figure 11, about 70 percent of new mothers in the United
States have what are called the postpartum blues. About two to three days
after birth, they begin to feel depressed, anxious, and upset. These feelings
may come and go for several months after the birth, often peaking about three
to five days after birth. Even without treatment, these feelings usually go
away after one or two weeks.
Figure 11 Postpartum Blues and Postpartum Depression Among U.S. Women
Some health professionals refer to the postpartum period as the “fourth trimester.” Though
the time span of the postpartum period does not necessarily cover three months, the term
“fourth trimester” suggests continuity and emphasizes the importance of the first several
months after birth for the mother.
However, some women develop postpartum depression, which involves a
major depressive episode that typically occurs about four weeks after delivery
Page 74
(Brummelte & Galea, 2016). In other words, women with postpartum
depression have such strong feelings of sadness, anxiety, or despair that for at
least a two-week period they have trouble coping with their daily tasks.
Without treatment, postpartum depression may become worse and last for
many months (Di Florio & others, 2014). And many women with postpartum
depression don’t seek help. For example, one study found that
15 percent of the women reported postpartum depression
symptoms but less than half sought help (McGarry & others,
2009). Estimates indicate that 10 to 14 percent of new mothers experience
postpartum depression.
A research review identified the following risk factors for developing
postpartum depression: a history of depression, depression and anxiety during
pregnancy, neuroticism, low self-esteem, postpartum blues, poor marital
relationship, and a low level of social support (O’Hara & McCabe, 2013).
And another recent study revealed that women who had a history of
depression were 20 times more likely to develop postpartum depression than
women who had no history of depression (Silverman & others, 2017).
The postpartum period is a time of considerable adjustment and adaptation for both the
mother and the father. Fathers can provide an important support system for mothers,
especially in helping mothers care for young infants. What kinds of tasks might the father
of a newborn do to support the mother?
©Howard Grey/Getty Images
Several antidepressant drugs are effective in treating postpartum
depression and appear to be safe for breast-feeding women (Howard, Mehta,
& Powrie, 2017; Latendresse, Elmore, & Deneris, 2017). Psychotherapy,
especially cognitive therapy, also is effective in treating postpartum
depression for many women (Dennis, 2017; O’Hara & Engeldinger, 2018). In
addition, engaging in regular exercise may help to relieve postpartum
depression (Gobinath & others, 2018; McCurdy & others, 2017). For
example, a recent meta-analysis concluded that physical exercise during the
postpartum period is a safe strategy to reduce postpartum depressive
symptoms (Poyatos-Leon & others, 2017).
A mother’s postpartum depression can affect the way she interacts with
her infant (Kleinman & Reizer, 2018; Kerstis & others, 2016). A research
review concluded that the interaction difficulties of depressed mothers and
their infants occur across cultures and socioeconomic status groups, and
encompass less sensitivity of the mothers and less responsiveness on the part
of infants (Field, 2010b). Several caregiving activities also are compromised,
including feeding, sleep routines, and safety practices. Further, a recent study
revealed that mothers’ postpartum depression, but not generalized anxiety,
were linked to their children’s emotional negativity and behavior problems at
2 years of age (Prenoveau & others, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you talk with
mothers and fathers
about vulnerabilities in
mental health and
relationships in the
postpartum period?
Page 75
Fathers also undergo considerable adjustment in the postpartum period,
even when they work away from home all day (Shorey & others, 2017;
Takehara & others, 2017). Many fathers feel that the baby comes first and
gets all of the mother’s attention; some feel that they have been replaced by
the baby. A recent study found that 5 percent of fathers had depressive
symptoms in the first two weeks following delivery (Anding & others, 2016).
And a recent study found that depressive symptoms in both the mother and
father were associated with impaired bonding with their infant during the
postpartum period (Kerstis & others, 2016). The father’s support and caring
also can play a role in whether the mother develops postpartum depression
(Kumar, Oliffe, & Kelly, 2018). One study revealed that higher support by
fathers was related to lower incidence of postpartum depression in women
(Smith & Howard, 2008).
Summary
The Evolutionary Perspective
Darwin proposed that natural selection fuels evolution. In evolutionary
theory, adaptive behavior is behavior that promotes the organism’s
survival in a natural habitat.
Evolutionary psychology holds that adaptation, reproduction, and
“survival of the fittest” are important in shaping behavior. Evolutionary
developmental psychology emphasizes that humans need an extended
“juvenile” period to develop a large brain and learn the
complexity of social communities.
Genetic Foundations of Development
Except in the sperm and egg, the nucleus of each human cell contains 46
chromosomes, which are composed of DNA. Short segments of DNA
constitute genes, the units of hereditary information that direct cells to
reproduce and manufacture proteins. Genes act collaboratively, not
independently.
Genes are passed on to new cells when chromosomes are duplicated
during the processes of mitosis and meiosis.
Genetic principles include those involving dominant-recessive genes, sex-
linked genes, and polygenic inheritance.
Chromosome abnormalities can produce Down syndrome and other
problems; gene-linked disorders, such as PKU, involve defective genes.
The Interaction of Heredity and Environment: The Nature-
Nurture Debate
Behavior geneticists use twin studies and adoption studies to determine
the strength of heredity’s influence on development.
In Scarr’s heredity-environment correlation view, heredity directs the
types of environments that children experience. Scarr identified three
types of genotype- environment interactions: passive, evocative, and
active (niche-picking).
The epigenetic view emphasizes that development is the result of an
ongoing, bidirectional interchange between heredity and environment.
Recently, research interest has focused on how gene interaction
influences development.
The interaction of heredity and environment is complex, but we can
create a unique developmental path by changing our environment.
Prenatal Development
Prenatal development can be divided into three periods: germinal,
embryonic, and fetal. The growth of the brain during prenatal
development is remarkable.
A number of prenatal tests, including ultrasound sonography, chorionic
villus sampling, amniocentesis, maternal blood screening, and fetal MRI,
can reveal whether a fetus is developing normally.
Approximately 10 to 15 percent of U.S. couples have infertility problems.
Assisted reproduction techniques, such as in vitro fertilization, are
increasingly being used by infertile couples.
Some prescription drugs and nonprescription drugs can harm the unborn
child. In particular, the psychoactive drugs caffeine, alcohol, nicotine,
cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and synthetic opioids as well as opiate-related
pain killers can endanger developing offspring. Other potential sources of
harmful effects on the fetus include environmental hazards, maternal
diseases, maternal diet and nutrition, age, emotional states and stress, and
paternal factors.
Prenatal care usually involves medical care services with a defined
schedule of visits and often encompasses educational, social, and
nutritional services as well. Inadequate prenatal care may increase the risk
of infant mortality and result in low birth weight.
Although a number of problems that can occur in prenatal development
have been described here, most of the time prenatal development does not
go awry and occurs in a normal manner.
Birth and the Postpartum Period
Childbirth occurs in three stages. Childbirth strategies involve the
childbirth setting and attendants. In many countries, a midwife attends a
childbearing woman. In some countries, a doula helps with the birth.
Methods of delivery include medicated, natural and prepared, and
cesarean.
Being born involves considerable stress for the baby, but the baby is well
prepared and adapted to handle the stress. Low birth weight, preterm, and
small for date infants are at increased risk for developmental problems,
although most of these infants are normal and healthy. Kangaroo care and
massage therapy have been shown to produce benefits for preterm infants.
Early bonding has not been found to be critical in the development of a
competent infant, but close contact during the first few days after birth
may reduce the mother’s anxiety and lead to better interaction later.
The postpartum period lasts for about six weeks after childbirth or until
the body has returned to a nearly prepregnant state; postpartum
depression is a serious condition that may become worse if not treated.
Key Terms
adoption study
Apgar Scale
behavior genetics
chromosomes
DNA
Down syndrome
embryonic period
epigenetic view
evolutionary psychology
fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD)
fetal period
gene × environment (G × E) interaction
genes
genotype
germinal period
meiosis
mitosis
natural childbirth
neurons
organogenesis
phenotype
postpartum period
prepared childbirth
teratogen
twin study
Page 76
©Ariel Skelley/Getty Images
3
Physical and Cognitive
Development in Infancy
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Physical Growth and Development in Infancy
Patterns of Growth
Height and Weight
The Brain
Sleep
Nutrition
Motor Development
Dynamic Systems Theory
Reflexes
Gross Motor Skills
Fine Motor Skills
Sensory and Perceptual Development
Exploring Sensory and Perceptual Development
Visual Perception
Other Senses
Intermodal Perception
Nature, Nurture, and Perceptual Development
Perceptual Motor Coupling
Cognitive Development
Piaget’s Theory
Learning, Remembering, and Conceptualizing
Language Development
Defining Language
How Language Develops
Biological and Environmental Influences
An Interactionist View
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Newborn Babies in Ghana and
Page 77
Nigeria
Latonya is a newborn baby in Ghana. During her first days of life
she has been kept apart from her mother and bottle fed.
Manufacturers of infant formula provide free or subsidized milk
powder to the hospital where she was born. Latonya’s mother has
been persuaded to bottle feed rather than breast feed her. When her
mother bottle feeds Latonya, she overdilutes the milk formula with
unclean water and puts it in bottles that have not been sterilized.
Latonya becomes very sick, and she dies before her first birthday.
Ramona was born in Nigeria in a “baby-friendly” program. In
this program, babies are not separated from their mothers when
they are born, and the mothers are encouraged to breast feed them.
The mothers are told of the perils that bottle feeding can cause
because of unsafe water and unsterilized bottles. They also are
informed about the advantages of breast milk, which include its
nutritious and hygienic qualities, its ability to immunize babies
against common illnesses, and its role in reducing the mother’s risk
of breast and ovarian cancer. Ramona’s mother is breast feeding
her. At 1 year of age, Ramona is very healthy.
For many years, maternity units in hospitals favored
bottle feeding and did not give mothers adequate
information about the benefits of breast feeding. In
recent years, the World Health Organization and UNICEF have
tried to reverse the trend toward bottle feeding of infants in many
impoverished countries. They instituted the “baby-friendly”
program in many countries. They also persuaded the International
Association of Infant Formula Manufacturers to stop marketing
their baby formulas to hospitals in countries where governments
support the baby-friendly initiatives (Grant, 1993). For the
hospitals themselves, costs actually were reduced as infant
formula, feeding bottles, and separate nurseries became
unnecessary. For example, baby-friendly Jose Fabella Memorial
Hospital in the Philippines reported saving 8 percent of its annual
budget. Still, there are many places in the world where the baby-
friendly initiatives have not been implemented.
(Left) An HIV-infected mother breast feeding her baby in Nairobi, Africa;
(right) A Rwandan mother bottle feeding her baby. What are some concerns
about breast versus bottle feeding in impoverished African countries?
(Left) ©Wendy Stone/Corbis/Getty Images; (right) ©Dave
Bartruff/Corbis/Getty Images
The advantages of breast feeding in impoverished countries are
substantial (UNICEF, 2018). However, these advantages must be
balanced against the risk of passing HIV to the baby through breast
milk if the mother has the virus (Croffut & others, 2018; Mnyani &
others, 2017; Wojcicki, 2017). The majority of mothers with HIV
don’t know that they are infected. In some areas of Africa more
than 30 percent of mothers have the virus.
In the first two years of life, an infant’s body and brain undergo
remarkable growth and development. In this chapter we explore
how this takes place: through physical growth, motor development,
sensory and perceptual development, cognitive development, and
language development. ■
Physical Growth and Development in
Infancy
Page 78
At birth, an infant has few of the physical abilities we associate with being
human. Its head, which is huge relative to the rest of the body, flops around
uncontrollably. Apart from some basic reflexes and the ability to cry, the
newborn is unable to perform many actions. Over the next 12 months,
however, the infant becomes capable of sitting, standing, stooping, climbing,
and usually walking. During the second year, while growth slows, rapid
increases in activities such as running and climbing take place. Let’s now
examine in greater detail the sequence of physical development in infancy.
Patterns of Growth
During prenatal development and early infancy, the head occupies an
extraordinary proportion of the total body (see Figure 1). The cephalocaudal
pattern is the sequence in which the earliest growth always occurs at the top
—the head—with physical growth and differentiation of features gradually
working their way down from top to bottom (shoulders, middle trunk, and so
on). This same pattern occurs in the head area, as the top parts of the head—
the eyes and brain—grow faster than the lower parts, such as the jaw.
Figure 1 Changes in Proportions of the Human Body During Growth.
As individuals develop from infancy through adulthood, one of the most noticeable
physical changes is that the head becomes smaller in relation to the rest of the body. The
fractions listed refer to head size as a proportion of total body length at different ages.
Sensory and motor development generally proceed according
to the cephalocaudal pattern. For example, infants see objects
before they can control their torso, and they can use their hands
long before they can crawl or walk. However, development does not follow a
rigid blueprint. One study found that infants reached for toys with their feet
four weeks earlier, on average, than they reached for them with their hands
(Galloway & Thelen, 2004).
Growth also follows the proximodistal pattern, a sequence in which
growth starts at the center of the body and moves toward the extremities. For
example, infants control the muscles of their trunk and arms before they
control their hands, and they use their whole hands before they can control
several fingers.
An important point about growth is that it often is not smooth and
continuous but rather is episodic, occurring in spurts (Adolph, 2018). In
infancy, growth spurts may occur in a single day and alternate with long time
frames characterized by little or no growth for days and weeks (Lampl &
Johnson, 2011; Lampl & Schoen, 2018). In two analyses, in a single day,
infants grew seven-tenths of an inch in length in a single day (Lampl, 1993)
and their head circumference increased by three-tenths of an inch (Caino &
others, 2010).
Height and Weight
The average North American newborn is 20 inches long and weighs 7½
pounds. Ninety-five percent of full-term newborns are 18 to 22 inches long
and weigh between 5½ and 10 pounds.
In the first several days of life, most newborns lose 5 to 7 percent of their
body weight before they adjust to feeding by sucking, swallowing, and
digesting. They then grow rapidly, gaining an average of 5 to 6 ounces per
week during the first month. They double their birth weight by the age of 4
months and nearly triple it by their first birthday. Infants grow about 3/4 inch
per month during the first year, increasing their birth length by about 40
percent by their first birthday.
Growth slows considerably in the second year of life (London & others,
2017). By 2 years of age, children weigh approximately 26 to 32 pounds,
having gained a quarter to half a pound per month during the second year; at
this point they have reached about one-fifth of their adult weight. At 2 years
of age, the average child is 32 to 35 inches tall, nearly half of his or her
eventual adult height.
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The Brain
At birth, the infant that began as a single cell has a brain that contains tens of
billions of nerve cells, or neurons. Extensive brain development continues
after birth, through infancy, and later (Crone, 2017; Sullivan & Wilson, 2018;
Vasa & others, 2018). Because the brain is developing so rapidly
in infancy, the infant’s head should be protected from falls or other
injuries and the baby should never be shaken. Shaken baby
syndrome, which includes brain swelling and hemorrhaging, affects hundreds
of babies in the United States each year (Hellgren & others, 2017). One
research analysis found that fathers were most often the perpetrators of
shaken baby syndrome, followed by child-care providers and boyfriends of
the victims’ mothers (National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome, 2012).
The Brain’s Development
At birth, the brain weighs about 25 percent of its adult weight. By the second
birthday, it is about 75 percent of its adult weight. However, the brain’s areas
do not mature uniformly.
Assessing the infant’s brain activity is not as easy as it might seem.
Positron-emission tomography (PET) scans pose a radiation risk to babies,
and sometimes infants wriggle too much to allow the technician to capture
accurate brain images with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However,
researchers have been successful in using the electroencephalogram (EEG), a
measure of the brain’s electrical activity, to learn about the brain’s
development in infancy (Bell & others, 2018; Hari & Puce, 2017) (see Figure
2). For example, a recent study found that higher-quality mother-infant
interaction early in infancy predicted higher-quality frontal lobe functioning
that was assessed with EEG later in infancy (Bernier, Calkins, & Bell, 2016).
Figure 2 Measuring the Activity of the Infant’s Brain.
As shown here, a large number of electrodes are attached to a baby’s scalp to measure the
brain’s activity as part of an EEG assessment.
©Vanessa Vogel-Farley
Researchers also are increasingly studying infants’ brain activity by using
functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), which uses very low levels of
near-infrared light to monitor changes in blood oxygen (see Figure 3) (de
Oliveira & others, 2018; Emberson & others, 2017a, b; Taga, Watanabe, &
Homae, 2018). Unlike fMRI, which uses magnetic fields or electrical activity,
fNIRS is portable and allows the infants to be assessed as they explore the
world around them.
Figure 3 Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNRIS).
This brain-imaging technology is increasingly being used to assess infants’ brain activity
as they move about their environment.
©Oli Scarff/Getty Images
Mapping the Brain
Scientists analyze and categorize areas of the brain in numerous ways (Bell &
others, 2018; Dean & others, 2018; Ferjan Ramirez & others, 2017; Xie,
Mallin, & Richards, 2018). Of greatest interest is the portion farthest from the
spinal cord, known as the forebrain, which includes the cerebral cortex and
several structures beneath it. The cerebral cortex covers the forebrain like a
wrinkled cap. It has two halves, or hemispheres. Based on ridges and valleys
in the cortex, scientists distinguish four main areas, called lobes, in each
hemisphere: the frontal lobes, the occipital lobes, the temporal lobes, and the
parietal lobes (see Figure 4).
Figure 4 The Brain’s Four Lobes.
Shown here are the locations of the brain’s four lobes: frontal, occipital, temporal, and
parietal.
Although these areas are found in the cerebral cortex of each hemisphere,
Page 80
the two hemispheres are not identical in anatomy or function. Lateralization
is the specialization of function in one hemisphere or the other. Researchers
continue to explore the degree to which each hemisphere is involved in
various aspects of thinking, feeling, and behavior (Benjamin & others, 2017;
Sidtis & others, 2018). At birth, the hemispheres of the cerebral
cortex have already started to specialize: Newborns show
greater electrical brain activity in the left hemisphere than in
the right hemisphere when listening to speech sounds (Hahn, 1987).
The most extensive research on brain lateralization has focused on
language. Speech and grammar are localized in the left hemisphere in most
people, but some aspects of language, such as appropriate language use in
different contexts and the use of metaphor and humor, involve the right
hemisphere (Holler-Wallscheid & others, 2017). Thus, language is not
controlled exclusively by the brain’s left hemisphere. Further, most
neuroscientists agree that complex functions—such as reading, performing
music, and creating art—are the outcome of communication between the two
sides of the brain (Nora & others, 2017; Raemaekers & others, 2018).
How do the areas of the brain in the newborn and the infant differ from
those of an adult, and why do the differences matter? Important differences
have been documented at both the cellular and the structural levels.
Changes in Neurons
Within the brain, neurons send electrical and chemical signals,
communicating with each other. A neuron is a nerve cell that handles
information processing (see Figure 5). Extending from the neuron’s cell body
are two types of fibers, known as axons and dendrites. Generally, the axon
carries signals away from the cell body and dendrites carry signals toward it.
A myelin sheath, which is a layer of fat cells, encases many axons (see Figure
5). The myelin sheath provides insulation and helps electrical signals travel
faster down the axon (Cercignani & others, 2017; van Tilborg & others,
2018). Myelination also is involved in providing energy to neurons and in
facilitating communication (Kiray & others, 2016; Saab & Nave, 2017). At
the end of the axon are terminal buttons, which release chemicals called
neurotransmitters into synapses, tiny gaps between neurons. Chemical
interactions in synapses connect axons and dendrites, allowing information to
pass from one neuron to another (Ismail, Fatemi, & Johnston, 2017; Zhou &
others, 2018).
Figure 5 The Neuron.
(a) The dendrites of the cell body receive information from other neurons, muscles, or
glands through the axon. (b) Axons transmit information away from the cell body. (c) A
myelin sheath covers most axons and speeds information transmission. (d) As the axon
ends, it branches out into terminal buttons.
Think of the synapse as a river that blocks a road. A grocery truck arrives
at one bank of the river, crosses by ferry, and continues its journey to market.
Similarly, a message in the brain is “ferried” across the synapse by a
Page 81
neurotransmitter, which pours out information contained in chemicals when it
reaches the other side of the river.
Neurons change in two very significant ways during the first years of life.
First, myelination, the process of encasing axons with fat cells, begins
prenatally and continues throughout childhood, even into adolescence
(Juraska & Willing, 2017). Second, connectivity among neurons increases,
creating new neural pathways (Eggebrecht & others, 2017; Zhou & others,
2018). New dendrites grow, connections among dendrites increase, and
synaptic connections between axons and dendrites proliferate. Whereas
myelination speeds up neural transmissions, the expansion of dendritic
connections facilitates the spreading of neural pathways in infant
development.
Researchers have discovered an intriguing aspect of synaptic connections:
Nearly twice as many of these connections are made as will ever be used
(Huttenlocher & Dabholkar, 1997). The connections that are used become
stronger and survive, while the unused ones are replaced by other pathways
or disappear. In the language of neuroscience, these connections will be
“pruned” (Gould, 2017).
How complex are these neural connections? In a recent analysis, it was
estimated that each of the billions of neurons is connected to as many as
1,000 other neurons, producing neural networks with trillions of connections
(de Haan, 2015).
Changes in Regions of the Brain
Figure 6 vividly illustrates the dramatic growth and later pruning of synapses
in the visual, auditory, and prefrontal cortex (Huttenlocher & Dabholkar,
1997). Notice that “blooming and pruning” vary considerably by brain
region. In the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain where higher-level
thinking and self-regulation occur, the peak of overproduction occurs at just
over 3 years of age; it is not until middle to late adolescence that the adult
density of synapses is achieved (Crone, 2017). Both heredity and
environment are thought to influence the timing and course of synaptic
overproduction and subsequent retraction.
Figure 6 Synaptic Density in the Human Brain from Infancy to Adulthood.
The graph shows the dramatic increase and then pruning in synaptic density for three
regions of the brain: visual cortex, auditory cortex, and prefrontal cortex. Synaptic density
is believed to be an important indication of the extent of connectivity between neurons.
Meanwhile, the pace of myelination also varies in different areas of the
brain (Croteau-Chonka & others, 2016; Gogtay & Thompson, 2010).
Myelination for visual pathways occurs rapidly after birth and is completed in
the first six months. Auditory myelination is not completed until 4 or 5 years
of age.
Early Experience and the Brain
What determines how these changes in the brain occur? The infant’s brain is
literally waiting for experiences to determine how connections are made.
Before birth, it appears that genes mainly direct how the brain establishes
basic wiring patterns; after birth, environmental experiences guide the brain’s
development. The inflowing stream of sights, sounds, smells, touches,
language, and eye contact help shape neural connections (Bick & Nelson,
2018). It may not surprise us, then, that depressed brain activity has been
found in children who grow up in a deprived environment (Bick & others,
2017; McLaughlin, Sheridan, & Nelson, 2017). Infants whose caregivers
expose them to a variety of stimuli—talking, touching, playing—are most
likely to develop to their full potential.
The profusion of neural connections described earlier provides the
growing brain with flexibility and resilience (Marrus & others, 2018). As an
extreme example, consider 16-year-old Michael Rehbein. When Michael was
4½, he began to experience uncontrollable seizures—from 60 to 400 a day.
Doctors said that the only solution was to remove the left hemisphere of his
brain, where the seizures were occurring. Michael had his first major surgery
at age 7 and another at age 10. Although recovery was slow, his right
hemisphere began to reorganize and eventually took over functions, such as
speech, that normally occur in the brain’s left hemisphere (see Figure 7).
Individuals like Michael are living proof of the growing brain’s remarkable
ability to adapt and recover from a loss of brain tissue.
Figure 7 Plasticity in the Brain’s Hemispheres.
(a) Michael Rehbein at 14 years of age. (b) Brain scans of an intact brain (left) and
Michael Rehbein’s brain (right). Michael’s right hemisphere has reorganized to take over
the language functions normally carried out by corresponding areas in the left hemisphere
of an intact brain. However, the right hemisphere is not as efficient as the left, and more
areas of the brain are recruited to process speech.
Courtesy of The Rehbein Family
Page 82The Neuroconstructivist View
Not long ago, scientists thought that our genes determined how our brains
were “wired” and that the cells in the brain responsible for processing
information just maturationally unfolded with little or no input from
environmental experiences. Whatever brain your heredity dealt you, you were
essentially stuck with. This view, however, turned out to be wrong. Instead,
the brain has plasticity and its development depends on context (Bick &
Nelson, 2018; D’Souza & Karmiloff-Smith, 2018; McLaughlin & Broihier,
2018; Snyder & Smith, 2018; Villeda, 2017).
In the increasingly popular neuroconstructivist view, (a) biological
processes (genes, for example) and environmental experiences (enriched or
impoverished, for example) influence the brain’s development; (b) the brain
has plasticity and is context dependent; and (c) development of the brain and
the child’s cognitive development are closely linked. These factors constrain
or advance children’s construction of their cognitive skills (Goldberg, 2017;
Mucke & others, 2018; Schreuders & others, 2018; Westermann, Thomas, &
Karmiloff-Smith, 2011). The neuroconstructivist view emphasizes the
importance of interactions between experiences and gene expression in the
brain’s development, much as the epigenetic view proposes (D’Souza &
Karmiloff-Smith, 2018; Moore, 2017).
Sleep
When we were infants, sleep consumed more of our time than it does now
(Dias & others, 2018; Goh & others, 2017). In a recent study, sleep sessions
lasted approximately 3.5 hours during the first few months and increased to
about 10.5 hours from 3 to 7 months (Mindell & others, 2016). The typical
newborn sleeps 16 to 17 hours a day, but there is considerable individual
variation in how much infants sleep. For newborns, the range is from about
10 hours to about 21 hours per day. A research review concluded that infants
0 to 2 years of age slept an average of 12.8 hours out of the 24, within a range
of 9.7 to 15.9 hours (Galland & others, 2012). One study also revealed that
by 6 months of age the majority of infants slept through the night, awakening
their parents only once or twice a week (Weinraub & others, 2012).
The most common infant sleep-related problem reported by parents is
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nighttime waking (Dias & others, 2018; Hospital for Sick Children & others,
2010). Surveys indicate that 20 to 30 percent of infants have difficulty going
to sleep at night and staying asleep until morning (Sadeh, 2008).
REM Sleep
A much greater amount of time is taken up by REM (rapid eye movement)
sleep in infancy than at any other point in the life span (Bathory &
Tomopoulos, 2017). Unlike adults, who spend about one-fifth of their night
in REM sleep, infants spend about half of their sleep time in REM sleep, and
they often begin their sleep cycle with REM sleep rather than non-REM
sleep. By the time infants reach 3 months of age, the percentage of time they
spend in REM sleep decreases to about 40 percent, and REM sleep no longer
begins their sleep cycle.
Why do infants spend so much time in REM sleep? Researchers are not
certain. The large amount of REM sleep may provide infants with added self-
stimulation, since they spend less time awake than do older
children. REM sleep also might promote the brain’s
development in infancy (Graven, 2006).
SIDS
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is a condition that occurs when an
infant stops breathing, usually during the night, and dies suddenly without an
apparent cause. SIDS remains one of the main causes of infant death in the
United States, with more than 2,000 infant deaths annually attributed to SIDS
(Heron, 2016). Risk of SIDS is highest at 2 to 4 months of age (NICHD,
2018). In 1992, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) began
recommending that infants be placed to sleep on their backs to reduce the risk
of SIDS, and since then far fewer infants have been placed on their stomachs
to sleep (AAP, 2000). Researchers have found that SIDS does indeed
decrease when infants sleep on their backs rather than on their stomachs or
sides (Bombard & others, 2018; Carlin & Moon, 2017; Sperhake, Jorch, &
Bajanowski, 2018). Why? Because sleeping on their backs increases their
access to fresh air and reduces their chances of getting overheated.
Is this a good sleep position for infants? Why or why not?
©Maria Teijeiro/Getty Images
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
provider, what advice
would you provide to
parents about preventing
SIDS?
SIDS also occurs more often in infants with abnormal brain stem
functioning involving the neurotransmitter serotonin (Rognum & others,
2014). Also, heart arrhythmias are estimated to occur in as many as 10 to 15
percent of SIDS cases and research indicates that gene mutations are linked to
the occurrence of these arrhythmias in SIDS cases (Sarquella-Brugada &
others, 2016). SIDS also is less common in infants who are breast fed (Carlin
& Moon, 2017). The risk of SIDS is higher for infants whose mothers smoke
Page 84
and infants who are exposed to secondhand smoke in general (Horne, 2018;
Salm Ward & Balfour, 2016). Further, SIDS is more likely to occur in low
birth weight infants, African American and Eskimo infants, infants who are
passively exposed to cigarette smoke, infants who sleep with their parents in
the same bed, infants who don’t use a pacifier when they go to sleep, and
infants who sleep in a bedroom without a fan (Alm & others, 2016; Carlin &
Moon, 2017; Moon & others, 2017). In a recent analysis, it was concluded
that after prone sleeping, the two factors that best predict SIDS are (1)
maternal smoking, and (2) bed sharing (Mitchell & Krous, 2015).
One concern about the “back to sleep movement” of ensuring that young
infants sleep on their back rather than their stomach is delayed acquisition of
prone skills. To prevent this delay, many mothers provide their young infants
with “tummy time” by periodically placing them on their stomachs when they
are awake.
Sleep and Cognitive Development
Might infant sleep be linked to children’s cognitive development? A recent
research review indicated that there is a positive link between infant sleep and
cognitive functioning, including memory, language, and executive function
(Tham, Schneider, & Broekman, 2017). The link between infant sleep and
children’s cognitive functioning likely occurs because of sleep’s role in brain
maturation and memory consolidation, which may improve daytime alertness
and learning (Sadeh, 2007). And in a longitudinal study, infants who had
more sleep problems were more likely to have emotional dysregulation at 2
to 3 years of age, which in turn was related to poor attention functioning in
elementary school (Williams & Sciberras, 2016).
Nutrition
From birth to 1 year of age, human infants nearly triple their weight and
increase their length by 40 percent. What kind of nourishment do they need
to sustain this rapid growth?
Breast Feeding Versus Bottle Feeding
For the first four to six months of life, human milk or an alternative formula
is the baby’s source of nutrients and energy. For years, debate has focused on
whether breast feeding is better for the infant than bottle feeding. The
growing consensus is that breast feeding is better for the baby’s health
(Blake, Munoz, & Volpe, 2019: DeBruyne & Pinna, 2017; Thompson &
Manore, 2018). Since the 1970s, breast feeding by U.S. mothers has become
widespread. In 2016 more than 81 percent of U.S. mothers breast fed their
newborns, and 52 percent breast fed their 6-month-olds (Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 2016). What are some of the benefits of breast
feeding? During the first two years of life and beyond, benefits include
appropriate weight gain and reduced risk of child and adult obesity (Catalano
& Shankar, 2017; Uwaezuoke, Eneh, & Ndu, 2018); reduced risk of SIDS
(Carlin & Moon, 2017); fewer gastrointestinal infections (Bartick & others,
2017); and fewer lower respiratory tract infections (Bartick & others, 2017,
2018). Further, a recent study of more than 500,000 Scottish children found
that those who were breast fed exclusively at 6 to 8 weeks of age were less
likely to have ever been hospitalized through early childhood than their
formula-fed counterparts (Ajetunmobi & others, 2015). A recent research
review found no support for the hypothesis that breast feeding might reduce
the risk of allergies in young children (Heinrich, 2017). Other recent research
has found a reduction of hospitalization for breast-fed infants for a number of
conditions, including gastrointestinal problems and lower respiratory tract
infections, as well as a reduction of hospitalization for breast-feeding mothers
for cardiovascular problems and diabetes (Bartick & others, 2018). In a large-
scale review, no evidence for the benefits of breast feeding was found for
children’s cognitive development and cardiovascular functioning (Agency for
Healthcare Research and Quality, 2007). However, a recent study did find
that breast feeding was associated with a small increase in children’s
intelligence (Bernard & others, 2017).
Benefits of breast feeding for the mother include a lower incidence of
breast cancer (Akbari & others, 2011) and a reduction in ovarian cancer
(Stuebe & Schwartz, 2010). Many health professionals have argued that
breast feeding facilitates the development of an attachment bond between
mother and infant (Wittig & Spatz, 2008). However, a research review found
that the positive effect of breast feeding on the mother-infant relationship is
not supported by research (Jansen, de Weerth, & Riksen-Walraven, 2008).
The review concluded that recommending breast feeding should not be based
on its role in improving the mother-infant relationship but rather on its
positive effects on infant and maternal health.
The American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Breastfeeding (2012)
reconfirmed its recommendation of exclusive breast feeding in the first six
months followed by continued breast feeding as complementary foods are
introduced, and further breast feeding for one year or longer as mutually
desired by the mother and infant.
Are there circumstances when mothers should not breast feed? Yes. A
mother should not breast feed if she (1) is infected with AIDS or any other
infectious disease that can be transmitted through her milk, (2) has active
tuberculosis, or (3) is taking any drug that may not be safe for the infant
(Brown, 2017; Schultz, Kostic, & Kharasch, 2018).
Human milk or an alternative formula is a baby’s source of nutrients for the first four to
six months. The growing consensus is that breast feeding is better for the baby’s health,
although controversy still swirls about breast versus bottle feeding. What do research
studies indicate are the outcomes of breast feeding for children and mothers?
©JGI/Blend Images LLC
Some women cannot breast feed their infants because of physical
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difficulties; others feel guilty if they terminate breast feeding early. Mothers
also may worry that they are depriving their infants of important emotional
and psychological benefits if they bottle feed rather than breast feed. Some
researchers have found, however, that there are few, if any, long-term
physical and psychological differences between breast-fed and bottle-fed
infants (Colen & Ramey, 2014; Ferguson, Harwood, & Shannon, 1987;
Young, 1990).
A further issue in interpreting the benefits of breast feeding was
underscored in a large-scale research review (Agency for Healthcare
Research and Quality, 2007). While highlighting a number of benefits of
breast feeding for children and mothers, the report issued a
caution about research on breast feeding: None of the findings
imply causality. Breast feeding versus bottle feeding studies
are correlational, not experimental, and women who breast feed tend to be
wealthier, older, and better educated, and are likely to be more health-
conscious than those who bottle feed, which could explain why breast-fed
children are healthier.
Nutritional Needs
Individual differences among infants in terms of their nutrient reserves, body
composition, growth rates, and activity patterns make it difficult to define
actual nutrient needs (Rolfes & Pinna, 2018; Blake, Munoz, & Volpe, 2019).
However, because parents need guidelines, nutritionists recommend that
infants consume approximately 50 calories per day for each pound they
weigh—more than twice an adult’s requirement per pound.
A national study of more than 3,000 randomly selected 4- to 24-month-
olds documented that many U.S. parents are feeding their babies too few
fruits and vegetables and too much junk food (Fox & others, 2004). Up to
one-third of the babies ate no vegetables and fruit; almost half of the 7- to 8-
month-old babies were fed desserts, sweets, or sweetened drinks. By 15
months, French fries were the most common vegetables the babies ate.
Caregivers play very important roles in infants’ early development of
eating patterns (Baye, Tariku, & Mouquet-Rivier, 2018; Brown, 2017;
Harrison, Brodribb, & Hepworth, 2018). Caregivers who are not sensitive to
developmental changes in infants’ nutritional needs, neglectful caregivers,
and conditions of poverty can contribute to the development of eating
problems in infants (Black & Hurley, 2017; Perez-Escamilla & Moran,
2017). One study found that low maternal sensitivity when infants were 15
and 24 months of age was linked to a higher risk of obesity in adolescence
(Anderson & others, 2012). And in a recent study, infants who were
introduced to vegetables between 4 and 5 months of age showed less fussy
eating behavior at 4 years of age than their counterparts who were introduced
to vegetables after 6 months (de Barse & others, 2017).
Adequate early nutrition is an important aspect of healthy development
(Feldman-Winter & others, 2018; Rolfes & Pinna, 2018). In addition to
sound nutrition, children need a nurturing, supportive environment (Black &
Hurley, 2017; Blake, Munoz, & Volpe, 2019). One individual who is an
ardent advocate of caring for children and is especially passionate about
preventing childhood obesity is pediatrician Faize Mustafa-Infante, who is
featured in Careers in Life-Span Development.
Careers in life-span development
Faize Mustafa-Infante, Pediatric Specialist
Focusing on Childhood Obesity
Dr. Mustafa-Infante grew up in Colombia, South America. Her
initial profession was teaching elementary school students in
Columbia, and then she obtained her medical degree with a specialty
in pediatrics. Once she finished her medical training, she moved to
San Bernardino, California, where she worked as a health educator
with a focus on preventing and treating childhood obesity in low-
income communities. Dr. Mustafa-Infante currently works at Mission
Pediatrics in Riverside, California, where she mainly treats infants.
She continues her effort to prevent obesity in children and also serves
as a volunteer for Ayacucho-Medical Mission, a nonprofit
organization that provides culturally sensitive medical care for those
in greatest need. In regard to her cultural background, she describes
herself as a Latino doctor with a Middle Eastern name that reflects her
strong family commitments to both heritages. Dr. Mustafa says that
Page 86
hard work and education have been the keys to her success and
personal satisfaction.
Motor Development
Meeting infants’ nutritional needs helps them to develop the strength and
coordination required for motor development. How do infants develop their
motor skills, and which skills do they develop at various ages?
Dynamic Systems Theory
Developmentalist Arnold Gesell (1934) thought his painstaking observations
had revealed how people develop their motor skills. He had discovered that
infants and children develop rolling, sitting, standing, and other motor skills
in a fixed order and within specific time frames. These observations, said
Gesell, show that motor development comes about through the unfolding of a
genetic plan, or maturation.
Later studies, however, demonstrated that the sequence of developmental
milestones is not as fixed as Gesell indicated and not due as much to heredity
as Gesell argued (Adolph, 2018; Adolph & Hoch, 2019; Adolph & Robinson,
2015). Beginning in the 1980s, the study of motor development underwent a
renaissance as psychologists developed new insights about how motor skills
develop (Adolph, 2018; Kretch & Adolph, 2018; Lee & others, 2019). One
increasingly influential perspective is dynamic systems theory, proposed by
Esther Thelen (Thelen & Smith, 1998, 2006).
Esther Thelen conducts an experiment to discover how infants learn to control their arms
to reach and grasp for objects. A computer device monitors the infant’s arm movements
and tracks muscle patterns. Thelen’s research is conducted from a dynamic systems
perspective. What is the nature of this perspective?
©Dr. David Thelen
According to dynamic systems theory, infants assemble motor skills for
perceiving and acting. In other words, perception and action are coupled
(Thelen & Smith, 2006). In order to develop motor skills, infants must
perceive something in the environment that motivates them to act, then use
their perceptions to fine-tune their movements. Motor skills thus represent
pathways to the infant’s goals (D’Souza & others, 2018).
How is a motor skill developed, according to this theory? When infants
are motivated to do something, they might create a new motor behavior. The
new behavior is the result of many converging factors: the development of
the nervous system, the body’s physical properties and its possibilities for
movement, the goal the child is motivated to reach, and environmental
support for the skill. For example, babies will learn to walk only when their
nervous system has matured sufficiently to allow them to control certain leg
muscles, when they want to move, when their legs have grown enough to
support their weight, and when they have sufficient balance control to
support their body on one leg (Adolph, 2018).
Mastering a motor skill requires the infant’s active efforts to coordinate
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several components of the skill (Chen, Jeka, & Clark, 2016; Comalli,
Persand, & Adolph, 2017; Franchak, Kretch, & Adolph, 2019; Lee & others,
2019). Infants explore and select possible solutions to the demands of a new
task, and they assemble adaptive patterns by modifying their current
movement patterns. The first step, for example, occurs when the infant is
motivated by a new challenge—such as the desire to cross a room—and
initiates this task by taking a few stumbling steps. The infant then “tunes”
these movements to make them smoother and more effective. The tuning is
achieved through repeated cycles of action and perception of the
consequences of that action. According to the dynamic systems view, even
universal milestones such as crawling, reaching, and walking are learned
through this process of adaptation: Infants modulate their movement patterns
to fit a new task by exploring and selecting possible configurations (Adolph,
2018; Adolph, Rachwani, & Hoch, 2018).
Thus, according to dynamic systems theory, motor development is not a
passive process in which genes dictate the unfolding of a sequence of skills.
Rather, the infant actively puts together a skill in order to achieve a goal
within the constraints set by the infant’s body and environment.
Nature and nurture, the infant and the environment, are all
working together as part of an ever-changing system.
As we examine the course of motor development, we will describe how
dynamic systems theory applies to some specific skills. First, though, let’s
examine how the story of motor development begins with reflexes.
Reflexes
The newborn is not completely helpless. Among other things, the newborn
has some basic reflexes. Reflexes are built-in reactions to stimuli, and they
govern the newborn’s movements. Reflexes are genetically carried survival
mechanisms that are automatic and involuntary. They allow infants to
respond adaptively to their environment before they have had the opportunity
to learn. For example, if immersed in water, the newborn automatically holds
its breath and contracts its throat to keep water out.
Other important examples are the rooting and sucking reflexes. Both have
survival value for newborn mammals, who must find a mother’s breast to
obtain nourishment. The rooting reflex occurs when the infant’s cheek is
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stroked or the side of the mouth is touched. In response, the infant turns its
head toward the side that was touched in an apparent effort to find something
to suck. The sucking reflex occurs when newborns automatically suck an
object placed in their mouth. This reflex enables newborns to get
nourishment before they have associated a nipple with food.
Another example is the Moro reflex, which occurs in response to a
sudden, intense noise or movement. When startled, the newborn arches its
back, throws back its head, and flings out its arms and legs. Then the
newborn rapidly closes its arms and legs. The Moro reflex is believed to be a
way of grabbing for support while falling; it would have had survival value
for our primate ancestors. An overview of the reflexes we have discussed,
along with others, is presented in Figure 8.
Figure 8 Infant Reflexes
Some reflexes—coughing, sneezing, blinking, shivering, and yawning,
for example—persist throughout life. They are as important for the adult as
they are for the infant. Other reflexes, though, disappear
several months after birth, as the infant’s brain matures and
voluntary control over many behaviors develops. The rooting,
sucking, and Moro reflexes, for example, all tend to disappear when the
infant is 3 to 4 months old.
The movements of some reflexes eventually become incorporated into
more complex, voluntary actions. One important example is the grasping
reflex, which occurs when something touches the infant’s palm. The infant
responds by grasping tightly. By the end of the third month, the grasping
reflex diminishes, and the infant shows a more voluntary grasp. For example,
when an infant sees a mobile turning slowly above a crib, it may reach out
and try to grasp it. As its motor development becomes smoother, the infant
will grasp objects, carefully manipulate them, and explore their qualities.
The old view of reflexes is that they were exclusively genetic, built-in
mechanisms that govern the infant’s movements. The new perspective on
infant reflexes is that they are not automatic or completely beyond the
infant’s control. For example, infants can control such movements as
alternating their legs to make a mobile jiggle or changing their sucking rate to
listen to a recording (Adolph, 2018; Adolph & Berger, 2015).
Gross Motor Skills
Gross motor skills are skills that involve large-muscle activities, such as
moving one’s arms and walking. Newborn infants cannot voluntarily control
their posture. Within a few weeks, though, they can hold their heads erect,
and soon they can lift their heads while prone. By 2 months of age, babies
can sit while supported on a lap or an infant seat, but they cannot sit
independently until they are 6 or 7 months of age. Standing also develops
gradually during the first year of life. By about 8 months of age, infants
usually learn to pull themselves up and hold on to a chair, and by about 10 to
12 months of age they can often stand alone.
Locomotion and postural control are closely linked, especially in walking
upright (Adolph, 2018). To walk upright, the baby must be able both to
balance on one leg as the other is swung forward and to shift its weight from
one leg to the other (Thelen & Smith, 2006).
Infants must also learn what kinds of places and surfaces are safe for
crawling or walking (Adolph & Hoch, 2019; Adolph, Rachwani, & Hoch,
2018). Karen Adolph (1997) investigated how experienced and inexperienced
crawling and walking infants go down steep slopes (see Figure 9). Newly
crawling infants, who averaged about 8 months in age, rather
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indiscriminately went down the steep slopes, often falling in the process
(with their mothers standing next to the slope to catch them). After weeks of
practice, the crawling babies became more adept at judging which slopes
were too steep to crawl down and which ones they could navigate safely.
Figure 9 The Role of Experience in Crawling and Walking Infants’ Judgments of
Whether to Go Down a Slope
Karen Adolph (1997) found that locomotor experience rather than age was the primary
predictor of adaptive responding on slopes of varying steepness. Newly crawling and
walking infants could not judge the safety of the various slopes. With experience, they
learned to avoid slopes where they would fall. When expert crawlers began to walk, they
again made mistakes and fell, even though they had judged the same slope accurately
when crawling. Adolph referred to this as the specificity of learning because it does not
transfer across crawling and walking.
©Dr. Karen Adolph, New York University
You might expect that babies who learned that a slope was too
steep for crawling would know when they began walking whether
a slope was safe. But Adolph’s research indicated that newly
walking infants could not judge the safety of the slopes. Only when infants
became experienced walkers were they able to accurately match their skills
with the steepness of the slopes. They rarely fell downhill, either refusing to
go down the steep slopes or going down backward in a cautious manner.
Experienced walkers assessed the situation perceptually—looking, swaying,
touching, and thinking before they moved down the slope. With experience,
both crawlers and walkers learned to avoid the risky slopes where they would
fall, integrating perceptual information with the development of a new motor
behavior. In this research, we again see the importance of perceptual-motor
coupling in the development of motor skills.
Practice is especially important in learning to walk (Kretch & Adolph,
2018; Franchak, Kretch, & Adolph, 2019). Infants and toddlers accumulate
an immense number of experiences with balance and locomotion (Cole,
Robinson, & Adolph, 2016; Lee & others, 2019). For example, the average
toddler traverses almost 40 football fields a day and has 15 falls an hour
(Adolph, 2010).
Might the development of walking be linked to advances in other aspects
of development? Walking experience leads to being able to gain contact with
objects that were previously out of reach and to initiate interaction with
parents and other adults, thereby promoting language development (Adolph
& Robinson, 2015; He, Walle, & Campos, 2015). Thus, just as with advances
in postural skills, walking skills can produce a cascade of changes in the
infant’s development (Adolph, 2018).
The First Year: Milestones and Variations
Figure 10 summarizes important accomplishments in gross motor skills
during the first year, culminating in the ability to walk easily. However, the
timing of these milestones, especially the later ones, may vary by as much as
two to four months, and experiences can modify the onset of these
accomplishments (Adolph, 2018; Adolph & Hoch, 2019).
Figure 10 Milestones in Gross Motor Development.
The horizontal red bars indicate the range in which most infants reach various milestones
in gross motor development.
(Left to right) ©Barbara Penoyar/Getty Images; ©StephaneHachey/Getty Images;
©Image Source/Alamy; ©Victoria Blackie/Getty Images; ©Digital Vision;
©Fotosearch/Getty Images; ©Corbis/PictureQuest; ©amaviael/123RF
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you advise
parents who are
concerned that their
infant is one or two
months behind the
average gross motor
milestones?
In a recent study, a number of factors were linked to the timing
Page 90of motor development in the first year of life (Flensborg-Madsen &
Mortensen, 2017). Twelve developmental milestones were
assessed, including grasping, rolling, sitting, and crawling;
standing and walking; and overall mean of milestones. A larger size at birth
(such as birth weight, birth length, and head circumference) was the aspect of
pregnancy and delivery that showed the strongest link to reaching motor
milestones earlier. Mother’s smoking in the last trimester of prenatal
development was associated with reaching the motor milestones later. Also,
an increase in size (weight increase, length increase, and head increase) in the
first year was related to reaching the motor milestones earlier. Breast feeding
also was linked to reaching the milestones earlier.
Development in the Second Year
The motor accomplishments of the first year bring increasing independence,
allowing infants to explore their environment more extensively and to initiate
interaction with others more readily. In the second year of life, toddlers
become more mobile as their motor skills are honed. Child development
experts believe that motor activity during the second year is vital to the
child’s competent development and that few restrictions, except those having
to do with safety, should be placed on their adventures (Fraiberg, 1959).
By 13 to 18 months, toddlers can pull a toy attached to a string and use
their hands and legs to climb up steps. By 18 to 24 months, toddlers can walk
quickly or run stiffly for a short distance, balance on their feet in a squatting
position while playing with objects on the floor, walk backward without
losing their balance, stand and kick a ball without falling, stand and throw a
ball, and jump in place.
Fine Motor Skills
Whereas gross motor skills involve large-muscle activity, fine motor skills
involve finely tuned movements. Grasping a toy, using a spoon, buttoning a
shirt, or doing anything that requires finger dexterity demonstrates fine motor
skills. At birth, infants have very little control over fine motor skills, but they
do have many components of what will become finely coordinated arm, hand,
and finger movements (McCormack, Hoerl, & Butterfill, 2012).
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The onset of reaching and grasping marks a significant achievement in
infants’ ability to interact with their surroundings (Needham & others, 2017).
During the first two years of life, infants refine how they reach and grasp
(Dosso, Herrera, & Boudreau, 2017). Initially, they reach by moving the
shoulder and elbow crudely, swinging toward an object. Later, when they
reach for an object they move the wrist, rotate the hand, and coordinate the
thumb and forefinger. An infant does not have to see his or her own hand in
order to reach for an object (Clifton & others, 1993); rather, reaching is
guided by cues from muscles, tendons, and joints. Recent research studies
found that short-term training involving practice of reaching movements
increased both preterm and full-term infants’ reaching for and touching
objects (Cunha & others, 2016; Guimaraes & Trudellia, 2015).
Experience plays a role in reaching and grasping (Cunha & others, 2016;
Needham & others, 2017). In one study, 3-month-old infants participated in
play sessions wearing “sticky mittens”—“mittens with palms that stuck to the
edges of toys and allowed the infants to pick up the toys” (Needham, Barrett,
& Peterman, 2002, p. 279) (see Figure 11). Infants who
participated in sessions with the mittens grasped and
manipulated objects earlier in their development than a control
group of infants who did not receive the “mitten” experience. The
experienced infants looked at the objects longer, swatted at them more during
visual contact, and were more likely to mouth the objects. In one study, 5-
month-old infants whose parents trained them to use the sticky mittens for 10
minutes a day over a two-week period showed advances in their reaching
behavior at the end of the two weeks (Libertus & Needham, 2010).
Figure 11 Infants’ Use of “Sticky Mittens” to Explore Objects.
Amy Needham (at right in this photo) and her colleagues (2002) found that “sticky
mittens” enhanced young infants’ object exploration skills.
©Dr. Amy Needham
Rachel Keen (2011; Keen, Lee, & Adolph, 2014) emphasizes that tool
use is an excellent context for studying problem solving in infants because
tool use provides information about how infants plan to reach a goal.
Researchers in this area have studied infants’ intentional actions, which range
from picking up a spoon in different orientations to retrieving rakes from
inside tubes. One study explored motor origins of tool use by assessing
developmental changes in banging movements in 6- to 15-month-olds
(Kahrs, Jung, & Lockman, 2013). In this study, younger infants were
inefficient and variable when banging an object but by 1 year of age infants
showed consistent straight up-and-down hand movements that resulted in
precise aiming and consistent levels of force.
Just as infants need to exercise their gross motor skills, they also need to
exercise their fine motor skills (Cunha & others, 2016; Needham & others,
2017). Especially when they can manage a pincer grip, infants delight in
picking up small objects. Many develop the pincer grip and begin to crawl at
about the same time, and infants at this time pick up virtually everything in
sight, especially on the floor, and put the objects in their mouth. Thus, parents
need to be vigilant in monitoring objects within the infant’s reach.
Sensory and Perceptual Development
Can a newborn see? If so, what can it perceive? How do sensations and
perceptions develop? Can an infant put together information from two
modalities, such as sight and sound? These are among the intriguing
questions that we explore in this section.
Exploring Sensory and Perceptual Development
How does a newborn know that her mother’s skin is soft rather than rough?
How does a 5-year-old know what color his hair is? Infants and children
“know” these things as a result of information that comes through the senses.
Sensation occurs when information interacts with sensory receptors—the
eyes, ears, tongue, nostrils, and skin. The sensation of hearing occurs when
waves of pulsating air are collected by the outer ear and transmitted through
the bones of the inner ear to the auditory nerve. The sensation of vision
occurs as rays of light contact the eyes, become focused on the retina, and are
transmitted by the optic nerve to the visual centers of the brain.
Perception is the interpretation of what is sensed. The air waves that
contact the ears might be interpreted as noise or as musical sounds, for
example. The physical energy transmitted to the retina of the eye might be
interpreted as a particular color, pattern, or shape, depending on how it is
perceived.
The Ecological View
In recent decades, much of the research on perceptual development in infancy
has been guided by the ecological view proposed by Eleanor and James J.
Gibson (E. Gibson, 1969, 1989, 2001; J. Gibson, 1966, 1979). They argue
that we do not have to take bits and pieces of data from sensations and build
up representations of the world in our minds. Instead, our perceptual system
can select from the rich information that the environment itself provides.
According to the Gibsons’ ecological view, we directly perceive
information that exists in the world around us. Perception brings us into
contact with the environment in order to interact with and adapt to it
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(Franchak, Kretch, & Adolph, 2019). Perception is designed
for action. It gives people information such as when to duck,
when to turn their bodies as they move through a narrow
passageway, and when to put their hands up to catch something (Adolph,
2018).
Studying the Infant’s Perception
Studying the infant’s perception is not an easy task. Unlike most research
participants, infants cannot write, type on a computer keyboard, or speak well
enough to explain to an experimenter what their responses are to a given
stimulus or condition. Yet scientists have developed several ingenious
research methods to examine infants’ sensory and perceptual development
(Bendersky & Sullivan, 2007).
The Visual Preference Method
Robert Fantz (1963), a pioneer in this effort, made an important discovery:
Infants look at different things for different lengths of time. Fantz placed
infants in a “looking chamber,” which had two visual displays on the ceiling
above the infant’s head. An experimenter viewed the infant’s eyes by looking
through a peephole. If the infant was gazing at one of the displays, the
experimenter could see the display’s reflection in the infant’s eyes. This
allowed the experimenter to determine how long the infant looked at each
display. Fantz (1963) found that infants only 2 days old would gaze longer at
patterned stimuli (such as faces or concentric circles) than at red, white, or
yellow discs. Similar results were found with infants 2 to 3 weeks old (see
Figure 12). Fantz’s research method—studying whether infants can
distinguish one stimulus from another by measuring the length of time they
attend to different stimuli—is referred to as the visual preference method.
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Figure 12 Fantz’s Experiment on Infants’ Visual Perception.
(a) Infants 2 to 3 weeks old preferred to look at some stimuli more than others. In Fantz’s
experiment, infants preferred to look at patterns rather than at color or brightness. For
example, they looked longer at a face, a piece of printed matter, or a bull’s-eye than at red,
yellow, or white discs. (b) Fantz used a “looking chamber” to study infants’ perception of
stimuli.
©David Linton, Courtesy of the Linton Family
Habituation and Dishabituation Another way in which researchers study
infant perception is to present a stimulus (such as a sight or a sound) a
number of times. If the infant decreases its response to the stimulus after
several presentations, this indicates that the infant is no longer interested in
the stimulus. If the researcher now presents a new stimulus, the infant’s
response will recover—indicating the infant could discriminate between the
old and new stimuli (Messinger & others, 2017).
Habituation is the name given to decreased responsiveness to a stimulus
after repeated presentations of the stimulus. Dishabituation is the recovery
of a habituated response after a change in stimulation. Newborn infants can
habituate to repeated sights, sounds, smells, or touches (Bendersky &
Sullivan, 2007). Among the measures researchers use in habituation studies
are sucking behavior (sucking behavior stops when the infant
attends to a novel object), heart and respiration rates, and the
length of time the infant looks at an object.
Equipment Technology can facilitate the use of most methods for
investigating the infant’s perceptual abilities. Videotape equipment allows
researchers to investigate elusive behaviors. High-speed computers make it
possible to perform complex data analysis in minutes. Other equipment
records respiration, heart rate, body movement, visual fixation, and sucking
behavior, which provide clues to what the infant is perceiving.
Eye Tracking The most important recent advance in measuring infant
perception is the development of sophisticated eye-tracking equipment
(Boardman & Fletcher-Watson, 2017; Kretch & Adolph, 2017). Eye tracking
consists of measuring eye movements that follow (track) a moving object and
can be used to evaluate an infant’s early visual ability (Bendersky & Sullivan,
2007).
Figure 13 shows an infant wearing eye-tracking headgear in a recent
study on visually guided motor behavior and social interaction.
Figure 13 An Infant Wearing Eye-Tracking Headgear
©Dr. Karen Adolph, New York University
One of the main reasons that infant perception researchers are so
enthusiastic about the availability of sophisticated eye-tracking equipment is
that looking time is among the most important measures of infant perceptual
and cognitive development (Aslin, 2012). The new eye-tracking equipment
allows for far greater precision in assessing various aspects of infant looking
and gaze than is possible with human observation (Boardman & Fletcher-
Watson, 2017; Law & others, 2018; van Renswouode & others, 2018).
Among the areas of infant perception in which eye-tracking equipment is
being used are attention (Meng, Uto, & Hashiya, 2017), memory (Fanning &
others, 2018; Kingo & Krojgaard, 2015), and face processing (Chhaya &
others, 2018). Further, eye-tracking equipment is improving our
understanding of atypically developing infants, such as those who have
autism (Falck-Ytter & others, 2018) or were born preterm (Finke, Wilkinson,
& Hickerson, 2017; Liberati & others, 2017).
One eye-tracking study shed light on the effectiveness of TV programs
and DVDs that claim to educate infants (Kirkorian, Anderson, & Keen,
2012). In this study, 1-year-olds, 4-year-olds, and adults watched Sesame
Street and the eye-tracking equipment recorded precisely what they looked at
on the screen. The 1-year-olds were far less likely to consistently look at the
same part of the screen as their older counterparts, suggesting that the 1-year-
olds showed little understanding of the Sesame Street video but instead were
more likely to be attracted by what was salient than by what was relevant.
Visual Perception
Psychologist William James (1890/1950) called the newborn’s perceptual
world a “blooming, buzzing confusion.” A century later, we can safely say
that he was wrong (Damon & others, 2018; Singarajah & others, 2017). Even
the newborn perceives a world with some order.
Visual Acuity and Color
Just how well can infants see? The newborn’s vision is estimated to be
20/600 on the well-known Snellen eye examination chart (Banks &
Salapatek, 1983). This means that an object 20 feet away is only as clear to
the newborn’s eyes as it would be if it were viewed from a distance of 600
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feet by an adult with normal vision (20/20). By 6 months of age, though, an
average infant’s vision is 20/40 (Aslin & Lathrop, 2008). Figure 14 shows a
computer estimation of what a picture of a face looks like to an infant at
different ages from a distance of about 6 inches.
Figure 14 Visual Acuity During the First Months of Life.
The four photographs represent a computer estimation of what a picture of a face looks
like to a 1-month-old, 2-month-old, 3-month-old, and 1-year-old (which approximates the
visual acuity of an adult).
©Kevin Peterson/Getty Images/Simulation by Vischeck
Faces are possibly the most important visual stimuli in
children’s social environment, and it is important that they extract
key information from others’ faces (Sugden & Moulson, 2017).
Infants show an interest in human faces soon after birth (Johnson & Hannon,
2015). Within hours after they are born, research shows that infants prefer to
look at faces rather than other objects and to look at attractive faces more
than at unattractive ones (Lee & others, 2013).
The infant’s color vision also improves. By 8 weeks, and possibly as
early as 4 weeks, infants can discriminate among some colors (Kelly,
Borchert, & Teller, 1997).
Perceiving Occluded Objects
Take a moment to look at your surroundings. You will likely see that some
objects are partly occluded by other objects that are in front of them—
possibly a desk behind a chair, some books behind a computer, or a car
parked behind a tree. Do infants perceive an object as complete when it is
occluded by an object in front of it?
In the first two months of postnatal development, infants do not perceive
occluded objects as complete, instead only perceiving what is visible.
Beginning at about 2 months of age, infants develop the ability to perceive
that occluded objects are whole (Slater, Field, & Hernandez-Reif, 2007).
How does perceptual completion develop? In Scott Johnson’s (2010, 2011,
2013; Johnson & Hannon, 2015) research, learning, experience, and self-
directed exploration via eye movements play key roles in the development of
perceptual completion in young infants.
Many objects that are occluded appear and disappear behind closer
objects, as when you are walking down the street and see cars appear and
disappear behind buildings. Infants develop the ability to track briefly
occluded moving objects at about 3 to 5 months (Bertenthal, 2008). One
study explored the ability of 5- to 9-month-old infants to track moving
objects that disappeared gradually behind an occluded partition, disappeared
abruptly, or imploded (shrank quickly) (Bertenthal, Longo, & Kenny, 2007)
(see Figure 15). In this study, the infants were more likely to accurately track
the moving object when it disappeared gradually than when it vanished
abruptly or imploded.
Figure 15 Infants’ Predictive Tracking of a Briefly Occluded Moving Ball.
The top image shows the visual scene that infants experienced. At the beginning of each
event, a multicolored ball bounced up and down with an accompanying bouncing sound,
and then rolled across the floor until it disappeared behind the partition. The bottom three
images show the three stimulus events that the 5- to 9-month-old infants experienced: (a)
gradual occlusion—the ball gradually disappears behind the right side of the occluding
partition located in the center of the display; (b) abrupt occlusion—the ball abruptly
disappears when it reaches the location of the white circle and then abruptly reappears 2
seconds later at the location of the second white circle on the other side of the occluding
partition; (c) implosion—the rolling ball quickly decreases in size as it approaches the
occluding partition and rapidly increases in size as it reappears on the other side of the
occluding partition.
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Depth Perception
To investigate whether infants have depth perception, Eleanor Gibson and
Richard Walk (1960) constructed a miniature cliff with a drop-off covered by
glass. They placed 6- to 12-month-old infants on the edge of this visual cliff
and had their mothers coax them to crawl onto the glass (see Figure 16). Most
infants would not crawl out on the glass, choosing instead to remain on the
shallow side, an indication that they could perceive depth, according to
Gibson and Walk. Although researchers do not know exactly how early in
life infants can perceive depth, they have found that infants develop the
ability to use binocular (two-eyed) cues to depth by about 3 to 4 months of
age.
Figure 16 Examining Infants’ Depth Perception on the Visual Cliff.
Eleanor Gibson and Richard Walk (1960) found that most infants would not crawl out on
the glass, which, according to Gibson and Walk, indicated that they had depth perception.
However, critics point out that the visual cliff is a better indication of the infant’s social
referencing and fear of heights than of the infant’s perception of depth.
©Mark Richards/PhotoEdit
Other Senses
Other sensory systems besides vision also develop during infancy.
In this section, we explore development in hearing, touch and pain, smell,
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and taste.
Hearing
During the last two months of pregnancy, as the fetus nestles in its mother’s
womb, it can hear sounds such as the mother’s voice (Kisilevsky & others,
2009). In one study, researchers had 16 women read The Cat in the Hat aloud
to their fetuses during the last months of pregnancy (DeCasper & Spence,
1986). Then, shortly after their babies were born, the mothers read aloud
either The Cat in the Hat or a story with a different rhyme and pace, The
King, the Mice and the Cheese (which had not been read during prenatal
development). The infants sucked on a nipple in a different way when the
mothers read the two stories, suggesting that the infants recognized the
pattern and tone of The Cat in the Hat. An fMRI study confirmed that a fetus
can hear at 33 to 34 weeks into the prenatal period by assessing fetal brain
response to auditory stimuli (Jardri & others, 2012).
Newborns are especially sensitive to human speech sounds (Saffran,
Werker, & Werner, 2006). Just a few days after birth, newborns will turn
toward the sound of a familiar caregiver’s voice.
What changes in hearing take place during infancy? They involve
perception of a sound’s loudness, pitch, and localization. Immediately after
birth, infants cannot hear soft sounds quite as well as adults can; a stimulus
must be louder for the newborn to hear it (Trehub & others, 1991). By 3
months of age, infants’ perception of sounds improves, although some
aspects of loudness perception do not reach adult levels until 5 to 10 years of
age (Trainor & He, 2013). Infants are also less sensitive to the pitch of a
sound than adults are. Pitch is the frequency of a sound; a
soprano voice sounds high-pitched, a bass voice low-pitched.
Infants are less sensitive to low-pitched sounds and are more
likely to hear high-pitched sounds (Aslin, Jusczyk, & Pisoni, 1998). By 2
years of age, infants have considerably improved their ability to distinguish
sounds with different pitches.
Even newborns can determine the general location from which a sound is
coming, but by 6 months they are more proficient at localizing sounds,
detecting their origins. The ability to localize sounds continues to improve
during the second year (Saffran, Werker, & Werner, 2006).
Touch and Pain
Newborns respond to touch. A touch to the cheek produces a turning of the
head; a touch to the lips produces sucking movements. Regular gentle tactile
stimulation during prenatal development may have positive developmental
outcomes. For example, a recent study found that 3-month-olds who had
received regular gentle tactile stimulation as fetuses were more likely to have
an easy temperament than their counterparts who had irregular gentle or no
tactile stimulation as fetuses (Wang, Hua, & Xu, 2015).
Newborns can also feel pain (Bellini & others, 2016; Jones & others,
2017). The issue of an infant’s pain perception often becomes important to
parents who give birth to a son and need to consider whether he should be
circumcised. An investigation by Megan Gunnar and her colleagues (1987)
found that although newborn infant males cry intensely during circumcision,
they also display amazing resiliency. Many newly circumcised infants go into
a deep sleep not long after the procedure, probably as a coping mechanism.
Also, once researchers discovered that newborns feel pain, the practice of
operating on newborns without anesthesia began to be reconsidered.
Anesthesia is now used in some circumcisions (Morris & others, 2012). And
in a recent study, kangaroo care was very effective in reducing neonatal pain,
especially indicated by the significantly lower level of crying when the care
was instituted after the newborn’s blood had been drawn by a heel stick (Seo,
Lee, & Ahn, 2016).
Smell
Newborns also can differentiate among odors (Cao Van & others, 2018). For
example, the expressions on their faces indicate that they like the scents of
vanilla and strawberry but do not like the scent of rotten eggs or fish (Steiner,
1979).
It may take time to develop other odor preferences, however. By the time
they were 6 days old, breast-fed infants in one study showed a clear
preference for smelling their mother’s breast pad rather than a clean breast
pad (MacFarlane, 1975). When they were 2 days old they did not show this
preference, indicating that they require several days of experience to
recognize this scent.
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Taste
Sensitivity to taste is present even before birth (De Cosmi, Scaglioni, &
Agostini, 2018). In one very early experiment, when saccharin was added to
the amniotic fluid of a near-term fetus, swallowing increased (Windle, 1940).
In another study, even at only 2 hours of age, babies made different facial
expressions when they tasted sweet, sour, and bitter solutions (Rosenstein &
Oster, 1988). At about 4 months, infants begin to prefer salty tastes, which as
newborns they had found to be aversive (Harris, Thomas, & Booth, 1990).
Intermodal Perception
How do infants put all these stimuli together? Imagine yourself playing
basketball or tennis. You are experiencing many visual inputs: the ball
coming and going, other players moving around, and so on. However, you
are experiencing many auditory inputs as well: the sound of the ball bouncing
or being hit, the grunts and groans of the participants, and so on. There is
good correspondence between much of the visual and auditory information:
When you see the ball bounce, you hear a bouncing sound; when a player
stretches to hit a ball, you hear a groan. When you look at and listen to what
is going on, you do not experience just the sounds or just the
sights; you put all these things together. You experience a unitary
episode. This is intermodal perception, which involves
integrating information from two or more sensory modalities, such as vision
and hearing (Bremner & Spence, 2017; Hannon, Schachner, & Nave-
Blodgett, 2017). Most perception is intermodal (Bahrick, 2010).
Early, exploratory forms of intermodal perception exist even in newborns
(Bremner, 2017). For example, newborns turn their eyes and their head
toward the sound of a voice or rattle when the sound is maintained for several
seconds (Clifton & others, 1981). Intermodal perception becomes sharper
with experience in the first year of life (Kirkham & others, 2012). In the first
six months, infants have difficulty connecting sensory input from different
modes (such as vision and sound), but in the second half of the first year they
show an increased ability to make this connection mentally.
Nature, Nurture, and Perceptual Development
Now that we have discussed many aspects of perceptual development, let’s
explore one of developmental psychology’s key issues as it relates to
perceptual development: the nature-nurture issue. There has been a
longstanding interest in how strongly infants’ perception is influenced by
nature or nurture (Bremner, 2017; Chen & others, 2017). In the field of
perceptual development, those who emphasize nature are referred to as
nativists and those who emphasize learning and experience are called
empiricists. In the nativist view, the ability to perceive the world in a
competent, organized way is inborn or innate. A completely nativist view of
perceptual development is no longer accepted in developmental psychology.
The Gibsons argued that a key question in infant perception is what
information is available in the environment and how infants learn to generate,
differentiate, and discriminate the information—certainly not a nativist view.
The Gibsons’ ecological view also is quite different from Piaget’s
constructivist view. According to Piaget, much of perceptual development in
infancy must await the development of a sequence of cognitive stages in
which infants become able to construct more complex perceptual tasks. Thus,
in Piaget’s view the ability to perceive size and shape constancy, a three-
dimensional world, intermodal perception, and so on develops later in
infancy than the Gibsons envision.
The longitudinal research of Daphne Maurer and her colleagues (Chen &
others, 2017; Lewis & Maurer, 2005, 2009; Maurer, 2016; Maurer & Lewis,
2013; Maurer & others, 1999) has focused on infants born with cataracts—a
thickening of the lens of the eye that causes vision to become cloudy, opaque,
and distorted and thus severely restricts these infants’ ability to experience
their visual world. By studying infants whose cataracts were removed at
different points in development, they discovered that those whose cataracts
were removed and new lenses placed in their eyes in the first several months
after birth showed a normal pattern of visual development. However, the
longer the delay in removing the cataracts, the more their visual development
was impaired. In their research, Maurer and her colleagues (Maurer, 2016;
Maurer, Mondloch, & Leis, 2007) have found that experiencing patterned
visual input early in infancy is important for holistic and detailed face
processing after infancy. Maurer’s research program illustrates how
deprivation and experience influence visual development, including an early
sensitive period in which visual input is necessary for normal visual
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development (Maurer & Lewis, 2013).
What roles do nature and nurture play in the infant’s perceptual development?
©Boris Ryaposov/Shutterstock
Today it is clear that an extreme empiricist position on perceptual
development is unwarranted. Much of early perception develops from innate
(nature) capabilities, and the basic foundation of many perceptual abilities
can be detected in newborns, whereas others unfold through
maturation (Bornstein, Arterberry, & Mash, 2011). However,
as infants develop, environmental experiences (nurture) refine
or calibrate many perceptual functions, and they may be the driving force
behind some functions (Johnson & Hannon, 2015). The accumulation of
experience with and knowledge about their perceptual world contributes to
infants’ ability to perceive coherent impressions of people and things (Slater
& others, 2011). Thus, a full portrait of perceptual development includes the
influence of nature, nurture, and a developing sensitivity to information
(Bremner & others, 2016; Chen & others, 2017).
Perceptual Motor Coupling
A central theme of the ecological approach is the interplay between
perception and action. Action can guide perception, and perception can guide
action. Only by moving one’s eyes, head, hands, and arms and by moving
from one location to another can an individual fully experience his or her
environment and learn how to adapt to it. Thus, perception and action are
coupled (Adolph, 2018; Franchak, Kretch, & Adolph, 2019).
Babies, for example, continually coordinate their movements with
perceptual information to learn how to maintain balance, reach for objects in
space, and move across various surfaces and terrains (Adolph & Hoch, 2019;
Thelen & Smith, 2006). They are motivated to move by what they perceive.
Consider the sight of an attractive toy across the room. In this situation,
infants must perceive the current state of their bodies and learn how to use
their limbs to reach the toy. Although their movements at first are awkward
and uncoordinated, babies soon learn to select patterns that are appropriate
for reaching their goals.
Equally important is the other part of the perception-action coupling. That
is, action educates perception (Adolph, 2018; Lee & others, 2019). For
example, watching an object while exploring it manually helps infants
discover its texture, size, and hardness. Moving around in their environment
teaches babies about how objects and people look from different
perspectives, or whether surfaces will support their weight. In short, infants
perceive in order to move and move in order to perceive. Perceptual and
motor development do not occur in isolation from each other but instead are
coupled.
Cognitive Development
The competent infant not only develops motor and perceptual skills, but also
develops cognitive skills. Our coverage of cognitive development in infancy
focuses on Piaget’s theory and sensorimotor stages as well as on how infants
learn, remember, and conceptualize.
Piaget’s Theory
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Piaget’s theory is a general, unifying story of how biology and experience
sculpt cognitive development. The Swiss child psychologist Jean Piaget
thought that, just as our physical bodies have structures that enable us to
adapt to the world, we build mental structures that help us to adapt to the
world. Adaptation involves adjusting to new environmental demands. Piaget
stressed that children actively construct their own cognitive worlds;
information is not just poured into their minds from the environment. He
sought to discover how children at different points in their development think
about the world and how systematic changes in their thinking occur.
Processes of Development
What processes do children use as they construct their knowledge of the
world? Piaget developed several concepts to answer this question.
Schemes According to Piaget (1954), as the infant or child seeks to
construct an understanding of the world, the developing brain creates
schemes. These are actions or mental representations that organize
knowledge. In Piaget’s theory, infants create behavioral schemes
(physical activities), whereas toddlers and older children create
mental schemes (cognitive activities) (Lamb, Bornstein, & Teti,
2002). A baby’s schemes are structured by simple actions that can be
performed on objects, such as sucking, looking, and grasping. Older
children’s schemes include strategies and plans for solving problems.
Assimilation and Accommodation To explain how children use and
adapt their schemes, Piaget offered two concepts: assimilation and
accommodation. Assimilation occurs when children use their existing
schemes to deal with new information or experiences. Accommodation
occurs when children adjust their schemes to account for new information
and experiences.
Think about a toddler who has learned the word car to identify the
family’s automobile. The toddler might call all moving vehicles on roads
“cars,” including motorcycles and trucks; the child has assimilated these
objects to his or her existing scheme. But the child soon learns that
motorcycles and trucks are not cars and fine-tunes the category to exclude
those vehicles. The child has accommodated the scheme.
In Piaget’s view, what is a scheme? What schemes might this young infant be displaying?
©CSP_NikolayK/age fotostock
Organization To make sense out of their world, said Piaget, children
cognitively organize their experiences. Organization, in Piaget’s theory, is
the grouping of isolated behaviors and thoughts into a higher-order system.
Continual refinement of this organization is an inherent part of development.
A child who has only a vague idea about how to use a hammer may also have
a vague idea about how to use other tools. After learning how to use each
one, she relates these uses to one another, thereby organizing her knowledge.
Equilibration and Stages of Development Assimilation and
accommodation always take the child to a higher level, according to Piaget.
In trying to understand the world, the child inevitably experiences cognitive
conflict, or disequilibrium. That is, the child is constantly faced with
inconsistencies and counterexamples to his or her existing schemes. For
example, if a child believes that pouring water from a short, wide container
into a tall, narrow container changes the amount of water in the container, the
child might wonder where the “extra” water came from and whether there is
actually more water to drink. This puzzle creates disequilibrium; and in
Piaget’s view the resulting search for equilibrium creates motivation for
change. The child assimilates and accommodates, adjusting old schemes,
developing new schemes, and organizing and reorganizing the old and new
schemes. Eventually the organization is fundamentally different from the old
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organization; it becomes a new way of thinking.
Equilibration is the name Piaget gave to this mechanism by which
children shift from one stage of thought to the next. Equilibration does not,
however, happen all at once. There is considerable movement between states
of cognitive equilibrium and disequilibrium as assimilation and
accommodation work in concert to produce cognitive change.
A result of these processes, according to Piaget, is that individuals go
through four stages of development. A different way of understanding the
world makes one stage more advanced than another. Cognition is
qualitatively different in one stage compared with another. In other words,
the way children reason at one stage is different from the way they reason at
another stage. Here our focus is on Piaget’s stage of infant cognitive
development.
The Sensorimotor Stage
The sensorimotor stage lasts from birth to about age 2. In this stage, infants
construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences
(such as seeing and hearing) with physical, motor actions—hence the term
sensorimotor. At the beginning of this stage, newborns have little more than
reflexes to work with. At the end of the sensorimotor stage, 2-year-olds can
produce complex sensorimotor patterns and use primitive
symbols. We first summarize Piaget’s descriptions of how infants
develop. Later we consider criticisms of his view.
Object Permanence Object permanence is the understanding that objects
continue to exist even when they cannot be seen, heard, or touched.
Acquiring the sense of object permanence is one of the infant’s most
important accomplishments, according to Piaget.
How could anyone know whether or not an infant had a sense of object
permanence? The principal way in which object permanence is studied is by
watching an infant’s reaction when an interesting object disappears (see
Figure 17). If infants search for the object, it is inferred that they know it
continues to exist.
Figure 17 Object Permanence.
Piaget argued that object permanence is one of infancy’s landmark cognitive
accomplishments. For this 5-month-old boy, “out of sight” is literally out of mind. The
infant looks at the toy monkey (top), but when his view of the toy is blocked (bottom), he
does not search for it. Several months later, he will search for the hidden toy monkey, an
action reflecting the presence of object permanence.
©Doug Goodman/Science Source
Evaluating Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage Piaget opened up a new way
of looking at infants with his view that their main task is to coordinate their
sensory impressions with their motor activity. However, the infant’s
cognitive world is not as neatly packaged as Piaget portrayed it, and some of
Piaget’s explanations for the cause of change are debated. In the past several
decades, there have been many research studies on infant development using
sophisticated techniques. Much of the new research suggests that Piaget’s
view of sensorimotor development needs to be modified (Adolph, 2018; Bell
& others, 2018; Bremner & others, 2017; Lee & others, 2019; Van de
Vondervoort & Hamlin, 2018).
A-not-B error is the term used to describe the tendency of infants to
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reach where an object was located earlier rather than where the object was
last hidden. Older infants are less likely to make the A-not-B error because
their concept of object permanence is more complete.
Researchers have found, however, that the A-not-B error does not show
up consistently (MacNeill & others, 2018; Sophian, 1985). The evidence
indicates that A-not-B errors are sensitive to the delay between hiding the
object at B and the infant’s attempt to find it (Diamond, 1985). Thus, the A-
not-B error might be due to a failure in memory. Another explanation is that
infants tend to repeat a previous motor behavior (Clearfield & others, 2006).
Research also suggests that infants develop the ability to understand how
the world works at a very early age (Aslin, 2017; Jin & others, 2018; Liu &
Spelke, 2017; Stavans & Baillargeon, 2018; Van de Vondervoort & Hamlin,
2018). And a number of theorists, such as Eleanor Gibson (1989) and
Elizabeth Spelke (2004, 2011, 2013, 2017), have concluded that infants’
perceptual abilities are highly developed very early in life. For example,
intermodal perception—the ability to coordinate information from two or
more sensory modalities, such as vision and hearing—develops much earlier
than Piaget would have predicted (Spelke & Owsley, 1979).
Object permanence also develops earlier than Piaget thought. In his view,
object permanence does not develop until approximately 8 to 9 months.
However, research by Renée Baillargeon and her colleagues (2004, 2014,
2016; Baillargeon & DeJong, 2017; Baillargeon & others, 2012) documents
that infants as young as 3 to 4 months expect objects to be substantial (in the
sense that other objects cannot move through them) and permanent (in the
sense that they continue to exist when they are hidden).
Today researchers believe that infants see objects as bounded, unitary,
solid, and separate from their background, possibly at birth or shortly
thereafter, but definitely by 3 to 4 months, much earlier than Piaget
envisioned. Young infants still have much to learn about objects, but the
world appears both stable and orderly to them (Bremner, 2017; Liu & Spelke,
2017; Stavans & Baillargeon, 2018).
In considering the big issue of whether nature or nature plays a more
important role in infant development, Elizabeth Spelke (2011,
2013, 2016a, b, 2017; Huang & Spelke, 2015; Liu & Spelke,
2017; Spelke, Bernier, & Snedeker, 2013) comes down
clearly on the side of nature. Spelke endorses a core knowledge approach,
which states that infants are born with domain-specific innate knowledge
systems. Among these knowledge systems are those involving space, number
sense, object permanence, and language (which we will discuss later in this
chapter). Strongly influenced by evolution, the core knowledge domains are
theorized to be “prewired” to allow infants to make sense of their world
(Coubart & others, 2014; Strickland & Chemla, 2018). After all, Spelke
concludes, how could infants possibly grasp the complex world in which they
live if they did not come into the world equipped with core sets of
knowledge? In this approach, the innate core knowledge domains form a
foundation around which more mature cognitive functioning and learning
develop. The core knowledge approach argues that Piaget greatly
underestimated the cognitive abilities of infants, especially young infants
(Spelke, 2017).
Recently, researchers also have explored whether preverbal infants might
have a built-in, innate sense of morality (Steckler & Hamlin, 2016; Van de
Vondervoort & Hamlin, 2016, 2018). In this research, infants as young as 4
months of age are more likely to make visually guided reaches toward a
puppet who has acted as a helper (such as helping someone get up a hill,
assisting in opening a box, or giving a ball back) rather than toward a puppet
who has hindered others’ efforts to achieve such goals (Hamlin, 2013, 2014).
Recently, the view that the emergence of morality in infancy is innate was
described as problematic (Carpendale & Hammond, 2016). Instead it was
argued that morality may emerge through infants’ early interaction with
others and undergo later transformation through language and reflective
thought.
In criticizing the core knowledge approach, British developmental
psychologist Mark Johnson (2008) says that the infants Spelke assesses in her
research have already accumulated hundreds, and in some cases even
thousands, of hours of experience in grasping what the world is about, which
gives considerable room for the environment’s role in the development of
infant cognition (Highfield, 2008). According to Johnson (2008), infants
likely come into the world with “soft biases to perceive and attend to
different aspects of the environment, and to learn about the world in
particular ways.” A major criticism is that nativists completely neglect the
infant’s social immersion in the world and instead focus only on what
happens inside the infant’s head apart from the environment (de Haan &
Johnson, 2016; Hakuno & others, 2018; Nelson, 2013).
In sum, many researchers conclude that Piaget wasn’t specific enough
about how infants learn about their world and that infants, especially young
infants, are more competent than Piaget thought (Adolph & Hoch, 2019;
Aslin, 2017; Bell & others, 2018; Xie, Mallin, & Richards, 2018). As these
researchers have examined the specific ways that infants learn, the field of
infant cognition has become very specialized. There are many researchers
working on different questions, with no general theory emerging that can
connect all of the different findings. Their theories often are local theories,
focused on specific research questions, rather than grand theories like
Piaget’s (Kuhn, 1998). Among the unifying themes in the study of infant
cognition are seeking to understand more precisely how developmental
changes in cognition take place, considering the big issue of nature and
nurture, and examining the brain’s role in cognitive development. Recall that
exploring connections between brain, cognition, and development is the focus
of the recently emerging field of developmental cognitive neuroscience (Bell
& others, 2018; Bick & Nelson, 2018; Gliga & others, 2018; Meltzoff &
others, 2018a, b; Saez de Urabain, Nuthmann, & Johnson, 2017).
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What are some conclusions that can be reached about infant learning and cognition?
©baobao ou/Getty Images
Learning, Remembering, and Conceptualizing
Earlier we described the behavioral and social cognitive theories,
as well as information-processing theory. These theories emphasize that
cognitive development does not unfold in a stage-like process as Piaget
proposed, but rather advances more gradually (Diamond, 2013). In this
section we explore what researchers who are using these approaches can tell
us about how infants learn, remember, and conceptualize.
Conditioning
We have discussed Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning, in which the
consequences of a behavior influence the probability of the behavior’s
recurrence. Infants can learn through operant conditioning: If an infant’s
behavior is followed by a rewarding stimulus, the behavior is likely to recur.
Operant conditioning has been especially helpful to researchers in their
efforts to determine what infants perceive (Rovee-Collier & Barr, 2010). For
example, infants will suck faster on a nipple when the sucking behavior is
followed by a visual display, music, or a human voice (Rovee-Collier, 2008).
Carolyn Rovee-Collier (1987) has demonstrated that infants can retain
information from the experience of being conditioned. In a characteristic
experiment, Rovee-Collier places a 2½-month-old baby in a crib under an
elaborate mobile (see Figure 18). She then ties one end of a ribbon to the
baby’s ankle and the other end to the mobile. Subsequently, she observes that
the baby kicks and makes the mobile move. The movement of the mobile is
the reinforcing stimulus (which increases the baby’s kicking behavior) in this
experiment. Weeks later, the baby is returned to the crib, but its foot is not
tied to the mobile. The baby kicks, suggesting that it has retained the
information that if it kicks a leg, the mobile will move.
Figure 18 The Technique Used in Rovee-Collier’s Investigation of Infant Memory.
In Rovee-Collier’s experiment, operant conditioning was used to demonstrate that infants
as young as 2½ months of age can retain information from the experience of being
conditioned. What did infants recall in Rovee-Collier’s experiment?
©Dr. Carolyn Rovee-Collier
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Attention
Attention, the focusing of mental resources on select information, improves
cognitive processing on many tasks (Ito-Jager & others, 2017; Posner, 2018a,
b; Reynolds & Richards, 2018; Tsurumi, Kanazawa, & Yamaguchi, 2018;
Wu & Scerif, 2018; Yu & Smith, 2017). Even newborns can detect a contour
and fix their attention on it. Older infants scan patterns more thoroughly. By
4 months, infants can selectively attend to an object. A longitudinal study
found that 5-month-olds who were more efficient in processing information
quickly had better higher-level cognitive functioning in the preschool years
(Cuevas & Bell, 2014).
Closely linked with attention are the processes of habituation and
dishabituation, which we discussed earlier in this chapter (Jones & others,
2017). Infants’ attention is strongly governed by novelty and habituation
(Christodoulou, Leland, & Moore, 2018; Falck-Ytter & others, 2018). When
an object becomes familiar, attention becomes shorter, making infants more
vulnerable to distraction (Kavsek, 2013).
Another aspect of attention that plays an important role in infant
development is joint attention, in which individuals focus on the same
object or event (Mateus & others, 2018; Urqueta Alfaro & others, 2018).
Joint attention requires (1) the ability to track each other’s behavior, such as
following someone’s gaze; (2) one person directing another’s attention; and
(3) reciprocal interaction. Early in infancy, joint attention usually involves a
caregiver pointing or using words to direct an infant’s attention. Emerging
forms of joint attention occur at about 7 to 8 months, but it is not until 10 to
11 months that joint attention skills are frequently observed (Meltzoff &
Brooks, 2009). By their first birthday, infants have begun to direct adults’
attention to objects that capture their interest (Heimann &
others, 2006). And one study found that problems in joint
attention as early as 8 months of age were linked to a child
having been diagnosed with autism by 7 years of age (Veness & others,
2014). Also, a recent study involving the use of eye-tracking equipment with
11- to 24-month-olds revealed that joint attention was predicted by infants’
hand-eye coordination involving the connection of gaze with manual actions
on objects, rather than by gaze following alone (Yu & Smith, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, what
strategies would you
recommend to parents
who are want to foster
their infant’s
development of
attention?
Joint attention plays important roles in many aspects of infant
development and considerably increases infants’ ability to learn from other
people (McClure & others, 2018; Yu & Smith, 2017). Nowhere is this more
apparent than in observations of interchanges between caregivers and infants
as infants are learning language (Mason-Apps & others, 2018; Tomasello,
2014). Researchers have found that joint attention is linked to better sustained
attention (Yu & Smith, 2017); memory (Kopp & Lindenberger, 2011); self-
regulation (Van Hecke & others, 2012); and executive function (Gueron-Sela
& others, 2018).
Imitation
Infant development researcher Andrew Meltzoff and his colleagues (2004,
2007, 2011; Meltzoff & Williamson, 2010, 2013; Meltzoff & others, , 2018a,
b; Waismeyer & Meltzoff, 2017) have conducted numerous studies of
infants’ imitative abilities. Meltzoff sees infants’ imitative abilities as
biologically based, because infants can imitate a facial expression within the
first few days after birth. Meltzoff (2017) also emphasizes that infants’
imitation informs us about their processing of social events and contributes to
rapid social learning. He also emphasizes that the infant’s imitative abilities
do not resemble a hardwired response but rather involve flexibility and
adaptability. In Meltzoff’s observations of infants during the first 72 hours of
life, the infants gradually displayed more complete imitation of an adult’s
facial expression, such as protruding the tongue or opening the mouth wide
(see Figure 19).
Figure 19 Infant Imitation.
Infant development researcher Andrew Meltzoff protrudes his tongue in an attempt to get
an infant to imitate his behavior. How do Meltzoff’s findings about imitation compare with
Piaget’s descriptions of infants’ abilities?
©Dr. Andrew Meltzoff
Meltzoff (2007, 2011; Meltzoff & others, 2018a, b) concludes that infants
don’t blindly imitate everything they see and often make creative errors. He
also argues that beginning at birth there is an interplay between learning by
observing and learning by doing (Piaget emphasized learning by doing).
Not all experts on infant development accept Meltzoff’s conclusion that
newborns are capable of imitation. Some say that these babies were engaging
in little more than automatic responses to a stimulus.
Meltzoff (2005, 2011; Meltzoff & Williamson, 2013) has also studied
deferred imitation, which occurs after a time delay of hours or days. Piaget
held that deferred imitation does not occur until about 18 months. Meltzoff’s
research suggested that it occurs much earlier. In one study, Meltzoff (1988)
demonstrated that 9-month-old infants could imitate actions—such as
pushing a recessed button in a box, which produced a beeping sound—that
they had seen performed 24 hours earlier.
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Memory
Meltzoff’s studies of deferred imitation suggest that infants have another
important cognitive ability: memory, which involves the retention of
information over time. Sometimes information is retained only for a few
seconds, and at other times it is retained for a lifetime. What can infants
remember, and when?
Some researchers, such as Rovee-Collier (2008), have concluded that
infants as young as 2 to 6 months can remember some experiences through
1½ to 2 years of age. However, critics such as Jean Mandler (2000), a leading
expert on infant cognition, argue that the infants in Rovee-
Collier’s experiments are displaying only implicit memory.
Implicit memory refers to memory without conscious
recollection—memories of skills and routine procedures that are performed
automatically. In contrast, explicit memory refers to conscious memory of
facts and experiences.
When people think about memory, they are usually referring to explicit
memory. Most researchers find that babies do not show explicit memory until
the second half of the first year (Bauer, 2013, 2015, 2018; Bauer & Larkina,
2016). Explicit memory improves substantially during the second year of life
(Bauer, 2013, 2015, 2018; Bauer & Leventon, 2015). In one longitudinal
study, infants were assessed several times during their second year (Bauer &
others, 2000). The older infants showed more accurate memory and required
fewer prompts to demonstrate their memory than younger infants did. Figure
20 summarizes how long infants of different ages can remember information
(Bauer, 2009). As indicated, researchers have documented that 6-month-olds
can remember information for 24 hours but 20-month-old infants can
remember information they encountered 12 months earlier.
Figure 20 Age-Related Changes in the Length of Time Over Which Memory Occurs
Let’s examine another aspect of memory. Do you remember your third
birthday party? Probably not. Most adults can remember little, if anything,
from the first 3 years of their life. This is called infantile or childhood
amnesia. The few memories that adults are able to report of their life at age 2
or 3 are at best very sketchy (Fivush, 2011; Riggins, 2012).
Patricia Bauer and her colleagues (Bauer, 2015, 2018; Bauer & Larkina,
2016; Pathman, Doydum, & Bauer, 2013) have studied when infantile
amnesia begins to occur. In one study, children’s memories of events that
occurred at 3 years of age were periodically assessed through age 9 (Bauer &
Larkina, 2014). By 8 to 9 years of age, children’s memories of events that
occurred at 3 years of age began to significantly fade away. In Bauer’s (2015)
view, the processes that account for these developmental changes are early,
gradual development of the ability to form, retain, and later retrieve
memories of personally relevant past events followed by an accelerated rate
of forgetting in childhood.
What is the cause of infantile amnesia? One reason older children and
adults have difficulty recalling events from their infant and early childhood
years is that during these years the prefrontal lobes of the brain are immature,
and this area of the brain is believed to play an important role in storing
memories of events (Bauer, 2015, 2018).
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In sum, most of young infants’ conscious memories appear to be rather
fragile and short-lived, although their implicit memory of perceptual-motor
actions can be substantial (Bauer, 2015, 2018; Bauer & Fivush, 2014). By the
end of the second year, long-term memory is more substantial and reliable
(Bauer, 2015, 2018).
Concept Formation and Categorization
Along with attention, imitation, and memory, concepts are a key aspect of
infants’ cognitive development (Quinn, 2016). Concepts are cognitive
groupings of similar objects, events, people, or ideas. Without concepts, you
would see each object and event as unique; you would not be able to make
any generalizations.
Do infants have concepts? Yes, they do, although we do not know just
how early concept formation begins (Quinn & Bhatt, 2015). Using
habituation experiments like those described earlier in the chapter, some
researchers have found that infants as young as 3 months of age can group
together objects with similar appearances (Quinn & others, 2013). This
research capitalizes on the knowledge that infants are more likely to look at a
novel object than at a familiar one.
Jean Mandler (2009) argues that these early categorizations
are best described as perceptual categorization. That is, the
categorizations are based on similar perceptual features of
objects, such as size, color, and movement, as well as parts of objects, such as
legs for animals. Mandler (2004) concludes that it is not until about 7 to 9
months that infants form conceptual categories rather than just making
perceptual discriminations between different categories. In one study of 9- to
11-month-olds, infants classified birds as animals and airplanes as vehicles
even though the objects were perceptually similar—airplanes and birds with
their wings spread (Mandler & McDonough, 1993) (see Figure 21).
Figure 21 Categorization in 9- to 11-Month-Olds.
These are the stimuli used in the study that indicated 9- to 11-month-old infants
categorized birds as animals and airplanes as vehicles even though the objects were
perceptually similar (Mandler & McDonough, 1993).
In addition to infants categorizing items on the basis of external,
perceptual features such as shape, color, and parts, they also may categorize
items on the basis of prototypes, or averages, that they extract from the
structural regularities of items (Quinn & Bhatt, 2015).
Further advances in categorization occur in the second year of life
(Booth, 2006). Many infants’ “first concepts are broad and global in nature,
such as ‘animal’ or ‘indoor thing.’ Gradually, over the first two years these
broad concepts become more differentiated into concepts such as ‘land
animal,’ then ‘dog,’ or to ‘furniture,’ then ‘chair’” (Mandler, 2009, p. 1).
Learning to put things into the correct categories—what makes something
one kind of thing rather than another kind of thing, such as what makes a bird
a bird, or a fish a fish—is an important aspect of learning (Quinn, 2016). As
infant development researcher Alison Gopnik (2010, p. 159) pointed out, “If
you can sort the world into the right categories—put things in the right boxes
—then you’ve got a big advance on understanding the world.”
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How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you talk with
parents about the
importance of concept
development in their
infants?
In sum, the infant’s advances in processing information—through
attention, imitation, memory, and concept formation—are much richer, more
gradual and less stage-like, and occur earlier than was envisioned by earlier
theorists (Bauer, 2018; Meltzoff & others, 2018a, b; Wu & Scerif, 2018; Xie,
Mallin, & Richards, 2018). As leading infant researcher Jean Mandler (2004)
concluded, “The human infant shows a remarkable degree of learning power
and complexity in what is being learned and in the way it is represented” (p.
304).
Language Development
In 1799, villagers in the French town of Aveyron observed a nude boy
running through the woods and captured him. Known as the Wild Boy of
Aveyron, he was judged to be about 11 years old and believed to have lived
in the woods alone for six years (Lane, 1976). When found, he made no effort
to communicate, and he never did learn to communicate effectively.
Sadly, a modern-day wild child was discovered in Los Angeles in 1970.
Despite intensive intervention, the child, named Genie by researchers, never
acquired more than a primitive form of language. Both of these cases—the
Wild Boy of Aveyron and Genie—raise questions about the biological and
environmental determinants of language, topics that we also examine later in
the chapter. First, though, we need to define language.
Defining Language
Language is a form of communication—whether spoken, written, or signed
—that is based on a system of symbols. Language consists of the words used
by a community and the rules for varying and combining them. All human
languages have some common characteristics, such as organizational rules
and infinite generativity (Clark, 2017; Genetti, 2019; Ringe, 2019). Rules
describe the way the language works. Infinite generativity is the ability to
produce and comprehend an endless number of meaningful sentences using a
finite set of words and rules.
Think how important language is in our everyday lives. We need
language to speak with others, listen to others, read, and write. Our language
enables us to describe past events in detail and to plan for the future.
Language lets us pass down information from one generation to the next and
create a rich cultural heritage. Language learning involves comprehending a
sound system (or sign system for individuals who are deaf), the world of
objects, actions, and events, and how units such as words and grammar
connect sound and world (Israel, 2019; Mithun, 2019; van der Hulst, 2017;
Wilcox & Occhino, 2017).
How Language Develops
Whatever language they learn, infants all over the world follow a similar path
in language development. What are some key milestones in this
development?
Babbling and Gestures
Babies actively produce sounds from birth onward. The effect of these early
communications is to attract attention (Lee & others, 2018; Masapollo, Polka,
& Menard, 2016). Babies’ sounds and gestures go through the following
sequence during the first year:
Crying. Babies cry even at birth. Crying can signal distress, but as we will
discuss later, there are different types of cries that signal different things.
Cooing. Babies first coo at about 2 to 4 months. Coos are gurgling sounds
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that are made in the back of the throat and usually express pleasure during
interaction with the caregiver.
Babbling. In the middle of the first year, babies babble—that is, they
produce strings of consonant-vowel combinations such as “ba, ba, ba, ba”
(Lee & others, 2018). In a recent study, babbling onset predicted when
infants would say their first words (McGillion & others, 2017a). Also, in
another recent study, a lack of babbling in infants was linked to a risk of
having future speech and language problems (Lohmander & others,
2017). And in other research, infants’ babbling has been shown to
influence the behavior of their caregivers, creating social interaction that
facilitates their own language development (Albert, Schwade, &
Goldstein, 2018).
Gestures. Infants start using gestures, such as showing and pointing, at
about 8 to 12 months (Goldin-Meadow, 2015, 2017a, b; Novack & others,
2018). They may wave bye-bye, nod to mean “yes,” and show an empty
cup to ask for more milk. Lack of pointing is a significant indicator of
problems in the infant’s communication system (Cooperrider & Goldin-
Meadow, 2017, 2018). Why might gestures such as pointing promote
further language development? Infants’ gestures advance their language
development, since caregivers often talk to them about what they are
pointing to. Also, babies’ first words often are for things they have
previously pointed to.
Recognizing Language Sounds
Long before they begin to learn words, infants can make fine distinctions
among the sounds of a language (Kuhl & Damasio, 2012). In Patricia Kuhl’s
(2000, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015) research, phonemes (the basic sound units of
a language) from languages all over the world are piped through a speaker for
infants to hear (see Figure 22). A box with a toy bear in it is placed where the
infant can see it. A string of identical syllables is played; then the
syllables are changed (for example, ba ba ba ba, and then pa pa
pa pa). If the infant turns its head when the syllables change, the
box lights up and the bear dances and drums, rewarding the infant for
noticing the change.
Figure 22 From Universal Linguist to Language-Specific Listener.
In Patricia Kuhl’s research laboratory babies listen to tape-recorded voices that repeat
syllables. When the sounds of the syllables change, the babies quickly learn to look at the
bear. Using this technique, Kuhl has demonstrated that babies are universal linguists until
about 6 months of age, but in the next six months they become language-specific listeners.
Does Kuhl’s research give support to the view that either “nature” or “nurture” is the
source of language acquisition?
©Dr. Patricia Kuhl, Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, University of
Washington
Kuhl’s research has demonstrated that from birth up to about 6 months,
infants are “citizens of the world”: They can tell when sounds change most of
the time no matter what language the syllables come from. But over the next
six months, infants get even better at perceiving changes in sounds from their
“own” language, the one their parents speak, and gradually lose the ability to
recognize differences that are not important in their own language (Kuhl,
2009, 2011, 2012, 2015). Recently, Kuhl (2015) has found that the age at
which a baby’s brain is most open to learning the sounds of a native language
begins at 6 months for vowels and at 9 months for consonants.
Also, in the second half of their first year, infants begin to segment the
continuous stream of speech they encounter into words (Ota & Skarabela,
2018; Polka & others, 2018). Initially, they likely rely on statistical
information such as the co-occurrence patterns of phonemes and syllables,
which allows them to extract potential word forms (Aslin, 2017; Richtsmeier
& Goffman, 2017; Saffran & Kirkham, 2018). For example, discovering that
the sequence br occurs more often at the beginning of words while nt is more
common at the end of words helps infants detect word boundaries. And as
infants extract an increasing number of potential word forms from the speech
stream they hear, they begin to associate these with concrete, perceptually
available objects in their world (Saffran & Kirkham, 2018; Zamuner, Fais, &
Werker, 2014). For example, infants might detect that the spoken word
“monkey” has a reliable statistical regularity of occurring in the visual
presence of an observed monkey but not in the presence of other animals,
such as bears (Pace & others, 2016). Thus, statistical learning involves
extracting information from the world to learn about the environment.
Richard Aslin (2017) recently emphasized that statistical learning—which
involves no instruction, reinforcement, or feedback—is a powerful learning
mechanism in infant development. In statistical learning, infants soak up
statistical regularities in the world merely through exposure to them (Lany &
others, 2018; Monroy & others, 2018; Saffran & Kirkham, 2018).
First Words
Infants understand words before they can produce or speak them (Pace &
others, 2016). For example, as early as 5 months many infants recognize their
name. However, the infant’s first spoken word, a milestone eagerly
anticipated by every parent, usually doesn’t occur until 10 to 15 months of
age and happens at an average of about 13 months. Yet long before babies
say their first words, they have been communicating with their parents, often
by gesturing and using their own special sounds. The appearance of first
words is a continuation of this communication process.
A child’s first words include those that name important people (dada),
familiar animals (kitty), vehicles (car), toys (ball), food (milk), body parts
(eye), clothes (hat), household items (clock), and greeting terms (bye).
Children often express various intentions with their single words, so that
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“cookie” might mean, “That’s a cookie” or “I want a cookie.” Nouns are
easier to learn because the majority of words in this class are more
perceptually accessible than other types of words (Parish-Morris, Golinkoff,
& Hirsh-Pasek, 2013). Think how the noun “car” is so much more concrete
and imaginable than the verb “goes,” making the word “car”
much easier to acquire than the word “goes.”
As indicated earlier, children understand their first words
earlier than they speak them. On average, infants understand about 50 words
at the age of 13 months, but they can’t say that many words until about 18
months. Thus, in infancy receptive vocabulary (words the child understands)
considerably exceeds spoken vocabulary (words the child uses). One study
revealed that 6-month-olds understand words that refer to body parts, such as
“hand” and “feet,” but of course, they cannot yet speak these words (Tincoff
& Jusczyk, 2012).
The infant’s spoken vocabulary rapidly increases once the first word is
spoken (Waxman & Goswami, 2012). Whereas the average 18-month-old can
speak about 50 words, a 2-year-old can speak about 200 words. This rapid
increase in vocabulary that begins at approximately 18 months is called the
vocabulary spurt (Bloom, Lifter, & Broughton, 1985).
Like the timing of a child’s first word, the timing of the vocabulary spurt
varies (Dale & Goodman, 2004). Figure 23 shows the range for these two
language milestones in 14 children. On average, these children said their first
word at 13 months and had a vocabulary spurt at 19 months. However, the
ages for the first word of individual children varied from 10 to 17 months
and, for their vocabulary spurt, from 13 to 25 months. Also, the spurt actually
involves the increase in the rate at which words are learned. That is, early on,
a few words are learned every few days, then later on, a few words are
learned each day, and eventually many words each day.
Figure 23 Variation in Language Milestones.
What are some possible explanations for variations in the timing of these milestones?
Does early vocabulary development predict later language development?
A recent study found that infant vocabulary development at 16 to 24 months
of age was linked to vocabulary, phonological awareness, reading accuracy,
and reading comprehension five years later (Duff & others, 2015).
Two-Word Utterances
By the time children are 18 to 24 months of age, they usually produce two-
word utterances. To convey meaning with just two words, the child relies
heavily on gesture, tone, and context. The wealth of meaning children can
communicate with a two-word utterance includes the following (Slobin,
1972): identification—“See doggie”; location—“Book there”; repetition
—“More milk”; negation—“Not wolf”; possession—“My candy”; attribution
—“Big car”; and question—“Where ball?” These examples are from children
whose first language is English, German, Russian, Finnish, Turkish, or
Samoan.
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Around the world, most young children learn to speak in two-word utterances at about 18
to 24 months of age. What are some examples of these two-word utterances?
©McPhoto/age fotostock
Notice that two-word utterances omit many parts of speech and are
remarkably succinct. In fact, in every language a child’s first combinations of
words have this economical quality; they are telegraphic. Telegraphic
speech is the use of short, precise words without grammatical markers such
as articles, auxiliary verbs, and other connectives. Telegraphic speech is not
limited to two words; “Mommy give ice cream” and “Mommy give Tommy
ice cream” are also examples of telegraphic speech.
Biological and Environmental Influences
We have discussed a number of language milestones in infancy; Figure 24
summarizes the ages at which infants typically reach these milestones. But
what makes this amazing development possible? Everyone who uses
language in some way “knows” its rules and has the ability to create an
infinite number of words and sentences. Where does this knowledge come
from? Is it the product of biology, or is language learned and influenced by
experiences?
Figure 24 Some Language Milestones in Infancy.
Despite substantial variations in the language input received by infants, around the world
they follow a similar path in learning to speak.
Biological Influences
The ability to speak and understand language requires a certain vocal
apparatus as well as a nervous system with specific capabilities. The nervous
system and vocal apparatus of humans’ predecessors changed over hundreds
of thousands, or millions, of years. With advances in the nervous system and
vocal structures, Homo sapiens went beyond the grunting and shrieking of
other animals to develop speech (Cataldo, Migliano, & Vinicius, 2018; Staes
& others, 2017). Although estimates vary, many experts believe that humans
acquired language about 100,000 years ago, which in evolutionary time
represents a very recent acquisition. It gave humans an enormous edge over
other animals and increased the chances of human survival (de Boer &
Thompson, 2018; McMurray, 2016; Pinker, 2015).
Some language scholars view the remarkable similarities in how children
acquire language all over the world as strong evidence that language has a
biological basis. There is evidence that particular regions of the brain are
predisposed to be used for language (Coulson, 2018; Schutze, 2017). Two
regions involved in language were first discovered in studies of brain-
damaged individuals: Broca’s area, an area in the left frontal lobe of the
brain that is involved in producing words (Maher, 2018; Zhang & others,
2017); and Wernicke’s area, a region of the brain’s left hemisphere that is
involved in language comprehension (Bruckner & Kammer, 2017;
Greenwald, 2018) (see Figure 25). Damage to either of these areas produces
types of aphasia, a loss or impairment of language processing. Individuals
with damage to Broca’s area have difficulty producing speech but can
comprehend what others say; those with damage to Wernicke’s area have
poor comprehension and often produce fluent but nonsensical speech.
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Figure 25 Broca’s Area and Wernicke’s Area.
Broca’s area is located in the frontal lobe of the brain’s left hemisphere, and it is involved
in the control of speech. Wernicke’s area is a portion of the left hemisphere’s temporal
lobe that is involved in understanding language. How does the role of these areas of the
brain relate to lateralization?
Linguist Noam Chomsky (1957) proposed that humans are biologically
“prewired” to learn language at a certain time and in a certain way. He said
that children are born into the world with a language acquisition device
(LAD), a biological endowment that enables the child to detect the various
features and rules of language. Children are prepared by nature with the
ability to detect the sounds of language, for example, and
follow linguistic rules such as those governing how to form
plurals and ask questions.
Chomsky’s LAD is a theoretical construct, not a physical part of the
brain. Is there evidence for the existence of a LAD? Supporters of the LAD
concept cite the uniformity of language milestones across languages and
cultures, evidence that children create language even in the absence of well-
formed input, and the importance of language’s biological underpinnings. But
as we will see, critics argue that even if infants have something like a LAD, it
cannot explain the whole process of language acquisition.
Environmental Influences
Language is not learned in a social vacuum. Most children are bathed in
language from a very early age. The support and involvement of caregivers
and teachers greatly facilitate a child’s language learning (Brown & others,
2018; Clark, 2017; Marchman & others, 2018; Weisleder & others, 2018).
Thus, social cues play an important role in infant language learning (Ahun &
others, 2018; McGillion & others, 2017b; Pace & others, 2016).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you
intervene in a family in
which a child has lived
in social isolation for
years?
The support and involvement of caregivers and teachers greatly facilitate
a child’s language learning (Clark, 2017; Marchman & others, 2018). In one
study, both full-term and preterm infants who heard more caregiver talk
based on all-day recordings at 16 months of age had better language skills
(receptive and expressive language, language comprehension) at 18 months
of age (Adams & others, 2018).
Researchers have documented the important effect that early speech input
and poverty can have on the development of a child’s language skills (Hoff,
2015; NICHD Early Child Care Research Network, 2005). Betty Hart and
Todd Risley (1995) observed the language environments of children whose
parents were professionals and children whose parents were on welfare.
Compared with the professional parents, the parents on welfare talked much
less to their young children, talked less about past events, and provided less
elaboration. The children of the professional parents had a much larger
vocabulary at 36 months than the children of the welfare parents did. Keep in
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mind, though, that individual variations characterize language development
and that some welfare parents do spend considerable time talking to their
children.
Given that social interaction is critical for infants to learn language
effectively, might they also be able to learn language effectively through
television and videos? Researchers have found that infants and young
children cannot effectively learn language (phonology or words) from
television or videos (Kuhl, 2007; Roseberry & others, 2009). In fact, a study
of toddlers found that frequent viewing of television increased the risk of
delayed language development (Lin & others, 2015). Thus, just hearing
language is not enough even when infants seemingly are fully engaged in the
experience. However, another study revealed that Skype provides some
improvement in children’s language learning over videos and TV (Roseberry
& others, 2014), and older children can use information provided from
television in their language development.
Also, recently the American Academy of Pediatrics (2016) concluded that
when infants are 15 months to 2 years of age, evidence indicates that if
parents co-watch educational videos with their infant and communicate with
the infant about the information being watched, this interaction can benefit
the infant’s development. This suggests that when parents treat an
educational video or app like a picture book, infants can benefit from it.
However, APA still recommends no watching of videos alone for children
under 18 months of age.
One intriguing component of the young child’s linguistic environment is
child-directed speech (also referred to as “parentese”), which is language
spoken in a higher-than-usual pitch, slower tempo, and exaggerated
intonation, with simple words and sentences (Hayashi & Mazuka, 2017). It is
hard for most adults to use child-directed speech when not in the presence of
a baby. As soon as adults start talking to a baby, though, they often shift into
child-directed speech. Much of this is automatic and something most parents
are not aware they are doing. Child-directed speech serves the
important functions of capturing the infant’s attention,
maintaining communication and social interaction between
infants and caregivers, and providing infants with information about their
native language by heightening differences between speech directed to
children and adults (Golinkoff & others, 2015). Even 4-year-olds speak in
simpler ways to 2-year-olds than to their 4-year-old friends. In recent
research, child-directed speech in a one-to-one social context for 11 to 14
years of age was related to productive vocabulary at 2 years of age for
Spanish-English bilingual infants across languages and in each individual
language (Ramirez-Esparza, Garcia-Sierra, & Kuhl, 2017).
Most research on child-directed speech has involved mothers, but a recent
study in several North American urban areas and a small society on the island
of Tanna in the South Pacific Ocean found that fathers in both types of
contexts engaged in child-directed speech with their infants (Broesch &
Bryant, 2018).
Adults often use strategies other than child-directed speech to enhance the
child’s acquisition of language, including recasting, expanding, and labeling.
Recasting is when an adult rephrases something the child has said that might
lack the appropriate morphology or contain some other error. The adult
restates the child’s immature utterance in the form of a fully grammatical
sentence. For example, when a 2-year-old says, “dog bark,” the adult can
respond by saying, “Oh, you heard the dog barking!” The adult sentence
provides an acknowledgment that the child was heard and then adds the
morphology /ing/ and the article (the) that the child’s utterance lacked.
Expanding is adding information to a child’s incomplete utterance. For
example, a child says, “Doggie eat,” and the parent replies, “Yes, the dog is
eating his food out of his special dish.” Labeling is naming objects that
children seem interested in. Young children are forever being asked to
identify the names of objects. Roger Brown (1958) called this “the original
word game.” Children want more than the names of objects, though; they
often want information about the object too.
Parents use these strategies naturally and in meaningful conversations.
Parents do not (and should not) use any deliberate method to teach their
children to talk, even with children who are slow in learning language.
Children usually benefit when parents guide their discovery of language
rather than overloading them; “following in order to lead” helps a child learn
language. If children are not ready to take in some information, they are
likely to indicate this, perhaps by turning away. Thus, giving the child more
information is not always better.
Infants, toddlers, and young children benefit when adults read books to
and with them, a process called shared reading (Brown & others, 2018;
Marjanovic-Umek, Fekonja-Peklaj, & Socan, 2017; Sinclair & others, 2018).
In one study, reading daily to children at 14 to 24 months was positively
related to the children’s language and cognitive development at 36 months
(Raikes & others, 2006).
What are some effective ways that parents can facilitate their children’s
language development? They include the following strategies (Baron, 1992;
Galinsky, 2010; Golinkoff and Hirsh-Pasek, 2000):
Parents should begin talking to their babies at the start. The best language teaching occurs
when the talking is begun before the infant becomes capable of intelligible speech. What
are some other guidelines for parents to follow to help their infants and toddlers develop
their language skills?
©John Carter/Science Source
Be an active conversational partner. Initiate conversation with the baby.
Narrate your daily activities to the baby as you do them. For example,
talk about how you will put the baby in a high chair for lunch and ask
what she would like to eat, and so on.
Talk in a slowed-down pace and don’t worry about how you sound to
other adults when you talk to your baby. Talking in a slowed-down pace
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will help your baby detect words in the sea of sounds they experience.
Use parent-look and parent-gesture, and name what you are
looking at. When you want your child to pay attention to
something, look at it and point to it. Then name it—for
example, by saying “Look, Alex, it’s an airplane.”
When you talk with infants and toddlers, be simple, concrete, and
repetitive. Don’t try to talk to them in abstract, high-level ways and think
you have to say something new or different all of the time. Using familiar
words often will help them remember the words.
Play games. Use word games like peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake to help
infants learn words.
Remember to listen. Since toddlers’ speech is often slow and laborious,
parents are often tempted to supply words and thoughts for them. Be
patient and let toddlers express themselves.
Expand and elaborate language abilities and horizons with infants and
toddlers. Ask questions that encourage answers other than “Yes” and
“No.” Actively repeat, expand, and recast the utterances. Your toddler
might say, “Dada.” You could follow with, “Where’s Dada?” and then
you might continue, “Let’s go find him.”
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you encourage
parents to talk with their
infants and toddlers?
An Interactionist View
If language acquisition depended only on biology, Genie and the Wild Boy of
Aveyron (discussed earlier in the chapter) should have talked without
difficulty. A child’s experiences do influence language acquisition (Adams &
others, 2018; Pace & others, 2016). But we have seen that language also has
strong biological foundations (Dubois & others, 2016); no matter how much
you converse with a dog, it won’t learn to talk. Unlike dogs, children are
biologically equipped to learn language (McMurray, 2016; Pinker, 2015).
Children all over the world acquire language milestones at about the same
time and in about the same order. An interactionist view emphasizes that both
biology and experience contribute to language development (Adams &
others, 2017; McGillion & others, 2017b).
This interaction of biology and experience can be seen in variations in the
acquisition of language. Children vary in their ability to acquire language,
and this variation cannot be completely explained by differences in
environmental input alone. However, virtually every child benefits
enormously from opportunities to talk and be talked with. Children whose
parents and teachers provide them with a rich verbal environment show many
positive outcomes (Ahun & others, 2018; Clark, 2017; Marchman & others,
2018; Pickard & others, 2018). Parents and teachers who pay attention to
what children are trying to say, expand their children’s utterances, read to
them, and label things in the environment, are providing valuable, if
unintentional, benefits (Capone Singleton, 2018; Weisleder & others, 2018).
Summary
Physical Growth and Development in Infancy
Most development follows cephalocaudal and proximodistal patterns.
Physical growth is rapid in the first year, but the rate of growth slows in
the second year.
Dramatic changes characterize the brain’s development in the first two
years. The neuroconstructivist view is an increasingly popular view of the
brain’s development.
Newborns usually sleep 16 to 17 hours a day, but by 4 months many
American infants approach adult-like sleeping patterns.
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is a condition that occurs when a
sleeping infant suddenly stops breathing and dies without an apparent
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cause.
Infants need to consume about 50 calories per day for each pound they
weigh. The growing consensus is that breast feeding is more beneficial
than bottle feeding.
Motor Development
Dynamic systems theory seeks to explain how motor behaviors are
assembled for perceiving and acting. This theory emphasizes that
experience plays an important role in motor development, and
that perception and action are coupled.
Reflexes—automatic movements—govern the newborn’s
behavior.
Key gross motor skills, which involve large-muscle activities, developed
during infancy include control of posture and walking.
Fine motor skills involve finely tuned movements. The onset of reaching
and grasping marks a significant accomplishment, and this becomes more
refined during the first two years of life.
Sensory and Perceptual Development
Sensation occurs when information interacts with sensory receptors.
Perception is the interpretation of sensation.
Created by the Gibsons, the ecological view states that perception brings
people into contact with the environment to interact with and adapt to it.
The infant’s visual acuity increases dramatically in the first year of life.
By 3 months of age, infants show size and shape constancy. In Gibson
and Walk’s classic study, infants had depth perception as young as 6
months of age.
The fetus can hear several weeks prior to birth. Just after being born,
infants can hear but their sensory threshold is higher than that of adults.
Newborns can respond to touch, feel pain, differentiate among odors, and
may be sensitive to taste at birth.
A basic form of intermodal perception is present in newborns and
sharpens over the first year of life.
In explaining developments in perception, nature advocates are referred to
as nativists and nurture proponents are called empiricists. A strong
empiricist approach is unwarranted. A full account of perceptual
development includes the roles of nature, nurture, and the infant’s
developing sensitivity to information.
Cognitive Development
In Piaget’s theory, children construct their own cognitive worlds, building
mental structures to adapt to their world. Schemes, assimilation and
accommodation, organization, and equilibration are key processes in
Piaget’s theory. According to Piaget, there are four qualitatively different
stages of thought. In sensorimotor thought, the first of Piaget’s four
stages, the infant organizes and coordinates sensations with physical
movements. The stage lasts from birth to about 2 years of age. One key
accomplishment of this stage is object permanence. In the past several
decades, revisions of Piaget’s view have been proposed based on
research.
An approach different from Piaget’s focuses on infants’ operant
conditioning, attention, imitation, memory, and concept formation.
Language Development
Rules describe the way language works. Language is characterized by
infinite generativity.
Infants reach a number of milestones in development, including first
words and two-word utterances.
Chomsky argues that children are born with the ability to detect basic
features and rules of language. However, environmental influences are
important, and babies are bathed in language early in their lives.
How much of language is biologically determined, and how much
depends on interaction with others, is a subject of debate among linguists
and psychologists. However, all agree that both biological capacity and
relevant experience are necessary. Parents should talk extensively with an
infant, especially about what the baby is attending to.
Key Terms
A-not-B error
accommodation
assimilation
attention
cephalocaudal pattern
child-directed speech
concepts
core knowledge approach
deferred imitation
dishabituation
dynamic systems theory
ecological view
equilibration
explicit memory
fine motor skills
gross motor skills
habituation
implicit memory
infinite generativity
intermodal perception
joint attention
language
language acquisition device (LAD)
lateralization
memory
neuroconstructivist view
object permanence
organization
perception
proximodistal pattern
schemes
sensation
sensorimotor stage
sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
telegraphic speech
visual preference method
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©Sam Edwards/Getty Images
4
Socioemotional
Development in Infancy
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Emotional and Personality Development
Emotional Development
Temperament
Personality Development
Social Orientation and Attachment
Social Orientation and Understanding
Attachment
Social Contexts
The Family
Child Care
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Darius and His Father
An increasing number of fathers are staying home to care for their
children (Bartel & others, 2018; Dette-Hagenmeyer, Erzinger, &
Reichle, 2016). And researchers are finding improved outcomes
when fathers are positively engaged with their infants (Alexander
& others, 2017; Cabrera & Roggman, 2017; Roopnarine &
Yildirim, 2018; Sethna & others, 2018). Consider 17-month-old
Darius. On weekdays, Darius’ father, a writer, cares for him during
the day while his mother works full-time as a landscape architect.
Darius’ father is doing a great job of caring for him. He keeps
Darius nearby while he is writing and spends lots of time talking to
him and playing with him. From their interactions, it is clear that
they genuinely enjoy each other’s company.
Last month, Darius began spending one day a week at a child-
care center. His parents selected the center after observing a
number of centers and interviewing teachers and center directors.
His parents placed him in the center because they wanted him to
get some experience with peers and his father to have some time
out from caregiving.
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How might fathers influence their infants’ and children’s development?
©Rick Gomez/Corbis/Getty Images
Darius’ father looks to the future and imagines the Little
League games Darius will play in and the many other activities he
can enjoy with his son. Remembering how little time his own
father spent with him, he is dedicated to making sure that Darius
has an involved, nurturing relationship with his father.
When Darius’ mother comes home in the evening,
she spends considerable time with him. Darius is
securely attached to both his mother and his father.
You have read about how infants perceive, learn, and
remember. Infants also are socioemotional beings, capable of
displaying emotions and initiating social interaction with people
close to them. The main topics that we explore in this chapter are
emotional and personality development, attachment, and the social
contexts of the family and child care. ■
Emotional and Personality
Development
Anyone who has been around infants for even a brief time can tell that they
are emotional beings. Not only do infants express emotions, but they also
vary in temperament. Some are shy and others are outgoing. Some are active
and others much less so. Let’s explore these and other aspects of emotional
and personality development in infants.
Emotional Development
Imagine what your life would be like without emotion. Emotion is the color
and music of life, as well as the tie that binds people together. How do
psychologists define and classify emotions, and why are they important to
development? How do emotions develop during the first two years of life?
What Are Emotions?
For our purposes, we will define emotion as feeling, or affect, that occurs
when a person is in a state or an interaction that is important to him or her,
especially to his or her well-being. Especially in infancy, emotions have
important roles in (1) communication with others and (2) behavioral
organization (Ekas, Braungart-Rieker, & Messinger, 2018; Perry & Calkins,
2018). Through emotions, infants communicate such important aspects of
their lives as joy, sadness, interest, and fear (Burkitt, 2018; Johnson, 2018;
Tottenham, 2017). In terms of behavioral organization, emotions influence
infants’ social responses and adaptive behavior as they interact with others in
their world (Cole, 2016; Cole & Hollenstein, 2018; Hoskin, 2018; Thompson,
2019).
Psychologists classify the broad range of emotions in many ways, but
almost all classifications designate an emotion as either positive (pleasant) or
negative (unpleasant) (Laurent, Wright, & Finnegan, 2018; Parsons & others,
2017). Positive emotions include happiness, joy, love, and enthusiasm.
Negative emotions include anxiety, anger, guilt, and sadness.
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Biological and Environmental Influences
Emotions are influenced by biological foundations, cognitive processes, and
by a person’s experiences (Causadias, Telzer, & Lee, 2017; Cole, Lougheed,
& Ram, 2018; Foroughe, 2018; Johnson, 2018; Perry & Calkins, 2018).
Certain regions of the brain that develop early in life (such as the brain stem,
hippocampus, and amygdala) play a role in distress, excitement, and rage,
and even infants display these emotions (van den Boomen, Munsters &
Kemner 2018; Tottenham, 2017). But, as we discuss later in the chapter,
infants only gradually develop the ability to regulate their emotions, and this
ability seems tied to the gradual maturation of the frontal regions of the
cerebral cortex that can exert control over other areas of the brain (Bell,
Broomell, & Patton, 2018; Bell & others, 2018; Lusby & others, 2016).
Also, cognitive processes, both in immediate “in the moment” contexts
and across development, influence infants’ and children’s emotional
development (Bell, Diaz, & Liu, 2018; Jiang & others, 2017). Attention
toward or away from an experience can influence infants’ and children’s
emotional responses. For example, children who can distract themselves from
a stressful encounter show a lower level of negative affect in the context and
less anxiety over time (Crockenberg & Leerkes, 2006).
Also, as children become older, they develop cognitive
strategies for controlling their emotions and become more adept
at modulating their emotional arousal (Bell, Diaz, & Liu, 2018;
Kaunhoven & Dorjee, 2017).
Cultural experiences and relationships influence emotional development
(Bedford & others, 2017; Causaudias, Telzer, & Lee, 2017; Morris & others,
2018; Otto, 2018; Perry & Calkins, 2018). Emotion-linked interchanges
provide the foundation for the infant’s attachment to the parent (Johnson,
2018). When toddlers hear their parents quarreling, they often react with
distress and inhibit their play. Well-functioning families make each other
laugh and may develop a light mood to defuse conflicts. One study of 18- to
24-month-olds found that parents’ elicitation of talk about emotions was
associated with their toddlers’ sharing and helping behaviors (Brownell &
others, 2013).
How do East Asian mothers handle their infants’ and children’s emotional development
differently from non-Latina White mothers?
©ICHIRO/Getty Images
Emotional development and coping with stress are influenced by whether
caregivers have maltreated or neglected children and whether children’s
caregivers are depressed or not (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Thompson, 2019).
When infants become stressed, they show better biological recovery from the
stressors when their caregivers engage in sensitive caregiving with them
(Sullivan & Wilson, 2018; Thompson & Goodvin, 2016).
Display rules—rules governing when, where, and how emotions should
be expressed—are not universal. For example, researchers have found that
East Asian infants display less frequent and less intense positive and negative
emotions than do non-Latino White infants (Cole & Tan, 2007). Throughout
childhood, East Asian parents encourage their children to show emotional
reserve rather than to be emotionally expressive (Cole, 2016).
Early Emotions
Emotions that infants express in the first six months of life include surprise,
interest, joy, anger, sadness, fear, and disgust (see Figure 1). Other emotions
that appear in infancy include jealousy, empathy, embarrassment, pride,
shame, and guilt; most of these occur for the first time at some point in the
second half of the first year or during the second year. These later-developing
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emotions have been called self-conscious or other-conscious emotions
because they involve the emotional reactions of others (Lewis, 2007, 2010,
2015, 2016).
Figure 1 Expression of Different Emotions in Infants
(Left to right) ©Kozak_O_O/Shutterstock; ©McGraw Hill Companies/Jill Braaten,
Photographer; ©Stanislav Photographer/Shutterstock; ©Stockbyte/Getty Images
Some experts on infant socioemotional development, such as Jerome
Kagan (2010, 2013), conclude that the structural immaturity of the infant
brain makes it unlikely that emotions that require thought—
such as guilt, pride, despair, shame, empathy, and jealousy—
can be experienced in the first year. Thus, both Kagan (2010)
and Joseph Campos (2009) argue that so-called “self-conscious” emotions
don’t occur until after the first year, a view that increasingly is shared by
most developmental psychologists.
Emotional Expressions and Relationships
Emotional expressions are involved in infants’ first relationships. The ability
of infants to communicate emotions permits coordinated interactions with
their caregivers and the beginning of an emotional bond between them
(Thompson, 2015, 2016). Not only do parents change their emotional
expressions in response to those of their infants (and each other), but infants
also modify their emotional expressions in response to those of their parents
(Firk & others, 2018; Johnson, 2018). In other words, these interactions are
mutually regulated. Because of this coordination, the interactions between
parents and infants are described as reciprocal, or synchronous, when all is
going well. Sensitive, responsive parents help their infants grow emotionally,
whether the infants respond in distressed or happy ways (Bell, Broomell, &
Patton, 2018; Birmingham, Bub, & Vaughn, 2017). For example, a recent
observational study of mother-infant interaction found that maternal
sensitivity was linked to a lower level of infant fear (Gartstein, Hancock, &
Iverson, 2017).
Crying Cries and smiles are two emotional expressions that infants display
when interacting with parents. These are babies’ first forms of emotional
communication. Crying is the most important mechanism newborns have for
communicating with their world. A recent study revealed that depressed
mothers rocked and touched their crying infants less than non-depressed
mothers (Esposito & others, 2017a). Cries may also provide information
about the health of the newborn’s central nervous system. A recent study
found that excessive infant crying in 3-month-olds doubled the risk of
behavioral, hyperactive, and mood problems at 5 to 6 years of age (Smarius
& others, 2017).
What are some different types of cries?
©Design Pics/Don Hammond
Babies have at least three types of cries:
Basic cry: A rhythmic pattern that usually consists of a cry, followed by a
briefer silence, then a shorter whistle that is somewhat higher in pitch
than the main cry, then another brief rest before the next cry. Some
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experts believe that hunger is one of the conditions that incite the basic
cry.
Anger cry: A variation of the basic cry, with more excess air forced
through the vocal cords.
Pain cry: A sudden long, initial loud cry followed by holding of the
breath; no preliminary moaning is present. The pain cry may be
stimulated by physical pain or by any high-intensity stimulus.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you respond to
the parents of a 13-
month-old baby who are
concerned because their
son has suddenly started
crying every morning
when they drop him off
at child care despite the
fact that he has been
going to the same child
care provider for over
six months?
Most adults can determine whether an infant’s cries signify anger or pain
(Zeskind, Klein, & Marshall, 1992). Parents can distinguish among the
various cries of their own baby better than among those of another baby.
Parents of infants want to know whether it is a good idea to respond to
their infant cries (Maule & Perren, 2018; Zeifman & St. James-Roberts,
2017). Many developmental psychologists recommend that
parents soothe a crying infant, especially during the first year.
This reaction should help infants develop a sense of trust and
secure attachment to the caregiver. One study revealed that mothers’ negative
emotional reactions (anger and anxiety) to crying increased the risk of
subsequent attachment insecurity (Leerkes, Parade, & Gudmundson, 2011).
Also, another study found that problems in infant soothability at 6 months of
age were linked to insecure attachment at 12 months of age (Mills-Koonce,
Propper, & Barnett, 2012). And a recent study found that mothers were more
likely than fathers to use soothing techniques to reduce infant crying (Dayton
& others, 2015).
Smiling Smiling is a critical social skill and a key social signal (Martin &
Messinger, 2018). Two types of smiling can be distinguished in infants:
Reflexive smile: A smile that does not occur in response to external
stimuli and appears during the first month after birth, usually during
sleep.
Social smile: A smile that occurs in response to an external stimulus,
typically a face in the case of the young infant. Social smiling occurs as
early as 2 months of age.
Researchers have found that smiling and laughter at 7 months of age were
associated with self-regulation at 7 years of age (Posner & others, 2014). And
one study found that higher maternal effortful control and positive
emotionality predicted more initial infant smiling and laughter, while a higher
level of parenting stress predicted a lower trajectory of infant smiling and
laughter (Bridgett & others, 2013).
Fear One of a baby’s earliest emotions is fear, which typically first appears
at about 6 months and peaks at about 18 months. However, abused and
neglected infants can show fear as early as 3 months (Witherington & others,
2010). The most frequent expression of an infant’s fear involves stranger
anxiety, in which an infant shows fear and wariness of strangers (Van Hulle
& others, 2017).
Stranger anxiety usually emerges gradually. It first appears at about 6
months in the form of wary reactions. By 9 months, fear of strangers is often
more intense, and it continues to escalate through the infant’s first birthday
(Emde, Gaensbauer, & Harmon, 1976).
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Not all infants show distress when they encounter a stranger. Besides
individual variations, whether an infant shows stranger anxiety also depends
on the social context and the characteristics of the stranger. Infants show less
stranger anxiety when they are in familiar settings. For example, in one study,
10-month-olds showed little stranger anxiety when they met a stranger in
their own home but much greater fear when they encountered a stranger in a
research laboratory (Sroufe, Waters, & Matas, 1974). Also, infants show less
stranger anxiety when they are sitting on their mothers’ laps than when they
are in an infant seat several feet away from their mothers (Bohlin &
Hagekull, 1993). Thus, it appears that when infants feel secure they are less
likely to show stranger anxiety.
Who the stranger is and how the stranger behaves also influence stranger
anxiety in infants. Infants are less fearful of child strangers than of adult
strangers. They also are less fearful of friendly, outgoing, smiling strangers
than of passive, unsmiling strangers (Bretherton, Stolberg, & Kreye, 1981).
In addition to stranger anxiety, infants experience fear of being separated
from their caregivers. The result is separation protest—crying when the
caregiver leaves. Separation protest tends to peak at about 15 months among
U.S. infants. A study of four different cultures found, similarly, that
separation protest peaked at about 13 to 15 months (Kagan, Kearsley, &
Zelazo, 1978). Although the percentage of infants who engaged in separation
protest varied across cultures, the infants reached a peak of protest at about
the same age—just before the middle of the second year.
Social Referencing Infants not only express emotions like fear but also
“read” the emotions of other people (Carbajal-Valenzuela &
others, 2017). Social referencing involves “reading” emotional
cues in others to help determine how to act in a particular
situation. The development of social referencing helps infants interpret
ambiguous situations more accurately, as when they encounter a stranger
(Stenberg, 2017). By the end of the first year, a parent’s facial expression—
either smiling or fearful—influences whether an infant will explore an
unfamiliar environment.
Infants become better at social referencing in the second year of life. At
this age, they tend to “check” with their mother before they act; they look at
her to see if she is happy, angry, or fearful.
Emotion Regulation and Coping
During the first year, the infant gradually develops an ability to inhibit, or
minimize, the intensity and duration of emotional reactions (Calkins & Perry,
2016; Ekas, Braungart-Rieker, & Messinger, 2018). From early in infancy,
babies put their thumbs in their mouths to soothe themselves. In their second
year, they may say things to help soothe themselves. When placed in his bed
for the night, after a little crying and whimpering, a 20-month-old was
overheard saying, “Go sleep, Alex. Okay.” But at first, infants depend mainly
on caregivers to help them soothe their emotions, as when a caregiver rocks
an infant to sleep, sings lullabies, gently strokes the infant, and so on. In a
recent study, young infants with a negative temperament used fewer attention
regulation strategies, and maternal sensitivity to infants was linked to more
adaptive emotion regulation (Thomas & others, 2017). And in another recent
study of 10-month-old infants, maternal sensitivity was linked to better
emotion regulation in the infants (Frick & others, 2018).
Later in infancy, when they become aroused, infants sometimes redirect
their attention or distract themselves in order to reduce their arousal. By age
2, children can use language to define their feeling states and identify the
context that is upsetting them (Calkins & Markovitch, 2010). A 2-year-old
might say, “Doggy scary.” This type of communication may cue caregivers to
help the child regulate emotion.
Contexts can influence emotion regulation (Frick & others, 2018; Groh &
Haydon, 2018; Morris & others, 2018). Infants are often affected by fatigue,
hunger, time of day, which people are around them, and where they are.
Infants must learn to adapt to different contexts that require emotion
regulation. Further, new demands appear as the infant becomes older and
parents modify their expectations. For example, a parent may take it in stride
if a 6-month-old infant screams in a restaurant but may react very differently
if a 1½-year-old starts screaming.
Temperament
Do you get upset easily? Does it take much to get you angry or to make you
laugh? Even at birth, babies seem to have different emotional styles. One
infant is cheerful and happy much of the time; another seems to cry
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constantly. These tendencies reflect temperament, or individual differences
in behavioral styles, emotions, and characteristic ways of responding. With
regard to its link to emotion, temperament refers to individual differences in
how quickly the emotion is shown, how strong it is, how long it lasts, and
how quickly it fades away (Campos, 2009).
Another way of describing temperament is in terms of predispositions
toward emotional reactivity and self-regulation (Bates & Pettit, 2015).
Reactivity involves variations in the speed and intensity with which an
individual responds to situations with positive or negative emotions. Self-
regulation involves variations in the extent or effectiveness of an individual’s
control over emotions.
Describing and Classifying Temperament
How would you describe your temperament or the temperament of a friend?
Researchers have described and classified the temperaments of individuals in
different ways (Abulizi & others, 2017; Gartstein & others, 2017; Janssen &
others, 2017; Kagan, 2018). Here we examine three of those ways.
Chess and Thomas’ Classification Psychiatrists Alexander
Chess and Stella Thomas (Chess & Thomas, 1977; Thomas &
Chess, 1991) identified three basic types, or clusters, of temperament:
Easy child: This child is generally in a positive mood, quickly establishes
regular routines in infancy, and adapts easily to new experiences.
Difficult child: This child reacts negatively and cries frequently, engages
in irregular daily routines, and is slow to accept change.
Slow-to-warm-up child: This child has a low activity level, is somewhat
negative, and displays a low intensity of mood.
In their longitudinal investigation, Chess and Thomas found that 40
percent of the children they studied could be classified as easy, 10 percent as
difficult, and 15 percent as slow to warm up. Notice that 35 percent did not fit
any of the three patterns. Researchers have found that these three basic
clusters of temperament are moderately stable across the childhood years.
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One study revealed that young children with a difficult temperament
showed more problems when they experienced low-quality child care and
fewer problems when they experienced high-quality child care than did
young children with an easy temperament (Pluess & Belsky, 2009).
Kagan’s Concept of Behavioral Inhibition Another way of classifying
temperament focuses on the differences between a shy, subdued, timid child
and a sociable, extraverted, bold child. Jerome Kagan (2002, 2010, 2013)
regards shyness with strangers (peers or adults) as one feature of a broad
temperament category called inhibition to the unfamiliar. Inhibited children
react to many aspects of unfamiliarity with initial avoidance, distress, or
subdued affect, beginning around 7 to 9 months. In one study, having an
inhibited temperament at 2 to 3 years of age was related to having social
phobia symptoms at 7 years of age (Lahat & others, 2014). And research also
indicates that infants and young children who have an inhibited temperament
are at risk for developing social anxiety disorder in adolescence and
adulthood (Perez-Edgar & Guyer, 2014; Rapee, 2014). Further, recent
research indicates that if parents have a childhood history of behavioral
inhibition, their children who have a high level of behavioral inhibition are at
risk for developing anxiety disorders (Stumper & others, 2017).
Effortful Control (Self-Regulation) Mary Rothbart and John Bates
(2006) stress that effortful control (self-regulation) is an important dimension
of temperament. Infants who are high in effortful control show an ability to
keep their arousal from getting too intense and have strategies for soothing
themselves. By contrast, children who are low in effortful control
are often unable to control their arousal; they are easily agitated
and become intensely emotional.
What are some ways that developmentalists have classified infants’ temperaments? Which
classification makes the most sense to you, based on your observations of infants?
©Tom Merton/Getty Images
A number of studies have supported the view that effortful control is an
important influence on children’s development. For example, a study found
that young children higher in effortful control were more likely to wait longer
to express anger and were more likely to use a self-regulatory strategy,
distraction (Tan, Armstrong, & Cole, 2013). Another study revealed that
effortful control was a strong predictor of academic success skills in
kindergarten children from low-income families (Morris & others, 2013).
Further, a recent study revealed that self-regulation capacity at 4 months of
age was linked to school readiness at 4 years of age (Gartstein, Putnam, &
Kliewer, 2016). And recent studies indicate that lower effortful control and
self-regulation capacity in early childhood are linked to a higher risk for
developing ADHD in childhood (Willoughby, Gottfredson, & Stifter, 2017)
and adolescence (Einziger & others, 2018).
An important point about temperament classifications such as Chess and
Thomas’ and Rothbart and Bates’ is that children should not be pigeonholed
as having only one temperament dimension, such as “difficult” or “negative.”
A good strategy when attempting to classify a child’s temperament is to think
of temperament as consisting of multiple dimensions (Bates, 2012a, b). For
example, a child might be extraverted, show little emotional negativity, and
have good self-regulation. Another child might be introverted, show little
emotional negativity, and have a low level of self-regulation.
The development of temperament capabilities such as effortful control
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allows individual differences to emerge (Bates & Pettit, 2015). For example,
although maturation of the brain’s prefrontal lobes must occur for any child’s
attention to improve and the child to achieve effortful control, some children
develop effortful control while others do not. And it is these individual
differences in children that are at the heart of what temperament is (Bates,
2012a, b).
Biological Foundations and Experience
How does a child acquire a certain temperament? Kagan (2010, 2013) argues
that children inherit a physiology that predisposes them to have a particular
type of temperament. However, through experience they may learn to modify
their temperament to some degree. For example, children may inherit a
physiology that predisposes them to be fearful and inhibited but then learn to
reduce their fear and inhibition to some degree.
How might caregivers help a child become less fearful and inhibited? An
important first step is to find out what frightens the child. Comforting and
reassuring the child, and addressing their specific fears, are good strategies.
Biological Influences Specific physiological characteristics have been
linked with different temperaments (O’Connor & others, 2017). In particular,
an inhibited temperament is associated with a unique
physiological pattern that includes a high and stable heart rate,
high levels of the hormone cortisol, and high activity in the right
frontal lobe of the brain (Kagan, 2013). This pattern may be tied to the
excitability of the amygdala, a structure in the brain that plays an important
role in fear and inhibition. Twin and adoption studies also suggest that
heredity has a moderate influence on differences in temperament within a
group of people (Schumann & others, 2017).
Too often the biological foundations of temperament are interpreted as
meaning that temperament cannot develop or change. However, important
self-regulatory dimensions of temperament such as adaptability, soothability,
and persistence look very different in a 1-year-old and a 5-year-old
(Thompson, 2015). These temperament dimensions develop and change with
the growth of the neurobiological foundations of self-regulation (Calkins &
Perry, 2016).
Gender, Culture, and Temperament Gender may be an important factor
shaping the context that influences temperament (Korczak & others, 2018;
Planalp & others, 2017a). Parents might react differently to an infant’s
temperament based on whether the baby is a boy or a girl. For example, in
one study, mothers were more responsive to the crying of irritable girls than
to that of irritable boys (Crockenberg, 1986).
Similarly, the reaction to an infant’s temperament may depend in part on
culture (Matsumoto & Juang, 2017). For example, an active temperament
might be valued in some cultures (such as the United States) but not in others
(such as China). Indeed, children’s temperament can vary across cultures. For
example, behavioral inhibition is valued more highly in China than in North
America (Cole, 2016).
In short, many aspects of a child’s environment can encourage or
discourage the persistence of temperament characteristics (Glynn & others,
2017; Parade & others, 2018; Schumann & others, 2017). One useful way of
thinking about these relationships applies the concept of goodness of fit,
which we examine next.
Goodness of Fit and Parenting
Goodness of fit refers to the match between a child’s temperament and the
environmental demands the child must cope with. Suppose Jason is an active
toddler who is made to sit still for long periods and Jack is a slow-to-warm-
up toddler who is abruptly pushed into new situations on a regular basis. Both
Jason and Jack face a lack of fit between their temperament and
environmental demands. Lack of fit can produce adjustment problems
(Planalp & others, 2017b). In terms of positive goodness of fit, researchers
have found that decreases in infants’ negative emotionality are linked to
higher levels of parental sensitivity, involvement, and responsivity (Wachs &
Bates, 2010).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you apply
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information about an
infant’s temperament to
maximize the goodness
of fit in a clinical
setting?
Many parents don’t come to believe in the importance of temperament
until the birth of their second child. They viewed their first child’s behavior
as stemming from how they treated the child. But then they find that some
strategies that worked with their first child are not as effective with the
second child. Some problems experienced with the first child (such as those
associated with feeding, sleeping, and coping with strangers) may not arise
with the second child, but new problems arise. Such experiences strongly
suggest that children differ from each other very early in life and that these
differences have important implications for parent-child interaction
(Rothbart, 2011).
What are the implications of temperamental variations for parenting?
Decreases in infants’ negative emotionality occur when parents are more
involved, responsive, and sensitive when interacting with their children
(Goodvin, Thompson, & Winer, 2015). Temperament experts Ann Sanson
and Mary Rothbart (1995) also recommend the following strategies for
temperament-sensitive parenting:
Attention to and respect for individuality. One implication is that it is
difficult to generate general prescriptions for “good parenting.” A goal
might be accomplished in one way with one child and in another way
with another child, depending on each child’s temperament.
Parents need to be flexible and sensitive to the infant’s signals
and needs.
Structuring the child’s environment. Crowded, noisy environments can
pose greater problems for some children (such as a “difficult child”) than
for others (such as an “easy child”). We might also expect that a fearful,
withdrawing child would benefit from slower entry into new contexts.
Avoid applying negative labels to the child. Acknowledging that some
children are harder to parent than others is often helpful, and advice on
how to handle particular kinds of difficult circumstances can be helpful.
However, labeling a child “difficult” runs the risk of becoming a self-
fulfilling prophecy. That is, if a child is identified as “difficult,” people
may treat him or her in a way that elicits “difficult” behavior.
What are some good strategies for parents to adopt when responding to their infant’s
temperament?
©Corbis/age fotostock
A final comment about temperament is that recently the differential
susceptibility model and the biological sensitivity to context model have been
proposed and studied (Baptista & others, 2017; Belsky, 2016; Belsky &
Pluess, 2016; Belsky & van IJzendoorn, 2017). These models emphasize that
certain characteristics—such as a difficult temperament—that render children
more vulnerable to difficulty in adverse contexts also make them more
susceptible to optimal growth in very supportive conditions. These models
may help us see “negative” temperament characteristics in a new light.
Personality Development
Emotions and temperament are key aspects of personality, the enduring
personal characteristics of individuals. Let’s now examine characteristics that
are often thought of as central to personality development during infancy:
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trust, the development of a sense of self, and progress toward independence.
Trust
According to Erik Erikson (1968), the first year of life is characterized by the
trust-versus-mistrust stage of development. Upon emerging from a life of
regularity, warmth, and protection in the mother’s womb, the infant faces a
world that is less secure. Erikson proposed that infants learn trust when they
are cared for in a consistently nurturant manner. If the infant is not well fed
and kept warm on a consistent basis, a sense of mistrust is likely to develop.
In Erikson’s view, the issue of trust versus mistrust is not resolved once
and for all in the first year of life. Instead, it arises again at each successive
stage of development, and the outcomes can be positive or negative. For
example, children who leave infancy with a sense of trust can still have their
sense of mistrust activated at a later stage, perhaps if their parents become
separated or divorced.
The Developing Sense of Self
It is difficult to study the self in infancy mainly because infants cannot tell us
how they experience themselves. Infants cannot verbally express their views
of the self. They also cannot understand complex instructions from
researchers.
A rudimentary form of self-recognition—being attentive and positive
toward one’s image in a mirror—appears as early as 3 months (Mascolo &
Fischer, 2007; Pipp, Fischer, & Jennings, 1987). However, a central, more
complete index of self-recognition—the ability to recognize
one’s physical features—does not emerge until the second
year (Thompson, 2006).
One ingenious strategy to test infants’ visual self-recognition is the use of
a mirror technique in which an infant’s mother first puts a dot of rouge on the
infant’s nose. Then, an observer watches to see how often the infant touches
its nose. Next, the infant is placed in front of a mirror and observers detect
whether nose touching increases. Why does this matter? The idea is that
increased nose touching indicates that the infant recognizes itself in the
mirror and is trying to touch or rub off the rouge because the rouge violates
the infant’s view of itself; that is, the infant thinks something is not right,
since it believes its real self does not have a dot of rouge on it.
Figure 2 displays the results of two investigations that used the mirror
technique. The researchers found that before they were 1 year old, infants did
not recognize themselves in the mirror (Amsterdam, 1968; Lewis & Brooks-
Gunn, 1979). Signs of self-recognition began to appear among some infants
when they were 15 to 18 months old. By the time they were 2 years old, most
children recognized themselves in the mirror. In sum, infants begin to
develop a self-understanding, called self-recognition, at approximately 18
months of age (Hart & Karmel, 1996; Lewis, 2005).
Figure 2 The Development of Self-Recognition in Infancy
The graph shows the findings of two studies in which infants less than 1 year of age did
not recognize themselves in the mirror. A slight increase in the percentage of infant self-
recognition occurred around 15 to 18 months of age. By 2 years of age, a majority of
children recognized themselves. Why do researchers study whether infants recognize
themselves in a mirror?
©Digital Vision/Getty Images
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In one study, biweekly assessments of infants from 15 to 23 months of
age were conducted (Courage, Edison, & Howe, 2004). Self-recognition
emerged gradually over this period, first appearing in the form of mirror
recognition, followed by use of the personal pronoun “me” and then by
recognizing a photo of themselves. These aspects of self-recognition are often
referred to as the first indications of toddlers’ understanding of the mental
state of “me,” “that they are objects in their own mental representation of the
world” (Lewis, 2005, p. 363).
Late in the second year and early in the third year, toddlers show other
emerging forms of self-awareness that reflect a sense of “me” (Goodvin,
Thompson, & Winer, 2015). For example, they refer to themselves by saying
“Me big”; they label internal experiences such as emotions; they monitor
themselves, as when a toddler says, “Do it myself”; and they announce that
things are theirs (Bullock & Lutkenhaus, 1990; Fasig, 2000).
Also, researchers recently have found that the capacity to understand
others may begin to develop during infancy (Carpendale & Lewis, 2015;
Grossman, 2017). Research indicates that as early as 13 months of age,
infants seem to consider another’s perspective when predicting that person’s
actions (Choi & Luo, 2015).
Independence
Not only does the infant develop a sense of self in the second year of life, but
independence also becomes a more central theme in the infant’s life. Erikson
(1968) stressed that independence is an important issue in the second year of
life. Erikson’s second stage of development is identified as autonomy versus
shame and doubt. Autonomy builds as the infant’s mental and motor abilities
develop. At this point, not only can infants walk, but they can also climb,
open and close, drop, push and pull, and hold and let go. Infants feel pride in
these new accomplishments and want to do everything themselves, whether
the activity is flushing a toilet, pulling the wrapping off a
package, or deciding what to eat. It is important to recognize
toddlers’ motivation to do what they are capable of doing at their
own pace. Then they can learn to control their muscles and their impulses
themselves. Conversely, when caregivers are impatient and do for toddlers
what they are capable of doing themselves, shame and doubt develop. To be
sure, every parent has rushed a child from time to time, and one instance of
rushing is unlikely to result in impaired development. It is only when parents
consistently overprotect toddlers or criticize accidents (wetting, soiling,
spilling, or breaking, for example) that children are likely to develop an
excessive sense of shame and doubt about their ability to control themselves
and their world.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you work with
parents who showed
signs of being overly
protective or critical to
the point of impairing
their toddler’s
autonomy?
Erikson also argued that the stage of autonomy versus shame and doubt
has important implications for the development of independence and identity
during adolescence. The development of autonomy during the toddler years
gives adolescents the courage to be independent individuals who can choose
and guide their own future.
Social Orientation and Attachment
So far, we have discussed how emotions and emotional competence change
as children develop. We have also examined the role of emotional style; in
effect, we have seen how emotions set the tone of our experiences in life. But
emotions also write the lyrics because they are at the core of our interest in
the social world and our relationships with others.
Social Orientation and Understanding
In Ross Thompson’s (2006, 2014, 2015, 2016) view, infants are
socioemotional beings who show a strong interest in their social world and
are motivated to orient themselves toward it and to understand it. In other
chapters we described many of the biological and cognitive foundations that
contribute to the infant’s development of social orientation and
understanding. We will call attention to relevant biological and cognitive
factors as we explore social orientation; locomotion; intention, goal-directed
behavior and meaningful interactions with others; and social referencing.
Discussing biological, cognitive, and social processes together reminds us of
an important aspect of development that was pointed out earlier—that these
processes are intricately intertwined (Cole, Lougheed, & Ram, 2018; Perry &
Calkins, 2018).
Social Orientation
From early in their development, infants are captivated by the social world.
Young infants are attuned to the sounds of human voices and stare intently at
faces, especially their caregiver’s face (Peltola, Strathearn, & Puura, 2018;
Sugden & Moulson, 2017). As infants develop, they become adept at
interpreting the meaning of facial expressions (Weatherhead & White, 2017).
Face-to-face play often begins to characterize caregiver-infant interactions
when the infant is about 2 to 3 months of age. Such play reflects many
mothers’ motivation to create a positive emotional state in their infants
(Laible, Thompson, & Froimson, 2015).
Infants also learn about the social world through contexts other than face-
to-face play with a caregiver. Even though infants as young as 6 months
show an interest in each other, their interaction with peers increases
considerably in the latter half of the second year. Between 18 and 24 months,
children markedly increase their imitative and reciprocal play—for example,
imitating nonverbal actions like jumping and running (Eckerman &
Whitehead, 1999). One study involved presenting 1- and 2-year-olds with a
simple cooperative task that consisted of pulling a lever to get an attractive
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toy (Brownell, Ramani, & Zerwas, 2006) (see Figure 3). Any
coordinated actions of the 1-year-olds appeared to be
coincidental rather than cooperative, whereas the 2-year-olds’
behavior was characterized as active cooperation to reach a goal.
Figure 3 The Cooperation Task
The cooperation task consisted of two handles on a box, atop which was an animated
musical toy, surreptitiously activated by remote control when both handles were pulled.
The handles were placed far enough apart that one child could not pull both handles. The
experimenter demonstrated the task, saying, “Watch! If you pull the handles, the doggie
will sing” (Brownell, Ramani, & Zerwas, 2006).
©Celia A. Brownell, University of Pittsburgh
Locomotion
Recall from earlier in the chapter how important independence is for infants,
especially in the second year of life. As infants develop the ability to crawl,
walk, and run, they are able to explore and expand their social world. These
newly developed and self-produced locomotor skills allow the infant to
independently initiate social interchanges on a more frequent basis.
Locomotion is also important for its motivational implications (Adolph,
2018; Adolph & Hoch, 2019; Kretch & Adolph, 2018). Once infants have the
ability to move in goal-directed pursuits, the rewards gained from these
pursuits lead to further efforts to explore and develop skills.
Intention, Goal-Directed Behavior, and Meaningful
Interactions with Others
The ability to perceive people as engaging in intentional and goal-directed
behavior is an important social-cognitive accomplishment, and this initially
occurs toward the end of the first year (Thompson, 2015, 2016). Joint
attention and gaze-following help the infant understand that other people
have intentions (Gueron-Sela & others, 2018; McClure & others, 2018). By
their first birthday, infants have begun to direct their caregiver’s attention to
objects that capture their interest (Marsh & Legerstee, 2017).
Amanda Woodward and her colleagues (Krogh-Jespersen, Liberman, &
Woodward, 2015; Krogh-Jespersen & Woodward, 2016, 2018; Liberman,
Woodward, & Kinzler, 2018) argue that infants’ ability to understand and
respond to others’ meaningful intentions is a critical cognitive foundation for
effectively engaging in the social world. They especially emphasize that an
important aspect of this ability is the capacity to grasp social knowledge
quickly in order to make an appropriate social response. Although processing
speed is an important contributor to social engagement, other factors are
involved such as infants’ motivation to interact with someone, the infant’s
social interactive history with the individual, the interactive partner’s social
membership, and culturally specific aspects of interaction (Krogh-Jespersen
& Woodward, 2016, 2018; Liberman, Woodward, & Kinzler, 2018).
Infants’ Social Sophistication and Insight
In sum, researchers are discovering that infants are more socially
sophisticated and insightful at younger ages than was previously envisioned
(Perry & Calkins, 2018; Steckler & others, 2018; Thompson, 2015, 2016).
This sophistication and insight is reflected in infants’ perceptions of others’
actions as intentionally motivated and goal-directed and their motivation to
share and participate in that intentionality by their first birthday (Tomasello,
2014). The more advanced social-cognitive skills of infants could be
expected to influence their understanding and awareness of attachment to a
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caregiver.
Attachment
Attachment is a close emotional bond between two people. There is no
shortage of theories about infant attachment. Three theorists—Freud,
Erikson, and Bowlby—proposed influential views of attachment.
Freud theorized that infants become attached to the person or object that
provides them with oral satisfaction. For most infants, this is the mother,
since she is most likely to feed the infant. Is feeding as important as Freud
thought? A classic study by Harry Harlow (1958) indicates that the answer is
no (see Figure 4).
Figure 4 Contact Time with Wire and Cloth Surrogate Mothers
Regardless of whether the infant monkeys were fed by a wire or a cloth mother, they
overwhelmingly preferred to spend contact time with the cloth mother. How do these
results compare with what Freud’s theory and Erikson’s theory would predict about
human infants?
©Martin Rogers/Getty Images
Harlow removed infant monkeys from their mothers at birth; for six
months they were fed by two surrogate (substitute) “mothers.” One surrogate
mother was made of wire, the other of cloth. Half of the infant monkeys were
fed by the wire mother, half by the cloth mother. Periodically, the amount of
time the infant monkeys spent with either the wire or the cloth mother was
computed. Regardless of which mother fed them, the infant monkeys spent
far more time with the cloth mother. Even if the wire mother, but not the
cloth mother, provided nourishment, the infant monkeys spent more time
with the cloth mother. And when Harlow frightened the monkeys, those who
were “raised” by the cloth mother ran to that mother and clung to it; those
who were raised by the wire mother did not. Whether the mother provided
comfort seemed to determine whether the monkeys associated that mother
with security. This study clearly demonstrated that feeding is not the crucial
element in the attachment process and that contact comfort is important.
Physical comfort also plays a role in Erik Erikson’s (1968) view of the
infant’s development. Recall Erikson’s proposal that during the first year of
life infants are in the stage of trust versus mistrust. Physical comfort and
sensitive care, according to Erikson (1968), are key to establishing a basic
level of trust during infancy. The infant’s sense of trust, in turn, is the
foundation for attachment and sets the stage for a lifelong expectation that the
world will be a good and pleasant place.
The ethological perspective of British psychiatrist John Bowlby (1969,
1989) also stresses the importance of attachment in the first year of life and
the responsiveness of the caregiver. Bowlby believed that both the infant and
its primary caregivers are biologically predisposed to form attachments. He
argued that the newborn is biologically equipped to elicit attachment
behavior. The baby cries, clings, coos, and smiles. Later, the infant crawls,
walks, and follows the mother. The immediate result is to keep the primary
caregiver nearby; the long-term effect is to increase the infant’s chances of
survival (Thompson, 2006, 2015).
Attachment does not emerge suddenly but rather develops in a series of
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phases, moving from a baby’s general preference for human figures to a
partnership with primary caregivers. Following are four such phases based on
Bowlby’s conceptualization of attachment (Schaffer, 1996):
Phase 1: From birth to 2 months. Infants instinctively direct their
attachment to human figures. Strangers, siblings, and parents are equally
likely to elicit smiling or crying from the infant.
Phase 2: From 2 to 7 months. Attachment becomes focused
on one figure, usually the primary caregiver, as the baby
gradually learns to distinguish between familiar and
unfamiliar people.
Phase 3: From 7 to 24 months. Specific attachments develop. With
increased locomotor skills, babies actively seek contact with regular
caregivers, such as the mother or father.
Phase 4: From 24 months on. Children become aware of other people’s
feelings, goals, and plans and begin to take these into account in directing
their own actions.
Bowlby argued that infants develop an internal working model of
attachment, a simple mental model of the caregiver, their relationship to him
or her, and the self as deserving of nurturant care. The infant’s internal
working model of attachment with the caregiver influences the infant’s, and
later the child’s, subsequent responses to other people (Cassidy, 2016; Coyne
& others, 2018; Dozier & Bernard, 2018; Hoffman & others, 2017). The
internal model of attachment also has played a pivotal role in the discovery of
links between attachment and subsequent emotional understanding, conscious
development, and self-concept (Bretherton & Munholland, 2016; Vacaru,
Sternkenburg, & Schuengel, 2018).
Individual Differences in Attachment
Although attachment to a caregiver intensifies midway through the first year,
isn’t it likely that the quality of a baby’s attachment varies? Mary Ainsworth
(1979) thought so. Ainsworth created the Strange Situation, an
observational measure of infant attachment in which the infant experiences a
series of introductions, separations, and reunions with the caregiver and an
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adult stranger in a prescribed order. In using the Strange Situation,
researchers hope that their observations will provide information about the
infant’s motivation to be near the caregiver and the degree to which the
caregiver’s presence provides the infant with security and confidence
(Brownell & others, 2015; Gaskins & others, 2017; Solomon & George,
2016).
Based on how babies respond in the Strange Situation, they are described
as being securely attached or insecurely attached (in one of three ways) to the
caregiver:
Securely attached babies use the caregiver as a secure base from which
to explore the environment. When they are in the presence of their
caregiver, securely attached infants explore the room and examine toys
that have been placed in it. When the caregiver departs, securely attached
infants might protest mildly; when the caregiver returns, these infants
reestablish positive interaction with her, perhaps by smiling or climbing
onto her lap. Subsequently, they often resume playing with the toys in the
room.
Insecure avoidant babies show insecurity by avoiding the caregiver. In
the Strange Situation, these babies engage in little interaction with the
caregiver, are not distressed when she leaves the room, usually do not
reestablish contact with her upon her return, and may even turn their back
on her. If contact is established, the infant usually leans away or looks
away.
Insecure resistant babies often cling to the caregiver and then resist her
by fighting against the closeness, perhaps by kicking or pushing away. In
the Strange Situation, these babies often cling anxiously to the caregiver
and don’t explore the playroom. When the caregiver leaves, they often
cry loudly and then push away if she tries to comfort them upon her
return.
Insecure disorganized babies are disorganized and
disoriented. In the Strange Situation, these babies might
appear dazed, confused, and fearful. To be classified as
disorganized, babies must show strong patterns of avoidance and
resistance or display certain specified behaviors, such as extreme
fearfulness around the caregiver.
What is the nature of secure and insecure attachment?
©George Doyle/Stockbyte/Getty Images
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you identify an
insecurely attached
toddler? How would
you encourage a parent
to strengthen the
attachment bond?
Do individual differences in attachment matter? Ainsworth proposed that
secure attachment in the first year of life provides an important foundation for
psychological development later in life. The securely attached infant moves
freely away from the caregiver but keeps track of where she is through
periodic glances. The securely attached infant responds positively to being
picked up by others and, when put back down, freely moves away to play. An
insecurely attached infant, by contrast, avoids the caregiver or is ambivalent
toward her, fears strangers, and is upset by minor, everyday separations.
If early attachment to a caregiver is important, it should set the stage for a
child’s social behavior later in development. For many children, early
attachments seem to foreshadow later functioning (Dozier & others, 2018;
Coyne & others, 2018; Finelli, Zeanah, & Smyke, 2018; Sroufe, 2016; Steele
& Steele, 2017; Woodhouse, 2018; Woodhouse & others, 2017). In an
extensive longitudinal study conducted by Alan Sroufe and his colleagues
(2005), early secure attachment (assessed by the behavior during the Strange
Situation at 12 and 18 months) was linked with positive emotional health,
high self-esteem, self-confidence, and socially competent interaction with
peers, teachers, camp counselors, and romantic partners through adolescence.
Also, a research meta-analysis found that secure attachment in infancy was
linked to social competence with peers in childhood (Groh & others, 2014).
Further, a recent study revealed that infant attachment insecurity (especially
insecure resistant attachment) and early childhood behavioral inhibition
predicted adolescent social anxiety symptoms (Lewis-Morrarty & others,
2015).
Few studies have assessed infants’ attachment security to the mother and
the father separately. However, one study revealed that infants who were
insecurely attached to their mother and father (“double-insecure”) at 15
months of age had more externalizing problems (out-of-control behavior, for
example) in the elementary school years than their counterparts who were
securely attached to at least one parent (Kochanska & Kim, 2013).
An important issue regarding attachment is whether infancy is a critical or
sensitive period for development. The studies just described show continuity,
with secure attachment in infancy predicting subsequent positive
development in childhood and adolescence. For some children, though, there
is little continuity. Not all research reveals the power of infant attachment to
predict subsequent development (Hudson & others, 2015; Lamb & Lewis,
2015; Roisman & others, 2016; Thompson, 2015, 2016). In one longitudinal
study, attachment classification in infancy did not predict attachment
classification at 18 years of age (Lewis, Feiring, & Rosenthal, 2000). In this
study, the best predictor of an insecure attachment classification at 18 was the
occurrence of parental divorce in the intervening years.
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To what extent might this adolescent girl’s development be linked to how securely or
insecurely attached she was during infancy?
(Top) ©Westend61/Getty Images; (bottom) ©iStock.com/RichVintage
Consistently positive caregiving over a number of years is likely to be an
important factor in connecting early attachment with the child’s functioning
later in development. Indeed, researchers have found that early secure
attachment and subsequent experiences, especially maternal
care and life stresses, are linked with children’s later behavior
and adjustment (Roisman & Cicchetti, 2017). For example, a
longitudinal study revealed that changes in attachment security/insecurity
from infancy to adulthood were linked to stresses and supports in
socioemotional contexts (Van Ryzin, Carlson, & Sroufe, 2011). These results
suggest that attachment continuity may be a reflection of reflect stable social
contexts as much as early working models. The study just described (Van
Ryzin, Carlson, & Sroufe, 2011) reflects an increasingly accepted view of the
development of attachment and its influence on development: the idea that
attachment security in infancy does not always by itself produce long-term
positive outcomes, but rather is linked to later outcomes through connections
with the way children and adolescents subsequently experience various social
contexts as they develop.
The Van Ryzin, Carlson, and Sroufe (2011) study reflects a
developmental cascade model, which involves connections across domains
over time that influence developmental pathways and outcomes (Almy &
Cicchetti. 2018; Roisman & Cicchetti, 2017). Developmental cascades can
include connections between a wide range of biological, cognitive, and
socioemotional processes (attachment, for example), and also can involve
social contexts such as families, peers, schools, and culture. Further, links can
produce positive or negative outcomes at different points in development,
such as infancy, early childhood, middle and late childhood, adolescence, and
adulthood (Luyten & Fonagy, 2018; Smith & others, 2018).
In addition to challenging whether secure attachment in infancy serves as
a critical or sensitive period, some developmentalists argue that the secure
attachment concept does not adequately consider certain biological factors in
development, such as genes and temperament (Bakermans-Kranenburg & van
IJzendoorn, 2016; Belsky & van IJzendoorn, 2017; Esposito & others, 2017b;
Kim & others, 2017). For example, Jerome Kagan (1987, 2002) points out
that infants are highly resilient and adaptive; he argues that they are
evolutionarily equipped to stay on a positive developmental course, even in
the face of wide variations in parenting. Kagan and others stress that genetic
characteristics and temperament play more important roles in a child’s social
competence than the attachment theorists, such as Bowlby and Ainsworth,
are willing to acknowledge (Bakermans-Kranenburg & van IJzendoorn,
2011). For example, if some infants inherit a low tolerance for stress, this
tendency, rather than an insecure attachment bond, may be responsible for an
inability to get along with peers. Also, one study found links between
disorganized attachment in infancy, a specific gene, and levels of maternal
responsiveness (Spangler & others, 2009). In this study, infants with the short
version of the gene—serotonin transporter gene 5-HTTLPR—developed a
disorganized attachment style only when mothers were slow or inconsistent
in responding to them. However, some researchers have not found support for
genetic influences on infant-mother attachment (Leerkes & others, 2017) or
for gene-environment interactions related to infant attachment (Fraley &
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others, 2013).
Another criticism of attachment theory is that it ignores the diversity of
socializing agents and contexts that exists in an infant’s world. A culture’s
value system can influence the nature of attachment (Matsumoto & Juang,
2017; Otto & Keller, 2018). In northern Germany, for example, expectations
for an infant’s independence may be responsible for infants showing little
distress upon a brief separation from the mother, whereas the Japanese
mother’s motivation for extremely close proximity to her infant may explain
why Japanese infants become upset when they are separated from the mother.
Also, in some cultures infants show attachments to many people. Among the
Hausa (who live in Nigeria), both grandmothers and siblings provide a
significant amount of care for infants (Harkness & Super, 1995). Infants in
agricultural societies tend to form attachments to older siblings, who have
major responsibility for their younger siblings’ care. In a
recent study in Zambia where siblings were substantially
involved in caregiving activities, infants showed strong
attachments to both their mothers and their sibling caregivers (Mooya,
Sichimba, & Bakersman-Kranenburg, 2016). In this study, secure attachment
was the most frequent attachment classification for both mother-infant and
sibling-infant relationships.
In the Hausa culture, siblings and grandmothers provide a significant amount of care for
infants. How might these variations in care affect attachment?
©Penny Tweedie/The Image Bank/Getty Images
Researchers recognize the importance of competent, nurturant caregivers
in an infant’s development (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Johnson, 2018). At
issue, though, is whether or not secure attachment, especially to a single
caregiver, is essential (Roisman & others, 2017).
Despite such criticisms, there is ample evidence that security of
attachment is important to development (Coyne & others, 2018; Dozier &
Bernard, 2018; Hoffman & others, 2017; Sroufe, 2016; Stevens & N’zi,
2018; Thompson, 2016; Woodhouse, 2018). Secure attachment in infancy
reflects a positive parent-infant relationship and provides a foundation that
supports healthy socioemotional development in the years that follow.
Caregiving Styles and Attachment
Is the style of caregiving linked with the quality of the infant’s attachment?
Securely attached babies have caregivers who are sensitive to their signals
and are consistently available to respond to the infant’s needs (Groh &
Haydon, 2018; Woodhouse & others, 2017). These caregivers often let their
babies take an active part in determining the onset and pacing of interactions
in the first year of life. A recent study revealed that maternal sensitivity and a
better home environment in infancy predicted higher self-regulation at 4
years of age (Birmingham, Bub, & Vaughn, 2017). Further, recent research
indicates that if parents who engage in inadequate and problematic caregiving
are provided with practice and feedback focused on interacting sensitively
with their infants, the parent-infant attachment becomes more secure (Coyne
& others, 2018; Dozier & Bernard, 2017, 2018; Dozier, Bernard, & Roben,
2017; Woodhouse, 2018; Woodhouse & others, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you use an
infant’s attachment style
and/or a parent’s
caregiving style to
determine whether an
infant may be at risk for
neglect or abuse?
How do the caregivers of insecurely attached babies interact with them?
Caregivers of avoidant babies tend to be unavailable or rejecting. They often
don’t respond to their babies’ signals and have little physical contact with
them. When they do interact with their babies, they may behave in an angry
and irritable way. Caregivers of resistant babies tend to be inconsistent;
sometimes they respond to their babies’ needs, and sometimes they don’t. In
general, they tend not to be very affectionate with their babies and show little
synchrony when interacting with them. Caregivers of disorganized babies
often neglect or physically abuse them (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018).
Page 132
Social Contexts
Now that we have explored the infant’s emotional and personality
development and attachment, let’s examine the social contexts in which these
occur. We begin by studying a number of aspects of the family and then turn
to a social context in which infants increasingly spend time: child care.
The Family
The family can be thought of as a constellation of subsystems—a complex
whole made up of interrelated, interacting parts—defined in terms of
generation, gender, and role. Each family member participates in several
subsystems (Chen, Hughes, & Austin, 2017; Solomon-Moore & others,
2018). The father and child represent one subsystem, the mother and father
another; the mother, father, and child represent yet another subsystem; and so
on.
These subsystems have reciprocal influences on each other, as
Figure 5 highlights (Maccoby, 2015; Schwartz & Scott, 2018).
For example, Jay Belsky (1981) stresses that marital relations,
parenting, and infant behavior and development can have both direct and
indirect effects on each other. An example of a direct effect is the influence
of the parents’ behavior on the child. An indirect effect is how the
relationship between the spouses mediates the way a parent acts toward the
child. For example, marital conflict might reduce the efficiency of parenting,
in which case marital conflict would indirectly affect the child’s behavior
(Dubow & others, 2017; Taylor & others, 2017). The simple fact that two
people are becoming parents may have profound effects on their relationship.
Figure 5 Interaction Between Children and Their Parents: Direct and Indirect
Effects
©Katrina Wittkamp/Photodisc/Getty Images
The Transition to Parenthood
Whether people become parents through pregnancy, adoption, or
stepparenting, they face disequilibrium and must adapt to it (Carlson &
VanOrman, 2017). Parents want to develop a strong attachment with their
infant, but they also want to maintain strong attachments to their spouse and
friends, and possibly to continue their careers. Parents ask themselves how
the presence of this new being will change their lives. A baby places new
restrictions on partners; no longer will they be able to rush out to a movie at a
moment’s notice, and money may not be readily available for vacations and
other luxuries. Dual-career parents ask, “Will it harm the baby to place her in
child care? Will we be able to find responsible baby-sitters?”
In a longitudinal investigation of couples from late pregnancy until three
years after the baby was born, couples enjoyed more positive marital
relations before the baby was born than afterward (Cowan & Cowan, 2000;
Cowan & others, 2005). Still, almost one-third reported an increase in marital
satisfaction. Some couples said that the baby had both brought them closer
together and moved them farther apart; being parents enhanced their sense of
themselves and gave them a new, more stable identity as a couple. Babies
opened men up to greater concern with intimate relationships, and the
demands of juggling work and family roles stimulated women to manage
family tasks more efficiently and pay attention to their own personal growth.
The Bringing Home Baby project is a workshop for new parents that
emphasizes strengthening their relationship with each other, understanding
and becoming acquainted with their baby, resolving conflict, and developing
parenting skills (Gottman, 2018). Evaluations of the project revealed that
parents who participated became better able to work together as parents;
fathers were more involved with their baby and sensitive to the baby’s
behavior; mothers had fewer symptoms of postpartum depression; and babies
showed better overall development than was the case among parents and
babies in a control group (Gottman, Gottman, & Shapiro, 2009).
Other recent studies have explored the transition to parenthood (Kuersten-
Hogan, 2017). One study revealed that mothers experienced unmet
expectations in the transition to parenting, with fathers doing less than their
partners had anticipated (Biehle & Mickelson, 2012). And in a study of dual-
earner couples, a gender gap was not present prior to the transition to
parenthood, but after a child was born, women did more than 2 hours of
additional work per day compared with an additional 40 minutes for men
(Yavorksy, Dush, & Schoppe-Sullivan, 2015).
Reciprocal Socialization
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For many years, socialization was viewed as a one-way process: Children
were considered to be the products of their parents’ socialization techniques.
According to more recent research, however, parent-child interaction is
reciprocal (Klein & others, 2017). Reciprocal socialization is
socialization that is bidirectional. That is, children socialize their
parents just as parents socialize their children (Maccoby, 2015).
The types of behaviors involved in reciprocal socialization in infancy are
temporally connected, mutually contingent behaviors such as one partner
imitating the sound of another or the mother responding with a vocalization
to the baby’s arm movements. These reciprocal interchanges and mutual
influence processes are sometimes referred to as transactional (Sameroff,
2009, 2012).
Caregivers often play games with infants such as peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake. How is
scaffolding involved in these games?
(Left) ©Brand X Pictures/Getty Images; (right) ©Stephanie Rausser/The Image
Bank/Getty Images
An important form of reciprocal socialization is scaffolding, in which
parents time interactions in such a way that the infant experiences turn-taking
with the parents. Scaffolding can be used to support children’s efforts at any
age (Norona & Baker, 2017).
The game peek-a-boo, in which parents initially cover their babies, then
remove the covering, and finally register “surprise” at the babies’
reappearance, reflects the concept of scaffolding. As infants become more
skilled at this game, they gradually do some of the covering and uncovering
themselves. Parents try to time their actions in such a way that the infant
takes turns with the parent.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you explain the
value of games and the
role of scaffolding in the
development of infants
and toddlers?
Research supports the importance of scaffolding in infant development
(Maitre & others, 2017; Mermelshtine, 2017). For example, a recent study
found that when adults used explicit scaffolding (encouragement and praise)
with 13- and 14-month-old infants they were twice as likely to engage in
helping behavior as were their counterparts who did not receive the
scaffolding (Dahl & others, 2017). A study involving disadvantaged families
revealed that an intervention designed to enhance maternal scaffolding with
infants was linked to improved cognitive skills when the children were 4
years old (Obradovic & others, 2016).
Increasingly, genetic and epigenetic factors are being studied to discover
not only parental influences on children but also children’s influence on
parents (Baptista & others, 2017; Lomanowska & others, 2017). Recall that
the epigenetic view emphasizes that development is the result of an ongoing,
bidirectional interchange between heredity and the environment (Moore,
2015, 2017). For example, harsh, hostile parenting is associated with negative
outcomes for children, such as being defiant and oppositional (Deater-
Deckard, 2013; Thompson & others, 2017). This likely reflects bidirectional
influences rather than a unidirectional parenting effect. That is, the parents’
harsh, hostile parenting and the children’s defiant, oppositional behavior may
mutually influence each other. In this bidirectional influence, the parents’ and
children’s behavior may have genetic linkages as well as experiential
Page 134
connections.
Managing and Guiding Infants’ Behavior
In addition to sensitive parenting involving warmth and caring that can result
in infants being securely attached to their parents, other important aspects of
parenting infants involve managing and guiding their behavior in an attempt
to reduce or eliminate undesirable behaviors (Holden, Vittrup, & Rosen,
2011). This management process includes (1) being proactive and
childproofing the environment so infants won’t encounter potentially
dangerous objects or situations; and (2) engaging in corrective methods when
infants engage in undesirable behaviors such as excessive fussing and crying,
throwing objects, and so on.
One study assessed discipline and corrective methods that
parents had used by the time their infants were 12 and 24 months
old (Vittrup, Holden, & Buck, 2006) (see Figure 6). Notice in
Figure 6 that the main method parents used by the time infants were 12
months old was diverting the infants’ attention, followed by reasoning,
ignoring, and negotiating. Also note in Figure 6 that more than one-third of
parents had yelled at their infant, about one-fifth had slapped the infant’s
hands or threatened the infant, and approximately one-sixth had spanked the
infant by their first birthday.
Figure 6 Parents’ Methods for Managing and Correcting Infants’ Undesirable
Behavior
Shown here are the percentages of parents who had used various corrective methods by
the time the infants were 12 and 24 months old.
Source: Vittrup, B., Holden, G. W., & Buck, M. “Attitudes Predict the Use of
Physical Punishment: A Prospective Study of the Emergence of Disciplinary
Practices,” Pediatrics, 117, 2006, 2055–2064.
As infants move into the second year of life and become more mobile and
capable of exploring a wider range of environments, parental management of
the toddler’s behavior often triggers increased corrective feedback and
discipline (Holden, Vittrup, & Rosen, 2011). As indicated in Figure 6, in the
study just described, yelling increased from 36 percent at 1 year of age to 81
percent by 2 years of age, slapping the infant’s hands increased from 21
percent at 1 year to 31 percent by age 2, and spanking increased from 14
percent at age 1 to 45 percent by age 2 (Vittrup, Holden, & Buck, 2006).
A special concern is that such corrective discipline tactics not become
abusive (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018). Too often what starts out as mild to
moderately intense discipline on the part of parents can move into highly
intense anger. Later in this text, you will read more extensively about the use
of punishment with children and child maltreatment.
Maternal and Paternal Caregiving
Much of our discussion of attachment has focused on mothers as caregivers.
Do mothers and fathers differ in their caregiving roles? In general, mothers
on average still spend considerably more time in caregiving with infants and
children than do fathers (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben, 2009). Mothers
especially are more likely to engage in the managerial role with their
children, coordinating their activities, making sure their health-care needs are
met, and so on (Clarke-Stewart & Parke, 2014).
However, an increasing number of U.S. fathers stay home full-time with
their children (Bartel & others, 2018; Dette-Hagenmeyer, Erzinger, &
Reichle, 2016). The number of stay-at-home dads in the United States was
estimated to be 2 million in 2012 (Livingston, 2014). This figure represents a
significant increase from 1.6 million in 2004 and 1.1 million in 1989.
A large portion of these full-time fathers have career-focused wives who
are the primary providers of family income (O’Brien & Moss, 2010). One
study revealed that the stay-at-home fathers were as satisfied with their
marriage as traditional parents, although they missed their daily life in the
workplace (Rochlen & others, 2008). In this study, the stay-at-home fathers
reported that they tended to be ostracized when they took their children to
playgrounds and often were excluded from parent groups.
Observations of fathers and their infants suggest that fathers have the
ability to act as sensitively and responsively with their infants as mothers do
(Cabrera & Roggman, 2017; Lamb & Lewis, 2015). Consider the Aka pygmy
culture in Africa, in which fathers spend as much time interacting with their
infants as mothers do (Hewlett, 1991, 2000; Hewlett & MacFarlan, 2010).
One study also found that marital intimacy and partner support during
prenatal development were linked to father-infant attachment following
childbirth (Yu & others, 2012). Remember, however, that although fathers
Page 135can be active, nurturant, involved caregivers, as in the case of
Aka pygmies, in many cultures men have not chosen to
follow this pattern.
Do fathers interact with their infants differently from the way mothers
do? Maternal interactions usually center on child-care activities—feeding,
changing diapers, and bathing. Paternal interactions are more likely to include
play, especially rough-and-tumble play (Lamb & Lewis, 2015). Nonetheless,
mothers engage in play with their children three times as often as fathers do,
and mothers and fathers play differently with their children (Cabrera &
Roggman, 2017). Fathers bounce infants, throw them up in the air, tickle
them, and so on. Mothers’ play is less physical and arousing than that of
fathers. In a recent study of low-income families, fathers’ playfulness with 2-
year-olds was associated with more advanced vocabulary skills at 4 years of
age while mothers’ playfulness with 2-year-olds was linked to a higher level
of emotion regulation at 4 years of age (Cabrera & others, 2017).
An Aka pygmy father with his infant son. In the Aka culture, fathers were observed to be
holding or near their infants 47 percent of the time (Hewlett, 1991).
©Nick Greaves/Alamy
However, if fathers have mental health problems, they may not interact as
effectively with their infants. For example, in a recent study, children whose
fathers’ behavior was more withdrawn and depressed at 3 months had a lower
level of cognitive development at 24 months of age (Sethna & others, 2018).
Also in this study, children whose fathers were more engaged and sensitive,
as well as less controlling, at 24 months of age had a higher level of cognitive
development at that age.
Do children benefit in other ways when fathers are positively involved in
their caregiving? A study of more than 7,000 children who were assessed
from infancy to adulthood revealed that those whose fathers were extensively
involved in their lives (such as engaging in various activities with them and
showing a strong interest in their education) were more successful in school
(Flouri & Buchanan, 2004). Further, a recent study revealed that both fathers’
and mothers’ sensitivity, as assessed when infants were 10 to 12 months old,
were linked to children’s cognitive development at 18 months and language
development at 36 months (Malmberg & others, 2016). Other recent studies
indicate that when fathers are positively engaged with their children,
developmental outcomes are better (Alexander & others, 2017; Roopnarine &
Yildirim, 2018).
Child Care
Many U.S. children today experience multiple caregivers. Most do not have a
parent staying home to care for them; instead, the children receive “child
care”—that is, some type of care provided by others. Many parents worry
that child care will have adverse effects such as reducing their children’s
emotional attachment to them, constraining their children’s cognitive
development, failing to teach them how to control anger, or allowing them to
be unduly influenced by their peers. Are these concerns justified?
In the United States, approximately 15 percent of children age 5 and
younger experience more than one child-care arrangement. One study of 2-
and 3-year-old children revealed that an increase in the number of child-care
arrangements the children experienced was linked to increased behavioral
problems and decreased prosocial behavior (Morrissey, 2009).
Parental Leave
Today far more young children are in child care than at any other time in U.S.
history. About 2 million children in the United States currently receive
formal, licensed child care, and uncounted millions of children are cared for
Page 136
by unlicensed baby-sitters. In part, these numbers reflect the fact that many
U.S. adults do not receive paid leave from their jobs to care for their young
children.
Child-care policies around the world vary (Burchinal & others, 2015).
Europe has led the way in creating new standards of parental leave: In 1992,
the European Union (EU) mandated a paid 14-week maternity leave. In most
European countries today, working parents on leave receive
70 to 100 percent of the worker’s prior wage, and paid leave
averages about 16 weeks (Tolani & Brooks-Gunn, 2008). The
United States currently allows up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for parents
who are caring for a newborn.
Most countries restrict eligible benefits to women who have been
employed for a minimum length of time prior to childbirth. In Denmark,
however, even unemployed mothers are eligible for extended parental leave
related to childbirth. In Germany, child-rearing leave is available to almost all
parents. The Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway, and Sweden) have
extensive gender-equity family leave policies for childbirth that emphasize
the contributions of both women and men. For example, in Sweden parents
can take an 18-month, job-protected parental leave with benefits to be shared
by both parents and applied to full-time or part-time work.
How are child-care policies in many European countries, such as Sweden, different from
those in the United States?
©Matilda Lindeblad/Johner Images/Getty Images
Variations in Child Care
Because the United States does not have a policy of paid leave for child care,
child care in the United States has become a major national concern (Lamb &
Lewis, 2015). Many factors influence the effects of child care, including the
age of the child, the type of child care, and the quality of the program.
Child care arrangements vary extensively (Burchinal & others, 2015;
Hasbrouck & Pianta, 2016). Child care is provided in large centers with
elaborate facilities and in private homes. Some child-care centers are
commercial operations; others are nonprofit centers run by churches, civic
groups, and employers. Some child-care providers are professionals; others
are untrained adults who want to earn extra money. Infants and toddlers are
more likely to be found in family child care and informal care settings, while
older children are more likely to be in child-care centers and preschool and
early education programs. Figure 7 presents the primary care arrangements
for U.S. children under age 5 with employed mothers (Clarke-Stewart &
Miner, 2008).
Figure 7 Primary Care Arrangements in the United States for Children Under 5
Years of Age with Employed Mothers
Child-care quality makes a difference (Howes, 2016; Vu, 2016). An
Australian study revealed that higher-quality child care that included positive
child-caregiver relationships at 2 to 3 years of age was linked to children’s
better self-regulation of attention and emotion at 4 to 5 and 6 to 7 years of
age (Gialamas & others, 2014). What constitutes a high-quality child-care
program for infants? In high-quality child care (Clarke-Stewart & Miner,
2008, p. 273):
Page 137
Caregivers encourage the children to be actively engaged in a variety
of activities, have frequent, positive interactions that include smiling,
touching, holding, and speaking at the child’s eye level, respond
properly to the child’s questions or requests, and encourage children
to talk about their experiences, feelings, and ideas.
High-quality child care also involves providing children with a safe
environment, access to age-appropriate toys and participation in age-
appropriate activities, and a low caregiver-child ratio that allows caregivers to
spend considerable time with children on an individual basis.
Children are more likely to experience poor-quality child care if they
come from families with few resources (psychological, social, and economic)
(Carta & others, 2012). Many researchers have examined the role of poverty
in quality of child care. One study found that extensive child care was
harmful to low-income children only when the care was of low quality
(Votruba-Drzal, Coley, & Chase-Lansdale, 2004). Even if the child was in
child care more than 45 hours a week, high-quality care was associated with
fewer internalizing problems (anxiety, for example) and externalizing
problems (aggressive and destructive behaviors, for example).
One study revealed that children from low-income families
benefited in terms of school readiness and language
development when their parents had access to higher-quality child care
(McCartney & others, 2007).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you design the
ideal child-care program
to promote optimal
infant development?
To read about one individual who provides quality child care to
individuals from impoverished backgrounds, see Careers in Life-Span
Development.
Careers in life-span development
Wanda Mitchell, Child-Care Director
Wanda Mitchell is the Center Director at the Hattie Daniels Day Care
Center in Wilson, North Carolina. Her responsibilities include
directing the operations of the center, which involves creating and
maintaining an environment in which young children can learn
effectively and ensuring that the center meets state licensing
requirements. Wanda obtained her undergraduate degree from North
Carolina A&T University, majoring in Child Development. Prior to
her current position, she had been an education coordinator for Head
Start and an instructor at Wilson Technical Community College.
Describing her chosen career, Wanda says, “I really enjoy working in
my field. This is my passion. After graduating from college, my goal
was to advance in my field.”
Wanda Mitchell, child-care director, works with some of the children at her
center.
Courtesy of Wanda Mitchell
The National Longitudinal Study of Child Care
Page 138
In 1991, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
(NICHD) began a comprehensive longitudinal study of child-care
experiences. Data were collected from a diverse sample of almost 1,400
children and their families at 10 locations in the United States across several
decades. Researchers used multiple methods (trained observers, interviews,
questionnaires, and testing) and measured many facets of children’s
development, including physical health, cognitive development, and
socioemotional development. Following are some of the results of what is
now referred to as the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth
Development or NICHD SECCYD (NICHD Early Child Care Research
Network, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005a, b, 2006, 2010).
Quality of care. Evaluations of quality of care were based on
characteristics such as group size, child–adult ratio, physical
environment, caregiver characteristics (such as formal education,
specialized training, and child-care experience), and caregiver behavior
(such as sensitivity to children). An alarming conclusion is that a majority
of the child care in the first three years of life was of unacceptably low
quality. Positive caregiving by nonparents in child-care settings was
infrequent—only 12 percent of the children in the study experienced
positive nonparental child care (such as positive talk and language
stimulation). Further, infants from low-income families experienced
lower-quality child care than did infants from higher-income families.
When quality of caregivers’ care was high, children performed better on
cognitive and language tasks, were more cooperative with their mothers
during play, showed more positive and skilled interaction with peers, and
had fewer behavior problems. Caregiver training and favorable child–
staff ratios were linked with higher cognitive and social competence
when children were 54 months of age. In research involving the NICHD
sample, links were found between nonrelative child care from
birth to 4 years of age and adolescent development at 15 years
of age (Vandell & others, 2010). In this analysis, better
quality of early care was related to a higher level of academic
achievement and a lower level of externalizing problems at age 15. In
another study, high-quality infant-toddler child care was linked to better
memory skills at the end of the preschool years (Li & others, 2013).
Amount of child care. The quantity of child care predicted some outcomes
(Vandell & others, 2010). When children spent extensive amounts of time
in child care beginning in infancy, they experienced fewer sensitive
interactions with their mothers, showed more behavior problems, and had
higher rates of illness. In general, when children spent 30 hours or more
per week in child care, their development was less than optimal.
However, a study conducted in Norway (a country that meets or exceeds
8 of 10 UNICEF benchmarks for quality child care) revealed that a high
quantity of child care there was not linked to children’s externalizing
problems (Zachrisson & others, 2013).
Family and parenting influences. The influence of families and parenting
was not weakened by extensive child care. Parents played a significant
role in helping children regulate their emotions. Especially important
parenting influences were being sensitive to children’s needs, being
involved with children, and providing cognitive stimulation. Indeed,
parental sensitivity has been the most consistent predictor of secure
attachment (Friedman, Melhuish, & Hill, 2010). An important final point
about the extensive NICHD SECCYD research is that findings have
consistently shown that family factors are considerably stronger and more
consistent predictors of a wide variety of child outcomes than are child-
care experiences (quality, quantity, type). The worst outcomes for
children occur when both home and child-care settings are of poor
quality. For example, a study involving the NICHD SECCYD data
revealed that worse socioemotional outcomes (more problem behavior,
lower levels of prosocial behavior) for children occurred when they
experienced both home and child-care environments that conferred risk
(Watamura & others, 2011).
What are some important findings from the national longitudinal study of child care
conducted by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development?
©Reena Rose Sibayan/The Jersey Journal/Landov Images
What are some strategies parents can follow in regard to child care?
Child-care expert Kathleen McCartney (2003, p. 4) offers this advice:
Recognize that the quality of your parenting is a key factor in your child’s
development.
Make decisions that will improve the likelihood that you will be good
parents. “For some this will mean working full-time”—for personal
fulfillment, income, or both. “For others, this will mean working part-
time or not working outside the home.”
Monitor your child’s development. “Parents should observe for
themselves whether their children seem to be having behavior problems.”
They should also talk with child-care providers and their pediatrician
about their child’s behavior.
Take some time to find the best child care. Observe different child-care
facilities and be certain that you like the one you choose. “Quality child
care costs money, and not all parents can afford the child care they want.”
Page 139
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist,
based on the findings
from the NICHD study,
how would you advise
parents about their role
in their child’s
development versus the
role of nonparental child
care?
Summary
Emotional and Personality Development
Emotion is feeling, or affect, that occurs when a person is in a state or an
interaction that is important to them. Infants display a number of
emotions early in their development, such as by crying, smiling, and
showing fear. Two fears that infants develop are stranger anxiety and fear
of separation from a caregiver. As infants develop, it is important for
them to increase their ability to regulate their emotions.
Temperament is an individual’s behavioral style and characteristic way of
responding emotionally. Chess and Thomas classified infants as (1) easy,
(2) difficult, or (3) slow to warm up. Kagan proposed that inhibition to
the unfamiliar is an important temperament category. Rothbart and Bates
emphasized that effortful control (self-regulation) is an important
temperament dimension. Goodness of fit can be an important aspect of a
child’s adjustment.
Erikson argued that an infant’s first year is characterized by the stage of
trust versus mistrust. Independence becomes a central theme in the
second year of life, which is characterized by the stage of autonomy
versus shame and doubt.
Social Orientation and Attachment
Infants show a strong interest in their social world and are motivated to
understand it. Infants are more socially sophisticated and insightful at an
earlier age than was previously thought.
Attachment is a close emotional bond between two people. In infancy,
contact comfort and trust are important in the development of attachment.
Securely attached babies use the caregiver, usually the mother, as a secure
base from which to explore their environment. Three types of insecure
attachment are avoidant, resistant, and disorganized. Caregivers of
securely attached babies are more sensitive to the babies’ signals and are
consistently available to meet their needs.
Social Contexts
The transition to parenthood requires considerable adaptation and
adjustment on the part of parents. Children socialize parents just as
parents socialize children. Parents use a wide range of methods to manage
and guide infants’ behavior. In general, mothers spend more time in
caregiving than fathers do; fathers tend to engage in more physical,
playful interaction with infants than mothers do.
The quality of child care is uneven, and child care remains a controversial
topic. Quality child care can be achieved and seems to have few adverse
effects on children.
Key Terms
anger cry
attachment
basic cry
developmental cascade model
difficult child
easy child
emotion
goodness of fit
insecure avoidant babies
insecure disorganized babies
insecure resistant babies
pain cry
reciprocal socialization
reflexive smile
scaffolding
securely attached babies
separation protest
slow-to-warm-up child
social referencing
social smile
Strange Situation
stranger anxiety
temperament
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©Tim Pannell/Getty Images
5
Physical and Cognitive
Development in Early
Childhood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Physical Changes
Body Growth and Change
The Brain
Motor Development
Nutrition and Exercise
Illness and Death
Cognitive Changes
Piaget’s Preoperational Stage
Vygotsky’s Theory
Information Processing
Language Development
Understanding Phonology and Morphology
Changes in Syntax and Semantics
Advances in Pragmatics
Young Children’s Literacy
Early Childhood Education
Variations in Early Childhood Education
Education for Young Children Who Are Disadvantaged
Controversies in Early Childhood Education
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Reggio Emilia’s Children
The Reggio Emilia approach is an educational program for young
children that was developed in the northern Italian city of Reggio
Emilia. Children of single parents and children with disabilities
have priority in admission; other children are admitted according
to a scale of needs. Parents pay on a sliding scale based on income.
The children are encouraged to learn by investigating and
exploring topics that interest them (Bredekamp, 2017). A wide
range of stimulating media and materials are available for children
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to use as they learn music, movement, drawing, painting, sculpting,
collage, puppetry, and photography, among other things (Bond,
2015).
In this program, children often explore topics in a group, which
fosters a sense of community, respect for diversity, and a
collaborative approach to problem solving (Jones & Reynolds,
2011). In this group setting, two co-teachers guide the children in
their exploration. The Reggio Emilia teachers treat each project as
an adventure. It can start from an adult’s suggestion, from a child’s
idea, or from an unexpected event such as a snowfall. Every
project is based on what the children say and do. The teachers
allow children enough time to plan and craft a project.
At the core of the Reggio Emilia approach is an image of
children who are competent and have rights, especially the right to
outstanding care and education. Parent participation is considered
essential, and cooperation is a major theme in the
schools. Many experts on early childhood
education believe that the Reggio Emilia approach
provides a supportive, stimulating context in which children are
motivated to explore their world in a competent and confident
manner (Follari, 2019; Morrison, 2017, 2018; Vatalaro, Szente, &
Levin, 2015).
Parents and educators who understand how young children
develop can play active roles in creating programs that foster
children’s natural interest in learning, rather than stifling it. In this
chapter, the first of two chapters on early childhood (ages 3 to 5),
we explore the physical, cognitive, and language changes that
typically occur as the toddler develops into the preschooler, and
then we look at early childhood education. ■
In a Reggio Emilia classroom, young children explore topics that interest them.
©Ruby Washington/The New York Times/Redux Pictures
Physical Changes
Earlier, we described a child’s growth in infancy as rapid and following
cephalocaudal and proximodistal patterns. Fortunately, the growth rate slows
in early childhood; otherwise, we would be a species of giants.
Body Growth and Change
Despite the slowing of growth in height and weight that characterizes early
childhood, growth is still the most obvious physical change during this period
of development. Yet unseen changes in the brain and nervous system are no
less significant in preparing children for advances in cognition and language.
The average child grows 2½ inches in height and gains between 5 and 7
pounds a year during early childhood. As the preschool child grows older, the
percentage of increase in height and weight decreases with each additional
year (Hockenberry, Wilson, & Rodgers, 2017). Girls are only slightly smaller
and lighter than boys during these years, a difference that continues until
puberty. In addition, girls have more fatty tissue than boys, and boys have
more muscle tissue than girls.
The bodies of 5-year-olds and 2-year-olds are different. Notice that the 5-year-old not
only is taller and weighs more, but also has a longer trunk and legs than the 2-year-old.
Can you think of some other physical differences between 2- and 5-year-olds?
©Michael Hitoshi/Getty Images
During the preschool years, both boys and girls slim down as the trunk of
the body lengthens (Kliegman & others, 2016). Although the head is still
somewhat large for the body, by the end of the preschool years most children
have lost the top-heavy look they had as toddlers. Body fat also shows a
slow, steady decline during the preschool years. The chubby baby often looks
much leaner by the end of early childhood.
Growth patterns vary from one individual to another (Grimberg & Allen,
2017). Think back to your preschool years. That was probably the first time
Page 142
you noticed that some children were taller than you, some shorter; some were
fatter, some thinner; some were stronger, some weaker. Much of the variation
was due to heredity, but environmental experiences were also involved (Hay
& others, 2017). A review of the height and weight of children around the
world concluded that the two most important contributors to height
differences are ethnic origin and nutrition (Meredith, 1978). Urban, middle-
socioeconomic status, and firstborn children were taller than rural, lower-
socioeconomic status, and later-born children. In the United States, African
American children are taller than White children.
The Brain
One of the most important physical developments during early childhood is
the continuing development of the brain and other parts of the nervous
system (Bell, Broomell, & Patton, 2018; Bell & others, 2018). The increasing
maturation of the brain, combined with opportunities to experience a
widening world, contribute to children’s emerging cognitive abilities. In
particular, changes in the brain during early childhood enable children to plan
their actions, attend to stimuli more effectively, and make considerable
strides in language development.
Although the brain does not grow as rapidly during early childhood as in
infancy, it does undergo remarkable changes. By repeatedly obtaining brain
scans of the same children for up to four years, researchers have found that
children’s brains experience rapid, distinct spurts of growth (Gogtay &
Thompson, 2010). The overall size of the brain does not increase
dramatically from ages 3 to 5; what does change dramatically are local
patterns within the brain. The amount of brain material in some areas can
nearly double in as little as a year, followed by a dramatic loss of tissue as
unneeded cells are pruned and the brain continues to reorganize itself. From 3
to 6 years of age the most rapid growth in the brain takes place in the part of
the frontal lobes known as the prefrontal cortex (see Figure 1), which plays a
key role in planning and organizing new actions and maintaining attention to
tasks (Gogtay & Thompson, 2010).
Figure 1 The Prefrontal Cortex
The brain pathways and circuitry involving the prefrontal cortex (shaded in purple) show
significant advances in development during middle and late childhood. What cognitive
processes are linked with these changes in the prefrontal cortex?
The continuation of two changes that began before birth contributes to the
brain’s growth during early childhood. First, the number and size of dendrites
increase, and second, myelination continues. Recall that myelination is the
process through which axons (nerve fibers that carry signals away from the
cell body) are covered with a layer of fat cells, which increases the speed and
efficiency of information traveling through the nervous system. Myelination
is important in the development of a number of abilities (Juraska & Willing,
2017; van Tilborg & others, 2018). For example, myelination in the areas of
the brain related to hand-eye coordination is not complete until about age 4.
Myelination in the areas of the brain related to focusing attention is not
complete until the end of middle or late childhood. And myelination of many
aspects of the prefrontal cortex, especially those involving higher-level
thinking skills, is not completed until late adolescence or emerging adulthood
(Bell, Ross, & Patton, 2018; Cohen & Casey, 2017; Dahl & others, 2018). In
a recent study, young children with higher cognitive ability showed increased
myelination by 3 years of age (Deoni & others, 2016).
Recently, researchers have found that contextual factors such as poverty
and parenting quality are linked to the development of the brain (Black &
others, 2017; Farah, 2017; Marshall & others, 2018). In one study, children
from the poorest homes had significant maturational lags in their frontal and
temporal lobes at 4 years of age, and these lags were associated with lower
school readiness skills (Hair & others, 2015). In another study, higher levels
of maternal sensitivity in early childhood were associated with higher total
Page 143
brain volume (Kok & others, 2015).
Motor Development
Running as fast as you can, falling down, getting right back up and running
just as fast as you can . . . building towers with blocks . . . scribbling,
scribbling, and scribbling some more . . . cutting paper with scissors . . .
During your preschool years, you probably developed the ability to perform
all these activities. What physical changes made this possible?
Gross Motor Skills
The preschool child no longer has to make an effort simply to stay upright
and move around. As children move their legs with more confidence and
carry themselves more purposefully, moving around in the environment
becomes more automatic (Hockenberry, Wilson, & Rodgers, 2017; Perry &
others, 2018).
Around age 3, children enjoy simple movements such as
hopping, jumping, and running back and forth, just for the sheer
delight of performing them. They are eager to demonstrate how
they can run across a room and jump all of 6 inches. The run-and-jump will
win no Olympic medals, but for the 3-year-old it brings considerable pride
and a sense of accomplishment.
At age 4, children are still enjoying the same kinds of activities, but they
have become more adventurous. They scramble over low jungle gyms as they
display their athletic prowess. Although they have been able to climb stairs
with one foot on each step for some time, they are just beginning to be able to
come down the same way.
By age 5, children are even more adventuresome than when they were 4.
It is not unusual for self-assured 5-year-olds to perform hair-raising stunts on
playground equipment. Five-year-olds also run hard and enjoy races with
each other and their parents.
How can early childhood educators support young children’s motor
development? Young children need to practice skills in order to learn them,
so instruction should be followed with ample time for practice (Follari, 2019;
Morrison, 2017, 2018). A recent study of 4-year-old girls found that a nine-
week motor skill intervention improved the girls’ ball skills (Veldman &
others, 2017).
There can be long-term negative effects for children who fail to develop
basic motor skills (Barnett, Salmon, & Hesketh, 2016; Gorgon, 2018). These
children will not be as able to join in group games or participate in sports
during their school years and in adulthood. In a recent study, children with a
low level of motor competence had a lower motivation for sports
participation and had lower global self-worth than their counterparts with a
high level of motor competence (Bardid & others, 2018). Another recent
study found that higher motor proficiency in preschool was linked to
engaging in a higher level of physical activity in adolescence (Venetsanou &
Kambas, 2017).
Fine Motor Skills
By the time they turn 3, children have had the ability to pick up the tiniest
objects between their thumb and forefinger for some time, but they are still
somewhat clumsy at it. Three-year-olds can build surprisingly high block
towers, each block placed with intense concentration but often not in a
completely straight line. When 3-year-olds play with a simple jigsaw puzzle,
they are rather rough in placing the pieces. Even when they recognize the
hole a piece fits into, they are not very precise in positioning the piece. They
often try to force the piece into the hole or pat it vigorously.
By age 4, children’s fine motor coordination has improved substantially
and is much more precise. Sometimes 4-year-olds have trouble building high
towers with blocks because, in their desire to place each of the blocks
perfectly, they may upset those already in the stack. Fine motor coordination
continues to improve so that by age 5, hand, arm, and body all move together
under better command of the eye. Mere towers no longer interest the 5-year-
old, who now wants to build a house or a church, complete with steeple,
though adults might still need to be told what each finished project is meant
to be.
Nutrition and Exercise
Page 144
Eating habits are important aspects of development during early childhood
(Blake, Munoz, & Volpe, 2019; Thompson & Manore, 2018; Wardlaw,
Smith, & Collene, 2018). What children eat affects their skeletal growth,
body shape, and susceptibility to disease. Exercise and physical activity are
also very important aspects of young children’s lives (Powers & Dodd, 2017;
Powers & Howley, 2018; Walton-Fisette & Wuest, 2018).
Eating Behavior and Overweight Young Children
Young children’s eating behavior is strongly influenced by their caregivers’
behavior (Black & others, 2017; Lindsay & others, 2018; Scaglioni & others,
2018; Tan & Holub, 2015). Children’s eating behavior improves when
caregivers eat with children on a predictable schedule, model eating healthy
food, make mealtimes pleasant occasions, and engage in certain feeding
styles (Daelmans & others, 2017; Profili & others, 2017).
Distractions created by television, family arguments, and
competing activities should be minimized so that children can
focus on eating. Experts recommend a sensitive, responsive caregiver feeding
style, in which the caregiver is nurturant, provides clear information about
what is expected, and responds appropriately to children’s cues (Black &
Armstrong, 2017; Black & Hurley, 2017). Forceful and restrictive caregiver
behaviors are not recommended, as they can lead to excessive weight gain
(Rollins & others, 2016).
What are some trends in the eating habits and weight of young children?
©Lilian Perez/age fotostock
Being overweight has become a serious health problem in early childhood
(Donatelle, 2019; Perry & others, 2017; Roberts, Marx, & Musher-Eizenman,
2018; Smith & Collene, 2019). A national study revealed that 45 percent of
children’s meals exceed recommendations for saturated and trans fat, which
can raise cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart disease (Center for
Science in the Public Interest, 2008). This study also found that one-third of
children’s daily caloric intake comes from restaurants, twice the percentage
consumed away from home in the 1980s. Further, 93 percent of almost 1,500
possible choices at 13 major fast-food chains exceeded 430 calories—one-
third of what the National Institute of Medicine recommends that 4- to 8-
year-old children consume in a day. Nearly all of the children’s meal
offerings at KFC, Taco Bell, Sonic, Jack in the Box, and Chick-fil-A were
too high in calories. Also, a study of U.S. 2- and 3-year-olds found that
French fries and other fried potatoes were the vegetable they were most likely
to consume (Fox & others, 2010).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you work with
parents to increase the
nutritional value of
meals and snacks they
provide to their young
children?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2018) has established
categories for obesity, overweight, and at risk for being overweight. These
categories are determined by body mass index (BMI), which is computed
using a formula that takes into account height and weight. Children and
adolescents at or above the 97th percentile are classified as obese; those at the
95th or 96th percentile as overweight; and those from the 85th to the 94th
Page 145
percentile as at risk of being overweight.
The percentages of young children who are overweight or at risk of being
overweight in the United States have increased dramatically in recent
decades, but in the last several years there are indications that fewer
preschool children are obese (Wardlaw, Smith, & Collene, 2018). In 2009–
2010, 12.1 percent of U.S. 2- to 5-year-olds were classified as obese,
compared with 5 percent in 1976–1980 (Ogden & others, 2012). However, in
2013–2014, a substantial drop in the obesity rate of 2- to 5-year-old children
occurred in comparison with their counterparts in 2009–2010 (Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 2018). In 2013–2014, 9.4 percent of 2- to 5-
year-olds were obese compared with 12.1 percent in 2004. It is not clear why
this drop occurred, but among the possible explanations are families buying
lower-calorie foods and being influenced by the Special Supplementation
Program for Women, Infants, and Children (which subsidizes food for
women and children in low-income families) that emphasizes consuming less
fruit juice, cheese, and eggs and more whole fruits and vegetables. In a recent
study, 2½-year-olds’ liking for fruits and vegetables was related to their
eating more fruits and vegetables at 7 years of age (Fletcher & others, 2018).
The risk that overweight children will continue to be overweight when
they are older was documented in a U.S. study of nearly 8,000 children
(Cunningham, Kramer, & Narayan, 2014). In this study, overweight 5-year-
olds were four times more likely to be obese at 14 years of age than their 5-
year-old counterparts who began kindergarten at a normal weight. Also, in
the study described earlier in which obesity was reduced in preschool
children, the children who were obese were five times more likely to be
overweight or obese in adulthood (Ogden & others, 2014).
A comparison of 34 countries revealed that the United States
had the second highest rate of childhood obesity (Janssen &
others, 2005). Childhood obesity contributes to a number of
health problems in young children (Eno Persson & others, 2018). For
example, physicians are now seeing type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes (a condition
directly linked with obesity and a low level of fitness) in children as young as
age 5 (Baskaran & Kandemir, 2018). Many aspects of children’s lives can
contribute to becoming overweight or obese (Labayen Goñi & others, 2018;
Sun & others, 2018). Recently, the following 5-2-1-0 obesity prevention
guidelines have been established for young children: 5 or more servings of
fruits and vegetables, 2 hours or less of screen time, minimum of 1 hour of
physical activity, and 0 sugar-sweetened beverages daily (Khalsa & others,
2017). Prevention of obesity in children also includes helping children,
parents, and teachers see healthy food as a way to satisfy hunger and meet
nutritional needs, not as proof of love or as a reward for good behavior.
Routine physical activity should be a daily occurrence (Powers & Howley,
2018). One research study found that viewing as little as one hour of
television daily was associated with an increase in body mass index (BMI)
between kindergarten and first grade (Peck & others, 2015).
Malnutrition
Poor nutrition affects many young children from low-income families (Lucas,
Richter, & Daelmans, 2018; Schiff, 2019). Many of these children do not
obtain essential amounts of iron, vitamins, or protein. Poor nutrition is a
particular concern for infants from low-income families (Petry & others,
2017).
To address this problem in the United States, the WIC (Women, Infants,
and Children) program provides federal grants to states for healthy
supplemental foods, health-care referrals, and nutrition education for women
from low-income families beginning in pregnancy, and to infants and young
children up to 5 years of age who are at nutritional risk (Chang, Brown, &
Nitzke, 2017; Gilmore & others, 2017). WIC serves approximately 7,500,000
participants in the United States. Positive influences on infants’ and young
children’s nutrition and health, as well as mothers’ health, have been found
for participants in WIC (Black & Armstrong, 2017; Chen & others, 2018;
Gross & others, 2017; Lee & others, 2017; Martinez-Brockman & others,
2018; McCoy & others, 2018). For example, a multiple-year literacy
intervention with Spanish-speaking families in the WIC program in Los
Angeles increased literacy resources and activities at home, which in turn led
to a higher level of school readiness in children (Whaley & others, 2011).
And in longitudinal studies, when mothers participated in WIC programs
prenatally and during their children’s first five years, young children showed
short-term cognitive benefits and longer-term reading and math benefits
(Jackson, 2015).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you advise
parents who want to get
their talented 4-year-old
child into a soccer
league for preschool
children?
How much physical activity should preschool children engage in per day?
©RubberBall Productions/Getty Images
Exercise
Young children should engage in physical activity every day (Insel &
Walton, 2018; Lintu & others, 2017; Walton-Fisette & Wuest, 2018). Expert
panels from Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States
have issued physical activity guidelines for young children that are quite
similar (Pate & others, 2015). The guidelines recommend that young children
get an average of 15 or more minutes of physical activity per hour over a 12-
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hour period, or about 3 hours per day total. These guidelines reflect an
increase from earlier guidelines (National Association for Sport and Physical
Education, 2002). The child’s life should center on activities, not meals
(Powers & Howley, 2018; Rowland, 2016).
Illness and Death
The vast majority of children in the United States go through the physical
changes just described and reach adulthood without serious illness or death.
However, some do not. In the United States accidents are the leading cause of
death in young children, followed by cancer and cardiovascular disease
(National Center for Health Statistics, 2018). In addition to motor vehicle
accidents, other accidental deaths in children involve drowning, falls, and
poisoning.
Children’s safety is influenced not only by their own skills and safety-
related behaviors but also by characteristics of their family and home, school
and peers, and community (Onders & others, 2018; Saunders & others,
2017). Figure 2 describes steps that can be taken in each of these contexts to
enhance children’s safety and prevent injury (Sleet & Mercy, 2003).
Figure 2 Characteristics That Enhance Young Children’s Safety.
In each context of a child’s life, steps can be taken to create conditions that enhance the
child’s safety and reduce the likelihood of injury. How are the contexts listed in the figure
related to Bronfenbrenner’s theory?
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you talk with
parents about the impact
of secondhand smoke
on children’s health to
encourage parents to
stop smoking?
One major danger to children is parental smoking (Merianos, Dixon, &
Mahabee-Gittens, 2017). An estimated 22 percent of children and adolescents
in the United States are exposed to tobacco smoke in the home. An increasing
number of studies indicate that children are at risk for health problems when
they live in homes in which a parent smokes (Hatoun & others, 2018;
Miyahara & others, 2017; Pugmire, Sweeting, & Moore, 2017; Rosen &
others, 2018). Children exposed to tobacco smoke in the home are more
likely to develop wheezing and asthma than are children in homes where no
one smokes (Vo & others, 2017). One study revealed that exposure to
secondhand smoke was related to young children’s sleep problems, including
sleep-disordered breathing (Yolton & others, 2010). Researchers have also
found that maternal cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption when
children were 5 years of age were linked to early onset of smoking in
adolescence (Hayatbakhsh & others, 2013). And a recent study found that
young children who were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke were
more likely to engage in antisocial behavior when they were 12 years old
(Pagani & others, 2017).
Although accidents and serious illnesses such as cancer are the leading
causes of death among children in the United States, this is not the case in a
number of other countries in the world, where many children die of
preventable infectious diseases. Many of the deaths of young children around
the world could be prevented by a reduction in poverty and improvements in
nutrition, sanitation, education, and health services (UNICEF, 2018). High
poverty rates have devastating effects on the health of a country’s young
children, who are likely to experience hunger, malnutrition, illness,
inadequate access to health care, unsafe water, and a lack of protection from
harm (Black & others, 2017; UNICEF, 2018). In the last decade, there has
been a dramatic increase in the number of young children who have died
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because HIV/AIDS was transmitted to them by their parents. Deaths of
young children due to HIV/AIDS especially occur in countries with high
rates of poverty and low levels of education (UNICEF, 2018).
Many children in impoverished countries die before reaching the age of 5 from
dehydration and malnutrition brought about by diarrhea. What are some of the other main
causes of death in young children around the world?
©Kent Page/AP Images
Cognitive Changes
The cognitive world of the preschool child is creative, free, and fanciful.
Preschool children’s imaginations work overtime, and their mental grasp of
the world improves. Our coverage of cognitive development in early
childhood focuses on three theories: Piaget’s, Vygotsky’s, and information
processing.
Piaget’s Preoperational Stage
Remember that during Piaget’s first stage of development, the sensorimotor
stage, the infant becomes increasingly able to organize and coordinate
sensations and perceptions with physical movements and actions. The
preoperational stage, which lasts from approximately age 2 to 7, is the
second stage in Piaget’s theory. In this stage, children begin to represent the
world with words, images, and drawings. They form stable concepts and
begin to reason. At the same time, the young child’s cognitive world is
dominated by egocentrism and magical beliefs.
Because Piaget called this stage “preoperational,” it might sound like an
unimportant waiting period. Not so. However, the label preoperational
emphasizes that the child does not yet perform operations, which are
reversible mental actions that allow children to do mentally what before they
could do only physically. Mentally adding and subtracting numbers are
examples of operations. Preoperational thought is the beginning of the ability
to reconstruct in thought what has been established in behavior. This stage
can be divided into two substages: the symbolic function substage and the
intuitive thought substage.
The Symbolic Function Substage
The symbolic function substage is the first substage of preoperational
thought, occurring roughly between the ages of 2 and 4. In this substage, the
young child gains the ability to mentally represent an object that is not
present. This ability vastly expands the child’s mental world (Lillard &
Kavanaugh, 2014). In this substage, children use scribble designs to represent
people, houses, cars, clouds, and so on; they begin to use language more
effectively and engage in pretend play. However, although young children
make distinct progress during this substage, their thinking still has important
limitations, two of which are egocentrism and animism.
Egocentrism is the inability to distinguish between one’s own
perspective and someone else’s perspective. The following telephone
conversation between 4-year-old Marie, who is at home, and her father, who
is at work, typifies Marie’s egocentric thought:
Father: Marie, is Mommy there?
Marie silently nods.
Father: Marie, may I speak to Mommy?
Marie nods again, silently.
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Marie’s response is egocentric in that she fails to consider her father’s
perspective before replying. A nonegocentric thinker would have responded
verbally.
Jean Piaget and Barbel Inhelder (1969) initially studied young children’s
egocentrism by devising the three mountains task (see Figure 3). The child
walks around the model of the mountains and becomes familiar with what the
mountains look like from different perspectives, and she can see that there are
different objects on the mountains. The child is then seated on one side of the
table on which the mountains are placed. The experimenter moves a doll to
different locations around the table, and at each location asks the child to
select from a series of photos the one that most accurately reflects the view
that the doll is seeing. Children in the preoperational stage often pick their
own view rather than the doll’s view. Preschool children frequently show the
ability to take another’s perspective on some tasks but not others.
Figure 3 The Three Mountains Task
Photo 1 shows the child’s perspective from where he or she is sitting (location A). Photos
2, 3, and 4 show what the mountains would look like to a person sitting at locations B, C,
and D, respectively. When asked to choose the photograph that shows what the mountains
looks like from position B, the preoperational child selects a photograph taken from
location A, the child’s view at the time. A child who thinks in a preoperational way cannot
take the perspective of a person sitting at another spot.
Animism, another limitation of preoperational thought, is the
belief that inanimate objects have lifelike qualities and are
capable of action. A young child might show animism by saying,
“That tree pushed the leaf off, and it fell down,” or “The sidewalk made me
mad; it made me fall down.” A young child who shows animism fails to
distinguish among appropriate and inappropriate occasions for using human
perspectives.
The Intuitive Thought Substage
The intuitive thought substage is the second substage of preoperational
thought, occurring between ages 4 and 7. In this substage, children begin to
use primitive reasoning and want to know the answers to all sorts of
questions. Consider 4-year-old Terrell, who is at the beginning of the
intuitive thought substage. Although he is starting to develop his own ideas
about the world he lives in, his ideas are still simple, and he is not very good
at thinking things out. He has difficulty understanding events that he knows
are taking place but that he cannot see. His fantasized thoughts bear little
resemblance to reality. He cannot yet answer the question “What if?” in any
reliable way. For example, he has only a vague idea of why he needs to avoid
getting hit by a car. He also has difficulty negotiating traffic because he
cannot do the mental calculations necessary to estimate whether an
approaching car will hit him when he crosses the road.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you explain the
child’s response in the
following scenario: A
parent gives a 3-year-
old a cookie. The child
says, “I want two
cookies.” The parent
breaks the cookie in half
and hands the two
pieces to the child, who
happily accepts them.
By age 5 children have just about exhausted the adults around them with
“why” questions. The child’s questions signal the emergence of interest in
reasoning and in figuring out why things are the way they are. Following are
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some samples of the questions children ask during the intuitive thought
substage (Elkind, 1976): “What makes you grow up?” “Why does a woman
have to be married to have a baby?” “Who was the mother when everybody
was a baby?” “Why do leaves fall?” “Why does the sun shine?”
Piaget called this substage intuitive because young children seem so sure
about their knowledge and understanding, yet are unaware of how they know
what they know. That is, they know something but know it without the use of
rational thinking and are sometimes wrong as a result.
Centration and the Limits of Preoperational Thought
Another limitation of preoperational thought is centration, a centering of
attention on one characteristic to the exclusion of all others. Centration is
most clearly evidenced in young children’s lack of conservation; that is, they
lack the awareness that altering an object or substance’s appearance does not
change its basic properties. For example, to adults it is obvious that a certain
amount of liquid remains the same when it is poured from one
container to another, regardless of the containers’ shapes. But this
is not at all obvious to young children.
The situation that Piaget devised to study conservation is his most famous
task. In the conservation task, children are presented with two identical
beakers, each filled to the same level with liquid (see Figure 4). They are
asked if these beakers contain the same amount of liquid, and they usually
say yes. Then the liquid from one beaker is poured into a third beaker, which
is taller and thinner than the first two. The children are then asked if the
amount of liquid in the tall, thin beaker is equal to that which remains in one
of the original beakers. Children who are less than 7 or 8 years old usually
say no and justify their answers in terms of the differing height or width of
the two beakers. They are typically struck by the height of the liquid in a tall,
narrow container and focus on that characteristic to the exclusion of others.
Older children usually answer yes and justify their answer appropriately (“If
you poured the water back, the amount would still be the same”).
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Figure 4 Piaget’s Conservation Task
The beaker test is a well-known Piagetian test to determine whether a child can think
operationally—that is, can mentally reverse actions and show conservation of the
substance. (a) Two identical beakers, A and B, are presented to the child. Then the
experimenter pours the liquid from B into C, which is taller and thinner than A or B. (b)
The child is asked if these beakers (A and C) have the same amount of liquid. The
preoperational child says “no.” When asked to point to the beaker that has more liquid, the
preoperational child points to the tall, thin beaker.
©Tony Freeman/PhotoEdit
In Piaget’s theory, failing the conservation of liquid task is a sign that
children are at the preoperational stage of cognitive development. The failure
demonstrates not only centration but also inability to mentally reverse
actions. For example, in the conservation of matter example shown in Figure
5, preoperational children say that the longer shape contains more clay
because they assume that “longer is more.” Preoperational
children cannot mentally reverse the clay-rolling process to
see that the amount of clay is the same in both the shorter ball
shape and the longer stick shape.
Figure 5 Some Dimensions of Conservation: Number, Matter, and Length
What characteristics of preoperational thought do children demonstrate when they fail
these conservation tasks?
In addition to failing to conserve volume, preoperational children fail to
conserve number, matter, length, and area. However, children often vary in
their performance on different conservation tasks. Thus, a child might be able
to conserve volume but not number.
Some developmental psychologists do not believe that Piaget was entirely
correct in his estimate of when children’s conservation skills emerge. For
example, Rochel Gelman (1969) showed that when children’s attention to
relevant aspects of the conservation task is improved, they are more likely to
conserve. Gelman has also demonstrated that attentional training on one
dimension, such as number, improves preschool children’s performance on
another dimension, such as mass. Thus, Gelman believes that conservation
appears earlier than Piaget thought and that attention is especially important
in explaining conservation.
Vygotsky’s Theory
Like Piaget, Vygotsky was a constructivist, but Vygotsky’s theory is a social
constructivist approach, and it emphasizes the social contexts of learning
and the construction of knowledge through social interaction. In Vygotsky’s
view, children’s cognitive development depends on the tools provided by
society, and their minds are shaped by the cultural context in which they live
(Moura da Costa & Tuleski, 2017; Yu & Hu, 2017). Earlier, we described
some basic elements of Vygotsky’s theory. Here we expand on his theory,
exploring his ideas about the zone of proximal development, scaffolding, and
the young child’s use of language.
The Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding
Vygotsky’s belief in the importance of social influences, especially
instruction, on children’s cognitive development is reflected in his concept of
the zone of proximal development. Zone of proximal development (ZPD) is
Vygotsky’s term for the range of tasks that are too difficult for the child to
master alone but can be learned with the guidance and assistance of adults or
more-skilled children. Thus, the lower limit of the ZPD is the level of skill
reached by the child working independently. The upper limit is the level of
additional responsibility the child can accept with the assistance of an able
instructor (see Figure 6). The ZPD captures the child’s cognitive skills that
are in the process of maturing and can be accomplished only with the
assistance of a more-skilled person (Holzman, 2017). Vygotsky (1962) called
these the “buds” or “flowers” of development, to distinguish them from the
“fruits” of development, which the child can already accomplish
independently.
Figure 6 Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development
Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development has a lower limit and an upper limit. Tasks in
the ZPD are too difficult for the child to perform alone. They require assistance from an
adult or a more-skilled child. As children experience the verbal instruction or
demonstration, they organize the information in their existing mental structures so they
can eventually perform the skill or task alone.
©Ariel Skelley/Blend Images
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you apply
Vygotsky’s ZPD theory
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and the concept of
scaffolding to help a
young child complete a
puzzle?
What are some factors that can influence the effectiveness of the ZPD in
children’s learning and development? Researchers have found that the ZPD’s
effectiveness can be enhanced by factors such as the following (Gauvain,
2013): better emotion regulation, secure attachment, absence of maternal
depression, and child compliance.
Closely linked to the idea of the ZPD is the concept of
scaffolding, introduced earlier in the context of parent-infant
interaction. Scaffolding means changing the level of support.
Over the course of a teaching session, a more-skilled person (a teacher or
advanced peer) adjusts the amount of guidance to fit the child’s current
performance (Daniels, 2017). When the student is learning a new task, the
skilled person may use direct instruction. As the student’s competence
increases, less guidance is given.
Language and Thought
According to Vygotsky, children use speech not only for social
communication but also to help them solve tasks. Vygotsky (1962) further
believed that young children use language to plan, guide, and monitor their
behavior. This use of language for self-regulation is called private speech.
Piaget viewed private speech as egocentric and immature, but Vygotsky saw
it as an important tool of thought during the early-childhood years (Lantolf,
2017).
Vygotsky said that language and thought initially develop independently
of each other and then merge. He emphasized that all mental functions have
external, or social, origins. Children must use language to communicate with
others before they can focus inward on their own thoughts. Children also
must communicate externally and use language for a long time before they
can make the transition from external to internal speech. This transition
period occurs between ages 3 and 7 and involves talking to oneself. After a
while, self-talk becomes second nature to children, and they can act without
verbalizing. When this occurs, children have internalized their egocentric
speech in the form of inner speech, which becomes their thoughts.
Vygotsky saw children who use a lot of private speech as more socially
competent than those who don’t. He argued that private speech represents an
early transition toward becoming more socially communicative. For
Vygotsky, when young children talk to themselves they are using language to
govern their behavior and guide themselves. For example, a child working on
a puzzle might say to herself, “Which pieces should I put together first? I’ll
try those green ones first. Now I need some blue ones. No, that blue one
doesn’t fit there. I’ll try it over here.” Researchers have found support for
Vygotsky’s view that private speech plays a positive role in children’s
development (Winsler, Carlton, & Barry, 2000).
Teaching Strategies Based on Vygotsky’s Theory
Vygotsky’s theory has been embraced by many teachers and has been
successfully applied to education (Adams, 2015; Daniels, 2017; Holtzman,
2017). Here are some ways in which educators can apply Vygotsky’s theory:
1. Assess the child’s ZPD. Like Piaget, Vygotsky did not believe that
formal, standardized tests are the best way to assess children’s learning.
Rather, Vygotsky argued that assessment should focus on determining
the child’s zone of proximal development. The skilled helper presents the
child with tasks of varying difficulty to determine the best level at which
to begin instruction.
2. Use the child’s zone of proximal development in teaching. Teaching
should begin near the zone’s upper limit, so that the child can reach the
goal with help and move to a higher level of skill and knowledge. Offer
just enough assistance. You might ask, “What can I do to help you?” Or
simply observe the child’s intentions and attempts, providing support
only when it is needed.
3. Use more-skilled peers as teachers. Remember that it is not just adults
who are important in helping children learn. Children also benefit from
the support and guidance of more-skilled children.
4. Monitor and encourage children’s use of private speech. Be aware of the
developmental change from talking to oneself externally when solving a
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problem during the preschool years to talking to oneself privately in the
early elementary school years. In the elementary school years, encourage
children to internalize and self-regulate their talk to themselves.
5. Place instruction in a meaningful context. Educators today
are moving away from abstract presentations of material,
instead providing students with opportunities to experience
learning in real-world settings. For example, instead of just memorizing
math formulas, students work on math problems that have real-world
implications.
With Vygotsky’s theory in mind, let’s examine an early childhood
program that reflects these concepts. Tools of the Mind is an early-childhood
education curriculum that emphasizes children’s development of self-
regulation and the cognitive foundations of literacy. The curriculum was
created by Elena Bodrova and Deborah Leong (2007, 2015) and has been
implemented in more than 200 classrooms. Most of the children in the Tools
of the Mind programs are considered at risk of academic failure because of
their living circumstances, which in many instances are characterized by
poverty and other difficult conditions such as being homeless and having
parents with drug problems.
Tools of the Mind is grounded in Vygotsky’s (1962) theory, with special
attention to cultural tools and the development of self-regulation, the zone of
proximal development, scaffolding, private speech, shared activity, and play
as important activity. In a Tools of the Mind classroom, dramatic play has a
central role. Teachers guide children in creating themes that are based on the
children’s interests, such as treasure hunt, store, hospital, and restaurant.
Teachers also incorporate field trips, visitor presentations, videos, and books
in the development of children’s play. They help children develop a play
plan, which increases the maturity of their play. Play plans describe what the
children expect to do in the play period, including the imaginary context,
roles, and props to be used. The play plans increase the quality of their play
and self-regulation.
Scaffolding children’s writing is another important theme in the Tools of
the Mind classroom. Teachers guide children in planning their own message
by drawing a line to stand for each word the child says. Children then repeat
the message, pointing to each line as they say the word. Then the child writes
on the lines, trying to represent each word with some letters or symbols.
Research assessments of children’s writing in Tools of the Mind
classrooms revealed that they have more advanced writing skills than do
children in other early childhood programs (Bodrova & Leong, 2007, 2015).
For example, they write more complex messages, use more words, spell more
accurately, show better letter recognition, and have a better understanding of
the concept of a sentence. The effectiveness of the Tools of the Mind
approach also was examined in another study of 29 schools, 79 classrooms,
and 759 students (Blair & Raver, 2014). Positive effects of the Tools of the
Mind program were found for the cognitive processes of executive function
(improved self-regulation, for example) and attention control. Further, the
Tools of the Mind program improved children’s reading, vocabulary, and
mathematics at the end of kindergarten and into the first grade. The most
significant improvements occurred in high-poverty schools.
Evaluating Vygotsky’s Theory
How does Vygotsky’s theory compare with Piaget’s? We already have
mentioned several comparisons, such as Vygotsky’s emphasis on the
importance of inner speech in cognitive development and Piaget’s view that
such speech is immature. Figure 7 compares the two theories. The
implication of Piaget’s theory for teaching is that children need support to
explore their world and discover knowledge. The main implication of
Vygotsky’s theory is that students need many opportunities to learn with a
teacher and more-skilled peers (Gauvain, 2016; Holtzman, 2017). In both
theories, teachers serve as facilitators and guides rather than as directors and
molders.
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Figure 7 Comparison of Vygotsky’s and Piaget’s Theories
(Left) ©A.R. Lauria/Dr. Michael Cole, Laboratory of Human Cognition, University
of California, San Diego; (right) ©Bettmann/Getty Images
Even though their theories were proposed at about the same time, most of
the world learned about Vygotsky’s theory later than they learned about
Piaget’s, so Vygotsky’s theory has not yet been evaluated as thoroughly.
Vygotsky’s view of the importance of sociocultural influences on children’s
development fits with the current belief that it is important to evaluate
contextual factors in learning (Yu & Hu, 2017).
Some critics say that Vygotsky was not specific enough about age-related
changes (Gauvain & Perez, 2015). Another criticism is that he
overemphasized the role of language in thinking. His emphasis on
collaboration and guidance also has potential pitfalls. Might
facilitators be too helpful in some cases, as when a parent
becomes overbearing and controlling? Further, some children
might become lazy and expect help when they could do something on their
own.
Information Processing
Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s theories provided important ideas about how young
children think and how their thinking changes. More recently, the
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information-processing approach has generated research that illuminates how
children process information during the preschool years (Braithwaite &
Siegler, 2018a, b; Chevalier, Dauvier, & Blaye, 2018). What are the
limitations and advances in young children’s ability to pay attention to their
environment, to remember, to develop strategies and solve problems, and to
understand their own mental processes and those of others?
Attention
Recall that we defined attention as the focusing of mental resources on select
information. The child’s ability to pay attention improves significantly during
the preschool years (Wu & Scerif, 2018). Toddlers wander around, shift
attention from one activity to another, and seem to spend little time focused
on any one object or event. By comparison, the preschool child might be
observed watching television for half an hour.
Young children especially make advances in two aspects of attention:
executive attention and sustained attention (Bell & Cuevas, 2015). Executive
attention involves planning actions, allocating attention to goals, detecting
and compensating for errors, monitoring progress on tasks, and dealing with
novel or difficult circumstances (McClelland & others, 2017; Schmitt &
others, 2017). Sustained attention, also referred to as vigilance, is focused
and extended engagement with an object, task, event, or other aspect of the
environment (Benitez & others, 2017). Research indicates that although older
children and adolescents show increases in vigilance, it is during the
preschool years that individuals show the greatest increase in vigilance
(Rothbart & Posner, 2015).
In at least two ways, however, the preschool child’s control of
attention is still deficient:
What are some advances in children’s attention in early childhood?
©Weedezign/Getty Images
1. Salient versus relevant dimensions. Preschool children are likely to pay
attention to stimuli that stand out, or are salient, even when those stimuli
are not relevant to solving a problem or performing a task. For example,
if a flashy, attractive clown presents the directions for solving a problem,
preschool children are likely to pay more attention to the clown than to
the directions. After age 6 or 7, children attend more efficiently to the
dimensions of the task that are relevant, such as the directions for solving
a problem. This change reflects a shift to cognitive control of attention,
so that children act less impulsively and reflect more.
2. Planfulness. When experimenters ask children to judge whether two
complex pictures are the same, preschool children tend to use a
haphazard comparison strategy, not examining all the details before
making a judgment. By comparison, elementary-school-age children are
more likely to systematically compare the details across the pictures, one
detail at a time (Vurpillot, 1968).
In central European countries such as Hungary, kindergarten children
participate in exercises designed to improve their attention (Posner &
Rothbart, 2007). For example, in one eye-contact exercise, the teacher sits in
the center of a circle of children and each child is required to catch the
teacher’s eye before being permitted to leave the group. In other exercises
created to improve attention, teachers have children participate in stop-go
activities during which they have to listen for a specific signal, such as a
drumbeat or an exact number of rhythmic beats, before stopping the activity.
Computer exercises have been developed to improve children’s attention
(Rothbart & Posner, 2015; Stevens & Bavelier, 2012). For example, one
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study revealed that five days of computer exercises that involved learning
how to use a joystick, relying on working memory, and resolving conflict
improved the attention of 4- to 6-year-old children (Rueda, Posner, &
Rothbart, 2005). Although not commercially available, further information
about computer exercises for improving children’s attention can be
downloaded from www.teach-the-brain.org/learn/attention/index.
The ability of preschool children to control and sustain their attention is
related to school readiness (Rothbart & Posner, 2015). For example, a study
of more than 1,000 children revealed that their ability to sustain their
attention at 54 months of age was linked to their school readiness (which
included achievement and language skills) (NICHD Early Child Care
Research Network, 2005). In another study, the ability to focus attention
better at age 5 was linked to a higher level of school achievement at age 9
(Razza, Martin, & Brooks-Gunn, 2012). Also, a recent study found that
preschoolers’ sustained attention was linked to a greater likelihood of
completing college by 25 years of age (McClelland & others, 2013).
Memory
Memory—the retention of information over time—is a central process in
children’s cognitive development. Most of an infant’s memories are fragile
and, for the most part, short-lived—except for the memory of perceptual-
motor actions, which can be substantial (Bauer, 2018). Thus, to understand
the infant’s capacity to remember, we need to distinguish implicit memory
from explicit memory. Explicit memory itself, however, comes in many forms
(Radvansky & Ashcraft, 2018). One distinction is between relatively
permanent or long-term memory and short-term memory.
Short-Term Memory In short-term memory, individuals retain
information for up to 30 seconds if there is no rehearsal of the information.
Using rehearsal (repeating information after it has been presented), we can
keep information in short-term memory for a much longer period. One
method of assessing short-term memory is the memory-span task. You hear a
short list of stimuli—usually digits—presented at a rapid pace
(one per second, for example). Then you are asked to repeat the
digits.
Research with the memory-span task suggests that short-term memory
increases during early childhood. For example, in one investigation memory
span increased from about 2 digits in 2- to 3-year-old children to about 5
digits in 7-year-old children, yet between ages 7 and 13 memory span
increased by only 1½ digits (Dempster, 1981) (see Figure 8). Keep in mind,
though, that memory span varies from one individual to another.
Figure 8 Developmental Changes in Memory Span
In one study, from 2 to 7 years of age children’s memory span increased from 2 digits to
about 5 digits (Dempster, 1981). Between 7 and 13 years of age, memory span had
increased on average only another 1½ digits, to about 7 digits. What factors might
contribute to the increase in memory span during childhood?
Why does memory span change with age? Rehearsal of information is
important; older children rehearse the digits more than younger children do.
Also important are efficiency of processing and speed, especially the speed
with which memory items can be identified (Schneider, 2011).
The speed-of-processing explanation highlights a key point in the
information-processing perspective: The speed with which a child processes
information is an important aspect of the child’s cognitive abilities, and there
is abundant evidence that the speed with which many cognitive tasks are
completed improves dramatically during the childhood years (Rose, Feldman,
& Jankowski, 2015). One study found that myelination (the process by which
the sheath that encases axons helps electrical signals travel faster down the
axon) in a number of brain areas was linked to young children’s processing
speed (Chevalier & others, 2015).
How Accurate Are Young Children’s Long-Term Memories? Just as
toddlers’ short-term memory span increases during the early childhood years,
their memory also becomes more accurate. Young children can remember a
great deal of information if they are given appropriate cues and prompts
(Bruck & Ceci, 2012). Increasingly, young children are even being allowed
to testify in court, especially if they are the only witnesses to abuse or a crime
(Andrews, Ahern, & Lamb, 2017; Pantell & others, 2018). Several factors
can influence the accuracy of a young child’s memory, however (Bruck &
Ceci, 1999):
There are age differences in children’s susceptibility to suggestion.
Preschoolers are the most suggestible age group (Lehman & others,
2010). For example, preschool children are more susceptible to believing
misleading or incorrect information given after an event (Ghetti &
Alexander, 2004). Despite these age differences, there is still concern
about the reaction of older children when they are subjected to suggestive
interviews (Ahern, Kowalski, & Lamb, 2018; Peixoto & others, 2017).
There are individual differences in susceptibility. Some preschoolers are
highly resistant to interviewers’ suggestions, whereas others immediately
succumb to the slightest suggestion (Ceci, Hritz, & Royer, 2016).
Interviewing techniques can produce substantial distortions in children’s
reports about highly salient events. Children are suggestible not just
about peripheral details but also about the central aspects of an event. In
some cases, children’s false reports can be tinged with sexual
connotations. In laboratory studies, young children have made false
claims about “silly events” that involved body contact (such as “Did the
nurse lick your knee?” or “Did she blow in your ear?”). A significant
number of preschool children have falsely reported that someone touched
their private parts, kissed them, or hugged them, when these events
clearly did not happen. Nevertheless, young children are capable of
recalling much that is relevant about an event (Ahern, Kowalski, &
Lamb, 2017). When young children do recall information accurately, the
interviewer often has a neutral tone and avoids asking misleading
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questions, and there is no reason for the child to make a false report.
In sum, the accuracy of a young child’s eyewitness testimony may
depend on a number of factors, such as the type, number, and intensity of the
suggestive techniques the child has experienced (Andrews,
Ahern, & Lamb, 2017; Andrews & Lamb, 2018). It appears
that the reliability of young children’s reports has as much to
do with the skills and motivation of the interviewer as with any natural
limitations on young children’s memory (Bruck & Ceci, 2012; Ceci, Hritz, &
Royer, 2016).
Autobiographical Memory Another aspect of long-term memory that has
been extensively studied in regard to children’s development is
autobiographical memory (Bauer, 2018; Bauer & others, 2017).
Autobiographical memory involves memory of significant events and
experiences in one’s life. You are engaging in autobiographical memory
when you answer questions such as these: Who was your first-grade teacher
and what was s/he like? What is the most traumatic event that happened to
you as a child?
During the preschool years, young children’s memories increasingly take
on more autobiographical characteristics (Bauer, 2018; Bauer & Larkina,
2016). In some areas, such as remembering a story, a movie, a song, or an
interesting event or experience, young children have been shown to have
reasonably good memories. From 3 to 5 years of age, they (1) increasingly
remember events as occurring at a specific time and location, such as “on my
birthday at Chuck E. Cheese’s last year” and (2) include more elements that
are rich in detail in their narratives (Bauer, 2013). In one study, children went
from using 4 descriptive items per event at 3½ years of age to 12 such items
at 6 years of age (Fivush & Haden, 1997).
Executive Function
Recently, increased interest has been directed toward the development of
children’s executive function, an umbrella-like concept that encompasses a
number of higher-level cognitive processes linked to the development of the
brain’s prefrontal cortex (Knapp & Morton, 2017; Perone, Almy & Zelazo,
2017). Executive function involves managing one’s thoughts to engage in
goal-directed behavior and exercise self-control. Earlier in this chapter, we
described the recent interest in executive attention, which comes under the
umbrella of executive function.
In early childhood, executive function especially involves developmental
advances in cognitive inhibition (such as inhibiting a strong tendency that is
incorrect), cognitive flexibility (such as shifting attention to another item or
topic), goal-setting (such as sharing a toy or mastering a skill like catching a
ball), and delay of gratification (the ability to forego an immediate pleasure
or reward for a more desirable one later) (McClelland & others, 2017; Muller
& others, 2017). During early childhood, the relatively stimulus-driven
toddler is transformed into a child capable of flexible, goal-directed problem
solving that characterizes executive function (Zelazo & Muller, 2011).
How did Walter Mischel and his colleagues study young children’s delay of gratification?
In their research, what later developmental outcomes were linked to the preschoolers’
ability to delay gratification?
©Amy Kiley Photography
Researchers have found that advances in executive function during the
preschool years are linked with math skills, language development, and
school readiness (Blair, 2017; Hoskyn, Iarocci, & Young, 2017; Liu &
others, 2018; Muller & others, 2017). One study revealed that executive
function skills predicted mathematical gains in kindergarten (Fuhs & others,
2014). Another study of young children also revealed that executive function
was associated with emergent literacy and vocabulary development (Becker
& others, 2014). And a recent study found that young children who showed
delayed development of executive function had a lower level of school
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readiness (Willoughby & others, 2016).
Walter Mischel and his colleagues (Berman & others, 2013; Mischel,
2014; Mischel, Cantor, & Feldman, 1996; Mischel & Moore, 1980; Mischel
& others, 2011; Schlam & others, 2013) have conducted a number of studies
of delay of gratification with young children. One way they assess delay of
gratification is to place a young child alone in a room with an alluring
marshmallow that is within their reach. The children are told that they either
can ring a bell at any time and eat the marshmallow or they can wait until the
experimenter returns and then receive two marshmallows. For the young
children who waited for the experimenter to return, what did they do to help
them wait? They engaged in a number of strategies to distract their attention
from the marshmallow, including singing songs, picking their noses—
anything to keep from looking at the marshmallow. Mischel and his
colleagues labeled these strategies “cool thoughts” (that is, doing non-
marshmallow-related thoughts and activities), whereas they said the young
children who looked at the marshmallow were engaging in
“hot thoughts.” The young children who engaged in cool
thoughts were more likely to eat the marshmallow later or
wait until the experimenter returned to the room. In one study using the delay
of gratification task just described, longer delay of gratification at 4 years of
age was linked to a lower body mass index (BMI) three decades later
(Schlam & others, 2013).
Researchers have found that advances in executive function in the
preschool years are linked with math skills, language development, and
school readiness (Blair & Razza, 2007). For example, a recent study found
that young children who showed delayed development of executive function
had a lower level of school readiness (Willoughby & others, 2016).
Parents and teachers play important roles in the development of executive
function (Cheng & others, 2018; Duncan, McClelland, & Acock, 2017). Ann
Masten and her colleagues (Labella & others, 2018; Masten, 2013; Masten &
others, 2008; Monn & others, 2017) have found that executive function and
parenting skills are linked to homeless children’s success in school. Masten
believes that executive function and good parenting skills are related. In her
words, “When we see kids with good executive function, we often see adults
around them that are good self-regulators. . . . Parents model, they support,
and they scaffold these skills” (Masten, 2012, p. 11). For example,
researchers have found that secure attachment to mothers during the toddler
years was linked to a higher level of executive function at 5 to 6 years of age
(Bernier & others, 2015).
Some developmental psychologists use their training in areas such as
cognitive development to pursue careers in applied areas. To read about the
work of Helen Hadani, an individual who followed this path, see the Careers
in Life-Span Development profile.
Careers in life-span development
Helen Hadani, Developmental Psychologist, Toy
Designer, and Associate Director of Research for
the Center for Childhood Creativity
Helen Hadani obtained a Ph.D. from Stanford University in
developmental psychology. As a graduate student at Stanford, she
worked part-time for Hasbro Toys and Apple testing children’s
software and computer products for young children. Her first job after
graduate school was with Zowie Intertainment, which was
subsequently bought by LEGO. In her work as a toy designer there,
Helen conducted experiments and focus groups at different stages of a
toy’s development and also studied the age-effectiveness of the toy. In
Helen’s words, “Even in a toy’s most primitive stage of development .
. . you see children’s creativity in responding to challenges, their
satisfaction when a problem is solved or simply their delight in having
fun” (Schlegel, 2000, p. 50).
More recently, she began working with the Bay Area Discovery
Museum’s Center for Childhood Creativity (CCC) in Sausalito,
California, an education-focused think tank that pioneers new
research, thought-leadership, and teacher training programs that
advance creative thinking in all children. Helen is currently the
Associate Director of Research for the CCC.
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Helen Hadani, a developmental psychologist, has worked as a toy designer and
is currently directing research on creativity at a children’s museum.
©Dr. Helen Hadani
The Child’s Theory of Mind
Even young children are curious about the nature of the human
mind (Birch & others, 2017; Devine & Hughes, 2018a, b). They have a
theory of mind, a term that refers to awareness of one’s own mental
processes and those of others. Studies of theory of mind view the child as “a
thinker who is trying to explain, predict, and understand people’s thoughts,
feelings, and utterances” (Harris, 2006). Children’s theory of mind changes
as they develop through childhood (Devine & Hughes, 2018a, b; Wellman,
2015). However, whether infants have a theory of mind continues to be
questioned by some (Rakoczy, 2012). The consensus is that some changes
occur quite early in development, as we see next (Scott & Baillargeon, 2017).
The main changes occur at ages 2 to 3, 4 to 5, and beyond age 5.
Ages 2 to 3 In this time frame, children begin to understand the following
three mental states:
1. Perceptions: The child realizes that other people see what is in front of
their eyes and not necessarily what is in front of the child’s eyes.
2. Emotions: The child can distinguish between positive and negative
emotions. A child might say, “Vic feels bad.”
3. Desires: The child understands that if someone wants something, he or
she will try to get it. A child might say, “I want my mommy.”
Children refer to desires earlier and more frequently than they refer to
cognitive states such as thinking and knowing (Harris, 2006). Two- to 3-year-
olds understand the way desires are related to actions and to simple emotions
(Harris, 2006). For example, they understand that people will search for what
they want and that if they obtain it, they are likely to feel happy, but if they
don’t, they will keep searching for it and are likely to feel sad or angry.
Ages 4 to 5 Children come to understand that the mind can represent
objects and events accurately or inaccurately (Tompkins & others, 2017). The
realization that people can have false beliefs—beliefs that are not true—
develops in a majority of children by the time they are 5 years old (Wellman,
Cross, & Watson, 2001) (see Figure 9).
Figure 9 Developmental Changes in False-Belief Performance
False-belief performance—the child’s understanding that a person has a false belief that
contradicts reality—dramatically increases from 2½ years of age through the middle of the
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elementary school years. In a summary of the results of many studies, 2½-year-olds gave
incorrect responses about 80 percent of the time (Wellman, Cross, & Watson, 2001). At 3
years, 8 months, they were correct about 50 percent of the time, and after that, gave
increasingly correct responses.
In a classic false-belief task, children are told a story about Sally and
Anne. In the story, Sally places a toy in a basket and then leaves the room. In
her absence, Anne takes the toy from the basket and places it in a box.
Children are asked where Sally will look for the toy when she returns. The
major finding is that 3-year-olds tend to fail false-belief tasks, saying that
Sally will look in the box (even though Sally could not know that the toy has
been moved to this new location). Four-year-olds and older children tend to
pass the task, correctly saying that Sally will have a “false belief”—she will
think the object is in the basket, even though that belief is now false. The
conclusion from these studies is that children younger than age 4 do not
understand that it is possible to have a false belief.
Beyond Age 5 It is only beyond the preschool years that children have a
deepening appreciation of the mind itself rather than just an understanding of
mental states (Wellman, 2015). Not until middle and late childhood do
children see the mind as an active constructor of knowledge or a processing
center (Flavell, Green, & Flavell, 2000). It is only then that they move from
understanding that beliefs can be false to realizing that the same event can be
open to multiple interpretations (Carpendale & Chandler, 1996).
Individual Differences As in other developmental research, there are
individual differences in the ages when children reach certain milestones in
their theory of mind (Devine & Hughes, 2018a, b; Wellman,
2015). For example, children who talk with their parents about
feelings frequently as 2-year-olds show better performance on
theory of mind tasks (Ruffman, Slade, & Crowe, 2002), as do children who
frequently engage in pretend play (Harris, 2000).
Executive function, which describes several functions discussed earlier in
this chapter, such as planning and inhibition, that are important for flexible,
future-oriented behavior, also is connected to theory of mind development
(Lecce & others, 2018; Powell & Carey, 2017). Children who perform better
at such executive function tasks show a better understanding of theory of
mind (Benson & Sabbagh, 2017). For example, in one study of 3- to 5-year-
old children, earlier development of executive function predicted theory of
mind performance, especially on false belief tasks (Doenyas, Yavuz, &
Selcuk, 2018). Language development also likely plays a prominent role in
the increasingly reflective nature of theory of mind as children go through the
early childhood and middle and late childhood years (Meins & others, 2013).
Researchers have found that differences in children’s language skills predict
performance on theory of mind tasks (Devine & Hughes, 2018a, b). For
example, in one study of 3- to 5-year-old children, earlier development of
executive function predicted theory of mind performance, especially on false
belief tasks (Doenyas, Yavuz, & Selcuk, 2018).
Among other factors that influence children’s theory of mind
development are advances in prefrontal cortex functioning (Powers, Chavez,
& Heatherton, 2016), engaging in make-believe play (Kavanaugh, 2006), and
various aspects of social interaction (Hughes, Devine, & Wang, 2017).
Among the social interaction factors that advance children’s theory of mind
are being securely attached to parents who engage children in mental state
talk (“That’s a good thought you have” or “Can you tell what he’s
thinking?”) (Laranjo & others, 2010), having older siblings and friends who
engage in mental state talk (Hughes & others, 2010), and living in a higher-
socioeconomic-status family (Devine & Hughes, 2018a). A recent study
found that parental engagement in mind-mindedness (viewing children as
mental agents by making mind-related comments to them) advanced
preschool children’s theory of mind (Hughes, Devine, & Wang, 2018). Also,
research indicates that children with an advanced theory of mind are more
popular with their peers and have better social skills in peer relations
(Peterson & others, 2016; Slaughter & others, 2014).
Another individual difference in understanding the mind involves autism
(Jones & others, 2018; Leung & others, 2016). Researchers have found that
children with autism have difficulty developing a theory of mind, especially
in understanding others’ beliefs and emotions (Berenguer & others, 2018;
Garon, Smith, & Bryson, 2018). Also, a recent study found that theory of
mind predicted the severity of autism in children (Hoogenhout & Malcolm-
Smith, 2017). Thus, it is not surprising that autistic children have difficulty in
interactions with others.
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Language Development
Toddlers move rather quickly from producing two-word utterances to
creating three-, four-, and five-word combinations. Between ages 2 and 3,
they begin the transition from saying simple sentences that express a single
proposition to saying complex sentences.
As young children learn the special features of their own language, there
are extensive regularities in how they acquire that particular language (Clark,
2017; Litz, Snyder, & Pater, 2017). For example, all children learn the
prepositions on and in before other prepositions. Children learning other
languages, such as Russian or Chinese, also acquire the particular features of
those languages in a consistent order.
Understanding Phonology and Morphology
Phonology refers to the sound system of a language, including the sounds
used and how they may be combined. During the preschool years, most
children gradually become more sensitive to the sounds of spoken words and
increasingly capable of producing all the sounds of their language
(Goad, 2017; Kelly & others, 2018). By their third birthday they
can produce all the vowel sounds and most of the consonant
sounds (Menn & Stoel-Gammon, 2009). They recognize the sounds before
they can produce them, as in the noun “Merry-go-round.”
By the time children move beyond two-word utterances, they demonstrate
a knowledge of morphology rules (Snyder, 2017). Morphology refers to the
units of meaning involved in word formation. Children begin using the plural
and possessive forms of nouns (such as dogs and dog’s). They put
appropriate endings on verbs (such as -s when the subject is third-person
singular and -ed for the past tense). They use prepositions (such as in and on),
articles (such as a and the), and various forms of the verb to be (such as “I
was going to the store”). Some of the best evidence for changes in children’s
use of morphological rules occurs in their overgeneralization of the rules, as
when a preschool child says “foots” instead of “feet,” or “goed” instead of
“went.”
In a classic experiment that was designed to study children’s knowledge
of morphological rules, such as how to make a plural, Jean Berko (1958)
presented preschool and first-grade children with cards such as the one shown
in Figure 10. The children were asked to look at the card while the
experimenter read aloud the words on the card. Then the children were asked
to supply the missing word. This might sound easy, but Berko was interested
in the children’s ability to apply the appropriate morphological rule—in this
case, to say “wugs” with the z sound that indicates the plural.
Figure 10 Stimuli in Berko’s Study of Young Children’s Understanding of
Morphological Rules.
In Jean Berko’s (1958) study, young children were presented with cards such as this one
with a “wug” on it. Then the children were asked to supply the missing word; in supplying
the missing word, they also had to say it correctly. “Wugs” is the correct response here.
Source: Gleason, Jean Berko, “The Child’s Learning of English Morphology,”
Word, Vol. 14, 1958, p. 154. Copyright ©1958 by Jean Berko Gleason. All rights
reserved. Used with permission.
Although the children’s answers were not perfect, they were much better
than chance. What makes Berko’s study impressive is that most of the words
were made up for the experiment. Thus, the children could not base their
responses on remembering past instances of hearing the words. That they
could make the plurals or past tenses of words they had never heard before
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was proof that they knew the morphological rules.
Changes in Syntax and Semantics
Preschool children also learn and apply rules of syntax, which involves the
way words are combined to form acceptable phrases and sentences (Clark,
2017; Tieu & others, 2018). They show a growing mastery of complex rules
for how words should be ordered. Consider wh- questions, such as “Where is
Daddy going?” or “What is that boy doing?” To ask these questions properly,
the child must know two important differences between wh- questions and
affirmative statements (for instance, “Daddy is going to work” and “That boy
is waiting for the school bus”). First, a wh- word must be added at the
beginning of the sentence. Second, the auxiliary verb must be inverted—that
is, exchanged with the subject of the sentence. Young children learn quite
early where to put the wh- word, but they take much longer to learn the
auxiliary-inversion rule. Thus, preschool children might ask, “Where Daddy
is going?” and “What that boy is doing?”
Gains in semantics, the aspect of language that refers to the meaning of
words and sentences, also characterize early childhood. Vocabulary
development is dramatic (Thornton, 2017). Some experts have concluded that
between 18 months and 6 years, young children learn an average of about one
new word every waking hour (Gelman & Kalish, 2006)! By the time they
enter first grade, it is estimated that children know about 14,000 words
(Clark, 1993).
How can children learn so many new words so quickly? One
possible explanation is fast mapping, which involves children’s
ability to make an initial connection between a word and its
referent after only limited exposure to the word (McGregor, 2017; van Hout,
2017). Researchers have found that exposure to words on multiple occasions
over several days results in more successful word learning than the same
number of exposures in a single day (Childers & Tomasello, 2002). Also, fast
mapping brings a deeper understanding of word meaning, such as where the
word can apply and its nuances.
What are some important aspects of how word learning optimally occurs?
Following are six key principles in young children’s vocabulary development
(Harris, Golinkoff, & Hirsh-Pasek, 2011):
1. Children learn the words they hear most often. They learn the words
they encounter when interacting with parents, teachers, siblings, and
peers, and also from books. They especially benefit from encountering
words that they do not know.
2. Children learn words for things and events that interest them. Parents
and teachers can direct young children to experience words in contexts
that interest the children; playful peer interactions are especially helpful
in this regard.
3. Children learn words best in responsive and interactive contexts rather
than passive contexts. Children who experience turn-taking
opportunities, joint focusing experiences, and positive, sensitive
socializing contexts with adults encounter the scaffolding necessary for
optimal word learning. They learn words less effectively when they are
passive learners.
4. Children learn words best in contexts that are meaningful. Young
children learn new words more effectively when new words are
encountered in integrated contexts rather than as isolated facts.
5. Children learn words best when they access clear information about
word meaning. Children whose parents and teachers are sensitive to
words the children might not understand and provide support and
elaboration with hints about word meaning learn words better than
children whose parents and teachers quickly state a new word and don’t
monitor whether the child understands its meaning.
6. Children learn words best when grammar and vocabulary are
considered. Children who experience a large number of words and
diversity in verbal stimulation develop a richer vocabulary and better
understanding of grammar. In many cases, vocabulary and grammar
development are connected.
Advances in Pragmatics
Changes in pragmatics, the appropriate use of language in different contexts,
also characterize young children’s language development (Fujiki & Brinton,
2017). A 6-year-old is simply a much better conversationalist than a 2-year-
old. What are some of the improvements in pragmatics during the preschool
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years?
Young children begin to engage in extended discourse (Akhtar & Herold,
2008). For example, they learn culturally specific rules of conversation and
politeness, and they become sensitive to the need to adapt their speech to
different settings. Their developing linguistic skills and increasing ability to
take the perspective of others contribute to their generation of more
competent narratives.
As children grow older, they become increasingly able to talk about
things that are not here (Grandma’s house, for example) and not now (what
happened to them yesterday or might happen tomorrow, for example). A
preschool child can tell you what she wants for lunch tomorrow, something
that would not have been possible at the two-word stage of language
development.
Around age 4 or 5, children learn to change their speech style to suit the
situation. For example, even 4-year-old children speak to a 2-year-old
differently from the way they talk to a same-aged peer; they use shorter
sentences with the 2-year-old. They also speak to an adult differently from a
same-aged peer, using more polite and formal language with the adult (Shatz
& Gelman, 1973).
Young Children’s Literacy
Concern about U.S. children’s ability to read and write has led to a careful
examination of preschool and kindergarten children’s experiences, with the
hope that a positive orientation toward reading and writing can be developed
early in life (Reutzel & Cooter, 2019; Temple & others, 2018). Parents and
teachers need to provide young children with a supportive environment for
the development of literacy skills (Meyer, 2017). Children should be active
participants in a wide range of interesting listening, talking, writing, and
reading experiences (Tompkins, 2017, 2019).
Instruction should be built on what children already know about oral
language, reading, and writing. Further, early precursors of literacy and
academic success include language skills, phonological and syntactic
knowledge, letter identification, and enjoyment of books (Temple & others,
2018).
What are some strategies for using books effectively with preschool
children? Ellen Galinsky (2010) offers the following recommendations:
Use books to initiate conversation with young children. Ask them to put
themselves in the book characters’ places and imagine what they might be
thinking or feeling.
Use what and why questions. Ask young children to tell you what they
think is going to happen next in a story and then to see if it occurs.
Encourage children to ask questions about stories.
Choose some books that play with language. Creative books on the
alphabet, including those with rhymes, often interest young children.
Early Childhood Education
How do early education programs treat children, and how do the children
fare? Our exploration of early childhood education focuses on variations in
programs, education for children who are disadvantaged, and some
controversies in early childhood education.
Variations in Early Childhood Education
There are many variations in the way young children are educated
(Bredekamp, 2017; Gestwicki, 2017). The foundation of early childhood
education is the child-centered kindergarten.
The Child-Centered Kindergarten
Nurturing is a key aspect of the child-centered kindergarten, which
emphasizes educating the whole child and promoting his or her physical,
cognitive, and socioemotional development (Morrison, 2017, 2018).
Instruction is organized around the child’s needs, interests, and learning
styles. Emphasis is on the process of learning, rather than what is learned
(Feeney, Moravcik, & Nolte, 2019). The child-centered kindergarten honors
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three principles: (1) each child follows a unique developmental pattern; (2)
young children learn best through firsthand experiences with people and
materials; and (3) play is extremely important in the child’s total
development. Experimenting, exploring, discovering, trying out,
restructuring, speaking, and listening are frequent activities in excellent
kindergarten programs. Such programs are closely attuned to the
developmental status of 4- and 5-year-old children.
The Montessori Approach
Montessori schools are patterned on the educational philosophy of Maria
Montessori (1870–1952), an Italian physician-turned-educator who at the
beginning of the twentieth century crafted a revolutionary approach to young
children’s education. The Montessori approach is a philosophy
of education in which children are given considerable freedom
and spontaneity in choosing activities. They are allowed to move
from one activity to another as they desire, and the teacher acts as a facilitator
rather than a director. The teacher shows the child how to perform intellectual
activities, demonstrates interesting ways to explore curriculum materials, and
offers help when the child requests it (Bahmaee, Saadatmand, &
Yarmohammadian, 2016; Taylor, 2017). “By encouraging children to make
decisions from an early age, Montessori programs seek to develop self-
regulated problem solvers who can make choices and manage their time
effectively” (Hyson, Copple, & Jones, 2006, p. 14). The number of
Montessori schools in the United States has expanded dramatically in recent
years, from one school in 1959 to 355 schools in 1970 and more than 4,000
today.
Larry Page and Sergey Brin, founders of the highly successful Internet search engine,
Google, said that their early years at Montessori schools were a major factor in their
success (International Montessori Council, 2006). During an interview with Barbara
Walters, they said they learned how to be self-directed and self-starters at Montessori
(ABC News, 2005). They commented that their Montessori experiences encouraged them
to think for themselves and allowed them the freedom to develop their own interests.
©James Leynse/Corbis Images/Getty Images
Some developmental psychologists favor the Montessori approach, but
others believe that it neglects children’s socioemotional development. For
example, although the Montessori approach fosters independence and the
development of cognitive skills, it deemphasizes verbal interaction between
the teacher and child and between peers. Montessori’s critics also argue that
it restricts imaginative play and that its heavy reliance on self-corrective
materials may not adequately allow for creativity and for a variety of learning
styles.
Developmentally Appropriate Education
Many educators and psychologists conclude that preschool and young
elementary school children learn best through active, hands-on teaching
methods such as games and dramatic play. They believe that schools need to
accommodate individual differences in children’s development. They also
argue that schools should focus on promoting children’s socioemotional
development as well as their cognitive development. Educators refer to this
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type of schooling as developmentally appropriate practice (DAP), which is
based on knowledge of the typical development of children within a
particular age span (age-appropriateness), as well as on the uniqueness of the
individual child (individual-appropriateness). DAP emphasizes the
importance of creating settings that encourage children to be active learners
and reflect children’s interests and capabilities (Beaver, Wyatt, & Jackman,
2018; Bredekamp, 2017; Morrison, 2017, 2018). Desired outcomes for DAP
include thinking critically, working cooperatively, solving problems,
developing self-regulatory skills, and enjoying learning. The emphasis in
DAP is on the process of learning rather than on its content.
Do developmentally appropriate educational practices improve young
children’s development? Some researchers have found that young children in
developmentally appropriate classrooms are likely to feel less stress, be more
motivated, be more socially skilled, have better work habits, be more
creative, have better language skills, and demonstrate better math skills than
children in developmentally inappropriate classrooms (Hart & others, 2003).
However, not all studies find DAP to have significant positive effects
(Hyson, Copple, & Jones, 2006). Among the reasons that it is difficult to
generalize about research on developmentally appropriate education is that
individual programs often vary, and developmentally
appropriate education is an evolving concept. Recent changes
in the concept have given more attention to sociocultural
factors and the teacher’s active involvement and implementation of
systematic intentions, as well as how strongly academic skills should be
emphasized and how they should be taught.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you design a
developmentally
appropriate lesson to
teach kindergartners the
concept of gravity?
Education for Young Children Who Are Disadvantaged
For many years, U.S. children from low-income families did not receive any
education before they entered the first grade. Often when they began first
grade they were already several steps behind their classmates in readiness to
learn. In the summer of 1965, the federal government began striving to break
the cycle of poverty and poor education for young children through Project
Head Start, a compensatory program designed to give children from low-
income families the opportunity to acquire skills and experiences that are
important for success in school (Hustedt, Friedman, & Barnett, 2012; Miller,
Farkas, & Duncan, 2016; Paschall & Mastergeorge, 2018). More than half a
century after the program’s inception, Head Start continues to be the largest
federally funded program for U.S. children, with almost 1 million children
enrolled in it annually (Hagen & Lamb-Parker, 2008). In 2007, 3 percent of
Head Start children were 5 years old, 51 percent were 4 years old, 36 percent
were 3 years old, and 10 percent were under age 3 (Administration for
Children & Families, 2008).
Mixed results have been found for Head Start. A recent study found that
one year of Head Start was linked to higher performance in early math, early
reading, and receptive vocabulary (Miller, Farkas, & Duncan, 2016). In
another study, the best results occurred for Head Start children who had low
initial cognitive ability, whose parents had low levels of education, and who
attended Head Start more than 20 hours a week (Lee & others, 2014). It is not
unusual to find early gains, then see them go away in elementary school. For
example, a national evaluation of Head Start revealed that the program had a
positive influence on the language and cognitive development of 3- and 4-
year-olds (Puma & others, 2010). However, by the end of the first grade,
there were few lasting outcomes.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you explain the
importance of including
health services as part of
Page 165
an effective Head Start
program?
Often the best Head Start results occur when parents make positive
contributions to their young children’s development (Alarcon, 2017). For
example, two recent studies found that improved parenting engagement and
skills were linked to the success of children in Head Start programs (Ansari
& Gershoff, 2016; Roggman & others, 2016).
Also, one-fourth of Head Start children have mothers who also
participated in Head Start. In a multigenerational study, a positive influence
on cognitive and socioemotional development (assessed in the third grade)
occurred for Head Start children whose mothers had also attended Head Start
programs (when compared with Head Start children whose mothers were not
in Head Start) (Chor, 2018). This result likely occurred because of improved
family resources and home learning environments.
Early Head Start was established in 1995 to serve children from birth to 3
years of age (Burgette & others, 2017). In 2007, half of all new funds
appropriated for Head Start programs were used for the expansion of Early
Head Start. One study revealed that Early Head Start had a protective effect
on risks young children might experience in parenting stress, language
development, and self-control (Ayoub, Vallotton, & Mastergeorge, 2011).
However, some studies have revealed mixed effects for Early Head Start
(Love & others, 2013).
More attention needs to be given to developing consistently high-quality
Head Start programs (Faria & others, 2017). One person who is strongly
motivated to make Head Start a valuable learning experience for young
children from disadvantaged backgrounds is Yolanda Garcia. To read about
her work, see Careers in Life-Span Development.
Careers in life-span development
Yolanda Garcia, Director of Children’s Services,
Head Start
Yolanda Garcia was the director of the Children’s Services
Department of the Santa Clara, California, County Office of
Education for several decades. As director, she was responsible for
managing child development programs for 2,500 3- to 5-year-old
children in 127 classrooms. Recently, she became the Director of
WestEd’s E3 Institute, which focuses on excellence in early
childhood education in Santa Clara County.
Her training includes two master’s degrees: one in public policy
and child welfare from the University of Chicago and another in
education administration from San Jose State University.
Garcia has served on many national advisory committees that
have produced improvements in the staffing of Head Start programs.
Most notably, she served on the Head Start Quality Committee that
recommended the development of Early Head Start and revised
performance standards for Head Start programs. Garcia currently is a
member of the American Academy of Science Committee on the
Integration of Science and Early Childhood Education.
Yolanda Garcia, Director of WestEd’s E3 Institute, works with a child.
©Yolanda Garcia
One high-quality early childhood education program (although not a
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Head Start program) is the Perry Preschool program in Ypsilanti, Michigan, a
two-year preschool program that includes weekly home visits from program
personnel. In analyses of the long-term effects of the program, adults who
had been in the Perry Preschool program were compared with a control group
of adults from the same background who had not received the enriched early
childhood education (Schweinhart & others, 2005; Weikert, 1993). Those
who had been in the Perry Preschool program had fewer teen pregnancies and
better high school graduation rates, and at age 40 they were more likely to be
in the workforce, to own a home, to have a savings account, and to have had
fewer arrests.
Controversies in Early Childhood Education
Two current controversies in early childhood education involve (1) what the
curriculum for early childhood education should be (Morrison, 2017, 2018)
and (2) whether preschool education should be universal in the United States
(Zigler, Gilliam, & Barnett, 2011).
Controversy Over Curriculum
A current controversy in early childhood education involves what the
curriculum for early childhood education should be (Bredekamp, 2017;
Follari, 2019). On one side are those who advocate a child-centered,
constructivist approach much like that emphasized by the National
Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), along the lines
of developmentally appropriate practice. On the other side are those who
advocate an academic, direct-instruction approach.
In practice, many high-quality early-childhood education programs
include both academic and constructivist approaches. Many education
experts, such as Lilian Katz (1999), though, worry about academic
approaches that place too much pressure on young children to achieve and
don’t provide opportunities to actively construct knowledge. Competent early
childhood programs also should focus on both cognitive
development and socioemotional development, not
exclusively on cognitive development (Feeney, Moravcik, &
Nolte, 2019; Follari, 2019).
What is the curriculum controversy in early childhood education?
©Ronnie Kaufman/Corbis/Getty Images
Universal Preschool Education
Another controversy in early childhood education focuses on whether
preschool education should be instituted for all U.S. 4-year-old children.
Publicly funded preschool programs now are present in 42 states and the
District of Columbia (National Institute for Early Education Research, 2016).
Edward Zigler and his colleagues (2006, 2011) argue that the United
States should have universal preschool education. They emphasize that
quality preschools prepare children for later academic success. Zigler and his
colleagues (2006) cite research showing that quality preschool programs
decrease the likelihood that children will be retained in a grade or drop out
before graduating from high school. They also point to analyses indicating
that universal preschool would bring cost savings on the order of billions of
dollars because of a diminished need for remedial and justice services
(Karoly & Bigelow, 2005).
Critics of universal preschool education argue that the gains attributed to
preschool and kindergarten education are often overstated. They especially
stress that research has not proven that nondisadvantaged children benefit
from attending a preschool. Thus, the critics say it is more important to
improve preschool education for young children who are disadvantaged than
to fund preschool education for all 4-year-old children. Some critics,
especially homeschooling advocates, emphasize that young children should
be educated by their parents, not by schools. Thus, universal preschool
education remains a subject of controversy.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you advise
preschool teachers to
balance the
development of young
children’s skills for
academic achievement
with opportunities for
healthy social
interaction?
Summary
Physical Changes
The average child grows 2½ inches in height and gains between 5 and 7
pounds a year during early childhood, although growth patterns vary from
one child to another.
Some of the brain’s growth in early childhood is due to increases in the
number and size of dendrites, some to myelination. From ages 3 to 6, the
most rapid growth in the brain occurs in the frontal lobes.
Gross and fine motor skills improve dramatically during early childhood.
Too many young children in the United States are being raised on diets
that are too high in fat. Other nutritional concerns include malnutrition in
early childhood and the inadequate diets of many children living in
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poverty. The child’s life should be centered on activities, not meals.
Regular exercise should be a part of young children’s lives.
Accidents are the leading cause of death in young children. A special
concern is the poor health status of many young children in low-income
families. There has been a dramatic increase in HIV/AIDS in young
children in developing countries in recent decades.
Cognitive Changes
According to Piaget, in the preoperational stage children cannot yet
perform operations, but they begin to represent the world with symbols,
to form stable concepts, and to reason. Preoperational thought is
characterized by two substages: symbolic function (2 to 4 years) and
intuitive thought (4 to 7 years). Centration and a lack of conservation also
characterize the preoperational stage.
Vygotsky’s theory represents a social constructivist approach to
development. Vygotsky argues that it is important to discover
the child’s zone of proximal development to improve the
child’s learning.
Young children make substantial strides in executive and sustained
attention. Significant improvement in short-term memory occurs during
early childhood. Advances in executive function, an umbrella-like
concept that consists of a number of higher-level cognitive processes
linked to the development of the prefrontal cortex, occur in early
childhood. Theory of mind is the awareness of one’s own mental
processes and the mental processes of others. Children begin to
understand mental states involving perceptions, emotions, and desires at 2
to 3 years of age and at 4 to 5 years of age realize that people can have
false beliefs.
Language Development
Young children increase their grasp of language’s rule systems. In terms
of phonology, children become more sensitive to the sounds of spoken
language. Berko’s classic study demonstrated that young children
understand morphological rules.
Preschool children learn and apply rules of syntax, which involves how
words should be ordered. In terms of semantics, vocabulary development
increases dramatically in early childhood.
Young children’s conversational skills improve in early childhood.
Early precursors of literacy and academic success develop in early
childhood.
Early Childhood Education
The child-centered kindergarten emphasizes the education of the whole
child. The Montessori approach has become increasingly popular.
Developmentally appropriate practice focuses on the typical patterns of
children (age appropriateness) and the uniqueness of each child
(individual appropriateness).
The U.S. government has tried to break the poverty cycle with programs
such as Head Start. Model programs have had positive effects on young
children’s education.
Controversy over early childhood education involves what the curriculum
should be and whether universal preschool education should be
implemented.
Key Terms
animism
centration
child-centered kindergarten
conservation
developmentally appropriate practice (DAP)
egocentrism
executive attention
executive function
fast mapping
intuitive thought substage
Montessori approach
morphology
myelination
operations
phonology
pragmatics
preoperational stage
Project Head Start
semantics
short-term memory
social constructivist approach
sustained attention
symbolic function substage
syntax
theory of mind
zone of proximal development (ZPD)
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©Rawpixel/Getty Images
6
Socioemotional
Development in Early
Childhood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Emotional and Personality Development
The Self
Emotional Development
Moral Development
Gender
Families
Parenting
Child Maltreatment
Sibling Relationships and Birth Order
The Changing Family in a Changing Society
Peer Relations, Play, and Media/Screen Time
Peer Relations
Play
Media and Screen Time
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Nurturing Socioemotional
Development
Like many children, Sarah Newland loves animals. During a trip to
the zoo when she was 4 years old, Sarah learned about an animal
that was a member of an endangered species, and she became
motivated to help. With her mother’s guidance, she baked lots of
cakes and cookies, then sold them on the sidewalk outside her
home. She was excited about making $35 from the cake and cookie
sales, and she mailed the money to the World Wildlife Fund.
Several weeks later, the fund wrote back to Sarah requesting more
money. Sarah was devastated because she thought she had taken
care of the animal problem. Her mother consoled her and told her
that the endangered animal problem and many others are so big
that it takes ongoing help from many people to solve them. Her
mother’s guidance when Sarah was a young child must have
worked because by the end of elementary school, Sarah had begun
helping out at a child-care center and working with her mother to
Page 169
provide meals to the homeless.
Sensitive parents like Sarah’s mother can encourage young
children’s sense of morality. Just as parents support and guide their
children to become good readers, musicians, or athletes, they also
play key roles in promoting young children’s socioemotional
development. (Source: Kantrowitz & Namuth, 1991). ■
Emotional and Personality
Development
Many changes characterize young children’s socioemotional development in
early childhood. Children’s developing minds and social experiences produce
remarkable advances in the development of the self, emotional maturity,
moral understanding, and gender awareness.
The Self
During the second year of life, children make considerable progress in self-
recognition. In the early childhood years, young children develop in many
ways that enable them to enhance their self-understanding.
Initiative Versus Guilt
Erik Erikson’s (1968) eight developmental stages are encountered during
certain time periods in the human life span. Erikson’s first stage, trust versus
mistrust, describes what he regarded as the main developmental task of
infancy. According to Erikson, the psychosocial stage associated with early
childhood is initiative versus guilt. At this point in development, children
have become convinced that they are persons of their own; during early
childhood, they begin to discover what kind of person they will become.
They identify intensely with their parents, who most of the time appear to
them to be powerful and beautiful, though often unreasonable, disagreeable,
and sometimes even dangerous. During early childhood, children use their
perceptual, motor, cognitive, and language skills to make things happen.
They have a surplus of energy that permits them to forget failures quickly and
to approach new areas that seem desirable—even if dangerous—with
undiminished zest and an increased sense of direction. On their own
initiative, then, children at this stage exuberantly move out into a wider social
world.
The great governor of initiative is conscience. Children’s initiative and
enthusiasm may bring them not only rewards but also guilt, which lowers
self-esteem.
Self-Understanding and Understanding Others
Research studies have revealed that young children are more psychologically
aware—of themselves and others—than was formerly thought (Thompson,
2015). This increased awareness reflects young children’s expanding
psychological sophistication.
What characterizes young children’s self-understanding?
©Craig G. Bates/Getty Images
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Self-Understanding In Erikson’s portrait of early childhood, the young
child clearly has begun to develop self-understanding, which is the
representation of self, the substance and content of self-conceptions (Harter,
2012, 2016). Though not the whole of personal identity, self-understanding
provides its rational underpinnings. Mainly through interviews, researchers
have probed children’s conceptions of many aspects of self-understanding
(Harter, 2016).
Early self-understanding involves self-recognition. In early childhood,
young children think the self can be described by material characteristics
such as size, shape, and color. They distinguish themselves from others
through physical and material attributes. Says 4-year-old Sandra, “I’m
different from Jennifer because I have brown hair and she has blond hair.”
Says 4-year-old Ralph, “I am different from Hank because I am taller, and I
am different from my sister because I have a bicycle.” Physical activities are
also a central component of the self in early childhood (Keller, Ford, &
Meacham, 1978). For example, preschool children often
describe themselves in terms of activities such as play. In
sum, in early childhood, children often provide self-
descriptions that involve body attributes, material possessions, and physical
activities.
Although young children mainly describe themselves in terms of
concrete, observable features and activities, at age 4 to 5, as they hear others
use psychological trait and emotion terms, they begin to include these in their
self-descriptions (Marsh, Ellis, & Craven, 2002). Thus, in a self-description a
4-year-old might say, “I’m not scared. I’m always happy.”
Young children’s self-descriptions are typically unrealistically positive,
as reflected in the comment of the 4-year-old who says he is always happy,
which he is not (Harter, 2012, 2016). They express this optimism because
they don’t yet distinguish between their desired competence and their actual
competence, tend to confuse ability and effort (thinking that differences in
ability can be changed as easily as can differences in effort), don’t engage in
spontaneous social comparison of their abilities with those of others, and tend
to compare their present abilities with what they could do at an earlier age
(which usually makes them look quite good).
Understanding Others Children also make advances in their
understanding of others (Danovitch & Mills, 2018; Harter, 2016; Landrum,
Pflaum, & Mills, 2016; Ma & others, 2018). Young children’s theory of mind
includes understanding that other people have emotions and desires (Devine
& Hughes, 2018a, b). And at age 4 to 5 children not only start describing
themselves in terms of psychological traits but also begin to perceive others
in terms of psychological traits. Thus, a 4-year-old might say, “My teacher is
nice.”
An important part of children’s socioemotional development is gaining an
understanding that people don’t always give accurate reports of their beliefs
(Mills & Elashi, 2014). Researchers have found that even 4-year-olds
understand that people may make statements that aren’t true to obtain what
they want or to avoid trouble (Lee & others, 2002). Another important aspect
of understanding others involves understanding joint commitments. As
children approach their third birthday, their collaborative interactions with
others increasingly involve obligations to the partner (Tomasello, 2014).
Young children are more psychologically aware of themselves and others than used to be
thought. Some children are better than others at understanding people’s feelings and
desires—and, to some degree, these individual differences are influenced by conversations
caregivers have with young children about feelings and desires.
©Don Hammond/Design Pics
Young children also learn extensively through observing others’
behavior. For example, a recent study found that young children who
observed a peer being rewarded for confessing to cheating on a task were
more likely to be more honest in the future themselves (Ma & others, 2018).
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Both the extensive theory of mind research and the recent research on
young children’s social understanding underscore that young children are not
as egocentric as Piaget envisioned (Birch & others, 2017; Devine & Hughes,
2018a, b). Piaget’s concept of egocentrism has become so ingrained in
people’s thinking about young children that too often the current research on
social awareness in infancy and early childhood has been overlooked.
Research increasingly shows that young children are more socially sensitive
and perceptive than previously envisioned, suggesting that parents and
teachers can help them to better understand and interact in the social world by
how they interact with them (Thompson, 2015). If young children are seeking
to better understand various mental and emotional states (intentions, goals,
feelings, desires) that they know underlie people’s actions, then talking with
them about these internal states can improve young children’s understanding
of them (Thompson, 2015).
However, there is ongoing debate about whether young children are
socially sensitive or basically egocentric (Birch & others, 2017). Ross
Thompson (2012, 2015) comes down on the side of viewing
young children as socially sensitive, while Susan Harter
(2012, 2016) argues that there is still evidence to support the
conclusion that young children are essentially egocentric.
Emotional Development
The young child’s growing awareness of self is linked to the ability to feel an
expanding range of emotions. Young children, like adults, experience many
emotions during the course of a day. Their emotional development allows
them to try to make sense of other people’s emotional reactions and to begin
to control their own emotions (Blair, 2017; Morris & others, 2018; Rogers &
others, 2016).
Expressing Emotions
Recall that even young infants experience emotions such as joy and fear, but
to experience self-conscious emotions children must be able to refer to
themselves and be aware of themselves as distinct from others (Lewis, 2010,
2014, 2015, 2016). Pride, shame, embarrassment, and guilt are examples of
self-conscious emotions. These emotions do not appear to develop until self-
awareness appears around 18 months of age. In a recent study, the broad
capacity for self-evaluative emotion was present in the preschool years and
was linked to young children’s empathetic concern (Ross, 2017). In this
study, young children’s moral pride, pride in response to achievement, and
resilience to shame were linked to a greater tendency to engage in
spontaneous helping.
During the early childhood years, emotions such as pride and guilt
become more common. They are especially influenced by parents’ responses
to children’s behavior. For example, a young child may experience shame
when a parent says, “You should feel bad about biting your sister.” One study
revealed that young children’s emotional expression was linked to their
parents’ own expressive behavior (Nelson & others, 2012). In this study,
mothers who expressed a high incidence of positive emotions and a low
incidence of negative emotions at home had children who were observed to
use more positive emotion words during mother-child interactions than did
the children of mothers who expressed few positive emotions at home.
Understanding Emotions
Among the most important changes in emotional development in early
childhood is an increased understanding of emotions (Calkins & Perry, 2016;
Kuhnert & others, 2017; Perry & Calkins, 2018). Young children
increasingly understand that certain situations are likely to evoke particular
emotions, facial expressions indicate specific emotions, and emotions affect
behavior and can be used to influence others. One study found that young
children’s emotional understanding was linked to an increase in prosocial
behavior (Ensor, Spencer, & Hughes, 2011). Also, in a study of 5- to 7-year-
olds, understanding others’ emotions was related to the children’s emotion
regulation (Hudson & Jacques, 2014).
Between ages 2 and 4, children considerably increase the number of
terms they use to describe emotions. During this time, they are also learning
about the causes and consequences of feelings (Denham & others, 2012).
When they are 4 to 5 years old, children show an increased ability to
reflect on emotions. They also begin to understand that the same event can
elicit different feelings in different people. Moreover, they show growing
Page 172
awareness that they need to manage their emotions to meet social standards.
And by age 5 most children can accurately identify emotions that are
produced by challenging circumstances and describe strategies they might
call on to cope with everyday stress (Cole & others, 2009).
Regulating Emotions
Emotion regulation is an important aspect of development. In particular, it
plays a key role in children’s ability to manage the demands and conflicts
they face in interacting with others (Blair, 2017).
Many researchers consider the growth of emotion regulation
in children as fundamental to the development of social
competence (Cole, Lougheed, & Ram, 2018; Cole & Hollenstein,
2018; Perry & Calkins, 2018). Emotion regulation can be conceptualized as
an important component of self-regulation or of executive function. Recall
that executive function is increasingly thought to be a key concept in
describing the young child’s higher-level cognitive functioning (Cheng &
others, 2018; Liu & others, 2018; Muller & others, 2017; Schmitt & others,
2017). Cybelle Raver and her colleagues (Blair, 2017; Blair & Raver, 2012,
2015; Blair, Raver, & Finegood, 2016; Raver & others, 2011, 2012, 2013) are
using interventions, such as increasing caregiver emotional expressiveness, to
improve young children’s emotion regulation and reduce behavior problems
in Head Start families.
Emotion-Coaching and Emotion-Dismissing Parents Parents can
play an important role in helping young children regulate their emotions
(Bendezu & others, 2018; Norona & Baker, 2017; Quinones-Camacho &
Davis, 2018). Depending on how they talk with their children about emotion,
parents can be described as taking an emotion-coaching or an emotion-
dismissing approach (Gottman, 2018). The distinction between these
approaches is most evident in the way the parent deals with the child’s
negative emotions (anger, frustration, sadness, and so on). Emotion-coaching
parents monitor their children’s emotions, view their children’s negative
emotions as opportunities for teaching, assist them in labeling emotions, and
coach them in how to deal effectively with emotions. In contrast, emotion-
dismissing parents view their role as to deny, ignore, or change negative
emotions. Emotion-coaching parents interact with their children in a less
rejecting manner, use more scaffolding and praise, and are more nurturant
than are emotion-dismissing parents. Moreover, children of emotion-
coaching parents are better at soothing themselves when they get upset, are
more effective in regulating their negative affect, focus their attention better,
and have fewer behavior problems than do children of emotion-dismissing
parents. Researchers have found that fathers’ emotion coaching is related to
children’s social competence (Baker, Fenning, & Crnic, 2011) and that
mothers’ emotion coaching is linked to less oppositional behavior
(Dunsmore, Booker, & Ollendick, 2013).
What are some differences between emotion-coaching and emotion-dismissing parents?
©Jamie Grill/Getty Images
Parents’ knowledge of their children’s emotional world can help them to
guide their children’s emotional development and teach them how to cope
effectively with problems (Bendezu & others, 2018; Hurrell, Houwing, &
Hudson, 2017). For example, one study found that mothers’ knowledge about
what distresses and comforts their children predicts the children’s coping,
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empathy, and prosocial behavior (Vinik, Almas, & Grusec, 2011).
Regulation of Emotion and Peer Relations Emotions play a strong
role in determining the success of a child’s peer relationships (Smetana &
Ball, 2018). Specifically, the ability to modulate one’s emotions is an
important skill that benefits children in their relationships with peers. Moody
and emotionally negative children are more likely to experience rejection by
peers, whereas emotionally positive children are more popular. For example,
a recent study found that young children who were more skilled in emotion
regulation were more popular with their peers (Nakamichi, 2018).
Moral Development
Unlike a crying infant, a screaming 5-year-old is likely to be considered
responsible for making a fuss. The parents may worry about whether the 5-
year-old is a “bad” child. Although there are some who view children as
innately good, many developmental psychologists believe that just as parents
help their children become good readers, musicians, or athletes, parents must
nurture goodness and help their children develop morally.
Moral development involves the development of thoughts,
feelings, and behaviors regarding rules and conventions about
what people should do in their interactions with other people.
Major developmental theories have focused on different aspects of moral
development (Gray & Graham, 2018; Hoover & others, 2018; Killen & Dahl,
2018; Narváez, 2017a, b, 2018; Turiel & Gingo, 2017).
Moral Feelings
Feelings of anxiety and guilt are central to the account of moral development
provided by Freud’s psychoanalytic theory. According to Freud, children
attempt to reduce anxiety, avoid punishment, and maintain parental affection
by identifying with their parents and internalizing their standards of right and
wrong, thereby developing the superego, the moral element of the
personality.
Freud’s ideas are not backed by research, but guilt certainly can motivate
moral behavior. Other emotions, however, also contribute to moral
development, including positive feelings. One important example is empathy,
or responding to another person’s feelings with an emotion that echoes those
feelings (Kim & Kochanska, 2017).
Infants have the capacity for some purely empathic responses, but
empathy often requires the ability to discern another person’s emotional
states, or what is called perspective taking. Learning how to identify a wide
range of emotional states in others, and to anticipate what kinds of action will
improve another person’s emotional state, help to advance children’s moral
development (Thompson, 2015).
Also, connections between emotions can occur and the connections may
influence children’s development. For example, in a recent study,
participants’ guilt proneness combined with their empathy predicted an
increase in prosocial behavior (Torstveit, Sutterlin, & Lugo, 2016).
Moral Reasoning
Interest in how children think about moral issues was stimulated by Piaget
(1932), who extensively observed and interviewed children from ages 4
through 12. Piaget watched children play marbles to learn how they used and
thought about the game’s rules. He also asked children about ethical issues—
theft, lies, punishment, and justice, for example. He concluded that children
go through two distinct stages in how they think about morality:
From ages 4 to 7, children display heteronomous morality, the first
stage of moral development in Piaget’s theory. Children think of justice
and rules as unchangeable properties, beyond the control of people.
From ages 7 to 10, children are in a period of transition, showing some
features of the first stage of moral reasoning and some of the second
stage, autonomous morality.
From about age 10 and older, children show autonomous morality. They
become aware that rules and laws are created by people, and in judging
an action they consider the actor’s intentions as well as the action’s
consequences.
Piaget extensively observed and interviewed 4- to 12-year-old children as they played
games to learn how they used and thought about the games’ rules.
©Yves De Braine/BlackStar/StockPhoto
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you expect a
child in the
heteronomous stage of
moral development to
judge the behaviors of a
doctor who
unintentionally caused
pain to a child during a
medical procedure?
Because young children are heteronomous moralists, they judge the
rightness or goodness of behavior by considering its consequences, not the
intentions of the actor. For example, to the heteronomous moralist, breaking
twelve cups accidentally is worse than breaking one cup intentionally. As
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children develop into moral autonomists, intentions become more important
than consequences.
The heteronomous thinker also believes that rules are
unchangeable and are handed down by all-powerful authorities.
When Piaget suggested to young children that they use new rules
in a game of marbles, they resisted. By contrast, older children—moral
autonomists—accept change and recognize that rules are merely conventions
that are subject to change.
How will this child’s moral thinking about stealing a cookie differ according to whether
he is in Piaget’s heteronomous or autonomous stage?
©Fuse/Getty Images
The heteronomous thinker also believes in immanent justice, the concept
that if a rule is broken, punishment will be meted out immediately. The
young child believes that a violation is followed automatically by its
punishment. Thus, young children often look around worriedly after doing
something wrong, expecting the inevitable punishment. Immanent justice
also implies that if something unfortunate happens to someone, that person
must have transgressed earlier. Older children, who are moral autonomists,
recognize that punishment occurs only if someone witnesses the wrongdoing
and that, even then, punishment is not inevitable.
How do these changes in moral reasoning occur? Piaget argued that as
children develop, they become more sophisticated in their thinking about
social matters, especially about the possibilities and conditions of
cooperation. Piaget stressed that this social understanding comes about
through the mutual give-and-take of peer relations. In the peer group, where
others have power and status similar to the child’s, plans are negotiated and
coordinated, and disagreements are reasoned about and eventually settled.
Parent-child relations, in which parents have power and children do not, are
less likely to advance moral reasoning, because rules are often handed down
in an authoritarian manner.
Moral Behavior
The behavioral and social cognitive approach to development focuses on
moral behavior rather than moral reasoning. It holds that the processes of
reinforcement, punishment, and imitation explain the development of moral
behavior. When children are rewarded for behavior that is consistent with
laws and social conventions, they are likely to repeat that behavior. When
models who behave morally are provided, children are likely to adopt their
actions (Ma & others, 2018). And when children are punished for immoral
behavior, those behaviors are likely to be reduced or eliminated. However,
because punishment may have adverse side effects, it needs to be used
judiciously and cautiously.
If a mother has rewarded a 4-year-old boy for telling the truth when he
broke a glass at home, does this mean he is likely to tell the truth to his
preschool teacher when he knocks over a vase and breaks it? Not necessarily,
because the situation influences behavior. More than half a century ago, a
comprehensive study of thousands of children in many situations—at home,
at school, and at church, for example—found that a totally honest child is
virtually nonexistent, as is a child who cheats in all situations (Hartshorne &
May, 1928–1930). Behavioral and social cognitive researchers emphasize
that what children do in one situation is often only weakly related to what
they do in other situations. For example, a child might cheat in class but not
in a game, or a child might steal a piece of candy when alone but not when
others are present.
Social cognitive theorists also emphasize that the ability to resist
temptation is closely tied to the development of self-control (Mischel, 2004),
which involves learning to delay gratification. According to social cognitive
theorists, cognitive factors are important in the child’s development of self-
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control (Bandura, 2012).
Gender
Gender refers to the characteristics of people as females and males. Gender
identity is the sense of being male or female, which most children acquire by
the time they are 3 years old. Gender roles are sets of expectations that
prescribe how females or males should think, act, and feel.
During the preschool years, most children increasingly act in
ways that match their culture’s gender roles.
How do these and other gender differences come about? Biology clearly
plays a role. Among the possible biological influences are chromosomes,
hormones, and evolution (Antfolk, 2018; Hawley & Bauer, 2018; Li, Kung,
& Hines, 2017). However, our focus in this chapter is on the social aspects of
gender.
Social Influences
Many social scientists do not locate the cause of psychological gender
differences in biological dispositions. Rather, they argue that these
differences are due to social experiences (Leaper & Bigler, 2018; Rose &
Smith, 2018; Weisgram & Dinella, 2018). Their explanations include both
social and cognitive theories.
First imagine that this is a photograph of a baby girl. What expectations would you have of
her? Then imagine that this is a photograph of a baby boy. What expectations would you
have of him?
©Kwame Zikomo/Purestock/SuperStock
Social Theories of Gender Three main social theories of gender have
been proposed: social role theory, psychoanalytic theory, and social cognitive
theory. Alice Eagly (2001, 2010, 2012, 2016, 2017) proposed social role
theory, which states that gender differences result from the contrasting roles
of women and men. In most cultures around the world, women have less
power and status than men do, and they control fewer resources (Helgeson,
2017). Compared with men, women perform more domestic work, spend
fewer hours in paid employment, receive lower pay, and are more thinly
represented in the highest levels of organizations. In Eagly’s (2016, 2017)
view, as women adapted to roles with less power and less status in society,
they showed more cooperative, less dominant profiles than men did. Thus,
the social hierarchy and division of labor are important causes of gender
differences in power, assertiveness, and nurture (Eagly, 2017; Eagly &
Wood, 2017).
The psychoanalytic theory of gender stems from Freud’s view that the
preschool child develops a sexual attraction to the opposite-sex parent. This
is the process known as the Oedipus (for boys) or Electra (for girls) complex.
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At age 5 or 6, the child renounces this attraction because of anxious feelings.
Subsequently, the child identifies with the same-sex parent, unconsciously
adopting that parent’s characteristics. However, developmental psychologists
have observed that gender development does not proceed in the manner that
Freud proposed (Callan, 2001). Children become gender-typed much earlier
than age 5 or 6, and they become masculine or feminine even when the same-
sex parent is not present in the family.
The social cognitive approach provides an alternative explanation.
According to the social cognitive theory of gender, children’s gender
development occurs through observation and imitation of what other people
say and do, and through being rewarded and punished for gender-appropriate
and gender-inappropriate behavior (Bussey & Bandura, 1999). From birth
onward, males and females are treated differently. When infants and toddlers
show gender differences, adults tend to reward them. Parents often use
rewards and punishments to teach their daughters to be feminine (“Karen,
you are being a good girl when you play gently with your doll”) and their
sons to be masculine (“Keith, a boy as big as you are is not supposed to cry”).
Parents, however, are only one of many sources from which children learn
gender roles (Brown & Stone, 2018). Culture, schools, peers, the media, and
other family members also provide gender role models (Chen, Lee, & Chen,
2018). For example, children learn about gender by observing other adults in
the neighborhood and on television. As children grow older, peers become
increasingly important. Let’s look more closely at the influence of parents
and peers.
Parental Influences
Parents influence their children’s gender development by action and by
example. (Helgeson, 2017; Leaper & Bigler, 2018). Both mothers and fathers
are psychologically important to their children’s gender
development (Tenenbaum & May, 2014). Cultures around the
world, however, can vary in their role expectations for mother
and fathers (Chen, Lee, & Chen, 2018). A research review provided these
conclusions (Bronstein, 2006):
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you describe the
ways in which parents
influence their
children’s notions of
gender roles?
Mothers’ socialization strategies. In many cultures, mothers socialize
their daughters to be more obedient and responsible than their sons. They
also place more restrictions on their daughters’ autonomy.
Fathers’ socialization strategies. Fathers show more attention to their
sons than to their daughters, engage in more activities with their sons, and
put forth more effort to promote their sons’ intellectual development.
Thus, according to Bronstein (2006, pp. 269–270), “Despite an increased
awareness in the United States and other Western cultures of the detrimental
effects of gender stereotyping, many parents continue to foster behaviors and
perceptions that are consonant with traditional gender role norms.”
Peer Influences
Parents provide the earliest discrimination of gender roles, but before long,
peers join the process of responding to and modeling masculine and feminine
behavior (Brown & Stone, 2018; Rose & Smith, 2018; Zozuls & others,
2016). In fact, peers become so important to gender development that the
playground has been described as “gender school” (Luria & Herzog, 1985).
Peers extensively reward and punish gender behavior (Rubin, Bukowski,
& Bowker, 2015). For example, when children play in ways that the culture
considers sex-appropriate, their peers tend to reward them. But peers often
reject children who act in a manner that is considered more characteristic of
the other gender (Handrinos & others, 2012). A little girl who brings a doll to
the park may find herself surrounded by new friends; a little boy who does
the same thing might be jeered at. However, there is greater pressure for boys
to conform to a traditional male role than for girls to conform to a traditional
female role (Fagot, Rodgers, & Leinbach, 2000). For example, a preschool
girl who wants to wear boys’ clothing receives considerably more approval
than a boy who wants to wear a dress. The very term “tomboy” implies broad
social acceptance of girls’ adopting traditional male behaviors. In a recent
study of 9- to 10-year-olds in Great Britain, gender-nonconforming boys
were most at risk for peer rejection (Braun & Davidson, 2017). In this study,
gender-nonconforming girls were preferred more than gender-conforming
girls, with children most often citing masculine activities as the reason for
this choice.
Gender molds important aspects of peer relations (Rubin, Bukowski, &
Bowker, 2015). It influences the composition of children’s groups, the size of
groups, and interactions within a group (Maccoby, 1998, 2002).
Gender composition of children’s groups. Around age 3, children already
show a preference for spending time with same-sex playmates. This
preference increases until around age 12, and during the elementary
school years children spend a large majority of their free time with
children of their own sex (see Figure 1). Observations of children show
that they are more likely to play in same-sex than mixed-sex groups. This
tendency increases between 4 and 6 years of age.
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Figure 1 Developmental Changes in Percentage of Time Spent in Same-Sex and
Mixed-Sex Group Settings
Observations of children show that they are more likely to play in same-sex than mixed-
sex groups. This tendency increases between 4 and 6 years of age.
Group size. From about age 5, boys are more likely to interact socially in
larger clusters than girls are. Boys are also more likely to participate in
organized group games than girls are. In one study, same-sex
groups of six children were permitted to use play materials in
any way they wished (Benenson, Apostolaris, & Parnass,
1997). Girls were more likely than boys to play in dyads or triads, while
boys were more likely to interact in larger groups and seek to attain a
group goal.
Interaction in same-sex groups. Boys are more likely than girls to engage
in rough-and-tumble play, competition, conflict, ego displays, risk taking,
and quests for dominance. By contrast, girls are more likely to engage in
“collaborative discourse,” in which they talk and act in a more reciprocal
manner.
Cognitive Influences
Observation, imitation, rewards, and punishment—these are the mechanisms
by which gender develops, according to social cognitive theory. Interactions
between the child and the social environment are the main keys to gender
development. Some critics argue that this explanation pays too little attention
to the child’s own mind and understanding, and portrays the child as
passively acquiring gender roles (Martin & Ruble, 2010).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you create a
classroom climate that
promotes healthy gender
development for both
boys and girls?
One influential cognitive theory is gender schema theory, which states
that gender typing emerges as children gradually develop gender schemas of
what is gender-appropriate and gender-inappropriate in their culture (Halim
& others, 2016; Liben, 2017; Liben & others, 2018; Martin & Cook, 2017;
Martin, Fabes, & Hanish, 2018). A schema is a cognitive structure, a network
of associations that guide an individual’s perceptions. A gender schema
organizes the world in terms of female and male. Children are internally
motivated to perceive the world and to act in accordance with their
developing schemas. Bit by bit, children pick up what is gender-appropriate
and gender-inappropriate in their culture, developing gender schemas that
shape how they perceive the world and what they remember (Conry-Murray,
Kim, & Turiel, 2012). Children are motivated to act in ways that conform
with these gender schemas. Thus, gender schemas fuel gender typing.
Families
Attachment to a caregiver is a key social relationship during infancy, but
some experts maintain that secure attachment and the infant’s early
experiences have been overdramatized as determinants of life-span
development. Social and emotional development is also shaped by other
relationships and by temperament, contexts, and social experiences in the
early childhood years and later (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Gartstein & others,
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2017). In this section, we discuss aspects of social relationships in early
childhood that go beyond attachment.
Parenting
Some recent media accounts portray many parents as unhappy, feeling little
joy in caring for their children. However, researchers have found that parents
are more satisfied with their lives than are nonparents, feel relatively better
on a daily basis than do nonparents, and have more positive feelings related
to caring for their children than to engaging in other daily activities (Nelson
& others, 2013).
Good parenting takes time and effort (Grusec, 2017; Lindsay, 2018;
Serrano-Villar, Huang, & Calzada, 2017). You can’t do it in a minute here
and a minute there. You can’t do it with CDs or DVDs. Of course, it’s not
just the quantity of time parents spend with children that is important for
children’s development—the quality of the parenting is clearly important.
Baumrind’s Parenting Styles
Diana Baumrind (1971) stresses that parents should be neither punitive nor
aloof. Rather, they should develop rules for their children and be affectionate
with them. She has described four parenting styles:
Authoritarian parenting is a restrictive, punitive style in which parents
exhort the child to follow their directions and respect their work and
effort. The authoritarian parent places firm limits and controls on the
child and allows little verbal exchange. For example, an authoritarian
parent might say, “You will do it my way or else.” Authoritarian parents
also might spank the child frequently, enforce rules rigidly but not
explain them, and show anger toward the child. Children of authoritarian
parents are often unhappy, fearful, and anxious about comparing
themselves with others; they also fail to initiate activity and have weak
communication skills. Also, a recent research review of a large number of
studies concluded that authoritarian parenting is linked to a higher level
of externalizing problems (acting out, higher levels of aggression, for
example) (Pinquart, 2017).
Authoritative parenting encourages children to be independent but still
places limits and controls on their actions. Extensive verbal give-and-take
is allowed, and parents are warm and nurturant toward the child. An
authoritative parent might put his arm around the child in a comforting
way and say, “You know you shouldn’t have done that. Let’s talk about
how you could handle this type of situation better next time.”
Authoritative parents show pleasure and support in response to their
children’s constructive behavior. They also expect independent, age-
appropriate behavior. Children whose parents are authoritative are often
cheerful, self-controlled, self-reliant, and achievement-oriented; they tend
to maintain friendly relations with peers, cooperate with adults, and cope
well with stress. In a recent study, children of authoritative parents
engaged in more prosocial behavior than their counterparts whose parents
used the other parenting styles described in this section (Carlo & others,
2017). Also, in a recent research review, authoritative parenting was the
most effective parenting style in predicting which children and
adolescents would be less likely to be overweight or obese later in their
development (Sokol, Qin, & Poti, 2017). Also, a recent study of young
children found that an authoritarian parenting style, as well as pressuring
the child to eat, were linked to increased risk that the children would be
overweight or obese (Melis Yavuz & Selcuk, 2018).
Neglectful parenting is a style in which the parent is uninvolved in the
child’s life. Children whose parents are neglectful develop the sense that
other aspects of the parents’ lives are more important than they are. These
children tend to be socially incompetent. Many have poor self-control and
don’t handle independence well. They frequently have low self-esteem,
are immature, and may be alienated from the family. In adolescence, they
may show patterns of truancy and delinquency. In the recent research
review described under authoritarian parenting, neglectful parenting was
associated with a higher level of externalizing problems (Pinquart, 2017).
Indulgent parenting is a style in which parents are highly involved with
their children but place few demands or controls on them. Such parents
let their children do what they want. Some parents deliberately rear their
children in this way because they believe the combination of warm
involvement and few restraints will produce a creative, confident child.
However, children whose parents are indulgent rarely learn respect for
others and have difficulty controlling their behavior. They might be
Page 179
domineering, egocentric, and noncompliant, and have unsatisfactory peer
relations.
These four classifications of parenting involve combinations
of acceptance and responsiveness on the one hand and demand
and control on the other (Maccoby & Martin, 1983). How these
dimensions combine to produce authoritarian, authoritative, neglectful, and
indulgent parenting is shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2 Classification of Parenting Styles
The four types of parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, indulgent, and neglectful)
involve the dimensions of acceptance and responsiveness, on the one hand, and demand
and control on the other. For example, authoritative parenting involves being both
accepting/responsive and demanding/controlling.
©Steve Debenport/Getty Images
Parenting Styles in Context
Among Baumrind’s four parenting styles, authoritative parenting clearly
conveys the most benefits to the child and to the family as a whole. Do the
benefits of authoritative parenting transcend the boundaries of ethnicity,
socioeconomic status, and household composition? Although some
exceptions have been found, evidence linking authoritative parenting with
competence on the part of the child occurs in research across a wide range of
ethnic groups, social strata, cultures, and family structures (Steinberg, 2014).
Nevertheless, researchers have found that in some ethnic groups, aspects
of the authoritarian style may be associated with more positive outcomes than
Baumrind predicts (Pinquart & Kauser, 2018). In the Arab world, many
families are very authoritarian, dominated by the father’s rule, and children
are taught strict codes of conduct and family loyalty (Booth, 2002). As
another example, Asian American parents often continue aspects of
traditional Asian child-rearing practices that have sometimes been described
as authoritarian. The parents exert considerable control over their children’s
lives. However, Ruth Chao (2001, 2005, 2007; Chao & Otsuki-Clutter, 2011;
Chao & Tseng, 2002) argues that the style of parenting used by many Asian
American parents is distinct from the domineering control that is
characteristic of the authoritarian style. Instead, Chao argues that it reflects
concern and involvement in children’s lives and is best conceptualized as a
type of training. The high academic achievement of many Asian American
children may be a consequence of their parents’ “training” (Stevenson &
Zusho, 2002).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you characterize
the parenting style that
prevails within your
own family?
Page 180
Further Thoughts on Parenting Styles
First, keep in mind that research on parenting styles and children’s
development is correlational, not causal, in nature. Thus, if a study reveals
that authoritarian parenting is linked to higher levels of aggression in
children, it may be just as likely that aggressive children elicited authoritarian
parenting as it is that authoritarian parenting produced aggressive children.
Also recall that a third factor may influence the correlation between two
factors. Thus, in the example of the correlation between authoritarian
parenting and aggressive children, possibly authoritarian parents
(first factor) and aggressive children (second factor) share genes
(third factor) that predispose them to behave in ways that
produced the correlation.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you use the
research on parenting
styles to design a parent
education class that
teaches effective skills
for interacting with
young children?
Second, parenting styles do not capture the important themes of
reciprocal socialization and synchrony (Cox & others, 2018). Remember that
children socialize parents, just as parents socialize children (Klein & others,
2018).
According to Ruth Chao, which type of parenting style do many Asian American parents
use?
©Blend Images/SuperStock
Third, many parents use a combination of techniques rather than a single
technique, although one technique may be dominant. Consistent parenting is
usually recommended, yet a wise parent may sense the importance of being
more permissive in certain situations, more authoritarian in others, and more
authoritative in yet other circumstances.
Fourth, much of the parenting style research has involved mothers but not
fathers. In many families, mothers will use one style, fathers another style.
Especially in traditional cultures, fathers have an authoritarian style and
mothers a more permissive, indulgent style. It has often been said that it is
beneficial for parents to engage in a consistent parenting style; however, if
fathers are authoritarian and aren’t willing to change, children benefit when
mothers use an authoritative style.
Punishment
Use of corporal (physical) punishment is legal in every state in the United
States. A national survey of U.S. parents with 3- and 4-year-old children
found that 26 percent of parents reported spanking their children frequently,
and 67 percent reported yelling at their children frequently (Regalado &
others, 2004). A study of more than 11,000 U.S. parents indicated that 80
percent of the parents reported spanking their children by the time they
reached kindergarten (Gershoff & others, 2012). Another recent research
review concluded that there is widespread approval of corporal punishment
by U.S. parents (Chiocca, 2017). A cross-cultural comparison found that
individuals in the United States and Canada were among those who held the
most favorable attitudes toward corporal punishment and were most likely to
remember it being used by their parents (see Figure 3) (Curran & others,
2001). Physical punishment is outlawed in 41 countries, with a number of
countries increasing the ban on physical punishment mainly to promote
children’s rights to protection from abuse and exploitation (Committee on the
Rights of the Child, 2014).
Figure 3 Corporal Punishment in Different Countries
A 5-point scale was used to assess attitudes toward corporal punishment, with scores
closer to 1 indicating an attitude against its use and scores closer to 5 suggesting an
attitude favoring its use. Why are studies of corporal punishment correlational studies,
and how does that affect their usefulness?
What are some reasons for avoiding spanking or similar punishments?
They include the following:
When adults punish a child by yelling, screaming, or spanking, they are
presenting children with out-of-control models for handling stressful
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situations. Children may imitate this behavior.
Punishment can instill fear, rage, or avoidance. For example, spanking the
child may cause the child to avoid being near the parent and to fear the
parent.
Punishment tells children what not to do rather than what to
do. Children should be given constructive feedback, such as
“Why don’t you try this?”
Parents might unintentionally become so angry when they are punishing
the child that they become abusive.
Most child psychologists recommend handling misbehavior by reasoning
with the child, especially explaining the consequences of the child’s actions
for others. Time out, in which the child is removed from a setting that offers
positive reinforcement, can also be effective. For example, when the child has
misbehaved, a parent might forbid TV viewing for a specified time.
Debate about the effects of punishment on children’s development
continues (Afifi & others, 2017a, b; Ferguson, 2013; Gershoff & Grogan-
Kaylor, 2016; Gershoff, Lee, & Durrant, 2017; Grusec & others, 2013;
Holden & others, 2017; Laible, Thompson, & Froimson, 2015). Several
longitudinal studies have found that physical punishment of young children is
associated with higher levels of aggression later in childhood and
adolescence (Gershoff & others, 2012; Thompson & others, 2017). An in one
longitudinal study, harsh physical punishment in childhood was linked to a
higher incidence of intimate partner violence in adulthood (Afifi & others,
2017b).
However, a meta-analysis that focused on longitudinal studies revealed
that the negative outcomes of punishment on children’s internalizing and
externalizing problems were minimal (Ferguson, 2013). A research review of
26 studies also concluded that only severe or predominant use of spanking,
not mild spanking, compared unfavorably with alternative discipline practices
(Larzelere & Kuhn, 2005). Nonetheless, in a recent meta-analysis, when
physical punishment was not abusive it still was linked to detrimental child
outcomes (Gershoff & Grogan-Kaylor, 2016). And in a recent Japanese
study, occasional spanking at 3 years of age was associated with a higher
level of behavioral problems at 5 years of age (Okuzono & others, 2017).
In sum, in the view of some experts, it is still difficult to determine
Page 182
whether the effects of physical punishment are harmful to children’s
development, although such a view might be distasteful to some individuals
(Ferguson, 2013). Also, as with other research on parenting, research on
punishment is correlational in nature, making it difficult to discover causal
factors. Also, consider the concept of reciprocal socialization (discussed in
the chapter on socioemotional development in infancy and earlier in this
chapter), which emphasizes bidirectional child and parent influences.
Nonetheless, a large majority of leading experts on parenting conclude
that physical punishment has harmful effects on children and should not be
used (Afifi & others, 2017a, b; Gershoff, Lee, & Durrant, 2017; Holden &
others, 2017). Also, in a research review, Elizabeth Gershoff (2013)
concluded that the defenders of spanking have not produced any evidence
that spanking produces positive outcomes for children, while negative
outcomes of spanking have been replicated in many studies. Further, physical
punishment that involves abuse can be very harmful to children’s
development, as discussed later in this chapter (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018).
Coparenting
Coparenting refers to the support that parents give each other in raising a
child. Poor coordination between parents, undermining of one parent by the
other, lack of cooperation and warmth, and aloofness by one parent are
conditions that place children at risk (Bertoni & others, 2018; Lam & others,
2018; Latham, Mark, & Oliver, 2018; Pruett & others, 2017; Reader, Teti, &
Cleveland, 2017). In addition, one study revealed that coparenting is more
beneficial than either maternal or paternal parenting in helping children to
development self-control (Karreman & others, 2008). Another study found
that greater father involvement in young children’s play was linked to an
increase in supportive coparenting (Jia & Schoppe-Sullivan, 2011).
Parents who do not spend enough time with their children or who have
problems in child rearing can benefit from counseling and therapy. To read
about the work of marriage and family counselor Darla Botkin, see Careers
in Life-Span Development.
Careers in life-span development
Darla Botkin, Marriage and Family Therapist
Darla Botkin is a marriage and family therapist who teaches,
conducts research, and engages in marriage and family therapy. She is
on the faculty of the University of Kentucky. Botkin obtained a
bachelor’s degree in elementary education with a concentration in
special education, and she went on to receive a master’s degree in
early childhood education. She spent the next six years working with
children and their families in a variety of settings, including child
care, elementary school, and Head Start. These experiences led her to
recognize the interdependence of the developmental settings that
children and their parents experience (such as home, school, and
work). She returned to graduate school and obtained a Ph.D. in family
studies from the University of Tennessee. She then became a faculty
member in the Family Studies program at the University of Kentucky.
Completing further coursework and clinical training in marriage and
family therapy, she became certified as a marriage and family
therapist.
Darla Botkin (left) conducts a family therapy session.
©Dr. Darla Botkin
Botkin’s current interests include working with young children in
family therapy, exploring gender and ethnic issues in family therapy,
and understanding the role of spirituality in family wellness.
Child Maltreatment
Unfortunately, punishment sometimes leads to the abuse of infants and
children (Cicchetti, 2017; Doyle & Cicchetti, 2018). In 2013, 679,000 U.S.
children were found to be victims of child abuse at least once during that year
(U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2015). Ninety-one percent
of these children were abused by one or both parents. Laws in many states
now require physicians and teachers to report suspected cases of child abuse,
yet many cases go unreported, especially those involving battered infants.
Types of Child Maltreatment
The four main types of child maltreatment are physical abuse, child neglect,
sexual abuse, and emotional abuse (National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse
and Neglect, 2013):
Physical abuse is characterized by the infliction of physical injury as a
result of punching, beating, kicking, biting, burning, shaking, or
otherwise harming a child. The parent or other person may not intend to
hurt the child; the injury may result from excessive physical punishment
(Lo & others, 2017; Smith & others, 2018).
Eight-year-old Donnique Hein lovingly holds her younger sister, 6-month-old Maria
Paschel, after a meal at Laura’s Home, a crisis shelter in suburban Cleveland run by the
Page 183
City Mission.
©Joshua Gunter/The Plain Dealer/Landov Images
Child neglect is characterized by failure to provide for the child’s basic
needs. Neglect can be physical (abandonment, for example), educational
(allowing chronic truancy, for example), or emotional (marked inattention
to the child’s needs, for example) (Naughton & others, 2017). Child
neglect is by far the most common form of child maltreatment. In every
country where relevant data have been collected, neglect occurs up to
three times as often as abuse (Read & others, 2018). A recent research
review of risk factors for engaging in child neglect found that most risks
involved parent factors, including a history of antisocial
behavior/criminal offending, having mental/physical
problems, and experiencing abuse in their own childhood
(Mulder & others, 2018).
Sexual abuse includes fondling of genitals, intercourse, incest, rape,
sodomy, exhibitionism, and commercial exploitation through prostitution
or production of pornographic materials (Beier, 2018; Oates, 2018).
Emotional abuse (psychological/verbal abuse/mental injury) includes acts
or omissions by parents or other caregivers that have caused, or could
cause, serious behavioral, cognitive, or emotional problems (Hagborg,
Tidefors, & Fahlke, 2017; Prino, Longobadi, & Setanni, 2018).
Although any of these forms of child maltreatment may be found
separately, they often occur in combination. Emotional abuse is almost
always present when other forms are identified.
The Context of Abuse
No single factor causes child maltreatment (Cicchetti & Toth, 2016; Doyle &
Cicchetti, 2018). A combination of factors, including cultural norms,
characteristics of the family, and developmental characteristics of the child,
likely contribute to child maltreatment (Cicchetti, 2018). Among the family
and family-associated characteristics that may contribute to child
maltreatment are parenting stress, substance abuse, social isolation, single
parenting, and socioeconomic difficulties (especially poverty) (Almy &
Cicchetti, 2018). The interactions among all family members need to be
considered, regardless of who performs violent acts against the child. For
example, even though the father may be the one who physically abuses the
child, the behavior of the mother, the child, and siblings should also be
evaluated.
Developmental Consequences of Abuse
Among the consequences of maltreatment in childhood and adolescence are
poor emotion regulation, attachment problems, problems in peer relations,
difficulty in adapting to school, and other psychological problems, such as
depression, delinquency, and substance abuse (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Bell
& others, 2018; Handley, Rogosch, & Cicchetti, 2018). For example, a recent
study also found that physical abuse was linked to lower levels of cognitive
development and school engagement in children (Font & Cage, 2018). Also,
compared with their peers, adolescents who experienced abuse or neglect as
children are more likely to engage in violent romantic relationships,
delinquency, sexual risk taking, and substance abuse (Trickett & others,
2011). And a recent study found that exposure to either physical or sexual
abuse in childhood and adolescence was linked to an increase in 13- to 18-
year-olds’ suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts (Gomez & others, 2017).
During their adult years, individuals who were maltreated as children are
more likely to experience physical illness, mental illness, and sexual
problems (Brown & others, 2018; Gekker & others, 2018). As adults,
maltreated children are also at higher risk for violent behavior toward other
adults—especially dating partners and marital partners—as well as for
substance abuse, anxiety, and depression (Miller-Perrin, Perrin, & Kocur,
2009). Also, in a longitudinal study, experiencing early abuse and neglect in
the first five years of life were linked to having more interpersonal problems
and lower academic achievement from childhood through their thirties (Raby
& others, 2018). Further, a 30-year longitudinal study found that middle-aged
adults who had experienced maltreatment during childhood were at increased
risk for diabetes, lung disease, malnutrition, and vision problems (Widom &
others, 2012). However, this study also found that 75 percent of parents who
had experienced maltreatment during childhood had never abused their own
children. Thus, it is important to note that the majority of people who were
abused in childhood are unlikely to abuse their own children.
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How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you work with
parents during infant
and early childhood
checkups to prevent
child maltreatment?
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you explain the
potential impact of
maltreatment at home
on a child’s
performance in school?
An important research agenda is to discover how to prevent
child maltreatment or intervene in children’s lives when they
have been maltreated (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Cozza & others,
2018; McCarroll & others, 2017; Weiller & Taussig, 2018). In one study of
maltreating mothers and their 1-year-old children, two treatments were
effective in reducing child maltreatment: (1) home visitation that emphasized
improved parenting, coping with stress, and increasing support for the
mother; and (2) parent-infant psychotherapy that focused on improving
maternal-infant attachment (Cicchetti, Toth, & Rogosch, 2005).
Sibling Relationships and Birth Order
How do developmental psychologists characterize sibling relationships? And
how does birth order influence behavior, if at all?
Sibling Relationships
Approximately 80 percent of American children have one or more siblings—
that is, sisters and brothers (Dunn, 2015; Fouts & Bader, 2017). If you grew
up with siblings, you probably have rich memories of your relationships with
them. Two- to 4-year-old siblings in each other’s presence have a conflict
once every 10 minutes, on average; the rate of conflict declines somewhat
from ages 5 to 7 (Kramer, 2006). What do parents do when they encounter
siblings having a verbal or physical confrontation? One study revealed that
they do one of three things: (1) intervene and try to help them resolve the
conflict, (2) admonish or threaten them, or (3) do nothing at all (Kramer &
Perozynski, 1999). Of interest is the fact that in families with two siblings
ages 2 to 5 the most frequent parental reaction to sibling conflict is to do
nothing at all.
Laurie Kramer (2006), who has conducted a number of research studies
on siblings, says that not intervening and letting sibling conflict escalate are
not good strategies. She developed a program titled “More Fun with Sisters
and Brothers” that teaches 4- to 8-year-old siblings social skills for
developing positive interactions (Kramer & Radey, 1997). Among the skills
taught in the program are how to appropriately initiate play, how to accept
and refuse invitations to play, how to take another person’s perspective, how
to deal with angry feelings, and how to manage conflict.
However, conflict is only one of the many dimensions of sibling relations
(McHale, Updegraff, & Whiteman, 2013; Pike & Oliver, 2017). Sibling
relations also include helping, sharing, teaching, compromising, and playing,
and siblings can act as emotional supports and communication partners as
well as rivals. A research review concluded that sibling relationships in
adolescence are not as close, are less intense, and are more egalitarian than in
childhood (East, 2009).
Do parents usually favor one sibling over others—and if so, does it make
a difference in a child’s development? One study of 384 sibling pairs
revealed that 65 percent of their mothers and 70 percent of their fathers
showed favoritism toward one sibling (Shebloski, Conger, & Widaman,
2005). When favoritism of one sibling occurred, it was linked to lower self-
esteem and sadness in the less-favored sibling. Indeed, equality and fairness
are major concerns in regard to siblings’ relationships with each other and
how they are treated by their parents (Aldercotte, White, & Hughes, 2016;
Campione-Barr, Greer, & Kruse, 2013).
Judy Dunn (2007, 2015), a leading expert on sibling relationships,
described three important characteristics of sibling relationships:
What characterizes children’s sibling relationships?
©RubberBall Productions/Getty Images
1. The emotional quality of the relationship. Siblings often express intense
emotions—both positive and negative—toward each other. Many
children and adolescents have mixed feelings toward their siblings.
2. The familiarity and intimacy of the relationship. Siblings typically know
Page 185each other very well, and this intimacy suggests that they can
either provide support or tease and undermine each other,
depending on the situation.
3. The variation in sibling relationships. Some siblings describe their
relationships more positively than others do. Thus, there is considerable
variation in sibling relationships. We just noted that many siblings have
mixed feelings about each other, but some children and adolescents
describe their siblings mainly in warm, affectionate ways, whereas others
primarily talk about how irritating and mean a sibling is.
Birth Order
Whether a child has older or younger siblings has been linked to the
development of certain personality characteristics. For example, one research
review concluded that “firstborns are the most intelligent, achieving, and
conscientious, while later-borns are the most rebellious, liberal, and
agreeable” (Paulhus, 2008, p. 210). Compared with later-born children,
firstborn children have also been described as more adult-oriented, helpful,
conforming, and self-controlled. However, when actual birth-order
differences are reported, they often are small.
What accounts for differences related to birth order? Proposed
explanations usually point to variations in interactions associated with a
particular position in the family. In one study, mothers became more
negative, coercive, and restraining and played less with the firstborn
following the birth of a second child (Dunn & Kendrick, 1982).
What about children who don’t have siblings? The popular conception is
that an only child is a “spoiled brat” with undesirable characteristics such as
dependency, lack of self-control, and self-centered behavior. But researchers
present a more positive portrayal in which only children are often
achievement-oriented and display desirable personality characteristics,
especially in comparison with later-borns and children from large families
(Falbo & Poston, 1993; Jiao, Ji, & Jing, 1996).
So far, our discussion suggests that birth order might be a strong predictor
of behavior. However, an increasing number of family researchers stress that
when all the factors that influence behavior are considered, birth order by
itself has limited accuracy as a predictor of behavior. Indeed, in a recent
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large-scale study, a birth order effect occurred for intelligence, with firstborns
having slightly higher intelligence, but there were no birth order effects for
life satisfaction, internal/external control, trust, risk taking, patience, and
impulsivity (Rohrer, Egloff, & Schmukle, 2017). Think about some of the
other important factors in children’s lives that influence their behavior. They
include heredity, models of competency or incompetency that parents present
to children on a daily basis, peer and school influences, socioeconomic and
sociohistorical factors, and cultural variations. When someone says that
firstborns are always like this but last-borns are always like that, he or she is
making overly simplistic statements that do not adequately take into account
the complexity of influences on a child’s development.
The Changing Family in a Changing Society
Beyond variations in number of siblings, the families that children experience
differ in many important ways (Hardy, Smeeding, & Ziliak, 2018; Parke,
2017; Patterson & others, 2018). As shown in Figure 4, the United States has
one of the highest percentages of single-parent families in the world. Among
two-parent families, there are those in which both parents work, those in
which parents have found new spouses after divorce, and those in which the
parents are gay or lesbian. Differences in culture and socioeconomic status
(SES) also influence families. How do these variations in families affect
children?
Working Parents
More than half of U.S. mothers with a child under age 5 are in the labor
force, as are more than two-thirds with a child 6 to 17 years old. Maternal
employment is a part of modern life, but its effects are still being debated.
Parental employment can have both positive and negative effects on
parenting (O’Brien & others, 2014). Research indicates that what matters for
children’s development is the nature of the parents’ work
rather than whether or not both parents work outside the home
(Clarke-Stewart & Parke, 2014; Goldberg & Lucas-
Thompson, 2008). For example, a study of almost 3,000 adolescents found a
negative association of the father’s, but not the mother’s, unemployment on
the adolescents’ health (Bacikova-Sleskova, Benka, & Orosova, 2015). Also,
a recent study found that mothers’ and fathers’ work-family conflict was
linked to lower self-control in 4-year-old children (Ferreira & others, 2018).
Figure 4 Single-Parent Families in Different Countries
Ann Crouter (2006) described how parents bring their experiences at
work into their homes. She concluded that parents who experience poor
working conditions, such as long hours, overtime work, high levels of stress,
and lack of autonomy at work, are likely to be more irritable at home and
engage in less effective parenting than their counterparts who experience
better working conditions. A consistent finding is that children (especially
girls) whose mothers are employed engage in less gender stereotyping and
have more egalitarian views of gender than do children whose mothers do not
work outside the home (Goldberg & Lucas-Thompson, 2008).
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How does work affect parenting?
©Keith Brofsky/Photodisc/Getty Images
Children in Divorced Families
Divorce rates changed rather dramatically in the United States and many
countries around the world in the late twentieth century (Braver & Lamb,
2013). The U.S. divorce rate increased dramatically in the 1960s and 1970s
but has declined since the 1980s. However, the divorce rate in the United
States is still much higher than in most other countries.
It is estimated that 40 percent of children born to married parents in the
United States will experience their parents’ divorce (Hetherington & Stanley-
Hagan, 2002). Let’s examine some important questions about children in
divorced families:
Are children better adjusted in intact, never-divorced families than in
divorced families? Most researchers agree that children from divorced
families show poorer adjustment than their counterparts in never-divorced
families (Amato & Anthony, 2014; Arkes, 2015; Hetherington, 2006;
Weaver & Schofield, 2015) (see Figure 5). Those who have experienced
multiple divorces are at greater risk. Children in divorced
families are more likely than those in never-divorced families
to have academic problems, to exhibit externalized problems
(such as acting out and delinquency) and experience internalized
problems (such as anxiety and depression), to be less socially responsible,
to have less competent intimate relationships, to drop out of school, to
become sexually active at an earlier age, to take drugs, to associate with
antisocial peers, to have low self-esteem, and to be less securely attached
to their partners as young adults (Lansford, 2012, 2013). In a recent
study, both parental divorce and child maltreatment were linked to
midlife suicidal ideation (Stansfield & others, 2017). Also, a recent meta-
analysis found that when their parents had been divorced, adults were
more likely to have depression (Sands, Thompson, & Gaysina, 2017).
Figure 5 Divorce and Children’s Emotional Problems
In Hetherington’s research, 25 percent of children from divorced families showed serious
emotional problems, compared with only 10 percent of children from intact, never-
divorced families. However, keep in mind that a substantial majority (75 percent) of the
children from divorced families did not show serious emotional problems.
Should parents stay together for the sake of the children? Whether
parents should stay in an unhappy or conflictual marriage for the sake of
their children is one of the most commonly asked questions about divorce
(Hetherington, 2006; Morrison, Fife, & Hertlein, 2017). If the stresses
and disruptions in family relationships associated with an unhappy
marriage that erode the well-being of children are reduced by the move to
a divorced, single-parent family, divorce can be advantageous. However,
if the diminished resources and increased risks associated with divorce
are accompanied by inept parenting and sustained or increased conflict,
not only between the divorced couple but also among the parents,
children, and siblings, the best choice for the children would be for an
unhappy marriage to be continued (Hetherington & Stanley-Hagan,
2002). It is difficult to determine how these “ifs” will play out when
parents either remain together in an acrimonious marriage or become
divorced.
What concerns are involved in whether parents should stay together for the sake of the
children or become divorced?
©Image Source/PunchStock
Many of the problems experienced by children of divorced parents begin
during the predivorce period, a time when parents often are in active
conflict. Thus, when children of divorced parents show problems, the
problems may be due not only to the divorce itself but also to the marital
conflict that led to it (Cummings & others, 2017; Davies, Martin, &
Cummings, 2018; Davies, Martin & Sturge-Apple, 2016). E. Mark
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Cummings and his colleagues (2017; Cummings & Miller, 2015;
Cummings & Valentino, 2015) have proposed emotion security theory,
which has its roots in attachment theory and states that children appraise
marital conflict in terms of their sense of security and safety in the family.
These researchers make a distinction between marital conflict that is
negative for children (such as hostile emotional displays and destructive
conflict tactics) and marital conflict that can be positive for children (such
as marital disagreement that involves calmly discussing each person’s
perspective and then working together to find a solution). In a recent
study, intensification of interparental conflict in the early elementary
school years predicted increases in emotional insecurity five years late in
early adolescence, which in turn predicted decreases in adolescent
friendship affiliation, and this friendship decrease was linked to a
downturn in social competence (Davies, Martin, & Cummings, 2018).
How much do family processes matter after a divorce? They matter a
great deal (Bastaitis, Pasteels, & Mortelmans, 2018; Demby, 2016).
When divorced parents’ relationship with each other is harmonious and
when they use authoritative parenting, children’s adjustment improves
(Hetherington, 2006). A number of researchers have shown that a
disequilibrium, which includes diminished parenting skills, occurs in the
first year following the divorce—but by two years after the divorce,
restabilization has occurred and parenting skills have improved
(Hetherington, 1989). When the divorced parents can agree on
childrearing strategies and can maintain a cordial relationship with each
other, frequent visits by the noncustodial parent usually benefit the child
(Fabricius & others, 2010). Following a divorce, father
involvement with children drops off more than mother
involvement, especially for fathers of girls. Further, a recent
study of non-residential fathers in divorced families indicated that high
father-child involvement and low interparental conflict were linked to
positive child outcomes (Flam & others, 2016). Also, a recent research
review concluded that co-parenting (co-parental support, cooperation, and
agreement) following divorce was related to positive child outcomes such
as lower anxiety and depression, as well as higher self-esteem and
academic performance (Lamela & Figueiredo, 2016).
What factors influence an individual child’s vulnerability to suffering
negative consequences as a result of divorce? Among the factors
involved are the parent’s and child’s adjustment prior to the divorce, as
well as the child’s personality and temperament, gender, and custody
situation (Hetherington, 2006). In one study, a higher level of predivorce
maternal sensitivity and child IQ served as protective factors in reducing
children’s problems after the divorce (Weaver & Schofield, 2015).
Children whose parents later divorce show poorer adjustment before the
breakup (Lansford, 2012, 2013). Children who are socially mature and
responsible, who show few behavioral problems, and who have an easy
temperament are better able to cope with their parents’ divorce. Children
with a difficult temperament often have problems coping with their
parents’ divorce (Hetherington, 2006). Joint custody also works best for
children when the parents can get along with each other (Clarke-Stewart
& Parke, 2014).
What role does socioeconomic status play in the lives of children whose
parents have divorced? Mothers who have custody of their children
experience the loss of about one-fourth to one-half of their predivorce
income, compared with a loss of only one-tenth by fathers who have
custody. This income loss for divorced mothers is accompanied by
increased workloads, high rates of job instability, and residential moves
to less desirable neighborhoods with inferior schools (Lansford, 2009).
Gay and Lesbian Parents
Increasingly, gay and lesbian couples are creating families that include
children (Farr, 2017; Oakley, Farr, & Scherer, 2017; Simon & others, 2018).
Data indicate that approximately 20 percent of same-sex couples are raising
children under the age of 18 in the United States (Gates, 2013).
Like heterosexual couples, gay and lesbian parents vary greatly. They
may be single, or they may have same-gender partners. Many lesbian mothers
and gay fathers are noncustodial parents because they lost custody of their
children to heterosexual spouses after a divorce.
Parenthood among lesbians and gay men is controversial. Opponents
claim that being raised by gay or lesbian parents harms the child’s
development. But researchers have found few differences between children
growing up with lesbian mothers or gay fathers on the one hand, and children
growing up with heterosexual parents on the other (Farr & Goldberg, 2018;
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Golombok, 2011a, b; Patterson, Farr, & Hastings, 2015). For example,
children raised by gay or lesbian parents are just as popular with their peers,
and no differences are found in the adjustment and mental health of children
living in these families in comparison with children raised by heterosexual
parents (Farr & others, 2018; Patterson, Farr, & Hastings, 2015). For
example, in a recent study, the adjustment of school-aged children adopted
during infancy by gay, lesbian, and heterosexual parents showed no
differences (Farr, 2017). Rather, children’s behavior patterns and family
functioning were predicted by earlier child adjustment issues and parental
stress. In another recent study of lesbian and gay adoptive parents, 98 percent
of the adoptive parents reported that their children had
adjusted well to school (Farr, Oakley, & Ollen, 2016).
Contrary to the once-widespread expectation that being raised
by a gay or lesbian parent would result in the child’s growing up to be gay or
lesbian, in reality the overwhelming majority of children from gay or lesbian
families have a heterosexual orientation (Golombok, 2011a, b).
What are the research findings regarding the development and psychological well-being
of children raised by gay and lesbian couples?
©Creatas/Getty Images
Also, one study compared the incidence of coparenting in adoptive
heterosexual, lesbian, and gay couples with preschool-aged children (Farr &
Patterson, 2013). Both self-reports and observations found that lesbian and
gay couples shared child care more than heterosexual couples did, with
lesbian couples being the most supportive and gay couples the least
supportive. Further, researchers have found more positive parenting in
adoptive gay father families and fewer child externalizing problems in these
families than in heterosexual families (Golombok & others, 2014).
Cultural, Ethnic, and Socioeconomic Variations
Parenting can be influenced by culture, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status
(Nieto & Bode, 2018; White & others, 2013). Recall from Bronfenbrenner’s
ecological theory that a number of social contexts influence the child’s
development. In Bronfenbrenner’s theory, culture, ethnicity, and
socioeconomic status are classified as part of the macrosystem because they
represent broader societal contexts.
Cross-Cultural Studies Different cultures often give different answers to
such basic questions as what the father’s role in the family should be, what
support systems are available to families, and how children should be
disciplined (Matsumoto & Juang, 2017; Suh & others, 2017). There are
important cross-cultural variations in parenting. In some cultures, such as
rural areas of many countries, authoritarian parenting is widespread (Smetana
& Ball, 2018).
Cultural change, brought about by factors such as increasingly frequent
international travel, the Internet and electronic communications, and
economic globalization, is affecting families in many countries around the
world (Eo & Kim, 2018). There are trends toward greater family mobility,
migration to urban areas, and separation as some family members work in
cities or countries far from their homes. Other trends include smaller families,
fewer extended-family households, and increased rates of maternal
employment (Brown & Larson, 2002). These trends can change the nature of
the resources available to children. For example, when several generations no
longer live in close proximity, children may lose the support and guidance of
grandparents, aunts, and uncles. On the positive side, smaller families may
produce more openness and communication between parents and children.
Ethnicity Families within various ethnic groups in the United States differ in
their typical size, structure, composition, reliance on kinship networks, and
levels of income and education (Nieto & Bode, 2018). Large and extended
families are more common among minority groups than among the non-
Latino White majority. For example, 19 percent of Latino families have three
or more children, compared with 14 percent of African American and 10
percent of White families. African American and Latino children interact
more with grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and more distant relatives
than do non-Latino White children.
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What are some characteristics of families within different ethnic groups?
©Bill Aron/PhotoEdit
Single-parent families are more common among African Americans and
Latinos than among non-Latino White Americans. In comparison with two-
parent households, single parents often have more limited resources in terms
of time, money, and energy (Koppelman, 2017). Ethnic minority parents also
tend to be less educated and are more likely to live in low-
income circumstances than their non-Latino White
counterparts. Still, many impoverished ethnic minority
families manage to find ways to raise competent children.
What are some of the stressors that immigrant families experience when they come to the
United States?
©J. Emilio Flores/Corbis/Getty Images
Of course, individual families vary, and how ethnic minority families deal
with stress depends on many factors (Derlan & others, 2018; Yoshikawa &
others, 2017). Whether the parents are native-born or immigrants, how long
the family has been in this country, its socioeconomic status, and its national
origin all make a difference (Giuntella, 2017). The characteristics of the
family’s social context also influence its adaptation. What are the attitudes
toward the family’s ethnic group within its neighborhood or city? Can the
family’s children attend good schools? Are there community groups that
welcome people from the family’s ethnic group? Do members of the family’s
ethnic group form community groups of their own?
A major change in families in the last several decades has been the
dramatic increase in the immigration of Latino and Asian families into the
United States (Anguiano & others, 2018; Bas-Sarmiento & others, 2017; Non
& others, 2018; Umana-Taylor & Douglass, 2017). Immigrant families often
experience stressors uncommon to or less prominent among longtime
residents, such as language barriers, dislocations and separations from
support networks, the dual struggle to preserve identity and to acculturate,
and changes in SES status (Gangamma & Shipman, 2018; Nair, Roche, &
White, 2018; Wang & Palacios, 2017).
Many members of families that have recently immigrated to the United
States adopt a bicultural orientation, selecting characteristics of the U.S.
culture that help them to survive and advance, while still retaining aspects of
their culture of origin. In adopting characteristics of the U.S. culture, Latino
families are increasingly embracing the importance of education. Although
their school dropout rates have remained higher than the rates for other ethnic
groups, toward the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century they
declined considerably (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017).
However, while many ethnic/immigrant families adopt a bicultural
orientation, parenting in many ethnic minority families also focuses on issues
associated with promoting children’s ethnic pride, knowledge of their ethnic
group, and awareness of discrimination (McDermott & others, 2018; Umana-
Taylor & Douglass, 2017: Umana-Taylor & others, 2018).
Socioeconomic Status Low-income families have less access to
resources than do higher-income families (Singh & Mukherjee, 2018;
Yoshikawa & others, 2017). The resources in question include nutrition,
health care, protection from danger, and enriching educational and
socialization opportunities, such as tutoring and lessons in various activities
(Coley & others, 2018). These differences are compounded in low-income
families characterized by long-term poverty (Nieto & Bode, 2018). A
longitudinal study found that a multicomponent (school-based educational
enrichment and comprehensive family services) preschool to third-grade
intervention with low-income minority children in Chicago was effective in
increasing their rate of high school graduation, as well as undergraduate and
graduate school success (Reynolds, Qu, & Temple, 2018).
In the United States and most Western cultures, researchers have
identified differences in child-rearing practices among groups of varying
socioeconomic status (SES) (Hoff, Laursen, & Tardif, 2002, p. 246):
“Lower-SES parents (1) are more concerned that their children conform
to society’s expectations, (2) create a home atmosphere in which it is
clear that parents have authority over children,” (3) are more likely to use
physical punishment in disciplining their children, and (4) are more
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directive and less conversational with their children.
“Higher-SES parents (1) are more concerned with developing
children’s initiative” and their capacity to delay gratification,
(2) “create a home atmosphere in which children are more
nearly equal participants and in which rules are discussed as opposed to
being laid down” in an authoritarian manner, (3) are less likely to use
physical punishment, and (4) “are less directive and more conversational”
with their children.
Peer Relations, Play, and Media/Screen
Time
The family is an important social context for children’s development.
However, children’s development also is strongly influenced by what goes on
in other social contexts, such as in peer groups and when children are playing
or using various media (Bukowski, Laursen, & Rubin, 2018; Rose & Smith,
2018).
Peer Relations
As children grow older, they spend an increasing amount of time with their
peers—children of about the same age or maturity level.
What are the functions of a child’s peer group? One of its most important
functions is to provide a source of information and comparison about the
world outside the family. Children receive feedback about their abilities from
their peer group. They evaluate what they can do in terms of whether it is
better than, as good as, or worse than what other children can do. It is hard to
make these judgments at home because siblings are usually older or younger.
Good peer relations promote normal socioemotional development
(Bukowski, Laursen, & Rubin, 2018). Special concerns in peer relations
focus on children who are withdrawn or aggressive (Rubin & others, 2018).
Withdrawn children who are rejected by peers or are victimized and feel
lonely are at increased risk for depression (Coplan & others, 2018). Children
who are aggressive with their peers are at increased risk for developing a
number of problems, including delinquency and dropping out of school
(Vitaro, Boivin, & Poulin, 2018).
Good peer relations can be necessary for normal socioemotional
development (Prinstein & others, 2018). Recall from our discussion of gender
that by about age 3, children already prefer to spend time with same-sex
rather than opposite-sex playmates, and this preference increases in early
childhood. During these same years, the frequency of peer interactions, both
positive and negative, picks up considerably (Cillessen & Bukowski, 2018).
Although aggressive interactions and rough-and-tumble play increase, the
proportion of aggressive exchanges, compared with friendly exchanges,
decreases. Many preschool children spend considerable time in peer
interaction just conversing with playmates about such matters as “negotiating
roles and rules in play, arguing, and agreeing” (Rubin, Bukowski, & Parker,
2006).
What are some characteristics of young children’s peer relations?
©INSADCO Photography/Alamy Stock Photo
Parents may influence their children’s peer relations in many ways, both
direct and indirect (Booth-Laforce & Groh, 2018). Parents affect their
children’s peer relations through their interactions with their children, how
they manage their children’s lives, and the opportunities they provide to their
children (Brown & Bakken, 2011). For example, when mothers coached their
preschool daughters about the negative aspects of peer conflicts involving
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relational aggression (harming someone by manipulating relationships), the
daughters engaged in lower rates of relational aggression (Werner & others,
2014).
Play
An extensive amount of peer interaction during childhood involves play, but
social play is only one type of play. Play is a pleasurable activity that is
engaged in for its own sake, and its functions and forms vary.
Functions of Play
Play is an important aspect of children’s development (Bergen, 2015; Clark,
2016; Taggart, Eisen, & Lillard, 2018). Theorists have focused on different
aspects of play and highlighted a long list of functions (Henricks, 2015a, b).
According to Freud and Erikson, play helps the child master anxieties and
conflicts (Demanchick, 2015). Because pent-up tensions are released through
play, the child can cope better with life’s problems. Therapists use play
therapy both to allow the child to work off frustrations and to analyze the
child’s conflicts and ways of coping with them (Clark, 2015, 2016). Children
may feel less threatened and be more likely to express their true feelings in
the context of play.
Play is also an important context for cognitive development (Taggart,
Eisen, & Lillard, 2018). Both Piaget and Vygotsky concluded that play is the
child’s work. Piaget (1962) maintained that play advances children’s
cognitive development. At the same time, he said that children’s cognitive
development constrains the way they play. Play permits children to practice
their competencies and acquired skills in a relaxed, pleasurable way. Piaget
thought that cognitive structures need to be exercised, and play provides the
perfect setting for this exercise (DeLisi, 2015).
Vygotsky (1962) also considered play to be an excellent setting for
cognitive development. He was especially interested in the symbolic and
make-believe aspects of play, as when a child substitutes a stick for a horse
and rides the stick as if it were a horse. For young children, the imaginary
situation is real (Bodrova & Leong, 2015). Parents should encourage such
imaginary play because it advances the child’s cognitive development,
especially creative thought.
Daniel Berlyne (1960) described play as exciting and pleasurable in itself
because it satisfies our exploratory drive. This drive involves curiosity and a
quest for information about something new or unusual. Play encourages
exploratory behavior by offering children the possibilities of novelty,
complexity, uncertainty, surprise, and incongruity.
More recently, play has been described as an important context for the
development of language and communication skills (Taggart, Eisen, &
Lillard, 2018). Language and communication skills may be enhanced through
discussions and negotiations regarding roles and rules in play as young
children practice various words and phrases. These types of social
interactions during play can benefit young children’s literacy skills
(Bredekamp, 2017; Follari, 2019). And play is a central focus of the child-
centered kindergarten and is thought to be an essential aspect of early
childhood education (Feeney, Moravcik, & Nolte, 2019; Morrison, 2017,
2018).
Types of Play
The contemporary perspective on play emphasizes both the cognitive and the
social aspects of it (Loizou, 2017; Sim & Xu, 2017). Among the most widely
studied types of children’s play are sensorimotor and practice play,
pretense/symbolic play, social play, constructive play, and games (Bergen,
1988).
Sensorimotor and Practice Play Sensorimotor play is behavior that
allows infants to derive pleasure from exercising their sensorimotor schemes.
The development of sensorimotor play follows Piaget’s description of
sensorimotor thought. Infants begin to engage in exploratory and playful
visual and motor transactions during the second quarter of the first year of
life. By the age of 9 months, many infants can select novel objects for
exploration and play, especially responsive objects such as toys that make
noise or bounce.
Practice play involves the repetition of behavior when new skills are
being learned or when physical or mental mastery and coordination of skills
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are required for games or sports. Sensorimotor play, which
often involves practice play, is primarily confined to infancy,
whereas practice play can continue to occur throughout life.
During the preschool years, children often engage in practice play.
Pretense/Symbolic Play Pretense/symbolic play occurs when the child
transforms the physical environment into a symbol (Taggart, Eisen, &
Lillard, 2018). Between 9 and 30 months, children increasingly use objects in
symbolic play. They learn to transform objects—substituting them for other
objects and acting toward them as if they were these other objects. For
example, a preschool child may treat a table as if it were a car and say, “I’m
fixing the car” as he grabs a leg of the table.
A preschool “superhero” at play.
©RichVintage/Getty Images
Many experts on play consider the preschool years the “golden age” of
pretense/symbolic play that is dramatic or sociodramatic in nature. This type
of make-believe play often appears at about 18 months and reaches a peak at
ages 4 to 5, then gradually declines.
Some child psychologists believe that pretend play is an important aspect
of young children’s development and often reflects advances in their
cognitive development, especially as an indication of symbolic understanding
(Taggart, Eisen, & Lillard, 2018). For example, Catherine Garvey (2000) and
Angeline Lillard (2006, 2015) emphasize that hidden in young children’s
pretend-play narratives are remarkable capacities for role-taking, balancing of
social roles, metacognition (thinking about thinking), testing of the
distinction between reality and pretense, and numerous nonegocentric
capacities that reveal young children’s remarkable cognitive skills.
Social Play Social play is play that involves interaction with peers. It
increases dramatically during the preschool years. For many children, social
play is the main context for their social interactions with peers (Solovieva &
Quintanar, 2017). Social play includes varied interchanges such as turn
taking, conversations about numerous topics, social games and routines, and
physical play. It often provides a high degree of pleasure to the participants.
Constructive Play Constructive play combines sensorimotor/practice
play with symbolic representation. It occurs when children engage in the self-
regulated creation of a product or solution. Constructive play increases in the
preschool years as symbolic play increases and sensorimotor play decreases.
Constructive play is also a frequent form of play in the elementary school
years, both in and out of the classroom.
Games Games are activities that are engaged in for pleasure and have rules.
Often they involve competition. Preschool children may begin to participate
in social games that involve simple rules of reciprocity and turn taking.
However, games take on a much stronger role in the lives of elementary
school children. In one study, the highest incidence of game playing occurred
between ages 10 and 12 (Eiferman, 1971). After age 12, games decline in
popularity (Bergen, 1988).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you integrate
play into the learning
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process?
Trends in Play
Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, Roberta Golinkoff, and Dorothy Singer (Hirsh-Pasek &
others, 2009; Singer, Golinkoff, & Hirsh-Pasek, 2006) are concerned about
the reduced amount of free play time that young children have, reporting that
it has declined considerably in recent decades. They especially are worried
about young children’s play time being restricted at home and
school so they can spend more time on academic subjects. They
also point out that many schools have eliminated recess. And it is
not just the decline in free play time that bothers them. They underscore that
learning in playful contexts captivates children’s minds in ways that enhance
their cognitive and socioemotional development—Singer, Golinkoff, and
Hirsh-Pasek’s (2006) first book on play was titled Play = Learning. Among
the cognitive benefits of play they described are these skills: creative; abstract
thinking; imagination; attention, concentration, and persistence; problem-
solving; social cognition, empathy, and perspective taking; language; and
mastering new concepts. Among the socioemotional experiences and
development they believe play promotes are enjoyment, relaxation, and self-
expression; cooperation, sharing, and turn-taking; anxiety reduction; and self-
confidence. With so many positive cognitive and socioemotional outcomes of
play, clearly it is important that we find more time for play in young
children’s lives (Taggart, Eisen, & Lillard, 2018).
What are some concerns of Hirsh-Pasek and her colleagues about trends in children’s
play?
©ONOKY Photononstop/Alamy
Media and Screen Time
Few developments in society in the second half of the twentieth century had a
greater impact on children than television. Television continues to have a
strong influence on children’s development, but children’s use of other media
and information/communication devices has led to the use of the term screen
time, which encompasses the time individuals spend watching/using
television, DVDs, and computers; playing video games; and using hand-held
electronic devices such as smartphones (Gebremariam & others, 2017; Li &
others, 2017). In a national survey, there was a dramatic increase in young
children’s use of mobile devices in just two years from 2011 to 2013
(Common Sense Media, 2013). In this survey, playing games was the most
common activity they performed using mobile devices, followed by using
apps, watching videos, and watching TV/movies.
Despite the move to mobile devices, television is still a strong influence
in young children’s media life, with 2- to 4-year-old children watching TV
approximately 2 to 4 hours per day (Common Sense Media, 2013). In a
national survey, 50 percent of U.S. children’s screen time was spent in front
of TV sets (Common Sense Media, 2013). Compared with their counterparts
in other developed countries, children in the United States watch television
for considerably longer periods. The American Association of Pediatrics
(2016) recommends that 2- to 5-years olds watch no more than one hour of
TV a day. The AAP also recommends that they view only high-quality
programs such as Sesame Street and other PBS shows for young children.
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What are some concerns about young children’s media and screen time?
©karelnoppe/Getty Images
Some types of TV shows are linked to positive outcomes for children. For
example, a recent meta-analysis found that children’s exposure to prosocial
media is linked to higher levels of prosocial behavior and empathetic concern
(Coyne, Padilla-Walker, & Holmgren, 2018). And a meta-analysis of studies
in 14 countries found three categories of positive outcomes from watching
the TV show Sesame Street: cognitive, learning about the world, and social
reasoning and attitudes toward outgroups (Mares & Pan, 2013).
However, too much screen time can have a negative influence on children
by making them passive learners, distracting them from doing homework,
teaching them stereotypes, providing them with violent models of aggression,
and presenting them with unrealistic views of the world (Calvert, 2015;
Picherot & others, 2018). Among other concerns about young children
engaging in so much screen time are decreased time spent in
play, less time interacting with peers, reduced physical
activity, poor sleep habits, increased risk of being overweight
or obese, and higher rates of aggression (Berglind & others, 2018; Hale &
others, 2018; Lissak, 2018). A research review concluded that higher levels
of screen time (mostly involving TV viewing) were associated with lower
levels of cognitive development in early childhood (Carson & others, 2015).
Also, a study of preschool children found that each additional hour of screen
time was linked to less nightly sleep, later bedtimes, and reduced likelihood
of sleeping 10 or more hours per night (Xu & others, 2016). Further,
researchers have found that a high level of TV viewing is linked to a greater
incidence of obesity in children and adolescents. For example, a recent study
of 2- to 6-year-olds indicated that increased TV viewing time on weekends
was associated with a higher risk of being overweight or obese (Kondolot &
others, 2017). Indeed, viewing as little as one hour of television daily was
associated with an increase in body mass index (BMI) between kindergarten
and first grade (Peck & others, 2015).
The extent to which children are exposed to violence and aggression on
television raises special concerns (Calvert, 2015). For example, Saturday
morning cartoon shows average more than 25 violent acts per hour. In a study
of children, greater exposure to TV violence, video game violence, and music
video violence was independently associated with a higher level of physical
aggression (Coker & others, 2015).
Parents play an important role in children’s media use. One study found
that a higher degree of parental monitoring of children’s media use was
linked to a number of positive outcomes in children’s lives (more sleep,
better school performance, less aggressive behavior, and more prosocial
behavior) (Gentile & others, 2014). Another study found that when parents
reduced their own screen time, their children’s screen time also decreased
(Xu, Wen, & Rissel, 2014).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you talk with
parents about strategies
for reducing young
children’s screen time?
Summary
Emotional and Personality Development
In Erikson’s theory, early childhood is a period when development
involves resolving the conflict of initiative versus guilt. Young children
improve their self-understanding and understanding of others.
Young children’s range of emotions expands during early childhood as
they increasingly experience self-conscious emotions such as pride,
shame, and guilt. Children benefit from having emotion-coaching parents.
Moral development involves thoughts, feelings, and actions regarding
rules and regulations about what people should do in their interactions
with others. Piaget proposed cognitive changes in children’s moral
reasoning. Behavioral and social cognitive theorists argue that there is
considerable situational variability in moral behavior.
Gender refers to the social and psychological dimensions of being male or
female. Both psychoanalytic theory and social cognitive theory
emphasize the adoption of parents’ gender characteristics. Peers are
especially adept at rewarding gender-appropriate behavior. Gender
schema theory emphasizes the role of cognition in gender development.
Families
Authoritarian, authoritative, neglectful, and indulgent parenting styles
produce different results. Authoritative parenting is the style most often
associated with children’s social competence. Ethnic variations
characterize parenting styles. Physical punishment is widely used by U.S.
parents, but there are a number of reasons why it is not a good choice.
Coparenting has positive effects on children’s development.
Child maltreatment may take the form of physical abuse, child neglect,
sexual abuse, and emotional abuse.
Siblings interact with each other in positive and negative ways. Birth
order is related in certain ways to child characteristics, but by itself it is
not a good predictor of behavior.
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In general, having both parents employed full-time outside the home has
not been shown to have negative effects on children. If divorced parents
develop a harmonious relationship and practice authoritative parenting,
children’s adjustment improves. Researchers have found few differences
between children growing up in gay or lesbian families and children
growing up in heterosexual families. Culture, ethnicity, and
socioeconomic status are linked to a number of aspects of
children’s development.
Peer Relations, Play, and Media/Screen Time
Peers are powerful socialization agents. Peers provide a source of
information and comparison about the world outside the family.
Play’s functions include affiliation with peers, tension release, advances
in cognitive development, exploration, and provision of a safe haven. The
contemporary perspective on play emphasizes both the cognitive and the
social aspects of play. Among the most widely studied types of children’s
play are sensorimotor play, practice play, pretense/symbolic play, social
play, constructive play, and games.
There are serious concerns about the extensive amount of time young
children are spending with various media. Watching TV violence and
playing violent video games have been linked to children’s aggressive
behavior.
Key Terms
authoritarian parenting
authoritative parenting
autonomous morality
constructive play
games
gender identity
gender roles
gender schema theory
heteronomous morality
immanent justice
indulgent parenting
moral development
neglectful parenting
practice play
pretense/symbolic play
psychoanalytic theory of gender
self-understanding
sensorimotor play
social cognitive theory of gender
social play
social role theory
Page 197
©Digital Vision/Getty Images
7
Physical and Cognitive
Development in Middle
and Late Childhood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Physical Changes and Health
Body Growth and Change
The Brain
Motor Development
Exercise
Health, Illness, and Disease
Children with Disabilities
The Scope of Disabilities
Educational Issues
Cognitive Changes
Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Theory
Information Processing
Intelligence
Language Development
Vocabulary, Grammar, and Metalinguistic Awareness
Reading
Second-Language Learning and Bilingual Education
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Angie and Her Weight
Angie, an elementary-school-age girl, offered the following
comments about facing her weight problem and dealing with it
effectively:
When I was eight years old, I weighed 125 pounds. My
clothes were the size that large teenage girls wear. I hated
my body, and my classmates teased me all the time. I was
so overweight and out of shape that when I took a P.E.
class my face would get red and I had trouble breathing. I
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was jealous of the kids who played sports and weren’t
overweight like I was.
I’m nine years old now and I’ve lost 30 pounds. I’m much
happier and proud of myself. How did I lose the weight?
My mom said she had finally decided enough was enough.
She took me to a pediatrician who specializes in helping
children lose weight and keep it off. The pediatrician
counseled my mom about my eating and exercise habits,
then had us join a group that he had created for overweight
children and their parents. My mom and I go to the group
once a week, and we’ve now been participating in the
program for six months. I no longer eat fast-food meals,
and my mom is cooking more healthy meals. Now that I’ve
lost weight, exercise is not as hard for me, and I don’t get
teased by the kids at school. My mom’s pretty happy, too,
because she’s lost 15 pounds herself since we’ve been in
the counseling program.
Not all overweight children are as successful as Angie at
reducing their weight. Indeed, being overweight in childhood has
become a major national health concern in the United States. Later
in the chapter, we further explore the problems associated with
being overweight in childhood.
During the middle and late childhood years, which
last from approximately 6 years of age to 10 or 11
years of age, children grow taller, heavier, and
stronger, and become more adept at using their physical skills.
During these years, disabilities may emerge that call for special
attention and intervention. It is also during this age period that
children’s cognitive abilities increase dramatically. Their
command of grammar becomes proficient, they learn to read, and
they may acquire a second language. ■
Physical Changes and Health
Continued growth and change in proportions characterize children’s bodies
during middle and late childhood. During this time period, some important
changes in the brain also take place and motor skills improve. Developing a
healthy lifestyle that includes regular exercise and good nutrition is a key
aspect of making sure these years are a time of healthy growth and
development.
Body Growth and Change
The period of middle and late childhood involves slow, consistent growth
(Hockenberry, Wilson, & Rodgers, 2017). This is a period of calm before the
rapid growth spurt of adolescence. During the elementary school years,
children grow an average of 2 to 3 inches a year until, at the age of 11, the
average girl is 4 feet, 10¼ inches tall, and the average boy is 4 feet, 9 inches
tall. During middle and late childhood, children gain about 5 to 7 pounds a
year. The weight increase is due mainly to increases in the size of the skeletal
and muscular systems, as well as the size of some body organs.
Proportional changes are among the most pronounced physical changes in
middle and late childhood (Kliegman & others, 2016). Head and waist
circumference decrease in relation to body height. A less noticeable physical
change is that bones continue to ossify during middle and late childhood,
although they still yield to pressure and pull more than do mature bones.
Muscle mass and strength gradually increase during these years as “baby
fat” decreases (Perry & others, 2018). The loose movements and knock-knees
of early childhood give way to improved muscle tone. Thanks both to
heredity and to exercise, children double their strength capabilities during
these years. Because of their greater number of muscle cells, boys are usually
stronger than girls.
What characterizes physical growth during middle and late childhood?
©Chris Windsor/Digital Vision/Getty Images
The Brain
Total brain volume stabilizes by the end of late childhood, but significant
changes in various structures and regions of the brain continue to occur
(Wendelken & others, 2016, 2017). As children develop, activation in some
brain areas increases while it decreases in other areas (Denes, 2016;
Khundrakpam & others, 2018; Mah, Geeraert, & Lebel, 2017). One shift in
activation that occurs is from diffuse, larger areas to more focal, smaller areas
(Turkeltaub & others, 2003). This shift is characterized by synaptic pruning,
in which areas of the brain not being used lose synaptic connections and
those areas being used show increased connections. In one study, researchers
Page 199
found less diffusion and more focal activation in the prefrontal cortex from 7
to 30 years of age (Durston & others, 2006). This shift in activation was
accompanied by increased efficiency in cognitive performance, especially
cognitive control, which involves effective control and flexibility in a number
of areas (Markant & Thomas, 2013).
Leading researchers in developmental cognitive neuroscience
have proposed that the prefrontal cortex likely orchestrates the
functions of many other brain regions during development (de
Haan & Johnson, 2016). As part of this organizational role, the prefrontal
cortex may provide an advantage to neural networks and connections that
include the prefrontal cortex. In this view, the prefrontal cortex coordinates
which neural connections are the most effective for solving a problem at
hand.
Connectivity between brain regions increases as children develop (Faghiri
& others, 2018). In a longitudinal study that followed individuals from 6 to
22 years of age, connectivity between the prefrontal and parietal lobes in
childhood was linked to better reasoning ability later in development
(Wendelken & others, 2017).
Motor Development
During middle and late childhood, children’s motor skills become much
smoother and more coordinated than they were in early childhood
(Hockenberry, Wilson, & Rodgers, 2017). For example, only one child in a
thousand can hit a tennis ball over the net at the age of 3, yet by the age of 10
or 11 most children can learn to play the sport. Running, climbing, skipping
rope, swimming, bicycling, and skating are just a few of the many physical
skills elementary school children can master. In gross motor skills that
involve large muscle activity, boys usually outperform girls.
Increased myelination of the central nervous system is reflected in the
improvement of fine motor skills during middle and late childhood. Children
can more adroitly use their hands as tools. Six-year-olds can hammer, paste,
tie shoes, and fasten clothes. By 7 years of age, children’s hands have
become steadier. At this age, children prefer a pencil to a crayon for printing,
and they reverse letters less often. Printing becomes smaller. At 8 to 10 years
of age, they can use their hands independently with more ease and precision.
Page 200
Fine motor coordination develops to the point at which children can write
rather than print words. Cursive letter size becomes smaller and more even.
At 10 to 12 years of age, children begin to show manipulative skills similar to
the abilities of adults. They can master the complex, intricate, and rapid
movements needed to produce fine-quality crafts or to play a difficult piece
on a musical instrument. Girls usually outperform boys in their use of fine
motor skills.
Exercise
American children and adolescents are not getting enough exercise (Dumuid
& others, 2017; Walton-Fisette & Wuest, 2018). Increasing children’s
exercise levels has positive outcomes (Powers & Dodd, 2017; Powers &
Howley, 2018).
An increasing number of studies document the positive impact of exercise
on children’s physical development (Dowda & others, 2017; Martin & others,
2018; Yan & others, 2018). A recent study of more than 6,000 elementary
school children revealed that 55 minutes or more of moderate-to-vigorous
physical activity daily was associated with a lower incidence of obesity
(Nemet, 2016). Researchers also have found that aerobic exercise benefits
children’s attention, memory, effortful and goal-directed thinking and
behavior, creativity, and academic success (Ludyga & others, 2017; Martin &
others, 2018). A recent meta-analysis concluded that sustained physical
activity programs were linked to improvements in children’s attention,
executive function, and academic achievement (de Greeff & others, 2018).
Also, a recent study found that a 6-week high-intensity exercise program with
7- to 13-year-olds improved their cognitive control and working memory
(Moreau, Kirk, & Waldie, 2018). Further, a recent meta-analysis concluded
that children who engage in regular physical activity have better cognitive
inhibitory control (Jackson & others, 2016).
Parents and schools play important roles in determining children’s
exercise levels (Brusseau & others, 2018; de Heer & others, 2017; Lind &
others, 2018; Lo & others, 2018a; Solomon-Moore & others, 2018). Growing
up with parents who exercise regularly provides positive models of exercise
for children (Crawford & others, 2010). Also, in one study, a
school-based physical activity was successful in improving
children’s fitness and lowering their fat content (Kriemler & others, 2010).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you structure the
curriculum to ensure
that elementary school
students are getting
adequate physical
activity throughout the
day?
Some of the ways children spend their time can have negative
consequences. For example, the total amount of time that children and
adolescents spend in front of a television or computer screen daily places
them at risk for reduced activity and being overweight (Taverno Ross &
others, 2013). In other studies, excessive screen time has been linked to lower
levels of physical activity, increased rates of obesity, worse sleep patterns,
and lower brain and cognitive functioning in children (Biddle, Pearson, &
Salmon, 2018; Dumuid & others, 2017; Xu & others, 2016). Also, a recent
study of 8- to 12-year-olds found that large amounts of screen time were
associated with lower connectivity between brain regions, as well as lower
levels of language skills and cognitive control (Horowitz-Kraus & Hutton,
2018). In this study, time spend reading was linked to higher levels of
functioning in these areas.
Health, Illness, and Disease
For the most part, middle and late childhood is a time of excellent health.
Disease and death are less prevalent at this time than during other periods in
childhood and in adolescence. However, many children in middle and late
childhood face health problems that threaten their development (Blake,
Munoz, & Volpe, 2019).
Overweight Children
Being overweight is an increasingly prevalent health problem in children
(Thompson & Manore, 2018; Wardlaw, Smith, & Collene, 2018). Over the
last three decades, the percentage of U.S. children who are at risk for being
overweight has increased dramatically. Recently there has been a decrease in
the percentage of 2- to 5-year-old children who are obese, which dropped
from 12.1 percent in 2009–2010 to 9.4 percent in 2013–2014 (Ogden &
others, 2016). In 2013–2014, 17.4 percent of 6- to 11-year-old U.S. children
were classified as obese, a rate that was essentially unchanged from 2009–
2010 (Ogden & others, 2016).
It is not just in the United States that more children are becoming
overweight (Zhou & others, 2017). One study found that general and
abdominal obesity in Chinese children increased significantly from 1993 to
2009 (Liang & others, 2012).
What are some concerns about overweight children?
©Image Source/Getty Images
Causes of Being Overweight During Childhood Heredity and
environmental contexts are related to being overweight in childhood (Insel &
Roth, 2018; Yanovski & Yanovski, 2018). Recent genetic analysis indicates
that heredity is an important factor in children becoming overweight
(Donatelle, 2019). Overweight parents tend to have overweight children
Page 201
(Pufal & others, 2012). Environmental factors that influence whether children
become overweight include availability of food (especially food high in fat
content), energy-saving devices, declining physical activity, parents’ eating
habits and monitoring of children’s eating habits, the context in which a child
eats, and heavy screen time (Ren & others, 2017; Valgarda, 2018). In a recent
Japanese study, the family pattern that was linked to the highest rates of
overweight/obesity in children was a combination of irregular mealtimes and
the most screen time for both parents (Watanabe & others, 2016). Further, a
recent study found that children were less likely to be obese or overweight
when they attended schools in states that had a strong policy emphasis on
healthy foods and beverages (Datar & Nicosia, 2017). Also, in a 14-year
longitudinal study, parental weight change predicted children’s
weight change (Andriani, Liao, & Kuo, 2015). As described
earlier, a recent study of more than 6,000 elementary school
children revealed that 55 minutes or more of moderate-to-vigorous physical
activity daily was associated with a lower incidence of obesity (Nemet,
2016).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you use your
knowledge of
overweight risk factors
to design a workshop
for parents and children
about healthy lifestyle
choices?
Consequences of Being Overweight During Childhood The
increasing number of overweight children in recent decades is cause for great
concern because being overweight raises the risk for many medical and
psychological problems (Powers & Dodd, 2017; Schiff, 2019). Diabetes,
hypertension (high blood pressure), and elevated blood cholesterol levels are
common in children who are overweight (Chung, Onuzuruike, & Magge,
2018; Martin-Espinosa & others, 2017). Research reviews have concluded
that obesity was linked with low self-esteem in children (Gomes & others,
2011; Moharei & others, 2018).
Intervention Programs A combination of diet, exercise, and behavior
modification is often recommended to help children lose weight (Martin &
others, 2018). Intervention programs that emphasize getting parents to engage
in healthier lifestyles themselves, as well as to offer their children healthier
food choices and persuade them to exercise more, can produce weight
reduction in overweight and obese children (Yackobovitch & others, 2018).
Child life specialists are among the health professionals who strive to
reduce stress in children who have health issues. To read about the work of
child life specialist Sharon McLeod, see Careers in Life-Span Development.
Careers in life-span development
Sharon McLeod, Child Life Specialist
Sharon McLeod is a child life specialist who is clinical director of
the Child Life and Recreational Therapy Department at the Children’s
Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati. Under McLeod’s direction, the
goals of the Child Life Department are to promote children’s optimal
growth and development, reduce the stress of health-care experiences,
and provide support to child patients and their families. These goals
are accomplished through therapeutic play and developmentally
appropriate activities, educating and psychologically preparing
children for medical procedures, and serving as a resource for parents
and other professionals regarding children’s development and health-
care issues, including problems related to being overweight.
McLeod says that human growth and development provides the
foundation for her profession as a child life specialist. She also
describes her best times as a student as those when she conducted
fieldwork, had an internship, and experienced hands-on applications
of theories and concepts she learned in her courses.
Page 202
Sharon McLeod, child life specialist, works with a child at Children’s Hospital
Medical Center in Cincinnati.
©Sharon McLeod
Children with Disabilities
The elementary school years are a time when disabilities become prominent
for some children. What are some of the disabilities that children have? What
characterizes the educational issues facing children with disabilities?
The Scope of Disabilities
Of all children in the United States, 12.9 percent from 3 to 21 years of age
received special education or related services in 2012–2013, an increase of 3
percent since 1980–1981 (Condition of Education, 2016). As indicated in
Figure 1, students with a learning disability were by far the largest group of
students with a disability who received special education, followed by
children with speech or language impairments, autism, intellectual
disabilities, and emotional disturbance. Note that the U.S. Department of
Education includes both students with a learning disability and students with
ADHD in the category of learning disability.
Figure 1 U.S. Children with a Disability Who Receive Special Education Services
Figures are for the 2012–2013 school year and represent the four categories with the
highest numbers and percentages of children. Both learning disability and attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder are combined in the learning disabilities category (Condition of
Education, 2016).
Source: US Department of Education. The Condition of Education: Participation in
Education. Washington, DC: U.S. Office of Education, 2016.
Learning Disabilities
The U.S. government uses the following definition to determine whether a
child should be classified as having a learning disability: A child with a
learning disability has difficulty in learning that involves understanding or
using spoken or written language, and the difficulty can appear in listening,
thinking, reading, writing, and spelling. A learning disability also may
involve difficulty in doing mathematics. To be classified as a learning
disability, the learning problem is not primarily the result of visual, hearing,
or motor disabilities; intellectual disability; emotional disorders; or
environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.
About three times as many boys as girls are classified as having a
learning disability. Among the explanations for this gender difference are a
greater biological vulnerability among boys and referral bias. That is, boys
are more likely than girls to be referred by teachers for treatment because of
troublesome behavior.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you explain the
nature of learning
disabilities to a parent
whose child has recently
been diagnosed with a
learning disability?
Approximately 80 percent of children with a learning disability have a
reading problem (Shaywitz, Gruen, & Shaywitz, 2007). Three types of
learning disabilities are dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia:
Dyslexia is a category reserved for individuals who have a severe
impairment in their ability to read and spell (Nergard-Nilssen & Eklund,
2018).
Dysgraphia is a learning disability that involves difficulty in handwriting
(Hook & Haynes, 2017). Children with dysgraphia may write very
slowly, their writing products may be virtually illegible, and they may
make numerous spelling errors because of their inability to match up
sounds and letters.
Dyscalculia, also known as developmental arithmetic disorder, is a
learning disability that involves difficulty in math computation
(McCaskey & others, 2018; Nelson & Powell, 2018).
The precise causes of learning disabilities have not yet been determined
(Friend, 2018). To reveal any regions of the brain that might be involved in
learning disabilities, researchers use brain-imaging techniques such as
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magnetic resonance imaging (Ramus & others, 2018) (see Figure 2). This
research indicates that it is unlikely learning disabilities reside in a single,
specific brain location. More likely, learning disabilities are
due to problems integrating information from multiple brain
regions or subtle difficulties in brain structures and functions.
Figure 2 Brain Scans and Learning Disabilities
An increasing number of studies are using MRI brain scans to examine the brain pathways
involved in learning disabilities. Shown here is 9-year-old Patrick Price, who has dyslexia.
Patrick is going through an MRI scanner disguised by drapes to look like a child-friendly
castle. Inside the scanner, children must lie virtually motionless as words and symbols
flash on a screen, and they are asked to identify them by clicking different buttons.
©Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Images
Interventions with children who have a learning disability often focus on
improving reading ability (Cunningham, 2017; Temple & others, 2018).
Intensive instruction over a period of time by a competent teacher can help
many children (Tompkins, 2018).
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a disability in which
children consistently show one or more of these characteristics over a period
of time: (1) inattention, (2) hyperactivity, and (3) impulsivity. Children who
are inattentive have such difficulty focusing on any one thing that they may
get bored with a task after only a few minutes—or even seconds. Children
who are hyperactive show high levels of physical activity, seeming to be
almost constantly in motion. Children who are impulsive have difficulty
curbing their reactions; they do not do a good job of thinking before they act.
Depending on the characteristics that children with ADHD display, they can
be diagnosed as (1) ADHD with predominantly inattention; (2) ADHD with
predominantly hyperactivity/impulsivity; or (3) ADHD with both inattention
and hyperactivity/impulsivity.
Many children with ADHD show impulsive behavior, such as this boy reaching to pull a
girl’s hair. How would you handle this situation if you were a teacher in this classroom?
©Nicole Hill/Rubberball/Getty Images
The number of children diagnosed and treated for ADHD has increased
substantially in recent decades, by some estimates doubling in the 1990s. The
American Psychiatric Association (2013) reported in the DSM-V that 5
percent of children have ADHD, although estimates are higher in community
samples. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2017)
estimates that ADHD continues to increase in 4- to 17-year-old children,
going from 8 percent in 2003 to 9.5 percent in 2007 and to 11 percent in
2016. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 13.2
percent of U.S. boys and 5.6 of U.S. girls have ever been diagnosed with
ADHD. The disorder is diagnosed four to nine times more often in boys than
in girls.
There is controversy, however, about the reasons for the increased
diagnosis of ADHD (Hallahan, Kauffman, & Pullen, 2019; Turnbull &
others, 2016). Some experts attribute the increase mainly to heightened
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awareness of the disorder; others are concerned that many children might be
incorrectly diagnosed (Watson & others, 2014).
Adjustment and optimal development also are difficult for children who
have ADHD, so it is important that the diagnosis be accurate (Hallahan,
Kauffman, & Pullen, 2019; Hechtman & others, 2016). Children who are
diagnosed with ADHD have an increased risk of lower academic
achievement, problematic peer relations, school dropout, adolescent
pregnancy, substance use problems, and antisocial behavior (Machado &
others, 2018). A recent study found that childhood ADHD was associated
with long-term underachievement in math and reading (Voigt & others,
2017). Also, a recent research review concluded that in comparison with
typically developing girls, girls with ADHD had more problems with
friendship, peer interaction, social skills, and peer victimization (Kok &
others, 2016). Further, a recent research review concluded that ADHD in
childhood was linked to the following long-term outcomes: failure to
complete high school, other mental and substance use disorders, criminal
activity, and unemployment (Erskine & others, 2016). And a recent study
revealed that individuals with ADHD were more likely to become parents at
12 to 16 years of age (Ostergaard & others, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you respond to
this comment from a
parent? “I do not believe
that ADHD is a real
disorder. Children are
supposed to be active.”
Definitive causes of ADHD have not been found. However, a number of
causes have been proposed (Mash & Wolfe, 2019; Smith & others, 2018).
Some children may inherit a tendency to develop ADHD from
their parents (Hess & others, 2018). Other children likely
develop ADHD because of damage to their brain during prenatal or postnatal
development (Hinshaw, 2018). Among early possible contributors to ADHD
are cigarette and alcohol exposure, as well as a high level of maternal stress
and depression during prenatal development and low birth weight
(Weissenberger & others, 2017; Wolford & others, 2017).
As with learning disabilities, the development of brain-imaging
techniques is leading to a better understanding of ADHD (Riaz & others,
2018; Sun & others, 2018). One study revealed that peak thickness of the
cerebral cortex occurred three years later (10.5 years) in children with ADHD
than in children without ADHD (peak at 7.5 years) (Shaw & others, 2007).
The delay was more prominent in the prefrontal regions of the brain that are
especially important in attention and planning (see Figure 3). Another study
also found delayed development in the brain’s frontal lobes among children
with ADHD, which likely was due to delayed or decreased myelination
(Nagel & others, 2011). Researchers also are exploring the roles that various
neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine, might play in ADHD
(Ledonne & Mercuri, 2017; Vanicek & others, 2017).
Figure 3 Regions of the Brain in Which Children with ADHD Had a Delayed Peak in the
Thickness of the Cerebral Cortex
Note: The greatest delays occurred in the prefrontal cortex.
The delays in brain development just described are in areas linked to
executive function (Munroe & others, 2018). An increasing focus of interest
in the study of children with ADHD is their difficulty on tasks involving
executive function, such as behavioral inhibition when necessary, use of
working memory, and effective planning (Krieger &Amador-Campos, 2018).
Researchers also have found deficits in theory of mind in children with
ADHD (Maoz & others, 2018; Mary & others, 2016). Children diagnosed
with ADHD have an increased risk of school dropout, adolescent pregnancy,
substance use problems, and antisocial behavior (Machado & others, 2018;
Regnart, Truter, & Meyer, 2017).
Stimulant medication such as Ritalin or Adderall (which has fewer side
effects than Ritalin) is effective in improving the attention of many children
with ADHD, but it usually does not improve their attention to the same level
as in children who do not have ADHD (Sclar & others, 2012). A recent
research review also concluded that stimulant medications are effective in
treating ADHD during the short term but that longer-term benefits of
stimulant medications are not clear (Rajeh & others, 2017). Researchers have
often found that a combination of medication (such as Ritalin) and behavior
management improves the behavior of children with ADHD better than
medication alone or behavior management alone, although this treatment
does not work in all cases (Parens & Johnston, 2009).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you advise
parents who are hesitant
about medicating their
child who was recently
diagnosed with a mild
form of ADHD?
Recently, researchers have been exploring the possibility that three types
of training exercises might reduce ADHD symptoms. First, neurofeedback
can improve the attention of children with ADHD (Goode & others, 2018;
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Thibault & others, 2018). Neurofeedback trains individuals to become more
aware of their physiological responses so they can attain better control over
their brain’s prefrontal cortex, where executive control primarily occurs.
Second, mindfulness training also has been found to decrease ADHD
symptoms in children (Lo & others, 2018b). For example, a recent meta-
analysis concluded that mindfulness training significantly improved the
attention of children with ADHD (Cairncross & Miller, 2018). Also, a recent
study confirmed that an 8-week yoga program was effective in improving the
sustained attention of children with ADHD (Chou & Huang, 2017). And,
third, physical exercise also is being investigated as a possible treatment for
children with ADHD (Den Heijer & others, 2017; Pan & others, 2018). For
example, a recent meta-analysis concluded that physical exercise is effective
in reducing cognitive symptoms of ADHD in individuals 3 to 25 years of age
(Tan, Pooley & Speelman, 2016). Another meta-analysis concluded that
short-term aerobic exercise is effective in reducing symptoms such as
inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity (Cerillo-Urbina & others, 2015).
And a third recent meta-analysis indicated that exercise is
associated with better executive function in children with
ADHD (Vysniauske & others, 2018).
Despite the encouraging recent studies of using neurofeedback,
mindfulness training, and exercise to improve the attention of children with
ADHD, it has not yet been determined whether these non-drug therapies are
as effective as stimulant drugs and/or whether they benefit children as add-
ons to stimulant drugs to provide a combination treatment (Den Heijer &
others, 2017).
Autism Spectrum Disorders
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD), also called pervasive developmental
disorders, range from the more severe disorder called autistic disorder to the
milder disorder called Asperger syndrome. Autism spectrum disorders are
characterized by problems in social interaction, problems in verbal and
nonverbal communication, and repetitive behaviors (Boutot, 2017; Gerenser
& Lopez, 2017; Jones & others, 2018). Children with these disorders may
also show atypical responses to sensory experiences (National Institute of
Mental Health, 2018). Autism spectrum disorders can often be detected in
children as young as 1 to 3 years of age.
Recent estimates of autism spectrum disorders indicate that they are
dramatically increasing in occurrence or are increasingly being detected.
Once thought to affect only 1 in 2,500 children decades ago, they were
estimated to be present in about 1 in 150 children in 2002 (Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 2007). In the most recent survey, the
estimated percentage of 8-year-old children with autism spectrum disorders
had increased to 1 in 68 (Christensen & others, 2016). In the recent surveys,
autism spectrum disorders were identified five times more often in boys than
in girls, and 8 percent of individuals aged 3 to 21 with these disorders were
receiving special education services (Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 2017).
What characterizes autism spectrum disorders?
©Rob Crandall/Alamy
Autism is usually identified during early or middle childhood rather than
during infancy. In recent surveys, only a minority of parents reported that
their child’s autism spectrum disorder was identified prior to 3 years of age,
and one-third to one-half of the cases were identified after 6 years of age
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(Sheldrick, Maye, & Carter, 2017). However, researchers are conducting
studies that seek to find earlier determinants of autism spectrum disorders
(Reiersen, 2017).
Autistic disorder is a severe developmental autism spectrum disorder that
has its onset during the first three years of life and includes deficiencies in
social relationships; abnormalities in communication; and restricted,
repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior.
Asperger syndrome is a relatively mild autism spectrum disorder in which
the child has relatively good verbal language skills, milder nonverbal
language problems, and a restricted range of interests and relationships
(Boutot, 2017). Children with Asperger syndrome often engage in obsessive,
repetitive routines and preoccupations with a particular subject. For example,
a child may be obsessed with baseball scores or YouTube videos.
Children with autism have deficits in cognitive processing of information
(Jones & others, 2018). For example, a recent study found that a lower level
of working memory was the executive function most strongly associated with
autism spectrum disorders (Ziermans & others, 2017). Children with these
disorders may also show atypical responses to sensory experiences (National
Institute of Mental Health, 2018). Intellectual disability is present in some
children with autism; others show average or above-average intelligence
(Volkmar & others, 2014).
What causes autism spectrum disorders? The current consensus is that
autism is a brain dysfunction characterized by abnormalities in brain structure
and neurotransmitters (Fernandez, Mollinedo-Gajate, & Penagarikano, 2018).
Recent interest has focused on a lack of connectivity between brain regions
as a key factor in autism (Abbott & others, 2018; Nair & others, 2018; Nunes
& others, 2018). Genetic factors also likely play a role in the development of
autism spectrum disorders (Valiente-Palleja & others, 2018;
Yuan & others, 2017), but there is no evidence that family
socialization causes autism. Intellectual disability is present in
some children with autism, while others show average or above-average
intelligence (Memari & others, 2012).
Children with autism benefit from a well-structured classroom,
individualized teaching, and small-group instruction (Mastropieri & Scruggs,
2018). Behavior modification techniques are sometimes effective in helping
autistic children learn (Alberto & Troutman, 2017).
Educational Issues
Until the 1970s most U.S. public schools either refused enrollment to
children with disabilities or inadequately served them. This changed in 1975,
when Public Law 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act,
required that all students with disabilities be given a free, appropriate public
education. In 1990, Public Law 94-142 was recast as the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA was amended in 1997 and then
reauthorized in 2004 and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Improvement Act.
IDEA spells out broad mandates for providing educational services to
children with disabilities of all kinds (Heward, Alber-Morgan, & Konrad,
2017; Smith & others, 2018). These services include evaluation and
eligibility determination, appropriate education and an individualized
education plan (IEP), and education in the least restrictive environment
(LRE) (Cook & Richardson-Gibbs, 2018).
An individualized education plan (IEP) is a written statement that
spells out a program that is specifically tailored for a student with a disability
(Hallahan, Kauffman, & Pullen, 2019). The least restrictive environment
(LRE) is a setting that is as similar as possible to the one in which children
who do not have a disability are educated. This provision of the IDEA has
given a legal basis to efforts to educate children with a disability in the
regular classroom. The term inclusion describes educating a child with
special educational needs full-time in the regular classroom (Lewis, Wheeler,
& Carter, 2017). In 2014, 61 percent of U.S. students with a disability spent
more than 80 percent of their school day in a general classroom (compared
with only 33 percent in 1990) (Condition of Education, 2016).
IDEA mandates free, appropriate education for all children. What services does IDEA
mandate for children with disabilities?
©Bill Aron/PhotoEdit
Many legal changes regarding children with disabilities have been
extremely positive (Smith & others, 2016). Compared with several decades
ago, far more children today are receiving competent, specialized services.
For many children, inclusion in the regular classroom, with modifications or
supplemental services, is appropriate (Mastropieri & Scruggs, 2018).
However, some leading experts on special education argue that some children
with disabilities may not benefit from inclusion in the regular classroom.
James Kauffman and his colleagues, for example, advocate a more
individualized approach that does not necessarily involve full inclusion but
allows options such as special education outside the regular classroom with
trained professionals and adapted curricula (Kauffman, McGee, & Brigham,
2004). They go on to say, “We sell students with disabilities short when we
pretend that they are not different from typical students. We make the same
error when we pretend that they must not be expected to put forth extra effort
if they are to learn to do some things—or learn to do something in a different
way” (p. 620). Like general education, special education should challenge
students with disabilities “to become all they can be.”
Cognitive Changes
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It is the wisdom of the human life span that at no time are children more
ready to learn than during the period of expansive imagination at the end of
early childhood. Do children enter a new stage of cognitive development in
middle and late childhood?
Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Theory
According to Piaget (1952), the preschool child’s thought is preoperational.
Preschool children can form stable concepts, and they have begun to reason,
but their thinking is flawed by egocentrism and magical belief systems. As
we discussed in the chapter on physical and cognitive development in early
childhood, however, Piaget may have underestimated the cognitive skills of
preschool children. Some researchers argue that under the right conditions,
young children may display abilities that are characteristic of Piaget’s next
stage of cognitive development, the stage of concrete operational thought
(Gelman, 1969). Here we will cover the characteristics of concrete
operational thought and evaluate Piaget’s portrait of this stage.
The Concrete Operational Stage
Piaget proposed that the concrete operational stage lasts from approximately
7 to 11 years of age. In this stage, children can perform concrete operations,
and they can reason logically as long as reasoning can be applied to specific
or concrete examples. Remember that operations are mental actions that are
reversible, and concrete operations are operations that are applied to real,
concrete objects.
The conservation tasks described in the chapter on physical and cognitive
development in early childhood indicate whether children are capable of
concrete operations. For example, recall that in one task involving
conservation of matter, the child is presented with two identical balls of clay.
The experimenter rolls one ball into a long, thin shape; the other remains in
its original ball shape. The child is then asked if there is more clay in the ball
or in the long, thin piece of clay. By the time children reach the age of 7 or 8,
most answer that the amount of clay is the same. To answer this problem
correctly, children have to imagine the clay rolling back into a ball. This type
of imagination involves a reversible mental action applied to a real, concrete
object. Concrete operations allow the child to consider several characteristics
rather than focus on a single property of an object. In the clay example, the
preoperational child is likely to focus on height or width. The concrete
operational child coordinates information about both dimensions.
What other abilities are characteristic of children who have reached the
concrete operational stage? One important skill is the ability to classify or
divide things into different sets or subsets and to consider their
interrelationships. Consider the family tree of four generations that is shown
in Figure 4 (Furth & Wachs, 1975). This family tree suggests that the
grandfather (A) has three children (B, C, and D), each of whom has two
children (E through J), and that one of these children (J) has three children
(K, L, and M). A child who comprehends the classification system can move
up and down a level, across a level, and up and down and across within the
system. The concrete operational child understands that person J can at the
same time be father, brother, and grandson, for example.
Figure 4 Classification: An Important Ability in Concrete Operational Thought
A family tree of four generations (I to IV): The preoperational child has trouble
classifying the members of the four generations; the concrete operational child can
classify the members vertically, horizontally, and obliquely (up and down and across). For
example, the concrete operational child understands that a family member can be a son, a
brother, and a father, all at the same time.
Children who have reached the concrete operational stage are also
capable of seriation, which is the ability to order stimuli along a quantitative
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dimension (such as length). To see if students can serialize, a teacher might
haphazardly place eight sticks of different lengths on a table. The teacher
then asks the students to order the sticks by length. Many young children end
up with two or three small groups of “big” sticks or “little” sticks, rather than
a correct ordering of all eight sticks. Another ineffective strategy they use is
to line up the tops of the sticks evenly but ignore the bottoms. The concrete
operational thinker simultaneously understands that each stick must be longer
than the one that precedes it and shorter than the one that follows it.
Another aspect of reasoning about the relations between classifications is
transitivity, which is the ability to logically combine
relations to understand certain conclusions. In this case,
consider three sticks (A, B, and C) of differing lengths. A is
the longest, B is intermediate in length, and C is the shortest. Does the child
understand that if A is longer than B and B is longer than C, then A is longer
than C? In Piaget’s theory, concrete operational thinkers do; preoperational
thinkers do not.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you characterize
the contribution Piaget
made to our current
understanding of
cognitive development
in childhood?
Evaluating Piaget’s Concrete Operational Stage
Has Piaget’s portrait of the concrete operational child stood the test of
research? According to Piaget, various aspects of a stage should emerge at
the same time. In fact, however, some concrete operational abilities do not
appear in synchrony. For example, children do not learn to conserve at the
same time they learn to cross-classify.
Furthermore, education and culture exert stronger influences on
children’s development than Piaget reasoned (Feeney, Moravcik, & Nolte,
2019; Follari, 2019; Morrison, 2018; Roberts & others, 2018). Some
preoperational children can be trained to reason at a concrete operational
stage. And the age at which children acquire conservation skills is related to
how much practice their culture provides in these skills.
Thus, although Piaget was a giant in the field of developmental
psychology, his conclusions about the concrete operational stage have been
challenged. Later, after examining the final stage in his theory of cognitive
development, we will further evaluate Piaget’s contributions and consider
criticisms of his theory.
Neo-Piagetians argue that Piaget got some things right but that his theory
needs considerable revision. They give more emphasis to how children use
attention, memory, and strategies to process information (Case & Mueller,
2001). They especially believe that a more accurate portrayal of children’s
thinking requires attention to children’s strategies, the speed at which
children process information, the particular task involved, and the division of
problems into smaller, more precise steps (Morra & others, 2008). These
issues are addressed by the information-processing approach, and we will
discuss some of them later in this chapter.
An outstanding teacher and education in the logic of science and mathematics are
important cultural experiences that promote the development of operational thought.
Might Piaget have underestimated the roles of culture and schooling in children’s
cognitive development?
©Majority World/Getty Images
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Information Processing
If we examine how children handle information during middle and late
childhood instead of analyzing the type of thinking they display, what do we
find? During these years, most children dramatically improve their ability to
sustain and control attention (Posner, 2018a, b; Wu & Scerif, 2018). Other
changes in information processing during middle and late childhood involve
memory, thinking, and metacognition (Braithwaite & Siegler, 2018; Meltzer,
2018).
Memory
Short-term memory increases considerably during early childhood but after
the age of 7 does not show as much increase. British cognitive psychologist
Alan Baddeley (1990, 2001, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2018a, b) defines
working memory as a kind of mental “workbench” where individuals
manipulate and assemble information when they make decisions, solve
problems, and comprehend written and spoken language. Working memory is
described as being more active and powerful in modifying information than
short-term memory. Working memory involves bringing information to mind
and mentally working with or updating it, as when you link one
idea to another and relate what you are reading now to something
you read earlier.
Working memory develops slowly. Even by 8 years of age, children can
only hold in memory half the items that adults can remember (Kharitonova,
Winter, & Sheridan, 2015). Working memory is linked to many aspects of
children’s development (Baddeley & others, 2018a, b; Nicolaou & others,
2018; Sanchez-Perez & others, 2018; Swanson, 2017). For example, children
who have better working memory are more advanced in language
comprehension, math skills, problem solving, and reasoning than their
counterparts with less effective working memory (Ogino & others, 2017;
Simms, Frausel, & Richland, 2018; Tsubomi & Watanabe, 2017). Also, in a
recent study, children’s verbal working memory was linked to acquisition of
the following skills in both first- and second-language learners: morphology,
syntax, and grammar (Verhagen & Leseman, 2016).
Long-term memory, a relatively permanent and unlimited type of
memory, increases with age during middle and late childhood. In part,
improvements in memory reflect children’s increased knowledge and their
increased use of strategies. Keep in mind that it is important not to view
memory in terms of how children add something to it but rather to underscore
how children actively construct their memory (Bauer & others, 2017;
Radvansky & Ashcraft, 2018).
Knowledge and Expertise Much of the research on the role of knowledge
in memory has compared experts and novices. Experts have acquired
extensive knowledge about a particular content area; this knowledge
influences what they notice and how they organize, represent, and interpret
information (Ericsson & others, 2018; Varga & others, 2018). This in turn
affects their ability to remember, reason, and solve problems. When
individuals have expertise about a particular subject, their memory also tends
to be good regarding material related to that subject (Staszewski, 2013).
For example, one study found that 10- and 11-year-olds who were
experienced chess players (“experts”) were able to remember more
information about chess pieces than college students who were not chess
players (“novices”) (Chi, 1978). In contrast, when the college students were
presented with other stimuli, they were able to remember them better than the
children were. Thus, the children’s expertise in chess gave them superior
memories, but only regarding chess.
There are developmental changes in expertise (Ericsson & others, 2018).
Older children usually have more expertise about a subject than younger
children do, which can contribute to their better memory for the subject.
Strategies Long-term memory depends on the learning activities
individuals engage in when learning and remembering information.
Strategies consist of deliberate mental activities to improve the processing of
information. They do not occur automatically but require effort and work
(Braithwaite & Siegler, 2018; Chu & others, 2018; Graham & others, 2018;
Harris & others, 2018). Following are some effective strategies for adults to
use in helping children improve their memory skills:
Guide children to elaborate about the information they are to remember.
Elaboration involves more extensive processing of the information, such
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as thinking of examples or relating the information to one’s own life.
Elaboration makes the information more meaningful.
Encourage children to engage in mental imagery. Mental imagery can
help even young school children to remember visuals. However, for
remembering verbal information, mental imagery works better for older
children than for younger children.
Motivate children to remember material by understanding it rather than
by memorizing it. Children will remember information better over the
long term if they understand the information rather than just rehearse and
memorize it. Rehearsal works well for encoding information into short-
term memory, but when children need to retrieve the information from
long-term memory, rehearsal is much less efficient. For most information,
encourage children to understand it, give it meaning, elaborate on it, and
personalize it.
Repeat and vary instructional information and link it to other
information early and often. These recommendations improve
children’s consolidation and reconsolidation of the
information they are learning (Bauer, 2009). Varying the themes of a
lesson increases the number of associations in memory storage, and
linking the information expands the network of associations in memory
storage; both strategies expand the routes for retrieving information from
storage in the brain.
Embed memory-relevant language when instructing children. Teachers
who use mnemonic devices and metacognitive questions that encourage
children to think about their thinking can improve student performance.
Fuzzy Trace Theory Might something other than knowledge and strategies
be responsible for the improvement in memory during the elementary school
years? Charles Brainerd and Valerie Reyna (2014) argue that fuzzy traces
account for much of this improvement. Their fuzzy trace theory states that
memory is best understood by considering two types of memory
representations: (1) verbatim memory trace and (2) gist. The verbatim
memory trace consists of the precise details of the information, whereas gist
refers to the central idea of the information. When gist is used, fuzzy traces
are built up. Although individuals of all ages extract gist, young children tend
to store and retrieve verbatim traces. At some point during the early
elementary school years, children begin to use gist more, and according to the
theory, this contributes to the improved memory and reasoning of older
children because fuzzy traces are more enduring and less likely to be
forgotten than verbatim traces.
Thinking
Thinking involves manipulating and transforming information in memory.
Two important aspects of thinking are being able to think critically and
creatively.
Critical Thinking Currently there is considerable interest among
psychologists and educators regarding critical thinking (Bonney & Sternberg,
2017). Critical thinking involves thinking reflectively and productively and
evaluating evidence. In this book, the “How Would You . . . ?” questions
challenge you to think critically about a topic or an issue related to the
discussion.
Jacqueline and Martin Brooks (2001) lament that few schools really teach
students to think critically and develop a deep understanding of concepts.
Deep understanding occurs when students are stimulated to rethink
previously held ideas. In Brooks and Brooks’ view, schools spend too much
time getting students to give a single correct answer in an imitative way,
rather than encouraging them to expand their thinking by coming up with
new ideas and rethinking earlier conclusions. They observe that too often
teachers ask students to recite, define, describe, state, and list, rather than to
analyze, infer, connect, synthesize, criticize, create, evaluate, think, and
rethink. Many successful students complete their assignments, do well on
tests and get good grades, yet they don’t ever learn to think critically and
deeply. They think superficially, staying on the surface of problems rather
than stretching their minds and becoming deeply engaged in meaningful
thinking.
Robert Roeser and his colleagues (Roeser & Eccles, 2015; Roeser &
Zelazo, 2012; Roeser & others, 2014) have emphasized that mindfulness is an
important mental process that children can engage in to improve a number of
cognitive and socioemotional skills, such as executive function, focused
attention, emotion regulation, and empathy. Mindfulness involves paying
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careful attention to your thoughts, feelings, and environment (Hudziak &
Archangeli, 2017). It has been proposed that mindfulness training could be
implemented in schools through practices such as using age-appropriate
activities that increase children’s reflection on moment-to-moment
experiences and result in improved self-regulation (Roeser & Eccles, 2015).
For example, a training program in mindfulness and caring for others was
effective in improving the cognitive control of fourth- and fifth-graders
(Schonert-Reichl & others, 2015). In other recent research, mindfulness
training has been found to improve children’s attention and self-regulation
(Poehlmann-Tynan & others, 2016); achievement (Singh & others, 2016);
and coping strategies in stressful situations (Dariotis & others, 2016). For
example, in a recent study, mindfulness training improved
children’s self-regulation of attention (Felver & others, 2017).
In addition to mindfulness, activities such as yoga,
meditation, and tai chi have been recently suggested as candidates for
improving children’s cognitive and socioemotional development (Felver &
others, 2017). Together these activities are being grouped under the topic of
contemplative science, a cross-disciplinary term that involves the study of
how various types of mental and physical training might enhance children’s
development (Roeser & Eccles, 2015).
Creative Thinking Cognitively competent children not only think
critically, but also creatively (Renzulli, 2018; Sternberg, 2018e, f; Sternberg
& Kaufman, 2018b; Sternberg & Sternberg, 2017). Creative thinking is the
ability to think in novel and unusual ways and to come up with unique
solutions to problems. Thus, intelligence and creativity are not the same
thing. This difference was recognized by J. P. Guilford (1967), who
distinguished between convergent thinking, which produces one correct
answer and characterizes the kind of thinking that is required on conventional
tests of intelligence, and divergent thinking, which produces many different
answers to the same question and characterizes creativity. For example, a
typical item on a conventional intelligence test is “How many quarters will
you get in return for 60 dimes?” In contrast, the following question has many
possible answers: “What images come to mind when you hear the phrase
‘sitting alone in a dark room’ or ‘some unique uses for a paper clip’?”
It is important to recognize that children will show more creativity in
some domains than others (Sternberg, 2018e, f). A child who shows creative
thinking skills in mathematics may not exhibit these skills in art, for example.
An important goal is to help children learn to think creatively.
A special concern today is that the creative thinking of children in the
United States appears to be declining. A study of approximately 300,000 U.S.
children and adults found that creativity scores rose until 1990, but since then
have steadily declined (Kim, 2010). Among the likely causes of this decline
are the amount of time U.S. children spend watching TV and playing video
games instead of engaging in creative activities, as well as the lack of
emphasis on creative thinking skills in schools (Beghetto & Kaufman, 2017;
Renzulli, 2017, 2018; Sternberg, 2018e, f). In some countries, though, there
has been increasing emphasis on creative thinking in schools. For example,
historically, creative thinking has typically been discouraged in Chinese
schools. However, Chinese educators are now encouraging teachers to spend
more classroom time on creative activities (Plucker, 2010).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you talk with
teachers and parents
about ways to improve
children’s creative
thinking?
Metacognition
Metacognition is cognition about cognition, or knowing about knowing
(Flavell, 2004; Norman, 2017). Many studies classified as “metacognitive”
have focused on metamemory, or knowledge about memory. This includes
general knowledge about memory, such as knowing that recognition tests are
easier than recall tests. It also encompasses knowledge about one’s own
memory, such as a student’s ability to monitor whether she has studied
enough for a test that is coming up next week (Dimmitt & McCormick,
2012). Conceptualization of metacognition consists of several dimensions of
executive function, such as planning (deciding how much time to spend
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focusing on a task, for example) and self-regulation (modifying strategies as
work on a task progresses, for example) (Allen & others, 2017; Fergus &
Bardeen, 2018). Researchers have found that metacognition involves
children’s confidence in their eyewitness judgments (Buratti, Allwood, &
Johansson, 2014).
Young children do have some general knowledge about memory
(Lukowski & Bauer, 2014). By 5 or 6 years of age, children usually already
know that familiar items are easier to learn than unfamiliar ones, that short
lists are easier to memorize than long ones, that recognition is easier than
recall, and that forgetting is more likely to occur over time (Lyon & Flavell,
1993). However, in other ways young children’s metamemory is limited.
They don’t understand that related items are easier to
remember than unrelated ones and that remembering the gist
of a story is easier than remembering information verbatim
(Kreutzer, Leonard, & Flavell, 1975). By the fifth grade, children do
understand that gist recall is easier than verbatim recall.
Young children also have only limited knowledge about their own
memory. They have an inflated opinion of their memory abilities. For
example, in one study a majority of young children predicted that they would
be able to recall all 10 items on a list of 10 items. When tested for this,
however, none of the young children managed this feat (Flavell, Friedrichs,
& Hoyt, 1970). As they move through the elementary school years, children
can give more realistic evaluations of their memory skills.
Cognitive developmentalist John Flavell is a pioneer in providing insights about
children’s thinking. Among his many contributions are establishing the field of
metacognition and conducting numerous studies in this area, including metamemory and
theory of mind studies.
Courtesy of Dr. John Flavell
In addition to metamemory, metacognition includes knowledge about
memory strategies (Graham, 2018a, b; Harris & others, 2018). In the view of
Michael Pressley (2007), the key to education is helping students learn a rich
repertoire of strategies that produce solutions to problems. Good thinkers
routinely use strategies and effective planning to solve problems. Good
thinkers also know when and where to use strategies. Understanding when
and where to use strategies often results from monitoring the learning
situation.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you advise
teachers and parents
about ways to improve
children’s
metacognitive skills?
Executive Function
Earlier you read about executive function and its characteristics in early
childhood (Bervoets & others, 2018; Gordon & others, 2018). Some of the
cognitive topics we already have discussed in this chapter—working
memory, critical thinking, creative thinking, and metacognition—can be
considered under the umbrella of executive function and linked to the
development of the brain’s prefrontal cortex (Knapp & Morton, 2017; Muller
& others, 2017).
Also, earlier in this chapter in the coverage of brain development in
middle and late childhood, you read about the increase in cognitive control,
which involves flexible and effective control in a number of areas such as
focusing attention, reducing interfering thoughts, inhibiting motor actions,
and exercising flexibility in deciding between competing choices (Perone,
Palanisamy, & Carlson, 2018).
Adele Diamond and Kathleen Lee (2011) highlighted the following
dimensions of executive function that they conclude are the most important
for 4- to 11-year-old children’s cognitive development and school success:
What are some changes in executive function from 4 to 11 years of age?
©Hero Images/Corbis/Glow Images
Self-control/inhibition. Children need to develop self-control that will
allow them to concentrate and persist on learning tasks, to inhibit their
tendencies to repeat incorrect responses, and to resist the impulse to do
something that they later would regret.
Working memory. Children need an effective working memory to
mentally work with the masses of information they will encounter as they
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go through school and beyond.
Flexibility. Children need to be flexible in their thinking so as to consider
different strategies and perspectives.
Researchers have found that executive function is a better predictor of
school readiness than general IQ (Blair & Razza, 2007). A number of diverse
activities have been found to increase children’s executive function, such as
computerized training that uses games to improve working memory
(Cogmed, 2013); aerobic exercise (Kvalo & others, 2017); mindfulness
(Gallant, 2016); scaffolding of self-regulation (Bodrova & Leong, 2015); and
some types of school curricula (the Montessori curriculum, for example)
(Diamond & Lee, 2011).
Intelligence
How can intelligence be defined? Intelligence is the ability to solve problems
and to adapt and learn from experiences. Interest in intelligence has often
focused on individual differences and assessment. Individual differences are
the stable, consistent ways in which people differ from each other (Sackett &
others, 2017). We can talk about individual differences in personality or any
other domain, but it is in the domain of intelligence that the most attention
has been directed at individual differences (Estrada & others, 2017). For
example, an intelligence test purports to inform us about whether a student
can reason better than others who have taken the test. Let’s go back in history
and see what the first intelligence test was like.
The Binet Tests
In 1904, the French Ministry of Education asked psychologist Alfred Binet to
devise a method of identifying children who were unable to learn in school.
School officials wanted to reduce crowding by placing students who did not
benefit from regular classroom teaching in special schools. Binet and his
student Theophile Simon developed an intelligence test to meet this request.
The test is called the 1905 Scale. It consists of 30 questions on topics ranging
from the ability to touch one’s ear to the ability to draw designs from
memory and define abstract concepts.
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Binet developed the concept of mental age (MA), an individual’s level of
mental development relative to others. A few years later, in 1912, William
Stern created the concept of intelligence quotient (IQ), a person’s mental
age divided by chronological age (CA) and multiplied by 100. That is, IQ =
MA/CA × 100. If mental age is the same as chronological age, then the
person’s IQ is 100. If mental age is above chronological age, then IQ is more
than 100. If mental age is below chronological age, then IQ is less than 100.
The Binet test has been revised many times to incorporate advances in the
understanding of intelligence and intelligence tests. These revisions are called
the Stanford-Binet tests (Stanford University is where the revisions have been
done). In 2004, the test—now called the Stanford-Binet 5—was revised to
analyze an individual’s response in five content areas: fluid reasoning,
knowledge, quantitative reasoning, visual-spatial reasoning, and working
memory. A general composite score also is still obtained.
By administering the test to large numbers of people of different ages
(from preschool through late adulthood) from different backgrounds,
researchers have found that scores on the Stanford-Binet approximate a
normal distribution (see Figure 5). A normal distribution is
symmetrical, with a majority of the scores falling in the
middle of the possible range of scores and few scores
appearing toward the extremes of the range.
Figure 5 The Normal Curve and Stanford-Binet IQ Scores
The distribution of IQ scores approximates a normal curve. Most of the population falls in
the middle range of scores. Notice that extremely high and extremely low scores are very
rare. Slightly more than two-thirds of the scores fall between 85 and 115. Only about 1 in
50 individuals has an IQ of more than 130, and only about 1 in 50 individuals has an IQ of
less than 70.
The Wechsler Scales
Another set of tests widely used to assess students’ intelligence is called the
Wechsler scales, developed by psychologist David Wechsler. They include
the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence—Fourth Edition
(WPPSI-IV) to test children from 2.5 years to 7.25 years of age; the Wechsler
Intelligence Scale for Children—Fifth Edition (WISC-V) for children and
adolescents 6 to 16 years of age; and the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—
Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV).
The WISC-V now not only provides an overall IQ score but also yields
five composite scores (Verbal Comprehension, Working Memory, Processing
Speed, Fluid Reasoning, and Visual Spatial) (Canivez, Watkins, &
Dombowski, 2017). These allow the examiner to quickly see whether the
individual is strong or weak in different areas of intelligence. The Wechsler
also include 16 verbal and nonverbal subscales. Three of the Wechsler
subscales are shown in Figure 6.
Figure 6 Sample Subscales of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fifth
Edition (WISC-V)
Three of the WISC subscales are shown here. The simulated items are similar to those
found in the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fifth Edition.
Source: Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition (WISC-V), Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc., 2014.
Types of Intelligence
Is it more appropriate to think of a child’s intelligence as a general ability or
as a number of specific abilities? Robert Sternberg and Howard Gardner have
proposed influential theories that reflect this second viewpoint.
Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory Robert J. Sternberg (1986, 2004, 2010,
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2011, 2012, 2013, 2014a, b, 2015, 2016a, b, 2017a, b; 2018a, b, c, d)
developed the triarchic theory of intelligence, which states that intelligence
comes in three forms: (1) analytical intelligence, which refers to the ability to
analyze, judge, evaluate, compare, and contrast; (2) creative intelligence,
which consists of the ability to create, design, invent, originate, and imagine;
and (3) practical intelligence, which involves the ability to use, apply,
implement, and put ideas into practice.
Sternberg says that children with different triarchic patterns “look
different” in school (2017a, b, 2018a, b, c, d). Students with high analytic
ability tend to be favored in conventional schooling. They often do well
under direct instruction, in which the teacher lectures and gives students
objective tests. They often are considered to be “smart” students who get
good grades, show up in high-level tracks, do well on traditional tests of
intelligence and the SAT, and later get admitted to competitive colleges. In
contrast, children who are high in creative intelligence often are not on the
top rung of their class. Many teachers have specific expectations about how
assignments should be done, and creatively intelligent students may not
conform to those expectations. Instead of giving conformist answers, they
give unique answers, for which they might get reprimanded or marked down.
No teacher wants to discourage creativity, but Sternberg stresses that too
often a teacher’s desire to increase students’ knowledge suppresses the
development of creative thinking.
Like children high in creative intelligence, children who are
practically intelligent often do not relate well to the demands of
school. However, many of these children do well outside of the
classroom’s walls. They may have excellent social skills and good common
sense. As adults, some become successful managers, entrepreneurs, or
politicians in spite of having undistinguished school records.
Gardner’s Eight Frames of Mind Howard Gardner (1983, 1993, 2002,
2016) suggests there are eight types of intelligence, or “frames of mind.”
These are described here, with examples of the types of vocations in which
they represent strengths (Campbell, Campbell, & Dickinson, 2004):
Verbal: The ability to think in words and use language to express
meaning. Occupations: Authors, journalists, speakers.
Mathematical: The ability to carry out mathematical operations.
Occupations: Scientists, engineers, accountants.
Spatial: The ability to think three-dimensionally. Occupations: Architects,
artists, sailors.
Bodily-kinesthetic: The ability to manipulate objects and be physically
adept. Occupations: Surgeons, craftspeople, dancers, athletes.
Musical: A sensitivity to pitch, melody, rhythm, and tone. Occupations:
Composers, musicians, and sensitive listeners.
Interpersonal: The ability to understand and interact effectively with
others. Occupations: Successful teachers, mental health professionals.
Intrapersonal: The ability to understand oneself. Occupations:
Theologians, psychologists.
Naturalist: The ability to observe patterns in nature and understand
natural and human-made systems. Occupations: Farmers, botanists,
ecologists, landscapers.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you use
Gardner’s theory of
multiple intelligences to
respond to children who
are distressed by their
below-average score on
a traditional intelligence
test?
According to Gardner, everyone has all of these intelligences to varying
degrees. As a result, we prefer to learn and process information in specific
ways. People learn best when they can do so in a way that uses their stronger
intelligences.
Evaluating the Multiple-Intelligences Approaches Sternberg’s and
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Gardner’s approaches have much to offer. They have stimulated teachers to
think more broadly about what makes up children’s competencies (Gardner,
2016; Gardner, Kornhaber, & Chen, 2018; Sternberg, 2017a, b, 2018a, b, c).
And they have motivated educators to develop programs that instruct students
in multiple domains. These approaches have also contributed to interest in
assessing intelligence and classroom learning in innovative ways, such as by
evaluating student portfolios (Gardner, 2016; Gardner, Kornhaber, & Chen,
2018).
Still, doubts about multiple-intelligences approaches persist and many
psychologists endorse the general intelligence approach (Hagmann-von Arx,
Lemola, & Grob, 2018). Some argue that a research base to support the three
intelligences of Sternberg or the eight intelligences of Gardner has not yet
emerged. One expert on intelligence, Nathan Brody (2007), observes that
people who excel at one type of intellectual task are likely to excel in others.
Thus, individuals who do well at memorizing lists of digits are also likely to
be good at solving verbal problems and spatial layout problems. If musical
skill reflects a distinct type of intelligence, ask other critics, why not label the
skills of outstanding chess players, prizefighters, painters, and poets as types
of intelligence?
Advocates of the concept of general intelligence point to its accuracy in
predicting school and job success. For example, scores on tests of general
intelligence are substantially correlated with school grades and achievement
test performance, both at the time of the test and years later (Cucina & others,
2016; Strenze, 2007). For example, a meta-analysis of 240
independent samples and more than 100,000 individuals
found a correlation of +.54 between intelligence and school
grades (Roth & others, 2015). Also, a recent study found a significant link
between children’s general intelligence and their self-control (Meldrum &
others, 2017).
The argument between those who support the concept of general
intelligence and those who advocate the multiple-intelligences view is
ongoing (Gardner, 2016; Gardner, Kornhaber, & Chen, 2018; Hagmann-von
Arx, Lemola, & Grob, 2017). Sternberg (2017a, b, 2018b, c) actually accepts
that there is a general intelligence for the kinds of analytical tasks that
traditional IQ tests assess but thinks that the range of tasks those tests
measure is far too narrow.
Culture and Intelligence
Differing conceptions of intelligence occur not only among psychologists but
also among cultures (Sternberg, 2018f). What is viewed as intelligent in one
culture may not be thought of as intelligent in another. For example, people
in Western cultures tend to view intelligence in terms of reasoning and
thinking skills, whereas people in Eastern cultures see intelligence as a way
for members of a community to engage successfully in social roles (Nisbett,
2003).
Interpreting Differences in IQ Scores
The IQ scores that result from tests such as the Stanford-Binet and Wechsler
scales provide information about children’s mental abilities. However,
interpretation of scores on intelligence tests is a controversial topic.
The Influence of Genetics How strong is the effect of genetics on
intelligence? Some researchers argue that heredity plays a strong role in
intelligence, but this assertion is difficult to prove because teasing apart the
influences of heredity and environment is virtually impossible. Also, most
research on heredity and environment does not include environments that
differ radically. Thus, it is not surprising that many genetic studies show
environment to be a fairly weak influence on intelligence.
Have scientists been able to pinpoint specific genes that are linked to
intelligence? A research review concluded that there may be more than 1,000
genes that affect intelligence, each possibly having a small influence on an
individual’s intelligence (Davies & others, 2011). Thus, some scientists argue
that there is a strong genetic component to intelligence (Hill & others, 2018;
Rimfeld & others, 2017). One strategy for examining the role of heredity in
intelligence is to compare the IQs of identical and fraternal twins. Recall that
identical twins have exactly the same genetic makeup but fraternal twins do
not. If intelligence is genetically determined, say some investigators, identical
twins’ IQs should be more similar than those of fraternal twins. A research
review of many studies found that the difference in the average correlation of
intelligence between identical and fraternal twins was 0.15, suggesting a
relatively low correlation between genetics and intelligence (Grigorenko,
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2000) (see Figure 7).
Figure 7 Correlation Between Intelligence Test Scores and Twin Status
The graph represents a summary of research findings that have compared the intelligence
test scores of identical and fraternal twins. An approximate .15 difference in correlation
has been found, with a higher correlation for identical twins (.75) and a lower correlation
for fraternal twins (.60).
Today, most researchers agree that genetics and environment interact to
influence intelligence. For most people, this means that modifications in
environment can change their IQ scores considerably. Although genetic
endowment may always influence a person’s intellectual ability, the
environmental influences and opportunities we provide children and adults do
make a difference (Sternberg, 2017a, b; 2018a, b, c).
Environmental Influences The environment’s role in intelligence is
reflected in the 12- to 18-point increase in IQ when children are adopted from
lower-SES to middle-SES homes (Nisbett & others, 2012). Environmental
influences on intelligence also involve schooling (Gustafsson,
2007). The biggest effects have been found when large groups of
children have been deprived of formal education for an extended
period, resulting in lower intelligence (Ceci & Gilstrap, 2000). Another
possible effect of education can be seen in rapidly increasing IQ test scores
around the world (Flynn, 1999, 2007, 2011, 2013). IQ scores have been
increasing so fast that a high percentage of people regarded as having average
intelligence at the turn of the century would be considered below average in
intelligence today (see Figure 8). If a representative sample of people today
took the Stanford-Binet test version used in 1932, about 25 percent would be
defined as having very superior intelligence, a label usually accorded to fewer
than 3 percent of the population. Because the increase has taken place in a
relatively short time, it can’t be due to heredity, but rather may be due to
increasing levels of education attained by a much greater percentage of the
world’s population, or to other environmental factors such as the explosion of
information to which people are exposed (Laciga & Cigler, 2017; Shenk,
2017; Weber, Dekhtyar, & Herlitz, 2017). The worldwide increase in
intelligence test scores that has occurred over a short time frame has been
called the Flynn effect after the Australian researcher who discovered it,
James Flynn.
Figure 8 The Increase in IQ Scores from 1932 to 1997
As measured by the Stanford-Binet intelligence test, American children seem to be getting
smarter. Scores of a group tested in 1932 fell along a bell-shaped curve with half below
100 and half above. Studies show that if children took that same test today, half would
score above 120 on the 1932 scale. Very few of them would score in the “intellectually
deficient” end on the left side, and about one-fourth would rank in the “very superior”
range.
Source: Ulric Neisser, “The Increase in IQ Scores from 1932 to 1997.” Copyright
by The Estate of Ulric Neisser. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
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Students in an elementary school in South Africa. How might schooling influence the
development of children’s intelligence?
©Owen Franken/Corbis/Getty Images
Researchers are increasingly concerned about improving the early
environment of children who are at risk for impoverished intelligence (Hardy,
Smeeding, & Ziliak, 2018; Yoshikawa & others, 2017). For various reasons,
many low-income parents have difficulty providing an intellectually
stimulating environment for their children. Programs that educate parents to
be more sensitive caregivers and better teachers, as well as access to support
services such as quality child-care programs, can make a difference in a
child’s intellectual development (Follari, 2019; Morrison, 2018). In a recent
two-year intervention study with families living in poverty, maternal
scaffolding and positive home stimulation improved young children’s
intellectual functioning (Obradovic & others, 2016). Thus, the efforts to
counteract a deprived early environment’s effect on intelligence emphasize
prevention rather than remediation.
In sum, there is a consensus among psychologists that both heredity and
environment influence intelligence (Sauce & Matzel, 2018; Sternberg, 2017a,
2018a). This consensus reflects the nature-nurture issue, which focuses on the
extent to which development is influenced by nature
(heredity) and nurture (environment). Although psychologists
agree that intelligence is the product of both nature and
nurture, there is still disagreement about how strongly each influences
intelligence.
Group Differences On average, African American schoolchildren in the
United States score 10 to 15 points lower on standardized intelligence tests
than non-Latino White American schoolchildren do (Brody, 2000). Children
from Latino families also score lower than non-Latino White children. These
are average scores, however; there is significant overlap in the distribution of
scores. About 15 to 25 percent of African American schoolchildren score
higher than half of White schoolchildren do, and many White schoolchildren
score lower than most African American schoolchildren. As African
Americans have gained social, economic, and educational opportunities, the
gap between African Americans and Whites on standardized intelligence tests
has begun to narrow. This gap especially narrows in college, where African
American and White students often experience more similar environments
than in the elementary and high school years (Myerson & others, 1998).
Further, a study using the Stanford Binet Intelligence Scales found no
differences in overall intellectual ability between non-Latino White and
African American preschool children when the children were matched on
age, gender, and parental education level (Dale & others, 2014). Nonetheless,
a research analysis concluded that the underrepresentation of African
Americans in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) subjects
and careers is linked to practitioners’ expectations that they have less innate
talent than non-Latino Whites (Leslie & others, 2015).
One potential influence on intelligence test performance is stereotype
threat, the anxiety that one’s behavior might confirm a negative stereotype
about one’s group, such as an ethnic group (Grand, 2017; Williams & others,
2018). For example, when African Americans take an intelligence or
achievement test, they may experience anxiety about confirming the old
stereotype that Blacks are “intellectually inferior.” Research studies have
confirmed the existence of this type of stereotype threat (Lyons & others,
2018; Wegmann, 2017). Also, African American students do more poorly on
standardized tests if they perceive that they are being evaluated. If they think
the test doesn’t count, they perform as well as White students (Steele,
Spencer, & Aronson, 2002). However, some critics argue that the extent to
which stereotype threat explains the testing gap has been exaggerated
(Sackett, Borneman, & Connelly, 2009).
Creating Culture-Fair Tests Culture-fair tests are tests of intelligence
that are intended to be free of cultural bias. Two types of culture-fair tests
have been devised. The first includes items that are familiar to children from
all socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds, or items that at least are familiar
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to the children taking the test. For example, a child might be asked how a bird
and a dog are different, on the assumption that all children have been exposed
to birds and dogs. The second type of culture-fair test has no verbal
questions.
Why is it so hard to create culture-fair tests? Most tests tend to reflect
what the dominant culture thinks is important (Sternberg, 2018f). If tests have
time limits, that will bias the test against groups not concerned with time. If
languages differ, the same words might have different meanings for different
language groups. Even pictures can produce bias because some cultures have
less experience with drawings and photographs. Because of such difficulties
in creating culture-fair tests, Robert Sternberg (2018f) concludes that there
are no culture-fair tests, only culture-reduced tests.
Extremes of Intelligence
Intelligence tests have been used to discover indications of intellectual
disability or giftedness, the extremes of intelligence. At times, they have been
misused for this purpose. Keeping in mind the theme that an intelligence test
should not be used as the sole indicator of intellectual disability or giftedness,
we will explore the nature of these intellectual extremes.
Intellectual Disability Intellectual disability is a condition of limited
mental ability in which an individual has a low IQ, usually below 70 on a
traditional intelligence test, and has difficulty adapting to the demands of
everyday life (Heward, Alber-Morgan, & Konrad, 2017). About 5
million Americans fit this definition of intellectual disability.
About 89 percent of the individuals with an intellectual
disability fall into the mild intellectual disability category, with IQs of 55 to
70; most of them are able to live independently as adults and work at a
variety of jobs. About 6 percent are classified as having a moderate
intellectual disability, with IQs of 40 to 54; these people can attain a second-
grade level of skills and may be able to support themselves as adults through
some types of labor. About 3.5 percent are in the severe category, with IQs of
25 to 39; these individuals learn to talk and accomplish very simple tasks but
require extensive supervision. Less than 1 percent have IQs below 25; they
fall into the profoundly disabled classification and need constant supervision.
What causes a child to develop Down syndrome?
©Stockbyte/Veer
Intellectual disability can have an organic cause, or it can be social and
cultural in origin:
Organic intellectual disability is intellectual disability that is caused by
a genetic disorder or by brain damage; the word organic refers to the
tissues or organs of the body, indicating physical damage. Most people
who suffer from organic intellectual disability have IQs that range
between 0 and 50. However, children with Down syndrome have an
average IQ of approximately 50. As discussed earlier, Down syndrome is
caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21.
Cultural-familial intellectual disability is a mental deficit in which no
evidence of organic brain damage can be found; individuals’ IQs
generally range from 50 to 70. Psychologists suspect that such mental
deficits result from the normal variation that distributes people along the
range of intelligence scores combined with growing up in a below-
average intellectual environment.
Giftedness There have always been people whose abilities and
accomplishments outshine those of others—the whiz kid in class, the star
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athlete, the natural musician. People who are gifted have above-average
intelligence (an IQ of 130 or higher) or superior talent for something, or both.
When it comes to programs for the gifted, most school systems select
children who have intellectual superiority and academic aptitude, whereas
children who are talented in the visual and performing arts (arts, drama,
dance, music), athletics, or other special aptitudes tend to be overlooked
(Olszewski-Kubilius & Thomson, 2013). There also are increasing calls to
further expand the criteria for giftedness to include such factors as creativity
and commitment (Sternberg, 2017c; Sternberg & Kaufman, 2018a).
Estimates vary but indicate that approximately 6 to 10 percent of U.S.
students are classified as gifted (National Association for Gifted Children,
2017). This percentage is likely conservative because it focuses more on
children who are gifted intellectually and academically, often failing to
include those who are gifted in creative thinking or the visual and performing
arts (Ford, 2012). Also, African American, Latino, and Native American
children are underrepresented in gifted programs (Ford, 2015a, b, 2016).
Much of the underrepresentation involves the lower test scores for these
children compared with non-Latino White and Asian American children,
which may be due to a number of reasons such as test bias and fewer
opportunities to develop language skills such as vocabulary and
comprehension (Ford, 2016).
What are the characteristics of children who are gifted? Despite
speculation that giftedness is linked with having a mental disorder, no
relation between giftedness and mental disorder has been found. Similarly,
the idea that gifted children are maladjusted is a myth, as Lewis Terman
(1925) found when he conducted an extensive study of 1,500 children whose
Stanford-Binet IQ scores averaged 150. The children in Terman’s study were
socially well adjusted, and many went on to become
successful doctors, lawyers, professors, and scientists. Studies
support the conclusion that gifted people tend to be more
mature than others, have fewer emotional problems than average, and grow
up in a positive family climate (Feldman, 2001). For example, one study
revealed that parents and teachers identified elementary school children who
are not gifted as having more emotional and behavioral risks than children
who are gifted (Eklund & others, 2015). In this study, when children who are
gifted did have problems, they were more likely to be internalized problems,
such as anxiety and depression, than externalized problems, such as acting
out and high levels of aggression.
Ellen Winner (1996) described three criteria that characterize gifted
children, whether in art, music, or academic domains:
At 2 years of age, art prodigy Alexandra Nechita colored in coloring books for hours and
also took up pen and ink. She had no interest in dolls or friends. By age 5 she was using
watercolors. Once she started school, she would paint as soon as she got home. At age 8,
she saw the first public exhibit of her work. Since then, working quickly and impulsively
on canvases as large as 5 feet by 9 feet, she has completed hundreds of paintings, some of
which sell for close to $100,000 apiece. She continues to paint today—relentlessly and
passionately. It is, she says, what she loves to do. What are some characteristics of
children who are gifted?
©Koichi Kamoshida/Newsmakers/Getty Images
1. Precocity. Gifted children are precocious. They begin to master an area
earlier than their peers. Learning in their domain is more effortless for
them than for ordinary children. In most instances, these gifted children
are precocious because they have an inborn high ability in a particular
domain or domains.
2. Marching to a different drummer. Gifted children learn in a qualitatively
different way from ordinary children. One way that they march to a
different drummer is that they need minimal help, or scaffolding, from
adults to learn. In many instances, they resist any kind of explicit
instruction. They often make discoveries on their own and solve
problems in unique ways.
3. A passion to master. Gifted children are driven to understand the domain
in which they have high ability. They display an intense, obsessive
interest and an ability to focus. They motivate themselves, says Winner,
and do not need to be “pushed” by their parents.
4. Information-processing skills. Researchers have found that children who
are gifted learn at a faster pace, process information more rapidly, are
better at reasoning, use superior strategies, and monitor their
understanding better than their nongifted counterparts (Ambrose &
Sternberg, 2016).
Is giftedness a product of heredity or environment? The answer is likely
both (Sternberg & Kaufman, 2018a). Individuals who are gifted recall that
they had signs of high ability in a particular area at a very young age, prior to
or at the beginning of formal training (Howe & others, 1995). This suggests
the importance of innate ability in giftedness. However, researchers have also
found that individuals with world-class status in the arts, mathematics,
science, and sports all report strong family support and years of training and
practice (Bloom, 1985). Deliberate practice is an important characteristic of
individuals who become experts in a particular domain. For example, in one
study, the best musicians engaged in twice as much deliberate practice over
their lives as did the least successful ones (Ericsson, Krampe, & Tesch-
Romer, 1993).
Individuals who are highly gifted are typically not gifted in many
domains, and research on giftedness is increasingly focused on domain-
specific developmental paths (Sternberg & Kaufman, 2018a). During the
childhood years, the domain(s) in which individuals are gifted usually
emerges. Thus, at some point in the childhood years, the child who will
become a gifted artist or the child who will become a gifted mathematician
begins to show expertise in that domain. Regarding domain-specific
giftedness, software genius Bill Gates (1998), the founder of Microsoft and
one of the world’s richest people, commented that when you are good at
something, you may have to resist the urge to think that you will be good at
everything. Because he has been so successful at software development, he
has found that people also expect him to be brilliant in other domains in
which he is far from gifted.
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How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you structure
educational programs
for children who are
gifted that would
challenge and expand
their talents?
An increasing number of experts argue that the education of
children who are gifted in the United States requires a significant
overhaul (Renzulli, 2017, 2018). Ellen Winner (1996, 2009)
argues that too often children who are gifted are socially isolated and
underchallenged in the classroom. It is not unusual for other students to label
them “nerds” or “geeks.” Many eminent adults report that school was a
negative experience for them, that they were bored and sometimes knew
more than their teachers (Bloom, 1985). Winner argues that American
students will benefit more from their education when standards are raised for
all children. She recommends that some underchallenged students be allowed
to attend advanced classes in their domain of exceptional ability, such as
allowing some precocious middle school students to take college classes in
their area of expertise. For example, at age 13, Bill Gates took college math
classes and hacked a computer security system; Yo-Yo Ma, famous cellist,
graduated from high school at 15 and attended Juilliard School of Music in
New York City.
A young Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft and now one of the world’s richest people. Like
many highly gifted students, Gates was not especially fond of school. He hacked a
computer security system when he was 13 and as a high school student, he was allowed to
take some college math classes. He dropped out of Harvard University and began
developing a plan for what was to become Microsoft Corporation. What are some ways
that schools can enrich the education of highly talented students like Gates to make it a
more challenging, interesting, and meaningful experience?
©Deborah Feingold/Getty Images
Language Development
Children gain new skills as they enter school that make it possible for them to
learn to read and write (Fox & Alexander, 2017; Graham, 2018a, b; Reutzel
& Cooter, 2019). These include increased use of language to talk about things
that are not physically present, learning what a word is, and learning how to
recognize and talk about sounds (Berko Gleason, 2003). Children also learn
the alphabetic principle—that the letters of the alphabet represent sounds of
the language.
Vocabulary, Grammar, and Metalinguistic Awareness
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During middle and late childhood, changes occur in the way children’s
mental vocabulary is organized. When asked to say the first word that comes
to mind when they hear a word, preschool children typically provide a word
that often follows the word in a sentence. For example, when asked to
respond to “dog” the young child may say “barks,” or to the word “eat”
respond with “lunch.” At about 7 years of age, children begin to respond with
a word that is the same part of speech as the stimulus word. For example, a
child may now respond to the word “dog” with “cat” or “horse.” To “eat,”
they now might say “drink.” This is evidence that children of this age have
begun to categorize their vocabulary by parts of speech (Berko Gleason,
2003).
The process of categorizing becomes easier as children increase their
vocabulary (Clark, 2017). Children’s vocabulary increases from an average
of about 14,000 words at age 6 to an average of about 40,000 words by age
11.
Children make similar advances in grammar (Behrens, 2012; Clark,
2017). During the elementary school years, children’s improvement in logical
reasoning and analytical skills helps them understand such constructions as
the appropriate use of comparatives (shorter, deeper) and subjectives (“If you
were president . . . ”). During the elementary school years, children become
increasingly able to understand and use complex grammar, such as the
following sentence: The boy who kissed his mother wore a hat. They also
learn to use language in a more connected way, producing connected
discourse. They become able to relate sentences to one another to produce
descriptions, definitions, and narratives that make sense.
Children must be able to do these things orally before they
can be expected to deal with them in written assignments.
These advances in vocabulary and grammar during the elementary school
years are accompanied by the development of metalinguistic awareness,
which is knowledge about language, such as knowing what a preposition is or
being able to discuss the sounds of a language (Schiff, Nuri Beh-Shushan, &
Ben-Artzi, 2017; Yeon, Bae, & Joshi, 2017). Metalinguistic awareness allows
children “to think about their language, understand what words are, and even
define them” (Berko Gleason, 2009, p. 4). It improves considerably during
the elementary school years (Pan & Uccelli, 2009). Defining words becomes
a regular part of classroom discourse, and children increase their knowledge
of syntax as they study and talk about the components of sentences, such as
subjects and verbs (Crain, 2012). And reading also feeds into metalinguistic
awareness as children try to comprehend written text.
Children also make progress in understanding how to use language in
culturally appropriate ways—a process called pragmatics (Beguin, 2016). By
the time they enter adolescence, most children know the rules for the use of
language in everyday contexts—that is, what is appropriate and inappropriate
to say.
Reading
Before learning to read, children learn to use language to talk about things
that are not present; they learn what a word is; and they learn how to
recognize sounds and talk about them. Children who begin elementary school
with a robust vocabulary have an advantage when it comes to learning to
read. Vocabulary development plays an important role in reading
comprehension (Vacca & others, 2018).
How should children be taught to read? One debate has focused on the
whole-language approach versus the phonics approach (Fox & Alexander,
2017).
A teacher helps a student sound out words. Researchers have found that phonics
instruction is a key aspect of teaching students to read, especially beginning readers and
students with weak reading skills.
©Gideon Mendel/Corbis/Getty Images
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The whole-language approach stresses that reading instruction should
parallel children’s natural language learning. In some whole-language
classes, beginning readers are taught to recognize whole words or even entire
sentences, and to use the context of what they are reading to guess at the
meaning of words. Reading materials that support the whole-language
approach are whole and meaningful—that is, children are given material in its
complete form, such as stories and poems, so that they learn to understand
language’s communicative function. Reading is connected with listening and
writing skills. Although there are variations in whole-language programs,
most share the premise that reading should be integrated with other skills and
subjects, such as science and social studies, and that it should focus on real-
world material. Thus, a class might read newspapers, magazines, or books,
and then write about and discuss what they have read.
In contrast, the phonics approach emphasizes that reading instruction
should teach basic rules for translating written symbols into sounds. Early
phonics-centered reading instruction should involve simplified materials.
Only after children have learned correspondence rules that relate spoken
phonemes to the alphabet letters that are used to represent them should they
be given complex reading materials, such as books and poems.
Which approach is better? Research suggests that children can benefit
from both approaches, but instruction in phonics needs to be emphasized
(Reutzel & Cooter, 2019; Tompkins, 2018). An increasing number of experts
in the field of reading now conclude that direct instruction in phonics is a key
aspect of learning to read (Cunningham, 2017; Fox & Alexander, 2017).
Beyond the phonics/whole language issue in learning to read,
becoming a good reader includes learning to read fluently
(Stevens, Walker, & Vaughn, 2017). Many beginning or poor
readers do not recognize words automatically. Their processing capacity is
consumed by the demands of word recognition, so they have less
comprehension of groupings of words as phrases or sentences. As their
processing of words and passages becomes more automatic, it is said that
their reading becomes more fluent. Also, children’s vocabulary development
plays an important role in the development of their reading comprehension
(Vacca & others, 2018). And metacognitive strategies, such as learning to
monitor one’s reading progress, getting the gist of what is being read, and
summarizing also are important in becoming a good reader (Schiff, Nuri Ben-
Shushan, & Ben-Artzi, 2017).
Second-Language Learning and Bilingual Education
Are there sensitive periods in learning a second language? That is, if
individuals want to learn a second language, how important is the age at
which they begin to learn it? What is the best way for U.S. schools to teach
children who come from homes in which English is not the primary
language?
Second-Language Learning
For many years, it was claimed that if individuals did not learn a second
language prior to puberty they would never reach native-language learners’
proficiency in the second language (Johnson & Newport, 1991). However,
recent research indicates a more complex conclusion: There are sensitive
periods for learning a second language. Additionally, these sensitive periods
likely vary across different areas of language systems (Thomas & Johnson,
2008). For example, late language learners, such as adolescents and adults,
may learn new vocabulary more easily than new sounds or new grammar
(Neville, 2006). Also, children’s ability to pronounce words with a native-
like accent in a second language typically decreases with age, with an
especially sharp drop occurring after the age of about 10 to 12. Adults tend to
learn a second language faster than children, but their level of second-
language mastery is not as high as children’s. And the way children and
adults learn a second language differs somewhat. Compared with adults,
children are less sensitive to feedback, less likely to use explicit strategies,
and more likely to learn a second language from large amounts of input
(Thomas & Johnson, 2008).
Students in the United States are far behind their counterparts in many
developed countries in learning a second language. For example, in Russia,
schools have 10 grades, called forms, which roughly correspond to the 12
grades in American schools. Russian children begin school at age 7 and begin
learning English in the third form. Because of this emphasis on teaching
English, most Russian citizens under the age of 40 today are able to speak at
least some English. The United States is the only technologically advanced
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Western nation that does not have a national foreign language requirement at
the high school level, even for students in rigorous academic programs.
U.S. students who do not learn a second language may be missing more
than the chance to acquire a skill. Bilingualism—the ability to speak two
languages—has a positive effect on children’s cognitive development
(Tompkins, 2015). Children who are fluent in two languages perform better
than their single-language counterparts on tests of control of attention,
concept formation, analytical reasoning, cognitive flexibility, and cognitive
complexity (Bialystok, 2001, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2017; Bialystok &
Craik, 2010; Sullivan & others, 2014). Recent research also documented that
bilingual children are better at theory of mind tasks (Rubio-Fernandez, 2017).
They also are more conscious of the structure of spoken and written language
and better at noticing errors of grammar and meaning, skills that benefit their
reading ability (Bialystok, 1997; Kuo & Anderson, 2012). A recent study of
6- to 10-year-olds found that early bilingual exposure was a key factor in
bilingual children outperforming monolingual children on phonological
awareness and word learning (Jasinska & Petitto, 2018).
Overall, bilingualism is linked to positive outcomes for both children’s
language and cognitive development (Antovich & Graf Estes, 2018; Singh &
others, 2018; Yow & others, 2018). An especially important
developmental question that many parents of infants and
young children have is whether they should teach them two
languages simultaneously or whether doing this would confuse them. The
answer is that teaching infants and young children two languages
simultaneously (as when a mother’s native language is English and her
husband’s is Spanish) has numerous benefits and few drawbacks (Bialystok,
2014, 2015, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you describe the
advantages of
promoting bilingualism
in the home for school-
age children in the
United States who come
from families whose
first language is not
English?
In the United States, many immigrant children go from being
monolingual in their home language to bilingual in that language and in
English, only to end up as monolingual speakers of English. This is called
subtractive bilingualism, and it can have negative effects on children, who
often become ashamed of their home language.
Bilingual Education
A current controversy related to bilingualism involves the millions of U.S.
children who come from homes in which English is not the primary language
(Diaz-Rico, 2018; Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2017; Esposito & others, 2018;
Peregoy & Boyle, 2017). What is the best way to teach these English
language learners (ELLs)?
ELLs have been taught in one of two main ways: (1) instruction in
English only, or (2) a dual-language (used to be called bilingual) approach
that involves instruction in their home language and English (Diaz-Rico,
2018). In a dual-language approach, instruction is given in both the ELL
child’s home language and English for varying amounts of time at certain
grade levels. One of the arguments for the dual-language approach is the
research discussed earlier demonstrating that bilingual children have more
advanced information-processing skills than monolingual children do.
If a dual-language strategy is used, too often it has been thought that
immigrant children need only one or two years of this type of instruction.
However, in general it takes immigrant children approximately three to five
years to develop speaking proficiency and seven years to develop reading
proficiency in English (Hakuta, Butler, & Witt, 2000). Also, immigrant
children vary in their ability to learn English (Esposito & others, 2018).
Children who come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have more
difficulty than those from higher socioeconomic backgrounds (Hakuta,
2001). Thus, especially for immigrant children from low socioeconomic
backgrounds, more years of dual-language instruction may be needed than
they currently are receiving.
What have researchers found regarding outcomes of ELL programs?
Drawing conclusions about the effectiveness of ELL programs is difficult
because of variations across programs in the number of years they are in
effect, type of instruction, quality of schooling other than ELL instruction,
teachers, children, and other factors. Further, no effective experiments have
been conducted that compare bilingual education with English-only
education in the United States (Snow & Kang, 2006). Some experts have
concluded that the quality of instruction is more important in determining
outcomes than the language in which it is delivered (Lesaux & Siegel, 2003).
A first- and second-grade bilingual English-Cantonese teacher instructing students in
Chinese in Oakland, California. What have researchers found about the effectiveness of
bilingual education?
©Elizabeth Crews
Nonetheless, other experts, such as Kenji Hakuta (2001, 2005), support
the combined home language and English approach because (1) children have
difficulty learning a subject when it is taught in a language they do not
understand; and (2) when both languages are integrated in the classroom,
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children learn the second language more readily and participate more
actively. In support of Hakuta’s view, most large-scale studies have found
that the academic achievement of ELLs is higher in dual-language programs
than English-only programs (Genesee & Lindholm-Leary, 2012).
Summary
Physical Changes and Health
The period of middle and late childhood involves slow,
consistent growth.
Changes in the brain in middle and late childhood include
advances in functioning in the prefrontal cortex, which is associated with
an increase in cognitive control.
Motor development becomes much smoother and more coordinated. Boys
usually are better at gross motor skills, girls at fine motor skills.
Most U.S. children do not get nearly enough exercise.
For the most part, middle and late childhood is a time of excellent health.
However, being overweight in childhood poses serious health risks.
Children with Disabilities
Approximately 13 percent of U.S. children from 3 to 21 years of age
receive special education or related services. Approximately 80 percent of
children with a learning disability have a reading problem. The number of
children diagnosed with ADHD has been increasing. Autism spectrum
disorders recently have been estimated to characterize 1 in 88 U.S.
children.
U.S. legislation requires that all children with disabilities be given a free,
appropriate public education. Increasingly, this education has involved
full inclusion.
Cognitive Changes
Piaget theorized that the stage of concrete operational thought
characterizes children from about 7 to 11 years of age. During this stage
children are capable of concrete operations, conservation, classification,
seriation, and transitivity. Criticisms of Piaget’s theory have been
proposed.
Changes in these aspects of information occur in middle and late
childhood: attention, memory, critical thinking, creative thinking,
metacognition, and executive function.
Widely used intelligence tests today include the Stanford-Binet test and
Wechsler scales. Sternberg proposed that intelligence comes in three main
forms, whereas Gardner said there are eight types of intelligence.
Intelligence is influenced by heredity and environment. Extremes of
intelligence include intellectual disability and giftedness.
Language Development
In the elementary school years, improvements in children’s language
development include vocabulary, grammar, and metalinguistic awareness.
Both the phonics and whole-language approaches to reading instruction
can benefit children, but experts increasingly view phonics instruction as
critical in learning to read.
Recent research indicates a complex conclusion about whether there are
sensitive periods in learning a second language. Bilingual children are
characterized by a number of cognitive advantages. Bilingual education
in the United States aims to teach academic subjects to immigrant
children in their native language while gradually adding English
instruction.
Key Terms
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
autism spectrum disorders (ASD)
convergent thinking
creative thinking
critical thinking
cultural-familial intellectual disability
culture-fair tests
divergent thinking
elaboration
fuzzy trace theory
gifted
inclusion
individualized education plan (IEP)
intellectual disability
intelligence
intelligence quotient (IQ)
learning disability
least restrictive environment (LRE)
long-term memory
mental age (MA)
metacognition
metalinguistic awareness
neo-Piagetians
normal distribution
organic intellectual disability
phonics approach
seriation
stereotype threat
strategies
thinking
transitivity
triarchic theory of intelligence
whole-language approach
working memory
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©FatCamera/Getty Images
8
Socioemotional
Development in Middle
and Late Childhood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Emotional and Personality Development
The Self
Emotional Development
Moral Development
Gender
Families
Developmental Changes in Parent-Child Relationships
Parents as Managers
Attachment
Stepfamilies
Peers
Developmental Changes
Peer Status
Social Cognition
Bullying
Friends
Schools
Contemporary Approaches to Student Learning
Socioeconomic Status, Ethnicity, and Culture
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Learning in Troubled Schools
In The Shame of the Nation, Jonathan Kozol (2005) described his
visits to 60 U.S. schools in urban low-income areas in 11 states. He
saw many schools in which the minority population was 80 to 90
percent. Kozol observed numerous inequities—unkempt
classrooms, hallways, and restrooms; inadequate textbooks and
supplies; and lack of resources. He also saw teachers mainly
instructing students to memorize material by rote, especially as
preparation for mandated tests, rather than stimulating them to
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engage in higher-level thinking. Kozol also frequently observed
teachers using threatening disciplinary tactics to control the
classroom.
What are some of the challenges faced by children growing up in the South
Bronx?
©Andy Levin/Science Source
However, some teachers Kozol observed were effective in
educating children in these undesirable conditions. At P.S. 30 in
the South Bronx, Mr. Bedrock teaches fifth grade. One student in
his class, Serafina, recently lost her mother to AIDS. When Kozol
visited the class, he was told that two other children had taken the
role of “allies in the child’s struggle for emotional survival”
(Kozol, 2005, p. 291). Textbooks are in short supply for the class,
and the social studies text is so out of date it claims that Ronald
Reagan is the country’s president. But Mr. Bedrock told Kozol that
it’s a “wonderful” class this year. About their teacher, 56-year-old
Mr. Bedrock, one student said, “He’s getting old . . . but we love
him anyway” (p. 292). Kozol found the students orderly,
interested, and engaged.
The years of middle and late childhood bring many
changes to children’s social and emotional lives. The
development of their self-conceptions, moral
reasoning, and gendered behavior is significant. Transformations
in their relationships with parents and peers occur, and schooling
takes on a more academic flavor. ■
Emotional and Personality
Development
In this section, we explore how the self continues to develop during middle
and late childhood and we trace the emotional changes that take place during
these years. We also discuss children’s moral development and many aspects
of the role that gender plays in their development in middle and late
childhood.
The Self
What is the nature of the child’s self-understanding, understanding of others,
and self-esteem during the elementary school years? What roles do self-
efficacy and self-regulation play in children’s achievement?
The Development of Self-Understanding
In middle and late childhood, especially from 8 to 11 years of age, children
increasingly describe themselves with psychological characteristics and traits
rather than the more concrete self-descriptions of younger children. Older
children are more likely to describe themselves as “popular, nice, helpful,
mean, smart, and dumb” (Harter, 2006, p. 526).
In addition, during the elementary school years, children become more
likely to recognize social aspects of the self (Harter, 2012, 2013, 2016). They
include references to social groups in their self-descriptions, such as referring
to themselves as a Girl Scout, a Catholic, or someone who has two close
friends (Livesly & Bromley, 1973).
Children’s self-understanding in the elementary school years also
includes increasing reference to social comparison (Harter, 2012, 2013,
2016). At this point in development, children are more likely to distinguish
themselves from others in comparative rather than in absolute terms. That is,
elementary-school-age children are no longer as likely to think about what
they do or do not do, but are more likely to think about what they can do in
comparison with others.
Consider a series of studies in which Diane Ruble (1983) investigated
children’s use of social comparison in their self-evaluations. Children were
given a difficult task and then offered feedback on their performance as well
as information about the performances of other children their age. The
children were then asked for self-evaluations. Children younger than 7 made
virtually no reference to the information about other children’s performances.
However, many children older than 7 included socially comparative
information in their self-descriptions.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you explain the
role of social
comparison for the
development of a
child’s sense of self?
Understanding Others
Earlier we described the advances and limitations of young children’s social
understanding. In middle and late childhood, perspective taking, the social
cognitive process involved in assuming the perspective of others and
understanding their thoughts and feelings, improves. Executive function is at
work in perspective taking. Among the executive functions called on when
children engage in perspective taking are cognitive inhibition (controlling
one’s own thoughts to consider the perspective of others) and cognitive
flexibility (seeing situations in different ways). Recent research indicates that
children and adolescents who do not have good perspective taking skills are
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more likely to have difficulty in peer relations and engage in
more aggressive and oppositional behavior (Morosan & others,
2017; Nilsen & Bacso, 2017; O’Kearney & others, 2017).
In middle and late childhood, children also become more skeptical of
others’ claims (Heyman, Fu, & Lee, 2013). They become increasingly
skeptical of some sources of information about psychological traits. A recent
study of 6- to 9-year-olds revealed that older children were less trusting and
more skeptical of others’ distorted claims than were younger children (Mills
& Elashi, 2014).
What are some changes in children’s understanding of others in middle and late
childhood?
©asiseeit/E+/Getty Images
Self-Esteem and Self-Concept
High self-esteem and a positive self-concept are important characteristics of
children’s well-being (Miller & Cho, 2018; Oberle, 2018). Investigators
sometimes use the terms self-esteem and self-concept interchangeably or do
not precisely define them, but there is a meaningful difference between them
(Harter, 2013, 2016). Self-esteem refers to global evaluations of the self; it is
also called self-worth or self-image. For example, a child may perceive that
she is not merely a person but a good person. Self-concept refers to domain-
specific evaluations of the self. Children can make self-evaluations in many
domains of their lives—academic, athletic, appearance, and so on. In sum,
self-esteem refers to global self-evaluations, self-concept to domain-specific
evaluations.
The foundations of self-esteem and self-concept emerge from the quality
of parent- child interaction in infancy and early childhood (Miller & Cho,
2018). Thus, if children have low self-esteem in middle and late childhood,
they may have experienced neglect or abuse in relationships with their
parents earlier in development. Children with high self-esteem are more
likely to be securely attached to their parents and have parents who engage in
sensitive caregiving (Lockhart & others, 2017; Thompson, 2016). And in a
longitudinal study, the quality of children’s home environment (which
involved assessment of parenting quality, cognitive stimulation, and the
physical home environment) was linked to their self-esteem in early
adulthood (Orth & others, 2017).
Self-esteem reflects perceptions that do not always match reality (Cramer,
2017). A child’s self-esteem might reflect a belief about whether he or she is
intelligent and attractive, for example, but that belief is not necessarily
accurate. Thus, high self-esteem may refer to accurate, justified perceptions
of one’s worth as a person and one’s successes and accomplishments, but it
can also refer to an arrogant, grandiose, unwarranted sense of superiority over
others (Lavner & others, 2016). In the same manner, low self-esteem may
reflect either an accurate perception of one’s shortcomings or a distorted,
even pathological insecurity and inferiority.
Variations in self-esteem have been linked with many aspects of
children’s development. However, much of the research is correlational
rather than experimental. Recall that correlation does not equal causation.
Thus, if a correlational study finds an association between children’s low
self-esteem and low academic achievement, low academic achievement could
cause the low self-esteem as much as low self-esteem could cause low
academic achievement. A recent longitudinal study explored whether self-
esteem is a cause or consequence of social support in youth (Marshall &
others, 2014). In this study, self-esteem predicted subsequent changes in
social support but social support did not predict subsequent changes in self-
esteem.
What are the consequences of low self-esteem? Low self-esteem has been
implicated in overweight and obesity, anxiety, depression, suicide, drug use,
and delinquency (Orth & others, 2017; Paxton & Damiano, 2017;
Stadelmann & others, 2017). One study revealed that youth with low self-
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esteem had lower life satisfaction at 30 years of age (Birkeland & others,
2012). Another study found that low and decreasing self-esteem in
adolescence was linked to adult depression two decades later (Steiger &
others, 2014).
Researchers have found only moderate correlations between school
performance and self-esteem, and these correlations do not suggest that high
self-esteem produces better school performance (Baumeister, 2013). In fact,
efforts to increase students’ self-esteem have not always led
to improved school performance (Davies & Brember, 1999).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you work with
children to improve
their self-esteem in
relation to their
academic ability?
Children with high self-esteem have greater initiative, but this can
produce positive or negative outcomes. For example, children with high self-
esteem are prone to both prosocial and antisocial actions (Krueger, Vohs, &
Baumeister, 2008).
In addition, a current concern is that too many of today’s children grow
up receiving praise for mediocre or even poor performance and as a
consequence have inflated self-esteem (Stipek, 2005). They may have
difficulty handling competition and criticism. This theme is vividly captured
by the title of a book, Dumbing Down Our Kids: Why American Children
Feel Good About Themselves But Can’t Read, Write, or Add (Sykes, 1995).
A similar theme—the promise of high self-esteem for students in education,
especially those who are impoverished or marginalized—characterized a
more recent book Challenging the Cult of Self-Esteem in Education
(Bergeron, 2018). In a series of studies, researchers found that inflated praise,
although well intended, may cause children with low self-esteem to avoid
important learning experiences such as tackling challenging tasks
(Brummelman & others, 2014). Another study found that narcissistic parents
especially overvalue their children’s talents (Brummelman & others, 2015).
What are the best strategies for improving children’s self-esteem?
Teachers, social workers, health-care professionals, and others are often
concerned about low self-esteem in the children they serve. Researchers have
suggested several strategies to improve self-esteem in at-risk children
(Bednar, Wells, & Peterson, 1995; Harter, 2006, 2012, 2016).
How can parents help children develop higher self-esteem?
©Roberto Westbrook/Getty Images
Identify the causes of low self-esteem. Intervention should target the
causes of low self-esteem. Children have the highest self-esteem when
they perform competently in domains that are important to them.
Therefore, it is helpful to encourage children to identify and value their
areas of competence, such as academic skills, athletic skills, physical
attractiveness, and social acceptance.
Provide emotional support and social approval. Some children with low
self-esteem come from conflictual families or conditions of abuse or
neglect—situations in which emotional support is unavailable. In some
cases, alternative sources of support can be arranged either informally
through the encouragement of a teacher, a coach, or another significant
adult, or more formally through programs such as Big Brothers and Big
Sisters.
Help children achieve. Achievement also can improve children’s self-
esteem. For example, the straightforward teaching of real skills to
children often results in increased achievement and thus in enhanced self-
esteem. Children develop higher self-esteem when they know which tasks
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will achieve their goals and when they have successfully performed them
or similar tasks.
Help children cope. Self-esteem can be built when a child faces a
problem and tries to cope with it, rather than avoiding it. If coping rather
than avoidance prevails, children often face problems realistically,
honestly, and nondefensively. This produces favorable self-evaluative
thoughts, which lead to the self-generated approval that raises self-
esteem.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you encourage
enhanced self-efficacy
in a student who says, “I
can’t do this work”?
Self-Efficacy
Self-efficacy is the belief that one can master a situation and produce
favorable outcomes. Albert Bandura (2001, 2006, 2010a, 2012, 2016), whose
social cognitive theory was described earlier, states that self-efficacy is a
critical factor in whether or not students achieve. Self-efficacy is the belief
that “I can”; helplessness is the belief that “I cannot.” Students with high self-
efficacy endorse such statements as “I know that I will be able to learn the
material in this class” and “I expect to be able to do well at this activity.”
Dale Schunk (2016) has applied the concept of self-efficacy to many
aspects of students’ achievement. In his view, self-efficacy influences a
student’s choice of activities. Students with low self-efficacy for learning
may avoid many learning tasks, especially those that are challenging. By
contrast, children with high self-efficacy eagerly work at
learning tasks (Schunk, 2016). Students with high self-
efficacy are more likely to expend effort and persist longer at
a learning task than students with low self-efficacy.
Self-Regulation
One of the most important aspects of the self in middle and late childhood is
the increased capacity for self-regulation (Blair, 2017; Galinsky & others,
2017; Schunk & Greene, 2018; Usher & Schunk, 2018; Winne, 2018). This
increased capacity is characterized by deliberate efforts to manage one’s
behavior, emotions, and thoughts that lead to increased social competence
and achievement (Schunk & Greene, 2018). In a recent study, higher levels of
self-control assessed at 4 years of age were linked to improvements in the
math and reading achievement of early elementary school children living in
predominantly rural and low-income contexts (Blair & others, 2015). Also, a
study of almost 17,000 3- to 7-year-old children revealed that self-regulation
was a protective factor for children growing up in low-socioeconomic-status
(SES) conditions (Flouri, Midouhas, & Joshi, 2014).
Some researchers emphasize the early development of self-regulation in
childhood and adolescence as a key contributor to adult health and even
longevity (Eisenberg, Spinrad, & Valiente, 2016; Llewellyn & others, 2017).
For example, Nancy Eisenberg and her colleagues (2014) concluded that
research indicates self-regulation fosters conscientiousness later in life, both
directly and through its link to academic motivation/success and internalized
compliance with norms. Further, a longitudinal study found that a higher
level of self-control in childhood was linked to a slower pace of aging
(assessed with 18 biomarkers—cardiovascular and immune system, for
example) at 26, 32, and 38 years of age (Belsky & others, 2017). Also, an app
for iPads has been developed to help children improve their self-regulation
(for more information, go to www.selfregulationstation.com/sr-ipad-app/).
Industry Versus Inferiority
Earlier we described Erik Erikson’s (1968) eight stages of human
development. His fourth stage, industry versus inferiority, appears during
middle and late childhood. The term industry expresses a dominant theme of
this period: Children become interested in how things are made and how they
work. When children are encouraged in their efforts to make, build, and work
—whether building a model airplane, constructing a tree house, fixing a
bicycle, solving an addition problem, or cooking—their sense of industry
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increases. Conversely, parents who see their children’s efforts at making
things as “mischief” or “making a mess” will tend to foster a sense of
inferiority in their children.
Emotional Development
Preschoolers become more adept at talking about their own and others’
emotions. They also show a growing awareness of the need to control and
manage their emotions to meet social standards. In middle and late childhood,
children further develop their understanding and self-regulation of emotion
(Calkins & Perry, 2016; Cole & Hollenstein, 2018; Cole, Lougheed, & Ram,
2018; Morris & others, 2018). In a recent study, a low level of emotion
regulation in childhood was especially important in predicting a higher level
of externalizing problems in adolescence (Perry & others, 2017).
Developmental Changes
Developmental changes in emotions during middle and late childhood
include the following (Calkins & Perry, 2016; Denham, Bassett, & Wyatt,
2015; Goodvin, Thompson, & Winer, 2015; Kuebli, 1994; Perry & Calkins,
2018):
Improved emotional understanding. Children in elementary school
develop an increased ability to understand such complex emotions as
pride and shame. These emotions become less tied to the reactions of
other people; they become more self-generated and integrated with a
sense of personal responsibility. Also, during middle and late childhood
as part of their understanding of emotions, children can
engage in “mental time travel,” in which they anticipate and
recall the cognitive and emotional aspects of events
(Hjortsvang & Lagattuta, 2017; Kramer & Lagattuta, 2018; Lagattuta,
2014a, b; Lagattuta & others, 2015).
Increased understanding that more than one emotion can be experienced
in a particular situation. A third-grader, for example, may realize that
achieving something might involve both anxiety and joy.
Increased tendency to be aware of the events leading to emotional
reactions. A fourth-grader may become aware that her sadness today is
influenced by her friend moving to another town last week.
Ability to suppress or conceal negative emotional reactions. A fifth-
grader has learned to tone down his anger better than he used to when one
of his classmates irritates him.
The use of self-initiated strategies for redirecting feelings. In the
elementary school years, children become more reflective about their
emotional lives and increasingly use strategies to control their emotions.
They become more effective at cognitively managing their emotions,
such as soothing themselves after an upset.
A capacity for genuine empathy. A fourth-grader, for example, feels
sympathy for a distressed person and experiences vicariously the sadness
the distressed person is feeling.
Social-Emotional Education Programs
An increasing number of social-emotional educational programs have been
developed to improve many aspects of children’s and adolescents’ lives. Two
such programs are the Second Step program created by the Committee for
Children (2018) and the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional
Learning (CASEL, 2018). Many social-emotional education programs only
target young children, but Second Step can be implemented in pre-K through
eighth grade and CASEL can used with pre-K through twelfth-grade students.
Children engaging in an activity in a Second Step socio-emotional program.
©Elizabeth D. Herman/The New York Times/Redux
Second Step focuses on these aspects of social-emotional learning from
pre-K through the eighth grade: (1) pre-K: self-regulation and executive
function skills that improve their attention and help them control their
behavior; (2) K–grade 5: making friends, self-regulation of emotion, and
solving problems; and (3) grades 6–8: communication skills, coping with
stress, and decision making to avoid engaging in problem behaviors.
CASEL targets five core social and emotional learning domains: (1) self-
awareness (recognizing one’s emotions and how they affect behavior, for
example); (2) self-management (self-control, coping with stress, and
impulse control, for example); (3) social awareness (perspective taking
and empathy, for example); (4) relationship skills (developing positive
relationships and communicating effectively with individuals from
diverse backgrounds, for example); and (5) responsible decision making
(engaging in ethical behavior, and understanding the consequences of
one’s actions, for example).
Coping with Stress
An important aspect of children’s emotional lives is learning how to cope
with stress (Masten, 2018a, b; Masten & Palmer, 2018). As children get
older, they more accurately appraise a stressful situation and determine how
much control they have over it (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Masten, 2017,
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2018a, b; Masten & Kalstabakken, 2018). Older children generate more
coping alternatives to stressful conditions and use more cognitive coping
strategies (Saarni & others, 2006). They are better than younger children at
intentionally shifting their thoughts to something that is less stressful; and at
reframing, or changing their perception of a stressful situation. For example,
a younger child may be very disappointed that a teacher did not
say hello when the child arrived in the classroom. An older child
may reframe the situation and think, “My teacher may have been
busy with other things and just forgot to say hello.”
By 10 years of age, most children are able to use cognitive strategies to
cope with stress (Saarni, 1999). However, in families that have not been
supportive and are characterized by turmoil or trauma, children may be so
overwhelmed by stress that they do not use such strategies (Klingman, 2006).
Children grieve at a memorial near the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown,
Connecticut, following the shooting in December 2012 that left 26 people dead, 20 of
them young children. What are some effective strategies that adults can use to help
children cope with traumatic events?
©Gordon M. Grant/Alamy
Disasters, such as the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York
City in September 2001 or Hurricane Sandy in 2012, can especially harm
children’s development and produce adjustment problems (Masten &
Kalstabakken, 2018; Narayan & Masten, 2019; Narayan & others, 2017).
Among the outcomes for children who experience disasters are acute stress
reactions, depression, panic disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder
(Danielson & others, 2017; Lieber, 2017). The likelihood that a child will
face these problems following a disaster depends on factors such as the
nature and severity of the disaster and the type of support available to the
child (Masten & Kalstabakken, 2018; Narayan & Masten, 2019). Also,
children who have developed a number of coping techniques have the best
chance of adapting and functioning competently in the face of disasters and
trauma (Ungar, 2015).
In research on disasters and trauma, the term dose-response effects is
often used. A widely supported finding in this research area is that the more
severe the disaster or trauma (dose), the worse the adaptation and adjustment
(response) following the event (Masten, 2017; Narayan & Masten, 2019).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you counsel
a child who has been
exposed to a traumatic
event?
Researchers have offered some recommendations for parents, teachers,
and other adults caring for children after a disaster (Gurwitch & others,
2001):
Reassure children (numerous times, if necessary) of their safety and
security.
Allow children to retell events and be patient in listening to them.
Encourage children to talk about any disturbing or confusing feelings,
reassuring them that such feelings are normal after a stressful event.
Protect children from re-exposure to frightening situations and reminders
of the trauma—for example, by limiting discussion of the event in front
of the children.
Help children make sense of what happened, keeping in mind that
children may misunderstand what took place. For example, young
children “may blame themselves, believe things happened that did not
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happen, believe that terrorists are in the school, etc. Gently help children
develop a realistic understanding of the event” (p. 10).
Child and adolescent psychiatrists are among the mental health
professionals who help youth cope with stress, including traumatic
experiences. To read about a child psychiatrist who treats children and
adolescents, see Careers in Life-Span Development.
Moral Development
Recall that Piaget proposed that younger children are characterized by
heteronomous morality but that by 10 years of age they have moved into a
higher stage called autonomous morality. According to Piaget, older children
consider the intentions of the individual, believe that rules are subject to
change, and are aware that punishment does not always follow wrongdoing.
A second major perspective on moral development was proposed by
Lawrence Kohlberg (1958, 1986). Piaget’s cognitive stages of development
serve as the underpinnings for Kohlberg’s theory, but Kohlberg proposed
three levels of moral development, which he believed are universal.
Development from one level to another, said Kohlberg, is fostered by
opportunities to take the perspective of others and to experience conflict
between one’s current level of moral thinking and the reasoning of someone
at a higher level.
Careers in life-span development
Melissa Jackson, Child Psychiatrist
Dr. Melissa Jackson is a child and adolescent psychiatrist in Miami,
Florida. She obtained a medical degree from the University of Florida
and then completed an internship and residency in psychiatry at
Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Chicago, followed by a
fellowship in child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of
Southern California. Among the problems and disorders that Dr.
Jackson treats are post-traumatic stress disorder, ADHD, anxiety,
autism, depression, and a number of behavioral issues. In addition to
her psychiatric treatment of children, she founded Health for
Honduras, which includes trips to Honduras to provide services to
children in orphanages.
To become a child and adolescent psychiatrist like Melissa
Jackson requires completing an undergraduate degree, then obtaining
a medical degree, followed by a three- to four-year residency in
general psychiatry, and finally a two-year fellowship in the
subspecialty of child and adolescent psychiatry. An important aspect
of being a psychiatrist is that psychiatrists can prescribe medication,
while psychologists cannot.
The Kohlberg Levels
Kohlberg identified the following levels of moral thinking:
Preconventional reasoning is Kohlberg’s lowest level of moral
reasoning. At this level, children interpret good and bad in terms of
external rewards and punishments. For example, children and adolescents
obey adults because adults tell them to obey. Or they might be nice to
others so that others will be nice to them. This earliest level has
sometimes been described as “What’s in it for me?”
Conventional reasoning is the second, or intermediate, level in
Kohlberg’s theory of moral development. At this level, individuals apply
certain standards, but they are the standards set by others, such as parents
or the government.
Postconventional reasoning is the highest level in Kohlberg’s theory of
moral development. At this level, the individual recognizes alternative
moral courses, explores the options, and then decides on a personal moral
code. In postconventional reasoning, individuals engage in deliberate
checks on their reasoning to ensure that it meets high ethical standards.
Kohlberg believed that these levels occur in a sequence and are age
related: Before age 9, most children use level 1, preconventional reasoning
based on external rewards and punishments. By early adolescence, moral
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reasoning is increasingly based on level 2, the application of standards set by
others. Not everyone progresses beyond level 2 even in adulthood, but by
early adulthood a small number of individuals reason in postconventional
ways (level 3).
Influences on the Kohlberg Levels
What factors influence movement through Kohlberg’s stages? Although
moral reasoning at each level presupposes a certain level of cognitive
development, Kohlberg argued that advances in children’s cognitive
development did not ensure development of moral reasoning. Instead, moral
reasoning also reflects children’s experiences in dealing with moral questions
and moral conflict.
Several investigators have tried to advance children’s levels of moral
development by having a model present arguments that reflect moral thinking
above the child’s established level. This approach applies Vygotsky’s
principle of scaffolding; it also applies the concepts of equilibrium and
conflict that Piaget used to explain cognitive development. By presenting
arguments slightly beyond a child’s current level of moral
reasoning, the researchers created a disequilibrium that
motivated the children to restructure their moral thought. The
upshot of studies using this approach is that virtually any discussion about the
child’s current level seems to promote more advanced moral reasoning
(Walker, 1982).
Kohlberg believed that peer interaction is a critical part of the social
stimulation that challenges children to change their moral reasoning. Whereas
adults characteristically impose rules and regulations on children, the give-
and-take among peers gives children an opportunity to take the perspective of
another person and to generate rules democratically. Kohlberg stressed that
encounters with peers can produce perspective-taking opportunities that may
advance a child’s moral reasoning.
Kohlberg’s Critics
Kohlberg’s theory has provoked debate, research, and criticism (Gray &
Graham, 2018; Hoover & others, 2018; Killen & Dahl, 2018; Narváez, 2016,
2017a, b, 2018; Turiel & Gingo, 2017). Key criticisms involve the relative
importance of moral thought and moral behavior, whether moral reasoning is
conscious/deliberative or unconscious/automatic, the roles of culture and the
family in moral development, and the significance of concern for others.
Moral Thought and Moral Behavior Kohlberg’s theory has been
criticized for placing too much emphasis on moral thought and not enough
emphasis on moral behavior (Walker, 2004). Moral reasons can sometimes
be used as a shelter for immoral behavior (Bandura, 2016). Corrupt CEOs
and politicians have often endorsed the loftiest of moral virtues in public
before their own immoral behavior is exposed. Whatever the type of public
scandal, you will probably find that the culprits expressed virtuous thoughts
but engaged in immoral behavior. No one wants a nation of cheaters and
thieves who can reason at the postconventional level and who may know
what is right yet still do what is wrong.
Conscious/Deliberate Versus Unconscious/Automatic Social
psychologist Jonathan Haidt (2006, 2013, 2017) argues that a major flaw in
Kohlberg’s theory is his view that moral thinking is deliberative and that
individuals go around all the time contemplating and reasoning about
morality. Haidt believes that moral thinking is more often an intuitive gut
reaction, with deliberative moral reasoning serving as an after-the-fact
justification. Thus, in his view, much of morality begins with rapid evaluative
judgments of others rather than with strategic reasoning about moral
circumstances.
Culture and Moral Reasoning Kohlberg emphasized that his levels of
moral reasoning are universal, but some critics claim his theory is culturally
biased (Graham & others, 2017; Gray & Graham, 2018). For example,
Kohlberg’s level 3 moral thinking has not been found in all cultures (Gibbs &
others, 2007; Snarey, 1987).
Cohort effects regarding moral reasoning have occurred (Narváez &
Gleason, 2013). In recent years, postconventional moral reasoning has been
declining in college students, not down to the next level (conventional), but
to the lowest level (personal interests) (Thoma & Bebeau, 2008). Some moral
development researchers conclude that prosocial behavior has declined in
recent years and that humans, especially those living in Western cultures, are
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“on a fast train to demise” (Narváez & Gleason, 2013). They emphasize that
the solution to improving people’s moral lives lies in better child-rearing
strategies and social supports for families and children. Further, recently it
has been argued that we need better progress in dealing with an increasing
array of temptations and possible wrongdoings in a human social world in
which complexity is accumulating over time (Christen, Narváez, &
Gutzwiller, 2018).
In sum, although Kohlberg’s approach does capture much of the moral
reasoning used in various cultures around the world, his approach misses or
misconstrues some important moral concepts in particular cultures (Gibbs,
2014; Gray & Graham, 2018).
Families and Moral Development Kohlberg argued that family
processes are essentially unimportant in children’s moral development. As
noted earlier, he argued that parent-child relationships usually provide
children with little opportunity for give-and-take or perspective
taking. Rather, Kohlberg said that such opportunities are more
likely to be provided by children’s peer relations.
Did Kohlberg underestimate the contribution of family relationships to
moral development? Most experts on children’s moral development conclude
that parents’ moral values and actions influence children’s development of
moral thoughts (Carlo & others, 2017). Nonetheless, most developmentalists
agree with Kohlberg and Piaget that peers play an important role in the
development of moral reasoning.
Gender and the Care Perspective The most publicized criticism of
Kohlberg’s theory has come from Carol Gilligan (1982, 1996), who argues
that Kohlberg’s theory reflects a gender bias. According to Gilligan,
Kohlberg’s theory is based on a male norm that puts abstract principles above
relationships and concern for others and sees the individual as standing alone
and independently making moral decisions. It puts justice at the heart of
morality. In contrast with Kohlberg’s justice perspective, Gilligan argues for
a care perspective, which is a moral perspective that views people in terms
of their connectedness with others and emphasizes interpersonal
communication, relationships with others, and concern for others. According
to Gilligan, Kohlberg greatly underplayed the care perspective, perhaps
because he was a male, because most of his research was with males rather
than females, and because he used male responses as a model for his theory.
However, questions have been raised about Gilligan’s gender conclusions
(Walker & Frimer, 2011). For example, a meta-analysis casts doubt on
Gilligan’s claim of substantial gender differences in moral judgment (Jaffee
& Hyde, 2000). And a review concluded that girls’ moral orientations are
“somewhat more likely to focus on care for others than on abstract principles
of justice, but they can use both moral orientations when needed (as can boys
. . .)” (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben, 2009, p. 132).
Domain Theory: Moral, Social Conventional, Personal
Reasoning
The domain theory of moral development states that there are different
domains of social knowledge and reasoning, including moral, social
conventional, and personal domains. In domain theory, children’s and
adolescents’ moral, social conventional, and personal knowledge and
reasoning emerge from their attempts to understand and deal with different
forms of social experience (Jambon & Smetana, 2018; Killen & Dahl, 2018;
Turiel & Gingo, 2017).
Social conventional reasoning focuses on conventional rules that have
been established by social consensus in order to control behavior and
maintain the social system. The rules themselves are arbitrary, such as raising
your hand in class before speaking, using one staircase at school to go up and
the other to go down, not cutting in front of someone standing in line to buy
movie tickets, and stopping at a stop sign when driving. There are sanctions if
we violate these conventions, although the rules can be changed by
consensus.
In contrast, moral reasoning focuses on ethical issues and rules of
morality. Unlike conventional rules, moral rules are not arbitrary. They are
obligatory, widely accepted, and somewhat impersonal (Turiel & Gingo,
2017). Rules pertaining to lying, cheating, stealing, and physically harming
another person are moral rules because violation of these rules affronts
ethical standards that exist apart from social consensus and convention.
Moral judgments involve concepts of justice, whereas social conventional
judgments are concepts of social organization. Violating moral rules is
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usually more serious than violating conventional rules.
The social conventional approach is a serious challenge to Kohlberg’s
approach because Kohlberg argued that social conventions are a stop-over on
the road to higher moral sophistication. For social conventional reasoning
advocates, social conventional reasoning is not lower than postconventional
reasoning but rather something that needs to be disentangled from the moral
thread (Killen & Dahl, 2018).
Recently, a distinction also has been made between moral and
conventional issues, which are viewed as legitimately subject to adult social
regulation, and personal issues, which are more likely subject to the child’s or
adolescent’s independent decision making and personal
discretion (Jambon & Smetana, 2018). Personal issues include
control over one’s body, privacy, and choice of friends and
activities. Thus, some actions belong to a personal domain not governed by
moral strictures or social norms.
How does children’s sharing change from the preschool to the elementary school years?
©Ariel Skelley/age fotostock
Prosocial Behavior
Whereas Kohlberg’s and Gilligan’s theories have focused primarily on the
development of moral reasoning, the study of prosocial moral behavior has
placed more emphasis on the behavioral aspects of moral development (Carlo
& others, 2018; Dirks, Dunfield & Recchia, 2018; Eisenberg & Spinrad,
2016; Laible & others, 2017). Children engage in both immoral antisocial
acts, such as lying and cheating, and prosocial moral behavior, such as
showing empathy or helping others altruistically. Even during the preschool
years, children may care for others or comfort someone in distress, but
prosocial behavior is more prevalent in adolescence than in childhood
(Eisenberg & Spinrad, 2016). Parents can be especially helpful in guiding
children to engage in prosocial behavior (Carlo & others, 2018).
Sharing is one aspect of prosocial behavior that researchers have studied.
Children’s sharing comes to reflect a more complex sense of what is just and
right during middle and late childhood. By the start of the elementary school
years, children begin to express objective ideas about fairness (Eisenberg,
Fabes, & Spinrad, 2006). It is common to hear 6-year-old children use the
word fair as synonymous with equal or same. By the middle to late
elementary school years, children come to believe that equity can also mean
that people with special merit or special needs deserve special treatment.
Gender
Gilligan’s claim that Kohlberg’s theory of moral development reflects gender
bias reminds us of the pervasive influence of gender on development. Long
before elementary school, boys and girls show preferences for different toys
and activities (Leaper & Bigler, 2018), As we discussed in the chapter on
socioemotional development in early childhood, preschool children display a
gender identity and gender-typed behavior that reflects biological, cognitive,
and social influences. Here we examine gender stereotypes, gender
similarities and differences, and gender-role classification.
Gender Stereotypes
In the past, a well-adjusted boy was supposed to be independent, aggressive,
and powerful. A well-adjusted girl was supposed to be dependent, nurturing,
and uninterested in power. These notions reflect gender stereotypes, which
are broad categories that encompass general impressions and beliefs about
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females and males.
Recent research has found that gender stereotypes are, to a great extent,
still present in today’s world, influencing the lives of both children and adults
(Biernat, 2017; Ellemers, 2018; Hyde, 2017; Liben, 2017). Gender
stereotyping continues to change during middle and late childhood and
adolescence (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben, 2009; Brannon, 2017).
During the elementary school years, children have considerable knowledge
about which activities are linked with being male or female. For example, a
study of 6- to 10-year-olds revealed gender stereotyping in math—both boys
and girls indicated math is for boys (Cvencek, Meltzoff, & Greenwald, 2011).
Researchers also have found that boys’ gender stereotypes are more rigid
than those of girls (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben, 2009).
Gender Similarities and Differences
What is the reality behind gender stereotypes? Let’s examine some of the
similarities and differences between boys and girls, keeping in mind that (1)
the differences are averages—not characteristics of all boys versus all girls;
(2) even when differences are reported, there is considerable gender overlap;
and (3) the differences may be due primarily to biological factors,
sociocultural factors, or both. First, we examine physical
similarities and differences, and then we turn to cognitive and
socioemotional similarities and differences.
Physical Development Women have about twice the body fat of men,
with most of it concentrated around the breasts and hips. In males, fat is more
likely to go to the abdomen. On average, males grow to be 10 percent taller
than females. Other physical differences are less obvious. From conception
onward, females have a longer life expectancy than males, and females are
less likely than males to develop physical or mental disorders. Males have
twice the risk of coronary disease that females do.
Does gender matter when it comes to brain structure and function?
Human brains are much alike, whether the brain belongs to a male or a
female (Halpern & others, 2007). However, researchers have found some
differences in the brains of males and females (Hofer & others, 2007).
Female brains are approximately 10 percent smaller than male brains (Giedd,
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2012). However, female brains have more folds; the larger number of folds
(called convolutions) allows more surface brain tissue within the skulls of
females than males (Luders & others, 2004). An area of the parietal lobe that
functions in visuospatial skills is larger in males than females (Frederikse &
others, 2000). And the areas of the brain involved in emotional expression
show more metabolic activity in females than males (Gur & others, 1995).
Although some differences in brain structure and function have been
found, many of these differences are small and research often is inconsistent
regarding the differences. Also, when sex differences in the brain have been
revealed, in many cases they have not been directly linked to psychological
differences (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben, 2009).
Although research on sex differences in the brain is still in its infancy, it
is likely that there are far more similarities than differences in the brains of
females and males. A further point is worth noting: Anatomical sex
differences in the brain may be due to the biological origins of these
differences, behavioral experiences (which underscores the brain’s continuing
plasticity), or a combination of these factors.
Cognitive Development and Achievement No gender differences in
general intelligence have been revealed, but gender differences have been
found in some cognitive areas (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben, 2009).
Research has shown that in general girls and women have slightly better
verbal skills than boys and men, although in some verbal skill areas the
differences are substantial (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben, 2009).
There is strong evidence that females outperform males in reading and
writing. In national studies, girls have had higher reading achievement than
have boys (National Assessment of Educational Progress, 2012). A recent
international study in 65 countries found that girls had higher reading
achievement than did boys in every country (Reilly, 2012). In this study, the
gender difference in reading was stronger in countries with less gender equity
and lower economic prosperity. In the United States, girls also have
consistently outperformed boys in writing skills in the National Assessment
of Educational Progress in fourth-, eighth-, and twelfth-grade assessments.
Are there gender differences in math competence? A very
large-scale study of more than 7 million U.S. students in grades 2
through 11 revealed no differences in math scores for boys and
girls (Hyde & others, 2008). And a recent meta-analysis found no gender
differences in math scores for adolescents (Lindberg & others, 2010). A
recent research review concluded that girls have more negative math attitudes
and that parents’ and teachers’ expectancies for children’s math competence
are often gender-biased in favor of boys (Gunderson & others, 2012).
One area of math that has been examined for possible gender differences
is visuospatial skills, which include being able to rotate objects mentally and
determine what they would look like when rotated (Halpern, 2012). These
types of skills are important in courses such as plane and solid geometry and
geography. A research review revealed that boys have better visuospatial
skills than girls (Halpern & others, 2007). For example, despite equal
participation in the National Geography Bee, in most years all 10 finalists are
boys (Liben, 1995). However, some experts argue that the gender difference
in visuospatial skills is small (Hyde & Else-Quest, 2013).
Are there gender differences in school contexts and achievement? In
regard to school achievement, girls earn better grades, complete high school
at a higher rate, and are less likely to drop out of school than boys (Halpern,
2012). Males are more likely than females to be assigned to special/remedial
education classes. Girls are more likely than boys to be engaged with
academic material, be attentive in class, put forth more academic effort, and
participate more in class (DeZolt & Hull, 2001).
Keep in mind that measures of achievement in school or scores on
standardized tests may reflect many factors besides cognitive ability. For
example, performance in school may in part reflect attempts to conform to
gender roles or differences in motivation, self-regulation, or other
socioemotional characteristics (Klug & others, 2016; Martin & others, 2016;
Wentzel & Miele, 2016; Wigfield & others, 2015).
Socioemotional Development Three areas of socioemotional
development in which gender similarities and differences have been studied
extensively are aggression, emotion, and prosocial behavior.
One of the most consistent gender differences is that boys are more
physically aggressive than girls are (Hyde, 2017). The difference occurs in all
cultures and appears very early in children’s development (Dayton &
Malone, 2017). The physical aggression difference is especially pronounced
when children are provoked. Both biological and environmental factors have
been proposed to account for gender differences in aggression. Biological
factors include heredity and hormones. Environmental factors include
cultural expectations, adult and peer models, and social agents that reward
aggression in boys and punish aggression in girls.
Although boys are consistently more physically aggressive than girls,
might girls show as much or more verbal aggression, such as yelling, than
boys? When verbal aggression is examined, gender differences often
disappear; sometimes, though, verbal aggression is more pronounced in girls
(Eagly & Steffen, 1986).
Recently, increased interest has been shown in relational aggression,
which involves harming someone by manipulating a relationship (Casper &
Card, 2017; Eisman & others, 2018). Relational aggression includes such
behaviors as trying to make others dislike a certain individual by spreading
malicious rumors about the person (Orpinas, McNicholas, & Nahapetyan,
2015). Relational aggression increases in middle and late childhood (Dishion
& Piehler, 2009). Mixed findings have characterized research on whether
girls show more relational aggression than boys, but one consistent finding is
that relational aggression comprises a greater percentage of girls’ overall
aggression than it does for boys (Putallaz & others, 2007). One research
review revealed that girls engage in more relational aggression than boys in
adolescence but not in childhood (Smith, Rose, & Schwartz-Mette, 2010).
Gender differences occur in some aspects of emotion (Brody, Hall, &
Stokes, 2018; Connolly & others, 2018). Females express emotion more than
males do, are better than males at decoding emotion, smile more, cry more,
and are happier. Males report experiencing and expressing more anger than
females do (Kring, 2000). And a meta-analysis found that females are better
than males at recognizing nonverbal displays of emotion (Thompson &
Voyer, 2014). Also, a recent study revealed that females are better than males
at facial emotion perception across the life span (Olderbak & others, 2018).
An important skill is to be able to regulate and control one’s emotions and
behavior (Berke, Reidy, & Zeichner, 2018; Usher & Schunk, 2018). Males
usually show less self-regulation of emotion than females do, and this lower
level of self-control can translate into behavioral problems (Schunk &
Greene, 2018).
Are there gender differences in prosocial behavior? Across childhood and
adolescence, females engage in more prosocial behavior than males do
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(Hastings, Miller, & Troxel, 2015). Females also view themselves as more
empathetic than males do (Eisenberg & Spinrad, 2016). There is a small
difference between boys and girls in the extent to which they share, with girls
sharing slightly more than boys. However, the greatest gender difference in
prosocial behavior occurs with kind and considerate behavior, which females
engage in more often than males.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you discuss
gender similarities and
differences with a
parent or teacher who is
concerned about a
child’s academic
progress and social
skills?
Gender in Context
The importance of considering gender in context is nowhere more
apparent than when examining what is culturally prescribed behavior for
females and males in different countries around the world (UNICEF, 2018).
Although there has been greater acceptance of similarities in male and female
behavior in recent decades in the United States, in many countries gender
roles have remained gender-specific. For example, in many Middle Eastern
and some Asian countries, the division of labor between males and females is
dramatic. Males are socialized and schooled to work in the public sphere,
females in the private world of home and child rearing. In Iran, the dominant
view is that the man’s duty is to provide for his family and the woman’s is to
care for her family and household. China also has been a male-dominant
culture. Although women have made some strides in China, especially in
urban areas, the male role is still dominant. Most males in China do not
accept gender equity.
In a recent study of eighth-grade students in 36 countries, in every
country girls had more egalitarian attitudes about gender roles than boys did
(Dotti Sani & Quaranta, 2015). In this study, girls had more egalitarian
gender attitudes in countries with higher levels of societal gender equality. In
another recent study of 15- to 19-year-olds in the country of Qatar, males had
more negative views of gender equality than females did (Al-Ghanim &
Badahdah, 2017).
In China, females and males are usually socialized to behave, feel, and think differently.
The old patriarchal traditions of male supremacy have not been completely uprooted.
Chinese women still make considerably less money than Chinese men do. In rural China,
male supremacy still governs many women’s lives.
©Diego Azubel/EPA/Newscom
Families
Our discussion of parenting and families in this section focuses on how
parent-child interactions typically change in middle and late childhood, how
parents act as managers, the role of attachment, and how children are affected
by living with stepparents.
Developmental Changes in Parent-Child Relationships
As children move into the middle and late childhood years, parents spend
considerably less time with them (Grusec, 2017; Pomerantz & Grolnick,
2017). In one study, parents spent less than half as much time with their
children aged 5 to 12 in caregiving, instruction, reading, talking, and playing
as they did when the children were younger (Hill & Stafford, 1980).
However, parents continue to be extremely important in their children’s lives.
One analysis concluded: “Parents serve as gatekeepers and provide
scaffolding as children assume more responsibility for themselves and . . .
regulate their own lives” (Huston & Ripke, 2006, p. 422).
Parents especially play an important role in supporting and stimulating
children’s academic achievement in middle and late childhood (Lansford &
others, 2018; Longo, McPherran Lombardi, & Dearing, 2017). The value
parents place on education can make a difference in whether children do well
in school. Parents not only influence children’s in-school achievement, but
they also make decisions about children’s out-of-school activities. Whether
children participate in sports, music, and other activities is heavily influenced
by the extent to which parents sign up children for such activities and
encourage their participation (Simpkins & others, 2006).
What are some changes in the focus of parent-child interaction in middle and late
childhood?
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©wavebreakmediamicro/123RF
Elementary school children tend to receive less physical
discipline than preschoolers do. Instead of spanking or coercive
holding, their parents are more likely to use deprivation of
privileges, appeals to the child’s self-esteem, comments designed to increase
the child’s sense of guilt, and statements that the child is responsible for his
or her actions. During middle and late childhood, some control is transferred
from parent to child. A gradual process, it produces coregulation rather than
control by either the child or the parent alone (Maccoby, 1984). Parents
continue to exercise general supervision and control, while children are
allowed to engage in moment-to-moment self-regulation. The major shift to
autonomy does not occur until about the age of 12 or later. A key
developmental task as children move toward autonomy is learning to relate to
adults outside the family on a regular basis—adults such as teachers who
interact with the child much differently from the way parents do.
Parents as Managers
Parents can play important roles as managers of children’s opportunities, as
monitors of their behavior, and as social initiators and arrangers (Longo,
McPherran Lombardi, & Dearing, 2017). Mothers are more likely than
fathers to engage in a managerial role in parenting.
Family management practices are positively related to students’ grades
and self-responsibility, and negatively to school-related problems (Eccles,
2007). Among the most important practices are maintaining a structured and
organized family environment, such as establishing routines for homework,
chores, bedtime, and so on, and effectively monitoring the child’s behavior.
A research review of the influence of family functioning on African
American students’ academic achievement found that when parents
monitored their son’s academic achievement by ensuring that homework was
completed, restricted time spent on nonproductive distractions (such as video
games and TV), and participated in a consistent, positive dialogue with
teachers and school officials, their son’s academic achievement benefited
(Mandara, 2006).
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Attachment
Earlier you read about the importance of secure attachment in infancy and the
role of sensitive parenting in attachment (Coyne & others, 2018; Hoffman &
others, 2017; Roisman & Cicchetti, 2017; Thompson, 2016; Woodhouse,
2018). During middle and late childhood, attachment becomes more
sophisticated. As children’s social worlds expand to include peers, teachers,
and others, they typically spend less time with parents. Kathryn Kerns and
her colleagues (Brumariu & others, 2018a, b; Kerns & Brumariu, 2016;
Kerns & Seibert, 2012; Koehn & Kerns, 2018) have studied links between
attachment to parents and various child outcomes in the middle and late
childhood years and found that secure attachment is associated with a lower
level of internalized symptoms, anxiety, and depression in children. One
study revealed that children who were less securely attached to their mothers
reported having more anxiety (Brumariu, Kerns, & Seibert, 2012). Also in
this study, secure attachment was linked to a higher level of children’s
emotion regulation and less difficulty in identifying emotions. And in a
recent meta-analysis of attachment in middle/late childhood and adolescence,
parents of children and adolescents who were more securely attached were
more responsive, more supportive of children’s and adolescents’ autonomy,
used more behavioral control strategies, and engaged in less harsh control
strategies (Koehn & Kerns, 2018). Also in this meta-analysis, parents of
children and adolescents who showed more avoidant attachment were less
responsive and used fewer behavioral control strategies; regarding ambivalent
attachment, no links to parenting were found.
Stepfamilies
Not only has divorce become commonplace in the United States, so has
getting remarried (Ganong, Coleman, & Russell, 2015; Papernow, 2018). It
takes time to marry, have children, get divorced, and then remarry.
Consequently, there are far more elementary and secondary
school children than infants or preschool children living in
stepfamilies. The number of remarriages involving children has
grown steadily in recent years. Also, divorces occur at a 10 percent higher
rate in remarriages than in first marriages (Cherlin & Furstenberg, 1994).
About half of all children whose parents divorce will have a stepparent within
four years after the separation.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, what
advice would you offer
to divorced parents who
want to ease their
children’s adjustment to
remarriage?
Remarried parents face unique tasks. The couple must define and
strengthen their marriage while renegotiating the biological parent-child
relationships and establishing stepparent-stepchild and stepsibling
relationships (Ganong, Coleman, & Russell, 2015). The complex histories
and multiple relationships make adjustment difficult (Dodson & Davies,
2014). Only one-third of stepfamily couples stay remarried.
Most stepfamilies are preceded by divorce rather than death of a spouse
(Pasley & Moorefield, 2004). Three common types of stepfamily structure
are (1) stepfather, (2) stepmother, and (3) blended or complex. In stepfather
families, the mother typically had custody of the children and remarried,
introducing a stepfather into her children’s lives. In stepmother families, the
father usually had custody and remarried, introducing a stepmother into his
children’s lives. In a blended or complex stepfamily, both parents bring
children from previous marriages.
In E. Mavis Hetherington’s (2006) longitudinal analyses, children and
adolescents who had been in a simple stepfamily (stepfather or stepmother)
for a number of years were adjusting better than in the early years of the
remarried family and were functioning well in comparison with children and
adolescents in conflictual families that had not gone through a divorce, and
children and adolescents in complex (blended) stepfamilies. More than 75
percent of the adolescents in long-established simple stepfamilies described
their relationships with their stepparents as “close” or “very close.”
Hetherington (2006) concluded that in long-established simple stepfamilies
adolescents seem to eventually benefit from the presence of a stepparent and
the resources provided by the stepparent.
Children often have better relationships with their custodial parents
(mothers in stepfather families, fathers in stepmother families) than with
stepparents (Antfolk & others, 2017; Santrock, Sitterle, & Warshak, 1988).
Also, children in simple stepfamilies (stepmother, stepfather) often show
better adjustment than their counterparts in complex (blended) families
(Hetherington, 2006).
As in divorced families, children in stepfamilies show more adjustment
problems than children in never-divorced families (Hetherington, 2006)—
academic problems and lower self-esteem, for example (Anderson & others,
1999). However, it is important to recognize that a majority of children in
stepfamilies do not have adjustment problems. In one analysis, 25 percent of
children from stepfamilies showed adjustment problems, compared with 10
percent in intact, never-divorced families (Hetherington & Kelly, 2002).
Further, a recent study found that when children have a better parent-child
affective relationship with their stepparent, the children have fewer
internalizing and externalizing problems (Jensen & others, 2018).
Peers
Having positive relationships with peers is especially important in middle and
late childhood (Nesi & others, 2017; Rubin & Barstead, 2018; Witkow,
Rickert, & Cullen, 2017). Engaging in positive interactions with peers,
resolving conflicts in nonaggressive ways, and having quality friendships not
only bring positive outcomes at this time in children’s lives, but also are
linked to more positive relationships in adolescence and adulthood
(Kindermann & Gest, 2018; Laursen, 2018; Laursen & Adams, 2018; Vitaro,
Boivin, & Poulin, 2018). In one longitudinal study, being popular with peers
and engaging in low levels of aggression at 8 years of age were related to
higher levels of occupational status at 48 years of age (Huesmann & others,
2006). Another study found that peer competence (a composite measure that
included social contact with peers, popularity with peers, friendship, and
Page 242
social skills) in middle and late childhood was linked to having better
relationships with coworkers in early adulthood (Collins & van
Dulmen, 2006). And a recent study indicated that low peer status
in childhood (low acceptance/likeability) was linked to increased
probability of being unemployed and having mental health problems in
adulthood (Almquist & Brannstrom, 2014).
Developmental Changes
As children enter the elementary school years, reciprocity becomes especially
important in peer interchanges. Researchers estimate that the percentage of
time spent in social interaction with peers increases from approximately 10
percent at 2 years of age to more than 30 percent in middle and late childhood
(Rubin, Bukowski, & Parker, 2006). In an early classic study, a typical day in
elementary school included approximately 300 episodes with peers (Barker &
Wright, 1951). As children move through middle and late childhood, the size
of their peer group increases, and peer interaction is less closely supervised
by adults (Rubin & others, 2015). Until about 12 years of age, children’s
preference for same-sex peer groups increases.
Peer Status
Which children are likely to be popular with their peers and which ones tend
to be disliked? Developmentalists address this and similar questions by
examining sociometric status, a term that describes the extent to which
children are liked or disliked by their peer group (Cillessen & Bukowski,
2018). Sociometric status is typically assessed by asking children to rate how
much they like or dislike each of their classmates. Status may also be
assessed by asking children to nominate the children they like the most and
those they like the least.
Developmentalists have distinguished five peer statuses:
What are some key aspects of peer relationships in middle and late childhood?
©Shutterstock/Monkey Business Images
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you help a
rejected child develop
more positive
relationships with
peers?
Popular children are frequently nominated as a best friend and are rarely
disliked by their peers.
Average children receive an average number of both positive and
negative nominations from their peers.
Neglected children are infrequently nominated as a best friend but are
not disliked by their peers.
Rejected children are infrequently nominated as someone’s best friend
and are actively disliked by their peers.
Controversial children are frequently nominated both as someone’s best
friend and as being disliked.
Popular children have many social skills that contribute to their being
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well liked (McDonald & Asher, 2018). They give out reinforcements, listen
carefully, maintain open lines of communication with peers, are happy,
control their negative emotions, show enthusiasm and concern for others, and
are self-confident without being conceited (Hartup, 1983).
Rejected children often have significant adjustment problems (Prinstein
& others, 2018). For example, one study revealed a link between peer
rejection and depression in adolescence (Platt, Kadosh, & Lau, 2013).
Researchers also have found that peer rejection consistently is linked to the
development and maintenance of conduct problems (Prinstein & others,
2018). For example, in a recent study of young adolescents, peer rejection
predicted increases in aggressive and rule-breaking behavior (Janssens &
others, 2017).
John Coie (2004, pp. 252–253) provided three reasons why
aggressive, peer-rejected boys have problems in social
relationships:
“First, the rejected, aggressive boys are more impulsive and have
problems sustaining attention. As a result, they are more likely to be
disruptive of ongoing activities in the classroom and in focused group
play.
Second, rejected, aggressive boys are more emotionally reactive. They are
aroused to anger more easily and probably have more difficulty calming
down once aroused. Because of this they are more prone to become angry
at peers and attack them verbally and physically. . . .
Third, rejected children have fewer social skills in making friends and
maintaining positive relationships with peers.”
Social Cognition
Social cognition involves thoughts about social matters, such as an aggressive
boy’s interpretation of an encounter as hostile and his classmates’ perception
of his behavior as inappropriate (Carpendale & Lewis, 2015). Children’s
social cognition about their peers becomes increasingly important for
understanding peer relationships in middle and late childhood. Of special
interest are the ways in which children process information about peer
relations and their social knowledge (Dodge, 2011).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you characterize
differences in the social
cognition of aggressive
children compared with
children who behave in
less hostile ways?
Kenneth Dodge (1983) argues that children go through six steps in
processing information about their social world. They selectively attend to
social cues, attribute intent, generate goals, access behavioral scripts from
memory, make decisions, and enact behavior. Dodge has found that
aggressive boys are more likely to perceive another child’s actions as hostile
when the child’s intention is ambiguous. Furthermore, when aggressive boys
search for cues to determine a peer’s intention, they respond more rapidly,
less efficiently, and less reflectively than do nonaggressive children. These
are among the social cognitive factors believed to be involved in children’s
conflicts.
Social knowledge also is involved in children’s ability to get along with
peers. They need to know what goals to pursue in poorly defined or
ambiguous situations, how to initiate and maintain a social bond, and what
scripts to follow to get other children to be their friends. For example, as part
of the script for getting friends, it helps to know that saying nice things,
regardless of what the peer does or says, will make the peer like the child
more.
Bullying
Significant numbers of students are victimized by bullies (Beltran-Catalan &
others, 2018; Hall, 2017; Lee & Vaillancourt, 2018; Muijs, 2017; Salmivalli
& Peets, 2018). In a survey of 15,000 students in grades 6 through 10, nearly
one-third said that they had experienced occasional or frequent involvement
Page 244
as a victim or perpetrator in bullying (Nansel & others, 2001). Bullying was
defined as verbal or physical behavior intended to disturb someone less
powerful (see Figure 1). Boys are more likely to be bullies than girls, but
gender differences regarding victims of bullies are less clear (Peets, Hodges,
& Salmivalli, 2011). In the study, boys and younger middle school students
were most likely to be bullied (Nansel & others, 2001). Bullied children
reported more loneliness and difficulty in making friends, while those who
did the bullying were more likely to have low grades and to smoke and drink
alcohol.
Figure 1 Bullying Behaviors Among U.S. Youth
This graph shows the types of bullying most often experienced by U.S. youth. The
percentages reflect the extent to which bullied students said that they had experienced a
particular type of bullying. In terms of gender, note that when they were bullied, boys
were more likely to be hit, slapped, or pushed than girls were.
Anxious, socially withdrawn, and aggressive children are
often the victims of bullying (Coplan & others, 2018; Rubin &
Barstead, 2018). Anxious and socially withdrawn children may be
victimized because they are nonthreatening and unlikely to retaliate if bullied,
whereas aggressive children may be the targets of bullying because their
behavior is irritating to bullies. One study revealed that having supportive
friends was linked to a lower level of bullying and victimization (Kendrick,
Jutengren, & Stattin, 2012).
Social contexts also influence bullying (Prinstein & others, 2018; Troop-
Gordon, 2017). Seventy to 80 percent of victims and their bullies are in the
same classroom (Salmivalli, Peets, & Hodges, 2011). Classmates are often
aware of and may witness bullying. The larger social context of the peer
group plays an important role in bullying. Bullies often torment victims to
gain higher status in the peer group and need others to witness their power
displays. Many bullies are not rejected by the peer group.
What are the outcomes of bullying? Children who are bullied are more
likely to experience depression, engage in suicidal ideation, and attempt
suicide than their counterparts who have not been the victims of bullying
(Eastman & others, 2018; Salmivalli & Peets, 2018). A longitudinal study
found that children who were bullied at 6 years of age were more likely to
have excess weight gain when they were 12 to 13 years of age (Sutin &
others, 2016). Further, a longitudinal study of 6,000 children found that
children who were the victims of peer bullying from 4 to 10 years of age
were more likely to engage in suicidal ideation at 11½ years of age (Winsper
& others, 2012). And a recent analysis concluded that bullying can have
long-term effects, including difficulty in forming lasting relationships and
getting along with coworkers (Wolke & Lereya, 2015).
Longitudinal studies have indicated that victims bullied in childhood and
adolescence have higher rates of agoraphobia (an abnormal fear of being in
public, open, and crowded places), depression, anxiety, panic disorder, and
suicidality in their early to mid-twenties compared with those who have not
been bullied in childhood and adolescence (Arseneault, 2017; Copeland &
others, 2013). In addition, another recent study revealed that being a victim of
bullying in childhood was linked to increased use of mental health services
by the victims five decades later (Evans-Lacko & others, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you characterize
the health risks that
bullying poses to the
victims of bullying?
An increasing concern is peer bullying and harassment on the Internet
(called cyberbullying) (Holfeld & Mishna, 2018; Laftman & others, 2018;
Wolke, Lee, & Guy, 2017). One study involving third- to sixth-graders
revealed that engaging in cyber aggression was related to loneliness, lower
self-esteem, fewer mutual friendships, and lower peer popularity (Schoffstall
& Cohen, 2011). Another recent study revealed that cyberbullying
contributed to depression and suicidal ideation above and beyond the
contribution of involvement in traditional types of bullying (physical and
verbal bullying in school and in neighborhood contexts, for example)
(Bonanno & Hymel, 2013). And a recent meta-analysis concluded that being
the victim of cyberbullying was linked to stress and suicidal ideation
(Kowalski & others, 2014). Further, a longitudinal study found that
adolescents experiencing social and emotional difficulties were more likely to
be both cyberbullied and traditionally bullied than traditionally bullied only
(Cross, Lester, & Barnes, 2015). In this study, adolescents targeted in both
ways stayed away from school more than their counterparts who were
traditionally bullied only. And a recent study revealed that adolescents who
were bullied both in a direct way and through cyberbullying had more
behavioral problems and lower self-esteem than adolescents who were only
bullied in one of these two ways (Wolke, Lee, & Guy, 2017). Information
about preventing cyberbullying can be found at www.stopcyberbullying.org/.
Page 245
What characterizes bullying? What are some strategies to reduce bullying?
©Photodisc/Getty Images
Extensive interest has been directed toward finding ways to
prevent and treat bullying and victimization (Gower, Cousin, &
Borowsky, 2017; Hall, 2017; Menesini & Salmivalli, 2017;
Muijs, 2017; Salmivallli & Peets, 2018; Wojcik & Helka, 2018). A research
review revealed mixed results for school-based intervention (Vreeman &
Carroll, 2007). School-based interventions vary greatly, ranging from
involving the whole school in an antibullying campaign to providing
individualized social skills training. One of the most promising bullying
intervention programs has been created by Dan Olweus. This program
focuses on 6- to 15-year-olds with the goal of decreasing opportunities and
rewards for bullying. School staff is instructed in ways to improve peer
relations and make schools safer. When properly implemented, the program
reduces bullying by 30 to 70 percent (Olweus, 2003). A recent research
review concluded that interventions focused on the whole school, such as
Olweus’, are more effective than interventions involving classroom curricula
or social skills training (Cantone & others, 2015).
Friends
Friendship is an important aspect of children’s lives in middle and late
childhood (Bagwell & Bukowski, 2018). Like adult friendships, children’s
friendships are typically characterized by similarity. Throughout childhood,
friends are more similar than dissimilar in terms of age, sex, race, and many
other factors. Friends often have similar attitudes toward school, similar
educational aspirations, and closely aligned achievement orientations.
Willard Hartup (1983, 1996, 2009) has studied peer relations and
friendship for more than three decades and has concluded that friends can be
cognitive and emotional resources from childhood through old age, fostering
self-esteem and a sense of well-being. More specifically, children’s
friendships can serve six functions (Gottman & Parker, 1987):
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you design and
implement a bullying
reduction program at
your school?
Companionship. Friendship provides children with a familiar partner and
playmate, someone who is willing to spend time with them and join in
collaborative activities.
Stimulation. Friendship provides children with interesting information,
excitement, and amusement.
Physical support. Friendship provides time, resources, and assistance.
Ego support. Friendship provides the expectation of support,
encouragement, and feedback, which helps children maintain an
impression of themselves as competent, attractive, and worthwhile
individuals.
Social comparison. Friendship provides information about where the
child stands vis-à-vis others and whether the child is doing okay.
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Affection and intimacy. Friendship provides children with a warm, close,
trusting relationship with another individual. Intimacy in friendships is
characterized by self-disclosure and the sharing of private thoughts.
Research reveals that intimate friendships may not appear until early
adolescence (Berndt & Perry, 1990).
What are some characteristics of children’s friendships?
©Image Source/Alamy
Although having friends can bring developmental advantages, not all
friendships are alike (de la Haye & others, 2017; Zhang & others, 2018).
People differ in the company they keep—that is, who their friends are.
Developmental advantages occur when children have friends who are socially
skilled and supportive (Laursen, 2018). However, it is not developmentally
advantageous to have coercive and conflict-ridden friendships (Bagwell &
Bukowski, 2018).
Friendship also plays an important role in children’s emotional well-being
and academic success (Ryan & Shin, 2018). Students with friends who are
academically oriented are more likely to achieve success in school
themselves (Wentzel & Ramani, 2016).
Schools
For most children, entering the first grade signals new obligations. They form
new relationships and develop new standards by which to judge themselves.
School provides children with a rich source of new ideas to shape their sense
of self. They will spend many years in schools as members of small societies
in which there are tasks to be accomplished, people to socialize with and be
socialized by, and rules that define and limit behavior, feelings, and attitudes.
By the time students graduate from high school, they will have spent 12,000
hours in the classroom.
Contemporary Approaches to Student Learning
Because there are so many different educational approaches, controversy
swirls about the best way to teach children (Borich, 2017; Powell, 2019).
There also is considerable interest in finding the best way to hold schools and
teachers accountable for whether children are learning (McMillan, 2018).
Constructivist and Direct Instruction Approaches
The constructivist approach is learner centered and emphasizes the
importance of individuals actively constructing their knowledge and
understanding with guidance from the teacher. In the constructivist view,
teachers should not attempt to simply pour information into children’s minds.
Rather, children should be encouraged to explore their world, discover
knowledge, reflect, and think critically with careful monitoring and
meaningful guidance from the teacher (Brophy & Alleman, 2018; Orlich &
Harder, 2018). The constructivist belief is that for too long in American
education children have been required to sit still, be passive learners, and
rotely memorize irrelevant as well as relevant information (Johnson & others
2018). Today, constructivism may include an emphasis on collaboration—
children working with each other in their efforts to know and understand
(Daniels, 2017). A teacher with a constructivist instructional philosophy
would not have children memorize information rotely but would guide their
learning while giving them opportunities to meaningfully construct their
knowledge and deepen their understanding of the material.
By contrast, the direct instruction approach is structured and teacher
centered. It is characterized by teacher direction and control, high teacher
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expectations for students’ progress, maximum time spent by students on
academic tasks, and efforts by the teacher to keep negative affect to a
minimum. An important goal in the direct instruction approach is maximizing
student learning time (Powell, 2019; Webb & Metha, 2017).
Advocates of the constructivist approach argue that the direct instruction
approach turns children into passive learners and does not adequately
challenge them to think in critical and creative ways. The direct instruction
enthusiasts say that the constructivist approaches do not give enough
attention to the content of a discipline, such as history or science. They also
believe that the constructivist approaches are too relativistic and vague.
Some experts believe that many effective teachers use both a
constructivist and a direct instruction approach rather than relying on either
approach exclusively (Bransford & others, 2006; Johnson & others, 2018).
Some circumstances may call more for a constructivist approach, others for
direct instruction. For example, experts increasingly recommend an explicit,
intellectually engaging direct instruction approach when teaching students
who have a learning disability involving reading or writing (Cunningham,
2017; Temple & others, 2018).
Accountability
Since the 1990s, the U.S. public and governments at every level have
demanded increased accountability from schools. One result has been the
spread of state-mandated tests to measure what students have or have not
learned (Martin, Sargrad, & Batel, 2017; McMillan, 2018; Popham, 2017).
Many states have identified objectives for students in their state
and created tests to measure whether students were meeting those
objectives. This approach became national policy in 2002 when
the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation was signed into law.
Is this classroom more likely constructivist or direct instruction? Explain.
©Elizabeth Crews
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Advocates argue that statewide
standardized testing will have a number of positive effects. These include
improved student performance; more time teaching the subjects that are
tested; high expectations for all students; identification of poorly performing
schools, teachers, and administrators; and improved confidence in schools as
test scores rise.
Critics argue that the NCLB legislation is doing more harm than good
(Ladd, 2017; Sadker & Zittleman, 2016). One criticism stresses that using a
single test as the sole indicator of students’ progress and competence presents
a very narrow view of students’ skills (Lewis, 2007). This criticism is similar
to the one leveled at IQ tests. To assess student progress and achievement,
many psychologists and educators emphasize that a number of measures
should be used, including tests, quizzes, projects, portfolios, classroom
observations, and so on. Also, the tests used as part of NCLB don’t measure
creativity, motivation, persistence, flexible thinking, and social skills
(Stiggins, 2008). Teachers may end up spending far too much class time
“teaching to the test” by drilling students and having them memorize isolated
facts rather than focusing on thinking skills needed for success in life (Ladd,
2017). Also, some individuals are concerned that gifted students are
neglected as schools focus on raising the achievement level of students who
Page 248
are not doing well (Ballou & Springer, 2017).
Each state is allowed to have different criteria for what constitutes
passing or failing grades on tests designated for NCLB inclusion. An analysis
of NCLB data indicated that almost every fourth-grade student in Mississippi
knows how to read but only half of Massachusetts’ students do (Birman &
others, 2007). Clearly, Mississippi’s standards for passing the reading test are
far below those of Massachusetts. Many states have taken the safe route and
kept the standard for passing low. Thus, while one of NCLB’s goals was to
raise standards for achievement in U.S. schools, apparently allowing states to
set their own standards likely has lowered achievement standards.
Common Core In 2009, the Common Core State Standards Initiative was
endorsed by the National Governors Association in an effort to implement
more rigorous state guidelines for educating students. The Common Core
Standards specify what students should know and the skills they should
develop at each grade level in various content areas (Common Core State
Standards Initiative, 2018). A large majority of states have agreed to
implement the Standards but they have generated considerable controversy,
with some critics arguing that they are simply a further effort by the federal
government to control education and that they emphasize a “one-size-fits-all”
approach that pays little attention to individual variations in students.
Supporters say that the Standards provide much-needed detailed guidelines
and important milestones for students to achieve.
Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) The most recent accountability
initiative is the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which was passed into
law in December 2015. In 2018, the Trump administration was planning to
go forward with ESSA but to give states much more flexibility in
implementing the law (Klein, 2018). The law replaced No Child Left Behind,
in the process modifying but not completely eliminating standardized testing.
ESSA retains annual testing for reading and writing in grades 3 to 8, then
once more in high school. The new law also allows states to scale back the
role that tests have in holding schools accountable for student
achievement. And schools must use at least one nonacademic
factor—such as student engagement—when tracking schools’
success.
The new law continues to require states and districts to improve their
lowest-performing schools and to increase their effectiveness in teaching
historically underperforming students, such as English-language learners,
ethnic minority students, and students with a disability. Also, states and
districts are required to put in place challenging academic standards, although
they can opt out of state standards involving Common Core.
Socioeconomic Status, Ethnicity, and Culture
Children from low-income, ethnic minority backgrounds have more
difficulties in school than do their middle-socioeconomic-status, White
counterparts. Why? Critics argue that schools have not done a good job of
assisting low-income, ethnic minority students to overcome the barriers to
their achievement (Coley & others, 2018; Rosen & others, 2018; Duncan,
Magnuson, & Votruba-Drzal, 2017). And comparisons of student
achievement indicate that U.S. students have lower achievement in math and
science than students in a number of other countries, especially those in
eastern Asia (Desilver, 2017).
The Education of Students from Low-Income Backgrounds
Many children in poverty face problems that present barriers to their learning
(Nieto & Bode, 2018; Sawyer & others, 2018; Watson, 2018). They might
have parents who don’t set high educational standards for them, who are
incapable of reading to them, or who can’t afford educational materials and
experiences such as books and trips to zoos and museums. They might be
malnourished or live in areas with high levels of crime and violence. One
study revealed that neighborhood disadvantage (involving such
characteristics as low neighborhood income and high unemployment) was
linked to less consistent, less stimulating, and more punitive parenting, and
ultimately to negative child outcomes such as behavioral problems and low
verbal ability (Kohen & others, 2008). Another study revealed that the longer
children experienced poverty, the more detrimental the poverty was to their
cognitive development (Najman & others, 2009).
In The Shame of the Nation, Jonathan Kozol (2005) criticized the inadequate quality and
lack of resources in many U.S. schools, especially those in the poverty areas of inner cities
that have high concentrations of ethnic minority children. Kozol praises teachers like
Angela Lively (above), who keeps a box of shoes in her Indianapolis classroom for
students in need.
©Michael Conroy/AP Images
The schools that children from impoverished backgrounds attend often
have fewer resources than schools in higher-income neighborhoods.
Compared with schools in higher-income areas, schools in low-income areas
are more likely to have more students with low achievement test scores, low
graduation rates, and smaller percentages of students going to college; they
are more likely to have young teachers with less experience; and they are
more likely to encourage rote learning than to work with children to improve
their thinking skills (Banks, 2015; Bennett, 2015). Many of the school
buildings and classrooms are old and crumbling. These are the types of
undesirable conditions Jonathan Kozol (2005) observed in many inner-city
schools. In sum, far too many schools in low-income neighborhoods provide
students with environments that are not conducive to effective learning (Nieto
& Bode, 2018; Sawyer & others, 2018; Watson, 2018).
In a recent research review, it was concluded that increases in family
income for children in poverty were associated with increased achievement in
middle school as well as greater educational attainment in adolescence and
emerging adulthood (Duncan, Magnuson, & Votruba-Drzal, 2017).
Page 249
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you advise
school administrators
about health and
nutrition challenges
faced by low-income
students that may
influence their
performance on
achievement tests?
Schools and school programs are the focus of some poverty
interventions (Dragoset & others, 2017). In a recent intervention
with first-generation immigrant children attending high-poverty
schools, the City Connects program was successful in improving children’s
math and reading achievement at the end of elementary school (Dearing &
others, 2016). The program is directed by a full-time school counselor or
social worker in each school. Annual reviews of children’s needs are
conducted during the first several months of the school year. Then site
coordinators and teachers collaborate to develop a student support plan that
might include an after-school program, tutoring, mentoring, or family
counselling. For children identified as having intense needs (about 8 to 10
percent of the children), a wider team of professionals becomes involved,
possibly including school psychologists, principals, nurses, and/or
community agency staff, to create additional supports. In another longitudinal
study, an intervention called a Child-Parent Center Program provided school-
based educational enrichment and comprehensive family services to families
with children from 3 to 9 years of age in high-poverty neighborhoods in
Chicago. The program was linked to higher rates of postsecondary degree
completion, including more years of education, completion of an associate’s
degree or higher, and attainment of a master’s degree (Reynolds, Ou, &
Temple, 2018).
Page 250
Another important effort to improve the education of children growing up
in low-income conditions is Teach for America (2018), a nonprofit
organization that recruits and selects college graduates from universities to
serve as teachers. The selected members commit to teaching for two years in
a public school in a low-income community. Since the program’s inception in
1990, more than 42,000 individuals have taught more than 50,000 students
for Teach for America. These teachers can be, but don’t have to be, education
majors. In the summer before beginning to teach, they attend an intensive
training program. To read about one individual who became a Teach for
America instructor, see the Careers in Life-Span Development profile.
Ethnicity in Schools
More than one-third of African American and almost one-third of Latino
students attend schools in the 47 largest city school districts, compared with
only 5 percent of White and 22 percent of Asian American
students. Many of these inner-city schools are still segregated, are
grossly underfunded, and do not provide adequate opportunities
for children to learn effectively. Thus, the effects of low socioeconomic
status (SES) and of ethnicity are often intertwined (Nieto & Bode, 2018).
Careers in life-span development
Ahou Vaziri, Teach for America Instructor
Ahou Vaziri was a top student in author John Santrock’s educational
psychology course at the University of Texas at Dallas where she
majored in Psychology and Child Development. The following year
she served as a teaching intern for the educational psychology course,
then submitted an application to join Teach for America and was
accepted. Ahou was assigned to work in a low-income area of Tulsa,
Oklahoma, where she taught English to seventh- and eighth-graders.
In her words, “The years I spent in the classroom for Teach for
America were among the most rewarding experiences I have had thus
far in my career. I was able to go home every night after work
knowing that I truly made a difference in the lives of my students.”
After her two-year teaching experience with Teach for America,
Ahou continued to work for the organization in their recruitment of
college students to become Teach for America instructors.
Subsequently, she moved into a role that involved developing
curricula for Teach for America. Recently she completed a graduate
degree in counseling from Southern Methodist University, and she is
continuing her work in improving children’s lives.
Ahou Vaziri interacting with students in her Teach for America class in Tulsa,
Oklahoma
Courtesy of Ahou Vaziri
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you structure a
lesson plan using the
jigsaw strategy?
The school experiences of students from different ethnic groups vary
considerably (Loria & Caughy, 2017; Suárez-Orozco, 2018; Suárez-Orozco
& Suárez-Orozco, 2018). African American and Latino students are much
less likely than non-Latino White or Asian American students to be enrolled
in college preparatory programs and more likely to be enrolled in remedial
and special education programs. Asian American students are far more likely
to take advanced math and science courses in high school. African American
students are twice as likely as Latinos, Native Americans, or non-Latino
Whites to be suspended from school. However, diversity characterizes every
ethnic group (Sawyer & others, 2018). For example, the higher percentage of
Asian American students in advanced classes mainly applies to students from
Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese, Korean, and East Indian cultural backgrounds;
students with Hmong and Vietnamese cultural backgrounds have had less
academic success. Following are some strategies for improving relationships
among ethnically diverse students:
Turn the class into a jigsaw classroom. When Eliot Aronson was a
professor at the University of Texas at Austin, the school system
contacted him for ideas on how to reduce the increasing racial tension in
classrooms. Aronson (1986) developed the concept of a “jigsaw
classroom” in which students from different cultural backgrounds are
placed in a cooperative group in which they have to construct different
parts of a project to reach a common goal. Aronson used the term jigsaw
because he saw the technique as much like a group of students
cooperating to put different pieces together to complete a jigsaw puzzle.
How might this work? Team sports, drama productions, and music
performances are examples of contexts in which students participate
cooperatively to reach a common goal; however, the jigsaw technique
also lends itself to group science projects, history reports, and other
learning experiences involving a variety of subject matter.
Encourage students to have positive personal contact with diverse other
students. Mere contact does not do the job of improving relationships
with diverse others. For example, busing ethnic minority students to
predominantly White schools, or vice versa, has not reduced prejudice or
improved interethnic relations. What matters is what happens after
children get to school. Especially beneficial in improving interethnic
relations is sharing one’s worries, successes, failures, coping strategies,
interests, and other personal information with people of other ethnicities.
When this happens, people tend to look at others as individuals rather
than as members of a homogeneous group.
Reduce bias. Teachers can reduce bias by displaying images of children
from diverse ethnic and cultural groups, selecting play materials and
classroom activities that encourage cultural understanding, helping
students resist stereotyping, and working with parents to reduce
children’s exposure to bias and prejudice at home.
James Comer, with some of the inner-city children who attend a school that became a
better learning environment because of Comer’s intervention.
©Chris Volpe
Be a competent cultural mediator. Teachers can play a powerful role as
cultural mediators by being sensitive to biased content in materials and
classroom interactions, learning more about different ethnic groups, being
sensitive to children’s ethnic attitudes, viewing students of color
positively, and thinking of positive ways to get parents of color more
involved as partners with teachers in educating children.
View the school and community as a team. James Comer (1988, 2004,
2006, 2010) advocates a community-oriented team approach as the best
way to educate children. Three important aspects of the Comer Project for
Page 251Change are (1) a governance and management team that
develops a comprehensive school plan, assessment strategy,
and staff development plan; (2) a mental health or school
support team; and (3) a parents’ program. Comer believes that the entire
school community should have a cooperative rather than an adversarial
attitude. The Comer program is currently operating in more than 600
schools in 26 states.
Cross-Cultural Comparisons
International assessments indicate that the United States has not fared well in
comparisons with many other countries in the areas of math and science
achievement (Desilver, 2017). In a recent assessment of fourth- and eighth-
grade students on the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study
(TIMSS), U.S. fourth-grade students placed eleventh out of 48 countries in
math and eighth in science (TIMSS, 2015). Also in the TIMSS study, U.S.
eighth-grade students placed eighth in math and eighth in science among the
37 countries studied. The top five spots in the international assessments
mainly go to East Asian countries, especially Singapore, China, and Japan.
The only two non-Asian countries to crack the top five in recent years for
math and science are Finland and Estonia.
Despite the recent gains by U.S. elementary school students, it is
disconcerting that in most comparisons, the rankings for U.S. students in
reading, math, and science compared with students in other countries decline
as they go from elementary school to high school. Also, U.S. students’
achievement scores in math and science are still far below those of students
in many East Asian countries.
Harold Stevenson’s (1995, 2000; Stevenson, Hofer, & Randel, 1999;
Stevenson & others, 1990) research explores reasons for the poor
performance of U.S. students compared with students in selected Asian
countries. Stevenson and his colleagues have completed five cross-cultural
comparisons of students in the United States, China, Taiwan, and Japan. In
these studies, Asian students consistently outperform American students. And
the longer the students are in school, the wider the gap becomes between
Asian and American students—the lowest difference is in the first grade, the
highest in the eleventh grade (the highest grade studied). Stevenson and his
colleagues spent thousands of hours observing in classrooms, as well as
interviewing and surveying teachers, students, and parents. They found that
the Asian teachers spent more of their time teaching math than the U.S.
teachers did. More than one-fourth of total classroom time in the first grade
was spent on math instruction in Japan, compared with only one-tenth of the
time in the U.S. first-grade classrooms. Also, the Asian students were in
school an average of 240 days a year, compared with 178 days in the United
States.
Differences were also found between the Asian and American parents.
The U.S. parents had much lower expectations for their children’s education
and achievement than did the Asian parents. Also, the U.S. parents were
more likely to believe that their children’s math achievement was due to
innate ability, while the Asian parents were more likely to say that their
children’s math achievement was the consequence of effort and training (see
Figure 2). The Asian students were more likely to do math homework than
were the U.S. students, and the Asian parents were far more likely to help
their children with their math homework than were the U.S. parents (Chen &
Stevenson, 1989). A recent study examined factors that might account for the
superior academic performance of Asian American children (Hsin & Xie,
2014). In this study, the Asian American advantage was mainly due to
children exerting greater academic effort and not to advantages in tested
cognitive abilities or sociodemographic factors.
How do U.S. students fare against Asian students in math and science achievement? What
were some findings in Stevenson’s research that might explain the results of those
Page 252
international comparisons?
©amana Images, Inc./Alamy
Figure 2 Mothers’ Beliefs About the Factors Responsible for Children’s Math
Achievement in Three Countries
In one study, mothers in Japan and Taiwan were more likely to believe that their
children’s math achievement was due to effort rather than innate ability, while U.S.
mothers were more likely to believe their children’s math achievement was due to innate
ability (Stevenson, Lee, & Stigler, 1986). If parents believe that their children’s math
achievement is due to innate ability and their children are not doing well in math, the
implication is that they are less likely to think their children will benefit from putting forth
more effort.
There is rising concern that U.S. children are not reaching their full
potential, which ultimately will reduce the capacity of the United States to
compete globally (Pomerantz, 2018). Researchers are interested in
determining how parents can maximize their children’s
motivation and achievement in school while also maintaining
positive emotional adjustment. To this end, Eva Pomerantz
and her colleagues are conducting research with children and their parents in
the United States and China, where children often attain higher levels of
achievement than their U.S. counterparts (Pomerantz, Cheung, & Qin, 2012;
Pomerantz & Grolnick, 2017; Pomerantz & Kempner, 2013; Pomerantz,
Kim, & Cheung, 2012; Qu & others, 2016).
Compared with U.S. parents, East Asian parents spend considerably more
time helping their children with homework (Chen & Stevenson, 1989).
Pomerantz’s research indicates that East Asian parental involvement in
children’s learning is present as early as the preschool years and continues
throughout the elementary school years (Cheung & Pomerantz, 2012; Ng,
Pomerantz, & Deng, 2014; Ng, Pomerantz, & Lam, 2013). In East Asia,
children’s learning is considered to be a far greater responsibility of parents
than it is in the United States (Ng, Pomerantz, & Lam, 2013; Pomerantz,
2018; Pomerantz, Kim, & Cheung, 2012).
Pomerantz and her colleagues also are conducting research on the role of
parental control in children’s achievement. In a recent study in which the title
of the resulting article included the phrase “My Child Is My Report Card,”
Chinese mothers exerted more control (especially psychological control) over
their children than did U.S. mothers (Ng, Pomerantz, & Deng, 2014). Chinese
mothers’ self-worth was more contingent on their children’s achievement
than was the case for U.S. mothers. Pomerantz’s research reflects a variation
of authoritarian parenting in which the parenting strategy of many Asian
parents is to train their children to achieve high levels of academic success.
Amy Chua’s 2011 book, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, sparked
considerable interest in the role of parenting in children’s achievement. Chua
uses the term “Tiger Mother” to mean a mother who engages in strict
disciplinary practices. In another recent book, Tiger Babies Strike Back, Kim
Wong Keltner (2013) argues that the Tiger Mother parenting style can be so
demanding and confining that being an Asian American child is like being in
an “emotional jail.” She says that the Tiger Mother authoritarian style does
provide some advantages for children, such as emphasizing the value of
going for what you want and not taking no for an answer, but that too often
the outcome is not worth the emotional costs that accompany it.
Recent research on Chinese-American immigrant families with first- and
second-grade children has found that children with authoritarian (highly
controlling) parents are more aggressive, are more depressed, have a higher
anxiety level, and show poorer social skills than children whose parents
engage in non-authoritarian styles (Zhou & others, 2013). Qing Zhou (2013),
lead author on the study just described and the director of the University of
California’s Culture and Family Laboratory, is conducting workshops to
teach Chinese mothers positive parenting strategies such as using listening
skills, praising their children for good behavior, and spending more time with
their children in fun activities. Also, in a recent study in China, young
Page 253
adolescents with authoritative parents showed better adjustment than their
counterparts with authoritarian parents (Zhang & others, 2017).
In sum, while an authoritarian, psychologically controlling style of
parenting may be associated with higher levels of achievement, especially in
Asian children, there are concerns that an authoritarian, highly controlling
style also may produce more emotional difficulties in children (Pomerantz,
2018).
Related to the differences in the attitudes of Asian and U.S. parents
involving explanations of effort and ability, Carol Dweck (2006, 2015, 2016;
Dweck & Molden, 2017) described the importance of children’s mindset,
which she defines as the cognitive view individuals develop for themselves.
She concludes that individuals have one of two mindsets: (1) a fixed mindset,
in which they believe that their qualities are carved in stone and cannot
change; or (2) a growth mindset, in which they believe their qualities can
change and improve through their effort. Dweck (2006, 2015, 2016) argues
that individuals’ mindsets influence whether they will be
optimistic or pessimistic, what their goals will be and how
hard they will strive to reach those goals, and their
achievement.
Dweck says that mindsets begin to be shaped in childhood as children
interact with parents, teachers, and coaches, who themselves have either a
fixed mindset or a growth mindset. However, recent research indicates that
many parents and teachers with growth mindsets don’t always instill them in
children and adolescents (Haimovitz & Dweck, 2016, 2017). The following
strategies have been found to increase adolescents’ growth mindset: teach for
understanding; provide feedback that improves understanding; give students
opportunities to revise their work; communicate how effort and struggling are
involved in learning; and function as a partner with children and adolescents
in the learning process (Haimovitz & Dweck, 2017; Hooper & others, 2016;
Sun, 2015).
In recent research by Dweck and her colleagues, students from lower-
income families were less likely to have a growth mindset than their
counterparts from wealthier families (Claro, Paunesku, & Dweck, 2016).
However, the achievement of students from lower-income families who did
have a growth mindset was more likely to be protected from the negative
effects of poverty.
Dweck and her colleagues (Blackwell & Dweck, 2008; Blackwell,
Trzesniewski, & Dweck, 2007; Dweck, 2015, 2016; Dweck & Master, 2009;
Dweck & Molden, 2017) have incorporated information about the brain’s
plasticity into their efforts to improve students’ motivation to achieve and
succeed. In one study, they assigned two groups of students to eight sessions
of either (1) study skills instruction, or (2) study skills instruction plus
information about the importance of developing a growth mindset
(Blackwell, Trzesniewski, & Dweck, 2007). One of the exercises in the
growth-mindset group, titled “You Can Grow Your Brain,” emphasized that
the brain is like a muscle that can get stronger as it is exercised and develops
new connections. Students were informed that the more you challenge your
brain to learn, the more your brain cells grow. Both groups had a pattern of
declining math scores prior to the intervention. Following the intervention,
scores for the group that received only the study skills instruction continued
to decline, but the group that received the combination of study skills
instruction plus the growth-mindset emphasis improved their math
achievement. In a recent study conducted by Dweck and her colleagues
(Paunesku & others, 2015), underachieving high school students read online
modules about how the brain changes when people learn and study hard.
Following the online exposure to information about the brain and learning,
the underachieving students improved their grade point averages.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would incorporate the
concept of mindset into
your classroom as a
teacher?
Dweck has also created a computer-based workshop, “Brainology,” to
teach students that their intelligence can change (Blackwell & Dweck, 2008)
(see Figure 3). The workshop includes six modules about how the brain
works and discussion about how students can make their brain improve. After
the workshop was tested in 20 New York City schools, students strongly
endorsed the value of the computer-based brain modules. Said one student, “I
Page 254will try harder because I know that the more you try, the more
your brain knows” (Dweck & Master, 2009, p. 137).
Figure 3 A Screen from Carol Dweck’s Brainology Program, Which Is Designed to
Cultivate Children’s Growth Mindset
Courtesy of Dr. Carol S. Dweck
Dweck and her colleagues also have found that a growth mindset can
prevent negative stereotypes from undermining achievement. For example,
believing that math ability can be learned helped to protect females from
negative gender stereotyping about math (Good, Rattan, & Dweck, 2012).
Also, in recent research, having a growth mindset helped to protect women’s
and minorities’ outlook when they chose to confront expressions of bias
toward them (Rattan & Dweck, 2018).
Summary
Emotional and Personality Development
Self-descriptions increasingly involve psychological and social
characteristics in middle and late childhood. Perspective taking increases
in middle and late childhood. Self-concept refers to domain-specific
evaluations of the self. Self-esteem refers to global evaluations of the self
and is also referred to as self-worth or self-image. Self-efficacy and self-
regulation are linked to children’s competence and achievement.
Erikson’s fourth stage of development, industry versus inferiority,
characterizes the middle and late childhood years.
Emotional development occurs in middle and late childhood. As children
get older, they use a greater variety of coping strategies and more
cognitive strategies.
Kohlberg argued that moral development consists of three levels—
preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. Criticisms of
Kohlberg’s theory have been made, especially by Gilligan. The domain
theory of moral development states that there are different domains of
social knowledge and reasoning, including moral, social conventional,
and personal. Prosocial behavior involves positive moral behaviors such
as sharing.
Gender stereotyping is present in children’s lives, and research indicates
that it increases during middle and late childhood. A number of physical
differences exist between males and females. Some experts argue that
cognitive differences between males and females have been exaggerated.
In terms of socioemotional differences, males are more physically
aggressive than females, whereas females regulate their emotions better
and engage in more prosocial behavior than males do.
Families
Parents spend less time with children during middle and late childhood
than in early childhood. New parent-child issues emerge and discipline
changes. Control is more coregulatory.
Parents can play important roles as managers of children’s opportunities.
Secure attachment to parents is linked to lower levels of internalized
symptoms, anxiety, and depression in children during middle and late
childhood.
Children living in stepparent families have more adjustment problems
than their counterparts in never-divorced families.
Peers
A number of developmental changes in peer relations occur in middle and
late childhood.
Peer statuses—popular children, neglected children, rejected children,
controversial children, and average children—are important in middle and
late childhood.
Social information processing and social knowledge are two important
dimensions of social cognition.
Significant numbers of children are bullied, and this can result in negative
developmental outcomes for victims as well as bullies.
Children who are friends tend to be similar to each other. Children’s
friendships serve a number of functions.
Schools
Contemporary approaches to student learning include constructivism and
direct instruction. In the United States, standardized testing of elementary
school students has been mandated to improve accountability of schools.
Children in poverty face many barriers to learning at school as well as at
home. Low expectations for ethnic minority children represent one of the
barriers to their learning.
U.S. children are more achievement-oriented than children in many
countries but perform more poorly in math and science than many
children in Asian countries. Fixed or growth mindset is the cognitive
view that individuals develop for themselves.
Key Terms
average children
care perspective
constructivist approach
controversial children
conventional reasoning
direct instruction approach
domain theory of moral development
gender stereotypes
justice perspective
mindset
neglected children
perspective taking
popular children
postconventional reasoning
preconventional reasoning
rejected children
self-concept
self-efficacy
self-esteem
social conventional reasoning
Page 255
©Hill Street Studios/Getty Images
9
Physical and Cognitive
Development in
Adolescence
CHAPTER OUTLINE
The Nature of Adolescence
Physical Changes
Puberty
The Brain
Adolescent Sexuality
Adolescent Health
Nutrition and Exercise
Sleep Patterns
Leading Causes of Death in Adolescence
Substance Use and Abuse
Eating Disorders
Adolescent Cognition
Piaget’s Theory
Adolescent Egocentrism
Information Processing
Schools
The Transition to Middle or Junior High School
Effective Schools for Young Adolescents
High School
Service Learning
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Annie, Arnie, and Katie
Fifteen-year-old Annie developed a drinking problem, and recently
she was kicked off the cheerleading squad at her school for
missing practice so often—but that didn’t stop her drinking. She
and her friends began skipping school regularly so they could
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drink.
Fourteen-year-old Arnie is a juvenile delinquent. Last week he
stole a TV set, struck his mother and bloodied her face, broke some
streetlights in the neighborhood, and threatened a boy with a
wrench and hammer.
Twelve-year-old Katie, more than just about anything else,
wanted a playground in her town. She knew that other kids also
wanted one, so she put together a group that generated funding
ideas for the playground. They presented their ideas to the town
council. Her group got more youth involved, and they raised
money by selling candy and sandwiches door-to-door. The
playground became a reality, a place where, as Katie says, “People
can have picnics and make friends.” Katie’s advice: “You won’t
get anywhere if you don’t try.”
Adolescents like Annie and Arnie are the ones we hear about
the most. But there are many adolescents like Katie who contribute
in positive ways to their community, and competently make the
transition through adolescence. Indeed, for most young people,
adolescence is not a time of rebellion, crisis, pathology, and
deviance. A far more accurate vision of adolescence is of a time of
evaluation, of decision making, of commitment, of carving out a
place in the world. Most of the problems of today’s
youth are not with the youth themselves. What
adolescents need is access to a range of legitimate
opportunities and to long-term support from adults who care
deeply about them (Lerner & others, 2018; Lovell & White, 2019;
Ogden & Hagen, 2019).
Adolescence is a transitional period in the human life span,
entered at approximately 10 to 12 years of age and exited at about
18 to 22 years of age. We begin this chapter by examining some
general characteristics of adolescence, then turn our attention to
major physical changes and health issues of adolescence. Next, we
describe the significant cognitive changes that take place during
adolescence. Last, we consider various aspects of schools for
adolescents. ■
The Nature of Adolescence
There is a long history of worrying about how adolescents will “turn out.” In
1904, G. Stanley Hall proposed the “storm-and-stress” view that adolescence
is a turbulent time charged with conflict and mood swings. However, when
Daniel Offer and his colleagues (1988) studied the self-images of adolescents
in a number of countries, at least 73 percent of the adolescents displayed a
healthy self-image rather than attitudes of storm-and-stress.
In matters of taste and manners, the young people of every generation
have seemed unnervingly radical and different from adults—different in how
they look, in how they behave, in the music they enjoy, in their hairstyles,
and in the clothing they choose. It would be an enormous error, though, to
confuse adolescents’ enthusiasm for trying on new identities and enjoying
moderate amounts of outrageous behavior with hostility toward parental and
societal standards. Acting out and boundary testing are time-honored ways in
which adolescents move toward accepting, rather than rejecting, parental
values.
Katie (front) and some of her volunteers.
©Ronald Cortes
Negative stereotyping of adolescence has been extensive (Jiang & others,
2018; Petersen & others, 2017). However, much of the negative stereotyping
has been fueled by media reports of a visible minority of adolescents. In the
last decade there has been a call for adults to have a more positive attitude
toward youth and emphasize their positive development. Indeed, researchers
have found that a majority of adolescents are making the transition from
childhood through adolescence to adulthood in a positive way (Seider,
Jayawickreme, & Lerner, 2017). For example, a recent study of non-Latino
Page 257
White and African American 12- to 20-year-olds in the United States found
that they were characterized much more by positive than problematic
development, even during their most vulnerable times (Gutman & others,
2017). Their engagement in healthy behaviors, supportive relationships with
parents and friends, and positive self-perceptions were much stronger than
their angry and depressed feelings.
Although most adolescents negotiate the lengthy path to adult maturity
successfully, too large a group does not (Frydenberg, 2019). Ethnic, cultural,
gender, socioeconomic, age, and lifestyle differences influence the actual life
trajectory of each adolescent (Rojas-Flores & others, 2017). Different
portrayals of adolescence emerge, depending on the particular group of
adolescents being described. Today’s adolescents are exposed to a complex
menu of lifestyle options through the media, and many face the temptations
of drug use and sexual activity at increasingly young ages. Too many
adolescents are not provided with adequate opportunities and
support to become competent adults (Lovell & White, 2019;
Ogden & Haden, 2019).
Growing up has never been easy. However, adolescence is not best viewed as a time of
rebellion, crisis, pathology, and deviance. A far more accurate vision of adolescence
describes it as a time of evaluation, decision making, commitment, and carving out a place
in the world. Most of the problems of today’s youth are not with the youth themselves.
What adolescents need is access to a range of legitimate opportunities and to long-term
support from adults who care deeply about them. What might be some examples of such
support and caring?
©Regine Mahaux/The Image Bank/Getty Images
Peter Benson and his colleagues (Benson, 2010; Benson, Roehlkepartain,
& Scales, 2012; Benson & Scales, 2009, 2011) argue that the United States
has a fragmented social policy for youth that too often has focused only on
the negative developmental deficits of adolescents, especially health-
compromising behaviors such as drug use and delinquency, and not enough
on positive, strength-based approaches. According to Benson and his
colleagues (2004, p. 783), a strength-based approach to social policy for
youth
adopts more of a wellness perspective, places particular emphasis on
the existence of healthy conditions, and expands the concept of health
to include the skills and competencies needed to succeed in
employment, education, and life. It moves beyond the eradication of
risk and deliberately argues for the promotion of well-being.
Physical Changes
One father remarked that the problem with his teenage son was not that he
grew, but that he did not know when to stop growing. In addition to pubertal
changes, other physical changes we will explore involve sexuality and the
brain.
Puberty
Puberty is not the same as adolescence. For most of us, puberty ends long
before adolescence does, although puberty is the most important marker of
the beginning of adolescence.
Puberty is a brain-neuroendocrine process occurring primarily in early
adolescence that provides stimulation for the rapid physical changes that take
place during this period of development (Cicek & others, 2018; Shalitin &
Kiess, 2017). Puberty is not a single, sudden event. We know whether a
young boy or girl is going through puberty, but pinpointing puberty’s
beginning and end is difficult. Among the most noticeable changes are signs
of sexual maturation and increases in height and weight.
Sexual Maturation, Height, and Weight
Think back to the onset of your puberty. Of the striking changes that were
taking place in your body, what was the first to occur? Researchers have
found that male pubertal characteristics typically develop in this order:
increase in penis and testicle size, appearance of straight pubic hair, minor
voice change, first ejaculation (which usually occurs through masturbation or
a wet dream), appearance of kinky pubic hair, onset of maximum growth in
height and weight, growth of hair in armpits, more detectable voice changes,
and, finally, growth of facial hair.
What is the order of appearance of physical changes in females? First,
either the breasts enlarge or pubic hair appears. Later, hair appears in the
armpits. As these changes occur, the female grows in height and her hips
become wider than her shoulders. Menarche—a girl’s first menstruation—
comes rather late in the pubertal cycle.
Marked weight gains coincide with the onset of puberty. During early
adolescence, girls tend to outweigh boys, but by about age 14 boys begin to
surpass girls. Similarly, at the beginning of the adolescent period, girls tend
to be as tall as or taller than boys of their age, but by the end of the middle
school years most boys have caught up, or, in many cases, surpassed girls in
height.
As indicated in Figure 1, the growth spurt occurs approximately two
years earlier for girls than for boys. The mean age at the beginning of the
growth spurt in girls is 9; for boys, it is 11. The peak rate of pubertal change
occurs at 11½ years for girls and 13½ years for boys. During their growth
spurt, girls increase in height about 3½ inches per year, boys about 4 inches.
Boys and girls who are shorter or taller than their peers before adolescence
are likely to remain so during adolescence.
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Figure 1 Pubertal Growth Spurt
On average, the peak of the growth spurt during puberty occurs two years earlier for girls
(11½) than for boys (13½). How are hormones related to the growth spurt and to the
difference between the average height of adolescent boys and that of girls?
Hormonal Changes
Behind the first whisker in boys and the widening of hips in girls
is a flood of hormones, powerful chemical substances secreted by the
endocrine glands and carried through the body by the bloodstream (Herting &
Sowell, 2017; Nguyen, 2018). The endocrine system’s role in puberty
involves the interaction of the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland, and the
gonads. The hypothalamus is a structure in the brain that monitors eating
and sex. The pituitary gland is an important endocrine gland that controls
growth and regulates other glands; among these, the gonads—the testes in
males, the ovaries in females—are particularly important in giving rise to
pubertal changes in the body.
The concentrations of certain hormones increase dramatically during
adolescence (Novello & Speiser, 2018; Piekarski & others, 2017; Rovner &
others, 2018). Testosterone is a hormone associated in boys with the
development of genitals, an increase in height, and a change in voice (Giri &
others, 2017; Werenga & others, 2018). Estradiol is a type of estrogen; in
girls it is associated with breast, uterine, and skeletal development (Ding &
others, 2018). In one study, testosterone levels increased eighteen-fold in
boys but only two-fold in girls during puberty; estradiol increased eight-fold
in girls but only two-fold in boys (Nottelmann & others, 1987). Thus, both
testosterone and estradiol are present in the hormonal makeup of both boys
and girls, but testosterone dominates in male pubertal development, estradiol
in female pubertal development (Benyi & Sävendahl, 2017; Hsueh & He,
2018). The same influx of hormones that grows hair on a male’s chest and
increases the fatty tissue in a female’s breasts may also contribute to
psychological development in adolescence.
However, one research review concluded that there is insufficient quality
research to confirm that changing testosterone levels during puberty are
linked to mood and behavior in adolescent males (Duke, Balzer, & Steinbeck,
2014). Thus, hormonal effects by themselves do not account for adolescent
development (Susman & Dorn, 2013). For example, in one study, social
factors accounted for two to four times as much variance as did hormonal
factors in young adolescent girls’ depression and anger (Brooks-Gunn &
Warren, 1989). Behavior and moods also can affect hormones. Stress, eating
patterns, exercise, sexual activity, tension, and depression can activate or
suppress various aspects of the hormonal system. In sum, the hormone-
behavior link is complex (Susman & Dorn, 2013).
Timing and Variations in Puberty
In the United States—where children mature up to a year earlier than children
in European countries—the average age of menarche has declined
significantly since the mid-nineteenth century. Also, recent studies in Korea
and Japan (Cole & Mori, 2018), China (Song & others, 2016), and Saudi
Arabia (Al Alwan & others, 2017) found that pubertal onset has been
occurring earlier in recent years. Fortunately, however, we are unlikely to see
pubescent toddlers, since what has happened in the past century is likely the
result of improved nutrition and health (Herman-Giddens, 2007).
Why do the changes of puberty occur when they do, and how can
variations in their timing be explained? The basic genetic program for
puberty is wired into the species (Howard & Dunkel, 2018; Toro, Aylwin, &
Page 259
Lomniczi, 2018), but nutrition, health, family stress, and other environmental
factors also affect puberty’s timing and makeup (Villamor & Jansen, 2016).
A number of studies have found that higher weight, especially obesity, is
linked to earlier pubertal development (Shailtin & Kiess, 2017). For example,
a recent study concluded that earlier pubertal onset occurred
in girls with a higher body mass index (BMI) (Bratke &
others, 2017). Further, a recent Chinese study also revealed
that a higher BMI was associated with earlier pubertal onset (Deng & others,
2018). Also, puberty comes earlier when girls and boys experience
considerable stress and conflict. For example, a recent study found that child
sexual abuse was linked to earlier pubertal onset (Noll & others, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you explain the
link between
biological/physical
changes and adolescent
mood swings?
For most boys, the pubertal sequence may begin as early as age 10 or as
late as 13½ and may end as early as age 13 or as late as 17. Thus, the normal
range is wide enough that, given two boys of the same chronological age, one
might complete the pubertal sequence before the other one has begun it. For
girls, menarche is considered within the normal range if it appears between
the ages of 9 and 15.
What are some of the differences in the ways girls and boys experience pubertal growth?
©Fuse/Getty Images
Body Image
One psychological aspect of physical change in puberty is certain:
Adolescents are preoccupied with their bodies and develop images of what
their bodies are like (Hoffman & Warschburger, 2018; Senin-Calderon &
others, 2017). One study revealed that adolescents with the most positive
body images engaged in health-enhancing behaviors, especially regular
exercise (Frisen & Holmqvist, 2010).
The recent dramatic increase in Internet use, particularly social media
platforms, has raised concerns about their influence on adolescents’ body
images (Saul & Rodgers, 2018). For example, a recent study of U.S. 12- to
14-year-olds found that heavier social media use was associated with body
dissatisfaction (Burnette, Kwitowski, & Mazzeo, 2017). Also, in a recent
study of U.S. college women, spending more time on Facebook was related
to more frequent body and weight concern comparisons with other women,
more attention to the physical appearance of others, and more negative
feelings about their own bodies (Eckler, Kalyango, & Paasch, 2017). In sum,
various aspects of exposure to the Internet and social media are increasing the
body dissatisfaction of adolescents and emerging adults, especially females.
Gender differences characterize adolescents’ perceptions of their bodies
(Hoffman & Warschburger, 2017, 2018; Mitchison & others, 2017). In
general, girls are less happy with their bodies and have more negative body
images than boys throughout puberty (Bearman & others, 2006). Girls’ more
negative body images may be due to media portrayals of the attractiveness of
being thin, coupled with the increased levels of body fat in girls during
puberty (Griffiths & others, 2017). In a recent U.S. study of young
adolescents, boys had a more positive body image than girls did (Morin &
others, 2017). Also, another study found that both boys’ and girls’ body
images became more positive as they moved from the beginning to the end of
adolescence (Holsen, Carlson Jones, & Skogbrott Birkeland, 2012).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you counsel
parents about
communicating with
their adolescent
daughter regarding
changes in her behavior
that likely reflect a
declining body image?
Early and Late Maturation
You may have entered puberty earlier or later than average, or perhaps you
were right on time. Adolescents who mature earlier or later than their peers
perceive themselves differently (Selkie, 2018; Ullsperger & Nikolas, 2017).
In the Berkeley Longitudinal Study some years ago, early-maturing boys
perceived themselves more positively and had more successful peer relations
than did their late-maturing counterparts (Jones, 1965). When the late-
maturing boys were in their thirties, however, they had developed a stronger
Page 260
sense of identity than the early-maturing boys had (Peskin, 1967). This may
have occurred because the late-maturing boys had more time to explore life’s
options, or because the early-maturing boys continued to focus on
their advantageous physical status instead of on career
development and achievement. More recent research confirms,
though, that at least during adolescence it is advantageous to be an early-
maturing rather than a late-maturing boy (Graber, Brooks-Gunn, & Warren,
2006).
By contrast, an increasing number of researchers have found that early
maturation increases girls’ vulnerability to a number of problems (Black &
Rofey, 2018; Hamilton & others, 2014; Selkie, 2018). Early-maturing girls
are more likely to smoke, drink, be depressed, have an eating disorder,
struggle for earlier independence from their parents, and have older friends;
and their bodies are likely to elicit responses from males that lead to earlier
dating and earlier sexual experiences (Baker & others, 2012; Negriff,
Susman, & Trickett, 2011; Rudolph & others, 2014; Selkie, 2018; Wang &
others, 2018). In a recent study, onset of menarche before 11 years of age was
linked to a higher incidence of distress disorders, fear disorders, and
externalizing disorders in females (Platt & others, 2017). Further, researchers
recently found that early-maturing girls had higher rates of depression and
antisocial behavior as middle-aged adults mainly because their difficulties
began in adolescence and did not lessen over time (Mendle, Ryan, &
McKone, 2018). In another study, early menarche was associated with risky
sexual behavior in Korean females (Cheong & others, 2015). Researchers
also have found that early-maturing girls tend to engage in sexual intercourse
earlier and have more unstable sexual relationships (Moore, Harden, &
Mendle, 2014). Further, a study revealed that early-maturing Chinese girls
and boys engaged in delinquency more than their on-time or late-maturing
counterparts (Chen & others, 2015). Another study found that early
maturation predicted a stable higher level of depression for adolescent girls
(Rudolph & others, 2014). Also, a recent study indicated that early-maturing
girls are at increased risk for physical and verbal abuse in dating (Chen,
Rothman, & Jaffee, 2018). In addition, early-maturing girls are less likely to
graduate from high school, and they tend to cohabit and marry earlier
(Cavanagh, 2009).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you use your
knowledge of puberty to
reassure adolescents
who are concerned that
they are maturing more
slowly than their
friends?
The Brain
Along with the rest of the body, the brain is changing during adolescence, but
the study of adolescent brain development is in its infancy. As advances in
technology take place, significant strides will also likely be made in charting
developmental changes in the adolescent brain (Dahl & others, 2018;
Goddings & Mills, 2017; Juraska & Willing, 2017; Sherman, Steinberg, &
Chein, 2018; Vijayakumar & others, 2018). What do we know now?
The dogma of the unchanging brain has been discarded, and researchers
are mainly focused on context-induced plasticity of the brain over time (Duell
& others, 2018; Tamnes & others, 2018; Zanolie & Crone, 2018). The
development of the brain mainly changes in a bottom-up, top-down sequence,
with sensory, appetitive (eating, drinking), sexual, sensation-seeking, and
risk-taking brain linkages maturing first and higher-level brain linkages such
as self-control, planning, and reasoning maturing later (Zelazo, 2013).
Recall that researchers have discovered that nearly twice as many
synaptic connections are made as we will ever use (Huttenlocher &
Dabholkar, 1997). The connections that we do use are strengthened and
survive, while the unused ones are replaced by other pathways or disappear.
That is, in the language of neuroscience, these connections will be “pruned.”
As a result of this pruning, by the end of adolescence individuals have
“fewer, more selective, more effective neuronal connections than they did as
children” (Kuhn, 2009, p. 153). And this pruning indicates that the activities
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adolescents choose to engage in and not to engage in influence which neural
connections will be strengthened and which will disappear (Juraska &
Willing, 2017).
Using fMRI brain scans, scientists have discovered that adolescents’
brains undergo significant structural changes (Crone, 2017; Crone, Peters, &
Steinbeis, 2018; Dahl & others, 2018; Lebel & Deoni, 2018; Reyna, 2018).
The corpus callosum, where nerve fibers connect the brain’s
left and right hemispheres, thickens in adolescence, and this
improves adolescents’ ability to process information
(Chavarria & others, 2014). Earlier we described advances in the
development of the prefrontal cortex—the highest level of the frontal lobes
involved in reasoning, decision making, and self-control. However, the
prefrontal cortex doesn’t finish maturing until the emerging adult years—
approximately 18 to 25 years of age—or later (Goddings & Mills, 2017;
Sousa & others, 2018).
At a lower, subcortical level, the limbic system, which is the seat of
emotions and where rewards are experienced, matures much earlier than the
prefrontal cortex and is almost completely developed by early adolescence
(Cohen & Casey, 2017). The limbic system structure that is especially
involved in emotion is the amygdala. Figure 2 shows the locations of the
corpus callosum, prefrontal cortex, and the limbic system.
Figure 2 The Changing Adolescent Brain: Prefrontal Cortex, Limbic System, and
Corpus Callosum
With the onset of puberty, the levels of neurotransmitters change (Crone,
2017). For example, an increase in the neurotransmitter dopamine occurs in
both the prefrontal cortex and the limbic system during adolescence (Dahl &
others, 2018). Increases in dopamine have been linked to increased risk
taking and use of addictive drugs (Gulick & Gamsby, 2018; Webber &
others, 2017). Researchers have also found that dopamine plays an important
role in reward seeking during adolescence (Dubol & others, 2018).
Earlier we described the increased focal activation that is linked to
synaptic pruning in a specific region, such as the prefrontal cortex. In middle
and late childhood, while there is increased focal activation within a specific
brain region such as the prefrontal cortex, there also are only limited
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connections across distant brain regions. By the time individuals reach
emerging adulthood, there are increased connections across brain areas (Dahl
& others, 2018; Lebel & Deoni, 2018; Sousa & others, 2018). The increased
connectedness (referred to as brain networks) is especially prevalent across
more distant brain regions. Thus, as children and adolescents mature, greater
efficiency and focal activation occurs in local areas of the brain, and
simultaneously there is an increase in brain networks across different brain
regions (de Haan & Johnson, 2016). In a recent study, reduced connectivity
between the brain’s frontal lobes and amygdala during adolescence was
linked to increased depression (Scheuer & others, 2017).
Many of the changes in the adolescent brain that have been described
involve the rapidly emerging field of developmental social neuroscience,
which involves connections between development, the brain, and
socioemotional processes (Dahl & others, 2018; Sherman, Steinberg, &
Chein, 2018; Telzer, Rogers, & Van Hoorn, 2017; Zanolie & Crone, 2018).
For example, consider leading researcher Charles Nelson’s (2003) view that,
although adolescents are capable of very strong emotions, their prefrontal
cortex hasn’t adequately developed to the point at which they can control
these passions. It is as if their brain doesn’t have the brakes to slow down
their emotions. Or consider this interpretation of the development of emotion
and cognition in adolescents: “early activation of strong ‘turbo-charged’
feelings with a relatively un-skilled set of ‘driving skills’ or cognitive
abilities to modulate strong emotions and motivations” (Dahl, 2004, p. 18).
Of course, a major issue is which comes first: biological
changes in the brain or experiences that stimulate these changes
(Lerner, Boyd, & Du, 2008). In a longitudinal study, 11- to 18-
year-olds who lived in poverty conditions had diminished brain functioning
at 25 years of age (Brody & others, 2017). However, the adolescents from
poverty backgrounds whose families participated in a supportive parenting
intervention did not show this diminished brain functioning in adulthood.
Another study found that the prefrontal cortex thickened and more brain
connections formed when adolescents resisted peer pressure (Paus & others,
2007). Scientists have yet to determine whether the brain changes come first
or whether the brain changes result from experiences with peers, parents, and
others. Once again, we encounter the nature/nurture issue that is so prominent
in an examination of development through the life span.
In closing this section on the development of the brain in adolescence, a
further caution is in order. Much of the research on neuroscience and the
development of the brain in adolescence is correlational in nature, and thus
causal statements need to be scrutinized (de Haan & Johnson, 2016). This
caution, of course, applies to any period in the human life span.
Adolescent Sexuality
Not only are adolescents characterized by substantial changes in physical
growth and the development of the brain, but adolescence also is a bridge
between the asexual child and the sexual adult. Adolescence is a time of
sexual exploration and experimentation, of sexual fantasies and realities, of
incorporating sexuality into one’s identity.
Developing a Sexual Identity
Mastering emerging sexual feelings and forming a sense of sexual identity is
a multifaceted and lengthy process (Diamond & Alley, 2018; Savin-
Williams, 2017, 2018). It involves learning to manage sexual feelings (such
as sexual arousal and attraction), developing new forms of intimacy, and
learning the skills to regulate sexual behavior to avoid undesirable
consequences.
An adolescent’s sexual identity involves activities, interests, styles of
behavior, and an indication of sexual orientation (whether an individual has
same-sex or other-sex attractions) (Goldberg & Halpern, 2017). For example,
some adolescents have a high anxiety level about sex, others a low level.
Some adolescents are strongly aroused sexually, others less so. Some
adolescents are very active sexually, others not at all (Carroll, 2018; Hyde &
DeLamater, 2017). Some adolescents are sexually inactive in response to
their strong religious upbringing; others go to church regularly, yet their
religious training does not inhibit their sexual activity.
It is commonly believed that most gay and lesbian individuals quietly
struggle with same-sex attractions in childhood, do not engage in
heterosexual dating, and gradually recognize that they are gay or lesbian in
middle to late adolescence. Many youths do follow this developmental
pathway, but others do not (Diamond & Alley, 2018). For example, many
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people have no recollection of early same-sex attractions and experience a
more abrupt sense of their same-sex attraction in late adolescence.
Researchers also have found that the majority of adolescents with same-sex
attractions also experience some degree of other-sex attractions. Even though
some adolescents who are attracted to individuals of their own sex fall in love
with these individuals, others claim that their same-sex attractions are purely
physical (Savin-Williams, 2017, 2018).
In sum, gay and lesbian youth have diverse patterns of initial attraction,
often have bisexual attractions, and may have physical or emotional attraction
to same-sex individuals but do not always fall in love with them (Savin-
Williams, 2017, 2018). Further, the majority of sexual minority (gay, lesbian,
and bisexual) adolescents have competent and successful paths of
development through adolescence and become healthy and productive adults.
However, in a recent large-scale study, sexual minority adolescents were
more likely to engage in health-risk behaviors (greater drug use and sexual
risk taking, for example) than heterosexual adolescents (Kann & others,
2016b).
The Timing of Adolescent Sexual Behaviors
What is the current profile of sexual activity of adolescents? In a U.S.
national survey conducted in 2015, 58 percent of twelfth-graders reported
having experienced sexual intercourse, compared with 24 percent of ninth-
graders (Kann & others, 2016a). By age 20, 77 percent of U.S. youth report
having engaged in sexual intercourse (Dworkin & Santelli, 2007). Nationally,
46 percent of twelfth-graders, 33.5 percent of eleventh-graders, 25.5 percent
of tenth-graders, and 16 percent of ninth-graders recently reported that they
were currently sexually active (Kann & others, 2016a).
What trends in adolescent sexual activity have occurred in recent
decades? From 1991 to 2015, fewer adolescents reported any of the
following: ever having had sexual intercourse, currently being sexually
active, having had sexual intercourse before the age of 13, and having had
sexual intercourse with four or more persons during their lifetime (Kann &
others, 2016a).
Sexual initiation varies by ethnic group in the United States (Kann &
others, 2016a). African Americans are likely to engage in sexual behaviors
earlier than other ethnic groups, whereas Asian Americans are likely to
engage in them later (Feldman, Turner, & Araujo, 1999). In a more recent
national U.S. survey of ninth- to twelfth-graders, 48.5 percent of African
Americans, 42.5 percent of Latinos, and 39.9 percent of non-Latino Whites
said they had experienced sexual intercourse (Kann & others, 2016a). In this
study, 8 percent of African Americans (compared with 5 percent of Latinos
and 2.5 percent of non-Latino Whites) said they had their first sexual
experience before 13 years of age.
Research indicates that oral sex is now a common occurrence among U.S.
adolescents (Holway, 2015). In a recent national survey of more than 7,000
15- to 24-year-olds, 58.6 percent of the females reported ever having
performed oral sex and 60.4 percent said that they had ever received oral sex
(Holway & Hernandez, 2018). Also, in a previous survey, 51 percent of U.S.
15- to 19-year-old boys and 47 percent of girls in the same age range said
they had engaged in oral sex (Child Trends, 2015). One study also found that
among female adolescents who reported having vaginal sex first, 31 percent
reported having a teen pregnancy, whereas among those who initiated oral-
genital sex first, only 8 percent reported having a teen pregnancy (Reese &
others, 2013). Thus, how adolescents initiate their sex lives may have
positive or negative consequences for their sexual health (Goldstein &
Halpern-Felsher, 2018; Kahn & Halpern, 2018).
Risk Factors in Adolescent Sexuality
Many adolescents are not emotionally prepared to handle sexual experiences,
especially in early adolescence (Charlton & others, 2018; Ihongbe, Cha, &
Masho, 2017; Weisman & others, 2018). A recent study found that early
sexual debut (first sexual intercourse before age 13) was associated with
sexual risk taking, substance use, violent victimization, and suicidal
thoughts/attempts in both sexual minority (gay, lesbian, and bisexual
adolescents) and heterosexual youth (Lowry & others, 2017). Also, in a
recent study of Korean adolescent girls, early menarche was linked with
earlier initiation of sexual intercourse (Kim & others, 2017).
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What are some risk factors for adolescent sexual problems?
©Jacob Lund/Shutterstock
A number of family factors are associated with sexual risk taking
(Ashcraft & Murray, 2017; Ruiz-Casares & others, 2017). For example, one
study found that difficulties and disagreements between Latino adolescents
and their parents were linked to the adolescents’ early sexual initiation
(Cordova & others, 2014). Also, a recent study revealed that adolescents who
reported greater parental knowledge of their whereabouts and more family
rules about dating in the eighth grade were less likely to initiate sex from the
eighth to tenth grade (Ethier & others, 2016). And a recent study revealed
that of a number of parenting practices, the factor that best predicted a lower
level of risky sexual behavior by adolescents was supportive parenting
(Simons & others, 2016).
Socioeconomic status, peer relations, school performance,
sports participation, and religious orientation provide further
information about sexual risk taking by adolescents (Choukas-
Bradley & Prinstein, 2016; Warner, 2018; Widman & others, 2016). For
example, the percentage of sexually active young adolescents is higher in
low-income areas of inner cities (Morrison-Beedy & others, 2013). Also, one
study found that adolescents who associated with more deviant peers in early
adolescence were likely to have had more sexual partners by age 16
(Lansford & others, 2010). And a research review found that school
connectedness was linked to positive sexuality outcomes (Markham & others,
2010). Also, a study of middle school students revealed that better academic
achievement was a protective factor in delaying initiation of sexual
intercourse (Laflin, Wang, & Barry, 2008). Further, a recent study found that
adolescent males who play sports engage in a higher level of sexual risk
taking, while adolescent females who play sports engage in a lower level of
sexual risk taking (Lipowski & others, 2016). And a recent study of African
American adolescent girls indicated that those who reported that religion was
of low or moderate importance to them had a much earlier sexual debut that
their counterparts who said that religion was very or extremely important to
them (George Dalmida & others, 2018).
Contraceptive Use
Sexual activity brings considerable risks if appropriate safeguards are not
taken (Carroll, 2019; Chandra-Mouli & others, 2018; King & Regan, 2018).
Youth encounter two kinds of risks: unintended, unwanted pregnancy and
sexually transmitted infections. Both of these risks can be reduced
significantly if condoms are used.
Too many sexually active adolescents still do not use contraceptives, use
them inconsistently, or use contraceptive methods that are less effective than
others (Apter, 2018; Diedrich, Klein, & Peipert, 2017). In 2015, 14 percent of
sexually active adolescents did not use any contraceptive method the last time
they had sexual intercourse (Kann & others, 2016a). Researchers have found
that U.S. adolescents are less likely to use condoms than their European
counterparts (Jorgensen & others, 2015).
Recently, a number of leading medical organizations and experts have
recommended that adolescents use long-acting reversible contraception
(LARC) (Fridy & others, 2018). These include the Society for Adolescent
Health and Medicine (2017), the American Academy of Pediatrics and
American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (Allen & Barlow, 2017),
and the World Health Organization (2018). LARC consists of the use of
intrauterine devices (IUDs) and contraceptive implants, which have much
lower rates of unwanted pregnancy than birth control pills and condoms
(Diedrich, Klein, & Peipert, 2017; Society for Adolescent Health and
Medicine, 2017).
Sexually Transmitted Infections
Some forms of contraception, such as birth control pills or implants, do not
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protect against sexually transmitted infections, or STIs. Sexually
transmitted infections (STIs) are contracted primarily through sexual
contact, including oral-genital and anal-genital contact. Every year more than
3 million American adolescents (about one-fourth of those who are sexually
experienced) acquire an STI (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
2018). In a single act of unprotected sex with an infected partner, a teenage
girl has a 1 percent risk of getting HIV, a 30 percent risk of acquiring genital
herpes, and a 50 percent chance of contracting gonorrhea (Glei, 1999). Other
very widespread STIs are chlamydia and human papillomavirus (HPV). Later
we will discuss these and other sexually transmitted infections.
Adolescent Pregnancy
Adolescent pregnancy is a problematic outcome of sexuality in adolescence
that requires major efforts to reduce its occurrence (Brindis, 2017; Romero &
others, 2017; Tevendale & others, 2017). In cross-cultural comparisons, the
United States continues to have some of the highest rates of
adolescent pregnancy and childbearing in the industrialized
world, despite a considerable decline in the 1990s. The U.S.
adolescent pregnancy rate is eight times as high as that in the Netherlands.
Although U.S. adolescents are no more sexually active than their counterparts
in the Netherlands, their adolescent pregnancy rate is dramatically higher. In
the United States, 82 percent of pregnancies to mothers 15 to 19 years of age
are unintended (Koh, 2014). A cross-cultural comparison found that among
21 countries, the United States had the highest adolescent pregnancy rate
among 15- to 19-year-olds and Switzerland the lowest (Sedgh & others,
2015).
Despite the negative comparisons of the United States with many other
developed countries, there have been some encouraging trends in U.S.
adolescent pregnancy rates. In 2015, the U.S. birth rate for 15- to 19-year-
olds was 22.3 births per 1,000 females, the lowest rate ever recorded, which
represents a dramatic decrease from the 61.8 births per 1,000 females in the
same age range in 1991, and down even 4 percent since 2014 (Martin &
others, 2017) (see Figure 3). There also has been a substantial decrease in
adolescent pregnancies across ethnic groups in recent years. Reasons for the
decline include school/community health classes, increased contraceptive
use, and fear of sexually transmitted infections such as AIDS.
Figure 3 Birth Rates for U.S. 15- to 19-Year-Old Girls from 1980 to 2015
Source: Martin, J. A. et al. “Births: Final data for 2015.” National Vital Statistics
Reports, 66 (1), 2017, 1.
Ethnic variations characterize birth rates for U.S. adolescents. Latina
adolescents are more likely than African American and non-Latina White
adolescents to have a child (Martin & others, 2015). Latina and African
American adolescent girls who have a child are also more likely to have a
second child than are non-Latina White adolescent girls (Rosengard, 2009).
Indeed, a special concern is repeated adolescent pregnancy. In a recent
national study, the percentage of teen births that were repeat births decreased
from 2004 (21 percent) to 2015 (17 percent) (Dee & others, 2017). In a recent
meta-analysis, use of effective contraception, especially LARC, and
education-related factors (higher level of education and school continuation)
resulted in a lower incidence of repeated teen pregnancy, while depression
and a history of abortion were linked to a higher percentage of repeated teen
pregnancy (Maravilla & others, 2017).
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What are some consequences of adolescent pregnancy?
©Geoff Manasse/Getty Images
Outcomes Adolescent pregnancy creates health risks for both the baby and
the mother (Barnes & others, 2017; Khatun & others, 2017; SmithBattie &
others, 2017). Infants born to adolescent mothers are more likely to have low
birth weights—a prominent factor in infant mortality—as well as
neurological problems and childhood illness (Khashan, Baker, & Kenny,
2010). Adolescent mothers are more likely to be depressed and to drop out of
school than their peers (Siegel & Brandon, 2014). Although many adolescent
mothers resume their education later in life, they generally never catch up
economically with women who postpone childbearing until their twenties.
Also, a study of African American urban youth found that at 32
years of age, women who had been teenage mothers were more
likely to be unemployed, live in poverty, depend on welfare, and
not have completed college than were women who had not been teenage
mothers (Assini-Meytin & Green, 2015). In this study, at 32 years of age,
men who had been teenage fathers were more likely to be unemployed than
were men who had not been teenage fathers.
Though the consequences of America’s high adolescent pregnancy rate
are cause for great concern, it often is not pregnancy alone that leads to
negative consequences for an adolescent mother and her offspring.
Adolescent mothers are more likely to come from low-SES backgrounds
(Mollborn, 2017). Many adolescent mothers also were not good students
before they became pregnant (Malamitsi-Puchner & Boutsikou, 2006).
However, not every adolescent female who bears a child lives a life of
poverty and low achievement. Thus, although adolescent pregnancy is a high-
risk circumstance and adolescents who do not become pregnant generally
fare better than those who do, some adolescent mothers do well in school and
have positive outcomes (Schaffer & others, 2012).
Serious, extensive efforts are needed to help pregnant adolescents and
young mothers enhance their educational and occupational opportunities
(Finley & others, 2018; Leftwich & Alves, 2017; SmithBattie & others,
2017). Adolescent mothers also need help in obtaining competent child care
and in planning for the future.
Adolescents can benefit from age-appropriate family life education.
Family and consumer science educators teach life skills, such as effective
decision making, to adolescents. The Careers in Life-Span Development
profile describes the work of one family and consumer science educator.
Careers in life-span development
Lynn Blankinship, Family and Consumer Science
Educator
Lynn Blankinship is a family and consumer science educator. She has
an undergraduate degree in this area from the University of Arizona
and has taught for more than 20 years, the last 14 at Tucson High
Magnet School.
Lynn received the Tucson Federation of Teachers Educator of the
Year Award for 1999–2000 and was honored as the Arizona Teacher
of the Year in 1999.
Lynn especially enjoys teaching life skills to adolescents. One of
her favorite activities is having students care for an automated baby
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that imitates the needs of real babies. She says that this program has a
profound impact on students because the baby must be cared for
around the clock for the duration of the assignment. Lynn also
coordinates real-world work experiences and training for students in
several child-care facilities in the Tucson area.
Family and consumer science educators like Lynn Blankinship
may specialize in early childhood education or instruct middle and
high school students about such matters as nutrition, interpersonal
relationships, human sexuality, parenting, and human development.
Hundreds of colleges and universities throughout the United States
offer two- and four-year degree programs in family and consumer
science. These programs usually require an internship. Additional
education courses may be needed to obtain a teaching certificate.
Some family and consumer science educators go on to graduate
school for further training, which provides a background for possible
jobs in college teaching or research.
Lynn Blankinship (center) teaches life skills to students.
Courtesy of Lynn Blankinship
Reducing Adolescent Pregnancy Girls Inc. offers four
programs that are intended to increase adolescent girls’
motivation to avoid pregnancy until they are mature enough to make
responsible decisions about motherhood (Roth & others, 1998). Growing
Together, a series of five two-hour workshops for adolescent girls and their
mothers, and Will Power/Won’t Power, a series of six two-hour sessions that
focus on assertiveness training, are designed for 12- to 14-year-old girls. For
older adolescent girls, Taking Care of Business provides nine sessions that
emphasize career planning and provide information about sexuality,
reproduction, and contraception. The program Health Bridge coordinates
health and educational services—girls can participate in this program as one
of their Girls Inc. club activities. Girls who participated in these programs
were less likely to get pregnant than girls who did not participate (Girls Inc.,
1991).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you incorporate
sex education
throughout the
curriculum to encourage
adolescents’ healthy,
responsible sexual
development?
What percentage of U.S. adolescents receive formal instruction in sexual
health? In 2011 to 2013, more than 80 percent of 15- to 19-year-olds were
given information about STIs, HIV/AIDS, or how to say no to sex (Lindberg,
Maddow-Zimet, & Boonstra, 2016). However, only 55 percent of males and
60 percent of females in this age range had received information about birth
control. Sexual health information also is more likely to be taught in high
school than in middle school (Alan Guttmacher Institute, 2017).
Currently, a major controversy in sex education is whether schools should
have an abstinence-only program or a program that emphasizes contraceptive
knowledge (MacKenzie, Hedge, & Enslin, 2017). Recent research reviews
have concluded that abstinence-only programs do not delay the initiation of
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sexual intercourse and do not reduce HIV risk behaviors (Denford & others,
2017; Jaramillo & others, 2017; Santelli & others, 2017). Recently there has
been an increased emphasis on abstinence-only-until-marriage (AOUM)
policies and programs in many U.S. schools. However, a major problem with
such policies and programs is that a very large majority of individuals engage
in sexual intercourse at some point in adolescence or emerging adulthood,
while the average age when people marry for the first time continues to go up
(currently 27 for females, 29 for males in the United States). The Society for
Adolescent Health and Medicine (2017) recently released a policy position
that states research evidence indicates that many comprehensive sex
education programs successfully delay initiation of sexual intercourse and
reduce rates of sexually transmitted infections. The Society’s position also
states that research indicates AOUM programs are ineffective in delaying
sexual intercourse and reducing other sexual risk behaviors.
Some sex-education programs are starting to include abstinence-plus
sexuality by promoting abstinence as well as providing instructions for
contraceptive use (Barr & others, 2014). However, despite the evidence that
favors comprehensive sex education, there recently has been an increase in
government funding for abstinence-only programs (Donovan, 2017). Also, in
some states (Texas and Mississippi, for example), many students still either
get abstinence-only instruction or no sex education at all.
Adolescent Health
Adolescence is a critical juncture in the adoption of behaviors that are
relevant to health (Devenish, Hooley, & Mellor, 2017; Yap & others, 2017).
Many of the behaviors that are linked to poor health habits and early death in
adults begin during adolescence (Backman & others, 2018; Hodder & others,
2018). Conversely, the early formation of healthy behavior patterns, such as
regular exercise and a preference for foods low in fat and cholesterol, not
only has immediate health benefits but helps in adulthood to delay or prevent
disability and mortality from heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancer
(Blake, 2017; Donatelle, 2019).
Careers in life-span development
Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, University Professor in
Pediatrics and Director of Community Efforts to
Improve Adolescents’ Health
Dr. Halpern-Felsher recently became a professor in the Department of
Pediatrics at Stanford University after holding this position for a
number of years at the University of California–San Francisco. Her
work exemplifies how some professors not only teach and conduct
research in a single discipline, like psychology, but do work in
multiple disciplines and also work outside their university in the
community to improve the lives of youth. Dr. Halpern-Felsher is a
developmental psychologist with additional training in adolescent
health. She is especially interested in understanding why adolescents
engage in risk-taking behavior and using this research to develop
intervention programs for improving adolescents’ lives.
In particular, she has studied adolescent sexual decision-making
and reproductive health, including cognitive and socioemotional
predictors of sexual behavior. Her research has included influences of
parenting and peer relationships on adolescent sexual behavior. Dr.
Halpern-Felsher has served as a consultant for a number of
community-based adolescent health promotion campaigns, and she
has been involved in community-based efforts to reduce substance
abuse among adolescents. For example, recently she worked with the
state of California to implement new school-based tobacco prevention
and educational materials. As a further indication of her strong
commitment to improving adolescents’ lives, Dr. Halpern-Felsher
coordinates the STEP-UP program (Short-Term Research Experience
for Underrepresented Persons) in which she has personally mentored
and supervised 22 to 25 middle and high school students every year
since 2007.
Dr. Bonnie Halpern-Felsher (2nd from left) with some of the students she is
mentoring in the STEP-UP program
Courtesy of Dr. Bonnie Halpern-Felsher
To read about an individual who has made a number of contributions to a
better understanding of adolescents’ health and ways to improve their health,
see the Careers in Life-Span Development profile.
Nutrition and Exercise
Concerns are growing about adolescents’ nutrition and exercise habits
(Donatelle & Ketcham, 2018; Schiff, 2019; Walton-Fisette & Wuest, 2018).
Nutrition
The eating habits of many adolescents are health-compromising, and an
increasing number of adolescents have an eating disorder (Insel & Roth,
2018; Smith & Collene, 2019; Stice & others, 2017). National data indicate
that the percentage of overweight U.S. 12- to 19-year-olds increased from 11
percent in the early 1990s to 20.5 percent in 2014 (Centers for Disease
Page 269
Control and Prevention, 2016). In another study, 12.4 percent of U.S.
kindergarten children were obese and by 14 years of age, 20.8 percent were
obese (Cunningham, Kramer, & Narayan, 2014).
Being obese in adolescence predicts obesity in emerging adulthood. For
example, a longitudinal study of more than 8,000 adolescents found that
obese adolescents were more likely to develop severe obesity in emerging
adulthood than were overweight or normal-weight adolescents (The & others,
2010). In another longitudinal study, the percentage of overweight
individuals increased from 20 percent at 14 years of age to 33 percent at 24
years of age (Patton & others, 2011).
Exercise
Researchers have found that individuals become less active as they reach and
progress through adolescence (Alberga & others, 2012). A national study
revealed that only 48.6 percent of U.S. adolescents met the federal
government’s exercise recommendations (a minimum of 60 minutes of
moderate to vigorous exercise per day) (Kann & others, 2016a). This national
study also found that adolescent girls were much less likely to engage in 60
minutes or more of vigorous exercise per day in five of the last seven days
(42 percent) than were boys (61 percent) (Kann & others, 2016b). Ethnic
differences in exercise participation rates of U.S. adolescents also occur, and
these rates vary by gender. In the national study just mentioned, non-Latino
White boys exercised the most, African American and Latino girls the least
(Kann & others, 2016a).
What are some characteristics of adolescents’ exercise patterns?
©Tom Stewart/Corbis/Getty Images
Exercise is linked to a number of positive physical outcomes in
adolescence (Janz & Baptista, 2018; Owen & others, 2018; Powers &
Howley, 2018; Walton-Fisette & Wuest, 2018). Regular exercise has a
positive effect on adolescents’ weight status (Kuzik & others, 2017; Medrano
& others, 2018). Other positive health outcomes of exercise in adolescence
are reduced triglyceride levels, lower blood pressure, and a lower incidence
of type II diabetes (Barton & others, 2017; Rowland, 2018). Also in a recent
study, an exercise program of 180 minutes per week improved the sleep
patterns of obese adolescents (Mendelson & others, 2016). Further, a recent
study of adolescents with major depressive disorder (MDD) revealed that
engaging in aerobic exercise for 12 weeks lowered their depressive
symptoms (Jaworska, Broer, & van der Wouden, 2018). And in a recent
large-scale study of Dutch adolescents, physically active adolescents had
fewer emotional and peer problems (Kuiper & others, 2018). Further, in a
recent research review, among a number of cognitive factors, memory was
the factor that most often was improved by exercise in adolescence (Li &
others, 2017).
Adolescents’ exercise levels are increasingly being found to be associated
with parenting, peer relationships, and screen-based activity (Foster & others,
2018; Mason & others, 2017; Michaud & others, 2017). One study revealed
that family meals during adolescence reduced the likelihood of being
overweight or obese in adulthood (Berge & others, 2015). Peers often
influence adolescents’ physical activity (Chung, Ersig, & McCarthy, 2017).
For example, researchers found that female adolescents’ physical activity was
linked to their male and female friends’ physical activity, while male
adolescents’ physical activity was associated with their female friends’
physical activity (Sirard & others, 2013). Higher screen time is also linked to
adolescents engaging in less exercise as well as being overweight or obese
(Pearson & others, 2017). Further, a recent study of U.S. eighth-, tenth-, and
twelfth-graders from 1991 to 2016 found that psychological well-being
(assessed with indicators of self-esteem, life satisfaction, and happiness)
abruptly decreased after 2012 (Twenge, Martin, & Campbell, 2018). In this
study, adolescents who spent more time on electronic communication devices
and screens (social media, the Internet, texting, and gaming) and less time on
nonscreen activities (in-person social interaction, sports/exercise, homework,
and attending religious services) had lower psychological well-being.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you explain the
benefits of physical
fitness in adolescence to
adolescents, parents,
and teachers?
Sleep Patterns
Like nutrition and exercise, sleep is an important influence on well-being.
Might changing sleep patterns in adolescence contribute to adolescents’
Page 270
health-compromising behaviors? Recently there has been a surge of interest
in adolescent sleep patterns (Fatima, Doi, & Al Mamun, 2018;
Hoyt & others, 2018a, b; Meltzer, 2017; Palmer & others, 2018;
Wheaton & others, 2018). A longitudinal study in which
adolescents completed daily diaries during 14-day periods in ninth, tenth, and
twelfth grades found that regardless of how much students studied each day,
when the students sacrificed sleep time to study more than usual, they had
difficulty understanding what was taught in class and were more likely to
struggle with class assignments the next day (Gillen-O’Neel, Huynh, &
Fuligni, 2013). Researchers also have found that adolescents who get less
than 7.7 hours of sleep per night on average have more emotional and peer-
related problems, higher anxiety, and a higher level of suicidal ideation
(Sarchiapone & others, 2014). And a recent national study of more than
10,000 13- to 18-year-olds revealed that later weeknight bedtime, shorter
weeknight sleep duration, greater weekend bedtime delay, and both short and
long periods of weekend oversleep were linked to increased rates of anxiety,
mood, substance abuse, and behavioral disorders (Zhang & others, 2017).
In a national survey of youth, only 27 percent of U.S. adolescents got
eight or more hours of sleep on an average school night, 5 percent less than
just 2 years earlier (Kann & others, 2016a). In this study, the percentage of
adolescents getting this much sleep on an average school night decreased as
they got older. The National Sleep Foundation (2006) conducted a U.S.
survey of 1,602 caregivers and their 11- to 17-year-olds. Forty-five percent of
the adolescents got inadequate sleep on school nights (less than eight hours).
Older adolescents (ninth- to twelfth-graders) got markedly less sleep on
school nights than younger adolescents (sixth- to eighth-graders)—62 percent
of the older adolescents got inadequate sleep compared with 21 percent of the
younger adolescents. Adolescents who got inadequate sleep (less than eight
hours) on school nights were more likely to feel tired, cranky, and irritable; to
fall asleep in school; to be in a depressed mood; and to drink caffeinated
beverages than their counterparts who got optimal sleep (nine or more hours).
Mary Carskadon (2006, 2011a, b; Jenni & Carskadon, 2007) has
conducted a number of research studies on adolescent sleep patterns. She has
found that when given the opportunity, adolescents will sleep an average of 9
hours and 25 minutes a night. Most get considerably less than 9 hours of
sleep, however, especially during the week. This shortfall creates a sleep
deficit, which adolescents often attempt to make up on the weekend. She also
found that older adolescents tend to be sleepier during the day than younger
adolescents are. Carskadon theorized that this sleepiness was not due to
academic work or social pressures. Rather, her research suggests that
adolescents’ biological clocks undergo a shift as they get older, delaying their
period of wakefulness by about one hour. A delay in the nightly release of the
sleep-inducing hormone melatonin, which is produced in the brain’s pineal
gland, seems to underlie this shift. Melatonin is secreted at about 9:30 p.m. in
younger adolescents and approximately an hour later in older adolescents.
In Mary Carskadon’s sleep laboratory at Brown University, an adolescent girl’s brain
activity is being monitored. Carskadon (2006) says that in the morning, sleep-deprived
adolescents’ “brains are telling them it’s night time . . . and the rest of the world is saying
it’s time to go to school” (p. 19).
©Jim LoScalzo
Carskadon concludes that early school starting times may cause
grogginess, inattention in class, and poor performance on tests. Based on her
research, school officials in Edina, Minnesota, decided to start classes at 8:30
a.m. rather than the usual 7:25 a.m. Since the later start time went into effect,
there have been fewer referrals for discipline problems, and the number of
students who report being ill or depressed has decreased. The school system
reports that test scores have improved for high school students but not for
middle school students. This finding supports Carskadon’s suspicion that
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early start times are likely to be more stressful for older than for younger
adolescents.
One study found that just a 30-minute delay in school start time was
linked to improvements in adolescents’ sleep, alertness, mood, and health
(Owens, Belon, & Moss, 2010). In another study, early school start times
were linked to a higher vehicle crash rate in adolescent drivers
(Vorona & others, 2014). The American Academy of
Pediatrics has recommended that schools institute start times
from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. to improve adolescents’ academic performance and
quality of life (Adolescent Sleep Working Group, AAP, 2014).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you use
developmental research
to convince your school
board to change the
starting time of high
school?
Do sleep patterns change in emerging adulthood? Research indicates that
they do (Galambos, Howard, & Maggs, 2011; Kloss & others, 2016). One
study revealed that more than 60 percent of college students were categorized
as poor-quality sleepers (Lund & others, 2010). In this study, the weekday
bedtimes and rise times of first-year college students were approximately 1
hour and 15 minutes later than those of seniors in high school (Lund &
others, 2010). However, the first-year college students had later bedtimes and
rise times than third- and fourth-year college students, indicating that at about
20 to 22 years of age, a reverse shift in the timing of bedtimes and rise times
occurs. In another study, consistently low sleep duration in college students
was associated with less effective attention the next day (Whiting &
Murdock, 2016). Also, in a recent study of college students, a higher level of
text messaging (greater number of daily texts, awareness of nighttime cell
phone notifications, and compulsion to check nighttime notifications) was
linked to a lower level of sleep quality (Murdock, Horissian, & Crichlow-
Ball, 2017).
Leading Causes of Death in Adolescence
The three leading causes of death in adolescence are unintentional injuries,
homicide, and suicide (National Center for Health Statistics, 2018). Almost
half of all deaths occurring from 15 to 24 years of age are due to
unintentional injuries, the majority of them involving motor vehicle
accidents.
Risky driving habits, such as speeding, tailgating, and driving under the
influence of alcohol or other drugs, may be more important contributors to
these accidents than lack of driving experience (White & others, 2018;
Williams & others, 2018). In about 50 percent of motor vehicle fatalities
involving adolescents, the driver has a blood alcohol level of 0.10 percent—
twice the level needed to be designated as “under the influence” in some
states. An increasing concern is the growing number of adolescents who mix
alcohol and energy drinks, a practice that is linked with risky driving (Wilson
& others, 2018). A high rate of intoxication is also found in adolescents who
die as pedestrians or while using recreational vehicles.
Homicide is the second-leading cause of death in adolescence (National
Center for Health Statistics, 2018), especially among African American male
adolescents. The rate of the third-leading cause, adolescent suicide, has
tripled since the 1950s. Suicide accounts for 6 percent of deaths in the 10-to-
14 age group and 12 percent of deaths in the 15-to-19 age group.
Substance Use and Abuse
In the University of Michigan study, the use of drugs among U.S. secondary
school students declined in the 1980s but began to increase in the early
1990s, only to later decline in the early part of the first decade of the twenty-
first century. However, from 2006 through 2017, overall use of illicit drugs
began increasing again, due mainly to an increase in marijuana use by
adolescents. In 2006, 36.5 percent of twelfth-graders reported annual use of
an illicit drug, but in 2017 that figure had increased to 39.9 percent. However,
if marijuana use is subtracted from the annual use figures, there has been a
Page 272
significant decline in drug use by adolescents. When marijuana use is deleted,
in 2006, 19.2 percent of twelfth graders used an illicit drug annually, but that
figure showed a significant decline to 13.3 percent in 2017 (Johnston &
others, 2018). Marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug by adolescents.
The United States continues to have one of the highest rates of adolescent
drug use of any industrialized nation. Because of the increased legalization of
marijuana use for adults in a number of states, youth are likely to have easier
access to the drug and usage rates among adolescents are expected to increase
in the future.
In the twenty-first century, alcohol and cigarette use have
decreased in U.S. adolescents (Johnston & others, 2018).
However, a substantial number of U.S. adolescents are vaping. In
the 2017 national study just described, 19 percent of twelfth-graders, 16
percent of tenth-graders, and 8 percent of eighth-graders vaped nicotine.
A special concern involves adolescents who begin to use drugs early in
adolescence or even in childhood. A longitudinal study of individuals from 8
to 42 years of age found that early onset of drinking was linked to increased
risk of heavy drinking in middle age (Pitkänen, Lyrra, & Pulkkinen, 2005).
Another study revealed that the onset of alcohol use before age 11 was linked
to a higher risk for alcohol dependence in early adulthood (Guttmannova &
others, 2012). Further, a longitudinal study found that earlier age at first use
of alcohol was linked to risk of heavy alcohol use in early adulthood (Liang
& Chikritzhs, 2015). And another study indicated that early- and rapid-onset
trajectories of alcohol, marijuana, and substance use were associated with
substance abuse in early adulthood (Nelson, Van Ryzin, & Dishion, 2015).
Parents play an important role in preventing adolescent drug abuse (Chan
& others, 2017; Cruz & others, 2018; Estrada & others, 2017; Eun & others,
2018; Garcia-Huidobro & others, 2018). Researchers have found that parental
monitoring is linked with a lower incidence of problem behavior by
adolescents, including substance abuse (Wang & others, 2014). In a recent
meta-analysis of parenting factors involved in adolescent alcohol use, higher
levels of parental monitoring, support, and involvement were associated with
a lower risk of adolescent alcohol misuse (Yap & others, 2017). Further, a
research review found that when adolescents ate dinner more often with their
families they were less likely to have problems such as substance abuse (Sen,
2010). And research revealed that authoritative parenting was linked to lower
rates of adolescent alcohol consumption (Piko & Balazs, 2012), while parent-
adolescent conflict was related to higher levels of adolescent alcohol use
(Chaplin & others, 2012).
Along with parents, peers play a very important role in adolescent
substance use (Strong & others, 2017). When adolescents’ peers and friends
use drugs, the adolescents are more likely to also use drugs (Cambron &
others, 2018). A large-scale national study of adolescents indicated that
friends’ use of alcohol was a stronger influence on alcohol use than parental
use (Deutsch, Wood, & Slutske, 2018).
Educational success is also a strong buffer against the emergence of drug
problems in adolescence (Kendler & others, 2018). In one study, early
educational achievement considerably reduced the likelihood that adolescents
would develop drug problems, including alcohol abuse, smoking, and abuse
of various illicit drugs (Bachman & others, 2008).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you explain to
parents the importance
of parental monitoring
in preventing adolescent
substance abuse?
Eating Disorders
Earlier in the chapter under the topic of nutrition and exercise, we described
the increasing numbers of adolescents who are overweight. Let’s now
examine two different eating problems—anorexia nervosa and bulimia
nervosa—that are far more common in adolescent girls than boys.
Page 273
Anorexia Nervosa
Although most U.S. girls have been on a diet at some point, slightly less than
1 percent ever develop anorexia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is an eating
disorder that involves the relentless pursuit of thinness through starvation. It
is a serious disorder that can lead to death (Brockmeyer & others, 2018;
Pinhas & others, 2017). Four main characteristics apply to people suffering
from anorexia nervosa: (1) weight less than 85 percent of what is considered
normal for their age and height; (2) an intense fear of gaining weight that
does not decrease with weight loss; (3) a distorted perception of their body
shape (Haliburn, 2018); and (4) amenorrhea (lack of menstruation) in girls
who have reached puberty. Obsessive thinking about weight and compulsive
exercise also are linked to anorexia nervosa (Smith, Mason, &
Lavender, 2018). Even when they are extremely thin, individuals
with this eating disorder see themselves as too fat (Cornelissen &
others, 2015). They never think they are thin enough, especially in the
abdomen, buttocks, and thighs. They usually weigh themselves frequently,
often take their body measurements, and gaze critically at themselves in
mirrors.
Anorexia nervosa typically begins in the early to middle adolescent years,
often following an episode of dieting and some type of life stress (Fitzpatrick,
2012). It is about 10 times more likely to occur in females than males. When
anorexia nervosa does occur in males, the symptoms and other characteristics
(such as a distorted body image and family conflict) are usually similar to
those reported by females who have the disorder (Ariceli & others, 2005).
Anorexia nervosa has become an increasing problem for adolescent girls and young adult
women. What are some possible causes of anorexia nervosa?
©Ian Thraves/Alamy
Most individuals with anorexia are non-Latina White adolescent or young
adult females from well-educated, middle- and upper-income families and are
competitive and high-achieving (Darcy, 2012). They set high standards,
become stressed about not being able to reach these standards, and are
intensely concerned about how others perceive them (Murray & others, 2017;
Stice & others, 2017). Unable to meet these high expectations, they turn to
something they can control—their weight. Offspring of mothers with
anorexia nervosa are at risk for becoming anorexic themselves (Machado &
others, 2014). Problems in family functioning are increasingly being found to
be linked to the appearance of anorexia nervosa in adolescent girls
(Dimitropoulos & others, 2018), and family therapy is often recommended as
an effective treatment for adolescent girls with anorexia nervosa (Ganci,
Pradel, & Hughes, 2018; Hail & Le Grange, 2018; Hughes & others, 2018).
Biology and culture are involved in anorexia nervosa. Genes play an
important role in anorexia nervosa (Baker, Schaumberg, & Munn-Chernoff,
2017; Meyre & others, 2018; Werenga & others, 2018). Also, the physical
effects of dieting may change neural networks and thus sustain the disordered
pattern (Sciafe & others, 2017). The U.S. perception that thinness is
fashionable likely contributes to the incidence of anorexia nervosa. The
media portray thin as beautiful in their choice of fashion models, whom many
adolescent girls strive to emulate (Cazzato & others, 2016). Social media also
influence the pursuit of thinness. A recent study found that having an increase
in Facebook friends across two years was linked to enhanced motivation to
be thin (Tiggemann & Slater, 2017). And many adolescent girls who strive to
be thin hang out together online or in other contexts.
Bulimia Nervosa
Whereas people with anorexia control their eating by restricting it, most
individuals with bulimia cannot. Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder in
which the individual consistently follows a binge-and-purge pattern,
periodically overeating and then engaging in self-induced vomiting or use of
laxatives. Although many people binge and purge occasionally, a person is
considered to have a serious bulimic disorder if the episodes occur at least
twice a week for three months (Castillo & Weiselberg, 2017).
Most people with bulimia are preoccupied with food, have a strong fear
of becoming overweight, are depressed or anxious, and have a distorted body
image (Murray & others, 2017; Smith, Mason, & Lavender, 2018; Stice &
others, 2017). Bulimics may have difficulty controlling their emotions
(Lavender & others, 2014). Unlike people who have anorexia, people who
binge and purge typically fall within a normal weight range, which makes
bulimia more difficult to detect.
One to 2 percent of U.S. women develop bulimia nervosa, and about 90
percent of people with bulimia are women. Bulimia nervosa typically begins
in late adolescence or early adulthood. Many women who develop bulimia
nervosa were somewhat overweight before the onset of the disorder, and the
binge eating often began during an episode of dieting. About 70 percent of
individuals who develop bulimia nervosa eventually recover from the
disorder (Agras & others, 2004). Like anorexics, bulimics are highly
perfectionistic (Lampard & others, 2012). Drug therapy and psychotherapy
have been effective in treating bulimia nervosa (Agras, Fitzsimmons-Craft, &
Page 274Wilfley, 2017), and cognitive behavior therapy has been
especially helpful (de Abreu & Cangelli Filho, 2017; Forrest
& others, 2018; Peterson & others, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you educate
parents to identify the
signs and symptoms that
may signal an eating
disorder?
Adolescent Cognition
Adolescents’ developing power of thought opens up new cognitive and social
horizons. Let’s examine what their developing power of thought is like,
beginning with the perspective provided by Piaget’s theory (1952).
Piaget’s Theory
Piaget proposed that around 7 years of age children enter the concrete
operational stage of cognitive development. They can reason logically about
concrete events and objects, and they make gains in their ability to classify
objects and to reason about the relationships between classes of objects.
Around age 11, according to Piaget, the fourth and final stage of cognitive
development—the formal operational stage—begins.
The Formal Operational Stage
Formal operational thought is more abstract than concrete operational
thought. Adolescents are no longer limited to actual, concrete experiences as
anchors for thought. They can conjure up make-believe situations, abstract
propositions, and events that are purely hypothetical, and can try to reason
logically about them. The abstract quality of thinking during the formal
operational stage is evident in the adolescent’s verbal problem-solving
ability. The concrete operational thinker needs to see the concrete elements
A, B, and C to be able to make the logical inference that if A = B and B = C,
then A = C, whereas the formal operational thinker can solve this problem
merely through verbal presentation.
Another indication of the abstract quality of adolescents’ thought is their
increased tendency to think about thought itself. One adolescent commented,
“I began thinking about why I was thinking what I was. Then I began
thinking about why I was thinking about what I was thinking about what I
was.” If this sounds abstract, it is, and it characterizes the adolescent’s
enhanced focus on thought and its abstract qualities.
Might adolescents’ ability to reason hypothetically and to evaluate what is ideal versus
what is real lead them to engage in demonstrations, such as this one supporting the value
of public education? What other causes might be attractive to adolescents’ newfound
cognitive abilities of hypothetical-deductive reasoning and idealistic thinking?
©Jim West/Alamy
Page 275
Accompanying the abstract nature of formal operational thought is
thought full of idealism and possibilities, especially at the beginning of the
formal operational stage. Adolescents engage in extended speculation about
ideal characteristics—qualities they desire in themselves and in others. Such
thoughts often lead adolescents to compare themselves with others in regard
to such ideal standards. And their thoughts are often fantasy flights into
future possibilities.
Adolescents also think more logically. Children are likely to solve
problems through trial and error, while adolescents begin to think more as a
scientist does, devising plans to solve problems and systematically testing
solutions. This type of problem solving requires hypothetical-deductive
reasoning, which involves creating a hypothesis and deducing its
implications, which provides ways to test the hypothesis.
Thus, formal operational thinkers develop hypotheses about
ways to solve problems and then systematically deduce the
best path to follow to solve the problem.
Evaluating Piaget’s Theory
Researchers have challenged some of Piaget’s ideas regarding the formal
operational stage (Reyna & Zayas, 2014). Among their findings is that there
is much more individual variation than Piaget envisioned: Only about one in
three young adolescents is a formal operational thinker, and many American
adults never become formal operational thinkers; neither do many adults in
other cultures.
Furthermore, education in the logic of science and mathematics promotes
the development of formal operational thinking. This point recalls a criticism
of Piaget’s theory: Culture and education exert stronger influences on
cognitive development than Piaget argued (Petersen & others, 2017; Wagner,
2018).
Piaget’s theory of cognitive development has been challenged on other
points as well (Kuhn, 2013; Reyna, 2018; Romer, Reyna, & Satterthwaite,
2017). Piaget conceived of stages as unitary structures of thought, with
various aspects of a stage emerging at the same time. However, most
contemporary developmentalists agree that cognitive development is not as
stage-like as Piaget thought (Braithwaite & Siegler, 2018; Wu & Scerif,
2018). Furthermore, children can be trained to reason at a higher cognitive
stage, and some cognitive abilities emerge earlier than Piaget thought
(Johnson & Hannon, 2015). For instance, some understanding of the
conservation of number has been demonstrated as early as age 3, although
Piaget did not think it emerged until age 7. Other cognitive abilities can
emerge later than Piaget thought (Kuhn, 2013).
Despite these challenges to Piaget’s ideas, we owe him a tremendous debt
(Miller, 2011). Piaget was the founder of the present field of cognitive
development, and he developed a long list of masterful concepts of enduring
power and fascination: assimilation, accommodation, object permanence,
egocentrism, conservation, and others. Psychologists also owe him the
current vision of children as active, constructive thinkers. And they are
indebted to him for creating a theory that has generated a huge volume of
research on children’s cognitive development.
Piaget was a genius when it came to observing children. His careful
observations demonstrated inventive ways to discover how children act on,
and adapt to, their world. Children need to make their experiences fit their
schemes yet simultaneously adapt their schemes to reflect their experience.
Piaget revealed how cognitive change is likely to occur if the context is
structured to allow gradual movement to the next higher level. Concepts do
not emerge suddenly, full-blown, but instead develop through a series of
partial accomplishments that lead to increasingly comprehensive
understanding (Sloutsky, 2015).
Many adolescent girls spend long hours in front of the mirror, depleting cans of hairspray,
tubes of lipstick, and jars of cosmetics. How might this behavior be related to changes in
adolescent cognitive and physical development?
©Image Source/Jupiter Images
Adolescent Egocentrism
Adolescent egocentrism is the heightened self-consciousness of adolescents.
David Elkind (1976) maintains that adolescent egocentrism has two key
components—the imaginary audience and personal fable. The imaginary
audience is adolescents’ belief that others are as interested in them as they
themselves are, as well as attention-getting behavior—attempts to be noticed,
visible, and “on stage.” For example, an eighth-grade boy might walk into the
classroom thinking that all eyes are riveted on his spotty complexion.
Adolescents sense that they are “on stage” in early adolescence, believing
they are the main actors and all others are the audience.
The personal fable is the part of adolescent egocentrism involving a
sense of uniqueness and invincibility (or invulnerability). For example, a 13-
year-old says about herself: “No one understands me,
Page 276particularly my parents. They have no idea of what I am
feeling.” Adolescents’ sense of personal uniqueness makes
them believe that no one can understand how they really feel.
As part of their effort to retain a sense of personal uniqueness, they might
craft a story about the self that is filled with fantasy in a world that is far
removed from reality. Personal fables frequently show up in adolescent
diaries.
Adolescents also often show a sense of invincibility or invulnerability.
For example, during a conversation with another girl, 14-year-old Margaret
says, “Are you kidding? I won’t get pregnant.” This sense of invincibility
may lead adolescents to believe that they are invulnerable to dangers and
catastrophes (such as deadly car wrecks) that happen to other people. As a
result, some adolescents engage in risky behaviors such as drag racing, drug
use, and having sexual intercourse without using contraceptives or barriers
against STIs (Alberts, Elkind, & Ginsberg, 2007). However, some research
studies suggest that rather than perceiving themselves to be invulnerable,
adolescents tend to portray themselves as vulnerable to experiencing a
premature death (Fischhoff & others, 2010; Reyna & Rivers, 2008).
Might social media such as Facebook serve as an amplification tool for
adolescent egocentrism? One study found that Facebook usage does indeed
increase self-interest (Chiou, Chen, & Liao, 2014). A recent meta-analysis
concluded that a greater use of social networking sites was linked to a higher
level of narcissism (Gnambs & Appel, 2018).
Information Processing
Deanna Kuhn (2009) discussed some important characteristics of
adolescents’ information processing and thinking. In her view, in the later
years of childhood and continuing in adolescence, individuals approach
cognitive levels that may or may not be achieved, in contrast with the largely
universal cognitive levels that young children attain. By adolescence,
considerable variation in cognitive functioning is present across individuals.
This variability supports the argument that adolescents are producers of their
own development to a greater extent than are children. That is, adolescents
are more likely than children to initiate changes in thinking rather than
depend on others, such as parents and teachers, to direct their thinking.
Page 277
Executive Function
Kuhn (2009) argues that the most important cognitive change in adolescence
is improvement in executive function, an umbrella-like concept that consists
of a number of higher-level cognitive processes linked to the development of
the prefrontal cortex (Bernstein & Waber, 2018; Crone, Peters, & Steinbeis,
2018; Gerst & others, 2017). Executive function involves managing one’s
thoughts to engage in goal-directed behavior and to exercise self-control
(Bardikoff & Sabbagh, 2017; Knapp & Morton, 2017; Meltzer, 2018; Wiebe
& Karbach, 2018). Our further coverage of executive function in adolescence
focuses on cognitive control and decision making.
Cognitive Control Cognitive control involves effective control in a number
of areas, including controlling attention, reducing interfering thoughts, and
being cognitively flexible (Breiner & others, 2018; Stewart & others, 2017).
Cognitive control continues to increase in adolescence and emerging
adulthood (Chevalier, Dauvier, & Blaye, 2018; Romer, Reyna, &
Satterthwaite, 2017). Think about all the times adolescents need to engage in
cognitive control, such as the following situations (Galinsky, 2010):
making a real effort to stick with a task, avoiding interfering thoughts or
environmental events, and instead doing what is most effective;
stopping and thinking before acting to avoid blurting out something that a
minute or two later they will wish they hadn’t said;
continuing to work on something that is important but boring when there
is something a lot more fun to do, inhibiting their behavior and doing the
boring but important task, saying to themselves, “I have to show the self-
discipline to finish this.”
Controlling attention is a key aspect of learning and thinking
in adolescence and emerging adulthood (Lau & Waters, 2017;
Mueller & others, 2017; Wu & Scerif, 2018). Distractions that
can interfere with attention come from the external environment (such as
other students talking while the student is trying to listen to a lecture, or the
student turning on a laptop or phone during a lecture to look at Facebook, for
example) or intrusive distractions from competing thoughts in the
individual’s mind. Self-oriented thoughts, such as worrying, self-doubt, and
intense emotionally laden thoughts may interfere with focusing attention on
thinking tasks (Walsh, 2011).
Decision Making Adolescence is a time of increased decision making—
which friends to choose; which person to date; whether to have sex, buy a
car, go to college, and so on (Helm, McCormick, & Reyna, 2018; Helm &
Reyna, 2018; Meschkow & others, 2018; Reyna, 2018; Reyna & others,
2018; Steinberg & others, 2018). How competent are adolescents at making
decisions? Older adolescents are described as more competent than younger
adolescents, who in turn are more competent than children (Keating, 1990).
Compared with children, young adolescents are more likely to generate
different options, examine a situation from a variety of perspectives,
anticipate the consequences of decisions, and consider the credibility of
sources. In risky situations it is important for an adolescent to quickly get the
gist, or meaning, of what is happening and glean that the situation is a
dangerous context, which can cue personal values that will protect the
adolescent from making a risky decision (Reyna & Zayas, 2014).
How do emotions and social contexts influence adolescents’ decision making?
©JodiJacobson/Getty Images
Most people make better decisions when they are calm than when they
are emotionally aroused (Crone & Konijn, 2018). That may especially be true
for adolescents, who have a tendency to be emotionally intense. The same
adolescent who makes a wise decision when calm may make an unwise
decision when emotionally aroused (Steinberg & others, 2018).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you incorporate
decision-making
exercises into the school
curriculum for
adolescents?
The social context plays a key role in adolescent decision making
(Breiner & others, 2018; Sherman, Steinberg, & Chein, 2018; Silva & others,
2017; Steinberg & others, 2018). Adolescents’ willingness to make risky
decisions is more likely to occur in contexts where substances and other
temptations are readily available (Reyna & Zayas, 2014). And the presence of
peers in risk-taking situations increases the likelihood that adolescents will
make risky decisions (Albert & Steinberg, 2011a, b). In a recent study,
adolescents took greater risks and showed stronger preference for immediate
rewards when they were with three same-aged peers than when they were
alone (Silva, Chein, & Steinberg, 2016).
Adolescents need more opportunities to practice and discuss realistic
decision making. Many real-world decisions on matters such as sex, drugs,
and daredevil driving occur in an atmosphere of stress that includes time
constraints and emotional involvement. One strategy for improving
adolescent decision making is to provide more opportunities for them to
engage in role playing and peer-group problem solving.
Schools
Our discussion of adolescents’ schooling will focus on the transition from
Page 278
elementary to middle or junior high school, the characteristics of effective
schools for adolescents, aspects of high school life that interfere with
learning, and how adolescents can benefit from engaging in service learning.
The Transition to Middle or Junior High School
The first year of middle school or junior high school can be difficult for many
students (Madjar, Cohen, & Shoval, 2018; Wigfield & others, 2015). In one
study of the transition from sixth grade in an elementary school to seventh
grade in a junior high school, adolescents’ perceptions of the quality of their
school life plunged in the seventh grade (Hirsch & Rapkin, 1987). Compared
with their earlier feelings as sixth-graders, the seventh-graders were less
satisfied with school, were less committed to school, and liked their teachers
less. This occurred regardless of how academically successful the students
were. Further, a recent study found that teacher warmth was higher in the last
four years of elementary school and then dropped in the middle school years
(Hughes & Cao, 2018). The drop in teacher warmth was associated with
lower student math scores.
The transition from elementary to middle or junior high school occurs at the same time as
a number of other developmental changes. What are some of these other developmental
changes?
©Will & Deni McIntyre/Corbis/Getty Images
The transition to middle or junior high school takes place at a time when
many changes—in the individual, the family, school—are occurring
simultaneously (Wigfield, Rosenzweig, & Eccles, 2017; Wigfield, Tonks, &
Klauda, 2016). These changes include puberty and concerns about body
image; the emergence of at least some aspects of formal operational thought,
including changes in social cognition; increased responsibility and decreased
dependency on parents; change to a larger, more impersonal school structure;
change from one teacher to many teachers and from a small, homogeneous
set of peers to a larger, more heterogeneous set; and an increased focus on
achievement and performance. Moreover, when students make the transition
to middle or junior high school, they experience the top-dog phenomenon,
moving from being the oldest, biggest, and most powerful students in the
elementary school to being the youngest, smallest, and least powerful
students.
There can also be positive aspects to this transition. Students are more
likely to feel grown up, have more subjects from which to select, feel more
challenged intellectually by academic work, have more opportunities to
spend time with peers and locate compatible friends, and enjoy increased
independence from direct parental monitoring.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you design
school programs to
enhance students’
smooth transition into
middle school?
Effective Schools for Young Adolescents
There are continuing calls for improving middle school education (Rajan &
others, 2017). Educators and psychologists worry that junior high and middle
schools have become watered-down versions of high schools, mimicking
their curricular and extracurricular schedules. Critics argue that these schools
should offer activities that reflect a wide range of individual differences in
Page 279
biological and psychological development among young adolescents.
Expressing these concerns, the Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development
(1989) issued an extremely negative evaluation of U.S. middle schools. It
concluded that most young adolescents attended massive, impersonal
schools; were taught from irrelevant curricula; trusted few adults in school;
and lacked access to health care and counseling. It recommended that the
nation develop smaller “communities” or “houses” to lessen the impersonal
nature of large middle schools, maintain lower student-to-counselor ratios (10
to 1 instead of several hundred to 1), involve parents and community leaders
in schools, develop new curricula, have teachers team teach in more flexibly
designed curriculum blocks that integrate several disciplines, boost students’
health and fitness with more in-school programs, and help students who need
public health care to get it. Almost three decades later, experts were still
finding that middle schools throughout the nation would require a major
redesign to become effective in educating adolescents (Roeser, 2016;
Wigfield & others, 2015).
High School
Just as there are concerns about U.S. middle school education, so are there
concerns about U.S. high school education (Eccles & Roeser, 2015; Kitsantas
& Cleary, 2016). A recent analysis indicated that only 25 percent of U.S. high
school graduates have the academic skills to succeed in college (Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation, 2017). Not only are many high school graduates
poorly prepared for college, they also are poorly prepared for the demands of
the modern, high-performance workplace (Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,
2018).
Critics stress that many high schools have low expectations for success
and inadequate standards for learning. Critics also argue that too often high
schools foster passivity instead of creating a variety of pathways for students
to achieve an identity. Many students graduate from high school with
inadequate reading, writing, and mathematical skills—including many who
go on to college and must enroll in remediation classes to complete their
coursework. Other students drop out of high school and do not have skills
that will allow them to obtain decent jobs, much less to be informed citizens.
The transition to high school can have problems, just as the transition to
middle school can. These problems may include the following (Benner,
Boyle, & Bakhtiari, 2017; Eccles & Roeser, 2015; Wigfield, Rosenzweig, &
Eccles, 2017): high schools are often even larger, more bureaucratic, and
more impersonal than middle schools are; there isn’t much opportunity for
students and teachers to get to know each other, which can lead to distrust;
and teachers too infrequently make content relevant to students’ interests.
Such experiences likely undermine the motivation of students.
Robert Crosnoe’s (2011) book, Fitting In, Standing Out, highlighted
another major problem with U.S. high schools: how the negative social
aspects of adolescents’ lives undermine their academic achievement.
Adolescents become immersed in complex peer group cultures that demand
conformity. High school is supposed to be about getting an education, but in
reality for many youth it is more about navigating the social worlds of peer
relations that may or may not value education and academic achievement.
Adolescents who fail to fit in, especially those who are obese or gay, become
stigmatized. Crosnoe recommends increased school counseling services,
expanded extracurricular activities, and improved parental monitoring to
reduce such problems. One study revealed that immigrant adolescents who
participated in extracurricular activities improved their academic
achievement and increased their school engagement (Camacho & Fuligni,
2015).
Yet another concern about U.S. high schools involves students dropping
out of school (Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 2018). In the last half of the
twentieth century and the first decade of the twenty-first century, U.S. high
school dropout rates declined (National Center for Education Statistics,
2017). In the 1940s, more than half of U.S. 16- to 24-year-olds had dropped
out of school; by 2015, this figure had decreased to 5.9 percent. The dropout
rate of Latino adolescents remains high, although it has been decreasing
considerably in the twenty-first century (from 27.8 percent in 2000 to 9.2
percent in 2016). The lowest dropout rate in 2015 was for Asian American
adolescents (2.1 percent), followed by non-Latino White adolescents (4.6
percent), African American adolescents (6.5 percent), and Latino adolescents
(9.2 percent) (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017). Gender
differences in U.S. school dropout rates have been narrowing, but males were
still slightly more likely to drop out than females in 2015 (6.3 percent versus
5.4 percent) (National Center for Education Statistics, 2017).
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Students at the Ahfachkee School located on the Seminole Tribe’s Big Cypress
Reservation in Florida. An important education goal is to increase the high school
graduation rate of Native American adolescents.
©J.Albert Diaz/Miami Herald/MCT/Getty Images
National data on Native American adolescents are inadequate because
statistics have been collected sporadically and/or from small samples.
However, there are some indications that this group may have the highest
dropout rate. Also, the average U.S. high school dropout rates
mask some very high dropout rates in low-income areas of
inner cities. For example, in Detroit, Cleveland, and Chicago,
dropout rates are higher than 50 percent. Also, the percentages cited earlier
are for 16- to 24-year-olds. When dropout rates are calculated in terms of
students who do not graduate from high school within four years, the
percentages are much higher. Thus, in considering high school dropout rates,
it is important to examine age, the number of years it takes to complete high
school, and various contexts including ethnicity, gender, and location.
Students drop out of school for many reasons (Dupere & others, 2015;
Schoeneberger, 2012). In one study, almost 50 percent of the dropouts cited
school-related reasons for leaving school, such as not liking school or being
expelled or suspended (Rumberger, 1983). Twenty percent of the dropouts
(but 40 percent of the Latino students) cited economic reasons for leaving
school. One-third of the female students dropped out for personal reasons
such as pregnancy or marriage.
According to a research review, the most effective programs to
discourage dropping out of high school provide early reading support,
tutoring, counseling, and mentoring (Lehr & others, 2003). Clearly, then,
early detection of children’s school-related difficulties and getting children
engaged with school in positive ways are important strategies for reducing
the dropout rate (Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 2018; Crosnoe, Bonazzo,
& Wu, 2015).
Service Learning
Service learning is a form of education that promotes social responsibility
and service to the community. Adolescents engage in activities such as
tutoring, helping older adults, working in a hospital, assisting at a child-care
center, or cleaning up a vacant lot to make it into a play area. An important
goal of service learning is to encourage adolescents to become less self-
centered and more strongly motivated to help others (Hart & Van Goethem,
2017). Service learning is often more effective when two conditions are met
(Nucci, 2006): (1) giving students some degree of choice in the service
activities in which they participate, and (2) providing students with
opportunities to reflect about their participation.
What are some of the positive effects of service learning?
©Ariel Skelley/Blend Images/Getty Images
A key feature of service learning is that it benefits not only adolescents
but also the recipients of their help. One eleventh-grade student worked as a
reading tutor for students from low-income backgrounds with reading skills
well below their grade levels. Until she did the tutoring, she had not realized
how many students had not experienced the same opportunities that she had
when she was growing up. An especially rewarding moment was when one
young girl told her, “I want to learn to read like you so I can go to college
when I grow up.”
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you devise a
program to increase
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adolescents’ motivation
to participate in service
learning?
Researchers have found that service learning also benefits adolescent
development in other ways, including higher grades in school, increased goal
setting, higher self-esteem, an improved sense of being able to make a
difference for others, and an increased likelihood that the adolescents will
serve as volunteers in the future (Hart, Goel, & Atkins, 2017; Hart & van
Goethem, 2017; Hart & others, 2017). One study found that adolescent girls
participated in service learning more than did adolescent boys (Webster &
Worrell, 2008).
Summary
The Nature of Adolescence
Many stereotypes of adolescents are too negative. Most adolescents today
successfully negotiate the path from childhood to adulthood. However,
too many of today’s adolescents are not provided with adequate
opportunities and support to become competent adults. It is important to
view adolescents as a heterogeneous group because different portraits of
adolescents emerge, depending on the particular set of adolescents being
described.
Physical Changes
Puberty’s determinants include nutrition, health, and heredity. Hormonal
changes occurring in puberty are substantial. Puberty occurs
approximately two years earlier for girls than for boys. Individual
variation in pubertal changes is substantial. Adolescents show
considerable interest in their body image, with girls having more negative
body images than boys. Early-maturing girls are vulnerable to a number
of risks.
Changes in the brain during adolescence involve the thickening of the
corpus callosum and a gap in maturation between the limbic system,
which is the seat of emotions, and the prefrontal cortex, which functions
in reasoning and self-regulation.
Adolescence is a time of sexual exploration and sexual experimentation.
About one in four sexually experienced adolescents acquires a sexually
transmitted infection (STI). America’s adolescent pregnancy rate has
declined since the 1990s but is still higher than that of other industrialized
nations.
Adolescent Health
Adolescence is a critical juncture in health. Poor nutrition and lack of
exercise are special concerns.
Many adolescents stay up later than when they were children and are
getting less sleep than they need.
Accidents are the leading cause of death in adolescence.
Although drug use in adolescence has declined in recent years, it still is a
major concern.
Eating disorders have increased in adolescence, with a substantial
increase in the percentage of adolescents who are overweight. Two eating
disorders that may emerge in adolescence are anorexia nervosa and
bulimia nervosa.
Adolescent Cognition
In Piaget’s formal operational stage, thought is more abstract, idealistic,
and logical than during the concrete operational stage. However, many
adolescents are not formal operational thinkers.
Adolescent egocentrism, which involves a heightened self-consciousness,
reflects another cognitive change in adolescence in addition to Piaget’s
description of three cognitive stages.
Changes in information processing in adolescence are mainly reflected in
improved executive function, which includes advances in cognitive
control and decision making.
Schools
The transition to middle or junior high school is often stressful. One
source of stress is the move from the top-dog to the lowest position in
school.
Some critics argue that a major redesign of U.S. middle schools is
needed.
The overall U.S. high school dropout rate declined considerably in the
last half of the twentieth century, but the dropout rates for Native
American and Latino adolescents remain very high.
Service learning is linked to a number of positive benefits for adolescents.
Key Terms
adolescent egocentrism
amygdala
anorexia nervosa
bulimia nervosa
corpus callosum
gonads
hormones
hypothalamus
hypothetical-deductive reasoning
imaginary audience
limbic system
menarche
personal fable
pituitary gland
puberty
service learning
sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
top-dog phenomenon
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©Huntstock, Inc./Alamy
10
Socioemotional
Development in
Adolescence
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Identity
What Is Identity?
Erikson’s View
Developmental Changes
Ethnic Identity
Families
Parental Management and Monitoring
Autonomy and Attachment
Parent-Adolescent Conflict
Peers
Friendships
Peer Groups
Dating and Romantic Relationships
Culture and Adolescent Development
Cross-Cultural Comparisons
Socioeconomic Status and Poverty
Ethnicity
Media and Screen Time
Adolescent Problems
Juvenile Delinquency
Depression and Suicide
The Interrelation of Problems and Successful
Prevention/Intervention Programs
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Jewel Cash, Teen Dynamo
The mayor of the city says she is “everywhere.” She persuaded the
city’s school committee to consider ending the practice of locking
tardy students out of their classrooms. She also swayed a
neighborhood group to support her proposal for a winter jobs
program. According to one city councilman, “People are just
impressed with the power of her arguments and the sophistication
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of the argument” (Silva, 2005, pp. B1, B4). She is Jewel E. Cash,
and she did all these things while she was a teenager attending the
prestigious Boston Latin Academy.
Jewel was raised in one of Boston’s housing projects by her
mother, a single parent. During high school she was a member of
the Boston Student Advisory Council, mentored children,
volunteered at a women’s shelter, managed and danced in two
troupes, and participated in a neighborhood watch group—among
other activities. Jewel is far from typical, but her activities
illustrate that cognitive and socioemotional development allows
adolescents—even those from disadvantaged
backgrounds—to be capable, effective individuals.
As an adult, Jewel works with a public consulting
group and has continued helping others as a mentor and
community organizer.
Jewel Cash, seated next to her mother, participates in a crime watch meeting
at a community center.
©Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe/Getty Images
Significant changes characterize socioemotional development
in adolescence. These changes include searching for identity.
Changes also take place in the social contexts of adolescents’ lives,
with transformations occurring in relationships with families and
peers in cultural contexts. Adolescents also may develop
socioemotional problems such as delinquency and depression. ■
Identity
Jewel Cash told an interviewer from the Boston Globe, “I see a problem and I
say, ‘How can I make a difference?’. . . I can’t take on the world, even
though I can try. . . . I’m moving forward but I want to make sure I’m
bringing people with me” (Silva, 2005, pp. B1, B4). Jewel’s confidence and
positive identity sound at least as impressive as her activities. This section
examines how adolescents develop characteristics like these. How well did
you understand yourself during adolescence, and how did you acquire the
stamp of your identity? Is your identity still developing?
What Is Identity?
Questions about identity surface as common, virtually universal, concerns
during adolescence. Some decisions made during adolescence might seem
trivial: whom to date, whether or not to break up, which major to study,
whether to study or play, whether or not to be politically active, and so on.
Over the years of adolescence and emerging adulthood, however, such
decisions begin to form the core of what the individual is all about as a
human being—what is called his or her identity.
When identity has been conceptualized and researched, it typically is
explored in a broad sense. However, identity is a self-portrait that is
composed of many pieces and domains:
The career and work path the person wants to follow (vocational/career
identity)
Whether the person is conservative, liberal, or middle-of-the-road
(political identity)
The person’s spiritual beliefs (religious identity)
Whether the person is single, married, divorced, and so on (relationship
identity)
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The extent to which the person is motivated to achieve and is
intellectually oriented (achievement, intellectual identity)
Whether the person is heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, or
transgendered (sexual identity)
Which part of the world or country a person is from and how intensely
the person identifies with his or her cultural heritage (cultural/ethnic
identity)
The kinds of things a person likes to do, which can include sports, music,
hobbies, and so on (interests)
The individual’s personality characteristics, such as being introverted or
extraverted, anxious or calm, friendly or hostile, and so on (personality)
The individual’s body image (physical identity)
What are some important dimensions of identity?
©JGI/Jamie Grill/Getty Images
Currently, too little research attention has been given to developmental
changes in specific domains of identity (Galliher, McLean, & Syed, 2017;
Negru-Subtirica & Pop, 2018; Vosylis, Erentaite, & Crocetti, 2018).
Synthesizing the identity components can be a long-drawn-
out process, with many negations and affirmations of various
roles and faces (Meeus, 2017; Reece & others, 2017). Identity
development takes place in bits and pieces. Decisions are not made once and
for all, but have to be made again and again. Identity development does not
happen neatly, and it does not happen cataclysmically (Adler & others, 2017;
Hatano, Sugimura, & Schwartz, 2018; van Doeselaar & others, 2018).
Erikson’s View
It was Erik Erikson (1950, 1968) who first understood that questions about
identity are central to understanding adolescent development. Today, as a
result of Erikson’s masterful thinking and analysis, identity is considered a
key aspect of adolescent development.
Recall that in Erikson’s theory, his fifth developmental stage, which
individuals experience during adolescence, is identity versus identity
confusion. During this time, said Erikson, adolescents are faced with deciding
who they are, what they are all about, and where they are going in life.
The search for an identity during adolescence is aided by a psychosocial
moratorium, which is Erikson’s term for the gap between childhood security
and adult autonomy. During this period, society leaves adolescents relatively
free of responsibilities and able to try out different identities. Adolescents in
effect search their culture’s identity files, experimenting with different roles
and personalities. They may want to pursue one career one month (lawyer,
for example) and another career the next month (doctor, actor, teacher, social
worker, or astronaut, for example). They may dress neatly one day, sloppily
the next. This experimentation is a deliberate effort on the part of adolescents
to find out where they fit into the world. Most adolescents eventually discard
undesirable roles.
Developmental Changes
Although questions about identity may be especially important during
adolescence and emerging adulthood, identity formation neither begins nor
ends during these years. It begins with the appearance of attachment, the
development of the sense of self, and the emergence of independence in
infancy; the process reaches its final phase with a life review and integration
in old age. What is important about identity development in late adolescence
and emerging adulthood is that for the first time, physical development,
cognitive development, and socioemotional development advance to the point
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at which the individual can begin to sort through and synthesize childhood
identities and identifications to construct a viable path toward adult maturity.
How do individual adolescents go about the process of forming an
identity? Eriksonian researcher James Marcia (1980, 1994) believes that
Erikson’s theory of identity development encompasses four statuses of
identity, or ways of resolving the identity crisis: identity diffusion, identity
foreclosure, identity moratorium, and identity achievement. What determines
an individual’s identity status? Marcia classifies individuals based on the
existence or extent of their crisis or commitment (see Figure 1). Crisis is
defined as a period of identity development during which the individual is
exploring alternatives. Most researchers use the term exploration rather than
crisis. Commitment is personal investment in identity.
Figure 1 Marcia’s Four Statuses of Identity
According to Marcia, an individual’s status in developing an identity can be described as
identity diffusion, identity foreclosure, identity moratorium, or identity achievement. The
status depends on the presence or absence of (1) a crisis or exploration of alternatives and
(2) a commitment to an identity. What is the identity status of most young adolescents?
The four statuses of identity are described as follows:
Identity diffusion is the status of individuals who have not
yet experienced a crisis or made any commitments. Not only
are they undecided about occupational and ideological
choices, they are also likely to show little interest in such matters.
Identity foreclosure is the status of individuals who have made a
commitment but have not experienced a crisis. This occurs most often
when parents hand down commitments to their adolescents, usually in an
authoritarian way, before adolescents have had a chance to explore
different approaches, ideologies, and vocations on their own.
Identity moratorium is the status of individuals who are in the midst of
a crisis but whose commitments are either absent or are only vaguely
defined.
Identity achievement is the status of individuals who have undergone a
crisis and have made a commitment.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you apply
Marcia’s theory of
identity formation to
describe your current
identity status or that of
adolescents you know?
Some critics argue that the identity status approach does not produce
enough depth in understanding identity development (Landberg, Dimitrova,
& Syed, 2018; Meeus, 2017; Syed, Juang, & Svensson, 2018; Vosylis,
Erentaite, & Crocetti, 2018). The newer dual cycle identity model separates
identity development into two processes: (1) a formation cycle that relies on
exploration in breadth and identification with commitment; and (2) A
maintenance cycle that involves exploration in depth as well as
reconsideration of commitments (Luyckz & others, 2014, 2017).
One way that researchers are now examining identity changes in depth is
to use a narrative approach. This involves asking individuals to tell their life
stories and evaluate the extent to which their stories are meaningful and
integrated (Maher, Winston, & Ur, 2017; McLean & others, 2018; Sauchelli,
2018; Svensson, Berne, & Syed, 2018). The term narrative identity “refers to
the stories people construct and tell about themselves to define who they are
for themselves and others. Beginning in adolescence and young adulthood,
our narrative identities are the stories we live by” (McAdams, Josselson, &
Lieblich, 2006, p. 4).
A recent study used both identity status and narrative approaches to
examine college students’ identity domains. In both approaches, the
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interpersonal domain was most frequently described (McLean & others,
2016). In the interpersonal domain, dating and friendships were frequently
mentioned, although there was no mention of gender roles. In the narrative
domain, family stories were common.
Researchers are developing a consensus that the key changes in identity
are most likely to take place in emerging adulthood, the period from about 18
to 25 years of age (Landberg, Dimitrova, & Syed, 2018; Layland, Hill, &
Nelson, 2018). For example, from the years preceding high school through
the last few years of college, the number of individuals who are identity
achieved increases, whereas the number of individuals who are identity
diffused decreases (Waterman, 1985, 1992). Many young adolescents are
identity diffused. College upperclassmen are more likely than high school
students or college freshmen to be identity achieved.
Why might college produce some key changes in identity? Increased
complexity in the reasoning skills of college students combined with a wide
range of new experiences that highlight contrasts between home and college
and between themselves and others stimulate them to reach a higher level of
integrating various dimensions of their identity. College contexts serve as a
virtual “laboratory” for identity development through such experiences as
diverse coursework and exposure to peers from diverse backgrounds. Also,
one of emerging adulthood’s key themes is not having many social
commitments, which gives individuals considerable independence in
developing a life path (Arnett, 2015).
Resolution of the identity issue during adolescence and
emerging adulthood does not mean that identity will be stable
through the remainder of life (McLean & others, 2018). Many
individuals who develop positive identities follow what are called “MAMA”
cycles; that is, their identity status changes from moratorium to achievement
to moratorium to achievement (Marcia, 1994). These cycles may be repeated
throughout life (Francis, Fraser, & Marcia, 1989). Marcia (2002) points out
that the first identity is just that—it is not, and should not be regarded as, the
final product.
Researchers have explored how parents and peers might influence an
adolescent’s identity development (Quimby & others, 2018; Rivas-Drake &
Umana-Taylor, 2018). Parents are important figures in the adolescent’s
development of identity (Cooper, 2011; Crocetti & others, 2017). In a meta-
analysis, securely attached adolescents were far more likely to be identity
achieved than their counterparts who were identity diffused or identity
foreclosed (Arseth & others, 2009). Recent longitudinal studies also have
documented that the ethnic identity of adolescents is influenced by positive
and diverse friendships (Rivas-Drake & others, 2017; Santos & others, 2017).
For today’s adolescents and emerging adults, the contexts involving the
digital world, especially social media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat,
and Facebook, have introduced new ways for youth to express and explore
their identity (Davis & Weinstein, 2017). Adolescents and emerging adults
often cast themselves as positively as they can on their digital devices—
posting their most attractive photos and describing themselves in idealistic
ways, continually editing and reworking their online self-portraits to enhance
them (Yau & Reich, 2018). Adolescents’ and emerging adults’ online world
provides extensive opportunities for both expressing their identity and getting
feedback about it. Of course, such feedback is not always positive, just as in
their offline world.
Ethnic Identity
Throughout the world, ethnic minority groups have struggled to maintain
their ethnic identities while blending in with the dominant culture (Erikson,
1968). Ethnic identity is an enduring aspect of the self that includes a sense
of membership in an ethnic group, along with the attitudes and feelings
related to that membership (Adams & others, 2018; Polenova & others, 2018;
White & others, 2018; Yoon & others, 2017). Most adolescents from ethnic
minorities develop a bicultural identity. That is, they identify in some ways
with their ethnic group and in other ways with the majority culture (Abu-
Rayya & others, 2018; Douglass & Umana-Taylor, 2017; Meeus, 2017).
For ethnic minority individuals, adolescence and emerging adulthood are
often special junctures in their development (Butler-Barnes & others, 2018;
Cheon & others, 2018; Espinosa & others, 2017). Although children are
aware of some ethnic and cultural differences, individuals consciously
confront their ethnicity for the first time in adolescence or emerging
adulthood. Unlike children, adolescents and emerging adults have the ability
to interpret ethnic and cultural information, to reflect on the past, and to
speculate about the future. With their advancing cognitive skills of abstract
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thinking and self-reflection, adolescents (especially older adolescents)
increasingly consider the meaning of their ethnicity and also have more
ethnic-related experiences.
One adolescent girl, 16-year-old Michelle Chinn, made these comments about ethnic
identity development: “My parents do not understand that teenagers need to find out who
they are, which means a lot of experimenting, a lot of mood swings, a lot of emotions and
awkwardness. Like any teenager, I am facing an identity crisis. I am still trying to figure
out whether I am a Chinese American or an American with Asian eyes.”
©Red Chopsticks/Getty Images
Recent research indicates that adolescents’ pride in their ethnic identity
group has positive outcomes (Anglin & others, 2018; Douglass & Umana-
Taylor, 2017; Umana-Taylor & Douglass, 2017; Umana-Taylor & others,
2018). For example, in a recent study, strong ethnic group affiliation and
connection served a protective function in reducing risk for psychiatric
problems (Anglin & others, 2018). In another study, Asian
American adolescents’ ethnic identity was associated with
high self-esteem, positive relationships, academic motivation,
and lower levels of depression over time (Kiang, Witkow, & Champagne,
2013). And in a recent study of Mexican-origin adolescents, a positive ethnic
identity, social support, and anger suppression helped them cope more
effectively with racial discrimination, whereas anger expression reduced their
ability to cope with the discrimination (Park & others, 2018).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you design a
community program
that assists ethnic
minority adolescents to
develop a healthy
bicultural identity?
The indicators of identity change often differ for each succeeding
generation (Phinney & Vedder, 2013). First-generation immigrants are likely
to be secure in their identities and unlikely to change much; they may or may
not develop a new identity. The degree to which they begin to feel
“American” appears to be related to whether or not they learn English,
develop social networks beyond their ethnic group, and become culturally
competent in their new country. Second-generation immigrants are more
likely to think of themselves as “American,” possibly because citizenship is
granted at birth. Their ethnic identity is likely to be linked to retention of their
ethnic language and social networks. In the third and later generations, the
issues become more complex. Historical, contextual, and political factors that
are unrelated to acculturation may affect the extent to which members of this
generation retain their ethnic identities. For non-European ethnic groups,
racism and discrimination influence whether ethnic identity is retained.
Families
Adolescence typically alters the relationship between parents and their
children. Among the most important aspects of family relationships in
adolescence are those that involve parental management and monitoring,
autonomy and attachment, and parent-adolescent conflict.
Parental Management and Monitoring
A key aspect of the managerial role of parenting is effective monitoring,
which is especially important as children move into the adolescent years
(Bendezu & others, 2018; Lindsay & others, 2018; Rusby & others, 2018).
Monitoring includes supervising adolescents’ choice of social settings,
activities, and friends, as well as their academic efforts. In a recent study of
fifth- to eighth-graders, a higher level of parental monitoring was associated
with students having higher grades (Top, Liew, & Luo, 2017). A research
meta-analysis also found that a higher level of parental monitoring and rule
enforcement were linked to later initiation of sexual intercourse and increased
use condoms by adolescents (Dittus & others, 2015). Also, a recent study
revealed that better parental monitoring was linked to lower rates of
marijuana use by adolescents (Haas & others, 2018), and in another recent
study, lower parental monitoring was associated with earlier initiation of
alcohol use, binge drinking, and marijuana use in 13- to 14-year-olds (Rusby
& others, 2018). Further, a recent study revealed that two types of parental
media monitoring (active monitoring and connective co-use (engaging in
media with the intent to connect with adolescents) were linked to lower
media use by adolescents (Padilla-Walker & others, 2018).
A current interest involving parental monitoring focuses on adolescents’
management of their parents’ access to information, especially strategies for
disclosing or concealing information about their activities (Rote & Smetana,
2016). When parents engage in positive parenting practices, adolescents are
more likely to disclose information. For example, disclosure increases when
parents ask adolescents questions and when adolescents’ relationship with
parents is characterized by a high level of trust, acceptance, and quality
(McElvaney, Greene, & Hogan, 2014). Researchers have found that
adolescents’ disclosure to parents about their whereabouts, activities, and
Page 288
friends is linked to positive adolescent adjustment (Cottrell & others, 2017).
A study of 10- to 18-year-olds found that lower adolescent disclosure to
parents was linked to antisocial behavior (Criss & others, 2015).
Three ways that parents can engage in parental monitoring are
(1) solicitation (asking questions); (2) control (enforcing
disclosure rules); and (3) when youth don’t comply, snooping. In
one study, snooping was perceived by both adolescents and parents as the
most likely of these three strategies to violate youths’ privacy rights (Hawk,
Becht, & Branje, 2016). Also, in this study, snooping was a relatively
infrequent parental monitoring tactic but was a better indicator of problems in
adolescent and family functioning than were solicitation and control.
What kinds of strategies can parents use to guide adolescents in effectively handling their
increased motivation for autonomy?
©Hero Images/Getty Images
Autonomy and Attachment
With most adolescents, parents are likely to find themselves engaged in a
delicate balancing act, weighing competing needs for autonomy and control,
for independence and connection.
The Push for Autonomy
The typical adolescent’s push for autonomy and responsibility puzzles and
angers many parents. As parents see their teenager slipping from their grasp,
they may have an urge to take stronger control. Heated emotional exchanges
may ensue, with either side calling names, making threats, and doing
whatever seems necessary to gain control. Parents may feel frustrated
because they expect their teenager to heed their advice, to want to spend time
with the family, and to grow up to do what is right. Most parents anticipate
that their teenager will have some difficulty adjusting to the changes that
adolescence brings, but few parents imagine and predict just how strong an
adolescent’s desires will be to spend time with peers or how intensely
adolescents will want to show that it is they—not their parents—who are
responsible for their successes and failures.
Adolescents’ ability to attain autonomy and gain control over their
behavior is facilitated by appropriate adult reactions to their desire for control
(McElhaney & Allen, 2012). At the onset of adolescence, the average
individual does not have the knowledge to make appropriate or mature
decisions in all areas of life. As the adolescent pushes for autonomy, the wise
adult relinquishes control in those areas where the adolescent can make
reasonable decisions, but continues to guide the adolescent to make
reasonable decisions in areas in which the adolescent’s knowledge is more
limited. Gradually, adolescents acquire the ability to make mature decisions
on their own. A recent study also found that from 16 to 20 years of age,
adolescents perceived that they had increasing independence and improved
relationships with their parents (Hadiwijaya & others, 2017).
Gender differences characterize autonomy-granting in adolescence. Boys
are given more independence than girls. In one study, this was especially true
in U.S. families with a traditional gender-role orientation (Bumpus, Crouter,
& McHale, 2001). Also, Latino parents protect and monitor their daughters
more closely than is the case for non-Latino parents (Romo, Mireles-Rios, &
Lopez-Tello, 2014). Although Latino cultures may place a stronger emphasis
on parental authority and restrict adolescent autonomy, one study revealed
that regardless of where they were born, Mexican-origin adolescent girls
living in the United States expected autonomy at an earlier age than their
mothers preferred (Bamaca-Colbert & others, 2012).
The Role of Attachment
Recall that one of the most widely discussed aspects of socioemotional
Page 289
development in infancy is secure attachment to caregivers (Hoffman &
others, 2017; Meins, Bureau, & Ferryhough, 2018). In the past decade,
researchers have explored whether secure attachment also might be an
important concept in adolescents’ relationships with their parents (Arriaga &
others, 2018; Delker, Bernstein, & Laurent, 2018; Hocking & others, 2018;
Kerstis, Aslund, & Sonnby, 2018; Lockhart & others, 2017; Straus, 2018).
Researchers have found that securely attached adolescents are less likely than
those who are insecurely attached to have emotional difficulties and to
engage in problem behaviors such as juvenile delinquency and
drug abuse (Allen & Tan, 2016). A study involving adolescents
and emerging adults from 15 to 20 years of age found that
insecure attachment to mothers was linked to becoming depressed and
remaining depressed (Agerup & others, 2015). In a longitudinal study, Joseph
Allen and colleagues (2009) found that secure attachment at 14 years of age
was linked to a number of positive outcomes at 21 years of age, including
relationship competence, financial/career competence, and fewer problematic
behaviors. Further, in a recent study of Latino families, a higher level of
secure attachment with mothers was associated with less heavy drug use by
adolescents (Gattamorta & others, 2017). And in a research review, the most
consistent outcomes of secure attachment in adolescence involved positive
peer relations and development of the adolescent’s capacity to regulate
emotions (Allen & Miga, 2010).
Parent-Adolescent Conflict
Although parent-adolescent conflict increases in early adolescence, it does
not reach the tumultuous proportions G. Stanley Hall envisioned at the
beginning of the twentieth century (Bornstein, Jager, & Steinberg, 2013).
Rather, much of the conflict involves the everyday events of family life, such
as keeping a bedroom clean, dressing neatly, getting home by a certain time,
and not talking endlessly on the phone. The conflicts rarely involve major
dilemmas such as drugs or delinquency.
According to one adolescent girl, Stacey Christensen, age 16: “I am lucky enough to have
open communication with my parents. Whenever I am in need or just need to talk, my
parents are there for me. My advice to parents is to let your teens grow at their own pace,
be open with them so that you can be there for them. We need guidance; our parents need
to help but not be too overwhelming.”
©Stockbyte/Getty Images
We indicated above that conflict with parents escalates in early
adolescence. Does the conflict decrease later in adolescence? A research
review concluded that parent-adolescent conflict decreases from early
adolescence through late adolescence (Laursen, Coy, & Collins, 1998). And
in a recent study of Chinese American families, parent-adolescent conflict
increased in early adolescence, peaked at about 16 years of age, and then
decreased through late adolescence and emerging adulthood (Juang & others,
2018). Parent-adolescent relationships also become more positive if
adolescents go away to college than if they attend college while living at
home (Sullivan & Sullivan, 1980).
The everyday conflicts that characterize parent-adolescent relationships
may actually serve a positive developmental function. These minor disputes
and negotiations facilitate the adolescent’s transition from being dependent
on parents to becoming an autonomous individual. Recognizing that conflict
and negotiation can serve a positive developmental function can tone down
parental hostility.
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you counsel
a mother who is
experiencing stress
because of increased
conflict with her young
adolescent daughter?
The old model of parent-adolescent relationships suggested that as
adolescents mature they detach themselves from parents and move into a
world of autonomy apart from parents. The old model also suggested that
parent-adolescent conflict is intense and stressful throughout adolescence.
The new model emphasizes that parents serve as important attachment figures
and support systems while adolescents explore a wider, more complex social
world. The new model also emphasizes that in most families, parent-
adolescent conflict is moderate rather than severe and that the everyday
negotiations and minor disputes not only are normal but also can serve the
positive developmental function of helping the adolescent make the transition
from childhood dependency to adult independence (see Figure 2).
Page 290
Figure 2 Old and New Models of Parent-Adolescent Relationships
©Martin Barraud/Caia Image/Glow Images
Still, a high degree of conflict characterizes some parent-adolescent
relationships (Smokowski & others, 2017). And this prolonged, intense
conflict is associated with various adolescent problems: movement out of the
home, juvenile delinquency, school dropout, pregnancy and
early marriage, membership in religious cults, and drug abuse
(Brook & others, 1990). For example, a recent study found that a higher level
of parent-adolescent conflict was associated with higher adolescent anxiety,
depression, and aggression, and lower self-esteem (Smokowski & others,
2016). Another study found that high parent-adolescent conflict was
associated with a lower level of empathy in adolescents throughout the six
years of the study from 13 to 18 years of age (Van Lissa & others, 2015).
Further, in another recent study of Latino families, parent-adolescent conflict
was linked to adolescents’ higher level of aggressive behavior (Smokowski &
others, 2017).
When families emigrate to another country, adolescents typically
acculturate more quickly to the norms and values of their new country than
do their parents (Fuligni, 2012). This likely occurs because of immigrant
adolescents’ exposure in school to the language and culture of the host
country. The norms and values immigrant adolescents experience are
especially likely to diverge from those of their parents in areas such as
autonomy and romantic relationships. Such divergences are likely to increase
parent-adolescent conflict in immigrant families. In a recent study of Chinese
American families, parent-adolescent conflict was linked to a sense of
alienation between parents and adolescents, which in turn was related to more
depressive symptoms, delinquent behavior, and lower academic achievement
(Hou, Kim, & Wang, 2016).
Peers
Peers play powerful roles in the lives of adolescents (Bukowski, Laursen, &
Rubin, 2018; Gordon Simons & others, 2018; Vitaro, Boivin, & Poulin,
2018). When you think back to your own adolescent years, you probably
recall many of your most enjoyable moments as experiences shared with
peers. Peer relations undergo important changes in adolescence, including
changes in friendships, peer groups, and the beginning of romantic
relationships (Furman, 2018; Martin, Fabes, & Hanish, 2018; Nishina &
Bellmore, 2018).
Friendships
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For most children, being popular with their peers is a strong motivator.
Beginning in early adolescence, however, teenagers typically prefer to have a
smaller number of friendships that are more intense and intimate than those
of young children.
Harry Stack Sullivan (1953) was the most influential theorist to discuss
the importance of adolescent friendships. In contrast with other
psychoanalytic theorists who focused almost exclusively on parent-child
relationships, Sullivan argued that friends are also important in shaping the
development of children and adolescents. Everyone, said Sullivan, has basic
social needs, such as the need for tenderness (secure attachment), playful
companionship, social acceptance, intimacy, and sexual relations. Whether or
not these needs are fulfilled largely determines our emotional well-being. For
example, if the need for playful companionship goes unmet, then we become
bored and depressed; if the need for social acceptance is not met, we suffer a
diminished sense of self-worth.
During adolescence, said Sullivan, friends become increasingly important
in meeting social needs. In particular, Sullivan argued that the need for
intimacy intensifies during early adolescence, motivating teenagers to seek
out close friends. If adolescents fail to forge such close friendships, they
experience loneliness and a reduced sense of self-worth. The
nature of relationships with friends during adolescence can
foreshadow the quality of romantic relationships in emerging
adulthood. For example, a longitudinal study revealed that having more
secure relationships with close friends at age 16 was linked with more
positive romantic relationships at age 20 to 23 (Simpson & others, 2007).
Many of Sullivan’s ideas have withstood the test of time. For example,
adolescents report disclosing intimate and personal information to their
friends more often than do younger children (Buhrmester, 1998) (see Figure
3). Adolescents also say they depend more on friends than on parents to
satisfy their needs for companionship, reassurance of worth, and intimacy.
The ups and downs of experiences with friends shape adolescents’ well-being
(Bagwell & Bukowski, 2018; Nesi & others, 2017). Adolescent girls are
more likely to disclose information about problems to a friend than are
adolescent boys (Rose & Smith, 2018).
What changes take place in friendship during the adolescent years?
©SW Productions/Getty Images
Figure 3 Developmental Changes in Self-Disclosing Conversations
Self-disclosing conversations with friends increased dramatically in adolescence while
declining in an equally dramatic fashion with parents. However, self-disclosing
conversations with parents began to pick up somewhat during the college years. The
measure of self-disclosure involved a 5-point rating scale completed by the children and
youth, with a higher score representing greater self-disclosure. The data shown represent
the means for each age group.
Although having friends can be a developmental advantage, not all
friendships are alike and the quality of friendship matters (Bagwell &
Bukowski, 2018). People differ in the company they keep—that is, who their
friends are. It is a developmental disadvantage to have coercive, conflict-
ridden, and poor-quality friendships (Raudsepp & Riso, 2017; Rubin &
Barstead, 2018; Rubin & others, 2018). One study revealed that having
friends who engage in delinquent behavior is associated with early onset and
more persistent delinquency (Evans, Simons, & Simons, 2016). Another
study found that adolescents adapted their smoking and drinking behavior to
that of their best friends (Wang & others, 2016). Further, a recent study of
adolescent girls revealed that friends’ dieting predicted whether adolescent
girls would engage in dieting or extreme dieting (Balantekin, Birch, &
Savage, 2018).
Although most adolescents develop friendships with individuals who are
close to their own age, some adolescents become best friends with younger or
older individuals. Adolescents who interact with older youth engage in
deviant behavior more frequently, but it is not known whether the older youth
guide younger adolescents toward deviant behavior or whether the younger
adolescents were already prone to deviant behavior before they developed
friendships with older youth.
Peer Groups
How extensive is peer pressure in adolescence? What roles do cliques and
crowds play in adolescents’ lives? As we see next, researchers have found
that the standards of peer groups and the influence of crowds and cliques
become increasingly important during adolescence.
Peer Pressure
Page 292
Young adolescents conform more to peer standards than children do
(Choukas-Bradley & Prinstein, 2016; Nesi & others, 2017). Around the
eighth and ninth grades, conformity to peers—especially to their antisocial
standards—peaks (Brown & Larson, 2009). At this point, adolescents are
most likely to go along with a peer to steal hubcaps off a car, paint graffiti on
a wall, or steal cosmetics from a store counter. One study found that U.S.
adolescents are more likely than Japanese adolescents to put pressure on their
peers to resist parental influence (Rothbaum & others, 2000).
Adolescents are more likely to conform to their peers when they
are uncertain about their social identity and when they are in the
presence of someone they perceive to have higher status than they do
(Prinstein & Giletta, 2016). Also, a recent study found that boys were more
likely to be influenced by peer pressure involving sexual behavior than were
girls (Widman & others, 2016).
What characterizes peer pressure in adolescence?
©Christin Rose/Getty Images
Cliques and Crowds
Cliques and crowds assume more important roles during adolescence than
during childhood (Brown, 2011; Ellis & Zarbatany, 2018). Cliques are small
groups that range from 2 to about 12 individuals and average about 5 or 6
individuals. The clique members are usually of the same sex and about the
same age.
Cliques can form because adolescents engage in similar activities, such as
being in a club or on a sports team. Some cliques also form because of
friendship. Several adolescents may form a clique because they have spent
time with each other, share mutual interests, and enjoy each other’s company.
Not necessarily friends to start with, they often develop a friendship if they
stay in the clique. What do adolescents do in cliques? They share ideas and
hang out together. Often they develop an in-group identity in which they
believe that their clique is better than other cliques.
Crowds are larger than cliques and less personal. Adolescents are usually
members of a crowd based on reputation, and they may or may not spend
much time together. Many crowds are defined by the activities adolescents
engage in (such as “jocks” who are good at sports or “druggies” who take
drugs).
Dating and Romantic Relationships
Adolescents spend considerable time either dating or thinking about dating
(Furman, 2018; Lantagne & Furman, 2017). Dating can be a form of
recreation, a source of status, a setting for learning about close relationships,
and a way to find a mate.
Developmental Changes in Dating and Romantic
Relationships
Three stages characterize the development of romantic relationships in
adolescence (Connolly & McIsaac, 2009):
1. Entering into romantic attractions and affiliations at about age 11 to 13.
This initial stage is triggered by puberty. From age 11 to 13, adolescents
become intensely interested in romance and it dominates many
conversations with same-sex friends. Developing a crush on someone is
common, and the crush often is shared with a same-sex friend. Young
adolescents may or may not interact with the individual who is the object
of their infatuation. When dating occurs, it usually takes place in a group
Page 293
setting.
2. Exploring romantic relationships at approximately age 14 to 16. At this
point in adolescence, two types of romantic involvement occur: (a)
Casual dating emerges between individuals who are mutually attracted.
These dating experiences are often short-lived, last a few months at best,
and usually endure no longer than a few weeks. (b) Dating in groups is
common and reflects the importance of peers in adolescents’ lives. A
friend often acts as a third-party facilitator of a potential dating
relationship by communicating their friend’s romantic interest and
determining whether the other person feels a similar attraction.
3. Consolidating dyadic romantic bonds at about age 17 to 19. At the end
of the high school years, more serious romantic relationships develop.
This stage is characterized by the formation of strong emotional bonds
more closely resembling those in adult romantic relationships. These
bonds often are more stable and enduring than earlier bonds, typically
lasting one year or more.
Two variations on these stages in the development of
romantic relationships in adolescence involve early and late
bloomers (Connolly & McIsaac, 2009). Early bloomers
include 15 to 20 percent of 11- to 13-year-olds who say that they currently
are in a romantic relationship and 35 percent who indicate that they have had
some prior experience in romantic relationships. Late bloomers comprise
approximately 10 percent of 17- to 19-year-olds who say that they have had
no experience with romantic relationships and another 15 percent who report
that they have not engaged in any romantic relationships that lasted more
than four months. One study found that early bloomers externalized problem
behaviors through adolescence more than their on-time and late-bloomer
counterparts (Connolly & others, 2013).
How do romantic relationships further change through adolescence?
Short-term romantic relationships were increasingly supportive in late
adolescence (Lantagne & Furman, 2017). Long-term adolescent relationships
were both supportive and turbulent, characterized by elevated levels of
support, negative interactions, higher control, and more jealousy.
What are some developmental changes in dating and romantic relationships in
adolescence?
©Digital Vision/Getty Images
Dating in Gay and Lesbian Youth
Recently, researchers have begun to study romantic relationships among gay
and lesbian youth (Diamond & Alley, 2018; Savin-Williams, 2017). Many
sexual minority youth date other-sex peers, which can help them to clarify
their sexual orientation or disguise it from others (Savin-Williams, 2018).
Most gay and lesbian youth have had some same-sex sexual experience, often
with peers who are “experimenting,” and then go on to a primarily
heterosexual orientation (Savin-Williams, 2017, 2018).
Sociocultural Contexts and Dating
The sociocultural context exerts a powerful influence on adolescents’ dating
patterns (Furman, 2018; Moosmann & Roosa, 2015). This influence may be
seen in differences in dating patterns among ethnic groups within the United
States. Values, religious beliefs, and traditions often dictate the age at which
dating begins, how much freedom in dating is allowed, whether dates must be
chaperoned by adults or parents, and the roles of males and females in dating.
Page 294
For example, Latino and Asian American cultures have more conservative
standards regarding adolescent dating than does the Anglo-American culture.
Dating may become a source of conflict within a family if the parents grew
up in cultures where dating began at a late age, little freedom in dating was
allowed, dates were chaperoned, and dating was especially restricted for
adolescent girls. A recent study found that mother-daughter conflict in
Mexican American families was linked to an increase in daughters’ romantic
involvement (Tyrell & others, 2016). When immigrant adolescents choose to
adopt the ways of the dominant U.S. culture (such as unchaperoned dating),
they often clash with parents and extended-family members who have more
traditional values.
Dating and Adjustment
Researchers have linked dating and romantic relationships with various
measures of how well adjusted adolescents are (Davila, Capaldi, & La Greca,
2016; Furman, 2018; Yoon & others, 2017). For example, one study of 200
tenth-graders revealed that the more romantic experiences they had had, the
more likely they were to report high levels of social acceptance, friendship
competence, and romantic competence; however, having more romantic
experience also was linked to a higher level of substance use, delinquency,
and sexual behavior (Furman, Low, & Ho, 2009).
Dating and romantic relationships at an early age can be
especially problematic (Furman, 2018). One study found that
romantic activity was linked to depression in early adolescent
girls (Starr & others, 2012). Researchers also have found that early dating
and “going with” someone are linked with adolescent pregnancy and
problems at home and school (Florsheim, Moore, & Edgington, 2003).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you explain to
policy makers and
insurance providers the
importance of cultural
context when creating
guidelines for
adolescent health
coverage?
However, in some cases, romantic relationships in adolescence are
associated with positive developmental changes. For example, in a recent
study, having a supportive romantic relationship in adolescence was linked to
positive outcomes for adolescents who had a negative relationship with their
mother (Szwedo, Hessel, & Allen, 2017). In another study, adolescents who
engaged in a higher level of intimate disclosure at age 10 reported a higher
level of companionship in romantic relationships at 12 and 15 years of age
(Kochendorfer & Kerns, 2017). In this study, those who reported more
conflict in friendships had a lower level of companionship in romantic
relationships at 15 years of age.
Culture and Adolescent Development
We live in an increasingly diverse world, one that includes more extensive
contact between adolescents from different cultures and ethnic groups. In this
section, we explore these differences as they relate to adolescents. We
explore how adolescents in various cultures spend their time, and some of the
rites of passage they undergo. Further, we discuss the many challenges faced
by adolescents who grow up in families that are struggling financially. We
also examine how ethnicity and the media affect U.S. adolescents and
influence their development.
Cross-Cultural Comparisons
What traditions remain for adolescents around the globe? What
circumstances are changing adolescents’ lives?
Traditions and Changes in Adolescence Around the Globe
Depending on the culture being observed, adolescence may involve many
different experiences (Chen, Lee, & Chen, 2018; Matsumoto & Juang, 2017).
Health Adolescent health and well-being have improved in some respects
but not in others. Overall, fewer adolescents around the world die from
infectious diseases and malnutrition now than in the past (UNICEF, 2018).
However, a number of adolescent health-compromising behaviors (especially
illicit drug use and unprotected sex) are increasing in frequency. Extensive
increases in the rates of HIV in adolescents have occurred in many sub-
Saharan countries (UNICEF, 2018).
Gender Around the world, the experiences of male and female adolescents
continue to be quite different. Except in a few regions such as Japan, the
Philippines, and Western countries, males have far greater access to
educational opportunities than females do (UNICEF, 2018). In many
countries, adolescent females have less freedom than males to pursue a
variety of careers and engage in various leisure activities. Gender differences
in sexual expression are widespread, especially in India, Southeast Asia,
Latin America, and Arab countries where there are far more restrictions on
the sexual activity of adolescent females than on that of males. These gender
differences do appear to be narrowing over time, however. In some countries,
educational and career opportunities for women are expanding, and control
over adolescent girls’ romantic and sexual relationships is weakening.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you explain the
risks of dating and
romantic relationships
during early
adolescence?
Page 295Family In some countries, adolescents grow up in closely knit
families with extensive extended-kin networks that retain a
traditional way of life. For example, in Arab countries,
“adolescents are taught strict codes of conduct and loyalty” (Brown &
Larson, 2002, p. 6). However, in Western countries such as the United States,
parenting is less authoritarian than in the past, and much larger numbers of
adolescents are growing up in divorced families and stepfamilies.
In many countries around the world, current trends “include greater
family mobility, migration to urban areas, family members working in distant
cities or countries, smaller families, fewer extended-family households, and
increases in mothers’ employment” (Brown & Larson, 2002, p. 7).
Unfortunately, many of these changes may reduce the ability of families to
spend time with their adolescents.
Asian Indian adolescents in a marriage ceremony.
©Prakash Hatvalne/AP Images
Peers Some cultures give peers a stronger role in adolescence than other
cultures do (Brown & Larson, 2002). In most Western nations, peers figure
prominently in adolescents’ lives, in some cases taking on roles that would
otherwise be assumed by parents. Among street youth in South America, the
peer network serves as a surrogate family that supports survival in dangerous
and stressful settings. In other regions of the world, such as in Arab countries,
peer relations are restricted, especially for girls (Booth, 2002).
Adolescents’ lives, then, are shaped by a combination of change and
tradition. Researchers have found both similarities and differences in the
experiences of adolescents in different countries (Larson & Dawes, 2015).
Muslim school in Middle East with boys only.
©Yvan Cohen/LightRocket/Getty Images
Rites of Passage
Another variation in the experiences of adolescents in different cultures is
whether the adolescents go through a rite of passage. Some societies have
elaborate ceremonies that signal the adolescent’s move to maturity and
achievement of adult status (Ember, Ember, & Peregrine, 2015; Miller,
2017). A rite of passage is a ceremony or ritual that marks an individual’s
transition from one status to another. Most rites of passage focus on the
transition to adult status. In many primitive cultures, rites of passage are the
avenue through which adolescents gain access to sacred adult practices, to
knowledge, and to sexuality. These rites often involve dramatic practices
intended to facilitate the adolescent’s separation from the immediate family,
especially the mother. The transformation is usually characterized by some
form of ritual death and rebirth, or by means of contact with the spiritual
world. Bonds are forged between the adolescent and the adult instructors
through shared rituals, hazards, and secrets to allow the adolescent to enter
the adult world. This kind of ritual provides a forceful and discontinuous
entry into the adult world at a time when the adolescent is perceived to be
ready for the change.
An especially rich tradition of rites of passage for adolescents has
prevailed in African cultures, especially sub-Saharan Africa. Under the
influence of Western industrialized culture, many of these rites are
disappearing today, although they are still prevalent in locations where
formal education is not readily available.
Page 296
Street youth in Rio de Janeiro.
©Tom Stoddart/Getty Images
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you modify high
school graduation to
make it a more
meaningful rite of
passage for adolescents
in the United States?
Do we have such rites of passage for American adolescents? We certainly
do not have universal formal ceremonies that mark the passage from
adolescence to adulthood. Certain religious and social groups do, however,
have initiation ceremonies that indicate that an advance in
maturity has been reached: the Jewish bar and bat mitzvah,
the Catholic confirmation, and social debuts, for example.
School graduation ceremonies come the closest to being culture-wide rites of
passage in the United States. The high school graduation ceremony has
become nearly universal for middle-class adolescents and increasing numbers
of adolescents from low-income backgrounds.
These Congolese Kota boys painted their faces as part of a rite of passage to adulthood.
What rites of passage do American adolescents have?
©Daniel Laine/Gamma Rapho
Socioeconomic Status and Poverty
In the chapter on “Socioemotional Development in Middle and Late
Childhood,” we described many aspects of the challenges facing children
who live in low-income and impoverished families. Here we focus on these
challenges associated with economic hardship.
Adolescents from low-SES backgrounds are at risk for experiencing low
achievement and emotional problems, as well as lower occupational
attainment in adulthood (Chaudry & others, 2017; Coley & others, 2018;
Pulcini & others, 2018; Rosen & others, 2018). Psychological problems such
as smoking, depression, and juvenile delinquency, as well as health problems,
are more prevalent among low-SES adolescents than among economically
advantaged adolescents (Simon & others, 2017). For example, a recent study
found that of 13 risk factors, low SES was most likely to be associated with
smoking initiation in fifth-graders (Wellman & others, 2018). Also, in a
recent Chinese study, adolescents in low-income families were more likely to
have depressive symptoms than adolescents in families with average or high
incomes (Zhou, Fan, & Yin, 2017). Further, in a U.S. longitudinal study, low
SES in adolescent females was linked to having a higher level of depressive
symptoms at age 54 (Pino & others, 2018). And in this study, low-SES
females who completed college were less likely to have depressive symptoms
at age 54 than low-SES females who did not complete college. In another
longitudinal study, low SES in adolescence was a risk factor for having
cardiovascular disease 30 years later (Doom & others, 2017). In this study,
the following factors were found to be involved in the pathway to
cardiovascular disease for low-SES individuals: health-compromising
behaviors, financial stress, inadequate medical care, and lower educational
attainment.
Are there psychological and social factors that predict higher achievement
for adolescents living in poverty? A recent study found that higher levels of
the following four factors assessed at the beginning of the sixth grade were
linked to higher grade point averages at the end of the seventh grade: (1)
academic commitment, (2) emotional control, (3) family involvement and (4)
school climate (Li, Allen, & Casillas, 2017).
When poverty is persistent and long-standing, it can have especially
damaging effects on adolescents (Chaudry & others, 2017; Duncan,
Magnuson, & Votruba-Drzal, 2017; Green & others, 2018). A recent study
found that 12- to 19-year-olds’ perceived well-being was lowest when they
had lived in poverty from birth to 2 years of age (compared with 3 to 5, 6 to
8, and 9 to 11 years of age) and also each additional year lived in poverty was
associated with even lower perceived well-being (Gariepy & others, 2017).
Ethnicity
Earlier in this chapter we explored the identity development of ethnic
minority adolescents. Here, we further examine immigration and the
Page 297
relationship between ethnicity and socioeconomic status.
Immigration
Relatively high rates of immigration are contributing to the growing
proportion of ethnic minority adolescents and emerging adults in the United
States (Calzada & others, 2018; Titzmann & Gniewosz, 2018; Yoon &
others, 2017). Immigrant families are those in which at least one of the
parents was born outside the country of residence. Variations in immigrant
families involve whether one or both parents are foreign born, whether the
child was born in the host country, and the ages at which immigration took
place for both the parents and the children (Kim & others, 2018).
What are some cultural adaptations these Mexican American girls likely have made as
immigrants to the United States?
©Caroline Woodham/Getty Images
What are some of the circumstances immigrants face that challenge their
adjustment? Immigrants often experience stressors uncommon to or less
prominent among longtime residents, such as language barriers, dislocations
and separations from support networks, the dual struggle to preserve identity
and to acculturate, and changes in SES status (Brietzke & Perreira, 2017;
Hou & Kim, 2018; Suárez-Orosco, 2018a, b, c; Yoshikawa & others, 2017).
In a recent study comparing Asian, Latino, and non-Latino White
immigrants’ adolescents, immigrant Asian adolescents had the highest level
of depression, the lowest self-esteem, and were the most likely to report
experiencing discrimination (Lo & others, 2017).
Many individuals in immigrant families are dealing with the problem of
being undocumented (Beck & others, 2017; Rojas-Flores & others, 2017).
Living in an undocumented family can affect children’s and adolescents’
developmental outcomes through parents being unwilling to sign up for
services for which they are eligible, through conditions linked to low-wage
work and lack of benefits, through stress, and through a lack of cognitive
stimulation in the home. Consequently, when working with adolescents and
their immigrant families, counselors need to adapt intervention programs to
optimize cultural sensitivity (Calzada & others, 2018; Suárez-Orosco &
Suárez-Orosco, 2018).
The ways in which ethnic minority families deal with stress depend on
many factors (Davis & others, 2018; Gonzales-Backen & others, 2017;
Lorenzo-Blanco & others, 2018). Whether the parents are native-born or
immigrants, how long the family has been in the United States, its
socioeconomic status, family values, how competently parents rear their
children and adolescents, and their national origin all make a difference (Hou
& Kim, 2018; Kim & others, 2018). A recent study of Mexican-origin youth
found that when adolescents reported a higher level of familism (giving
priority to one’s family), they engaged in lower levels of risk taking (Wheeler
& others, 2017). Another study revealed that parents’ education before
migrating was strongly linked to their children’s academic achievement
(Pong & Landale, 2012).
Ethnicity and Socioeconomic Status
Much of the research on ethnic minority adolescents has failed to tease apart
the influences of ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES). These factors can
interact in ways that exaggerate the influence of ethnicity because ethnic
minority individuals are overrepresented in the lower socioeconomic levels of
American society (Nieto & Bode, 2018). Consequently, researchers too often
have given ethnic explanations for aspects of adolescent development that
were largely attributable to SES.
Not all ethnic minority families are poor. However, poverty contributes to
the stressful life experiences of many ethnic minority adolescents (Berman &
others, 2018; Duncan, Magnuson, & Votruba-Drzal, 2017; Taylor, Widaman,
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& Robins, 2018). Thus, many ethnic minority adolescents experience a
double disadvantage: (1) prejudice, discrimination, and bias because of their
ethnic minority status; and (2) the stressful effects of poverty (Kimmel &
Aronson, 2018).
Although some ethnic minority youth come from middle-income
backgrounds, economic advantage does not entirely enable them to escape
the prejudice, discrimination, and bias associated with being a member of an
ethnic minority group (Gollnick & Chinn, 2017). Even Japanese Americans,
who are often characterized as a “model minority” because of their strong
achievement orientation and family cohesiveness, still experience stress
associated with ethnic minority status.
Media and Screen Time
The culture adolescents experience involves not only cultural values, SES,
and ethnicity, but also media and screen time influences (Guadagno, 2018;
Lever-Duffy & McDonald, 2018; Maloy & others, 2017; Roblyer & Hughes,
2019; Smaldino & others, 2019). Television continues to have a strong
influence on children’s and adolescent’s development, but children’s use of
other media and information/communication devices has led to the use of the
term screen time, which includes how much time individuals spend watching
television or DVDs, playing video games, and using computers or mobile
media such as iPhones (Lissak, 2018; Ngantcha & others, 2018; Poulain &
others, 2018; Yan, 2018). A recent study revealed that less screen time was
associated with adolescents having a better quality of life (Yan & others,
2017). A recent study found that nighttime mobile phone use and poor sleep
behavior increased from 13 to 16 years of age (Vernon, Modecki, & Barber,
2018). In this study, increased nighttime mobile phone use was linked to
increases in externalizing problems as well as decreases in self-esteem and
coping.
What are some trends in adolescent media use and screen time?
©Brendan O’Sullivan/Getty Images
To better understand various aspects of U.S. adolescents’ media use, the
Kaiser Family Foundation funded national surveys in 1999, 2004, and 2009.
The 2009 survey documented that adolescent media use had increased
dramatically in the previous decade (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010).
Today’s youth live in a world in which they are encapsulated by media. In the
2009 survey, 8- to 11-year-olds used media 5 hours and 29 minutes a day, but
11- to 14-year-olds used media an average of 8 hours and 40 minutes a day,
and 15- to 18-year-olds an average of 7 hours and 58 minutes a day. Thus,
media use jumps more than 3 hours in early adolescence! Adding up the daily
media use figures to obtain weekly media use leads to the staggering levels of
more than 60 hours a week of media use by 11- to 14-year-olds and almost 56
hours a week by 15- to 18-year-olds!
A major trend in the use of technology is the dramatic increase in media
multitasking (Edwards & Shin, 2017; Hadington & Murphy, 2018; Steinborn
& Huestegge, 2017). In the 2009 survey, when the amount of time spent
multitasking was included in computing media use, 11- to 14-year-olds spent
nearly 12 hours a day (compared with almost 9 hours a day when
multitasking was not included) exposed to media (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts,
2010)! One study of 8- to 12-year-old girls also found that a higher level of
media multitasking was linked to negative social well-being while a higher
level of face-to-face communication was associated with positive social well-
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being indicators, such as greater social success, feeling more normal, and
having fewer friends whom parents thought were a bad influence (Pea &
others, 2012). In another study, heavy media multitaskers were more likely to
be depressed and have social anxiety than their counterparts who engaged in
a lower incidence of media multitasking (Becker, Alzahabi, & Hopwood,
2013). Also, in a recent study, heavy multimedia multitaskers were less likely
than light media multitaskers to delay gratification and more likely to endorse
intuitive, but wrong, answers on a cognitive reflection task (Schutten, Stokes,
& Arnell, 2017). And in a recent research review, a higher level of media
multitasking was linked to lower levels of school achievement, executive
function, and growth mindset in adolescents (Cain & others, 2016).
In some cases, media multitasking—such as text messaging, listening to
an iPod, and updating a YouTube site simultaneously—is engaged in while
doing homework. It is hard to imagine that this allows a student to do
homework efficiently, although there is little research on media multitasking.
A research review concluded that at a general level, using digital technologies
(surfing the Internet, texting someone) while engaging in a learning task
(reading, listening to a lecture) distracts learners and impairs performance on
many tasks (Courage & others, 2015). Also in this research, it was concluded
that when driving subtasks such as various perceptual-motor activities
(steering control, changing lanes, maneuvering through traffic, braking, and
acceleration) and ongoing cognitive tasks (planning, decision making, or
maintaining a conversation with a passenger) are combined with interactive
in-vehicle devices (phones, navigation aids, portable music
devices), the task of driving becomes more complex and the
potential for distraction high.
Mobile media, such as cell phones and iPads, are mainly driving the
increased media use by adolescents (Yan, 2018). For example, in 2004, 39
percent of adolescents owned a cell phone, a figure that jumped to 66 percent
in 2009 and then to 87 percent in 2016 with a prediction of 92 percent in
2019 (eMarketeer.com, 2016; Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010).
A national survey revealed dramatic increases in U.S. adolescents’ use of
social media and text messaging (Lenhart, 2015). In 2015, 92 percent of U.S.
13- to 17-year-olds reported using social networking sites daily. Twenty-four
percent of the adolescents said they go online almost constantly. Much of this
increase in going online has been fueled by smartphones and mobile devices.
Also, in a recent national survey, 78 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds reported
that they use Snapchat, 71 percent said they use Instagram, 68 percent said
they use Facebook, and almost half (45 percent) indicated they use Twitter
(Smith & Anderson, 2018). And in this recent survey, a whopping 94 percent
in this age group said they use YouTube. A recent study indicated that a
higher level of social media use was associated with a higher frequency of
heavy drinking by adolescents (Brunborg, Andreas, & Kvaavik, 2017).
Text messaging has become the main way that adolescents connect with
their friends, surpassing face-to-face contact, e-mail, instant messaging, and
voice calling (Lenhart, 2015; Lenhart & others, 2015). In the national survey
and a further update (Lenhart & others, 2015), daily text messaging increased
from 38 percent who texted friends daily in 2008 to 55 percent in 2015.
However, voice mail was the primary way that most adolescents preferred to
connect with parents.
Adolescent Problems
Earlier we described several adolescent problems: substance abuse, sexually
transmitted infections, and eating disorders. In this chapter, we examine the
problems of juvenile delinquency, depression, and suicide. We also explore
interrelationships among adolescent problems and discuss how such
problems can be prevented or remedied.
Juvenile Delinquency
The label juvenile delinquent is applied to an adolescent who breaks the law
or engages in behavior that is considered illegal. Like other categories of
disorders, juvenile delinquency is a broad concept; legal infractions range
from littering to murder. Because the adolescent technically becomes a
juvenile delinquent only after being judged guilty of a crime by a court of
law, official records do not accurately reflect the number of illegal acts
juvenile delinquents commit.
Males are more likely to engage in delinquency than are females—in
2014, 72 percent of delinquency cases in the United States involved males,
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28 percent females (Hockenberry & Puzzanchera, 2017). Since 2008,
delinquency cases have dropped more for males than for females.
Delinquency rates among youths from minority groups and low-SES
families are especially high compared with the overall proportions of these
groups in the general population. However, such groups have less influence
over the judicial decision-making process in the United States and therefore
may be judged delinquent more readily than their non-Latino White, middle-
SES counterparts.
One issue in juvenile justice is whether an adolescent who commits a
crime should be tried as an adult (Fine & others, 2017). Some psychologists
have proposed that individuals 12 and under should not be evaluated under
adult criminal laws and that those 17 and older should be (Cauffman &
others, 2015). They also recommend that individuals 13 to 16 years of age be
given some type of individualized assessment to determine whether they will
be tried in a juvenile court or an adult criminal court.
Causes of Delinquency
What causes delinquency? Many reasons have been proposed, including
heredity, identity problems, community influences, and family experiences.
Erik Erikson (1968), for example, argues that adolescents whose
development has restricted them from acceptable social roles, or made them
feel that they cannot measure up to the demands placed on them, may choose
a negative identity. Adolescents with a negative identity may find support for
their delinquent image among peers, reinforcing the negative identity. For
Erikson, delinquency is an attempt to establish an identity, even if it is a
negative one.
What are some factors that are linked to whether adolescents will engage in delinquent
acts?
©Bill Aron/PhotoEdit
Although delinquency is less exclusively a phenomenon of lower
socioeconomic status (SES) than it was in the past, some characteristics of
lower-SES culture might promote delinquency (Dawson-McClure & others,
2015). A recent study of more than 10,000 children and adolescents found
that family environment characterized by poverty and child maltreatment was
linked to entering the juvenile justice system in adolescence (Vidal & others,
2017). The norms of many lower-SES peer groups and gangs are antisocial,
or counterproductive to the goals and norms of society at large. Getting into
or staying out of trouble are prominent features of life for some adolescents
in low-income neighborhoods. One study found that youth whose families
had experienced repeated poverty were more than twice as likely to be
delinquent at 14 and 21 years of age (Najman & others, 2010).
Certain characteristics of family support systems are also associated with
delinquency (Muftic & others, 2018; Ray & others, 2017). Parental
monitoring of adolescents is especially important in determining whether an
adolescent becomes a delinquent (Bendezu & others, 2018). And one study
found that low rates of delinquency from 14 to 23 years of age were
associated with an authoritative parenting style (Mann & others, 2015).
Further, research indicates that family therapy is often effective in reducing
delinquency (Darnell & Schuler, 2015). An increasing number of studies
have found that siblings can influence whether an adolescent becomes a
delinquent (Laursen & others, 2017; Wallace, 2017). Peer relations also can
influence delinquency (Kim & Fletcher, 2018; Prinstein & others, 2018). A
recent study revealed that having friends who engage in delinquency was
associated with early onset and more persistent delinquency (Evans, Simons,
& Simons, 2016). And in a recent study of middle school adolescents, peer
pressure for fighting and friends’ delinquent behavior were linked to
adolescents’ aggression and delinquent behavior (Farrell, Thompson, &
Mehari, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you apply
your knowledge of
juvenile delinquency
and adolescent
development to improve
the juvenile justice
system?
Lack of academic success is associated with delinquency (Mercer &
others, 2016). And a number of cognitive factors such as low self-control,
low intelligence, and lack of sustained attention are linked to delinquency
(Fine & others, 2016; Guo, 2018; Hipwell & others, 2018). Further, recent
research indicates that having callous-unemotional personality traits predicts
an increased risk of engaging in delinquency for adolescent males (Ray &
others, 2017).
Rodney Hammond is an individual whose goal is to help at-risk
adolescents, such as juvenile delinquents, cope more effectively with their
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lives. Read about his work in the Careers in Life-Span Development profile.
Depression and Suicide
What is the nature of depression in adolescence? What causes an adolescent
to commit suicide?
Depression
Rates of ever experiencing major depressive disorder range from 15 to 20
percent for adolescents (Graber & Sontag, 2009). Adolescents who are
experiencing a high level of stress and/or a loss of some type are at increased
risk for developing depression (Cohen & others, 2018; Luyten & Fonagy,
2018; Teivaanmaki & others, 2018). Also, a recent study found that
adolescents who became depressed were characterized by a sense of
hopelessness (Weersing & others, 2016).
Careers in life-span development
Rodney Hammond, Health Psychologist
In describing his college experiences, Rodney Hammond said:
When I started as an undergraduate at the University of
Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, I hadn’t decided on my major.
But to help finance my education, I took a part-time job in a
child development research program sponsored by the
psychology department. There, I observed inner-city children
in settings designed to enhance their learning. I saw firsthand
the contribution psychology can make, and I knew I wanted to
be a psychologist. (American Psychological Association,
2003, p. 26)
Rodney Hammond went on to obtain a doctorate in school and
community psychology with a focus on children’s development. For a
number of years he trained clinical psychologists at Wright State
University in Ohio and directed a program to reduce violence in
ethnic minority youth. There, he and his associates taught at-risk
youth how to use social skills to effectively manage conflict and to
recognize situations that could lead to violence. Rodney became the
first Director of Violence Prevention at the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia.
Rodney says that if you are interested in people and problem
solving, psychology is a wonderful way to put these subjects together.
Following his recent retirement from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, he is now Adjunct Professor of Human Development
and Counseling at the University of Georgia.
Rodney Hammond counsels an adolescent girl about the risks of adolescence
and how to effectively cope with them.
Courtesy of Dr. Rodney Hammond
Adolescent females are far more likely to develop depression than are
their male counterparts. In a recent study, at 12 years of age, 5.2 percent of
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females compared with 2 percent of males had experienced first-onset
depression (Breslau & others, 2017). In this study, the cumulative incidence
of depression from 12 to 17 years of age was 36 percent for females and 14
percent for males. Among the reasons for this gender difference are that
females tend to ruminate in their depressed mood and amplify it; females’
self-images, especially their body images, are more negative than males’;
females face more discrimination than males do; and puberty occurs earlier
for girls than for boys (Kouros, Morris, & Garber, 2016). As a result, girls
experience a confluence of changes and life experiences in the middle school
years that can increase depression (Chen & others, 2015).
Is adolescent depression linked to problems in emerging and early
adulthood? One study initially assessed U.S. adolescents when they were 16
to 17 years of age and then again every two years until they were 26 to 27
years of age (Naicker & others, 2013). In this study, significant effects that
persisted after 10 years were depression recurrence, stronger depressive
symptoms, migraine headaches, poor self-rated health, and low levels of
social support. Adolescent depression was not associated with employment
status, personal income, marital status, and educational attainment a decade
later.
Genes are linked to adolescent depression (Hannigan, McAdams, & Eley,
2017; Van Assche & others, 2017). One study found that certain dopamine-
related genes were associated with depressive symptoms in adolescents
(Adkins & others, 2012). Another study revealed that the link between
adolescent girls’ perceived stress and depression occurred only when the girls
had the short version of the serotonin-related gene—5HTTLPR (Beaver &
others, 2012).
Poor relationships are linked to adolescent depression. A recent study
found that adolescents who were isolated from their peers and whose
caregivers emotionally neglected them were at significant risk
for developing depression (Christ, Kwak, & Lu, 2017).
Certain family factors place adolescents at risk for developing
depression (Bleys & others, 2018; Dardas, van de Water, & Simmons, 2018;
Oppenheimer, Hankin, & Young, 2018; Possel & others, 2018). These
include having a depressed parent, emotionally unavailable parents, parents
who have high marital conflict, and parents with financial problems. One
study also revealed that mother-adolescent co-rumination, especially when
focused on the mother’s problems, was linked to adolescents’ depression
(Waller & Rose, 2010). Also, another study found that positive parenting
characteristics such as emotional and educational support were associated
with less depression in adolescents (Smokowski & others, 2015).
Poor peer relationships also are associated with adolescent depression
(Rose & Smith, 2018; Siennick & others, 2017). Not having a close
relationship with a best friend, having less contact with friends, having
friends who are depressed, and experiencing peer rejection all increase
depressive tendencies in adolescents (Platt, Kadosh, & Lau, 2013). Also, in a
recent study, co-rum ination with friends was linked to greater peer stress for
adolescent girls (Rose & others, 2017). Further, problems in romantic
relationships can produce adolescent depression (Furman, 2018).
A research review concluded that drug therapy using serotonin reuptake
inhibitors, cognitive behavioral therapy, and interpersonal therapy are
effective in treating adolescent depression (Maalouf & Brent, 2012).
However, the most effective treatment was a combination of drug therapy and
cognitive behavioral therapy. Another research review concluded that Prozac
and other SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) show clinical
benefits for adolescents at risk for moderate and severe depression (Cousins
& Goodyer, 2015). Other recent research indicates that family therapy also
can be effective in reducing adolescent depression (Poole & others, 2018).
Suicide
Suicide behavior is rare in childhood but escalates in adolescence and then
increases further in emerging adulthood (Park & others, 2006). Suicide is the
third-leading cause of death in 10- to 19-year-olds today in the United States
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018).
Although a suicide threat should always be taken seriously, far more
adolescents contemplate or attempt it unsuccessfully than actually commit it
(Castellvi & others, 2017). In the last two decades there has been a
considerable decline in the percentage of adolescents who think seriously
about committing suicide, although from 2009 to 2015 this percentage
increased from 14 to 18 percent (Kann & others, 2016a). In this national
study, in 2015, 8.6 percent attempted suicide and 2.8 percent engaged in
suicide attempts that required medical attention.
Females are more likely to attempt suicide than males, but males are more
likely to succeed in committing suicide (Ivey-Stephenson & others, 2017).
Males use more lethal means, such as guns, in their suicide attempts, whereas
adolescent females are more likely to cut their wrists or take an overdose of
sleeping pills—methods that are less likely to result in death.
Suicidal adolescents often have depressive symptoms (Lee & Ham,
2018). Although not all depressed adolescents are suicidal, depression is the
most frequently cited factor associated with adolescent suicide (Thompson &
Swartout, 2017). In a recent study, the most significant factor in a first
suicide attempt during adolescence was a major depressive episode, while for
children it was child maltreatment (Peyre & others, 2017). Also, in another
recent study, a sense of hopelessness predicted an increase in suicidal
ideation in depressed adolescents (Wolfe & others, 2018).
What are some characteristics of adolescents who become depressed? What are some
factors that are linked with suicide attempts by adolescents?
©Science Photo Library/age fotostock
Both earlier and later experiences are linked to suicide attempts, and these
can involve family relationships (Bjorkenstam, Kosidou, & Bjorkenstam,
2017; King & others, 2017; Lee & others, 2018). One study found that family
discord and negative relationships with parents were associated with
increased suicide attempts by depressed adolescents (Consoli & others,
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2013). In two recent studies, child maltreatment during the
childhood years was linked with suicide attempts in adulthood
(Park, 2017; Turner & others, 2017). Also, a recent study
confirmed that early sexual abuse is linked to suicidal behavior (Ng & others,
2018). Further, a recent study indicated that adolescents who were being
treated in a suicide clinic experienced lower family cohesion than nonclinical
adolescents and adolescents being treated at a general psychiatric clinic
(Jakobsen, Larsen, & Horwood, 2017). Recent and current stressful
circumstances, such as getting poor grades in school or experiencing the
breakup of a romantic relationship, also may trigger suicide attempts (Im, Oh,
& Suk, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you talk with an
adolescent who has just
threatened suicide?
Further, being victimized by bullying is associated with suicide-related
thoughts and behavior (Barzilay & others, 2017; Pham & Adesman, 2018). A
recent meta-analysis revealed that adolescents who were the victims of
cyberbullying were 2½ times more likely to have suicidal thoughts than
nonvictims (John & others, 2018). Cyberbullying has been found to be more
strongly associated with suicidal ideation than traditional bullying (van Geel,
Vedder, & Tanilon, 2014).
The Interrelation of Problems and Successful
Prevention/Intervention Programs
The four problems that affect the most adolescents are (1) drug abuse, (2)
juvenile delinquency, (3) sexual problems, and (4) school-related problems
(Dryfoos, 1990; Dryfoos & Barkin, 2006). The adolescents most at risk have
more than one of these problems.
Researchers are increasingly finding that problem behaviors in
adolescence are interrelated. For example, heavy substance abuse is related to
early sexual activity, lower grades, dropping out of school, and delinquency
(Belenko & others, 2017). Early initiation of sexual activity is associated with
the use of cigarettes and alcohol, the use of marijuana and other illicit drugs,
lower grades, dropping out of school, and delinquency (Lowry & others,
2017). Delinquency is related to early sexual activity, early pregnancy,
substance abuse, and dropping out of school (Marotta, 2017; Rioux & others,
2018). As many as 10 percent of adolescents in the United States have been
estimated to engage in all four of these problem behaviors (for example,
adolescents who have dropped out of school are behind in their grade level,
are users of heavy drugs, regularly use cigarettes and marijuana, and are
sexually active but do not use contraception). In 1990, it was estimated that
another 15 percent of high-risk youth engaged in two or three of the four
main problem behaviors (Dryfoos, 1990). More recently, this estimate was
increased from the 15 percent figure in 1990 to 20 percent of all adolescents
in 2006 (Dryfoos & Barkin, 2006).
A review of the programs that have been successful in preventing or
reducing adolescent problems found these common components (Dryfoos,
1990; Dryfoos & Barkin, 2006):
What are some strategies for preventing and intervening in adolescent problems?
©Image Source/Alamy
1. Intensive individualized attention. In successful programs, high-risk
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adolescents are attached to a responsible adult who gives the adolescent
attention and deals with the adolescent’s specific needs (Crooks &
others, 2017; Plourde & others, 2017). This theme occurs in a number of
programs. In a successful substance-abuse program, for example, a
student assistance counselor is available full-time for individual
counseling and referral for treatment.
2. Community-wide multiagency collaborative approaches. The basic
philosophy of community-wide programs is that a number of different
programs and services have to be in place (Trude & others, 2018). In one
successful substance-abuse program, a community-wide health
promotion campaign has been implemented that uses local media and
community education in concert with a substance-abuse curriculum in
the schools.
3. Early identification and intervention. Reaching younger
children and their families before children develop problems,
or at the onset of their problems, is a successful strategy
(Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Mash & Wolfe, 2019). One preschool program
serves as an excellent model for the prevention of delinquency,
pregnancy, substance abuse, and dropping out of school. Operated by the
High/Scope Foundation in Ypsilanti, Michigan from 1962 to 1967, the
Perry Preschool has had a long-term positive impact on its students. This
enrichment program, directed by David Weikart, served disadvantaged
African American children. They attended a high-quality, two-year
preschool program and received weekly home visits from program
personnel. Based on official police records, by age 19, individuals who
had attended the Perry Preschool program were less likely to have been
arrested and reported fewer adult offenses than a control group did. The
Perry Preschool students also were less likely to drop out of school, and
teachers rated their social behavior as more competent than that of a
control group who had not received the enriched preschool experience
(High/Scope Resource, 2005).
Summary
Identity
Identity is a self-portrait composed of many pieces.
Identity versus identity confusion is Erikson’s fifth stage of the human
life span, which individuals experience during adolescence.
James Marcia proposed four identity statuses—diffusion, foreclosure,
moratorium, and achievement—that are based on crisis (exploration) and
commitment. Increasingly, experts argue that the main changes in identity
occur in emerging adulthood rather than adolescence.
Ethnicity is an important influence on identity.
Families
A key aspect of the managerial role of parenting in adolescence is
effectively monitoring the adolescent’s development. Adolescents’
disclosure to parents about their whereabouts is linked to positive
adolescent adjustment.
The adolescent’s push for autonomy is one of the hallmarks of
adolescence. Attachment to parents increases the probability that an
adolescent will be socially competent.
Parent-adolescent conflict increases in adolescence. The conflict is
usually moderate rather than severe.
Peers
Harry Stack Sullivan argued that there is a dramatic increase in the
psychological importance and intimacy of close friends in early
adolescence. Peer conformity and cliques and crowds assume more
importance in adolescence.
Three stages characterize adolescent dating and romantic relationships.
Many gay and lesbian youth date other-sex peers. Culture can exert a
powerful influence on adolescent dating. Some aspects of dating and
romantic relationships are linked to adjustment difficulties.
Culture and Adolescent Development
Adolescent development varies across cultures, and rites of passage still
characterize adolescents in some cultures.
Low socioeconomic status and poverty can have extremely negative
effects on adolescents’ development, including lower achievement, lower
occupational attainment, and psychological problems.
Immigration is an important aspect of many ethnic adolescents’ lives.
Although not all ethnic minority families are poor, poverty contributes to
the stress experienced by many ethnic minority adolescents.
There has been a dramatic increase in adolescents’ media multitasking
and use of the Internet for social connections.
Adolescent Problems
Juvenile delinquency is a major problem in adolescence. Numerous
causes have been proposed to explain delinquency.
Adolescents have a higher rate of depression than children, and females
have a much higher rate of depression than males do. Adolescent suicide
is the third leading cause of death in U.S. adolescents, and numerous
factors are linked to suicide.
Researchers are increasingly finding that problem behaviors in
adolescence are interrelated, and common components characterize
successful programs designed to prevent or reduce adolescent problems.
Key Terms
clique
commitment
crisis
crowd
ethnic identity
identity achievement
identity diffusion
identity foreclosure
identity moratorium
juvenile delinquent
rite of passage
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Sam Edwards/Caiaimage/Getty Images
11
Physical and Cognitive
Development in Early
Adulthood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
The Transition from Adolescence to Adulthood
Becoming an Adult
The Transition from High School to College
Physical Development
Physical Performance and Development
Health
Sexuality
Sexual Activity in Emerging Adulthood
Sexual Orientation and Behavior
Sexually Transmitted Infections
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Stages
Creativity
Careers and Work
Careers
Work
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Dave Eggers, Pursuing a Career
in the Face of Stress
He was a senior in college when both of his parents died of cancer
within five weeks of each other. What would he do? He and his 8-
year-old brother left Chicago to live in California, where his older
sister was entering law school. Dave would take care of his
younger brother, but he needed a job. That first summer, he took a
class in furniture painting; then he worked for a geological
surveying company, re-creating maps on a computer. Soon,
though, he did something very different: With friends from high
Page 306
school, Dave Eggers started Might, a satirical magazine for twenty-
somethings. It was an edgy, highly acclaimed publication, but not a
moneymaker. After a few years, Eggers had to shut down the
magazine, and he abandoned California for New York.
This does not sound like a promising start for a career. But
within a decade after his parents’ death, Eggers had not only raised
his young brother but had also founded a quarterly journal and
Web site, McSweeney’s, and had written a best-
seller, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering
Genius, which received the National Book Critics
Circle Award and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. It is a
slightly fictionalized account of Eggers’ life as he helped care for
his dying mother, raised his brother, and searched for his own
place in the world. Despite the pain of his loss and the
responsibility for his brother, Eggers quickly built a record of
achievement as a young adult. ■
Dave Eggers, talented and insightful author.
©Cosima Scavolini/LaPresse/Zumapress.com/Newscom
The Transition from Adolescence to
Adulthood
When does an adolescent become an adult? It is not easy to tell when a girl or
a boy enters adolescence. The task of determining when an individual
becomes an adult is even more difficult.
Becoming an Adult
For most individuals, becoming an adult involves a lengthy transition period.
The transition from adolescence to adulthood has been referred to as
emerging adulthood, which occurs from approximately 18 to 25 years of
age (Arnett, 2006, 2010, 2012, 2015). Experimentation and exploration
characterize the emerging adult. At this point in their development, many
individuals are still exploring which career path they want to follow, what
they want their identity to be, and which lifestyle they want to adopt (for
example, being single, cohabiting, or getting married) (Jensen, 2018; Padilla-
Walker & Nelson, 2017).
Key Features of Emerging Adulthood
Jeffrey Arnett (2006) has concluded that five key features characterize
emerging adulthood:
Identity exploration, especially in love and work. Emerging adulthood is
the time during which key changes in identity take place for many
individuals (Layland, Hill, & Nelson, 2018; Vosylis, Erentaite, &
Crocetti, 2018).
Instability. Residential changes peak during early adulthood, a time
during which there also is often instability in love, work, and education.
Self-focused. According to Arnett (2006, p. 10), emerging adults “are
self-focused in the sense that they have little in the way of social
obligations, little in the way of duties and commitments to others, which
leaves them with a great deal of autonomy in running their own lives.”
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Feeling in-between. Many emerging adults don’t consider themselves
adolescents or full-fledged adults.
The age of possibilities, a time when individuals have an opportunity to
transform their lives. Arnett (2006) describes two ways in which
emerging adulthood is the age of possibilities: (1) many emerging adults
are optimistic about their future; and (2) for emerging adults who have
experienced difficult times while growing up, emerging adulthood
presents an opportunity to reorient their lives in a more positive direction.
Research indicates that these five aspects characterize not only
individuals in the United States as they make the transition from adolescence
to early adulthood, but also their counterparts in European countries and
Australia (Arnett, 2012, 2015; Buhl & Lanz, 2007; Sirsch & others, 2009).
Although emerging adulthood does not characterize development in all
cultures, it does appear to occur in those where assuming adult roles and
responsibilities is postponed (Kins & Beyers, 2010). Critics of the concept of
emerging adulthood argue that it applies mainly to privileged
adolescents and is not always a self-determined choice for
many young people, especially those in limiting
socioeconomic conditions (Cote & Bynner, 2008). One study revealed that
U.S. at-risk youth entered emerging adulthood slightly earlier than the
general population of youth (Lisha & others, 2012).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you apply
your knowledge of
contemporary society to
counsel a client making
the transition into
adulthood?
The Changing Landscape of Emerging and Early Adulthood
In earlier generations, by their mid-twenties at the latest, individuals were
expected to have finished college, obtained a full-time job, and establish their
own household, most often with a spouse and a child. However, individuals
are now taking much longer to reach these developmental milestones, many
of which they are not experiencing until their late twenties or even thirties
(Vespa, 2017). It is not surprising that their parents recall having had a much
earlier timetable of reaching these developmental milestones.
Consider that for the first time in the modern era, in 2014, living with
parents was the most frequent living arrangement for 18- to 34-year-olds
(Fry, 2016). Dating all the way back to 1880, living with a romantic partner,
whether a spouse or a significant other, was previously the most common
living arrangement for emerging and young adults. In 2014, 32.1 percent of
18- to 34-year-olds lived with their parents, followed by 31.6 percent who
lived with a spouse or partner in their own home, while 14 percent headed the
household in which they lived alone. The remaining 22 percent lived in
another family member’s home, with a non-relative, or in group quarters
(college dorm, for example).
In terms of education, today’s emerging and young adults are better
educated than their counterparts in the 1970s (Vespa, 2017). For example,
they are much more likely to have a college degree today. The biggest reason
for this educational improvement since the 1970s, though, is a gender
difference reversal. In 1975, more young men had college degrees, but today
there are more young women than young men who have a college degree.
In terms of work, more young adults are working today than in 1975
(Vespa, 2017). The main reason for this increase also involves a gender
change—the significant rise of young women in the workforce, which has
increased from slightly below 50 percent to more than two-thirds of young
women in the workforce today. In 1975, almost all of the women who were
not in the workforce indicated the reason this was the case is that they were
taking care of their home and children. However, in 2016, less than 50
percent of the women who were not in the workforce were homemakers.
We will further discuss these lifestyle changes in the chapter on
“Socioemotional Development in Early Adulthood.”
Markers of Becoming an Adult
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In the United States, the most widely recognized marker of entry into
adulthood is holding a more or less permanent, full-time job, which usually
happens when an individual finishes school—high school for some, college
for others, graduate or professional school for still others. However, other
criteria are far from clear. Economic independence is one marker of adult
status, but achieving it is often a long process. College graduates are
increasingly returning to live with their parents as they attempt to establish
themselves economically. A longitudinal study found that at age 25 only
slightly more than half of the participants were fully financially independent
of their family of origin (Cohen & others, 2003). The most dramatic findings
in this study, though, involved the extensive variability in the individual
trajectories of adult roles across ten years from 17 to 27 years of age; many of
the participants moved back and forth between increasing and decreasing
economic dependency. One study revealed that continued co-residence with
parents during emerging adulthood slowed down the process of becoming a
self-sufficient and independent adult (Kins & Beyers, 2010).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you offer
guidance to emerging
adults who are
concerned because they
have not yet settled into
a career and a long-term
relationship?
Other studies show that taking responsibility for oneself is likely an
important marker of adult status for many individuals (Smith & others, 2017).
In one study, both parents and college students agreed that taking
responsibility for one’s actions and developing emotional control are
important aspects of becoming an adult (Nelson & others, 2007). And in a
study of Danish emerging adults, the most widely described
markers of emerging adulthood were accepting self-
responsibility, making independent decisions, and becoming
financially independent (Arnett & Padilla-Walker, 2015). In this study the
least-described markers were the traditional transition events of getting
married and avoiding getting drunk. Also, a recent U.S. study of community
college students found that they believed they would reach adulthood when
they could care for themselves and others (Katsiaficas, 2017).
What we have discussed about the markers of adult status mainly
characterizes individuals in industrialized societies, especially Americans. In
developing countries, marriage is more often a significant marker for entry
into adulthood, and this usually occurs much earlier than the adulthood
markers in the United States (Arnett, 2015). In one study, the majority of 18-
to 26-year-olds in India felt that they had achieved adulthood (Seiter &
Nelson, 2010).
The Transition from High School to College
For many individuals in developed countries, going from high school to
college is an important aspect of the transition to adulthood (Eagan & others,
2017; Staley, 2019). Just as the transition from elementary school to middle
or junior high school involves change and possible stress, so does the
transition from high school to college. The two transitions have many
parallels. Going from being a senior in high school to being a freshman in
college replays the top-dog phenomenon of transferring from the oldest and
most powerful group of students to the youngest and least powerful group of
students that occurred earlier as adolescence began. For many students, the
transition from high school to college involves movement to a larger, more
impersonal school structure; interaction with peers from more diverse
geographical and sometimes more diverse ethnic backgrounds; and increased
focus on achievement and its assessment. And like the transition from
elementary to middle or junior high school, the transition from high school to
college can involve positive features. Students are more likely to feel grown
up, have more subjects from which to select, have more time to spend with
peers, have more opportunities to explore different lifestyles and values,
enjoy greater independence from parental monitoring, and be challenged
intellectually by academic work (Halonen & Santrock, 2013).
The transition from high school to college often involves positive as well as negative
features. In college, students are likely to feel grown up, spend more time with peers, have
more opportunities to explore different lifestyles and values, and enjoy greater freedom
from parental monitoring. However, college involves a larger, more impersonal school
structure and an increased focus on achievement and its assessment. What was your
transition to college like?
©Stockbyte/PunchStock
Over the past three decades, the Higher Education Research Institute at
UCLA has surveyed first-year college students’ backgrounds, experiences,
and views on a number of topics. In recent years, traditional-aged college
students have shown an increased concern for personal well-being and a
decreased concern for the well-being of others, especially for the
disadvantaged (Eagan & others, 2017). Today’s college freshmen are more
strongly motivated to be well-off financially and less motivated to develop a
meaningful philosophy of life than were their counterparts of 40 years ago. In
2016, 82.4 percent of students (the highest percent ever in this survey)
viewed becoming well-off financially as an “essential” or a “very important”
objective compared with only 42 percent in 1971.
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How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you prepare high
school students to ease
the transition to college?
There are, however, some signs that U.S. college students are shifting
toward a stronger interest in the welfare of society. In the survey just
described, U.S. college freshmen’s interest in developing a
meaningful philosophy of life increased from 39 percent in
2001 to 46.8 percent in 2016 (Eagan & others, 2017).
An increasing number of first-year college students also report having
higher levels of stress and depression. In the national survey just described,
41 percent of first-year college students said they frequently or occasionally
felt overwhelmed with all they had to do, 12 percent indicated they were
depressed, and 34.5 percent reported feeling anxious (Eagan & others, 2017).
College counselors can provide good information about coping with
stress and academic matters. To read about the work of college counselor
Grace Leaf, see Careers in Life-Span Development.
Careers in life-span development
Grace Leaf, College/Career Counselor and College
Administrator
For many years, Grace Leaf was a counselor at Spokane
Community College in Washington. In 2014, she became Vice
President of Instruction at Lower Columbia College in Spokane. She
has a master’s degree in educational leadership and is working toward
a doctoral degree in educational leadership at Gonzaga University in
Washington. In her job as a college counselor, she provided
orientation sessions for international students, individual and group
advising, and individual and group career planning. Grace tries to
connect students with their goals and values and helps them design
educational programs that fit their needs and visions.
College counselors help students to cope with adjustment
problems, identify their abilities and interests, develop academic
plans, and explore career options. Some have an undergraduate
degree, others a master’s degree like Grace Leaf. Some college
counselors have a graduate degree in counseling; others may have an
undergraduate degree in psychology or another discipline.
Grace Leaf (center) counsels college students at Spokane Community College
about careers.
Courtesy of Grace Leaf
Physical Development
As emerging and young adults learn more about healthy lifestyles and how
they contribute to a longer life span, they are increasingly interested in
monitoring their physical performance, health, nutrition, exercise, and
substance use.
Physical Performance and Development
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Most of us reach our peak physical performance before the age of 30, often
between the ages of 19 and 26. This peak of physical performance occurs not
only for the average young adult, but for outstanding athletes as well. Even
though athletes as a group keep getting better than their predecessors—
running faster, jumping higher, and lifting more weight—the age at which
they reach their peak performance has remained virtually unchanged.
Different types of athletes, however, reach their peak performances at
different ages. Most swimmers and gymnasts peak in their late teens. Golfers
and marathon runners tend to peak in their late twenties. In other areas of
athletics, peak performance often occurs in the early to mid-twenties.
Not only do we reach our peak in physical performance during early
adulthood, it is also during this age period that we begin to decline in
physical performance. Muscle tone and strength usually begin to show signs
of decline around the age of 30. Sagging chins and protruding
abdomens also may begin to appear for the first time. The
lessening of physical abilities is a common complaint among
the just-turned thirties. Sensory systems show little change in early
adulthood, but the lens of the eye loses some of its elasticity and becomes
less able to change shape and focus on near objects. Hearing peaks in
adolescence, remains constant in the first part of early adulthood, and then
begins to decline in the last part of early adulthood. And in the middle to late
twenties, the body’s fatty tissue increases.
Health
Emerging adults have more than twice the mortality rate of adolescents (Park
& others, 2006). As indicated in Figure 1, males are mainly responsible for
the higher mortality rate of emerging adults.
Figure 1 Mortality Rates of U.S. Adolescents and Emerging Adults
Although emerging adults have a higher death rate than adolescents,
emerging adults have few chronic health problems, and they have fewer colds
and respiratory problems than they did when they were children (Rimsza &
Kirk, 2005). Although most college students know how to prevent illness and
promote health, they don’t fare very well when it comes to applying this
information to themselves (Lau & others, 2013). In many cases, emerging
adults are not as healthy as they seem (Fatusi & Hindin, 2010).
A longitudinal study revealed that most bad health habits that were
engaged in during adolescence increased in emerging adulthood (Harris &
others, 2006). Inactivity, poor food choices, obesity, substance use,
reproductive health care, and health-care access worsened in emerging
adulthood. For example, when they were 12 to 18 years of age, only 5 percent
reported no weekly exercise, but when they became 19 to 26 years of age, 46
percent said they did not exercise during a typical week. And another study
found that rates of being overweight or obese increased from 25.6 percent for
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college freshmen to 32 percent for college seniors (Nicoteri & Miskovsky,
2014).
In emerging and early adulthood, few individuals stop to think about how
their personal lifestyles will affect their health later in their adult lives. As
emerging adults, many of us develop a pattern of not eating breakfast, not
eating regular meals, relying on snacks as our main food source during the
day, eating excessively to the point where we exceed the normal weight for
our age, smoking moderately or excessively, drinking moderately or
excessively, failing to exercise, getting only a few hours of sleep at night, and
engaging in risky sexual behavior (Donatelle, 2019; Hales, 2018; Lipson &
Sonneville, 2017; Schlarb, Friedrich, & Clausen, 2017; Schulenberg &
others, 2017).
Why might it be easy to develop bad health habits in emerging and early adulthood?
©BananaStock/Getty Images
Research indicates that 70 percent of college students do not get adequate
sleep and that 50 percent report daytime sleepiness (Hershner & Chervin,
2015). In a recent study, higher consumption of energy drinks was linked to
more sleep problems in college students (Faris & others, 2017). Emerging
adults are not the only ones who are getting inadequate sleep. Many adults in
their late twenties and thirties don’t get enough either (Brimah & others,
2013). A statement by the American Academy of Sleep
Medicine and Sleep Research Society (Luyster & others,
2012) emphasized that chronic sleep deprivation may contribute to
cardiovascular disease, a shortened life span, and cognitive and motor
impairment that increase the risk of motor vehicle crashes and work-related
accidents.
The lifestyles just described are associated with poor health, which in turn
reduces life satisfaction (Insel & Roth, 2018; Kilwein & Looby, 2017;
Powers & Haley, 2018). In the Berkeley Longitudinal Study—in which
individuals were evaluated over a period of 40 years—physical health at age
30 predicted life satisfaction at age 70, more so for men than for women
(Mussen, Honzik, & Eichorn, 1982). Another study explored links between
health behavior and life satisfaction of more than 17,000 individuals who
were 17 to 30 years old in 21 countries (Grant, Wardle, & Steptoe, 2009).
The young adults’ life satisfaction was positively related to not smoking,
exercising regularly, using sun protection, eating fruit, and limiting fat intake,
but it was not related to alcohol consumption and fiber intake.
Eating and Weight
Obesity is a serious and pervasive health problem for many individuals
(Blake, 2017; Schiff, 2019; Smith & Collene, 2019). In a recent U.S. survey
in 2013–2014, 37.7 percent of adults were classified as obese (35 percent of
men; 40 percent of women) (Flegal & others, 2016). In this survey, 34
percent of adults from 20 to 39 years old were obese. Also, analysts have
predicted that by 2030, 42 percent of U.S. adults will be obese (Finkelstein &
others, 2012). In a recent international comparison of 33 countries, the United
States had the highest percentage of obese adults (38.2 percent) and Japan the
lowest percentage (3.7); the average of the countries was 19.5 percent of the
population being obese (OECD, 2017).
Being overweight or obese is linked to increased risk of hypertension,
diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (Aune & others, 2018; Young & others,
2018). Overweight and obesity also are associated with mental health
problems (Hong & Hur, 2017; Rajan & Menon, 2017; Zhang & others,
2018). For example, in one study, overweight/obese adults who were
depressed were more likely to be characterized by atypical features of
depression such as rejection sensitivity and leaden paralysis (a sense of
heaviness in arms and legs) than normal-weight depressed adults (Lojko &
others, 2015).
One thing we know about losing weight is that the most effective
programs include exercise (Walton-Fisette & Wuest, 2018). A research
review concluded that adults who engaged in diet-plus-exercise programs lost
more weight than those who followed diet-only programs (Wu & others,
2009). Also, a study of approximately 2,000 U.S. adults found that exercising
30 minutes a day, planning meals, and weighing themselves daily were the
strategies used more often by successful dieters than by unsuccessful dieters
(Kruger, Blanck, & Gillespie, 2006) (see Figure 2).
Figure 2 Comparison of Strategies Used by Successful and Unsuccessful Dieters
Regular Exercise
One of the main reasons that health experts want people to exercise is that it
helps to prevent diseases, such as heart disease and diabetes (Walton-Fisette
& Wuest, 2018). Many health experts recommend that young adults engage
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in 30 minutes or more of aerobic exercise daily. Aerobic exercise is
sustained exercise—jogging, swimming, or cycling, for example—that
stimulates heart and lung activity. Most health experts recommend exercising
vigorously enough to raise your heart rate to at least 60 percent of your
maximum heart rate. Only about one-fifth of adults, however, meet these
recommended levels of physical activity.
A national poll in the United States found that 51.6 percent of individuals
18 years and older exercised for 30 or more minutes 3 or more
days a week (Gallup, 2013). In this survey, young adults 18 to
29 years of age (56.8 percent) were the most likely to exercise
of all adult age groups. Also in this survey, men were more likely to exercise
than women.
Researchers have found that exercise benefits not only physical health,
but mental health as well (Netz, 2017). For example, in recent research,
moderate to vigorous aerobic exercise was effective in reducing major
depressive disorder (Schuch & others, 2017; Paolucci & others, 2018;
Werneck, Oyeyemi, & Silva, 2018). Also, in a daily diary study on days
when emerging adult (18 to 25 years of age) college students engaged in
more physical activity they reported greater satisfaction with life (Maher &
others, 2013). And yet another study found a reduction in mortality risk when
screen time was replaced by increased physical activity (Wijndaele & others,
2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you design a
community education
program to emphasize
the importance of
regular exercise for
young adults?
Substance Abuse
Earlier we explored substance abuse in adolescence. One study revealed that
only 20 percent of college students reported abstaining from drinking alcohol
(Huang & others, 2009). Fortunately, by the time individuals reach their mid-
twenties, many have reduced their use of alcohol and drugs (Schulenberg &
others, 2017). As in adolescence, male college students and young adults are
more likely to take drugs than their female counterparts (Johnston & others,
2015).
Heavy binge drinking often occurs in college, and it can take its toll on
students (Wombacher & others, 2018). In 2016, 32 percent of U.S. college
students reported having had five or more drinks in a row at least once in the
last two weeks (Schulenberg & others, 2017). The term extreme binge
drinking (also called high-intensity drinking) describes individuals who had
10 or more drinks in a row or 15 or more drinks in a row in the last two
weeks (Patrick & others, 2017a, b, c; Schulenberg & Patrick, 2018). In 2016,
12 percent of college students reported drinking this heavily (Schulenberg &
others, 2017). While drinking rates among college students have remained
high, drinking, including binge drinking, has declined in recent years. For
example, binge drinking declined from 37 percent in 2012 to 32 percent in
2016 (Schulenberg & others, 2017).
What kinds of problems are associated with binge drinking in college?
©Joe Raedle/Newsmakers/Getty Images
In a national survey of drinking patterns on 140 campuses (Wechsler &
others, 1994), almost half of the binge drinkers reported problems that
included missing classes, sustaining physical injuries, experiencing troubles
with police, and having unprotected sex. For example, binge-drinking college
students were 11 times more likely to fall behind in school, 10 times more
likely to drive after drinking, and twice as likely to have unprotected sex in
comparison with college students who did not binge drink. And a
longitudinal study revealed that frequent binge drinking and marijuana use
during the freshman year of college predicted delayed college graduation
(White & others, 2018).
When does binge drinking peak during development? A longitudinal
study revealed that binge drinking peaks at about 21 to 22 years of age and
then declines through the remainder of the twenties (Schulenberg & others,
2017) (see Figure 3). Recent data from the Monitoring the Future study at the
University of Michigan also indicate that binge drinking peaked at 21 to 22
years of age, with 38 percent reporting that they had engaged in binge
drinking at least once in the last 2 weeks (Schulenberg & others, 2017).
Figure 3 Binge Drinking in the Adolescence–Early Adulthood Transition
Note that the percentage of individuals engaging in binge drinking peaked at 21 or 22
years of age, remained high through the mid-twenties, then began to decline in the late
twenties. Binge drinking was defined as having five or more alcoholic drinks in a row in
the previous two weeks.
Page 313
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you apply
your understanding of
binge drinking to
develop a program to
encourage responsible
alcohol use on college
campuses?
Sexuality
We have explored how adolescents develop a sexual identity and become
sexually active. What happens to their sexuality in adulthood?
Sexual Activity in Emerging Adulthood
At the beginning of emerging adulthood (age 18), surveys indicate that
slightly more than 60 percent of individuals have experienced sexual
intercourse, but by the end of emerging adulthood (age 25), most individuals
have had sexual intercourse (Lefkowitz & Gillen, 2006). Also, the average
age of marriage in the United States is currently 29.5 for males and 27.4 for
females (Livingston, 2017). Thus, emerging adulthood is a time during which
most individuals are both sexually active and unmarried (Waterman &
Lefkowitz, 2018).
Casual sex is more common in emerging adulthood than it is during the
late twenties (Waterman & Lefkowitz, 2018; Wesche & Lefkowitz, 2019;
Wesche & others, 2018). A recent trend has involved “hooking up” to have
non-relationship sex (from kissing to intercourse) (Blayney & others, 2018;
Penhollow, Young, & Nnaka, 2017; Sullivan & others, 2018). One study
revealed that 20 percent of first-year college women on one large university
campus had engaged in at least one hook-up over the course of the school
Page 314
year (Fielder & others, 2013). In this study, impulsivity, sensation seeking,
and alcohol use were among the predictors of a higher likelihood of hooking
up. Further, another study indicated that 40 percent of 22-year-olds reporting
having had a recent casual sexual partner (Lyons & others, 2015). And one
study of more than 3,900 18- to 25-year-olds indicated that having casual sex
was negatively linked to well-being and positively related to psychological
distress (Bersamin & others, 2014).
In addition to hooking up, another type of casual sex that has increased
among emerging adults is “friends with benefits (FWB),” which involves a
relationship formed by the integration of friendship and sexual intimacy
without an explicit commitment characteristic of an exclusive romantic
relationship (Weger, Cole, & Akbulut, 2018). A recent study found that
suicidal ideation was associated with entrance into a friends-with-benefits
relationship as well as continuation of the FWB relationship (Dube & others,
2017).
Sexual Orientation and Behavior
A national study of sexual behavior in the United States among adults 25 to
44 years of age found that 98 percent of the women and 97 percent of the
men said that they had ever engaged in vaginal intercourse (Chandra &
others, 2011). Also in this study, 89 percent of the women and 90 percent of
the men reported that they had ever had oral sex with an opposite-
sex partner, and 36 percent of the women and 44 percent of the
men stated that they had ever had anal sex with an opposite-sex
partner.
Detailed information about various aspects of sexual activity in adults of
different ages comes from the 1994 Sex in America survey. In this study
Robert Michael and his colleagues (1994) interviewed more than 3,000
people from 18 to 59 years of age who were randomly selected, in sharp
contrast with earlier samples that were based on unrepresentative groups of
volunteers.
Heterosexual Attitudes and Behavior
Here are some of the key findings from the 1994 Sex in America survey:
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, what
information would you
include in a program
designed to educate
young adults about
healthy sexuality and
sexual relationships?
Americans tend to fall into three categories: One-third have sex twice a
week or more, one-third a few times a month, and one-third a few times a
year or not at all.
Married (and cohabiting) couples have sex more often than noncohabiting
couples (see Figure 4).
Figure 4 The Sex in America Survey
The percentages show noncohabiting and cohabiting (married) males’ and females’
Page 315
responses to the question “How often have you had sex in the past year?” in a 1994 survey
(Michael & others, 1994). What was one feature of the Sex in America survey that made it
superior to most surveys of sexual behavior?
Source: Michael, R. T., Gagnon, J. H., Laumann, E. O., & Kolata, G. Sex in
America. Boston: Little, Brown, 1994.
Most Americans do not engage in kinky sexual acts. When asked about
their favorite sexual acts, the vast majority (96 percent) said that vaginal
sex was “very” or “somewhat” appealing. Oral sex was in third place,
after an activity that many have not labeled a sexual act—watching a
partner undress.
Adultery is clearly the exception rather than the rule. Nearly 75 percent of
the married men and 85 percent of the married women in the survey
indicated that they had never been unfaithful.
Men think about sex far more often than women do—54 percent of the
men said they thought about it every day or several times a day, whereas
67 percent of the women said they thought about it only a few times a
week or a few times a month.
In sum, one of the most powerful messages in the 1994 survey was that
Americans’ sexual lives are more conservative than was previously believed.
Although 17 percent of the men and 3 percent of the women said they had
had sex with at least 21 partners, the overall impression from the survey was
that sexual behavior is ruled by marriage and monogamy for most
Americans.
How extensive are gender differences in sexuality? An analysis of almost
8,000 emerging adults found that males had stronger permissive attitudes,
especially about sex in casual relationships, than did females
(Sprecher, Treger, & Sakaluk, 2013). Also, a meta-analysis
revealed that men reported having slightly more sexual
experiences and more permissive attitudes than women for most aspects of
sexuality (Petersen & Hyde, 2010). For the following factors, stronger
differences were found: Men said that they engaged more often in
masturbation, pornography use, and casual sex, and had more permissive
attitudes about casual sex than their female counterparts did.
Given all the media and public attention focusing on the negative aspects
of sexuality—such as adolescent pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections,
rape, and so on—it is important to underscore that research strongly supports
the role of sexuality in well-being (King, 2017, 2018). For example, in a
Swedish study frequency of sexual intercourse was strongly linked to life
satisfaction for both women and men (Brody & Costa, 2009). And in a recent
study, sexual activity in adults on day 1 was linked to greater well-being the
next day (Kashdan & others, 2018). Also in this study, higher reported sexual
pleasure and intimacy predicted more positive affect and less negative affect
the next day.
What likely determines an individual’s sexual orientation?
(Top) ©Laurence Mouton/Getty Images; (middle & bottom) ©2009 JupiterImages
Corporation
Sources of Sexual Orientation
Until the end of the nineteenth century, it was generally believed that people
were either heterosexual or homosexual. Today, the more accepted view of
sexual orientation depicts it not as an either/or proposition but as a continuum
from exclusive male-female relations to exclusive same-sex relations (King,
2017, 2018). Some individuals are bisexual, being sexually attracted to
people of both sexes.
People sometimes think that bisexuality is simply a stepping stone to
same-sex sexuality, while others view it as a sexual orientation itself or as an
indicator of sexual fluidity (King, 2017, 2018). Evidence supports the notion
that bisexuality is a stable orientation that involves attraction to both sexes
(Lippa, 2013).
Compared with men, women are more likely to change their sexual
patterns and desires (Knight & Hope, 2012). Women are more likely than
men to have sexual experiences with same- and opposite-sex partners, even if
they identify themselves strongly as being heterosexual or lesbian (King,
2017, 2018). Also, women are more likely than men to identify themselves as
bisexual (Gates, 2011).
In the Sex in America survey, 2.7 percent of the men and 1.3 percent of
the women reported having had same-sex relations in the past year (Michael
& others, 1994). However, in a national survey a higher percentage (3.8
percent) of U.S. adults reported that they were gay, lesbian, bisexual, or
transsexual (Gallup, 2015). In the most recent national survey of sexual
orientation that included men and women from 18 to 44 years of age, almost
three times as many women (17.4 percent) as men (6.2 percent) reported
having had same-sex contact (Copen, Chandra, & Febo-Vasquez, 2018).
Feelings of attraction only to the opposite sex were more frequent for men
(92.1 percent) than for women (81 percent). Also in this study, 92.3 percent
of women and 95.1 percent of men described themselves as heterosexual or
straight. Further, 1.3 percent of women and 1.9 percent of men said they were
homosexual, gay, or lesbian. Also, 5.5 percent of women and 2 percent of
men reported that they were bisexual.
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Why are some individuals lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) and others
heterosexual? Speculation surrounding this question has been extensive
(Savin-Williams, 2017, 2018).
All people, regardless of their sexual orientation, have similar
physiological responses during sexual arousal and seem to be aroused by the
same types of tactile stimulation. Investigators typically find no differences
between LGBs and heterosexuals in a wide range of attitudes, behaviors, and
adjustments (Fingerhut & Peplau, 2013).
Recently, researchers have explored the possible biological basis of same-
sex relations. The results of hormone studies have been inconsistent. If gay
males are given male sex hormones (androgens), their sexual
orientation doesn’t change. Their sexual desire merely
increases. A very early prenatal critical period might influence
sexual orientation (Berenbaum & Beltz, 2011). If this critical-period
hypothesis turns out to be correct, it would explain why clinicians have found
that sexual orientation is difficult, if not impossible, to modify.
Researchers have also examined genetic influences on sexual orientation
by studying twins. A Swedish study of almost 4,000 twins found that only
about 35 percent of the variation in homosexual behavior in men and 19
percent in women were explained by genetic differences (Langstrom &
others, 2010). This result suggests that although genes likely play a role in
sexual orientation, they are not the only factor involved (King, 2017, 2018).
An individual’s sexual orientation—same-sex, heterosexual, or bisexual
—is most likely determined by a combination of genetic, hormonal,
cognitive, and environmental factors (King, 2017, 2018). Most experts on
same-sex relations believe that no one factor alone causes sexual orientation
and that the relative weight of each factor can vary from one individual to the
next. That said, it has become clear that whether heterosexual, gay, lesbian,
or bisexual, a person cannot be talked out of his or her sexual orientation
(King, 2017, 2018).
Attitudes and Behavior of Lesbians and Gay Males
Many gender differences that appear in heterosexual relationships occur in
same-sex relationships (Diamond & Alley, 2018; Savin-Williams, 2017,
2018). For example, lesbians have fewer sexual partners than gays, and
lesbians have less permissive attitudes about casual sex outside a primary
relationship than gays do (Fingerhut & Peplau, 2013).
Sexually Transmitted Infections
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are diseases that are primarily
contracted through sexual relations—intercourse as well as oral-genital and
anal-genital sex. STIs affect about one of every six U.S. adults (National
Center for Health Statistics, 2018). Among the most prevalent STIs are
bacterial infections—such as gonorrhea, syphilis, and chlamydia—and STIs
caused by viruses—such as AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome),
genital herpes, and genital warts. Figure 5 describes these sexually
transmitted infections.
Figure 5 Sexually Transmitted Infections
No single disease has had a greater impact on sexual behavior, or created
more public fear in the last several decades, than infection with the human
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immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (Crooks & Baur, 2017). HIV is a virus that
destroys the body’s immune system. Once a person is infected with HIV, the
virus breaks down and overpowers the immune system, which leads to AIDS.
An individual sick with AIDS has such a weakened immune system that a
common cold can be life-threatening.
In 2015, approximately 1.1 million people in the United States were
living with an HIV infection (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
2018). In 2015, male-male sexual contact continued to be the most frequent
AIDS transmission category. Because of education and the development of
more effective drug treatments, deaths due to HIV/AIDS have begun to
decline in the United States. Globally, the total number of individuals living
with HIV was 36.7 million in 2016, with 25.7 million of these individuals
with HIV living in sub-Saharan Africa (UNAIDS, 2017). Currently, only
about 60 percent of individuals with HIV know they have the disease
(UNAIDS, 2017). Approximately half of all new HIV infections around the
world occur in the 15- to 24-year-old age category. In one study, only 49
percent of 15- to 24-year-old females in low- and middle-income countries
knew that using a condom helps to prevent HIV infection, compared with 74
percent of young males (UNAIDS, 2011). The good news is that global rates
of HIV infection fell by 35 percent from 2000 to 2014 (UNAIDS, 2015).
What are some good strategies for protecting against HIV and other
sexually transmitted infections? They include the following:
Knowing your own and your partner’s risk status. Anyone who has had
previous sexual activity with another person might have contracted an
STI without being aware of it. Spend time getting to know a
prospective partner before you have sex. Use this time to
inform the other person of your STI status and inquire about
your partner’s. Remember that many people lie about their STI status.
Obtaining medical examinations. Many experts recommend that couples
who want to begin a sexual relationship have a medical checkup to rule
out STIs before engaging in sex. If cost is an issue, contact your campus
health service or a public health clinic.
Having protected, not unprotected, sex. When correctly used, latex
condoms help to prevent many STIs from being transmitted. Condoms are
most effective in preventing gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia, and HIV.
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They are less effective against the spread of herpes.
Not having sex with multiple partners. One of the best predictors of
getting an STI is having sex with multiple partners. Having more than one
sex partner elevates the likelihood of encountering an infected partner.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, what
advice would you give
to a patient who is
sexually active, does not
use condoms, and does
not want to be tested for
any sexually transmitted
infections?
Cognitive Development
Are there changes in cognitive performance during these years? To explore
the nature of cognition in early adulthood, we focus on issues related to
cognitive stages and creative thinking.
Cognitive Stages
Are young adults more advanced in their thinking than adolescents are? Let’s
examine how Piaget and others have answered this intriguing question.
Piaget’s View
Piaget concluded that an adolescent and an adult think qualitatively in the
same way. That is, Piaget argued that at approximately 11 to 15 years of age,
adolescents enter the formal operational stage, which is characterized by
more logical, abstract, and idealistic thinking than the concrete operational
thinking of 7- to 11-year-olds. Piaget did believe that young adults are more
quantitatively advanced in their thinking in the sense that they have more
knowledge than adolescents possess. He also believed, as do information-
processing psychologists, that adults especially increase their knowledge in a
specific area, such as a physicist’s understanding of physics or a financial
analyst’s knowledge about finance. According to Piaget, however, formal
operational thought is the final stage in cognitive development, and it
characterizes adults as well as adolescents.
What are some ways that young adults might think differently from adolescents?
©Yuri Arcurs/Alamy
Some developmentalists theorize it is not until adulthood that many
individuals consolidate their formal operational thinking. That is, they may
begin to plan and hypothesize about intellectual problems in adolescence, but
they become more systematic and sophisticated at this as young adults.
Nonetheless, even many adults do not think in formal operational ways at all
(Kuhn, 2009).
Postformal Thought
It has been proposed that the idealism of Piaget’s formal operational stage
declines in young adults and is replaced by more realistic, pragmatic
thinking. It also has been proposed that young adults move into a new
qualitative stage of cognitive development called postformal thought
(Sinnott, 2003). Postformal thought is:
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you characterize
the differences in the
cognitive development
of adolescents and
adults? How would this
distinction influence
your approach to
teaching these different
populations?
Reflective, relativistic, and contextual. As young adults engage in solving
problems, they might think deeply about many aspects of work, politics,
relationships, and other areas of life (Labouvie-Vief, 1986). They find
that what might be the best solution to a problem at work (with a boss or
co-worker) might not be the best solution at home (with a romantic
partner). Thus, postformal thought holds that the correct answer to a
problem requires reflective thinking and may vary from one situation to
another. Some psychologists argue that reflective thinking continues to
increase and becomes more internal and less contextual in middle age
(Labouvie-Vief, Gruhn, & Studer, 2010; Mascalo & Fischer, 2010).
Provisional. Many young adults also become more skeptical about the
truth and seem unwilling to accept an answer as final. Thus, they come to
see the search for truth as an ongoing and perhaps never-ending process.
Realistic. Young adults understand that thinking can’t always be abstract.
In many instances, it must be realistic and pragmatic.
Recognized as being influenced by emotion. Emerging and young adults
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are more likely than adolescents to understand that their thinking is
influenced by emotions (Girgis & others, 2018; Labouvie-Vief, 2009).
However, too often negative emotions produce thinking that is distorted
and self-serving at this point in development.
In addition to the characteristics just described for a possible fifth,
postformal stage, a recent study explored wisdom and meaning as important
developments in emerging adulthood (Webster & others,
2018). In this study, it was found that the search for and
presence of meaning was linked to wisdom, which was
assessed with five components: critical life experiences,
reminiscence/reflectiveness, openness to experience, emotional regulation,
and humor. We will further explore meaning in life in the chapter on
“Socioemotional Development in Middle Adulthood” and wisdom in the
chapter on “Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood.”
Creativity
Early adulthood is a time of great creativity for some people. At the age of
30, Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, Hans Christian Andersen wrote
his first volume of fairy tales, and Mozart composed The Marriage of Figaro.
One early study of creativity found that individuals’ most creative products
were generated in their thirties, and that 80 percent of the most important
creative contributions were completed by age 50 (Lehman, 1960). Even
though a decline in creative contributions is often found in the fifties and
later, the decline is not as great as was commonly thought.
Any consideration of decline in creativity with age must take into account
the field of creativity involved (Kandler & others, 2016). In fields such as
philosophy and history, older adults often show as much creativity as they did
when they were in their thirties and forties. By contrast, in fields such as lyric
poetry, abstract math, and theoretical physics, the peak of creativity is often
reached in the twenties or thirties.
Researchers have found that personality traits are linked to creativity
(Feist, 2018; Kandler & others, 2016). In one recent study, the personality
trait of openness to experience predicted creativity in the arts, while
intellectual capacity predicted creativity in the sciences (Kaufman & others,
2016).
Can you make yourself more creative? Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (1995)
interviewed 90 leading figures in art, business, government, education, and
science to learn how creativity works. He discovered that creative people
regularly experience a state he calls flow, a heightened state of pleasure
experienced when we are engaged in mental and physical challenges that
absorb us. Csikszentmihalyi (2000) believes everyone is capable of achieving
flow. Based on his interviews with some of the most creative people in the
world, the first step toward a more creative life is cultivating your curiosity
and interest. How can you do this?
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you use your
understanding of
creativity to become a
more effective teacher?
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, in the setting where he gets his most creative ideas. When and
where do you get your most creative thoughts?
Courtesy of Dr. Mihaly Csiksentmihalyi
Try to be surprised by something every day. Maybe it is something you
see, hear, or read about. Become absorbed in a lecture or a book. Be open
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to what the world is telling you. Life is a stream of experiences. Swim
widely and deeply in it, and your life will be richer.
Try to surprise at least one person every day. In a lot of things you do,
you have to be predictable and patterned. Do something different for a
change. Ask a question you normally would not ask. Invite someone to go
to a show you haven’t seen or a museum you never have visited.
Write down each day what surprised you and how you surprised others.
Most creative people keep a diary, notes, or lab records to ensure that
their experience is not fleeting or forgotten. Start with a specific task.
Each evening, record the most surprising event that occurred that day and
your most surprising action. After a few days, reread your notes and
reflect on your past experiences. After a few weeks, you might see a
pattern of interest emerging in your notes, one that might suggest an area
you can explore in greater depth.
When something sparks your interest, follow it. Usually when something
captures your attention, it is short-lived—an idea, a song, a flower. Too
often we are too busy to explore the idea, song, or flower further. Or we
think these areas are none of our business because we are not experts
about them. Yet the world is our business. We can’t know which part of it
is best suited to our interests until we make a serious effort to learn as
much about as many aspects of it as possible.
Wake up in the morning with a specific goal to look forward
to. Creative people wake up eager to start the day. Why? Not
necessarily because they are cheerful, enthusiastic types but
because they know that there is something meaningful to accomplish each
day, and they can’t wait to get started.
Spend time in settings that stimulate your creativity. In
Csikszentmihalyi’s (1995) research, he gave people an electronic pager
and beeped them randomly at different times of the day. When he asked
them how they felt, they reported the highest levels of creativity when
walking, driving, or swimming. I (your author) do my most creative
thinking when I’m jogging. These activities are semiautomatic in that
they take a certain amount of attention while leaving some time free to
make connections among ideas. Another setting in which highly creative
people report coming up with novel ideas is the sort of half-asleep, half-
awake state we are in when we are deeply relaxed or barely awake.
Careers and Work
Earning a living, choosing an occupation, establishing a career, and
developing in a career—these are important themes of early adulthood. Let’s
consider some of the factors that go into choosing a career and a job and
examine how work typically affects the lives of young adults.
Careers
What are some developmental changes young adults experience as they
choose a career? How effectively are individuals finding a path to purpose
today?
Developmental Changes
Many children have idealistic fantasies about what they want to be when they
grow up. For example, many young children want to be superheroes, sports
stars, or movie stars. In the high school years, they often begin to think about
careers in a somewhat less idealistic way. In their late teens and early
twenties, their career decision making has usually turned more serious as they
explore different career possibilities and zero in on the career they want to
enter. In college, this often means choosing a major or specialization that is
designed to lead to work in a particular field. By their early and mid-twenties,
many individuals have completed their education or training and entered a
full-time occupation. From the mid-twenties through the remainder of early
adulthood, individuals often seek to establish their emerging career in a
particular field. They may work hard to move up the career ladder and
improve their financial standing.
Phyllis Moen (2009a) described the career mystique, which includes
ingrained cultural beliefs that engaging in hard work for long hours through
adulthood will produce a path to status, security, and happiness. That is,
many individuals have an idealized concept of a career path toward achieving
the American dream of upward mobility by climbing occupational ladders.
However, the lockstep career mystique has never been a reality for many
individuals, especially ethnic minority individuals, women, and poorly
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educated adults. Further, the career mystique has increasingly become a myth
for many individuals in middle-income occupations as global outsourcing of
jobs and widespread layoffs during the 2007–2009 recession have led to
reduced job security for millions of Americans.
Finding a Path to Purpose
In his book The Path to Purpose: Helping Our Children Find Their Calling
in Life, William Damon (2008) suggested that purpose is a missing ingredient
in many adolescents’ and emerging adults’ achievement and career
development. Too many youth drift aimlessly through their high school and
college years, Damon says, engaging in behavior that places them
at risk for not fulfilling their potential and not finding a life
pursuit that energizes them.
In interviews with 12- to 22-year-olds, Damon found that only about 20
percent had a clear vision of where they wanted to go in life, what they
wanted to achieve, and why. The largest percentage—about 60 percent—had
engaged in some potentially purposeful activities, such as service learning or
fruitful discussions with a career counselor—but they still did not have a real
commitment or any reasonable plans for reaching their goals. And slightly
more than 20 percent expressed no aspirations and, in some instances, said
they didn’t see any reason to have aspirations.
Damon concludes that most teachers and parents communicate the
importance of achieving goals such as studying hard and getting good grades,
but rarely discuss the purpose of these goals and where they might lead
young adults. Damon emphasizes that too often students focus only on short-
term goals and don’t explore the big, long-term picture of what they want to
do with their life. The following interview questions that Damon (2008, p.
135) has used in his research are good springboards for getting individuals to
reflect on their purpose:
Hari Prabhakar (in rear) at a screening camp in India that he created as part of his Tribal
India Health Foundation. Hari reflects William Damon’s concept of finding a path to
purpose. His ambition is to become an international health expert. A 2006 graduate from
Johns Hopkins University (with a double major in public health and writing and a 3.9
GPA), he pursued many activities outside the classroom, in the health field. As he
transitioned from high school to college, Hari created the Tribal India Health Foundation
(www.tihf.org), which provides assistance in bringing low-cost health care to rural areas
in India. Juggling roles as a student and as the foundation’s director, Hari spent 15 hours a
week leading Tribal India Health during his undergraduate years. Hari said (Johns
Hopkins University, 2006): “I have found it very challenging to coordinate the
international operation. . . . It takes a lot of work, and there’s not a lot of free time. But it’s
worth it when I visit our patients and see how they and the community are getting better.”
Courtesy of Hari Prabhakar
What’s most important to you in your life?
Why do you care about those things?
Do you have any long-term goals?
Why are these goals important to you?
What does it mean to have a good life?
What does it mean to be a good person?
If you were looking back on your life now, how would you like to be
remembered?
Recent research has provided support for the importance of purpose in
people’s lives. In one study, purpose predicted emerging adults’ well-being
(Hill & others, 2016). In another study, a high sense of purpose in life was
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associated with a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease and a longer life
(Cohen, Bavishi, & Rozanski, 2016).
Work
In this final section, we’ll examine how work affects people’s lives, the role
of work in college, the occupational outlook, unemployment, dual-earner
couples, and diversity in the workplace.
The Impact of Work
Work defines people in fundamental ways (Adler & Elmhurst, 2019; Hsieh &
Huang, 2017). It is an important influence on their financial standing,
housing, the way they spend their time, where they live, their friendships, and
their health. Some people define their identity through their work. Work also
creates a structure and rhythm to life that is often missed when individuals do
not work for an extended period. When they are unable to work, many
individuals experience emotional distress and low self-esteem.
Most individuals spend about one-third of their lives at work. In one
survey, U.S. individuals 18+ years old who were employed full-time worked
an average of 47 hours per week, almost a full work day longer than the
standard 9 to 5 five days a week schedule (Saad, 2014). In this
survey, half of all individuals working full-time reported that
they work more than 40 hours a week and nearly 40 percent
said they work 50 hours a week or more. Only 8 percent indicated they
worked less than 40 hours per week.
The U.S. job market for college graduates has been improving recently.
According to a recent survey, 74 percent of employers reported that they
were planning to hire recent college graduates in 2017, up from 67 percent in
2016 (CareerBuilder, 2017). The 74 percent figure is the best job outlook for
recent college graduates since 2007. Also good news for recent college
graduates is that in 2017, employers said they were planning to pay new
employees more than they did in 2016.
A trend in the U.S. workforce is the disappearing long-term career for an
increasing number of adults, especially men in private-sector jobs (Hollister,
2011). Among the reasons for the reduced number of long-term jobs is the
dramatic increase in technology and cheaper labor in other countries.
Many young and older adults are working at a series of jobs, and many
work in short-term jobs (Greenhaus, 2013). Early careers are especially
unstable as some young workers move from “survival jobs” to “career jobs”
in the process of finding a job that matches their personal interests and goals
(Staff, Mont’Alvao, & Mortimer, 2015). A study of more than 1,100
individuals from 18 to 31 years of age revealed that maintaining a high
aspiration and certainty over career goals better insulated individuals against
unemployment during the severe economic recession that began in 2007
(Vuolo, Staff, & Mortimer, 2012).
An important consideration regarding work is how stressful it is (Dragano
& others, 2017; Hassard & others, 2018; Mayerl & others, 2017). In a
national survey of U.S. adults, 55 percent indicated they were less productive
because of stress (American Psychological Association, 2007). In this study,
52 percent reported that they had considered or made a career decision, such
as looking for a new job, declining a promotion, or quitting a job, because of
stress in the workplace. In this survey, main sources of stress included low
salaries (44 percent), lack of advancement opportunities (42 percent),
uncertain job expectations (40 percent), and long hours (39 percent). One
study revealed that stressors at work were linked to arterial hypertension in
employees (Lamy & others, 2014). A recent study indicated that increases in
job strain increased workers’ insomnia, while decreases in job strain reduced
their insomnia (Halonen & others, 2018).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, what
advice would you give
to a student who has a
full-time job while
taking college classes?
Many adults hold changing expectations about work, yet employers often
aren’t meeting their expectations (Hall & Mirvis, 2013). For example, current
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policies and practices were designed for a single-breadwinner (male)
workforce and an industrial economy, making these policies and practices out
of step with a service-oriented workforce of women and men, and of single
parents and dual earners. Many workers today want flexibility and greater
control over the time and timing of their work, yet most employers offer little
flexibility, even if policies like flextime are “on the books.”
Work During College
The percentage of full-time U.S. college students who also held jobs
increased from 34 percent in 1970 to 47 percent in 2008, then declined to 43
percent in in 2015 (down from a peak of 52 percent in 2000) (National Center
for Education Statistics, 2017). In 2015, 78 percent of part-time U.S. college
students were employed, up from 74 percent in 2011 but slightly down from
81 percent in 2008.
Working can pay for schooling or help offset some of its
costs, but working also can restrict students’ opportunities to
learn. For those who identified themselves primarily as
students, one national study found that as the number of hours worked per
week increased, their grades suffered (National Center for Education
Statistics, 2002) (see Figure 6). Thus, college students need to carefully
examine whether the number of hours they work is having a negative impact
on their college success.
Figure 6 The Relation of Hours Worked Per Week in College to Grades
Among college students working to pay for school expenses, 16 percent of those working
1 to 15 hours per week reported that working had a negative impact on their grades
(National Center for Education Statistics, 2002). Thirty percent of college students who
worked 16 to 20 hours a week said the same, as did 48 percent who worked 35 hours or
more per week.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics. The Condition of Education: Work
During College. Washington, DC: U.S. Office of Education, 2002.
Monitoring the Occupational Outlook
As you explore the type of work you are likely to enjoy and in which you can
succeed, it is important to be knowledgeable about different fields and
companies. Occupations may have many job openings one year but few in
another year as economic conditions change. Thus, it is critical to keep up
with the occupational outlook in various fields. An excellent resource for
doing this is the U.S. government’s Occupational Outlook Handbook, which
is revised every two years.
According to the 2016–2017 handbook, the job categories of wind turbine
service technicians, occupational therapy assistants, physical therapist
assistants, physical therapist aides, home health aides, commercial drivers,
nurse practitioners, physical therapists, and statisticians are projected to be
the fastest-growing through 2024. Projected job growth varies widely by
educational requirements. Jobs that require a college degree are expected to
grow the fastest. Most of the highest-paying occupations require a college
degree.
Unemployment
Unemployment produces stress regardless of whether the job loss is
temporary, cyclical, or permanent (Frasquilho & others, 2016). Researchers
have linked unemployment to physical problems (such as heart attack and
stroke), emotional problems (such as depression and anxiety), marital
difficulties, and homicide (Rizvi & others, 2015; Yoo & others, 2016). One
study revealed that 90 or more days of unemployment was associated with
subsequent cardiovascular disease across an 8-year follow-up period (Lundin
& others, 2014). A research review concluded that unemployment was
associated with an increased mortality risk for individuals in the early and
middle stages of their careers, but the link was weaker for those in the later
years of their career (Roelfs & others, 2011). In a recent study, depression
following job loss predicted increased risk of continued unemployment
(Stolove, Galatzer-Levy, & Bonanno, 2017). And one study found that
involuntary job loss was linked to increased rates of attempted suicide and
suicide (Milner & others, 2014). Also, in another study, unemployment was
associated with higher mortality and the link was higher for those who were
unmarried (Van Hedel & others, 2015).
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The economic recession that hit in 2007 resulted in millions of Americans losing their
jobs, such as these individuals who are waiting in line to apply for unemployment benefits
in Chicago. What are some of the potential negative outcomes of the stress caused by job
loss?
©Scott Olson/Getty Images
Might unemployment be linked to certain characteristics in childhood and
adolescence? Longitudinal data revealed that low self-control in childhood
was linked to the emergence and persistence of unemployment from 21 to 50
years of age (Daly & others, 2015). Further, a recent study found that heavy
drinking from 16 to 30 years of age was linked to higher unemployment in
middle age (Berg & others, 2018).
Stress from unemployment comes not only from a loss of income and the
resulting financial hardships but also from decreased self-esteem (Howe &
others, 2012). Individuals who cope best with unemployment have financial
resources to rely on, often savings or the earnings of other family members.
Emotional support from understanding, adaptable family members also helps
individuals to cope with unemployment. Job counseling and self-help groups
can provide practical advice on job searching, résumé writing, and
interviewing skills, and also can lend emotional support (van Hooft, 2014).
Dual-Earner Couples
Dual-earner couples may have special problems finding a balance between
work and the rest of life (Schooreel & Verbruggen, 2016; Sun & others,
2017). If both partners are working, who cleans the house or calls the
repairman or takes care of the other endless details involved in maintaining a
home? If the couple has children, who is responsible for being sure that the
children get to school or to piano lessons on time, and who writes the notes to
approve field trips or meets the teacher or makes the dental appointments?
Many dual-earner couples engage in a range of adaptive strategies to
coordinate their work and manage the family side of the work-family
equation (Flood & Genadek, 2016). Researchers have found that even though
couples may strive for gender equality in dual-earner families, gender
inequalities persist (Cunningham, 2009). For example, women still do not
earn as much as men in the same jobs, and this inequity contributes to gender
divisions in how much time each partner spends in paid work, homemaking,
and caring for children. Thus, the decisions that dual-earner couples often
make are in favor of men’s greater earning power and women spending more
time than men in homemaking and caring for children (Moen, 2009b). One
study indicated that women reported more family interference from work
than did men (Allen & Finkelstein, 2014). Another study found that partner
coping, having a positive attitude toward multiple roles, using planning and
management skills, and not having to cut back on professional
responsibilities were linked to better relationships between dual earners
(Matias & Fontaine, 2015).
Summary
The Transition from Adolescence to Adulthood
Emerging adulthood, the time of transition from adolescence to
adulthood, is characterized by experimentation and exploration. Today’s
emerging and young adults are experiencing emerging and early
adulthood quite differently from their counterparts in earlier generations.
The transition from high school to college can involve both positive and
negative features.
Physical Development
Peak physical performance is often reached between 19 and 26 years of
age. Then, toward the latter part of early adulthood, a detectable
slowdown in physical performance is apparent for most individuals.
Health problems in emerging and young adults may include obesity, a
serious problem throughout the United States. Binge drinking is a special
problem among U.S. college students, but by the mid-twenties alcohol
and drug use often decreases.
Sexuality
Patterns of sexual activity change during emerging adulthood.
An individual’s sexual orientation likely stems from a combination of
genetic, hormonal, cognitive, and environmental factors.
Sexually transmitted infections, also called STIs, are contracted primarily
through sexual contact.
Cognitive Development
It has been proposed that the idealism of Piaget’s formal operational stage
declines in young adults and is replaced by more realistic, pragmatic
thinking. A qualitatively different, fifth cognitive stage called postformal
thought also has been proposed.
Creativity peaks in adulthood, often in the forties, and then declines.
Csikszentmihalyi proposed that the first step toward living a creative life
is to cultivate curiosity and interest.
Careers and Work
Thoughts about career choice for adolescents and young adults reflect
developmental changes. Damon argues that too many individuals have
difficulty finding a path to purpose today.
Work defines people in fundamental ways and is a key aspect of their
identity. Working during college can have a positive outcome, but it may
also have a negative impact on grades. Jobs that require a college
education will be the fastest-growing and highest-paying careers in the
United States during the next decade.
As the number of women working outside the home has increased, new
issues involving work and family have arisen.
Key Terms
aerobic exercise
emerging adulthood
postformal thought
sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
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©Ariel Skelley/Blend Images/Corbis
12
Socioemotional
Development in Early
Adulthood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood
Love and Close Relationships
Intimacy
Friendship
Romantic and Affectionate Love
Consummate Love
Cross-Cultural Variations in Romantic Relationships
Adult Lifestyles
Single Adults
Cohabiting Adults
Married Adults
Divorced Adults
Remarried Adults
Gay and Lesbian Adults
Challenges in Marriage, Parenting, and Divorce
Making Marriage Work
Becoming a Parent
Dealing with Divorce
Gender and Communication Styles, Relationships,
and Classification
Gender and Communication Styles
Gender and Relationships
Gender Classification
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Gwenna’s Pursuit and Greg’s
Lack of Commitment
Commitment is an important issue in a romantic relationship for
most individuals. Consider Gwenna, who decides that it is time to
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have a talk with Greg about his commitment to their relationship
(Lerner, 1989, pp. 44–45):
She shared her perspective on both the strengths and
weaknesses of their relationship and what her hopes
were for the future. She asked Greg to do the same.
Unlike earlier conversations, this one was conducted
without her pursuing him, pressuring him, or
diagnosing his problems with women. At the same
time, she asked Greg some clear questions, which
exposed his vagueness.
“How will you know when you are ready to make a
commitment? What specifically would you need to
change or be different than it is today?”
“I don’t know,” was Greg’s response. When
questioned further, the best he could come up with
was that he’d just feel it.
“How much more time do you need to make a
decision one way or another?”
“I’m not sure,” Greg replied. “Maybe a couple of
years, but I really can’t answer a question like that. I
can’t predict my feelings.”
And so it went.
Gwenna really loved this man, but two
years (and maybe longer) was longer than
she could comfortably wait. So, after much
thought, she told Greg that she would wait till fall
(about ten months), but that she would move on if he
couldn’t commit himself to marriage by then. She was
open about her wish to marry and have a family with
him, but she was equally clear that her first priority
was a mutually committed relationship. If Greg had
not reached that point by fall, then she would end the
relationship—painful though it would be.
During the waiting period, Gwenna was able to not
pursue him and not get distant or otherwise reactive
to his expressions of ambivalence and doubt. In this
way she gave Greg emotional space to struggle with
his dilemma, and the relationship had its best chance
of succeeding. Her bottom-line position (“a decision
by fall”) was not a threat or an attempt to rope Greg
in, but rather a clear statement of what was
acceptable to her.
Love is of central importance in each of our lives, as it is in
Gwenna’s and Greg’s lives. Shortly, we discuss the many faces of
love, as well as the diversity of adult lifestyles, aspects of marriage
and the family, and the role of gender in relationships. To begin,
though, we will return to an issue we initially raised in the
introductory chapter of this text: stability and change. ■
Stability and Change from Childhood to
Adulthood
For adults, socioemotional development revolves around adaptively
integrating our emotional experiences into enjoyable relationships with others
on a daily basis. Young adults like Gwenna and Greg face choices and
challenges in adopting lifestyles that will be emotionally satisfying,
predictable, and manageable for them. Clearly they do not come to these
tasks as blank slates, but do their decisions and actions simply reflect the
persons they had already become when they were 5 years old or 10 years old
or 20 years old?
Current research shows that the first 20 years of life lay the foundation for
an adult’s socioemotional development (Almy & Cicchetti, 2018; Goodnight
& others, 2017). And there is also every reason to believe that experiences in
the early adult years are important in determining what the individual will be
like later in adulthood. A common finding is that the smaller the time
intervals over which we measure socioemotional characteristics, the more
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similar an individual will look from one measurement to the next. Thus, if we
measure an individual’s self-concept at the age of 20, and then again at the
age of 30, we will probably find more stability than if we measured the
individual’s self-concept at the age of 10 and then again at the age of 30.
In trying to understand the young adult’s socioemotional development, it
would be misleading to look at an adult’s life only in the present, ignoring the
unfolding of social relationships and emotions (Bain & Durbach, 2018;
Dowling & others, 2017). So, too, it would be a mistake to search only
through a 30-year-old’s first five to ten years of life in trying to understand
why he or she is having difficulty in a close relationship. To further explore
stability and change, let’s examine attachment.
Attachment appears during infancy and plays an important part in
socioemotional development (Leerkes & others, 2017; Mesman, 2018).
We’ve discussed its role in infancy and adolescence. How do these earlier
patterns of attachment and adults’ attachment styles influence the lives of
adults?
Although relationships with romantic partners differ from those with
parents, romantic partners fulfill some of the same needs for adults as parents
do for their children (Arriaga & others, 2018; Gewirtz-Meydan & Finzi-
Dottan, 2018; Simpson & Rholes, 2017).
How are attachment patterns in childhood linked to relationships in emerging and early
adulthood?
(left)©BLOOMimage/Getty Images; (right)©Jade/Getty Images
Recall that securely attached infants are defined as those who
use the caregiver as a secure base from which to explore the
environment. Similarly, adults may count on their romantic
partner to be a secure base to which they can return and obtain comfort and
security during stressful times (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2016).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you help
individuals understand
how early relationship
experiences might
influence their close
relationships in
adulthood?
Do adult attachment patterns with partners reflect childhood attachment
patterns with parents and parental sensitivity in infancy? In a retrospective
study, Cindy Hazan and Phillip Shaver (1987) revealed that young adults
who were securely attached in their romantic relationships were more likely
to describe their early relationship with their parents as securely attached. In a
longitudinal study, infants who were securely attached at age 1 were securely
attached 20 years later in their adult romantic relationships (Steele & others,
1998). Also, a longitudinal study revealed that securely attached infants were
in more stable romantic relationships in adulthood than their insecurely
attached counterparts (Salvatore & others, 2011). A longitudinal study found
that insecure avoidant attachment at 8 years of age was linked to a lower level
of social initiative and prosocial behavior and a higher level of social anxiety
and loneliness at 21 years of age (Fransson & others, 2016). And in a
longitudinal study from 13 to 72 years of age, avoidant attachment declined
across the lifespan and being in a relationship predicted lower levels of
anxious and avoidant attachment across adulthood (Chopik, Edelstein, &
Grimm, 2018). However, in another longitudinal study, links between early
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attachment styles and later attachment styles were lessened by stressful and
disruptive experiences such as the death of a parent or instability of
caregiving (Lewis, Feiring, & Rosenthal, 2000).
Adults’ attachment can be categorized as secure, avoidant, or anxious:
Secure attachment style Securely attached adults have positive views of
relationships, find it easy to get close to others, and are not overly
concerned with or stressed out about their romantic relationships. These
adults tend to enjoy sexuality in the context of a committed relationship
and are less likely than others to have one-night stands.
Avoidant attachment style. Avoidant individuals are hesitant about
getting involved in romantic relationships, and once they are in a
relationship, they tend to distance themselves from their partner.
Anxious attachment style. These individuals demand closeness, are less
trusting, and are more emotional, jealous, and possessive.
What are some key dimensions of attachment in adulthood, and how are they related to
relationship patterns and well-being?
©Fuse/Getty Images
The majority of adults (about 60 to 80 percent) describe
themselves as securely attached, and not surprisingly adults prefer
having a securely attached partner (Zeifman & Hazan, 2008).
Researchers are studying links between adults’ current attachment styles and
various aspects of their lives (Dagan, Facompre, & Bernard, 2018; Huelsnitz
& others, 2018; Pepping & MacDonald, 2018; Umemura & others, 2018).
For example, securely attached adults are more satisfied with their close
relationships than insecurely attached adults, and the relationships of securely
attached adults are more likely to be characterized by trust, commitment, and
longevity. A recent research review concluded that attachment-anxious
individuals have higher levels of health anxiety (Maunder & others, 2017).
Another recent research review concluded that insecure attachment was
linked to a higher level of social anxiety in adults (Manning & others, 2017).
In another study, young adults with an anxious attachment style were more
likely to be characterized by higher negative affect, stress, and perceived
social rejection; those with an avoidant attachment style were more likely to
be characterized by less desire to be with others when alone (Sheinbaum &
others, 2015). Further, researchers recently have found that insecure anxious
and insecure avoidant individuals are more likely than securely attached
individuals to engage in risky health behaviors, are more susceptible to
physical illness, and have poorer disease outcomes (Pietromonaco & Beck,
2018). And a meta-analysis of 94 samples of U.S. college students from 1988
to 2011 found that the percentage of students with a secure attachment style
had decreased in recent years while the percentage of students with insecure
attachment styles had increased (Konrath & others, 2014).
If you have an insecure attachment style, are you stuck with it and does it
doom you to have problematic relationships? Attachment categories are
somewhat stable in adulthood, but adults do have the capacity to change their
attachment thinking and behavior (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2016). Although
attachment insecurities are linked to relationship problems, attachment style
is only one factor that contributes to relationship functioning; other factors
also contribute to relationship satisfaction and success. Later in the chapter,
we will discuss some of these factors in our coverage of marital relationships.
Love and Close Relationships
Love refers to a vast and complex territory of human behavior, spanning a
range of relationships that includes friendship, romantic love, affectionate
love, and consummate love (Berscheid, 2010; Blieszner & Ogletree, 2017,
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2018; Lantagne, Furman, & Novak, 2017; Sternberg & Sternberg, 2018). In
most of these types of love, one recurring theme is intimacy.
Intimacy
Self-disclosure and the sharing of private thoughts are hallmarks of intimacy
(Williams, Sawyer, & Wahlstrom, 2017). Adolescents have an increased need
for intimacy. At the same time, they are engaged in the essential tasks of
developing an identity and establishing their independence from their parents.
Juggling the competing demands of intimacy, identity, and independence also
becomes a central task of adulthood.
Recall that Erik Erikson (1968) argues that identity versus
identity confusion—pursuing who we are, what we are all about,
and where we are going in life—is the most important issue to be
negotiated in adolescence. In early adulthood, according to Erikson, after
individuals are well on their way to establishing stable and successful
identities, they enter the sixth developmental stage, which is intimacy versus
isolation. Erikson describes intimacy as finding oneself while losing oneself
in another person, and it requires a commitment to another person.
Why is intimacy an important aspect of early adulthood?
©Peeter Viisimaa/Getty Images
Development in early adulthood often involves balancing intimacy and
commitment on the one hand, and independence and freedom on the other. At
the same time that individuals are trying to establish an identity, they face the
challenges of increasing their independence from their parents, developing an
intimate relationship with another individual, and continuing their friendship
commitments. They also face the task of making decisions for themselves
instead of relying on what others say or do.
Friendship
Increasingly, researchers are finding that friendship plays an important role in
development throughout the life span (Blieszner, 2017; Blieszner & Ogletree,
2017, 2018). Most U.S. men and women have a best friend. Ninety-two
percent of women and 88 percent of men have a best friend of the same sex
(Blieszner, 2009). Many friendships are long-lasting, as 65 percent of U.S.
adults have known their best friend for at least 10 years and only 15 percent
have known their best friend for less than 5 years. Adulthood brings
opportunities for new friendships; when individuals move to new locations,
they may establish new friendships in their neighborhood or at work
(Blieszner, 2016; Blieszner & Ogletree, 2017, 2018).
Romantic and Affectionate Love
Although friendship is included in some conceptualizations of love, when we
think about what love is, other types of love typically come to mind. In this
section we explore two widely recognized types of love: romantic love and
affectionate love.
Romantic Love
Some friendships evolve into romantic love, which is also called passionate
love, or eros. Romantic love has strong components of sexuality and
infatuation, and as well-known love researcher Ellen Berscheid (2010) has
found, it often predominates in the early part of a love relationship. A meta-
analysis found that males show higher avoidance and lower anxiety about
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romantic love than females do (Del Giudice, 2011).
A complex intermingling of different emotions goes into romantic love—
including passion, fear, anger, sexual desire, joy, and jealousy. Sexual desire
is the most important ingredient of romantic love (Berscheid, 2010).
Obviously, some of these emotions are a source of anguish, which can lead to
other issues such as depression. One study found that a relationship between
romantic lovers was more likely than a relationship between friends to be a
cause of depression (Berscheid & Fei, 1977). Another study revealed that a
heightened state of romantic love in young adults was linked to stronger
depression and anxiety symptoms but better sleep quality (Bajoghli & others,
2014). Other researchers found that declaring a relationship status on
Facebook was associated with both romantic love and jealousy (Orosz &
others, 2015).
Online Romantic Attraction Recently, romantic attraction has not only
taken place in person but also over the Internet (Fullwood & Attrill-Smith,
2018; Jung & others, 2017). In one U.S. survey, 10 percent of 18- to 24-year-
olds, 22 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds, and 17 percent of 35- to
44-year-olds reported that they had used online dating sites or
apps (Pew Research Center, 2015). In their twenties, women have
more online pursuers than men, but in their forties men have more online
pursuers. When online dating began in 2005 it was viewed by most people as
not being a good way to meet people, but in a national survey ten years later a
majority of Americans said that online dating is a good way to meet people
(Pew Research Center, 2015).
Manti Te’o.
©John Biever/Sports Illustrated/Getty Images
Is looking for love and a marital partner online likely to work out? It
didn’t work out well in 2012 for Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o, whose
online girlfriend turned out to be a “catfish,” someone who fakes an identity
online. However, online dating sites claim that their sites often have positive
outcomes. A poll commissioned by Match.com in 2009 reported that twice as
many marriages occurred between individuals who met through an online
dating site as between people who met at bars, clubs, and other social events.
One problem with online matchmaking is that many individuals
misrepresent their characteristics, such as how old they are, how attractive
they are, and their occupation. Recent data indicate that men lie most about
their age, height, and income; women lie most about their weight, physical
build, and age (statisticbrain.com, 2017). Despite such dishonesty, some
researchers have found that romantic relationships initiated on the Internet are
more likely than relationships established in person to last for more than two
years (Bargh & McKenna, 2004). And a national study of more than 19,000
individuals found that more than one-third of marriages now begin online
(Cacioppo & others, 2013). Also in this study, marriages that began online
were slightly less likely to break up and were characterized by slightly higher
marital satisfaction than those that started in traditional offline contexts.
Romantic Relationship Changes in Emerging Adulthood How do
romantic relationships change in emerging adulthood? In a recent study
across 10 years, short-term relationships were supported more as individuals
moved into emerging adulthood (Lantagne, Furman, & Novak, 2017). Long-
term adolescent relationships were both supportive and turbulent,
characterized by elevated levels of support, negative interactions, higher
control, and more jealousy. In emerging adulthood, long-term relationships
continued to provide high levels of support, while negative interactions,
control, and jealousy decreased.
Relationship Education for Adolescents and Emerging Adults
Programs in relationship education have mainly focused on helping
committed adult couples to strengthen their relationships. Recently, though,
an increasing number of relationship education programs have been
developed for adolescents and emerging adults (Hawkins, 2018).
Relationship education consists of interventions to provide individuals and
couples with information and skills that produce positive romantic
relationships and marriages. These interventions are diverse and include
instruction in basic relationship knowledge and skills to youth in a classroom
setting, helping unmarried couple learn more about relationships in small-
group settings, and premarital education for engaged couples.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you advise
individuals who are
concerned about their
sexual functioning
because their romantic
relationship seems to be
losing its spark?
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A recent meta-analysis of 30 studies of relationship education for
adolescents and emerging adults found a positive effect of the programs
(Simpson, Leonhardt, & Hawkins, 2018). The skills most often assessed in
these studies are interpersonal communication, problem-solving and conflict
strategies, and self-regulation (Simpson, Leonhardt, & Hawkins, 2018). The
positive effects of relationship education were stronger for emerging adults
than adolescents. They also were stronger for more disadvantaged
participants than more advantaged participants.
Affectionate Love
Love is more than just passion. Affectionate love, also called companionate
love, is the type of love that occurs when someone desires to have the other
person near and has a deep, caring affection for the person (Sternberg &
Sternberg, 2018; Youyou & others, 2017).
The early stages of love have more romantic love ingredients—but as
love matures, passion tends to give way to affection (Berscheid, 2010).
Phillip Shaver (1986) proposed a developmental model of love in which the
initial phase of romantic love is fueled by a mixture of sexual attraction and
gratification, a reduced sense of loneliness, uncertainty about the security of
developing another attachment, and excitement from exploring the novelty of
another human being. With time, he says, sexual attraction wanes, attachment
anxieties either lessen or produce conflict and withdrawal, novelty is replaced
with familiarity, and lovers find themselves either securely attached in a
deeply caring relationship or distressed—feeling bored, disappointed, lonely,
or hostile, for example. In the latter case, one or both partners may eventually
end the relationship and then move on to another relationship.
Consummate Love
So far we have discussed two forms of love: romantic (or passionate) and
affectionate (or companionate). According to Robert J. Sternberg (1988;
Sternberg & Sternberg, 2018), these are not the only forms of love. Sternberg
proposed that love can be thought of as a triangle with three main dimensions
—passion, intimacy, and commitment. Passion involves physical and sexual
attraction to another. Intimacy relates to the emotional feelings of warmth,
closeness, and sharing in a relationship. Commitment is the cognitive
appraisal of the relationship and the intent to maintain the relationship even in
the face of problems.
In Sternberg’s theory, the strongest, fullest form of love is consummate
love, which involves all three dimensions (see Figure 1). If passion is the only
ingredient in a relationship (with intimacy and commitment low or absent),
we are merely infatuated. An example might be an affair or a fling in which
there is little intimacy and even less commitment. A relationship marked by
intimacy and commitment but low or lacking in passion is called affectionate
love, a pattern often found among couples who have been married for many
years. If passion and commitment are present but intimacy is not, Sternberg
calls the relationship fatuous love, as when one person worships another from
a distance. But if couples share all three dimensions—passion, intimacy, and
commitment—they experience consummate love (Sternberg & Sternberg,
2018).
Figure 1 Sternberg’s Triangle of Love
Sternberg identified three dimensions of love: passion, intimacy, and commitment.
Various combinations of these dimensions result in infatuation, affectionate love, fatuous
love, and consummate love.
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Cross-Cultural Variations in Romantic Relationships
Culture has strong influences on many aspects of human development, and
romantic relationships are no exception (Gao, 2016). In collectivist countries
like China and Korea, intimacy is more diffused in love because of the strong
group emphasis on connections outside of a romantic love relationship. By
contrast, in individualistic countries such as the United States and most
European countries, intimacy is often more intensified because an
individual’s social network is likely to be smaller and less group oriented
(Gao, 2016). Also, research indicates that greater passion
characterizes U.S. romantic relationships than Chinese romantic
relationships (Gao, 2001). And researchers have found that self-
disclosure is more common in U.S. romantic relationships than Japanese
romantic relationships (Kito, 2005). Feelings of commitment are stronger in
Chinese romantic relationships than in U.S. romantic relationships (Dion &
Dion, 1993).
In an exploration of cross-cultural variations, romantic relationships were
examined in three countries—Japan, France, and Argentina (Ansari, 2015). In
Japan, the marriage rate is rapidly decreasing to the point that the Japanese
government is very concerned about how this decline could lead to a
considerable drop in Japan’s population. In 2013, 45 percent of Japanese
women 16 to 24 years of age reported that they were not interested in or
despised having sexual contact. Also, the percentage of Japanese men and
women who aren’t involved in any romantic relationship has increased
significantly in recent years.
In Argentina, romantic interest is much stronger than in Japan (Ansari,
2015). Sexual and romantic flirtation is a way of life for many Argentinians.
Online dating is not nearly as frequent as in the United States, apparently
because men are so forward in their romantic pursuits in person.
In France, as in Argentina, interest in passionate love is strong. However,
in the three-country comparison, one aspect of French interest in romantic
relationships stood out—their affinity for having extramarital affairs. In one
comparison, only 47 percent of those surveyed in France reported that having
an extramarital affair is morally wrong, compared with 69 percent in Japan
and 72 percent in Argentina (Wike, 2014). In this survey, 84 percent of
people in the United States said infidelity was morally wrong. In sum, there
are striking cultural variations in many aspects of romantic relationships.
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Also in this exploration of romantic relationships in different countries,
the Middle Eastern country of Qatar was studied (Ansari, 2015). In Qatar,
casual dating is forbidden and public displays of affection can be punished
with prison time. However, recently with the advent of smartphones, social
media, and the Internet, young adults in Qatar are contacting each other about
co-ed parties in hotel rooms, a private way to hang out away from the
monitoring of parents, neighbors, and government officials.
Adult Lifestyles
A striking social change in recent decades has been the decreased stigma
attached to individuals who do not maintain what were long considered
conventional families. Adults today choose many lifestyles and form many
types of families (Schwartz & Scott, 2018). They live alone, cohabit, marry,
divorce, or live with someone of the same sex.
In his book The Marriage-Go-Round sociologist Andrew Cherlin (2009)
concluded that the United States has more marriages and remarriages, more
divorces, and more short-term cohabiting (living together) relationships than
most countries. Combined, these lifestyles create more turnover and
movement in and out of relationships in the United States than in virtually
any other country. Let’s explore these varying relationship lifestyles.
Single Adults
Recent decades have seen a dramatic rise in the percentage of single adults.
In 2016, 45.2 percent of individuals 18 years and older were single (U.S.
Census Bureau, 2017). The increasing number of single adults reflects rising
rates of cohabitation and a trend toward postponing marriage. The United
States has a lower percentage of single adults than many other countries such
as Great Britain, Germany, and Japan. The fastest growth in adopting a single
adult lifestyle is occurring in rapidly developing countries such as China,
India, and Brazil (Klinenberg, 2013).
Common challenges faced by single adults may include
forming intimate relationships with other adults, confronting
loneliness, and finding a niche in a society that is marriage-
oriented. Bella DePaulo (2006, 2011) argues that society has a widespread
bias against unmarried adults that is seen in everything from missed perks in
jobs to deep social and financial prejudices.
Advantages of being single include having time to make decisions about
one’s life course, time to develop personal resources to meet goals, freedom
to make autonomous decisions and pursue one’s own schedule and interests,
opportunities to explore new places and try out new experiences, and privacy.
In a recent national survey, millennials were far more likely than older
generations to want to find romance and commitment (Match.com, 2017). In
this recent survey, 40 percent of actively dating single adults have dated
someone they met online, while only 24 percent met through a friend. Also in
this study, millennials were 48 percent more likely than older generations to
have sex before the first date. This “fast sex, slow love” pattern may reflect
how millennials want to know as much about someone as possible before
committing to a serious relationship (Fisher, 2017). Also in the recent survey,
among single men 18 to 70+, 95 percent of single men favor women
initiating the first kiss and also asking for a man’s phone number, but only 29
percent of single women actually follow the first kiss pattern and only 13
percent actually ask for a man’s phone number (Match.com, 2017).
Cohabiting Adults
Cohabitation refers to living together in a sexual relationship without being
married. Cohabitation has undergone considerable changes in recent years
(Perelli-Harris & others, 2017; Sassler, Michelmore, & Qian, 2018; Thorsen,
2017). Cohabitation rates in the United States continue to rise (Stepler, 2017).
In a recent national poll, the number of cohabiting adults increased 29 percent
from 2007 to 2016, reaching a figure of 18 million adults in a cohabiting
relationship (U.S. Census Bureau, 2016). In 2016, 14 percent of U.S. adults
25 to 34 and 10 percent who were 18 to 24 years old were cohabiting.
Cohabitation rates are even higher in some countries—in Sweden, for
example, cohabitation before marriage is virtually universal (Stokes & Raley,
2009).
A number of couples view their cohabitation not as a precursor to
marriage but as an ongoing lifestyle (Klinenberg, 2013). These couples do
not want the official aspects of marriage. In the United States, cohabiting
arrangements tend to be short-lived, with one-third lasting less than a year
(Hyde & DeLamater, 2017). Fewer than 1 out of 10 lasts five years. Of
course, it is easier to dissolve a cohabitation relationship than a marriage.
What are some potential advantages and disadvantages of cohabitation?
©Image Source/Corbis
Couples who cohabit face certain problems (Braithwaite & Holt-Lunstad,
2017; Fincham & May, 2017). Disapproval by parents and other family
members can place emotional strain on the cohabiting couple. Some
cohabiting couples have difficulty owning property jointly. Legal rights on
the dissolution of the relationship are less certain than in a divorce.
If a couple live together before they marry, does cohabiting help or harm
their chances of later having a stable and happy marriage? The majority of
studies have found lower rates of marital satisfaction and higher rates of
divorce in couples who lived together before getting married (Copen,
Daniels, & Mosher, 2013; Whitehead & Popenoe, 2003). However, research
indicates that the link between marital cohabitation and marital instability in
first marriages has weakened (Smock & Gupta, 2013). Further, in a recent
large-scale study, women who cohabited within the first year of a sexual
relationship were less likely to get married than women who waited more
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than one year before cohabiting (Sassler, Michelmore, & Qian, 2018).
What might explain the finding that cohabiting is linked with
divorce more than not cohabiting? The most frequently given
explanation is that the less traditional lifestyle of cohabitation
may attract less conventional individuals who are not great believers in
marriage in the first place (Whitehead & Popenoe, 2003). An alternative
explanation is that the experience of cohabiting changes people’s attitudes
and habits in ways that increase their likelihood of divorce.
Researchers also have found that cohabiting individuals are not as
mentally healthy as their counterparts in committed marital relationships
(Braithwaite & Holt-Lunstad, 2017; Fincham & May, 2017). In a recent
study of long-term cohabitation (more than three years) in emerging
adulthood, emotional distress was higher in long-term cohabitation than
during time spent single, with men especially driving the effect (Memitz,
2018). However, heavy drinking was more common during time spent being
single than in long-term cohabitation.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you counsel a
couple deciding whether
to cohabit before
marriage?
Research has provided clarification of cohabitation outcomes. One meta-
analysis found the negative link between cohabitation and marital instability
did not hold up when only cohabitation with the eventual marital partner was
examined, indicating that these cohabitors may attach more long-term
positive meaning to living together (Jose, O’Leary, & Moyer, 2010). Also,
one study found that cohabiting did not have a negative effect on marriage if
the couple did not have any previous live-in lovers and did not have children
prior to the marriage (Cherlin, 2009). Another study concluded that the risk
of marital dissolution between cohabitors (compared with individuals who
married without cohabiting) was much smaller when they cohabited in their
mid-twenties and later (Kuperberg, 2014).
Married Adults
Until about 1930, stable marriage was widely accepted as the endpoint of
adult development. In the last 70 to 80 years, however, personal fulfillment
both inside and outside marriage has emerged as a goal that competes with
marital stability. The changing norm of male-female equality in marriage and
increasingly high expectations for what a marital relationship should be have
produced marital relationships that are more fragile and intense than they
were for earlier generations (Schwartz & Scott, 2018). A study of 502
newlyweds found that nearly all couples had optimistic forecasts of how their
marriage would change over the next four years (Lavner & Bradbury, 2013).
Despite their optimistic forecasts, their marital satisfaction declined across
this time frame. Wives with the most optimistic forecasts showed the steepest
declines in marital satisfaction.
©Shutterstock/Luca Santilli
Some characteristics of marital partners predict whether the marriage will
last longer. Two such characteristics are education and ethnicity. A survey of
more than 22,000 women found that both women and men with a bachelor’s
degree were more likely to delay marriage but were also more likely to
eventually get married and stay married for more than 20 years (Copen,
Daniels, & Mosher, 2013). Also in this study, Asian American women were
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the most likely of all ethnic groups to be in a first marriage that lasted at least
20 years—70 percent were in a first marriage that lasted this long, compared
with 54 percent for non-Latino White women, 53 percent for Latino women,
and 37 percent for African American women.
Marital Trends
In 2016, 50 percent of adults in the United States were married, down from
72 percent in 1960 (Parker & Stepler, 2017). Also, in 2016, the U.S. average
age for a first marriage had climbed to 29.5 years for men and
27.4 years for women, higher than at any other point in history
(Livingston, 2017). In 1960, the average age for a first marriage
in the United States was 23 years for men and 20 years for women. In
addition, the increased cohabitation rate in the United States has contributed
to the lower percentage of adults who are married (Wang & Parker, 2014).
Also, a higher percentage of U.S. adults never marry—in 2014, a record
percentage (23 percent of men, 17 percent of women) of persons 25 years and
older had never married. Nevertheless, the United States is still a marrying
society, with 78.5 percent of U.S. adults 25 years and older having been
married at some point in their lives in 2016.
Although marriage rates are declining and the average age of marriage is
going up, research with emerging and young adults indicates that they view
marriage as a very important life pursuit. Indeed, in one study of young
adults, they predicted that marriage would be more important in their life than
parenting, careers, or leisure activities (Willoughby, Hall, & Goff, 2015). In a
recent book, The Marriage Paradox (Willoughby & James, 2017), it was
concluded that the importance of marriage to emerging and young adults may
be what is encouraging them to first build better a better career and financial
foundation to increase the likelihood their marriage will be successful later.
In this perspective, emerging and young adults may not be abandoning
marriage because they don’t like it or are uninterested in it, but rather because
they want to position themselves in the best possible way for developing a
healthy marital relationship.
One study explored what U.S. never-married men and women are looking
for in a potential spouse (Wang, 2014). Following are the percentages who
reported that various factors would be very important for them:
Factor Men Women
Similar ideas about having and raising children 62 70
A steady job 46 78
Same moral and religious beliefs 31 38
At least as much education 26 28
Same racial or ethnic background 7 10
Thus, in this study, never-married men said that the most important
characteristic of a potential spouse was similar ideas about having and raising
children, but never- married women placed greater importance on having a
partner with a steady job.
Is there a best age to get married? Marriages in adolescence are more
likely to end in divorce than marriages in adulthood (Copen & others, 2012).
However, researchers have not been able to pin down a specific age range for
getting married that is most likely to result in a successful marriage
(Furstenberg, 2007).
The Benefits of a Good Marriage
Are there any benefits to having a good marriage? Individuals who are
happily married live longer, healthier lives than either divorced individuals or
those who are unhappily married (Lo, Cheng, & Simpson, 2016). In one
research review, it was concluded that the experience of divorce or separation
confers risk for poor health outcomes, including a 23 percent higher mortality
rate (Sbarra, 2015). A survey of U.S. adults 50 years and older also revealed
that a lower portion of adult life spent in marriage was linked to an increased
likelihood of dying at an earlier age (Henretta, 2010). Also, in a large-scale
study in the United States and six European countries, not being in the labor
force was associated with higher mortality but marriage attenuated the
increased mortality risk linked to labor force inactivity (Van Hedel & others,
2015). And a recent research review of individuals who were married,
divorced, widowed, and single found that married individuals had the best
cardiovascular profile and single men the worst (Manfredini & others, 2017).
Further, an unhappy marriage can shorten a person’s life by an average of
four years (Gove, Style, & Hughes, 1990).
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What are the reasons for the benefits of a happy marriage? People in
happy marriages are likely to feel less stressed physically and emotionally,
which puts less wear and tear on a person’s body. Such wear
and tear can lead to numerous physical ailments, such as high
blood pressure and heart disease, as well as psychological
problems such as anxiety, depression, and substance abuse.
Divorced Adults
In the 1980s divorce reached epidemic proportions in the United States
(Braver & Lamb, 2013). However, the divorce rate declined in recent
decades, peaking at 5.1 divorces per 1,000 people in 1981 and declining to
3.2 divorces per 1,000 people in 2014 (OECD, 2016). The 2014 divorce rate
of 3.2 compares with a marriage rate of 6.9 per 1,000 people in 2014.
Although the divorce rate has dropped, the United States still has one of
the highest divorce rates in the world. Russia has the highest divorce rate (4.7
divorces per 1,000 people in a single year) (OECD, 2016). Individuals in
some groups have higher rates of divorce (Perelli-Harris & others, 2017).
Youthful marriage, low educational level, low income, not having a religious
affiliation, having parents who are divorced, and having a baby before
marriage are factors that are associated with increases in divorce (Hoelter,
2009). And certain characteristics of one’s partner increase the likelihood of
divorce: alcoholism, psychological problems, domestic violence, infidelity,
and inadequate division of household labor (Affleck, Carmichael, & Whitley,
2018; Perelli-Harris & others, 2017).
Earlier, we indicated that researchers have not been able to pin down a
specific age that is the best time to marry so that the marriage will be less
likely to end in a divorce. However, if a divorce is going to occur, it usually
takes place early in a marriage, most often between the fifth and tenth years
of marriage (National Center for Health Statistics, 2000) (see Figure 2). For
example, one study found that divorce peaked in Finland approximately five
to seven years into the marriage, and then the rate of divorce gradually
declined (Kulu, 2014). This timing may reflect an effort by partners in
troubled marriages to stay in the marriage and try to work things out. If after
several years these efforts have not improved the relationship, the couple may
then seek a divorce.
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Figure 2 The Divorce Rate in Relation to Number of Years Married
Shown here is the percentage of divorces as a function of how long couples have been
married. Notice that most divorces occur in the early years of marriage, peaking in the
fifth to tenth years of marriage.
©Digital Vision/Getty Images
What causes people to get divorced? A recent study in Great Britain
found no differences in the causes of breakdowns in marriage and
cohabitation (Gravningen & others, 2017). In this study, the following
percentages cited these reasons: “grew apart” (men 39 percent, women 36
percent), “arguments” (men 27 percent, women 30 percent),
“unfaithfulness/adultery” (men 18 percent, women 24 percent), “lack of
respect, appreciation” (men 17 percent, women 25 percent), and “domestic
violence” (men 4 percent, women 16 percent).
Both partners experience challenges after a marriage dissolves (Sbarra,
Hasselmo, & Bourassa, 2015). Divorced adults have higher rates of
depression, anxiety, physical illnesses, suicide, motor vehicle
accidents, alcoholism, and mortality (Braver & Lamb, 2013).
In a recent study, individuals who were divorced had a higher
risk of having alcohol use disorder (Kendler & others, 2017). Also, both
divorced women and divorced men complain of loneliness, diminished self-
esteem, anxiety about the unknowns in their lives, and difficulty in forming
satisfactory new intimate relationships (Sbarra & Borelli, 2018). One
research review concluded that both divorced men and women are more
likely to commit suicide than their married counterparts (Yip & others, 2015).
And in another study, both divorced men and women had a higher risk for
having a heart attack than those who were married, but the risk for this
cardiovascular disease was higher for divorced women than for divorced men
(Dupre & others, 2015).
There are gender differences in the process and outcomes of divorce
(Braver & Lamb, 2013; Daoulah & others, 2017). A recent study of couples
who had been married from one to sixteen years found that wives’ increased
tension over the course of a marriage was a factor that was consistently
linked to an eventual divorce (Birditt & others, 2017). Women are more
likely to sense that something is wrong with the marriage and are more likely
to seek a divorce than are men. Women also show better emotional
adjustment and are more likely to perceive divorce as a “second chance” to
increase their happiness, improve their social lives, and seek better work
opportunities. However, divorce typically has a more negative economic
impact on women than it does on men.
Remarried Adults
Adults who remarry usually do so rather quickly, with approximately 50
percent remarrying within three years after they initially divorce (Sweeney,
2009, 2010). Men remarry sooner than women. Men with higher incomes are
more likely to remarry than their counterparts with lower incomes.
Remarriage occurs sooner for partners who initiate a divorce (especially in
the first several years after divorce and for older women) than for those who
do not initiate it (Sweeney, 2009, 2010). And some remarried individuals are
more adult-focused, responding more to the concerns of their partner, while
others are more child-focused, responding more to the concerns of their
children (Anderson & Greene, 2011).
Statistical data indicate that the remarriage rate in the United States has
declined, going from 50 of every 1,000 divorced or widowed Americans in
1990 to 28 of every 1,000 in 2013 (Payne, 2015). One reason for the decline
is the dramatic increase in cohabitation in recent years. Men are more likely
to get remarried than women; in 2013, the remarriage rate was almost twice
as high for men as for women (40 per 1,000 for men and 21 per 1,000 for
women in that year) (Livingston, 2017). Thus, men are either more eager or
more able to find new spouses than are women.
Remarried adults often find it difficult to stay remarried. While the
divorce rate in first marriages has declined, the divorce rate of remarriages
continues to increase (DeLongis & Zwicker, 2017). Why? For one thing,
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many remarry not for love but for financial reasons, for help in rearing
children, and to reduce loneliness. They also might carry into the stepfamily
negative patterns that produced failure in an earlier marriage. Remarried
couples also experience more stress in rearing children than parents in never-
divorced families (Ganong & Coleman, 2018). One study revealed that
positive attitudes about divorce, low marital quality, and divorce proneness
were more common among remarried persons than among their counterparts
in first marriages (Whitton & others, 2013). Another study found that
remarried adults had less frequent sex than those in their first marriage
(Stroope, McFarland, & Uecker, 2015).
Gay and Lesbian Adults
Until recently, the legal context of marriage created barriers to breaking up
that did not exist for same-sex partners. However, the legalization of same-
sex marriage in all 50 states in 2015 extended this barrier to same-sex
partners (Diamond, 2017; Holley, 2017). In many additional ways,
researchers have found that gay and lesbian relationships are similar—in their
satisfactions, loves, joys, and conflicts—to heterosexual
relationships (Balsam, Rostosky, & Riggle, 2017). For example,
like heterosexual couples, gay and lesbian couples need to find a
balance of romantic love, affection, autonomy, and equality that is acceptable
to both partners (Hope, 2009). An increasing number of gay and lesbian
couples are creating families that include children (Farr & Goldberg, 2018;
Sumontha, Farr, & Patterson, 2018).
Data from the American Community Survey conducted in 2006–2010
indicate that among same-sex couples in the United States, lesbian couples
are approximately five times more likely to be raising children than are gay
couples (Miller & Price, 2013). An increasing number of same-sex couples
are adopting children (Farr, Oakley, & Ollen, 2016). The percentage of same-
sex couples who had adopted children increased dramatically from 10 percent
in 2000 to 19 percent in 2009 (DiBennardo & Gates, 2014). Also, research
indicates that lesbian and gay couples share child care more than heterosexual
couples do, with lesbian couples being the most supportive and gay couples
the least supportive (Farr & Patterson, 2013). Also, one survey found that a
greater percentage of same-sex, dual-earner couples than different-sex
couples said they share laundry (44 versus 31 percent), household repairs (33
versus 15 percent), and routine (74 versus 38 percent) and sick (62 versus 32
percent) child care responsibilities (Matos, 2015).
There are a number of misconceptions about gay and lesbian couples
(Farr, 2017; Simon & others, 2018). Contrary to stereotypes, one partner is
masculine and the other feminine in only a small percentage of gay and
lesbian couples. Only a small segment of the gay population has a large
number of sexual partners, and this is uncommon among lesbians.
Furthermore, researchers have found that gay and lesbian couples prefer
long-term, committed relationships (Fingerhut & Peplau, 2013). About half
of committed gay couples do have an open relationship that allows the
possibility of sex (but not affectionate love) outside of the relationship.
Lesbian couples usually do not have an open relationship.
A special concern is the stigma, prejudice, and discrimination that
lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals experience because of widespread
social devaluation of same-sex relationships (Conlin, Douglass, & Ouch,
2018; Holley, 2017; Valdiserri & others, 2018). However, researchers have
found that many individuals in these relationships see stigma as bringing
them closer together and strengthening their relationship (Frost, 2011).
Challenges in Marriage, Parenting, and
Divorce
No matter what lifestyles young adults choose, their choices will bring
certain challenges. Because many choose the lifestyle of marriage, we’ll
consider some of the challenges in marriage and describe elements of
successful marriages. We also examine some challenges in parenting and
trends in childbearing. Given the statistics about divorce rates in the previous
section, we’ll then consider how to deal with divorce.
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What makes marriages work? What are the benefits of having a good marriage?
©Image Source Pink/Alamy
Making Marriage Work
John Gottman (1994, 2006, 2011; Gottman & Gottman, 2009; Gottman &
Silver, 2000) uses many methods to analyze what makes marriages work. He
interviews couples about the history of their marriage, their philosophy about
marriage, and how they view their parents’ marriages. He videotapes them
talking to each other about how their day went and evaluates what they say
about the good and bad times of their marriages. Gottman also uses
physiological measures to chart their heart rate, blood flow, blood
pressure, and immune functioning moment by moment. In
addition, he checks back with the couples every year to see how
their marriage is faring. Gottman’s research represents the most extensive
assessment of marital relationships available. Currently, he and his colleagues
are following 700 couples in seven studies.
Among the principles Gottman has found that determine whether a
marriage will work are the following:
Establishing love maps. Individuals in successful marriages have personal
insights and detailed maps of each other’s life and world. They aren’t
psychological strangers. In good marriages, partners are willing to share
their feelings with each other. They use these “love maps” to express not
only their understanding of each other but also their fondness and
admiration.
Nurturing fondness and admiration. In successful marriages, partners
sing each other’s praises. More than 90 percent of the time, when couples
put a positive spin on their marriage’s history, the marriage is likely to
have a positive future.
Turning toward each other instead of away. In good marriages, spouses
are adept at turning toward each other regularly. They see each other as
friends. This friendship doesn’t keep arguments from occurring, but it can
prevent differences from overwhelming the relationship. In these good
marriages, spouses respect each other and appreciate each other’s point of
view despite disagreements.
Letting your partner influence you. Bad marriages often involve one
spouse who is unwilling to share power with the other. Although power-
mongering is more common in husbands, some wives also show this trait.
A willingness to share power and to respect the other person’s view is a
prerequisite to compromising.
Creating shared meaning. The more partners can speak candidly and
respectfully with each other, the more likely they are to create shared
meaning in their marriage. This also includes sharing goals with one’s
spouse and working together to achieve each other’s goals.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you counsel a
newly married couple
seeking advice on how
to make their marriage
work?
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In a provocative book titled Marriage, a History: How Love Conquered
Marriage, Stephanie Coontz (2005) concluded that marriages in America
today are fragile not because Americans have become self-centered and
career-minded but because expectations for marriage have become
unrealistically high compared with previous generations. To make a marriage
work, Coontz emphasizes like Gottman that partners need to develop a deep
friendship, show respect for each other, and embrace commitment.
How important is the sexual aspect of a relationship in the couple’s
marital satisfaction? A recent study of couples in their second to fourteenth
years of marriage found that frequency of engaging in sexual intercourse was
linked to a couple’s marital satisfaction, but that a satisfying sex life and a
warm interpersonal relationship were more important than frequency
(Schoenfeld & others, 2017).
Becoming a Parent
For many young adults, parental roles are well planned, coordinated with
other roles in life, and developed with the individual’s economic situation in
mind. For others, the discovery that they are about to become parents is a
startling surprise. In either event, the prospective parents may have mixed
emotions and romantic illusions about having a child (Florsheim, 2014).
Parenting requires a number of interpersonal skills and imposes emotional
demands, yet there is little in the way of formal education for this task. Most
parents learn parenting practices from their own parents—some they accept,
some they discard. Unfortunately, when parenting practices are passed on
from one generation to the next, both desirable and undesirable practices are
perpetuated. Adding to the challenges of the task of parenting, husbands and
wives may bring different parenting practices to the marriage (Huston &
Holmes, 2004). The parents, then, may disagree about which is a better way
to interact with a child.
Careers in life-span development
Janis Keyser, Parent Educator
Janis Keyser is a parent educator who teaches in the Department
of Early Childhood Education at Cabrillo College in California. In
addition to teaching college classes and conducting parenting
workshops, she has co-authored a book with Laura Davis (1997):
Becoming the Parent You Want to Be: A Sourcebook of Strategies for
the First Five Years.
Keyser co-authors a nationally syndicated parenting column,
“Growing Up, Growing Together.” She is the mother of three,
stepmother of five, grandmother of twelve, and great-grandmother of
six.
Parent educators may have different educational backgrounds and
occupational profiles. Janis Keyser has a background in early
childhood education and, as just indicated, teaches at a college. Many
parent educators have majored in areas such as child development as
an undergraduate and/or taken a specialization of parenting and
family courses in a master’s or doctoral degree program in human
development and family studies, clinical psychology, counseling
psychology, or social work. As part of, or in addition to, their work in
colleges and clinical settings, they may conduct parent education
groups and workshops.
Janis Keyser (right) conducts a parenting workshop.
Courtesy of Janis Keyser
Parent educators seek to help individuals become better parents. To read
about the work of one parent educator, see Careers in Life-Span
Development.
What are some trends in having children?
©Ryan McVay/Getty Images
Like the age when individuals first marry, the age at which individuals
have children has been increasing (Baca Zinn, Eitzen, & Wells, 2016;
Schwartz & Scott, 2018). The age at which women gave birth occurred more
frequently in their thirties than in their twenties in 2016 for the first time ever,
although the average age overall was 27 years of age (Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 2017). As the use of contraception has become
widespread, many individuals consciously choose when they will have
children and how many children they will rear. The number of one-child
families is increasing, for example, and U.S. women overall are having fewer
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children. These childbearing results are creating several trends:
By giving birth to fewer children and reducing the demands of child care,
women free up a significant portion of their life spans for other
endeavors.
As working women increase in number, they invest less actual time in the
child’s development.
Men are apt to invest a greater amount of time in fathering.
Parental care is often supplemented by institutional care (child care, for
example).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you advise a
young woman who is
inquiring about the best
age to have children?
As more women show an increased interest in developing a
career, they are not only marrying later, but also having fewer
children and having them later in life. What are some of the
advantages of having children early or late? Some of the advantages of
having children early (in the twenties) are that the parents are likely to have
more physical energy (for example, they can cope better with such matters as
getting up in the middle of the night with infants and waiting up until
adolescents come home at night); the mother is likely to have fewer medical
problems with pregnancy and childbirth; and the parents may be less likely to
build up expectations for their children, as do many couples who have waited
many years to have children.
There are also advantages to having children later (in the thirties). These
parents have had more time to consider and achieve some of their goals in
life and to determine what they want from their family and career roles. Older
parents also are more mature and able to benefit from their life experiences to
engage in more competent parenting, and they are more securely established
in their careers and tend to have more income for child-rearing expenses than
younger parents do.
Dealing with Divorce
If a marriage doesn’t work, what happens after divorce? Psychologically, one
of the most common characteristics of divorced adults is difficulty trusting
someone else in a romantic relationship. Following a divorce, though,
people’s lives can take diverse turns (Perelli-Harris & others, 2017). For
example, in one research study 20 percent of the divorced group became
more competent and better adjusted following their divorce (Hetherington &
Kelly, 2002).
Strategies for divorced adults include the following (Hetherington &
Kelly, 2002):
What are some strategies for coping with divorce?
©Image Source/Getty Images
Think of divorce as a chance to grow personally and to develop more
positive relationships.
Make decisions carefully, realizing that the consequences of your
decisions regarding work, lovers, and children may last a lifetime.
Focus more on the future than the past. Think about what is most
important for you going forward in your life, set some challenging goals,
and plan how to reach them.
Use your strengths and resources to cope with difficulties.
Don’t expect to be successful and happy in everything you do. The path
to a more enjoyable life will likely have a number of twists and turns, and
moving forward will require considerable effort and resilience.
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Gender Communication Styles,
Relationships, and Classification
In our discussion of children’s socioemotional development, we described
many aspects of gender development. Gender continues to be a very
important aspect of adults’ lives and their development. Here we discuss the
communication styles of males and females, how males and females relate to
others, and how gender is classified including the recent interest in
transgender.
Gender and Communication Styles
Stereotypes about differences in men’s and women’s attitudes toward
communication and about differences in how they communicate with each
other have spawned countless cartoons and jokes. Are the supposed
differences real?
Men’s and Women’s Styles of Communication
When Deborah Tannen (1990) analyzed the talk of women and men, she
found that many wives complained about their husbands by saying, “He
doesn’t listen to me anymore” and “He doesn’t talk to me anymore.” Lack of
communication, although high on women’s lists of reasons for divorce, is
mentioned much less often by men.
What are some differences in women’s and men’s communication styles?
©Onoky/SuperStock
Communication problems between men and women may come in part
from differences in their preferred ways of communicating. Tannen
distinguishes rapport talk from report talk. Rapport talk is the language of
conversation; it is a way of establishing connections and negotiating
relationships. Report talk is talk that is designed to give information; this
category of communication includes public speaking. According to Tannen,
women enjoy rapport talk more than report talk, and men’s lack of interest in
rapport talk bothers many women. In contrast, men prefer to engage in report
talk. Men hold center stage through verbal performances such as telling
stories and jokes. They learn to use talk as a way to get and keep attention.
How extensive are gender differences in communication? Research has
yielded somewhat mixed results, but some gender differences have been
found (Anderson, 2006). One study of a sampling of students’ e-mails found
that people could guess the writer’s gender two-thirds of the time (Thompson
& Murachver, 2001). Another study revealed that women make 63 percent of
phone calls and when talking to another woman stay on the phone longer (7.2
minutes) than men do when talking with other men (4.6 minutes) (Smoreda &
Licoppe, 2000). However, meta-analyses suggest that overall gender
differences in communication are small in both children and adults (Hyde,
2014; Leaper & Smith, 2004).
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Gender and Relationships
As in the childhood and adolescent years, there are gender differences in
adult friendship (Blieszner & Ogletree, 2017). Compared with men, women
have more close friends and their friendships involve more self-disclosure
and exchange of mutual support (Dow & Wood, 2006). Women are more
likely to listen at length to what a friend has to say and be sympathetic, and
women have been labeled as “talking companions” because talk is so central
to their relationships (Gouldner & Strong, 1987). Women’s friendships tend
to be characterized not only by depth but also by breadth: Women share
many aspects of their experiences, thoughts, and feelings (Helgeson, 2012).
When female friends get together, they like to talk, but male friends are more
likely to engage in activities, especially outdoors. Thus, the adult
male pattern of friendship often involves keeping one’s distance
while sharing useful information. Men are less likely than women
to talk about their weaknesses with their friends, and men seek practical
solutions to their problems rather than sympathy (Tannen, 1990). Also, adult
male friendships are more competitive than those of women (Helgeson,
2012).
How is adult friendship different among female friends, male friends, and cross-gender
friends?
©PhotoAlto
What are some characteristics of female-male friendships? Cross-gender
friendships are more common among adults than children but less common
than same-gender friendships in adulthood (Blieszner, 2009). Cross-gender
friendships can provide both opportunities and problems (Helgeson, 2012).
The opportunities involve learning more about common feelings and interests
and shared characteristics, as well as acquiring knowledge and understanding
of beliefs and activities that historically have been typical of the other gender.
Problems can arise in cross-gender friendships because of different
expectations. One problem that can plague an adult cross-gender friendship is
unclear sexual boundaries, which can produce tension and confusion (Hart,
Adams, & Tullett, 2016).
Gender Classification
Gender can be classified in multiple ways. In recent years, emphasis has been
placed on flexibility and equality in gender roles (Leaper, 2017; Mehta &
Keener, 2017).
Transgender is a broad term that refers to individuals who adopt a
gender identity that differs from the one assigned to them at birth (Budge &
Orovecz, 2018; Budge & others, 2018a, b; Katz-Wise & others, 2018; King,
2017, 2019). For example, an individual may have a female body but identify
more strongly with being masculine than being feminine, or have a male
body but identify more strongly with being feminine than masculine. A
transgender identity of being born male but identifying with being a female is
much more common than the reverse (Zucker, Lawrence, & Kreukels, 2016).
Transgender persons also may not want to be labeled “he” or “she” but prefer
a more neutral label such as “they” or “ze” (Scelfo, 2015).
Because of the nuances and complexities involved in such gender
categorizations, some experts have recently argued that a better overarching
umbrella term might be trans to identify a variety of gender identities and
expressions different from the gender identity they were assigned at birth
(Moradi & others, 2016). The variety of gender identities might include
transgender, gender queer (also referred to as gender expansive, this broad
gender identity category encompasses individuals who are not exclusively
masculine or exclusively feminine), and gender nonconforming (individuals
whose behavior/appearance does not conform to social expectations for what
is appropriate for their gender). Another recently generated term, cisgender,
can be used to describe individuals whose gender identity and expression
corresponds with the gender identity assigned at birth (Moradi & others,
2016).
What characterizes transgender individuals?
©FatCamera/Getty Images
Transgender individuals can be straight, gay, lesbian, or bisexual. A
recent research review concluded that transgender youth have higher rates of
depression, suicide attempts, and eating disorders than their cisgender peers
(Connolly & others, 2016). Among the explanations for this higher rate of
disorders are the distress of living in the wrong body and the discrimination
and misunderstanding they experience as a gender minority individual
(Budge & others, 2018a, b).
Among individuals who identify themselves as transgender persons, the
majority eventually adopt a gender identity in line with the body into which
they were born (Byne & others, 2012; King, 2019). Some transgender
individuals seek transsexual surgery to go from a male body to a female body
or vice versa, but most do not. Some choose just to have hormonal
treatments, such as biological females who use testosterone to enhance their
masculine characteristics, or biological males who use estrogen to increase
Page 344their feminine characteristics. Yet other transgender
individuals opt for another, broader strategy that involves
choosing a lifestyle that challenges the traditional view of
having a gender identity that does not fit within one of two opposing
categories (King, 2017, 2019; Savin-Williams, 2017). Because trans
individuals experience considerable discrimination, it is important that
society provide a more welcoming and accepting attitude toward them.
Summary
Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood
The first 20 years are important in predicting an adult’s personality, but
so are ongoing experiences in the adult years. Attachment styles, for
example, reflect childhood patterns and continue to influence
relationships in adulthood. Adult attachments are categorized as secure,
avoidant, or anxious. A secure attachment style is linked with positive
aspects of relationships.
Love and Close Relationships
Erikson theorized that intimacy versus isolation is the key developmental
issue in early adulthood.
Friendship plays an important role in adult development, especially in
terms of emotional support.
Romantic love, also called passionate love, includes passion, sexuality,
and a mixture of emotions, not all of which are positive. Affectionate
love, also called companionate love, usually becomes more important as
relationships mature.
Sternberg proposed a triarchic model of love: passion, intimacy, and
commitment. If all three qualities are present, the result is consummate
love.
Adult Lifestyles
Being single has become an increasingly prominent lifestyle. Autonomy
is one of its advantages. Challenges faced by single adults include
achieving intimacy, coping with loneliness, and finding a positive identity
in a marriage-oriented society.
Cohabitation, an increasingly popular lifestyle, does not lead to greater
marital happiness but sometimes is linked to possible negative
consequences if a cohabiting couple marries.
The age at which individuals marry in the United States is increasing.
Though marriage rates have declined, a large percentage of Americans
still marry. The benefits of marriage include better physical and mental
health and a longer life.
The U.S. divorce rate increased dramatically in the middle of the
twentieth century but began to decline in the 1980s.
Divorce is a complex and emotional experience.
Stepfamilies are complex, and adjustment is difficult. Evidence on the
benefits of remarriage after divorce is mixed.
One of the most striking research findings about gay and lesbian couples
is how similar their relationships are to heterosexual couples’
relationships.
Challenges in Marriage, Parenting, and Divorce
Gottman’s research indicates that couples in successful marriages
establish love maps, nurture fondness and admiration, turn toward each
other, accept the influence of the partner, and create shared meaning.
Families are becoming smaller, and many women are delaying childbirth
until they have become well established in a career.
Divorced adults often have difficulty trusting someone else in a romantic
relationship. Certain strategies are effective in dealing with divorce.
Gender and Communication Styles, Relationships, and
Classification
Tannen distinguishes between report talk, which many men prefer, and
rapport talk, which many women prefer; however, meta-analyses have
found only small gender differences in overall communication.
Gender differences characterize adult friendships. Female friends tend to
share their experiences, thoughts, and feelings, while male friends tend to
be more competitive and to keep some emotional distance while sharing
useful information.
In recent years, emphasis has been placed on flexibility and equality in
gender roles. Transgender individuals adopt a gender identity different
from the one assigned to them at birth.
Key Terms
affectionate love
anxious attachment style
avoidant attachment style
rapport talk
report talk
romantic love
secure attachment style
transgender
Page 345
©Tomas Rodriguez/Corbis/Getty Images
13
Physical and Cognitive
Development in Middle
Adulthood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
The Nature of Middle Adulthood
Changing Midlife
Defining Middle Adulthood
Physical Development
Physical Changes
Health and Disease
Mortality Rates
Sexuality
Cognitive Development
Intelligence
Information Processing
Careers, Work, and Leisure
Work in Midlife
Career Challenges and Changes
Leisure
Religion and Meaning in Life
Religion and Adult Lives
Religion and Health
Meaning in Life
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Changing Perceptions of Time
Our perception of time depends on where we are in the life span.
We are more concerned about time at some points in life than
others (Hoppmann & others, 2017; MacDonald, DeCarlo, &
Dixon, 2011). Pink Floyd, in their song “Time,” described how
when people are young life seems longer and time passes more
slowly, but when we get older, time seems to pass much more
quickly.
In middle adulthood, individuals increasingly think about time-
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left-to-live instead of time-since-birth (Brothers & others, 2016;
Kotter-Gruhn & Smith, 2011; Setterson, 2009; Strough & others,
2016). Middle-aged adults begin to look back to where they have
been, reflecting on what they have done with the time they have
had. They look toward the future in terms of how much time
remains to accomplish what they hope to do with their lives. Older
adults look backward even more than middle-aged adults, which is
not surprising given the shorter future that awaits them. Also not
surprisingly, given the many years they still have to live, emerging
adults and young adults are more likely to look forward in time
than backward in time.
A recent research review examined subjective time in middle
and late adulthood, including such components as future time
perspective, personal goals, and autobiographical memories
(Gabrian, Dutt, & Wahl, 2017). The review concluded that positive
subjective time perceptions (such as an expanded
view of the future, a focus on positive past and
future life content, and favorable time-related
evaluations) were linked to better health and well-being, while
negative subjective time perceptions were associated with lower
levels of health and well-being.
In this chapter on middle adulthood, we discuss physical
changes; cognitive changes; changes in careers, work, and leisure.
We will also discuss the importance of religion and meaning in
life. To begin, though, we explore how middle age is changing. ■
The Nature of Middle Adulthood
Is midlife experienced the same way today as it was 100 years ago? How can
middle adulthood be defined, and what are some of its main characteristics?
Changing Midlife
Many of today’s 50-year-olds are in better shape, more alert, and more
productive than their 40-year-old counterparts from a generation or two
earlier. As more people lead healthier lifestyles and medical discoveries help
to slow down the aging process, the boundaries of middle age are being
pushed upward. It seems that middle age is starting later and lasting longer
for increasing numbers of active, healthy, and productive people. A current
saying is “60 is the new 40,” implying that many 60-year-olds today are
living a life that is as active, productive, and healthy as earlier generations did
in their forties.
Questions such as, “To which age group do you belong?” and “How old
do you feel?” reflect the concept of age identity. A consistent finding is that
as adults become older their age identity is younger than their chronological
age (Setterson & Trauten, 2009; Westerhof, 2009). One study found that
almost half of the individuals 65 to 69 years of age considered themselves
middle-aged (National Council on Aging, 2000), and another study found a
similar pattern: Half of the 60- to 75-year-olds viewed themselves as middle-
aged (Lachman, Maier, & Budner, 2000). And a British survey of people
over 50 years of age revealed that they perceived middle age to begin at 53
(Beneden Health, 2013). In this study, respondents said that being middle-
aged is characterized by enjoying afternoon naps, groaning when you bend
down, and preferring a quiet night in rather than a night out. Also, some
individuals consider the upper boundary of midlife as the age when they
make the transition from work to retirement.
How is midlife changing?
©Siri Stafford/Getty Images
When Carl Jung studied midlife transitions early in the twentieth century,
he referred to midlife as “the afternoon of life” (Jung, 1933). Midlife serves
as an important preparation for late adulthood, “the evening of life”
(Lachman, 2004, p. 306). But “midlife” came much earlier in Jung’s time. In
1900 the average life expectancy was only 47 years of age; only 3 percent of
the population lived past 65. Today, the average life expectancy is 79, and 12
percent of the U.S. population is older than 65 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2015).
As a much greater percentage of the population lives to older ages, the
midpoint of life and what constitutes middle age or middle adulthood are
getting harder to pin down (Cohen, 2012). Statistically, the middle of life
today is about 39.5 years of age, but most 39-year-olds don’t want to be
called “middle-aged.” What we think of as middle age comes later—
anywhere from 40 or 45 to about 60 or 65 years of age. And as more people
live longer, the upper boundary of middle age will likely be nudged higher
still.
In comparison with previous decades and centuries, an increasing
Page 347
percentage of today’s population is made up of middle-aged and older adults.
In the past, the age structure of the population could be
represented by a pyramid, with the largest percentage of the
population in the childhood years. Today, the percentages of
people at different ages in the life span are more similar, creating what is
called the “rectangularization” of the age distribution (a vertical rectangle)
(Himes, 2009).
Compared to late adulthood, far less research attention has been given to
middle adulthood (Elliot & others, 2018; Lachman, Teshale, & Agrigoroaei,
2015). In a U.S. Census Bureau (2012) assessment, more than 102,713,000
people in the U.S. were 40 to 64 years of age, which accounts for 33.2
percent of the U.S. population. Given the large percentage of people in
middle adulthood and the key roles that individuals in midlife play in
families, the workplace, and the community, researchers need to give greater
attention to this age period.
Also, too often middle-age has been described more negatively than it
should be. Indeed, in a recent study, undergraduate college students were
shown a computer-generated graphic of a person identified as a younger
adult, middle-aged adult, or older adult (Kelley, Soboroff, & Lovaglia, 2017).
When asked which person they would choose for a work-related task, they
selected the middle-aged adult most often.
Defining Middle Adulthood
Although the age boundaries are not set in stone, we will consider middle
adulthood to be the developmental period that begins at approximately 40
years of age and extends to about 60 to 65 years of age. For many people,
middle adulthood is a time of declining physical skills and expanding
responsibility; a period in which people become more conscious of the
young-old polarity and the shrinking amount of time left in life; a point when
individuals seek to transmit something meaningful to the next generation; and
a time when people reach and maintain satisfaction in their careers. In sum,
middle adulthood involves “balancing work and relationship responsibilities
in the midst of the physical and psychological changes associated with aging”
(Lachman, 2004, p. 305).
What are the main characteristics of middle adulthood? What differentiates early and late
midlife?
©kali9/Getty Images
In midlife, as in other age periods, individuals make choices, selecting
what to do, deciding how to invest time and resources, and evaluating what
aspects of their lives they need to change (Robinson & Lachman, 2017). In
midlife, “a serious accident, loss, or illness” may be a “wake-up call” that
produces “a major restructuring of time and a reassessment” of life’s
priorities (Lachman, 2004, p. 310).
For many increasingly healthy adults, middle age is lasting longer.
Indeed, a growing number of experts on middle adulthood describe the age
period of 55 to 65 as late midlife (Deeg, 2005). Compared with earlier
midlife, late midlife is more likely to be characterized by the death of a
parent, the last child leaving the parental home, becoming a grandparent,
preparing for retirement, and in most cases actual retirement. Many people in
this age range experience their first confrontation with health problems.
Overall, then, although gains and losses may balance each other in early
midlife, losses may begin to outweigh gains for many individuals in late
midlife (Baltes, Lindenberger, & Staudinger, 2006). Margie Lachman and her
colleagues (2015) describe middle age as a pivotal period because it is a time
of balancing growth and decline, linking earlier and later periods of
development, and connecting younger and older generations.
Keep in mind, though, that midlife is characterized by individual
Page 348
variations (Robinson & Lachman, 2017). As life-span expert Gilbert Brim
(1992) commented, middle adulthood is full of changes, twists, and turns; the
path is not fixed. People move in and out of states of success and failure.
Physical Development
What physical changes accompany the change to middle adulthood? How
healthy are middle-aged adults? How sexually active are they?
Physical Changes
Although everyone experiences some physical changes due to aging in the
middle adulthood years, the speed of the aging process varies considerably
from one individual to another. Genetic makeup and lifestyle factors play
important roles in whether chronic disease will appear and when (Kiviniemi
& others, 2017; Pazoki & others, 2018). Middle age is a window through
which we can glimpse later life while there is still time to engage in
prevention and to influence some of the course of aging (Robinson &
Lachman, 2017).
Visible Signs
One of the most visible signs of change in middle adulthood is physical
appearance. The first outwardly noticeable signs of aging usually are
apparent by the forties or fifties. The skin begins to wrinkle and sag because
of a loss of fat and collagen in underlying tissues (Cole & others, 2018;
Czekalla & others, 2017). Small, localized areas of pigmentation in the skin
produce age spots, especially in areas that are exposed to sunlight, such as the
hands and face. For most people, their hair becomes thinner and grayer.
Fingernails and toenails develop ridges and become thicker and more brittle.
Since a youthful appearance is valued in our culture, many individuals
whose hair is graying, whose skin is wrinkling, whose bodies are sagging,
and whose teeth are yellowing strive to make themselves look younger.
Undergoing cosmetic surgery, dyeing hair, wearing wigs, enrolling in weight-
reduction programs, participating in exercise regimens, and taking heavy
doses of vitamins are common in middle age. Many baby boomers have
shown a strong interest in plastic surgery and Botox, which may reflect their
desire to take control of the aging process (Harii & others, 2017; Lim &
others, 2018).
Height and Weight
Individuals lose height in middle age, and many gain weight (Lebenbaum &
others, 2018; Yang & others, 2017). On average, from 30 to 50 years of age,
men lose about half an inch in height; they may lose another 3/4 inch from 50
to 70 years of age (Hoyer & Roodin, 2009). The height loss for women can
be as much as 2 inches over a 50-year span from 25 to 75 years of age. Note
that there are large variations in the extent to which individuals become
shorter with aging. The decrease in height is due to bone loss in the vertebrae.
Famous actor Sean Connery as a young adult in his twenties (top) and as a middle-aged
adult in his fifties (bottom). What are some of the most outwardly noticeable signs of
aging in middle adulthood?
(Top) ©Bettmann/Getty Images; (bottom) ©Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you characterize
Page 349
the impact of the media
in shaping middle-aged
adults’ expectations
about their changing
physical appearance?
On average, body fat accounts for about 10 percent of body weight in
adolescence; it makes up 20 percent or more in middle age. Obesity increases
from early to middle adulthood (Nevalainen & others, 2017). In a national
U.S. survey in 2014, 40.2 percent of U.S. adults 40 to 59 years of age were
classified as obese compared with 32 percent of younger adults (Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 2016). Being overweight is a critical health
problem in middle adulthood and increases the risk that individuals will
develop a number of other health problems such as hypertension and diabetes
(Forrest, Leeds, & Ufelle, 2017; Jia, Hill, & Sowers, 2018;
Petrie, Guzik, & Touyz, 2018; Wedell-Neergaard & others,
2018). Also, a recent study revealed that an increase in weight
gain from early adulthood to middle adulthood was linked to an increased
risk of major chronic diseases and unhealthy aging (Zheng & others, 2017).
Strength, Joints, and Bones
Maximum physical strength often is attained in the twenties. The term
sarcopenia refers to age-related loss of muscle mass and strength (Landi &
others, 2018). Muscle loss with age occurs at a rate of approximately 1 to 2
percent per year past the age of 50 (Marcell, 2003). A loss of strength
especially occurs in the back and legs. Obesity is a risk factor for sarcopenia
(Albar-Almazan & others, 2018; Cruz-Jentoft & others, 2017). Recently,
researchers have increasingly used the term “sarcopenic obesity” to describe
individuals who have sarcopenia and are obese (Yang & others, 2017; Xiao
& others, 2018). In a recent study sarcopenic obesity was associated with a
24 percent increase in risk for all-cause mortality, with a higher risk of
mortality for men than for women (Tian & Xu, 2016).
Peak functioning of the body’s joints also usually occurs in the twenties.
The cartilage that cushions the movement of bones and other connective
tissues, such as tendons and ligaments, become less efficient in the middle-
adult years, a time when many individuals experience joint stiffness and
greater difficulty in movement.
Maximum bone density occurs by the mid- to late thirties, from which
point there is a progressive loss of bone. The rate of this bone loss begins
slowly but accelerates during the fifties (Locquet & others, 2018). Women
lose bone mass about twice as quickly as men. By the end of midlife, bones
break more easily and heal more slowly (de Villiers, 2018; Gulsahi, 2015). A
recent study found that greater intake of fruits and vegetables was linked to
increased bone density in middle-aged and older adults (Qiu & others, 2017).
Vision and Hearing
Accommodation of the eye—the ability to focus and maintain an image on
the retina—declines sharply between 40 and 59 years of age. In particular,
middle-aged individuals begin to have difficulty viewing close objects, which
means that many individuals have to wear glasses with bifocal lenses—lenses
with two sections that enable the wearer to see items at different distances
(Schieber, 2006). Also, there is some evidence that the retina becomes less
sensitive to low levels of illumination. Laser surgery and implantation of
intraocular lenses have become routine procedures for correcting vision in
middle-aged adults (Arba-Mosquera, Vinciguerra, & Verma, 2018).
Hearing also can start to decline by the age of 40 (Roring, Hines, &
Charness, 2007). Sensitivity to high pitches usually declines first. The ability
to hear low-pitched sounds does not seem to decline much in middle
adulthood, though. Men usually lose their sensitivity to high-pitched sounds
sooner than women do. However, this gender difference might be due to
men’s greater exposure to noise in occupations such as mining, automobile
work, and so on (Scialfa & Kline, 2007). Also, recent advances in the
effectiveness of hearing aids are dramatically improving the hearing of many
aging adults (Courtois & others, 2018). However, even with the advent of
technologically sophisticated hearing devices, many people don’t always
wear them, or wear them inappropriately.
Cardiovascular System
Midlife is the time when high blood pressure and high cholesterol take many
Page 350
individuals by surprise. Cardiovascular disease increases considerably in
middle age (Kanesarajah & others, 2018; Mok & others, 2018).
The level of cholesterol in the blood increases through the adult years and
in midlife begins to accumulate on the artery walls, increasing the risk of
cardiovascular disease (Choi & Lee, 2017; Mok & others, 2018; Pirillo &
others, 2018; Talbot & others, 2018). High blood pressure (hypertension),
too, often occurs in the forties and fifties (Mrowka, 2017). One study found
that uncontrolled hypertension can damage the brain’s structure and function
as early as the late thirties and early forties (Maillard &
others, 2012). Another study revealed that hypertension in
middle age was linked to risk of cognitive impairment in late
adulthood (23 years later) (Virta & others, 2013). Also, a recent Chinese
study revealed that men and women who gained an average of 22 pounds or
more from 20 to 45–60 years of age had an increased risk of hypertension
and cholesterol, as well as elevated triglyceride levels in middle age (Zhou &
others, 2017). And risk factors for cardiovascular disease in middle adulthood
can show up even earlier in development. A recent study indicated that a
healthy diet in adolescence was linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular
disease in middle-aged women (Dahm & others, 2018).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you apply
information on weight
and health to promote
healthier lifestyles for
middle-aged adults?
Members of the Masai tribe in Kenya, Africa, can stay on a treadmill for a long time
because of their active lives. Incidence of heart disease is extremely low in the Masai
tribe, which also can be attributed to their energetic lifestyle.
Courtesy of The Family of Dr. George V. Mann
Exercise, weight control, and a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole
grains can often help to stave off many cardiovascular problems in middle
age (de Gregorio, 2018; Kim & others, 2017). In a recent study, a high level
of physical activity was associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease
in the three weight categories studied (normal, overweight, and obese)
(Carlsson & others, 2016). Another study found that having an unhealthy diet
was a strong predictor of cardiovascular disease (Menotti & others, 2015).
Further, the health benefits of cholesterol-lowering and hypertension-
lowering drugs are a major factor in improving the health of many middle-
aged adults and increasing their life expectancy (Svatikova & Kopecky,
2017; Talbot & others, 2018).
As reflected in the research we have just described, the American Heart
Association has proposed “Life’s Simple 7”: a list of strategies for improving
cardiovascular health. The seven strategies are (1) manage blood pressure; (2)
control cholesterol; (3) reduce blood sugar; (4) get active; (5) eat better; (6)
lose weight; and (7) quit smoking. In a recent study, optimal performance on
Life’s Simple 7 at middle age was linked to better cardiovascular health
Page 351
recovery following a heart attack in later in life (Mok & others, 2018).
Lungs
There is little change in lung capacity through most of middle adulthood.
However, at about the age of 55, the proteins in lung tissue become less
elastic. This change, combined with a gradual stiffening of connective tissues
in the chest wall, decreases the lungs’ capacity to shuttle oxygen from the air
people breathe to the blood in their veins. The lung capacity of individuals
who are smokers drops precipitously in middle age, but if the individuals quit
smoking their lung capacity improves, although not to the level of individuals
who have never smoked. A longitudinal study also found that increased
cardiorespiratory fitness from early adulthood to middle adulthood was
linked to less decline in lung health over time (Benck & others, 2017).
Sleep
Some aspects of sleep become more problematic in middle age (Muller &
others, 2017). The total number of hours slept usually remains the same as in
early adulthood, but beginning in the forties, wakeful periods are more
frequent and there is less of the deepest type of sleep (stage 4). The amount
of time spent lying awake in bed at night begins to increase in middle age,
and this can produce a feeling of being less rested in the morning. One study
revealed that poor sleep quality in middle adulthood was linked to cognitive
decline (Waller & others, 2016). And a Korean study found that these factors
were linked to sleep problems in middle age: unemployment, being
unmarried, currently being a smoker, lack of exercise, having
irregular meals, and frequently experiencing stressful events
(Yoon & others, 2015). Further, in a recent study of young and
middle-aged adults, females had more severe sleep problems than males
(Rossler & others, 2017). However, in this study the good news is that a
majority of individuals (72 percent) reported no sleep disturbances.
Health and Disease
In middle adulthood, the frequency of accidents declines, and individuals are
less susceptible to colds and allergies than in childhood, adolescence, or early
adulthood. Indeed, many individuals live through middle adulthood without
having a disease or persistent health problem. For others, however, disease
and persistent health problems become more common in middle adulthood
than in earlier life stages (Koyanagi & others, 2018).
Stress is increasingly being identified as a factor in disease (Berntson,
Patel, & Stewart, 2017; Yu & others, 2018). The cumulative effect of chronic
stress often takes a toll on the health of individuals by the time they reach
middle age. Chronic stressors have been linked to a downturn in immune
system functioning in a number of contexts, including worries about living
next to a damaged nuclear reactor; failures in close relationships (divorce,
separation, and marital distress) (Kiecolt-Glaser & Wilson, 2017);
depression; loneliness; and burdensome caregiving for a family member with
progressive illness (Bennett, Fagundes, & Kiecolt-Glaser, 2016; Fagundes &
others, 2016; Jaremka, Derry, & Kiecolt-Glaser, 2016). Research indicates
that stress-reducing activities such as yoga, relaxation, and hypnosis have
positive influences on immune system functioning (Derry & others, 2015;
Kiecolt-Glaser & others, 2014).
An important aspect of understanding stress and disease are stress
hormones (Fali, Vallet, & Sauce, 2018). One hormone in particular, cortisol,
has been labeled the stress hormone because elevated cortisol levels are
linked to physical health problems such as lower immune system functioning
and higher blood pressure, cholesterol, and cardiovascular disease, as well as
to higher levels of mental health problems such as anxiety and depressive
disorders (Leonard, 2018; Wichmann & others, 2017). A recent study of men
and women from 21 to 55 years of age found that married individuals had
lower cortisol levels than either their never-married or previously married
counterparts (Chin & others, 2017).
How individuals react to stressors is linked to health outcomes. In one
study, how people reacted to daily stressors in their lives was linked to future
chronic health problems (Piazza & others, 2013). Also, in a recent study,
adults who did not maintain positive affect when confronted with minor
stressors in everyday life had elevated levels of IL-6, an inflammation marker
(Sin & others, 2017). And in another study, a greater decrease in positive
affect in response to daily stressors was associated with earlier death
Page 352
(Mroczek & others, 2015).
Mortality Rates
Infectious disease was the main cause of death until the middle of the
twentieth century. As infectious disease rates declined and more individuals
lived through middle age, chronic disorders increased. These are
characterized by a slow onset and a long duration (Kelley-Moore, 2009).
Chronic disorders account for 86 percent of total health-care spending in the
United States (Qin & others, 2015).
In middle age, many deaths are caused by a single, readily identifiable
condition, whereas in old age, death is more likely to result from the
combined effects of several chronic conditions. For many years heart disease
was the leading cause of death in middle adulthood, followed by cancer;
however, since 2005 more individuals 45 to 64 years of age in the United
States died of cancer, followed by cardiovascular disease (Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). The gap between cancer and the
second leading cause of death widens as individuals age from 45 to 54 and
from 55 to 64 years of age. In 2013, about 46,000 45- to 54-year-olds died of
cancer and about 35,000 died of cardiovascular disease; about
113,000 55- to 64-year-olds died of cancer and about 73,000
died of cardiovascular disease (Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, 2015). Men have higher mortality rates than women for all of
the leading causes of death (Kochanek & others, 2011).
Sexuality
What kinds of changes characterize the sexuality of women and men as they
go through middle age? Climacteric is a term used to describe the midlife
transition during which fertility declines. Let’s explore the substantial
differences in the climacteric of women and men during middle adulthood.
Menopause
Menopause is the time in middle age, usually in the late forties or early
fifties, when a woman’s menstrual periods cease completely. The average age
at which women have their last period is 51 (Wise, 2006). However, there is
large variation in the age at which menopause occurs—from 39 to 59 years of
age. Later menopause is linked with increased risk of breast cancer (Mishra
& others, 2009).
Researchers have found that almost 50 percent of Canadian and American menopausal
women have occasional hot flashes, but only one in seven Japanese women do (Lock,
1998). What factors might account for these variations?
©BLOOMimage/Getty Images
In menopause, production of estrogen by the ovaries declines
dramatically, and this decline produces uncomfortable symptoms in some
women—“hot flashes,” nausea, fatigue, and rapid heartbeat, for example
(Chiaramonte, Ring, & Locke, 2017; Noble, 2018). However, cross-cultural
studies reveal wide variations in the menopause experience (Sievert, 2014).
For example, hot flashes are uncommon in Mayan women (Beyene, 1986).
Asian women report fewer hot flashes than women in Western societies
(Payer, 1991). In a recent study in China, Mosuo women (Mosuo is a
matriarchal tribe in southern China where women have the dominant role in
society, don’t marry, and can take on as many lovers as they desire) had
fewer negative menopausal symptoms, higher self-esteem, and better family
support than Han Chinese women (the majority ethnic group in China)
(Zhang & others, 2016). It is difficult to determine the extent to which these
cross-cultural variations are due to genetic, dietary, reproductive, or cultural
factors.
Menopause overall is not the negative experience for most women that it
was once thought to be (Brown & others, 2018; Henderson, 2011). Most
women do not have severe physical or psychological problems related to
menopause. For example, a research review concluded that there is no clear
evidence that depressive disorders occur more often during menopause than
at other times in a woman’s reproductive life (Judd, Hickey, & Bryant, 2012).
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) augments the declining levels of
reproductive hormone production by the ovaries (Anderson, Borgquist, &
Jirstrom, 2018; Langer, 2017; Lobo, 2017). HRT can consist of various forms
of estrogen, usually in combination with a progestin.
In a recent position statement by leading experts of the North American
Menopause Society (2017), the following conclusions were reached about
HRT:
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you counsel
middle-aged women
who voice the belief that
hormone replacement
therapy will help them
to “stay young”?
Hormone replacement therapy is most favorable in reducing negative
Page 353
menopausal symptoms and reducing bone loss or fracture for women 60
years and younger who are within 10 years of menopausal onset.
Hormone replacement therapy is less favorable for women who are more
than 10 or more years from menopausal onset or are 60 years and older,
because of greater risk for cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer disease.
Further, research indicates that hormone replacement
therapy is linked to a slightly higher risk of breast cancer and
the longer HRT is taken, the greater the risk of breast cancer
(American Cancer Society, 2018; breastcancer.org, 2018).
The National Institutes of Health recommends that women who have not
had a hysterectomy and who are currently taking hormones consult with their
doctor to determine whether they should continue the treatment. If they are
taking HRT for short-term relief of menopausal symptoms, the benefits may
outweigh the risks. Many middle-aged women are seeking alternatives to
HRT such as regular exercise, dietary supplements, herbal remedies,
relaxation therapy, acupuncture, and nonsteroidal medications (Goldstein &
others, 2017; Woyka, 2017).
Hormonal Changes in Middle-Aged Men
Do men go through anything like the menopause that women experience? In
other words, is there a male menopause? During middle adulthood, most men
do not lose their capacity to father children, although there usually is a
modest decline in their sexual hormone level and activity (Blumel & others,
2014; Jannini & Nappi, 2018). They experience hormonal changes in their
fifties and sixties, but nothing like the dramatic drop in estrogen that women
experience. Testosterone production begins to decline about 1 percent per
year during middle adulthood, and sperm count usually shows a slow decline,
but men do not lose their fertility in middle age. The term male
hypogonadism is used to describe a condition in which the body does not
produce enough testosterone (Mayo Clinic, 2018).
Recently, there has been a dramatic surge of interest in testosterone
replacement therapy (TRT) (Gilbert & others, 2017). Research indicates that
TRT can improve sexual functioning, muscle strength, and bone health
(Ismaeel & Wang, 2017; Mayo Clinic, 2018). A recent study found that TRT
was associated with increased longevity in men with a low level of
testosterone (Comhaire, 2016). Another recent study indicated that TRT-
related benefits in quality of life and sexual function were maintained for 36
months after initial treatment (Rosen & others, 2017). Also, recent research
indicates that testosterone replacement therapy is associated with a reduced
incidence of heart attack or stroke, as well as a reduction in all-cause
mortality (Jones & Kelly, 2018; Sharma & others, 2015).
The gradual decline in men’s testosterone levels in middle age can reduce
their sexual drive (O’Connor & others, 2011). Their erections are less full
and less frequent, and men require more stimulation to achieve them.
Researchers once attributed these changes to psychological factors, but
increasingly they find that as many as 75 percent of the erectile dysfunctions
in middle-aged men stem from physiological problems. Smoking, diabetes,
hypertension, elevated cholesterol levels, and obesity are at fault in many
erectile problems in middle-aged men (Schulster, Liang, & Najari, 2017;
Sgro & Di Luigi, 2017).
©McGraw-Hill Education/Suzie Ross, photographer
Erectile dysfunction (ED), difficulty in attaining or maintaining an
erection, is present in approximately 50 percent of men 40 to 70 years of age
(Mola, 2015). A low level of testosterone and cardiovascular problems can
contribute to erectile dysfunction (Hackett & Kirby, 2018). The main
treatment for erectile dysfunction has not focused on TRT but on the drug
Viagra and on similar drugs such as Levitra and Cialis (Bennett, 2018;
Gesser-Edelsburg & Hijazi, 2018; Melehan & others, 2018; Ozcan & others,
2018; Peng & others, 2017). Viagra works by allowing increased blood flow
into the penis, which produces an erection. Its success rate is in the 60 to 85
percent range (Claes & others, 2010).
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Sexual Attitudes and Behavior
Although the ability of men and women to function sexually shows little
biological decline in middle adulthood, sexual activity usually occurs less
frequently than in early adulthood (Fileborn & others, 2017; Rees & others,
2018). Career interests, family matters, diminishing energy levels, and
routine may contribute to this decline (Avis & others, 2009).
How does the pattern of sexual activity change when individuals become middle-aged?
©Image Source/PunchStock
In the Sex in America survey, the frequency of sexual
activity was greatest for individuals 25 to 29 years old (47
percent had sex twice a week or more) and dropped off for
individuals in their fifties (23 percent of 50- to 59-year-old males said they
had sex twice a week or more, while only 14 percent of the females in this
age group reported this frequency) (Michael & others, 1994). Note, though,
that the Sex in America survey may underestimate the frequency of sexual
activity of middle-aged adults because the data were collected prior to the
widespread use of erectile dysfunction drugs such as Viagra. In a recent
study, higher frequency of sexual activity in middle-aged and older adults
was linked to better overall cognitive functioning, especially in working
memory and executive function (Wright, Jenks, & Demeyere, 2018).
Living with a spouse or partner makes all the difference in whether
people engage in sexual activity, especially for women over 40 years of age.
In one study conducted as part of the Midlife in the United States Study
(MIDUS), 95 percent of women in their forties with partners said that they
had been sexually active in the last six months, compared with only 53
percent of those without partners (Brim, 1999). By their fifties, 88 percent of
women living with a partner had been sexually active in the last six months,
but only 37 percent of those who were neither married nor living with
someone said they had been sexually active in the last six months.
A large-scale study of U.S. adults 40 to 80 years of age found that early
ejaculation (26 percent) and erectile difficulties (22 percent) were the most
common sexual problems of older men (Laumann & others, 2009). In this
study, the most common sexual problems of women were lack of sexual
interest (33 percent) and lubrication difficulties (21 percent).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you counsel a
couple about the ways
that the transition to
middle adulthood might
affect their sexual
relationship?
A person’s health in middle age is a key factor in sexual activity in
middle age (Almont & others, 2017; Rees & others, 2018). A study of adults
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55 years and older revealed that their level of sexual activity was associated
with their physical and mental health (Bach & others, 2013).
Cognitive Development
We have seen that middle-aged adults may not see as well, run as fast, or be
as healthy as they were in their twenties and thirties. We’ve also seen a
decline in their sexual activity. What about their cognitive skills? Do these
skills decline as we enter and move through middle adulthood? To answer
this question, we will explore the possibility of age-related changes in
intelligence and information processing.
Intelligence
Our exploration of possible changes in intelligence in middle adulthood
focuses on the concepts of fluid and crystallized intelligence, cohort effects,
and the Seattle Longitudinal Study.
Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence
John Horn argues that some abilities begin to decline in middle age, whereas
others increase (Horn & Donaldson, 1980). He argues that crystallized
intelligence, an individual’s accumulated information and verbal
skills, continues to increase in middle adulthood, whereas fluid
intelligence, one’s ability to reason abstractly, begins to decline
during middle adulthood (see Figure 1).
Figure 1 Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence Across the Life Span
According to Horn, crystallized intelligence (based on cumulative learning experiences)
increases throughout the life span, but fluid intelligence (the ability to perceive and
manipulate information) steadily declines from middle adulthood onward.
Horn’s data were collected in a cross-sectional manner. Recall that a
cross-sectional study assesses individuals of different ages at the same point
in time. For example, a cross-sectional study might assess the intelligence of
different groups of 40-, 50-, and 60-year-olds in a single evaluation, such as
in 1980. The 40-year-olds in the study would have been born in 1940 and the
60-year-olds in 1920—different eras that offered different economic and
educational opportunities. The 60-year-olds likely had fewer educational
opportunities as they grew up. Thus, if we find differences between 40- and
60-year-olds on intelligence tests when they are assessed cross-sectionally,
these differences might be due to cohort effects related to educational
differences rather than to age.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you explain how
changes in fluid and
crystallized intelligence
might influence the way
middle-aged adults
learn?
By contrast, recall that in a longitudinal study, the same individuals are
studied over a period of time. Thus, a longitudinal study of intelligence in
middle adulthood might consist of giving the same intelligence test to the
same individuals when they are 40, then 50, and then 60 years of age. As we
see next, whether data on intelligence are collected cross-sectionally or
longitudinally can make a difference in what is found about changes in
crystallized and fluid intelligence and about intellectual decline.
The Seattle Longitudinal Study
K. Warner Schaie (1996, 2005, 2010, 2011, 2013) is conducting an extensive
study of intellectual abilities in adulthood. Five hundred individuals initially
were tested in 1956. New waves of participants are added periodically. The
main focus in the Seattle Longitudinal Study has been on individual change
and stability in intelligence. The main mental abilities tested are verbal
comprehension (ability to understand ideas expressed in words); verbal
memory (ability to encode and recall meaningful language units, such as a list
of words); numeric ability (ability to perform simple mathematical
computations such as addition, subtraction, and multiplication); spatial
orientation (ability to visualize and mentally rotate stimuli in two- and three-
dimensional space); inductive reasoning (ability to recognize and understand
patterns and relationships in a problem and use this understanding to solve
other instances of the problem); and perceptual speed (ability to quickly and
accurately make simple discriminations in visual stimuli).
The highest level of functioning for four of the six intellectual abilities
occurred during middle adulthood (Schaie, 2013) (see Figure 2). For both
women and men, peak performance on verbal ability, verbal memory,
inductive reasoning, and spatial orientation was attained in middle age. Only
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two of the six abilities—numeric ability and perceptual speed—showed a
decline in middle age. Perceptual speed showed the earliest decline, actually
beginning in early adulthood. Interestingly, in terms of John Horn’s ideas that
were discussed earlier, for the participants in the Seattle Longitudinal Study,
middle age was a time of peak performance for some aspects of both
crystallized intelligence (verbal ability) and fluid intelligence (spatial
orientation and inductive reasoning).
Figure 2 Longitudinal Changes in Six Intellectual Abilities from Age 25 to Age 95
Source: Schaie, K. W. “Longitudinal Changes in Six Intellectual Abilities from Age
25 to Age 95.” Figure 5.7a, in Developmental Influences on Intelligence: The
Seattle Longitudinal Study, (2nd rev edit.) 2013, p. 162.
Notice in Figure 2 that declines in functioning for most cognitive abilities
began in the sixties, although verbal comprehension did not drop until the
mid-seventies. From the mid-seventies through the mid-nineties, all cognitive
abilities showed considerable decline.
When Schaie (1994) assessed intellectual abilities both
cross-sectionally and longitudinally, he found declines more
often in the cross-sectional than in the longitudinal
assessments. For example, as shown in Figure 3, when assessed cross-
sectionally, inductive reasoning showed a consistent decline during middle
adulthood. In contrast, when assessed longitudinally, inductive reasoning
increased until toward the end of middle adulthood, when it began to show a
slight decline. In Schaie’s (2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2016) view, it is during
middle adulthood, not early adulthood, that people reach a peak in their
cognitive functioning for many intellectual skills.
Figure 3 Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Comparisons of Intellectual Change in
Middle Adulthood
Why do you think reasoning ability peaks during middle adulthood?
Such differences across generations involve cohort effects. In a recent
analysis, Schaie (2013, 2016) concluded that the advances in cognitive
functioning in middle age that have occurred in recent decades are likely due
to a combination of factors: increased educational attainment, different
occupational structures (increasing numbers of workers in professional
occupations with greater work complexity), changes in health care and
lifestyles, immigration, and social interventions in poverty. The impressive
gains in cognitive functioning in recent cohorts have been documented more
clearly for fluid intelligence than for crystallized intelligence (Schaie, 2013).
Some researchers disagree with Schaie that middle adulthood is the time
when the level of functioning in a number of cognitive domains is maintained
or even increases (Finch, 2009). For example, Timothy Salthouse (2009,
2012, 2018) has emphasized that a lower level of cognitive functioning in
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middle adulthood is likely due to age-related neurobiological decline.
Salthouse (2014, 2016) also argues that a main reason for different trends in
longitudinal and cross-sectional comparisons of cognitive functioning is that
prior experience with tests increases scores the next time a test is taken.
Information Processing
As we saw in the coverage of theories of development and of
cognitive development from infancy through adolescence, the
information-processing approach provides another way to
examine cognitive abilities (Braithwaite & Siegler, 2018; Braithwaite, Tian,
& Siegler, 2018). Among the information-processing changes that take place
in middle adulthood are those involved in speed of processing information,
memory, and expertise.
Speed of Information Processing
As we just discussed, in Schaie’s (1996, 2013) Seattle Longitudinal Study,
perceptual speed begins declining in early adulthood and continues to decline
in middle adulthood. A common way to assess speed of information
processing is through a reaction-time task, in which individuals simply press
a button as soon as they see a light appear. Middle-aged adults are slower to
push the button when the light appears than young adults are (Salthouse,
2009, 2012, 2018). However, keep in mind that the decline is not dramatic—
less than 1 second in most investigations. Also, in a longitudinal study, a
smaller decline in processing speed in middle and late adulthood was one of
the key predictors of living longer (Aichele, Rabbitt, & Ghisletta, 2016).
Memory
In Schaie’s (1994, 1996, 2013) Seattle Longitudinal Study, verbal memory
peaked in the fifties. However, in some other studies, verbal memory has
shown a decline in middle age, especially when assessed in cross-sectional
studies (Salthouse, 2018). For example, when asked to remember lists of
words, numbers, or meaningful prose, younger adults outperformed middle-
aged adults (Salthouse & Skovronek, 1992). Although there still is some
controversy about whether memory declines during middle adulthood, most
experts conclude that it does decline, at least in late middle age (Ferreira &
others, 2015; Salthouse, 2018).
Aging and cognition expert Denise Park (2001) argues that starting in late
middle age, more time is needed to learn new information. The slowdown in
learning new information has been linked to changes in working memory,
the mental “workbench” where individuals manipulate and assemble
information when making decisions, solving problems, and comprehending
written and spoken language (Baddeley, 2007, 2012, 2015, 2018a, b). In this
view, in late middle age, working memory capacity—the amount of
information that can be immediately retrieved and used—becomes more
limited.
Memory decline is more likely to occur among individuals who don’t use
effective memory strategies, such as organization and imagery (Hoyer &
Roodin, 2009). By organizing lists of phone numbers into different categories
or imagining the phone numbers as representing different objects around the
house, many people can improve their memory in middle adulthood.
Expertise
Because it takes so long to attain, expertise often shows up more in middle
adulthood than in early adulthood (Charness & Krampe, 2008). Recall that
expertise involves having extensive, highly organized knowledge and
understanding of a particular domain. Developing expertise and becoming an
“expert” in a field usually is the result of many years of experience, learning,
and effort (Ericsson, 2017; Ericsson & others, 2016, 2018).
Adults in middle age who have become experts in their fields are likely to
do the following: rely on their accumulated experience to solve problems;
process information automatically and analyze it more efficiently when
solving a problem; devise better strategies and shortcuts to solving problems;
and be more creative and flexible in solving problems.
Careers, Work, and Leisure
Page 358
What are some issues that workers face in midlife? What role does leisure
play in the lives of middle-aged adults?
Work in Midlife
The role of work, whether one works in a full-time career, at a part-time job,
as a volunteer, or as a homemaker, is central during the middle years (Cahill,
Giandrea, & Quinn, 2016; Wang & Shi, 2016). Middle-aged adults may reach
their peak in position and earnings. They may also be saddled with multiple
financial burdens including rent or mortgage payments, medical bills, home
repairs, college tuition, loans to family members, or bills from nursing homes
for aging parents. One study found that difficulty managing different job
demands was associated with poor health in middle-aged adults (Nabe-
Nielsen & others, 2014).
What characterizes work in middle adulthood?
©Ariel Skelley/Getty Images
In 2015 in the United States, 79.4 percent of 45- to 54-year-olds were in
the workforce (a decrease of 3.4 percent since 2000) and 64.1 percent of 55-
to 64-year-olds were in the workforce (an increase of 8 percent since 2000)
(Short, 2015). Later in the text we will describe various aspects of workforce
participation among individuals age 65 and over in the United States, which
has increased by a remarkable 50 percent since 2000 (Short, 2015).
Do middle-aged workers perform their work as competently as younger
adults? Age-related declines occur in some occupations, such as air traffic
controllers and professional athletes, but for most jobs, no differences have
been found in the work performance of young adults and middle-aged adults
(Salthouse, 2012). However, leading Finnish researcher Clas-Hakan Nygard
(2013) concludes from his longitudinal research that the ability to work
effectively peaks during middle age because of increased motivation, work
experience, employer loyalty, and better strategic thinking. Nygard also has
found that the quality of work done by middle-aged employees is linked to
how much their work is appreciated and how well they get along with their
immediate supervisors. And Nygard and his colleagues discovered that work
ability in middle age was linked to mortality and disability 28 years later (von
Bonsdorff & others, 2011, 2012).
For many people, midlife is a time of evaluation, assessment, and
reflection in terms of the work they are doing and want to do in the future
(Cahill, Giandrea, & Quinn, 2016). Among the work issues that some people
face in midlife are recognizing limitations in career progress, deciding
whether to change jobs or careers, deciding whether to rebalance family and
work, and planning for retirement (Sterns & Huyck, 2001).
Career Challenges and Changes
The current middle-aged worker faces several important challenges in the
twenty-first century (Brand, 2014). These include the globalization of work,
rapid developments in information technologies, downsizing of
organizations, pressure to choose early retirement, and concerns about
pensions and health care.
Globalization has replaced what was once a primarily non-Latino White
male workforce in the United States with employees of different ethnic and
national backgrounds who have emigrated from different parts of the world.
To improve profits, many companies are restructuring, downsizing, and
outsourcing jobs. One of the outcomes of this change has been for companies
to offer incentives to middle-aged employees who choose to retire early—in
their fifties, or in some cases even forties, rather than their sixties.
The decline in defined-benefit pensions and increased uncertainty about
the fate of health insurance are eroding the sense of personal control among
middle-aged workers. As a consequence, many are delaying their retirement
from work.
Some midlife career changes are self-motivated, while others are the
Page 359
consequence of losing one’s job (Moen, 2009a, b). Some individuals in
middle age decide that they don’t want to continue doing the same work for
the rest of their working lives (Hoyer & Roodin, 2009). One aspect of middle
adulthood involves adjusting idealistic hopes to reflect realistic possibilities
in light of how much time individuals have before they retire and how
quickly they are reaching their occupational goals (Levinson, 1978).
Individuals could become motivated to change jobs if they perceive that they
are behind schedule, if their goals are unrealistic, if they don’t
like the work they are doing, or if their job has become too
stressful.
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
what advice would you
offer to middle-aged
adults who are
dissatisfied with their
careers?
A final point to make about career development in middle adulthood is
that cognitive factors earlier in development are linked to occupational
attainment in middle age. In one study, task persistence at 13 years of age
was related to occupational success in middle age (Andersson & Bergman,
2011).
Leisure
As adults, not only must we learn how to work well, but we also need to learn
how to relax and enjoy leisure (Finkel, Andel, & Pedersen, 2018). Leisure
refers to the pleasant times after work when individuals are free to pursue
activities and interests of their own choosing—hobbies, sports, or reading, for
example. In one analysis of research on what U.S. adults regret the most, not
engaging in more leisure-time pursuits was one of the top six regrets (Roese
& Summerville, 2005). A Finnish study found that engaging in little leisure-
time activity in middle age was linked to risk of cognitive impairment in late
adulthood (23 years later) (Virta & others, 2013). Another study revealed that
middle-aged individuals who engaged in high levels of leisure-time physical
activity were less likely to have Alzheimer disease 28 years later (Tolppanen
& others, 2015).
Also, different types of leisure activities may be linked to different
outcomes (Hagnas & others, 2018). A recent study found that engaging in
higher complexity of work before retirement was associated with less
cognitive decline during retirement (Andel, Finkel, & Pedersen, 2016).
However, when those who had worked in occupations with fewer cognitive
challenges prior to retirement engaged in physical (sports, walking) and
cognitive (reading books, doing puzzles, and playing chess) leisure activities
during retirement, they showed less cognitive decline. Also, a Danish
longitudinal study of 20- to 93-year-olds found that those who engaged in a
light level of leisure-time physical activity lived 2.8 years longer, those who
engaged in a moderate level of leisure-time physical activity lived 4.5 years
longer, and those who engaged in high level of leisure-time physical activity
lived 5.5 years longer (Schnohr & others, 2017). Further, a study revealed
that middle-aged adults who engaged in active leisure-time pursuits had
higher levels of cognitive performance in late adulthood (Ihle & others,
2015). And in another study, individuals who engaged in a greater amount of
sedentary screen-based leisure time activity (TV, video games, computer use)
had shorter telomere length (telomeres cover the end of chromosomes, and as
people age their telomeres become shorter and this shorter telomere length is
linked to earlier mortality) (Loprinzi, 2015).
Sigmund Freud once commented that the two things adults need to do well to adapt to
society’s demands are to work and to love. To his list we add “and to play.” In our fast-
paced society, it is all too easy to get caught up in the frenzied, hectic pace of our
achievement-oriented work world and ignore leisure and play. Imagine your life as a
middle-aged adult. What would be the ideal mix of work and leisure? What leisure
activities do you want to enjoy as a middle-aged adult?
©Digital Vision/Getty Images
Leisure can be an especially important aspect of middle adulthood
(Parkes, 2006). By middle adulthood, more money may be available to many
individuals, and there may be more free time and paid vacations. In short,
midlife changes may produce expanded opportunities for leisure. For many
individuals, middle adulthood is the first time in their lives when they have
the opportunity to explore their leisure-time interests.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you explain the
link between leisure and
Page 360
stress reduction to a
middle-aged individual?
Adults in midlife need to begin preparing psychologically for retirement.
Developing constructive and fulfilling leisure-time activities in middle
adulthood is an important part of this preparation (Gibson, 2009). If an adult
chooses activities that can be continued into retirement, the
transition from work to retirement can be less stressful.
Religion and Meaning in Life
What role does religion play in our development as adults? Is discovering the
meaning of life an important theme for many middle-aged adults?
Religion and Adult Lives
In research that was part of the Midlife in the United States Study (MIDUS),
more than 70 percent of U.S. middle-aged adults said that they are religious
and that they consider spirituality a major part of their lives (Brim, 1999). In
thinking about religion and adult development, it is important to consider the
role of individual differences. Religion is a powerful influence in some
adults’ lives, whereas it plays little or no role in others’ lives (Krause &
Hayward, 2016). In a longitudinal study of individuals from their early
thirties through their late sixties and early seventies, a significant increase in
spirituality occurred between late middle (mid-fifties/early sixties) and late
adulthood (Wink & Dillon, 2002) (see Figure 4). In one survey, 77 percent of
30- to 49-year-olds and 84 percent of 50- to 64-year-olds reported having a
religious affiliation (compared with 67 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds and 90
percent of adults 90 years of age and older) (Pew Research Center, 2012).
Figure 4 Levels of Spirituality in Four Adult Age Periods
In a longitudinal study, the spirituality of individuals in four different adult age periods—
early (thirties), middle (forties), late middle (mid-fifties/early sixties), and late (late
sixties/early seventies) adulthood—was assessed (Wink & Dillon, 2002). Based on
responses to open-ended questions in interviews, the spirituality of the individuals was
coded on a five-point scale with 5 being the highest level of spirituality and 1 the lowest.
Females have consistently shown a stronger interest in religion than
males have (Bijur & others, 1993). Compared with men, they participate
more in both organized and personal forms of religion, are more likely to
believe in a higher power or presence, and are more likely to feel that religion
is an important dimension of their lives. In the longitudinal study just
described, the spirituality of women increased more than that of men during
the second half of life (Wink & Dillon, 2002).
Religion and Health
What might be some of the effects of religion on physical health? Some cults
and religious sects encourage behaviors that are damaging to health, such as
ignoring sound medical advice. For individuals in the religious mainstream,
however, researchers are increasingly finding positive links between religion
and physical health (Dimaghani, 2018; Krause & Hayward, 2016; Park &
Ono, 2018). In a recent study, spiritual well-being predicted which heart
Page 361
failure patients would still be alive five years later (Park & others, 2016). In
another study, adults who volunteered had lower resting pulse rates and their
resting pulse rates improved if they were more deeply committed to religion
(Krause, Ironson, & Hill, 2017). And in an analysis of a number of studies,
adults with a higher level of spirituality/religion had an 18 percent
increase in longevity (Lucchetti, Lucchetti, & Koenig, 2011). In
this analysis, a high level of spirituality/religion was more closely
tied to longevity than 60 percent of 25 other health interventions (such as
eating fruits and vegetables and taking statin drugs for cardiovascular
disease).
What roles do religion and spirituality play in the lives of middle-aged adults? Why might
religion promote health?
©Erik S. Lesser/Newscom
Why might religion promote physical health? There are several possible
answers (Holt & others, 2017; Park & others, 2017). First, there are lifestyle
issues—for example, religious individuals have lower rates of drug use than
their nonreligious counterparts (Gartner, Larson, & Allen, 1991). Second are
social networks—the degree to which individuals are connected to others
affects their health. Well-connected individuals have fewer health problems
(Hill & Pargament, 2003). Religious groups, meetings, and activities provide
social connectedness for individuals. A third answer involves coping with
stress—religion offers a source of comfort and support when individuals are
confronted with stressful events. One study revealed that highly religious
individuals were less likely than their moderately religious, somewhat
religious, and non-religious counterparts to be psychologically distressed
(Park, 2013).
Religious counselors often advise people about mental health and coping.
To read about the work of one religious counselor, see Careers in Life-Span
Development.
Careers in life-span development
Gabriel Dy-Liacco, University Professor and
Pastoral Counselor
Gabriel Dy-Liacco currently is a professor in religious and pastoral
counseling at Regent University in the Virginia Beach, Virginia, area.
He obtained his Ph.D. in pastoral counseling from Loyola College in
Maryland and also has worked as a psychotherapist in mental health
settings such as a substance-abuse program, military family center,
psychiatric clinic, and community mental health center. Earlier in his
career he was a pastoral counselor at the Pastoral Counseling and
Consultation Centers of Greater Washington, DC, and taught at
Loyola University in Maryland. As a pastoral counselor, he works
with adolescents and adults in the aspects of their lives that they show
the most concern about—psychological, spiritual, or the interface of
both. Having lived in Peru, Japan, and the Philippines, he brings
considerable multicultural experience to teaching and counseling
settings.
Meaning in Life
Austrian psychiatrist Viktor Frankl’s mother, father, brother, and wife died in
the concentration camps and gas chambers in Auschwitz, Poland, during
World War II. Frankl survived the concentration camp and went on to write
Page 362
about the search for meaning in life. In his book, Man’s Search for Meaning,
Frankl (1984) emphasized each person’s uniqueness and the finiteness of life.
He believed that examining the finiteness of our existence and the certainty of
death adds meaning to life. If life were not finite, said Frankl, we could spend
our life doing just about whatever we pleased because our time would be
unlimited.
Frankl said that the three most distinctly human qualities are spirituality,
freedom, and responsibility. Spirituality, in his view, does not have a
religious underpinning. Rather, it refers to a human being’s uniqueness of
spirit, philosophy, and mind. Frankl proposed that people ask themselves
questions about why they exist, what they want from life, and what their lives
mean.
It is in middle adulthood that individuals begin to face death more often,
especially the deaths of parents and other older relatives. As they become
increasingly aware of the diminishing number of years ahead of them, many
individuals in middle age begin to ask and evaluate the questions that Frankl
proposed. And meaning-making coping is especially helpful in times of
chronic stress and loss.
What characterizes the search for meaning in life?
©Eric Audras/Getty Images
Researchers are increasingly studying the factors involved in a person’s
exploration of meaning in life and exploring whether developing a sense of
meaning in life is linked to positive developmental outcomes (Ahmadi &
others, 2017; Park, 2010, 2012; Sloan & others, 2017; Zhang,
2018). In research studies, many individuals state that religion
played an important role in increasing their exploration of meaning in life
(Krause, 2008, 2009; Krause & Hayward, 2016). Studies also suggest that
individuals who have found a sense of meaning in life are physically
healthier and happier, and experience less depression, than their counterparts
who report that they have not discovered meaning in life (Krause, 2009;
Zhang, 2018).
Having a sense of meaning in life can lead to clearer guidelines for living
one’s life and enhanced motivation to take care of oneself and reach goals. A
higher level of meaning in life also is linked to a higher level of
psychological well-being and physical health (Park, 2012).
Summary
The Nature of Middle Adulthood
As more people live to older ages, what we think of as middle age is
starting later and lasting longer.
Middle age involves extensive individual variation. For most people,
middle adulthood involves declining physical skills, expanding
responsibility, awareness of the young-old polarity, motivation to
transmit something meaningful to the next generation, and reaching and
maintaining career satisfaction. Increasingly, researchers are
distinguishing between early and late midlife.
Physical Development
The physical changes of midlife are usually gradual. Decline occurs in a
number of aspects of physical development.
In middle adulthood, the frequency of accidents declines and individuals
are less susceptible to colds. Stress can be a factor in disease.
Until recently, cardiovascular disease was the leading cause of death in
middle age, but now cancer is the leading cause of death in this age
group.
Most women do not have serious physical or psychological problems
related to menopause. Sexual behavior occurs less frequently in middle
adulthood than early adulthood.
Cognitive Development
Horn argued that crystallized intelligence continues to increase in middle
adulthood, whereas fluid intelligence declines. Schaie found that declines
in cognitive development are less likely to occur when longitudinal rather
than cross-sectional studies are conducted. He also discovered that the
highest levels of a number of intellectual abilities occur in middle age.
Working memory declines in late middle age. Memory is more likely to
decline in middle age when individuals don’t use effective memory
strategies. Expertise often increases in middle adulthood.
Careers, Work, and Leisure
Midlife is often a time to reflect on career progress and prepare for
retirement.
Today’s middle-aged workers face a number of challenges.
In preparing for late adulthood, adults in midlife not only need to learn to
work well, but also discover how to enjoy leisure.
Religion and Meaning in Life
The majority of middle-aged adults say that spirituality is a major part of
their lives.
In mainstream religions, religion is positively linked to physical health.
Religion can play an important role in coping for some individuals.
Many middle-aged individuals reflect on life’s meaning.
Key Terms
climacteric
crystallized intelligence
fluid intelligence
leisure
menopause
middle adulthood
working memory
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©Blend Images/Ariel Skelley/Getty Images
14
Socioemotional
Development in Middle
Adulthood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Personality Theories and Development
Adult Stage Theories
The Life-Events Approach
Stress and Personal Control in Midlife
Stability and Change
Longitudinal Studies
Conclusions
Close Relationships
Love and Marriage at Midlife
The Empty Nest and Its Refilling
Sibling Relationships and Friendships
Grandparenting
Intergenerational Relationships
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Sarah and Wanda, Middle-Age
Variations
Forty-five-year-old Sarah feels tired, depressed, and angry when
she looks back on the way her life has gone. She became pregnant
when she was 17 and married Ben, the baby’s father. They stayed
together for three years after their son was born, and then Ben left
her for another woman. Sarah went to work as a salesclerk to make
ends meet. Eight years later, she married Alan, who had two
children of his own from a previous marriage. Sarah stopped
working for several years to care for the children. Then, like Ben,
Alan started cheating on her. She found out about it from a friend.
Nevertheless, Sarah stayed with Alan for another year. Finally, he
was gone so much that she could not take it anymore and decided
to divorce him. Sarah went back to work again as a salesclerk; she
has been in the same position for 16 years now. During those 16
years, she has dated a number of men, but the relationships never
seemed to work out. Her son never finished high school and has
drug problems. Her father died last year, and Sarah is trying to help
her mother financially, although she can barely pay her own bills.
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Sarah looks in the mirror and does not like what she sees. She sees
her past as a shambles, and the future does not look rosy, either.
Forty-five-year-old Wanda feels energetic, happy, and
satisfied. As a young woman, she graduated from college and
worked for three years as a high school math teacher. She married
Andy, who had just finished law school. One year later, they had
their first child, Josh. Wanda stayed home with Josh for two years
and then returned to her job as a math teacher. Even during her
pregnancy, Wanda stayed active and exercised regularly, playing
tennis almost every day. After her pregnancy, she
kept up her exercise habits. Wanda and Andy had
another child, Wendy. Now, as they move into their
middle-age years, their children are both in college, and Wanda
and Andy are enjoying spending more time with each other. Last
weekend they visited Josh at his college, and the weekend before
they visited Wendy at her college. Wanda continued working as a
high school math teacher until six years ago. She had developed
computer skills as part of her job and taken some computer courses
at a nearby college, doubling up during the summer months. She
resigned her math teaching job and took a job with a computer
company, where she has already worked her way into
management. Wanda looks in the mirror and likes what she sees.
She sees her past as enjoyable, although not without hills and
valleys, and she looks to the future with zest and enthusiasm.
As with Sarah and Wanda, there are individual variations in the
way people experience middle age. To begin the chapter, we
examine personality theories and development in middle age,
including ideas about individual variation. Then we turn our
attention to how much individuals change or stay the same as they
go through the adult years, and finally we explore a number of
aspects of close relationships during middle adulthood. ■
Personality Theories and Development
What is the best way to conceptualize middle age? Is it a stage or a crisis?
How extensively is middle age influenced by life events? Do middle-aged
adults experience stress differently from younger and older adults? Is
personality linked with contexts such as the point in history in which
individuals go through midlife, their culture, and their gender?
Adult Stage Theories
A number of adult stage theories have been proposed and have contributed to
the view that midlife brings a crisis in development. Two prominent theories
that define stages of adult development are Erik Erikson’s life-span view and
Daniel Levinson’s seasons of a man’s life.
Erikson’s Stage of Generativity Versus Stagnation
Erikson (1968) proposed that middle-aged adults face a significant issue—
generativity versus stagnation, which is the name Erikson gave to the seventh
stage in his life-span theory. Generativity encompasses adults’ desire to
leave legacies of themselves to the next generation. Through these legacies
adults achieve a kind of immortality. By contrast, stagnation (sometimes
called “self-absorption”) develops when individuals sense that they have
done little or nothing for the next generation.
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you describe
ways in which the
profession of teaching
might establish
generativity for
someone in middle
adulthood?
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Generative adults commit themselves to the continuation and
improvement of society as a whole through their connection to the next
generation. Generative adults develop a positive legacy of the self and then
offer it as a gift to the next generation (Grossman & Gruenwald, 2017; Serrat
& others, 2018). Middle-aged adults can achieve generativity in a number of
ways (Kotre, 1984). Through biological generativity, adults have offspring.
Through parental generativity, adults nurture and guide children. Through
work generativity, adults develop skills that are passed down to others. And
through cultural generativity, adults create, renovate, or conserve some aspect
of culture that ultimately survives (Lewis & Allen, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you advise a
middle-aged woman
who never had children
and now fears she has
little opportunity to
leave a legacy to the
next generation?
Through generativity, adults promote and guide the next
generation by parenting, teaching, leading, and doing things that
benefit the community (Russo-Netzer & Moran, 2018; Serrat &
others, 2018). One of the participants in a study of aging said: “From twenty
to thirty I learned how to get along with my wife. From thirty to forty I
learned how to be a success at my job, and at forty to fifty I worried less
about myself and more about the children” (Vaillant, 2002, p. 114).
Does research support Erikson’s theory that generativity is an important
dimension of middle age? Yes, it does (Dunlop, Bannon, & McAdams,
2017). In one study, Carol Ryff (1984) examined the views of women and
men at different ages and found that middle-aged adults especially were
concerned about generativity. In a longitudinal study of Smith College
women, the desire for generativity increased as the participants aged from
their thirties to their fifties (Stewart, Ostrove, & Helson, 2001). In another
study, generativity was strongly linked to middle-aged adults’ positive social
engagement in contexts such as family life and community activities (Cox &
others, 2010). And in one study of males, achievement of generativity in
middle age was related to better health in late adulthood (Landes & others,
2014). In another study, participating in an intergenerational civic
engagement program enhanced older adults’ perceptions of generativity
(Grunewald & others, 2016). Further, in another study, a higher level of
generativity in midlife was linked to greater wisdom in late adulthood
(Ardelt, Gerlach, & Vaillant, 2018).
Levinson’s Seasons of a Man’s Life
In The Seasons of a Man’s Life, clinical psychologist Daniel Levinson (1978)
reported the results of extensive interviews with 40 middle-aged men. The
interviews were conducted with hourly workers, business executives,
academic biologists, and novelists. Levinson bolstered his conclusions with
information from the biographies of famous men and the development of
memorable characters in literature. Although Levinson’s major interest
focused on midlife change in men, he described a number of stages and
transitions during the period from 17 to 65 years of age, as shown in Figure 1.
Levinson emphasizes that developmental tasks must be mastered at each
stage.
Figure 1 Levinson’s Periods of Adult Development
According to Levinson, adulthood for men has three main stages, which are surrounded
by transition periods. Specific tasks and challenges are associated with each stage.
(Top) ©Amos Morgan/Getty Images; (middle) ©Sam Edwards/age fotostock;
(bottom) ©image100 Ltd
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At the end of one’s teens, according to Levinson, a transition from
dependence to independence should occur. This transition is marked by the
formation of a dream—an image of the kind of life the youth wants to have,
especially in terms of a career and marriage. Levinson sees the twenties as a
novice phase of adult development. It is a time of reasonably free
experimentation and of testing the dream in the real world. In early
adulthood, the two major tasks to be mastered are exploring the possibilities
for adult living and developing a stable life structure.
From about age 28 to 33, the man goes through a transition period in
which he must face the more serious question of determining his goals.
During his thirties, he usually focuses on family and career
development. In the later years of this period, he enters a
phase of Becoming One’s Own Man (or BOOM, as Levinson
calls it). By age 40, he has reached a stable point in his career, has outgrown
his earlier, more tenuous attempts at learning to become an adult, and now
must look forward to the kind of life he will lead as a middle-aged adult.
According to Levinson, the transition to middle adulthood lasts about five
years (ages 40 to 45) and requires the adult male to come to grips with four
major conflicts that have existed in his life since adolescence: (1) being
young versus being old, (2) being destructive versus being constructive, (3)
being masculine versus being feminine, and (4) being attached to others
versus being separated from them. Seventy to 80 percent of the men Levinson
interviewed found the midlife transition tumultuous and psychologically
painful, as many aspects of their lives came into question. According to
Levinson, the success of the midlife transition rests on how effectively the
individual reduces the polarities and accepts each of them as an integral part
of his being.
Because Levinson interviewed middle-aged males, we can consider the
data about middle adulthood more valid than the data about early adulthood.
When individuals are asked to remember information about earlier parts of
their lives, they may distort and forget things. The original Levinson data
included no females, although Levinson (1996) reported that his stages,
transitions, and the crisis of middle age apply to females as well as males.
Levinson’s work included no statistical analysis. However, the quality and
quantity of the Levinson biographies make them outstanding examples of the
clinical tradition.
How Pervasive Are Midlife Crises?
Levinson (1978) views midlife as a crisis, believing that the middle-aged
adult is suspended between the past and the future, trying to cope with this
gap that threatens life’s continuity. George Vaillant (1977) has a different
view. Vaillant’s study—called the “Grant Study”—involved men who were
in their early thirties and in their late forties who initially had been
interviewed as undergraduates at Harvard University. He concludes that just
as adolescence is a time for detecting parental flaws and discovering the truth
about childhood, the forties are a decade of reassessing and recording the
truth about adolescence and adulthood. However, whereas Levinson sees
midlife as a crisis, Vaillant maintains that only a minority of adults
experience a midlife crisis.
©John Simmons/Alamy
Today, adult development experts are virtually unanimous in their belief
that midlife crises have been exaggerated (Lachman, Teshale, & Agrigoroaei,
2015). Further, happiness and positive affect have an upward trajectory from
early adulthood to late adulthood (Carstensen, 2015; Sims, Hogan, &
Carstensen, 2015).
The Life-Events Approach
Age-related stages represent one major way to examine adult personality
development. A second major way to conceptualize adult personality
development is to focus on life events (Kok & others, 2017; Oren & others,
Page 367
2017; Patrick, Carney, & Nehrkorn, 2017). In the early version of the life-
events approach, life events were viewed as taxing circumstances for
individuals, forcing them to change their personality (Holmes & Rahe, 1967).
Such events as the death of a spouse, divorce, marriage, and so on were
believed to involve varying degrees of stress and therefore likely to influence
the individual’s development. One study found that stressful life events were
associated with cardiovascular disease in middle-aged women (Kershaw &
others, 2014). And a research meta-analysis found an association between
stressful life events and autoimmune diseases such as arthritis and psoriasis
(Porcelli & others, 2016).
Today’s life-events approach is more sophisticated. The contemporary
life-events approach emphasizes that how life events influence the
individual’s development depends not only on the life event
itself but also on mediating factors (physical health, family
supports, for example), the individual’s adaptation to the life
event (appraisal of the threat, coping strategies, for example), the life-stage
context, and the sociohistorical context (see Figure 2). For example, if
individuals are in poor health and have little family support, life events are
likely to be more stressful. Whatever the context or mediating variables,
however, one individual may perceive a life event as highly stressful,
whereas another individual may perceive the same event as a challenge.
Figure 2 A Contemporary Life-Events Framework for Interpreting Adult
Developmental Change
According to the contemporary life-events approach, the influence of a life event depends
on the event itself, on mediating variables, on the life-stage and sociohistorical context,
and on the individual’s appraisal of the event and coping strategies.
Although the life-events approach is a valuable addition to understanding
adult development, it has its drawbacks. One significant drawback is that the
life-events approach places too much emphasis on change. Another drawback
is its failure to recognize that our daily experiences may be the primary
sources of stress in our lives (Du, Derks, & Bakker, 2018; Keles & others,
2016; Koffer & others, 2018; Louch & others, 2017). Enduring a boring but
tense job, staying in an unsatisfying marriage, or living in poverty do not
show up on scales of major life events. Yet the everyday pounding we take
from these living conditions can add up to a highly stressful life and
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eventually lead to illness (Sarid & others, 2018; Scott & others, 2018; Smyth
& others, 2018). One study found that stressful daily hassles were linked to
increased anxiety and decreased physical well-being (Falconier & others,
2015).
Stress and Personal Control in Midlife
Margie Lachman and her colleagues (2015) have described how personal
control changes when individuals move into middle age. In their view,
middle age is a time when a person’s sense of control is frequently
challenged by many demands and responsibilities, as well as physical and
cognitive aging. By contrast, young people are more likely to have a sense of
invulnerability, an unrealistic view of their personal control, and a lack of
awareness regarding the aging process. Many young people focus primarily
on self-pursuits and don’t need to worry much about taking responsibility for
others. But in middle age, less attention is given to self-pursuits and more to
responsibility for others, including family members who are younger and
older than they are. According to Lachman and her colleagues (2015), how
middle adulthood plays out is largely in one’s own hands, which can be
stressful as individuals are faced with taking on and juggling responsibilities
in different areas of their lives.
One study in which participants kept daily diaries over a one-week period
found that both young and middle-aged adults had more stressful days than
older adults (Almeida & Horn, 2004). In this study, although young adults
experienced daily stressors more frequently than middle-aged adults did,
middle-aged adults experienced more “overload” stressors that involved
juggling too many activities at once. In another study, healthy older adult
women 63 to 93 years of age reported their daily experiences over the course
of one week (Charles & others, 2010). In this study, the older the women
were, the fewer stressors and less frequent negative emotions they reported.
Also, in other research, greater emotional reactivity to daily
stressors was linked to increased risk of reporting a chronic
physical health condition and anxiety/mood disorders 10
years later (Charles & others, 2013; Piazza & others, 2013).
Developmental Changes in Perceived Personal Control
To what extent do middle-aged adults perceive that they can control what
happens to them? Researchers have found that on average a sense of personal
control peaks in midlife and then declines (Lachman, 2006; Lachman,
Agrigoroaei, & Hahn, 2016; Lachman, Teshale, & Agrigoroaei, 2015). Some
aspects of personal control increase with age while others decrease
(Lachman, Neupert, & Agrigoroaei, 2011). For example, middle-aged adults
have a greater sense of control over their finances, work, and marriage than
younger adults but less control over their sex life and their children (Lachman
& Firth, 2004). And having a sense of control in middle age is one of the
most important modifiable factors in delaying the onset of diseases in middle
adulthood and reducing the frequency of diseases in late adulthood
(Lachman, Neupert, & Agrigoroaei, 2011; Robinson & Lachman, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you convince a
company that it should
sponsor a stress-
reduction program for
its middle-aged
employees?
Stress and Gender
Women and men differ in the way they experience and respond to stressors
(Taylor, 2015, 2018). Women are more vulnerable to social stressors such as
those involving romance, family, and work. For example, women experience
higher levels of stress when things go wrong in romantic and marital
relationships. Women also are more likely than men to become depressed
when they encounter stressful life events such as a divorce or the death of a
friend. And a recent study found that in coping with stress, women were more
likely than men to seek psychotherapy, talk to friends about the stress, read a
self-help book, take prescription medication, and engage in comfort eating
(Liddon, Kingerlee, & Barry, 2017). In this study, in coping with stress men
were more likely than women to attend a support group meeting, have sex or
use pornography, try to fix problems themselves, and not admit to having
problems.
How do women and men differ in the way they experience and respond to stressors?
©Altrendo images/Getty Images
When men face stress, they are likely to respond in a fight-or-flight
manner—become aggressive, withdraw from social contact, or drink alcohol.
By contrast, according to Shelley Taylor (2011a, b, c, 2015, 2018), when
women experience stress, they are more likely to engage in a tend-and-
befriend pattern, seeking social alliances with others, especially friends.
Taylor argues that when women experience stress, their bodies produce
elevated levels of the hormone oxytocin, which is linked to nurturing in
animals.
Stability and Change
Questions about stability and change are an important issue in life-span
development. One of the main ways that stability and change are assessed is
Page 369
through longitudinal studies that assess the same individuals at different
points in their lives.
Longitudinal Studies
A number of longitudinal studies have assessed stability and change in the
personalities of individuals at different points in their lives (Borghuis &
others, 2017; Chopik & Kitayama, 2018; Fajkowska, 2018; Graham & others,
2017; Hengartner & Yamanaka-Altenstein, 2017). Here, we will examine
three longitudinal studies to help us understand the extent to which there is
stability or change in adult personality development: Costa and McCrae’s
Baltimore Study, the Berkeley Longitudinal Studies, and Vaillant’s studies.
Costa and McCrae’s Baltimore Study
A major study of adult personality development continues to be conducted by
Paul Costa and Robert McCrae (1998; McCrae & Costa, 2006). They focus
on what are called the Big Five factors of personality, which are openness
to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and
neuroticism (emotional stability); these factors are described in Figure 3.
(Notice that if you create an acronym from these factor names, you will get
the word OCEAN.) A number of research studies point to these factors as
important dimensions of personality (Graham & others, 2017; Hampson &
Edmonds, 2018; Roberts & Damian, 2018; Roberts & others, 2017;
Strickhouser, Zell, & Krizan, 2017).
Figure 3 The Big Five Factors of Personality
Each of the broad supertraits encompasses more narrow traits and characteristics. Use the
acronym OCEAN to remember the Big Five personality factors (openness,
conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism).
Using their five-factor personality test, Costa and McCrae (1998, 2000)
studied approximately one thousand college-educated men and women aged
20 to 96, assessing the same individuals over many years. Data collection
began in the 1950s to mid-1960s and is ongoing. Costa and McCrae
concluded that considerable stability exists across the adult years for the five
personality factors.
However, more recent research indicates greater developmental changes
in the five personality factors in adulthood (Roberts & others, 2017). For
example, one study found that emotional stability, extraversion, openness,
and agreeableness were lower in early adulthood, peaked between 40 and 60
years of age, and decreased in late adulthood, while conscientiousness
showed a continuous increase from early adulthood to late adulthood (Specht,
Egloff, & Schukle, 2011). Most research studies find that the greatest
changes in personality occur in early adulthood (Roberts & Damian, 2018).
Further evidence supporting the importance of the Big Five factors
indicates that they are related to major aspects of a person’s life such as
health, intelligence, achievement, and relationships (Roberts & Hill, 2017).
The following research supports these links:
Openness to experience. Individuals high in openness to experience are
more likely to have superior cognitive functioning, achievement, and IQ
across the life span (Briley, Domiteaux, & Tucker-Drob, 2014); show
creative achievement in the arts (Kaufman & others, 2016); experience
less negative affect to stressors (Leger & others, 2016); have better health
and well-being (Strickhouser, Zell, & Krizan, 2017); and are more likely
to eat fruits and vegetables (Conner & others, 2017).
Conscientiousness. Individuals high in conscientiousness are more likely
to live longer (Graham & others, 2017); have better health and less stress;
are less likely to have an alcohol addiction (Raketic & others, 2017);
experience less cognitive decline in aging (Luchetti & others, 2016); are
less likely to be characterized by Internet addiction (Zhou & others,
2017); are more successful at accomplishing goals (McCabe & Fleeson,
2016); are more likely to perform well academically in medical school
(Sobowale & others, 2018); and are less likely to be addicted to Instagram
(Kircaburun & Griffiths, 2018).
Extraversion. Individuals high in extraversion are more likely than others
to be satisfied in relationships (Toy, Nai, & Lee, 2016); show less
Page 370
negative affect to stressors (Leger & others, 2016); and have a more
positive sense of well-being in the future (Soto, 2015).
Agreeableness. People who are high in agreeableness tend to
live longer (Graham & others, 2017); are more likely to be
generous and altruistic (Caprara & others, 2010); have more
satisfying romantic relationships (Donnellan, Larsen-Rife, & Conger,
2005); engage in more positive affect to stressors (Leger & others, 2016);
and have a lower risk of dementia (Terracciano & others, 2017).
Neuroticism. People high in neuroticism are more likely to die at a
younger age than average (Graham & others, 2017); have worse health
and report having more health complaints (Strickhouser, Zell, & Krizan,
2017); are more likely to be drug dependent (Valero & others, 2014);
have a higher risk of coronary heart disease (Lee & others, 2014); and
have a lower sense of well-being 40 years later (Gale & others, 2013).
Researchers increasingly are finding that optimism is linked to better
adjustment, improved health, and increased longevity (Boelen, 2015;
Kolokotroni, Anagnostopoulos, & Hantzi, 2018). A recent study revealed that
college students who were more pessimistic had more anxious mood and
stress symptoms (Lau & others, 2017). A study involving adults 50 years of
age and older revealed that being optimistic and having an optimistic spouse
were both associated with better health and physical functioning (Kim,
Chopik, & Smith, 2014). Further, another study of married couples found that
the worst health outcomes occurred when both spouses decreased in
optimism across a four-year time frame (Chopik, Kim, & Smith, 2018). In
another study, a higher level of optimism following an acute coronary event
was linked to engaging in more physical activity and having fewer cardiac
readmissions (Huffman & others, 2016). Also, in a recent study, lonely
individuals who were optimistic had a lower suicide risk than their
counterparts who were more pessimistic (Chang & others, 2018). And a
research review concluded that the positive influence of optimism on
outcomes for people with chronic diseases (such as cancer, cardiovascular
disease, and respiratory disease) may reflect either or both of the following
factors: (a) a direct effect on the neuroendocrine system and on immune
system function; and (b) an indirect effect on health outcomes as a result of
protective health behaviors, adaptive coping strategies, and enhanced positive
mood (Avvenuti, Baiardini, & Giardini, 2016).
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Berkeley Longitudinal Studies
In the Berkeley Longitudinal Studies, more than 500 children and their
parents were initially studied in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The book
Present and Past in Middle Life (Eichorn & others, 1981) profiles these
individuals as they became middle-aged. The results from early adolescence
through a portion of midlife did not support either extreme in the debate over
whether personality is characterized by stability or change. Some
characteristics were more stable than others, however. The most stable
characteristics were the degree to which individuals were intellectually
oriented, self-confident, and open to new experiences. The characteristics that
changed the most included the extent to which the individuals were nurturant
or hostile and whether they had strong or weak self-control.
George Vaillant’s Studies
Longitudinal studies by George Vaillant explore a question that differs
somewhat from the studies described so far: Does personality at middle age
predict what a person’s life will be like in late adulthood? Vaillant (2002) has
conducted three longitudinal studies of adult development and aging: (1) a
sample of 268 socially advantaged Harvard graduates born about 1920
(called the Grant Study); (2) a sample of 456 socially disadvantaged inner-
city men born about 1930; and (3) a sample of 90 middle-SES, intellectually
gifted women born about 1910. These individuals have been assessed
numerous times (in most cases, every two years), beginning in the 1920s to
1940s and continuing today for those still living. The main assessments
involve extensive interviews with the participants, their parents, and teachers.
Vaillant categorized 75- to 80-year-olds as “happy-well,” “sad-sick,” or
“dead.” He used data collected from these individuals when they were 50
years of age to predict which categories they were likely to end up in at 75 to
80 years of age. Alcohol abuse and smoking at age 50 were the best
predictors of which individuals would be dead at 75 to 80 years of age. Other
factors at age 50 were linked with being in the “happy-well” category at 75 to
80 years of age: getting regular exercise, avoiding being
overweight, being well-educated, having a stable marriage,
being future-oriented, being thankful and forgiving,
empathizing with others, being active with other people, and having good
coping skills.
Wealth and income at age 50 were not linked with being in the “happy-
well” category at 75 to 80 years of age. Generativity in middle age (defined
in this study as “taking care of the next generation”) was more strongly
related than intimacy to whether individuals would have an enduring and
happy marriage at 75 to 80 years of age (Vaillant, 2002).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you use the
results of Vaillant’s
research to advise a
middle-aged adult
patient who abuses
alcohol and smokes?
The results for one of Vaillant’s studies, the Grant Study of Harvard men,
indicated that when individuals at 50 years of age were not heavy smokers,
did not abuse alcohol, had a stable marriage, exercised, maintained a normal
weight, and had good coping skills, they were more likely to be alive and
happy at 75 to 80 years of age.
Conclusions
What can be concluded about stability and change in personality
development during the adult years? Avshalom Caspi and Brent Roberts
(2001) concluded that the evidence does not support the view that personality
traits become completely fixed at a certain age in adulthood. However, they
argue that change is typically limited, and in some cases the changes in
personality are small. They also say that age is positively related to stability
and that stability peaks in the fifties and sixties. That is, people show greater
stability in their personality when they reach midlife than when they were
younger adults (Hill & Roberts, 2016; Nye & others, 2016). These findings
support what is called a cumulative personality model of development,
which states that with time and age, people become more adept at interacting
with their environment in ways that promote stability of personality.
This does not mean that change is absent throughout midlife. Ample
evidence shows that social contexts, new experiences, and sociohistorical
changes can affect personality development (Ayoub & Roberts, 2018;
Lachman, Teshale, & Agrigoroaei, 2015; Mroczek, Spiro, & Griffin, 2006).
However, Caspi and Roberts (2001) concluded that as people get older,
stability increasingly outweighs change. In a recent research review, the
personality trait that changed the most as a result of psychotherapy
intervention was emotional stability, followed by extraversion (Roberts &
others, 2017). In this review, the personality traits of individuals with anxiety
disorders changed the most and those with substance use disorders the least.
In general, changes in personality traits across adulthood also occur in a
positive direction. Over time, “people become more confident, warm,
responsible, and calm” (Roberts & Mroczek, 2008, p. 33). Such positive
changes equate with becoming more socially mature.
In sum, recent research contradicts the old view that stability in
personality begins to set in at about 30 years of age (Chopik & Kitayama,
2018; Roberts & Damian, 2018; Roberts & others, 2017). Although there are
some consistent developmental changes in the personality traits of large
numbers of people, at the individual level people can show unique patterns of
personality traits—and these patterns often reflect life experiences related to
themes of their particular developmental period (Roberts & Mroczek, 2008).
For example, researchers have found that individuals who are in a stable
marriage and on a solid career track become more socially dominant,
conscientious, and emotionally stable as they go through early adulthood
(Roberts & Wood, 2006). And, for some of these individuals, there is greater
change in their personality traits than for other individuals (McAdams &
Olson, 2010).
Close Relationships
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There is a consensus among middle-aged Americans that a major component
of well-being involves positive relationships with others, especially parents,
spouse, and offspring (Lachman, Teshale, & Agrigoroaei, 2015). To begin
our examination of midlife relationships, let’s explore love and marriage in
middle-aged adults.
Love and Marriage at Midlife
Two major forms of love are romantic love and affectionate love. The fires of
romantic love burn strongly in early adulthood. Affectionate, or
companionate, love increases during middle adulthood. That is, physical
attraction, romance, and passion are more important in new relationships,
especially those begun in early adulthood. Security, loyalty, and mutual
emotional interest become more important as relationships mature, especially
in middle adulthood (Crowley, 2018).
Marriage
One study revealed that marital satisfaction increased in middle age
(Gorchoff, John, & Helson, 2008). Even some marriages that were difficult
and rocky during early adulthood become more stable during middle
adulthood. Although the partners may have lived through a great deal of
turmoil, they eventually discover a deep and solid foundation on which to
anchor their relationship. In middle adulthood, the partners may have fewer
financial worries, less housework and chores, and more time with each other.
Middle-aged partners are more likely to view their marriage as positive if
they engage in mutual activities. One study found that middle-aged married
individuals had a lower likelihood of work-related health limitations (Lo,
Cheng, & Simpson, 2016). Another study of middle-aged adults revealed that
positive marital quality was linked to better health for both spouses (Choi,
Yorgason, & Johnson, 2016).
What characterizes marriage in middle adulthood?
©shapecharge/Getty Images
Most individuals in midlife who are married voice considerable
satisfaction with being married. In a large-scale study of individuals in
middle adulthood, 72 percent of those who were married said their marriage
was either “excellent” or “very good” (Brim, 1999). Possibly by middle age,
many of the worst marriages already have dissolved. A longitudinal study of
African American and non-Latino White men who were initially assessed
when they were 51 to 62 years of age and then followed for 18 years found
that the longevity gap that favors non-Latino White men was linked to their
higher rate of marriage (Su, Stimpson, & Wilson, 2015).
Divorce
What trends characterize divorce in U.S. middle-aged adults? In a recent
analysis that compared divorce rates for different age groups in 1990 to 2015,
the divorce rate had gone down for young adults but increased for middle-
aged adults (Stepler, 2017):
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The trend toward increasing rates of divorce after age 50 has led researchers
to use the term “gray divorce” in reference to marital breakups that occur in
this age group (Crowley, 2018; Lin & others, 2018). What accounts for this
increase in middle-age divorce? One explanation is the changing view of
women, who initiate approximately 60 percent of the divorces after 40 years
of age. Compared with earlier decades, divorce has less stigma for women
and they are more likely to leave an unhappy marriage. Also compared with
earlier decades, more women are employed and are less dependent on their
husband’s income. Another explanation involves the increase in remarriages,
in which the divorce rate is 2½ times as high as it is for those in first
marriages.
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you describe
the different reasons for
divorce in young and
middle-aged couples?
A survey by AARP (2004) of 1,148 40- to 79-year-olds who were
divorced at least once in their forties, fifties, or sixties found that staying
married because of their children was by far the main reason many people
took a long time to become divorced. Despite the worry and stress involved
in going through a divorce, three-fourths of the divorcees said
they had made the right decision to dissolve their marriage
and reported a positive outlook on life. Sixty-six percent of
the divorced women said they had initiated the divorce, compared with only
41 percent of the divorced men. The divorced women were much more afraid
of having financial problems (44 percent) than the divorced men were (11
percent).
Following are the main reasons that middle-aged and older adults cited
for their divorce:
Main Causes for Women Main Causes for Men
1. Verbal, physical, or emotional
abuse (23 percent)
2. Alcohol or drug abuse (18
percent)
3. Cheating (17 percent)
1. No obvious problems, just fell
out of love (17 percent)
2. Cheating (14 percent)
3. Different values, lifestyles (14
percent)
In a recent study of the antecedents of “gray divorce,” factors traditionally
associated with divorce in young adults also were reflected in divorces
among adults 50 years and older (Lin & others, 2018). Divorce was more
likely to occur in these older adults’ lives when they had been married fewer
years, their marriage was of lower quality (less marital satisfaction, for
example), they did not own a home, and they had financial problems. Factors
that were not linked to divorce in these older adults were the onset of an
empty next, the wife’s or husband’s retirement, and whether the wife or
husband had a chronic health condition.
What are some ways that divorce might be more positive or more negative in middle
adulthood than in early adulthood?
©Stock4B/Getty Images
Also, in a recent Swiss study of middle-aged adults, single divorcees were
more lonely and less resilient than their married and remarried counterparts
(Knopfli & others, 2016). And in this study, single divorcees had the lowest
self-rated health.
The Empty Nest and Its Refilling
An important event in a family is the launching of a child into adult life.
Parents face new adjustments as a result of the child’s absence. College
students usually think that their parents suffer from their absence. In fact,
parents who live vicariously through their children might experience the
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empty nest syndrome, which includes a decline in marital satisfaction after
children leave the home. For most parents, however, marital satisfaction does
not decline after children have left home. Rather, for most parents, marital
satisfaction increases during the years after child rearing has ended
(Fingerman & Baker, 2006). With their children gone, marital partners have
more time to pursue careers and other interests and more time for each other.
One study revealed that the transition to an empty nest increased marital
satisfaction and that this improvement was linked to an increase in the quality
of time—but not the quantity of time—spent with partners (Gorchoff, John,
& Helson, 2008).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you counsel
parents of adult children
who return to the family
home for a few years
following their college
graduation?
In today’s uncertain economic climate, the refilling of the empty nest is
becoming a common occurrence as adult children return to the family home
after several years of college, after graduating from college, or to save money
after taking a full-time job (Merrill, 2009). Young adults also may move back
in with their parents after an unsuccessful career or a divorce. And some
individuals don’t leave home at all until their middle to late twenties because
they cannot financially support themselves. Numerous labels have been
applied to these young adults who return to their parents’ homes to live,
including “boomerang kids” and “B2B” (or Back-to-Bedroom) (Furman,
2005).
The middle generation has always provided support for
the younger generation, even after the nest is bare. Through
loans and monetary gifts for education, and through emotional
support, the middle generation has helped the younger generation. Adult
children appreciate the financial and emotional support their parents provide
at a time when they often feel considerable stress about their career, work,
and lifestyle. And parents feel good that they can provide this support.
What are some strategies that can help parents and their young adult children get along
better?
©Fuse/Getty Images
However, as with most family living arrangements, there are both pluses
and minuses when adult children live with their parents. One of the most
common complaints voiced by both adult children and their parents is a loss
of privacy. The adult children complain that their parents restrict their
independence, cramp their sex lives, reduce their rock music listening, and
treat them as children rather than adults. Parents often complain that their
quiet home has become noisy, that they stay up late worrying until their adult
children come home, that meals are difficult to plan because of conflicting
schedules, that their relationship as a married couple has been invaded, and
that they have to shoulder too much responsibility for their adult children. In
sum, when adult children return home to live, it causes a disequilibrium in
family life that requires considerable adaptation on the part of parents and
their adult children.
When adult children ask to return home to live, parents and their adult
children should agree on the conditions and expectations beforehand. For
example, they might discuss and agree on whether the young adults will pay
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rent, wash their own clothes, cook their own meals, do any household chores,
pay their phone bills, come and go as they please, be sexually active or drink
alcohol at home, and so on. If these conditions aren’t negotiated at the
beginning, conflict often results because the expectations of parents and
young adult children will likely be violated.
Sibling Relationships and Friendships
Sibling relationships persist over the entire life span for most adults
(Whiteman, McHale, & Soli, 2011). Eighty-five percent of today’s adults
have at least one living sibling. Sibling relationships in adulthood may be
extremely close, apathetic, or highly rivalrous (Bedford, 2009). The majority
of sibling relationships in adulthood are close (Cicirelli, 2009). Those
siblings who are psychologically close to each other in adulthood tended to
be that way in childhood. It is rare for sibling closeness to develop for the
first time in adulthood (Dunn, 1984). One study revealed that adult siblings
often provide practical and emotional support to each other (Voorpostel &
Blieszner, 2008). Another study revealed that men who had poor sibling
relationships in childhood were more likely to develop depression by age 50
than men who had more positive sibling relationships as children (Waldinger,
Vaillant, & Orav, 2007).
Friendships continue to be important in middle adulthood, just as they
were in early adulthood. It takes time to develop intimate friendships, so
friendships that have endured over the adult years are often deeper than those
that have just been formed in middle adulthood.
Grandparenting
The increase in longevity is influencing the nature of grandparenting
(Hayslip, Fruhauf, & Dolbin-MacNab, 2018; Huo & Fingerman, 2018; Huo
& others, 2018). In 1900, only 4 percent of 10-year-old children had four
living grandparents, but by 2000 that figure had risen to more than 40
percent. And in 1990 only about 20 percent of people 30 years of
age had living grandparents, a figure that is projected to increase
to 80 percent in 2020 (Hagestad & Uhlenberg, 2007). Further
increases in longevity are likely to support this trend in the future, although
the current trend toward delayed childbearing is likely to undermine it.
Grandparent Roles
Grandparents play important roles in the lives of many grandchildren (Bol &
Kalmijn, 2016; Hayslip, Fruhauf, & Dolbin-MacNab, 2018). Grandparents
especially play important roles in grandchildren’s lives when family crises
such as divorce, death, illness, abandonment, or poverty occur (Dolbin-
MacNab & Yancura, 2018). In many countries around the world,
grandparents facilitate women’s participation in the labor force by providing
child care. Some estimates suggest that worldwide more than 160 million
grandparents are raising grandchildren (Leinaweaver, 2014).
What are some changes that are occurring in grandparents’ roles?
©JGI/Jamie Grill/Getty Images
Many adults become grandparents for the first time during middle age.
Researchers have consistently found that grandmothers have more contact
with grandchildren than do grandfathers (Watson, Randolph, & Lyons, 2005).
Perhaps women tend to define their role as grandmothers as part of their
responsibility for maintaining ties between family members across
generations. Men may have fewer expectations about the grandfather role and
see it as more voluntary.
Most research on grandparents has focused on grandchildren as children
or adolescents, but a recent study focused on grandparents and adult
grandchildren (Huo & others, 2018). In this study, grandparents’ affective
connections with their adult grandchildren involved frequent listening,
emotional support, and companionship. Also in this study, grandparents
provided more frequent emotional support to their adult grandchildren when
parents were having life problems and more frequent financial support when
parents were unemployed.
In 2014, 10 percent (7.4 million) of children in the United States lived
with at least one grandparent, a dramatic increase since 1981 when 4.7
million children were living with at least one grandparent (U.S. Census
Bureau, 2015). Divorce, adolescent pregnancies, and drug use by parents are
the main reasons that grandparents are thrust back into the “parenting” role
they thought they had shed. One study revealed that grandparent involvement
was linked with better adjustment when it occurred in single-parent and
stepparent families than in two-parent biological families (Attar-Schwartz &
others, 2009). Also, in many countries, when grandparents help take care of
their grandchildren, it often facilitates their daughters’ participation in the
labor force.
Grandparents who are full-time caregivers for grandchildren are at
elevated risk for health problems, depression, and stress (Hayslip, Fruhauf, &
Dolbin-MacNab, 2018; Silverstein, 2009). A research review concluded that
grandparents raising grandchildren are especially at risk for developing
depression (Hadfield, 2014). Caring for grandchildren is linked with these
problems in part because full-time grandparent caregivers are often
characterized by low-income, minority status and by not being married
(Minkler & Fuller-Thompson, 2005). Grandparents who are part-time
caregivers are less likely to have the negative health portrait that full-time
grandparent caregivers have
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
Page 376
professional, how
would you educate
parents about the mutual
benefits of grandparents
being actively involved
in children’s lives?
As divorce and remarriage have become more common, a special concern
of grandparents is visitation privileges with their grandchildren. In the last 10
to 15 years, more states have passed laws giving grandparents the right to
petition a court for visitation privileges with their grandchildren, even if a
parent objects. Whether such forced visitation rights for grandparents are in
the child’s best interest is still being debated.
Intergenerational Relationships
Family is important to most people. When 21,000 adults aged 40 to 79 in 21
countries were asked, “When you think of who you are, you think mainly of
______,” 63 percent said “family,” 9 percent said “religion,” and 8 percent
said “work” (HSBC Insurance, 2007). In this study, in all 21 countries,
middle-aged and older adults expressed a strong feeling of responsibility
between generations in their family, with the strongest intergenerational ties
indicated in Saudi Arabia, India, and Turkey. More than 80 percent of the
middle-aged and older adults reported that adults have a duty to care for their
parents (and parents-in-law) in time of need later in life.
Middle-aged and older adults around the world show a strong sense of family
responsibility. A study of middle-aged and older adults in 21 countries revealed the
strongest intergenerational ties in Saudi Arabia.
©Reza/National Geographic/Getty Images
Adults in midlife play important roles in the lives of the young and the
old (Antonucci & others, 2016; Birditt & others, 2016; Fingerman & others,
2018; Polenick, Birditt, & Zarit, 2018; Polenick & others, 2018; Sechrist &
Fingerman, 2018). Middle-aged adults share their experience and transmit
values to the younger generation. They may be launching children and
experiencing the empty nest, adjusting to having grown children return home,
or becoming grandparents. They also may be giving or receiving financial
assistance, caring for a widowed or sick parent, or adapting to being the
oldest generation after both parents have died.
Middle-aged adults have been described as the “sandwich,” “squeezed,”
or “overload” generation because of the responsibilities they have for their
adolescent and young adult children on the one hand and their aging parents
on the other (Etaugh & Bridges, 2010). However, an alternative view is that
in the United States, a “sandwich” generation, in which the middle generation
cares for both grown children and aging parents simultaneously, occurs less
often than a “pivot” generation, in which the middle generation alternates
attention between the demands of grown children and aging parents (Sechrist
& Fingerman, 2018). By middle age, more than 40 percent of adult children
(most of them daughters) provide care for aging parents or parents-in-law
(National Alliance for Caregiving, 2009). However, two studies revealed that
middle-aged parents are more likely to provide support to their grown
children than to their parents (Fingerman & others, 2011, 2012). When
middle-aged adults have a parent with a disability, their support for that
parent increases (Fingerman & others, 2011b). This support might involve
locating a nursing home and monitoring its quality, procuring medical
services, arranging public service assistance, and handling finances. In some
cases, adult children provide direct assistance with daily living, including
such activities as eating, bathing, and dressing. Even less severely impaired
older adults may need help with shopping, housework, transportation, home
maintenance, and bill paying.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you advise a
family contemplating
the potential challenges
of having a middle-aged
family member take on
primary responsibility
for the daily care of a
chronically ill parent?
Some researchers have found that relationships between aging parents
and their children are often characterized by ambivalence (Antonucci &
others, 2016; Sechrist & Fingerman, 2018). Perceptions include love,
reciprocal help, and shared values on the positive side and isolation, family
conflicts and problems, abuse, neglect, and caregiver stress on the negative
side. One study found that middle-aged adults positively supported family
responsibility to emerging adult children but were more ambivalent about
providing care for aging parents, viewing it as both a joy and a burden
(Igarashi & others, 2013).
With each new generation, personality characteristics, attitudes, and
Page 377
values are replicated or changed (Antonucci & others, 2016). As older family
members die, their biological, intellectual, emotional, and personal legacies
are carried on in the next generation. Their children become the oldest
generation and their grandchildren the second generation. As
adult children become middle-aged, they often develop more
positive perceptions of their parents (Field, 1999). Both
similarity and dissimilarity across generations are found. For example,
similarity between parents and an adult child is most noticeable in religion
and politics, least in gender roles, lifestyle, and work orientation.
What is the nature of intergenerational relationships?
©Steve Casimiro/The Image Bank/Getty Images
Gender differences also characterize intergenerational relationships
(Antonucci & others, 2016; Sechrist & Fingerman, 2018). Women play an
especially important role in maintaining family relationships across
generations. Women’s relationships across generations are typically closer
than other family bonds (Merrill, 2009). In one study, mothers and their adult
daughters had much closer relationships than mothers and sons, fathers and
daughters, and fathers and sons (Rossi, 1989). Also in this study, married
men were more involved with their wives’ kin than with their own. And
maternal grandmothers and maternal aunts were cited twice as often as their
counterparts on the paternal side of the family as the most important or loved
relative. Another study revealed that mothers’ intergenerational ties were
more influential for grandparent-grandchild relationships than fathers’ were
(Monserud, 2008).
Summary
Personality Theories and Development
Erikson says that the seventh stage of the human life span, generativity
versus stagnation, occurs in middle adulthood. Levinson concluded that a
majority of Americans, especially men, experience a midlife crisis.
Research, though, indicates that midlife crises are not pervasive.
In the contemporary version of the life-events approach, how life events
influence the individual’s development depends not only on the life event
but also on mediating factors, adaptation to the event, the life-stage
context, and the sociohistorical context.
Young and middle-aged adults experience more stress than do older
adults, and as adults become older, they report less control over some
areas of their lives and more control over other areas.
Stability and Change
In Costa and McCrae’s Baltimore Study, the Big Five personality factors
showed considerable stability. In the Berkeley Longitudinal Studies, the
extremes in the stability-change argument were not supported. George
Vaillant’s research revealed links between a number of characteristics at
age 50 and health and well-being at 75 to 80 years of age.
Some researchers suggest that personality stability peaks in the fifties and
sixties, others say that it begins to stabilize at about age 30, and still
others argue that limited personality changes continue during midlife.
Close Relationships
Affectionate love increases in midlife for many couples.
Rather than reducing marital satisfaction as was once thought, the empty
nest increases it for most parents. Growing numbers of young adults are
returning home to live with their middle-aged parents.
Sibling relationships continue throughout life, and friendships continue to
be important in middle age.
Depending on the family’s culture and situation, grandparents assume
different roles. The profile of grandparents is changing.
Family members usually maintain contact across generations. The
middle-aged generation plays an important role in linking generations.
Key Terms
Big Five factors of personality
contemporary life-events approach
cumulative personality model
empty nest syndrome
fight-or-flight
generativity
stagnation
tend-and-befriend
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©Blend Images/Ariel Skelley/Getty Images
15
Physical and Cognitive
Development in Late
Adulthood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Longevity, Biological Aging, and Physical
Development
Longevity
Biological Theories of Aging
The Aging Brain
Physical Development
Sexuality
Health
Health Problems
Exercise, Nutrition, and Weight
Health Treatment
Cognitive Functioning
Multidimensionality and Multidirectionality
Use It or Lose It
Training Cognitive Skills
Cognitive Neuroscience and Aging
Work and Retirement
Work
Adjustment to Retirement
Mental Health
Dementia and Alzheimer Disease
Parkinson Disease
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Learning to Age Successfully
In 2010, 90-year-old Helen Small completed her master’s degree at
the University of Texas at Dallas. The topic of her master’s degree
Page 379
research project was romantic relationships in late adulthood.
Helen said that she had interviewed only one individual who was
older than she was—a 92-year-old man.
I (your author, John Santrock) first met Helen when she took
my undergraduate course in life-span development in 2006. After
the first test, Helen stopped showing up and I wondered what had
happened to her. It turned out that she had broken her shoulder
when she tripped over a curb while hurrying to class. The next
semester, she took my class again and did a great job in it, even
though the first several months she had to take notes with her left
hand (she was right-handed) because of her lingering shoulder
problem.
Helen grew up in the Great Depression and first went to
college in 1938 at the University of Akron, which she attended for
only one year. She got married and her marriage lasted 62 years.
After her husband’s death, Helen went back to college in 2002,
first at Brookhaven Community College and then at UT-Dallas.
When I interviewed her, she told me that she had promised her
mother that she would finish college. Her most important advice
for college students was “Finish college and be persistent. When
you make a commitment, always see it through. Don’t quit. Go
after what you want in life.”
Helen not only was cognitively fit, she also was
physically fit. She worked out three times a week
for about an hour each time—aerobically on a
treadmill for about 30 minutes and then on six different weight
machines.
What struck me most about Helen when she took my
undergraduate course in life-span development was how
appreciative she was of the opportunity to learn and how
passionately she pursued studying and doing well in the course.
Helen was quite popular with the younger students in the course
and she was a terrific role model for them.
After her graduation, I asked her what she planned to do during
the next few years and she responded, “I’ve got to figure out what
I’m going to do with the rest of my life.” For several years, Helen
came each semester to my course in life-span development when
we were discussing cognitive aging. She wowed the class and was
an inspiration to all who came in contact with her.
What kinds of things did Helen do to stay cognitively fit? She
worked as a public ambassador for Dr. Denise Park’s Center for
Vital Longevity at UT-Dallas, regularly served as a volunteer
guide for Dallas’ new Perot Science Museum, and worked on
archival materials for the UT-Dallas library. Also, in 2015, she
began teaching English to immigrant bilingual adults. Helen also
published her first book: Why Not? My Seventy Year Plan for a
College Degree (Small, 2011). It’s a wonderful, motivating
invitation to live your life fully and reach your potential no matter
what your age. Following an amazing, fulfilling life, Helen Small
passed away in 2017 at the age of 97.
The story of Helen Small’s physical and cognitive well-being
in late adulthood raises some truly fascinating questions about life-
span development, which we explore in this chapter. They include:
Why do we age, and what, if anything, can we do to delay the
aging process? What chance do you have of living to be 100? How
does the body change in old age? How well do older adults
function cognitively? What roles do work and retirement play in
older adults’ lives? ■
Page 380
Helen Small with the author of your text, John Santrock, in his
undergraduate course on life-span development at the University of Texas at
Dallas in spring 2012. After she graduated, Helen returned each semester to
talk with students in the class about cognitive aging.
(Top) Courtesy of Helen Small; (bottom) Courtesy of Dr. John
Santrock
Longevity, Biological Aging, and
Physical Development
What do we really know about longevity? What are the current biological
theories about why we age? How does our brain change during this part of
our life span? What happens to us physically? Does our sexuality change?
Longevity
The United States is no longer a youthful society. As more individuals are
living past age 65, the proportion of individuals at different ages has become
increasingly similar. Indeed, the concept of a period called “late adulthood,”
beginning in the sixties or seventies and lasting until death, is relatively new.
Before the twentieth century, most individuals died before they reached 65.
Life Span and Life Expectancy
Since the beginning of recorded history, life span, the maximum number of
years an individual can live, has remained steady at approximately 120 to 125
years of age. But since 1900 improvements in medicine, nutrition, exercise,
and lifestyle have increased our life expectancy by an average of 31 years.
Recall that life expectancy is the number of years that the average person
born in a particular year will probably live. The average life expectancy of
individuals born in 2017 in the United States was 79 years (U.S. Census
Bureau, 2018). Sixty-five-year-olds in the United States today can expect to
live an average of 19.5 more years (20.6 for females, 18.4 for males) (U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, 2018). People who are 100 years
of age can only expect to live an average of 2.3 years longer (U.S. Census
Bureau, 2013).
Differences in Life Expectancy
How does the United States fare in life expectancy, compared with other
countries around the world? We do considerably better than some and
somewhat worse than others. In 2015, Monaco had the highest estimated life
expectancy at birth (90 years), followed by Japan, Singapore, and Macau (a
region of China near Hong Kong) (85 years) (Central Intelligence Agency,
2015). Of 224 countries, the United States ranked 43rd at 79 years. The
lowest estimated life expectancy in 2015 occurred in the African countries of
Chad and Guinea-Bissau (50) and Swaziland and Afghanistan (51 years).
Differences in life expectancies across countries are due to factors such as
health conditions and medical care throughout the life span.
©Comstock/PunchStock
In a recent analysis, projections of life expectancy in 2030 were made for
35 developed countries (Kontis & others, 2017). It was predicted that life
expectancy in the United States would increase to 83.3 years for women and
79.5 years for men by 2030. However, the United States, although expected
to increase in life expectancy, had one of the lowest growth rates in life
expectancy for all of the countries in the study. South Korea is projected to
have the highest life expectancy in 2030, with South Korean women
predicted to have an average life expectancy of 90.8, the first nation to break
the 90-year life expectancy barrier. So why the lower growth in life
expectancy for the United States and the very high growth for South Korea?
The United States has the highest child and maternal mortality rates,
homicide rate, and body-mass index of high-income countries in the world. In
South Korea, delayed onset of chronic diseases is occurring and children’s
nutrition is improving. South Korea also has a low rate of obesity, and blood
pressure is not as high as it is in most countries.
In 2017, the overall life expectancy for women was 81 years of age, and
for men it was 77 years of age (U.S Census Bureau, 2018). The gender gap in
longevity decreased from 7.8 years in 1979 to 4 years in 2017. Beginning in
the mid-thirties, women outnumber men; this gap widens during the
remainder of the adult years. By the time adults are 75 years of age, more
than 61 percent are female; for those 85 and over, the figure is almost 70
percent female. A recent list (2017) of the oldest people alive today in the
world had no men in the top 25.
Why can women expect to live longer than men? Social factors such as
health attitudes, habits, lifestyles, and occupation are probably important
(Saint-Onge, 2009). Men are more likely than women to die from most of the
leading causes of death, including cancer of the respiratory system, motor
vehicle accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, emphysema, and coronary heart
disease (Alfredsson & others, 2018; Dao-Fu & others, 2016; Pedersen &
others, 2016). These causes of death are associated with lifestyle. For
example, the sex difference in deaths due to lung cancer and emphysema
occurs because men are heavier smokers than women. However, women are
more likely than men to die from some diseases such as Alzheimer disease
and some aspects of cardiovascular disease, such as hypertension-related
problems (Ostan & others, 2016).
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The sex difference in longevity also is influenced by
biological factors (Alfredsson & others, 2018; Beltran-
Sanchez, Finch, & Crimmins, 2015; Crimmins & Levine,
2016). In virtually all species, females outlive males. Women have more
resistance to infections and degenerative diseases (Pan & Chang, 2012). For
example, the female’s estrogen production helps to protect her from
arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) (Valera & others, 2015). And the
additional X chromosome that women carry in comparison with men may be
associated with the production of more antibodies to fight off disease. The
sex difference in mortality is still present in late adulthood but less
pronounced than earlier in adulthood, and it is especially linked to the higher
level of cardiovascular disease in men than women (Alfredsson & others,
2018; Yang & Kozloski, 2011).
Centenarians
In the United States, there were only 15,000 centenarians in 1980, but that
number rose to 50,000 in 2000 and to 72,000 in 2014 (Xu, 2016). The
number of U.S. centenarians is projected to reach 600,000 by 2050 (U.S.
Census Bureau, 2011).
Many people expect that “the older you get, the sicker you get.”
However, researchers are finding that this is not true for some centenarians
(Revelas & others, 2018; Willcox, Scapagnini, & Willcox, 2014). A study of
93 centenarians revealed that despite some physical limitations, they had a
low rate of age-associated diseases and most had good mental health (Selim
& others, 2005). And a study of centenarians from 100 to 119 years of age
found that the older the age group (110 to 119—referred to as
supercentenarians—compared with 100 to 104, for example), the later the
onset of diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease, as well as
functional decline (Andersen & others, 2012). The research just described
was carried out as part of the New England Centenarian Study (NECS)
conducted by Thomas Perls and his colleagues. Perls has a term for this
process of staving off high-mortality chronic diseases until much later ages
than is usually the case in the general population: he calls it the compression
of morbidity (Sebastiani & Perls, 2012). Further, there are far more female
supercentenarians than males—a list (2015) of the oldest people who have
ever lived had only two men (number 11 and number 17) in the top 25.
Jeanne Louise Calment, celebrating her 117th birthday. She was the world’s oldest living
person, dying at age 122. She said reasons she had lived so long included not worrying
about things she couldn’t do anything about; enjoying an occasional glass of port wine;
having a diet rich in olive oil; and laughing often. Regarding her longevity, she once said
that God must have forgotten about her. On her 120th birthday, she was asked her what
kind of future she anticipated. Calment replied, “A very short one.” Becoming
accustomed to the media attention she received, at 117 she stated, “I wait for death . . .
and journalists.” Calment walked, biked, and began taking fencing lessons at age 85 and
rode a bicycle until she was 100.
©Jean-Pierre Fizet/Sygma/Getty Images
Among the factors that are associated with living to be 100 are longevity
genes and the ability to cope effectively with stress (Blankenburg,
Pramstaller, & Domingues, 2018; Muntane & others, 2018; Revelas & others,
2018). NECS researchers also have discovered a strong genetic component to
living to be 100 that consists of many genetic links, each with modest effects
but collectively having a strong influence (Sebastiani & others, 2013). Other
characteristics of centenarians in the NECS study include the following: few
of the centenarians are obese, habitual smoking is rare, and only a small
percentage (less than 15 percent) have had significant changes in their
thinking skills (disproving the belief that most centenarians likely would
develop Alzheimer disease). And in a recent study of U.S. and Japanese
centenarians, in both countries, health resources (better cognitive function,
fewer hearing problems, and positive activities in daily living) were linked to
a higher level of well-being (Nakagawa & others, 2018).
Page 382
Biological Theories of Aging
Even if we stay remarkably healthy, we begin to age at some point. Four
biological theories provide intriguing explanations of why we age:
evolutionary, cellular clock, free-radical, and hormonal stress.
Evolutionary Theory
In the evolutionary theory of aging, natural selection has not eliminated
many harmful conditions and nonadaptive characteristics in older adults
(Greenberg & Vatolin, 2018; Yanai & others, 2017). Why? Because natural
selection is linked to reproductive fitness, which is present only in the earlier
part of adulthood. For example, consider Alzheimer disease, an irreversible
brain disorder, which does not appear until late middle adulthood or late
adulthood. According to evolutionary theory, possibly if Alzheimer disease
occurred earlier in development, it might have been eliminated many
centuries ago. Evolutionary theory has its critics (Cohen, 2015). One
criticism is that the “big picture” idea of natural selection leading to the
development of human traits and behaviors is difficult to refute or test
because evolution occurs on a time scale that does not lend itself to empirical
study. Another criticism is the failure of evolutionary theory to account for
cultural influences (Singer, 2016).
Genetic/Cellular Process Theories
One recent view stated that aging is best explained by cellular maintenance
requirements and evolutionary constraints (Vanhaelen, 2015). In recent
decades, there has been a significant increase in research on genetic and
cellular processes involved in aging (Benetos & others, 2019; Falandry,
2019; Hernandez-Segura, Nehme, & Demaria, 2018; Ong & Ramasamy,
2018). Five such advances involve telomeres, free radicals, mitochondria,
sirtuins, and the mTOR pathway.
Cellular Clock Theory Cellular clock theory is Leonard Hayflick’s
(1977) theory that cells can divide a maximum of about 75 to 80 times and
that as we age our cells become less capable of dividing. Hayflick found that
cells extracted from adults in their fifties to seventies divided fewer than 75
to 80 times. Based on the ways cells divide, Hayflick places the upper limit
of human life-span potential at about 120 to 125 years of age.
In the last decade, scientists have tried to fill in a gap in cellular clock
theory (Nene & others, 2018; Toupance & Benetos, 2019; Zgheib & others,
2018). Hayflick did not know why cells die. The answer may lie at the tips of
chromosomes (Gorenjak & others, 2018).
Each time a cell divides, telomeres, which are DNA sequences that cap
chromosomes, become shorter and shorter (Chang & Blau, 2018) (see Figure
1). After about 70 or 80 replications, the telomeres are dramatically reduced,
and the cell no longer can reproduce. One study revealed that healthy
centenarians had longer telomeres than unhealthy centenarians (Terry &
others, 2008). Further, a recent study confirmed that shorter telomere length
was linked to Alzheimer disease (Scarabino & others, 2017).
Figure 1 Telomeres and Aging
The photograph shows actual telomeres lighting up the tips of chromosomes.
Courtesy of Dr. Jerry Shay
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Injecting the enzyme telomerase into human cells grown in the laboratory
can substantially extend the life of the cells beyond the approximately 70 to
80 normal cell divisions (Harrison, 2012). However, telomerase is present in
approximately 85 to 90 percent of cancerous cells and thus may not produce
healthy life extension of cells (Cleal, Norris, & Baird, 2018).
To capitalize on the high presence of telomerase in cancerous cells,
researchers currently are investigating gene therapies that inhibit telomerase
and lead to the death of cancerous cells while keeping healthy cells alive (de
Vitis, Berardinelli, & Sgura, 2018; Haraguchi & others, 2017; Ozturk, Li, &
Tergaonkar, 2018). A recent focus of these gene therapies is on stem cells
and their renewal (Li & Denchi, 2018; Liu, 2017). Telomeres and telomerase
are increasingly thought to be key components of the stem cell regeneration
process, providing a possible avenue to restrain cancer and delay aging
(Gunes, Avila, & Rudolph, 2018; Li & others, 2017; Marion & others, 2017;
Zhou & others, 2018).
Free-Radical Theory A third theory of aging is free-radical
theory, which states that people age because when cells
metabolize energy, the by-products include unstable oxygen
molecules known as free radicals. The free radicals ricochet around the cells,
damaging DNA and other cellular structures (Guillaumet-Adkins & others,
2017; Jabeen & others, 2018; Jeremic & others, 2018). The damage can lead
to a range of disorders, including cancer and arthritis (Hegedus & others,
2018; Phull & others, 2018; Saha & others, 2017). Overeating is linked with
an increase in free radicals, and researchers have found that calorie restriction
—a diet low in calories but adequate in proteins, vitamins, and minerals—
reduces the oxidative damage created by free radicals (Kalsi, 2015). In
addition to diet, researchers also are exploring the role that exercise might
play in reducing oxidative damage in cells (Robinson & others, 2017). A
study of obese men found that endurance exercise reduced their oxidative
damage (Samjoo & others, 2013).
Mitochondrial Theory Mitochondrial theory is a theory of aging that
emphasizes the decay of mitochondria—tiny bodies within cells that supply
essential energy for function, growth, and repair—that is primarily due to
oxidative damage and loss of critical micronutrients supplied by the cell
(Hamilton & Miller, 2017; Zole & Ranka, 2018). Energy sensing and
apoptosis (programmed cell death) also have been emphasized as key aspects
of the mitochondrial theory of aging (Gonzalez-Freire & others, 2015).
The mitochondrial damage may lead to a range of disorders, including
cardiovascular disease (Anupama, Sindhu, & Raghu, 2018);
neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer disease (Birnbaum & others,
2018); Parkinson disease (Larson, Hanss, & Kruger, 2018); diabetic kidney
disease (Forbes & Thorburn, 2018); and impaired liver functioning (Borrelli
& others, 2018). However, it is not known whether the defects in
mitochondria cause aging or merely accompany the aging process.
Sirtuin Theory Sirtuins are a family of proteins that have been linked to
longevity, regulation of mitochondria functioning in energy, possible benefits
of calorie restriction, stress resistance, and a lower incidence of
cardiovascular disease and cancer (Ansari & others, 2017; Blank & Grummt,
2017; Sanikhani & others, 2018; Wood & others, 2018). One of the sirtuins,
SIRT 1, has been connected to DNA repair and aging (Kida & Goligorsky,
2016).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you use a
biological perspective to
explain changes in
learning as people age?
mTOR Pathway Theory The mTOR pathway is a cellular pathway that
involves the regulation of growth and metabolism. TOR stands for “target of
rapamycin,” and in mammals it is called mTOR. Rapamycin is a naturally
derived antibiotic and immune system suppressant/modulator, first
discovered in the 1960s on Easter Island. It has been commonly used and is
FDA approved for preventing organ rejection and in bone-marrow
transplants. Recently, proposals have been made that the mTOR pathway has
a central role in the life of cells, acting as a cellular router for growth, protein
production/metabolism, and stem cell functioning (Houssaini & others, 2018;
Page 384
Kraig & others, 2018; Lim & others, 2017; Zhang & others, 2017). Some
scientists also argue that the pathway is linked to longevity, the successful
outcomes of calorie restriction, and reductions in cognitive decline, and may
influence the course of a number of diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular
disease, and Alzheimer disease (Maid & Power, 2018; Tramultola,
Lanzillotta, & Di Domenico, 2017; Van Skike & others, 2018). Rapamycin
has not been approved as an anti-aging drug and has some serious side
effects, including increased risk of infection and lymphoma, a deadly cancer.
Some critics argue that scientific support for sirtuins and the mTOR
pathway as key causes of aging in humans has not been found and that
research has not adequately documented the effectiveness of using drugs such
as rapamycin to slow the aging process or extend the human life span
(Ehninger, Neff, & Xie, 2014).
Hormonal Stress Theory
Cellular clock and free radical theories attempt to explain aging at the cellular
level. In contrast, hormonal stress theory argues that aging in the body’s
hormonal system can lower resistance to stress and increase the likelihood of
disease. Normally, when people experience stressors, the body responds by
releasing certain hormones. As people age, the hormones stimulated by stress
remain at elevated levels longer than when people were younger (Gekle,
2017; Kim, Jee, & Pikhart, 2018). These prolonged, elevated levels of stress-
related hormones are associated with increased risks for many diseases,
including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and hypertension
(Burleson, 2017; Castagne & others, 2018; Steptoe & others, 2017).
Researchers are exploring stress-buffering strategies, including exercise, in an
effort to find ways to attenuate some of the negative effects of stress on the
aging process (Gomes & others, 2017; Kim, Jee, & Pikhart, 2018; Niraula,
Sheridan, & Godbout, 2017).
Recently, a variation of hormonal stress theory has emphasized the
contribution of a decline in immune system functioning with aging (Fulop &
others, 2019; Garschall & Flatt, 2018; Jasiulionis, 2018; Masters & others,
2017). In a recent study, the percentage of T cells (a type of white blood cell
essential for immunity) decreased in older adults in their seventies, eighties,
and nineties (Valiathan, Ashman, & Asthana, 2016). Aging contributes to
immune system deficits that give rise to infectious diseases in older adults
(Le Page & others, 2018; Song & others, 2018). The extended duration of
stress and diminished restorative processes in older adults may accelerate the
effects of aging on immunity.
Conclusions
Which of these biological theories best explains aging? That question has not
yet been answered. It likely will turn out that more than one—or perhaps all
—of these biological processes contribute to aging. In a recent analysis, it
was concluded that aging is a very complex process involving multiple
degenerative factors, including interacting cell- and organ level
communications (de Magalhaes & Tacutu, 2016). Although there are some
individual aging triggers such as telomere shortening, a complete picture of
biological aging involves multiple processes operating at different biological
levels.
The Aging Brain
How does the brain change during late adulthood? Does it retain plasticity?
As we will see, the brain shrinks and slows but still has considerable adaptive
ability.
The Shrinking, Slowing Brain
On average, the brain loses 5 to 10 percent of its weight between the ages of
20 and 90. Brain volume also decreases (Liu & others, 2016; Peng & others,
2016). One study found a decrease in total brain volume and volume in key
brain structures such as the frontal lobes and hippocampus from 22 to 88
years of age (Sherwood & others, 2011). Also, recent analyses concluded that
in healthy aging the decrease in brain volume is due mainly to shrinkage of
neurons, lower numbers of synapses, reduced length and complexity of
axons, and reduced tree-like branching in dendrites, but only to a minor
extent attributable to neuron loss (Penazzi, Bakota, & Brandt, 2016; Skaper
& others, 2017). Of course, for individuals with disorders such as Alzheimer
Page 385
disease, neuron loss occurs (Moore & Murphy, 2016; Poulakis & others,
2018). Further, in a recent study, global brain volume predicted mortality in a
large population of stroke-free community-dwelling adults (Van Elderen &
others, 2016).
Some brain areas shrink more than others with aging (Moore & Murphy,
2016). The prefrontal cortex is one area that shrinks, and research has linked
this shrinkage with a decrease in working memory and other cognitive
activities in older adults (Hoyer, 2015). The sensory regions of the brain—
such as the primary visual cortex, primary motor cortex, and somatosensory
cortex—are less vulnerable to the aging process (Rodrique & Kennedy,
2011). A general slowing of function in the brain and spinal cord begins in
middle adulthood and accelerates in late adulthood (Salthouse, 2017). Both
physical coordination and intellectual performance are
affected. For example, after age 70 many adults no longer
show a knee-jerk reflex, and by age 90 most reflexes are
much slower (Spence, 1989). Slowing of the brain can impair the
performance of older adults on intelligence tests, especially timed tests (Lu &
others, 2011).
Aging also has been linked to a decline in the production of some
neurotransmitters. Reduction in acetylcholine is linked to memory loss,
especially in people with Alzheimer disease (Jensen & others, 2015). Severe
reductions in dopamine are involved in a reduction in motor control in
Parkinson disease (Ruitenberg & others, 2015).
Historically, as in the research just discussed, much of the focus on links
between brain functioning and aging has been on volume of brain structures
and regions. Currently, however, increased emphasis is being given to
changes in myelination and neural networks (Anthony & Lin, 2018; Grady,
2017; Habeck & others, 2018; Madden & Parks, 2017). Research indicates
that demyelination (deterioration in the myelin sheath that encases axons and
is associated with information processing) occurs with aging in the brains of
older adults (Callaghan & others, 2014; Rodrique & Kennedy, 2011).
The Adaptive Brain
The human brain has remarkable repair capability (Erickson & Oberlin, 2017;
Garaschuk, Semchyshyn, & Lushchak, 2018; Ishi & others, 2018; Kinugawa,
2019). Even in late adulthood, the brain loses only a portion of its ability to
function, and the activities older adults engage in can still influence the
brain’s development (Borsa & others, 2018; Lovden, Backman, &
Lindenberger, 2017; Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017). For example, in an
fMRI study, higher levels of aerobic fitness were linked with greater volume
in the hippocampus, which translates into better memory (Erickson & others,
2011).
Can adults, even aging adults, generate new neurons? Researchers have
found that neurogenesis, the generation of new neurons, does occur in lower
mammalian species, such as mice (Adlof & others, 2017; O’Leary & others,
2018). Also, research indicates that exercise and an enriched, complex
environment can generate new brain cells in rats and mice, and that stress
reduces their survival rate (Abbink & others, 2017; Park & others, 2018;
Ruitenberg & others, 2017; Zhang & others, 2018). For example, in a recent
study, mice in an enriched environment learned more flexibly because of
adult hippocampal neurogenesis (Garthe, Roeder, & Kempermann, 2016).
One study revealed that coping with stress stimulated hippocampal
neurogenesis in adult monkeys (Lyons & others, 2010). And researchers have
discovered that if rats are cognitively challenged to learn something, new
brain cells survive longer (Shors, 2009).
It also is now accepted that neurogenesis can occur in human adults
(Horgusluoglu & others, 2017; Shohayeb & others, 2018; Su, Dhananjaya, &
Tarn, 2018). However, researchers have documented neurogenesis in only
two brain regions: the hippocampus, which is involved in memory (Olesen &
others, 2017), and the olfactory bulb, which is involved in smell (Bonzano &
De Marchis, 2017). It also is not known what functions these new brain cells
perform, and at this point researchers have documented that they last for only
several weeks (Nelson, 2008).
Researchers currently are studying factors that might inhibit and promote
neurogenesis, including various drugs, stress, and exercise (Liu & Nusslock,
2018; Tharmaratnam & others, 2017; Zhou & others, 2017). They also are
examining how the grafting of neural stem cells to various regions of the
brain, such as the hippocampus, might increase neurogenesis (Akers &
others, 2018; Zhang & others, 2017). And increasing attention is being given
to the possible role neurogenesis might play in neurodegenerative diseases,
such as Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, and Huntington disease (Ma &
Page 386
others, 2017; Shohayeb & others, 2018; Zheng & others, 2017).
Dendritic growth can occur in human adults, possibly even in older adults
(Eliasieh, Liets, & Chalupa, 2007). Recall that dendrites are the receiving
portion of the neuron. One study compared the brains of adults at various
ages (Coleman, 1986). From the forties through the seventies, the growth of
dendrites increased. However, in people in their nineties, dendritic growth no
longer occurred.
Figure 2 The Decrease in Brain Lateralization in Older Adults
Younger adults primarily used the right prefrontal region of the brain (top left photo)
during a recall memory task, whereas older adults used both the left and right prefrontal
regions (bottom two photos).
Courtesy of Dr. Roberto Cabeza
Changes in lateralization may provide one type of adaptation in aging
adults (Hong & others, 2015). Recall that lateralization is the specialization
of function in one hemisphere of the brain or the other. Using
neuroimaging techniques, researchers found that brain activity
in the prefrontal cortex is lateralized less in older adults than
in younger adults when they are engaging in cognitive tasks (Cabeza, 2002;
Cabeza & Dennis, 2013; Park & Farrell, 2016; Sugiura, 2016). For example,
Figure 2 shows that when younger adults are given the task of recognizing
words they have previously seen, they process the information primarily in
the right hemisphere; older adults are more likely to use both hemispheres
(Madden & others, 1999). The decrease in lateralization in older adults might
play a compensatory role in the aging brain. That is, using both hemispheres
may improve the cognitive functioning of older adults.
The Nun Study
The Nun Study, directed by David Snowdon, is an intriguing ongoing
investigation of aging in 678 nuns, many of whom are from the convent of
the Sisters of Notre Dame in Mankato, Minnesota (Pakhomov & Hemmy,
2014; Snowdon, 2003; Tyas & others, 2007). They lead an intellectually
challenging life, and brain researchers conclude that this contributes to their
quality of life as older adults and possibly to their longevity. All of the 678
nuns agreed to participate in annual assessments of their cognitive and
physical functioning. They also agreed to donate their brains for scientific
research when they die, and they are the largest group of brain donors in the
world. Examination of the nuns’ donated brains, as well as others’, has led
neuroscientists to believe that the brain has a remarkable capacity to change
and grow, even in old age.
Physical Development
Physical decline is inevitable if we manage to live to an old age, but the
timing of physical problems related to aging is not uniform. Let’s examine
some physical changes that occur as we age, including changes in physical
appearance and movement, some of the senses, and our circulation and lungs.
Top: Sister Marcella Zachman (left) finally stopped teaching at age 97. Now, at 99, she
helps ailing nuns exercise their brains by quizzing them on vocabulary or playing a card
game called Skip–Bo, at which she deliberately loses. Sister Mary Esther Boor (right),
also 99 years of age, is a former teacher who stays alert by doing puzzles and volunteering
to work the front desk. Bottom: A technician holds the brain of a deceased Mankato nun.
The nuns donate their brains for research that explores the effects of stimulation on brain
growth.
©James Balog
Page 387
Physical Appearance and Movement
In late adulthood, the changes in physical appearance that began occurring
during middle age become more pronounced. Wrinkles and age spots are the
most noticeable changes. We also get shorter as we get older. Both men and
women become shorter in late adulthood because of bone loss in their
vertebrae (Hoyer & Roodin, 2009).
Our weight usually drops after we reach 60 years of age. This likely
occurs because we lose muscle, which also gives our bodies a “sagging” look
(Evans, 2010). One study found that long-term aerobic exercise was linked
with greater muscle strength in 65- to 86-year-olds (Crane, Macneil, &
Tarnopolsky, 2013).
Older adults move more slowly than young adults, and this slowing
occurs for many types of movement with a wide range of difficulty (Davis &
others, 2013). Adequate mobility is an important aspect of maintaining an
independent and active lifestyle in late adulthood (Danilovich & others, 2018;
Gray-Miceli, 2017). Recent research indicates that obesity is
linked to mobility limitation in older adults (Anson & others,
2018). In another study, at-risk overweight and obese older
adults lost significant weight and improved their mobility considerably by
participating in a community-based weight reduction program (Rejeski &
others, 2017).
Exercise benefits frail elderly adults. In a recent study, high-intensity
walking training reduced the older adults’ frailty, increased their walking
speed, and improved their balance (Danilovich, Conroy, & Hornby, 2017).
And in another recent study, a 10-week exercise program improved the
physical (aerobic endurance, agility, and mobility) and cognitive function
(selective attention and planning) of elderly nursing home residents (Pereira
& others, 2018).
The risk of falling in older adults increases with age and is greater for
women than for men (JafariNasabian & others, 2017). Falls are the leading
cause of injury deaths among adults who are 65 years and older (National
Center for Health Statistics, 2018). Each year, approximately 200,000 adults
over the age of 65 (many of them women) fracture a hip in a fall. Half of
these older adults die within 12 months, frequently from pneumonia. A
research meta-analysis found that exercise reduces falls in adults 60 years of
age and older (Stubbs, Brefka, & Denkinger, 2015).
Sensory Development
Seeing, hearing, and other aspects of sensory functioning are linked with our
ability to perform everyday activities, and sensory functioning declines in
older adults (Hochberg & others, 2012). For example, researchers have found
that visual decline in late adulthood is linked to (a) cognitive decline (Monge
& Madden, 2016; Roberts & Allen, 2016), as well as (b) having fewer social
contacts and engaging in less challenging social/leisure activities (Cimarolli
& others, 2017).
Vision In late adulthood, the decline in vision that began for most adults in
early or middle adulthood becomes more pronounced (Jensen & Tubaek,
2018). The eye does not adapt as quickly when moving from a well-lighted
place to one of semidarkness. The tolerance for glare also diminishes. The
area of the visual field becomes smaller, and events that occur away from the
center of the visual field sometimes are not detected (Scialfa & Kline, 2007).
All of these changes can make night driving especially difficult (Kimlin,
Black, & Wood, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you respond to an
older adult who shows
signs of impaired vision
but denies, or is
unaware of, the
problem?
Depth perception typically declines in late adulthood, which can make it
difficult for older adults to determine how close or far away or how high or
low something is (Bian & Anderson, 2008). A decline in depth perception
Page 388
can make steps or street curbs difficult to navigate.
Three diseases that can impair the vision of older adults are cataracts,
glaucoma, and macular degeneration:
Cataracts involve a thickening of the lens of the eye that causes vision to
become cloudy and distorted (Radhakrishnan & others, 2018). By age 70,
approximately 30 percent of individuals experience a partial loss of vision
due to cataracts. Initially, cataracts can be treated by glasses; if they
worsen, a simple surgical procedure can replace the natural lenses with
artificial ones (Jiang & others, 2018; Singh, Dohlman, & Sun, 2017). A
recent Japanese study found that older adults (mean age: 76 years) who
had cataract surgery were less likely to develop mild cognitive
impairment than their counterparts who had not had the surgery (Miyata
& others, 2018).
Glaucoma involves damage to the optic nerve because of the pressure
created by a buildup of fluid in the eye (Jiang & others, 2018; Koh &
others, 2017). Approximately 1 percent of individuals in their seventies
and 10 percent of those in their nineties have glaucoma, which can be
treated with eye drops. If left untreated, glaucoma can ultimately destroy
a person’s vision.
Macular degeneration is a disease that involves deterioration of the
macula of the retina, which corresponds to the focal center of
the visual field. Individuals with macular degeneration may
have relatively normal peripheral vision but be unable to see
clearly what is right in front of them (Hernandez-Zimbron & others,
2018; Owsley & others, 2016) (see Figure 3). This condition affects 1 in
25 individuals from age 66 to 74 and 1 in 6 of those age 75 and older.
There is increased interest in using stem-cell based therapy to treat
macular degeneration (Apatoff & others, 2018; Bakondi & others, 2017).
Figure 3 Macular Degeneration
This simulation of the effect of macular degeneration shows how individuals with this eye
disease can see their peripheral field of vision but can’t clearly see what is in their central
visual field.
©Cordelia Molloy/Science Source
Hearing For hearing as for vision, it is important to determine the degree of
decline in the aging adult (Johnson, Xu, & Cox, 2017). A national survey
revealed that 63 percent of adults 70 years and older had a hearing loss,
defined as an inability to hear sounds softer than 25 dB with their better ear
(Lin & others, 2011). In this study, hearing aids were used by 40 percent of
those with moderate hearing loss. Also, a recent study of 80- to 106-year-olds
found a substantial increase in hearing loss in the ninth and then in the tenth
decades of life (Wattamwar & others, 2017). In this study, although hearing
loss was virtually universal in the 80- to 106-year-olds, only 59 percent of
them wore hearing aids. Research has found that older adults’ hearing
problems are associated with less time spent out of home and in leisure
activities (Mikkola & others, 2016), an increase in falls (Gopinath & others,
2012), reduction in cognitive functioning (Golub, 2017), and loneliness
(Mick & others, 2018).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you structure
your classroom and plan
class activities to
accommodate the
sensory decline of older
adult students?
What outcomes occur when older adults have dual sensory loss in vision
and hearing? In a recent study of 65- to 85-year-olds, dual sensory loss in
vision and hearing was linked to reduced social participation and less social
support, as well as increased loneliness (Mick & others, 2018). In another
recent study, this type of dual sensory loss in older adults (mean age of 82
years) involved greater functional limitations, increased loneliness, cognitive
decline, and communication problems (Davidson & Gutherie, 2018). And in
another recent study, older adults who had a dual sensory impairment
involving vision and hearing had more depressive symptoms (Han & others,
2018).
Smell and Taste Most older adults lose some of their sense of smell or
taste, or both (Correia & others, 2016). A recent national study of
community-dwelling older adults revealed that 74 percent had impaired taste
and 22 percent had impaired smell (Correia & others, 2016). These losses
often begin around 60 years of age (Hawkes, 2006). A majority of individuals
80 years of age and older experience a significant reduction in smell
(Lafreniere & Mann, 2009). Researchers have found that older adults show a
greater decline in their sense of smell than in their taste (Schiffman, 2007).
Smell and taste decline less in healthy older adults than in their less healthy
counterparts.
Page 389
Touch and Pain Changes in touch and pain are also associated with aging
(Kemp & others, 2014). A recent national study of community-dwelling older
adults revealed that 70 percent of older adults had impaired touch (Correia &
others, 2016). For most older adults, a decline in touch sensitivity is not
problematic (Hoyer & Roodin, 2009).
An estimated 60 to 75 percent of older adults report at
least some persistent pain (Molton & Terrill, 2014). The most
frequent pain complaints of older adults involve back pain (40
percent), peripheral neuropathic pain (35 percent), and chronic joint pain (15
to 25 percent) (Denard & others, 2010). The presence of pain increases with
age in older adults, and women are more likely to report having pain than are
men (Tsang & others, 2008). In a recent research review, it was concluded
that older adults have lower pain sensitivity than their younger counterparts
but only for lower pain intensities (Lautenbacher & others, 2017). Although
decreased sensitivity to pain can help older adults cope with disease and
injury, it can also mask injuries and illnesses that need to be treated.
The Circulatory System and Lungs
Cardiovascular disorders increase in late adulthood (Lind & others, 2018). In
older adults, 64 percent of men and 69 percent of women 65 to 74 years of
age have hypertension (high blood pressure) (Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 2018). Consistent blood pressures above 120/80 should be treated
to reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, or kidney disease. Various drugs, a
healthy diet, and exercise can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in
older adults (Cheng & others, 2017; Kantoch & others, 2018). In a study of
older adults, a faster exercise walking pace, not smoking, modest alcohol
intake, and avoiding obesity were associated with a lower risk of heart failure
(Del Gobbo & others, 2015). And in a recent study of adults age 65 and over,
a Mediterranean diet lowered their risk of cardiovascular problems (Nowson
& others, 2018).
Lung capacity drops 40 percent between the ages of 20 and 80, even
without disease (Fozard, 1992). Lungs lose elasticity, the chest shrinks, and
the diaphragm weakens (Skloot, 2017). The good news, though, is that older
adults can improve lung functioning with diaphragm-strengthening exercises.
Sleep
Approximately 50 percent of older adults complain of having difficulty
sleeping (Farajinia & others, 2014). Researchers have found that older adults’
sleep is lighter and more disruptive (takes longer to fall asleep and also
involves more awakenings and greater difficulty in going back to sleep)
(McRae & others, 2016). Poor sleep is a risk factor for falls, obesity, and
earlier death and is linked to a lower level of cognitive functioning (Onen &
Onen, 2018). Many of the sleep problems of older adults are associated with
health problems (Brewster, Riegel, & Gehrman, 2018; Dean & others, 2017;
Li, Vitiello, & Gooneratne, 2018). Recent research indicates that when older
adults sleep less than seven hours or more than nine hours a night, their
cognitive functioning is harmed (Devore, Grodstein, & Schemhammer, 2016;
Lo & others, 2016). And a recent Chinese study revealed that older adults
who engaged in a higher level of overall physical activity, leisure-time
exercise, and household activity were less likely to have sleep problems (Li
& others, 2018).
Sexuality
In the absence of two circumstances—disease and the belief that old people
are or should be asexual—sexuality can be lifelong (Corona & others, 2013).
Aging, however, does induce some changes in human sexual performance,
more so in the male than in the female (Estill & others, 2018). Orgasm
becomes less frequent in males with age, occurring in every second to third
attempt rather than every time. More direct stimulation usually is needed to
produce an erection.
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What are some characteristics of sexuality in older adults? How does sexuality change as
older adults go through the late adulthood period?
Many older adults are sexually active as long as they are healthy
(Thomas, Hess, & Thurston, 2015). However, in one study, sexual activity
did decline through the later years of life: 73 percent of 57- to 64-year-olds,
53 percent of 65- to 74-year-olds, and 26 percent of 75- to 85-year-olds
reported that they were sexually active (Lindau & others,
2007). Nonetheless, with recent advances in erectile
dysfunction medications, such as Viagra, an increasing
number of older men, especially the young-old, are able to have an erection
(Bennett, 2018; Constantinescu & others, 2017; Gesser-Edelsburg & Hijazi,
2018; Ozcan & others, 2018). Also, recent research suggests that declining
levels of serum testosterone, which is linked to erectile dysfunction, can be
treated with testosterone replacement therapy to improve sexual functioning
in males (Hackett & Kirby, 2018; Hackett & others, 2017; Jones & Kelly,
2018; Mayo Clinic, 2018). However, the benefit-risk ratio of testosterone
replacement therapy is uncertain for older males (Isidori & others, 2014).
Health
What types of health problems do people have in late adulthood, and what
can be done to maintain or improve their health and ability to function in
everyday life?
Health Problems
As we age, it becomes increasingly likely that we will have some disease or
illness (Baker & Petersen, 2018; Benetos & others, 2019). The majority of
adults still alive at 80 years of age or older have some type of impairment.
Chronic diseases (those with a slow onset and a long duration) are rare in
early adulthood, increase in middle adulthood, and become more common in
late adulthood (Hirsch & Sirois, 2016).
Arthritis is the most common chronic disorder in late adulthood, followed
by hypertension. Older women have a higher incidence of arthritis,
hypertension, and visual problems but a lower incidence of hearing problems
than older men do.
Low income is also strongly related to health problems in late adulthood
(Boylan, Cundiff, & Matthews, 2018; Caplan, Washington, & Swanner,
2017). Approximately three times as many poor as non-poor older adults
report that chronic disorders limit their activities.
Causes of Death in Older Adults
Nearly 60 percent of U.S. adults 65 to 74 years old die of cancer or
cardiovascular disease. Cancer recently replaced cardiovascular disease as the
leading cause of death in U.S. middle-aged adults. However, cardiovascular
disease is the leading cause of death in U.S. 65- to 74-year-olds (Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 2018). And in the 75-to-84 and 85-and-over
age groups, cardiovascular disease also is the leading cause of death (Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018). As individuals age through the
late adult years, they become more and more likely to die from
cardiovascular disease than from cancer.
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Arthritis
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you educate older
adults on the range of
chronic diseases that are
common for this age
group?
Arthritis is an inflammation of the joints accompanied by pain, stiffness, and
movement problems. This incurable disorder can affect hips, knees, ankles,
fingers, and vertebrae. Individuals with arthritis often experience difficulty
moving about and performing routine daily activities. Arthritis is especially
prevalent in older adults (Daien & others, 2017; Koyanagi & others, 2018).
Recent research documents the benefits of exercise in older adults with
arthritis (AbouAssi & others, 2017; Allen & others, 2018). A recent study of
women found that leisure-time physical inactivity was found to be a risk
factor for subsequent development of arthritis (Di Giuseppe & others, 2015).
In this study, women engaging in the most vigorous category of leisure-time
activities were the least likely to develop arthritis.
Osteoporosis
Normal aging brings some loss of bone tissue, but for some individuals loss
of bone tissue becomes severe (Fougare & Cesari, 2019). Osteoporosis
involves an extensive loss of bone tissue and is the main reason many older
adults walk with a marked stoop (JafariNasabian & others, 2017). Women are
especially vulnerable to osteoporosis, which is the leading cause of broken
bones in women (Ballane & others, 2017; Madrasi & others, 2018).
Approximately 80 percent of osteoporosis cases in the United States occur in
females, 20 percent in males. Almost two-thirds of women over the age of 60
are affected by osteoporosis. It is more common in non-Latina White, thin,
and small-framed women.
Osteoporosis is related to deficiencies in calcium, vitamin D, and
estrogen, and to lack of exercise (Kemmler, Engelke, & von Stengel, 2016).
To prevent osteoporosis, young and middle-aged women should eat foods
rich in calcium, exercise regularly, and avoid smoking (Garcia-Gomariz &
others, 2018; Giangregorio & El-Kotob, 2017; Kemmler, Kohl, & von
Stengel, 2017; Varahra & others, 2018). Drugs such as Fosamax can be used
to reduce the risk of osteoporosis (Tu & others, 2018).
Exercise, Nutrition, and Weight
Although we may be in the evening of our lives in late adulthood, we are not
meant to live out our remaining years passively. Everything we know about
older adults suggests they are healthier and happier the more active they are
(Cho, Post, & Kim, 2018; Erickson & Oberlin, 2017; Henderson & others,
2018; Strandberg, 2019). Can regular exercise lead to a healthier late
adulthood and increase longevity? How does eating a calorie-restricted diet
and controlling weight also contribute to living longer?
Exercise
In one study, exercise literally made the difference between life and death for
middle-aged and older adults (Blair, 1990). More than 10,000 men and
women were divided into categories of low fitness, medium fitness, and high
fitness (Blair & others, 1989). Then they were studied over a period of eight
years. As shown in Figure 4, sedentary participants (low fitness) were more
than twice as likely to die during the eight-year time span of the study as
those who were moderately fit and more than three times as likely to die as
those who were highly fit. The positive effects of being physically fit
occurred for both men and women in this study. Further, in a recent study,
relative to individuals with low physical fitness, those who increased from
low to intermediate or high fitness were at a lower risk for all-cause mortality
(Brawner & others, 2017).
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Figure 4 Physical Fitness and Mortality
In this study of middle-aged and older adults, being moderately fit or highly fit meant that
individuals were less likely to die over a period of eight years than their less fit (more
sedentary) counterparts (Blair & others, 1989).
Source: Blair, S. N., & others. “Physical fitness and all-cause mortality: A
prospective study of healthy men and women.” Journal of the American Medical
Association, 262, 1989, 2395–2401.
Gerontologists increasingly recommend strength training in addition to
aerobic activity and stretching for older adults (Falck & others, 2017; Grgic
& others, 2018). Resistance exercise can preserve and possibly increase
muscle mass in older adults (Grgic & others, 2018; Nordheim & others,
2018). One study found that core resistance and balance training improved
older adult women’s balance, trunk muscle strength, leg power, and body
composition better than Pilates training (Markovic & others, 2015).
Exercise is an excellent way to maintain physical and cognitive skills as
well as mental health (Brawner & others, 2017; Erickson & Oberlin, 2017;
Frith & Loprinzi, 2018; Strandberg, 2019). The current recommendations for
older adults’ physical activity are 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-
intensity aerobic activity (brisk walking, for example) per week and muscle
strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week (Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 2018). In the recent
recommendations, even greater benefits can be attained with 5
hours of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week as well as walking on a
regular basis. For example, a recent study of older adults found that walking a
dog regularly was associated with better physical health (Curl, Bibbo, &
Johnson, 2017).
In 1991 Johnny Kelley ran his sixtieth Boston Marathon, and in 2000 he was named
“Runner of the Century” by Runner’s World magazine. At 70 years of age, Kelley was
still running 50 miles a week. At that point in his life, Kelley said, “I’m afraid to stop
running. I feel so good. I want to stay alive.” He lived 27 more years and died at age 97 in
2004.
©Charles Krupa/AP Images
Exercise helps people to live independent lives with dignity in late
adulthood (Henderson & others, 2018; Marzetti & others, 2017; Strasser &
others, 2018). At age 80, 90, and even 100, exercise can help prevent older
adults from falling down or even being institutionalized (Hill & others,
2018). One study found that an exercise program reduced the number of falls
in older adults with dementia (Burton & others, 2015). Exercise also is linked
to the prevention or delayed onset of chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular
disease, type 2 diabetes, and obesity, as well as improvement in the treatment
of these diseases (Jaul & Barron, 2017; Mora & Valencia, 2018; Preston,
Reynolds, & Pearson, 2018; Scott & others, 2018). Researchers also
increasingly are finding that exercise improves cellular functioning in older
adults. For example, researchers have discovered that aerobic exercise is
linked to greater telomere length in older adults (Loprinzi & Loenneke,
2016).
Exercise improves older adults’ brain and cognitive functioning (Coetsee
& Terblanche, 2018; Smith, Hendy, & Tempest, 2018). For example, a
research review concluded that more physically fit and active older adults
have greater prefrontal cortex and hippocampal volume, a higher level of
brain connectivity, and more efficient brain activity (Erickson, Hillman, &
Kramer, 2015). Older adults who exercise regularly not only show better
brain functioning, they also process information more effectively than older
adults who are more sedentary (Erickson & Oberlin, 2017). In the research
review on brain functioning, the researchers also found that more physically
fit and active older adults show have superior memory functioning and a
higher level of executive function (Erickson, Hillman, & Kramer, 2015).
Exercise also is linked to increased longevity. Energy expenditure during
exercise of at least 1,000 kcal/week reduces mortality by about 30 percent,
while 2,000 kcal/week reduces mortality by about 50 percent (Lee & Skerrett,
2001). One study of older adults found that total daily physical activity was
linked to increased longevity across a four-year period (Buchman & others,
2012).
Nutrition and Weight
Scientists have accumulated considerable evidence that calorie restriction
(CR) in laboratory animals can increase the animals’ life spans (Someya &
others, 2017). Research indicates that calorie restriction (CR) slows RNA
decline during the aging process (Hou & others, 2016). Animals that are fed
diets restricted in calories, although adequate in protein, vitamins, and
minerals, live as much as 40 percent longer than animals that have unlimited
access to food (Jolly, 2005). And chronic problems such as cardiovascular,
kidney, and liver disease appear at a later age (Tanajak & others, 2017). Also,
research indicates that CR may provide neuroprotection for an aging central
nervous system (White & others, 2017). One study found that CR maintained
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more youthful functioning in the hippocampus, which is an important brain
structure for memory (Schafer & others, 2015).
No one knows for certain how CR works to increase the life span of
animals. Some scientists suggest that CR might lower the level of free
radicals and reduce oxidative stress in cells (Tanajak & others, 2017). Others
argue that CR might trigger a state of emergency called “survival mode” in
which the body eliminates all unnecessary functions to focus only on staying
alive (Schreiber, O’Leary, & Kennedy, 2016).
Whether similar very low-calorie diets can stretch the human
life span is not known (Locher & others, 2016). In some
instances, the animals in these studies received 40 percent less
calories than normal. In humans, a typical level of calorie restriction involves
a 30 percent decrease, which translates to about 1,120 calories a day for the
average woman and 1,540 for the average man.
Health Treatment
About 3 percent of adults age 65 and older in the United States reside in a
nursing home at some point in their lives. As older adults age, however, their
probability of being in a nursing home or other extended-care facility
increases. Twenty-three percent of adults aged 85 and older live in nursing
homes or other extended-care facilities.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you use your
understanding of
development in late
adulthood to advocate
for improved access to
quality medical care for
older adults?
The quality of nursing homes and other extended-care facilities for older
adults varies enormously and is a source of national concern (Kim, 2016;
Marshall & Hale, 2018; Wangmo, Nordstrom, & Kressig, 2017). More than
one-third are seriously deficient. They fail federally mandated inspections
because they do not meet the minimum standards for physicians, pharmacists,
and various rehabilitation specialists (occupational and physical therapists).
Further concerns focus on the patient’s right to privacy, access to medical
information, safety, and lifestyle freedom within the individual’s range of
mental and physical capabilities.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you structure the
environment of a
nursing home to
produce maximum
health and
psychological benefits
for the residents?
Because of the inadequate quality and the escalating costs of many
nursing homes, many specialists in the health problems of the aged stress that
home health care, elder-care centers, and preventive medicine clinics are
good alternatives (Kim, 2016). They are potentially less expensive than
hospitals and nursing homes (Rotenberg & others, 2018). They also are less
likely to engender the feelings of depersonalization and dependency that
occur so often in residents of institutions. Currently, there is an increased
demand for, and a shortage of, home care workers because of the increasing
number of older adults and their preference to stay out of nursing homes
(Franzosa, Tsui, & Baron, 2018).
In a classic study, Judith Rodin and Ellen Langer (1977) found that an
important factor related to health, and even survival, in a nursing home is the
patient’s feelings of control and self-determination. One group was
encouraged to make more day-to-day choices and thus to feel they had more
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control over their lives. They began to decide such matters as what they ate,
when their visitors could come, what movies they saw, and who could come
to their rooms. Another group in the same nursing home was told by the
administrator how caring the nursing home staff was and how much they
wanted to help, but these residents were given no added responsibility over
their lives. Eighteen months later, the residents who had been given extra
responsibility were healthier, happier, and more alert and active than the
residents who had not received added responsibility. Even more important
was the finding that after 18 months only half as many nursing home
residents in the “responsibility” group had died as in the “dependent” group
(see Figure 5). Perceived control over one’s environment, then, can literally
be a matter of life and death.
Figure 5 Perceived Control and Mortality
In the study by Rodin and Langer (1977), nursing home residents who were encouraged to
feel more in control of their lives were more likely to be alive 18 months later than those
who were treated as more dependent on the nursing home staff..
Source: Rodin, J., & Langer, E. J. “Long term effects of a control-relevant
intervention with the institutionalized aged.” Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, 35, 1977, 397–402.
Geriatric nurses can be especially helpful in improving health treatment.
To read about the work of one geriatric nurse, see Careers in Life-Span
Development.
Careers in life-span development
Sarah Kagan, Geriatric Nurse
Sarah Kagan is a professor of nursing at the University of
Pennsylvania School of Nursing. She provides nursing consultation to
patients, their families, nurses, and physicians regarding the complex
needs of older adults related to their hospitalization. She also consults
on research and the management of patients who have head and neck
cancers. Sarah teaches in the undergraduate nursing program, where
she directs a course on “Nursing Care in the Older Adult.” In 2003,
she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship for her work in the field of
nursing.
Geriatric nurses like Sarah Kagan seek to prevent or intervene in
the chronic or acute health problems of older adults. They may work
in hospitals, nursing homes, schools of nursing, or with geriatric
medical specialists or psychiatrists in a medical clinic or in private
practice. Like pediatric nurses, geriatric nurses take courses in a
school of nursing and obtain a degree in nursing, which takes from
two to five years. They complete courses in biological sciences,
nursing care, and mental health as well as supervised clinical training
in geriatric settings. They also may obtain a master’s or doctoral
degree in their specialty.
Sarah Kagan with a patient.
©Jacqueline Larma/AP Images
Cognitive Functioning
At age 89, the great pianist Arthur Rubinstein gave one of his best
performances at New York’s Carnegie Hall. When Pablo Casals was 95, a
reporter asked him, “Mr. Casals, you are the greatest cellist who ever lived.
Why do you still practice six hours a day?” Mr. Casals replied, “Because I
feel like I am making progress” (Canfield & Hansen, 1995).
Multidimensionality and Multidirectionality
In thinking about the nature of cognitive change in adulthood, it is important
to consider that cognition is a multidimensional concept (Kinugawa, 2019;
Silverman & Schmeidler, 2018; Zammit & others, 2018). It is also important
to consider that, although some dimensions of cognition might decline as we
age, others might remain stable or even improve.
Attention
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Changes in attention are important aspects of cognitive aging (Bechi Gabrielli
& others, 2018; Oren & others, 2018). In many contexts older adults may not
be able to focus on relevant information as effectively as younger adults can
(Gilsoul & others, 2018; Ziegler, Janowich, & Gazzaley, 2018).
Selective attention, which consists of focusing on a specific aspect of
experience that is relevant while ignoring others that are irrelevant, generally
decreases in older adults (Zanto & Gazzaley, 2017). For example, a recent
study found that selective attention deficits were linked to older adults’ less
competent driving (Venkatesan & others, 2018). However, on simple tasks
involving a search for a feature, such as determining whether a target item is
present on a computer screen, age differences are minimal when individuals
are given sufficient practice. In one study, 10 weeks of speed of processing
training improved the selective attention of older adults (O’Brien & others,
2013). Another study revealed that older adults who participated in 20 one-
hour video game training sessions with a commercially available program
(Lumosity) showed a significant reduction in distraction and increased
alertness (Mayas & others, 2014). The Lumosity program sessions focus on
problem solving, mental calculation, working memory, and attention.
Sustained attention is the ability to focus attention on a
selected stimulus for a prolonged period of time. Researchers
have found that older adults often perform as well as middle-aged
and younger adults on measures of sustained attention (Berardi, Parasuraman,
& Haxby, 2001). However, consistency of attention is important. A study of
older adults found that the greater the variability in their sustained attention
(vigilance), the more likely they were to experience falls (O’Halloran &
others, 2011).
What are some developmental changes in attention in late adulthood?
©Digital Vision/PunchStock
Researchers are exploring ways that older adults’ attention might be
improved. For example, in a recent experimental study, yoga practice that
included postures, breathing, and meditation improved the attention and
information processing of older adults (Gothe, Kramer, & McAuley, 2017).
Also, another recent study found that when older adults regularly engaged in
mindfulness meditation their goal-directed attention improved (Malinowski
& others, 2017).
Memory
Memory does change during aging, but not all types of memory change with
age in the same way. We will begin by exploring possible changes in explicit
and implicit memory.
Explicit and Implicit Memory Researchers have found that aging is linked
with a decline in explicit memory (Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017). Explicit
memory is memory of facts and experiences that individuals consciously
know and can state. Explicit memory also is sometimes called declarative
memory. Examples of explicit memory include recounting the plot of a movie
you have seen or being at a grocery store and remembering what you wanted
to buy. Implicit memory is memory without conscious recollection; it
involves skills and routine procedures, such as driving a car or typing on a
computer keyboard, that you perform without having to consciously think
about what you are doing. Implicit memory is less likely to be adversely
affected by aging than explicit memory is (Norman, Holmin, &
Bartholomew, 2011).
Episodic and Semantic Memory Episodic and semantic memory are
viewed as forms of explicit memory. Episodic memory is the retention of
information about the where and when of life’s happenings. For example,
what was the color of the walls in your bedroom when you were a child?
What did you eat for breakfast this morning?
Younger adults have better episodic memory than older adults have
(Allen & others, 2018; Despres & others, 2017; Siegel & Castel, 2018). Also,
older adults think that they can remember long-ago events better than more
recent events. However, researchers consistently have found that the older the
memory is, the less accurate it is in older adults (Smith, 1996). Also, one
study found that episodic memory performance predicted which individuals
would develop dementia 10 years prior to the clinical diagnosis of the disease
(Boraxbekk & others, 2015). Further, in a recent study, a mindfulness
training program was effective in improving episodic memory recall in older
adults (Banducci & others, 2017).
Semantic memory is a person’s knowledge about the world. It includes a
person’s fields of expertise, general academic knowledge of the sort learned
in school, and “everyday knowledge” about the meanings of words,
important places, and common things. Older adults often take longer to
retrieve semantic information, but usually they can ultimately retrieve it.
However, the ability to retrieve very specific information (such as names)
usually declines in older adults (Hoffman & Morcom, 2018). For the most
part, episodic memory declines more than semantic memory in older adults
(Allen & others, 2018; Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017; Siegel & Castel,
2018).
Cognitive Resources: Working Memory and Perceptual Speed
Two important cognitive resource mechanisms are working memory and
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perceptual speed (Salthouse, 2017; Zammit & others, 2018).
Recall that working memory is closely linked to short-term
memory but places more emphasis on memory as a place for
mental work (Baddeley, 2015, 2018a, b). Researchers have found declines in
working memory during late adulthood (Dai, Thomas, & Taylor, 2018; Kilic,
Sayali, & Oztekin, 2017; Nissim & others, 2017; Lopez-Higes & others,
2018). One study revealed that working memory continued to decline from
65 to 89 years of age (Elliott & others, 2011). Explanation of the decline in
working memory in older adults focuses on their less efficient inhibition in
preventing irrelevant information from entering working memory and their
increased distractibility (Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017).
Is there plasticity in the working memory of older adults? Researchers
have found that older adults’ working memory can be improved through
training (Cantarella & others, 2017). For example, researchers have found
that strategy training improved the working memory of older adults (Bailey,
Dunlosky, & Hertzog, 2014). Further, in a recent study, aerobic endurance
was linked to better working memory in older adults (Zettel-Watson &
others, 2017). In addition, a recent study revealed that imagery strategy
training improved the working memory of older adults (Borella & others,
2017). Thus, there appears to be some plasticity in the working memory of
older adults (Oh & others, 2018). However, a recent study of young, middle-
aged, and older adults found that all age groups’ working memory improved
with working memory training, but the older adults had less improvement
with training than the younger adults did (Rhodes & Katz, 2017).
Perceptual speed is another cognitive resource that has been studied by
researchers on aging. Perceptual speed is the amount of time it takes to
perform simple perceptual-motor tasks such as deciding whether pairs of
two-digit or two-letter strings are the same, or how long it takes someone to
step on the brakes when the car directly ahead stops. Perceptual speed shows
considerable decline in late adulthood, and it is strongly linked with decline
in working memory (Salthouse, 2017; Wilson & others, 2018). A recent
study of older adults revealed that slower processing speed was associated
with unsafe driving acts (Hotta & others, 2018). Another recent study found
that slow processing speed predicted an increase in older adults’ falls one
year later (Davis & others, 2017). Also, in a 20-year longitudinal study of 42-
to 97-year-olds, greater declines in processing speed were linked to increased
mortality risk (Aichele, Rabbitt, & Ghisletta, 2015).
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Recent research has included an effort to improve older adults’
processing speed through exercise interventions. For example, a recent
experimental study found that high-intensity aerobic training was more
effective than moderate-intensity aerobic training or resistance training in
improving older adults’ processing speed (Coetsee & Terblanche, 2018). And
in a recent study of older adults, playing processing speed games for five
sessions a week over four weeks improved their processing speed (Nouchi &
others, 2016).
Executive Function
We discussed executive function in a number of chapters earlier in the text.
Recall that executive function is an umbrella-like concept that consists of a
number of higher-level cognitive processes linked to the development of the
brain’s prefrontal cortex. Executive function involves managing one’s
thoughts to engage in goal-directed behavior and to exercise self-control
(Perone, Almy & Zelazo, 2017).
How does executive function change in late adulthood? Earlier in this
chapter, you read that the prefrontal cortex is one area of the brain that
shrinks with aging, and recent research has linked this shrinkage with a
decrease in working memory and other cognitive activities in older adults
(Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017) Older adults are less effective in performing
tasks involving executive function and have less effective cognitive control
than younger adults do (Gaillardin & Baudry, 2018; Zammit & others, 2018).
For example, in terms of cognitive flexibility, older adults don’t perform as
well as younger adults at switching back and forth between tasks or mental
sets (Chiu & others, 2018). And in terms of cognitive inhibition, older adults
are less effective than younger adults at inhibiting dominant or automatic
responses (Lopez-Higes & others, 2018; Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017).
Although in general aspects of executive function decline
in late adulthood, there is considerable variability in executive
function among older adults. For example, some older adults
have a better working memory and are more cognitively flexible than other
older adults (McGough & others, 2018). And there is increasing research
evidence that being physically active and engaging in aerobic exercise
improves executive function in older adults (Eggenberger & others, 2015).
For example, one study found that more physically fit older adults were more
cognitively flexible than their less physically fit counterparts (Berryman &
others, 2013). And a recent study of older adults revealed that across a 10-
year period physically active women experienced less decline in executive
function (Hamer, Muniz Terrera,& Demakokos, 2018).
Executive function increasingly is thought to be involved not only in
cognitive performance but also in health, emotion regulation, adaptation to
life’s challenges, motivation, and social functioning. In one study, executive
function but not memory predicted a higher risk of coronary heart disease and
stroke three years later in older adults (Rostamian & others, 2015).
Wisdom
Does wisdom, like good wine, improve with age? What is this thing we call
“wisdom”? Wisdom is expert knowledge about the practical aspects of life
that permits excellent judgment about important matters. This practical
knowledge involves exceptional insight into human development and
interactions, good judgment, and an understanding of how to cope with
difficult life problems. Thus, wisdom, more than standard conceptions of
intelligence, focuses on life’s pragmatic concerns and human conditions
(Kuntzmann, 2019; Sternberg & Glueck, 2018; Sternberg & Hagen, 2018). A
recent study found that self-reflective exploratory processing of difficult life
experiences (meaning-making and personal growth) was linked to a higher
level of wisdom (Westrate & Gluck, 2017).
In regard to wisdom, Paul Baltes and his colleagues (Baltes & Kunzmann,
2007; Baltes & Smith, 2008) have reached the following conclusions: (1)
High levels of wisdom are rare. Few people, including older adults, attain a
high level of wisdom. That only a small percentage of adults show wisdom
supports the contention that it requires experience, practice, or complex
skills. (2) Factors other than age are critical for wisdom to develop to a high
level. For example, certain life experiences, such as being trained and
working in a field involving difficult life problems and having wisdom-
enhancing mentors, contribute to higher levels of wisdom. Also, people
higher in wisdom have values that are more likely to consider the welfare of
others than their own happiness. (3) Personality-related factors, such as
openness to experience, generativity, and creativity, are better predictors of
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wisdom than cognitive factors such as intelligence.
Education, Work, and Health
Education, work, and health are three important influences on the cognitive
functioning of older adults (Calero, 2019; Walker, 2019). They are also three
of the most important factors involved in understanding why cohort effects
need to be taken into account in studying the cognitive functioning of older
adults. Indeed, cohort effects are very important considerations in the study
of cognitive aging (Schaie, 2013, 2016). One study found that older adults
assessed in 2013–2014 engaged in a higher level of abstract reasoning than
their counterparts who had been assessed two decades earlier (Gerstorf &
others, 2015). And a recent study of older adults in 10 European countries
revealed improved memory between 2004 and 2013, with the changes more
positive for older adults who had decreases in cardiovascular disease and
increases in exercise and educational achievement (Hessel & others, 2018).
Education Successive generations in America’s twentieth century were
better educated, and this trend continues in the twenty-first century (Schaie,
2013, 2016). Educational experiences are positively correlated with scores on
intelligence tests and information-processing tasks, such as memory exercises
(Steffener & others, 2014). Also, one study found that older adults with a
higher level of education had better cognitive functioning (Rapp & others,
2013).
Work Successive generations have also had work experiences
that included a stronger emphasis on cognitively oriented labor.
Our great-grandfathers and grandfathers were more likely to be
manual laborers than were our fathers, who are more likely to be involved in
cognitively oriented occupations.
Researchers have found that when older adults engage in complex
working tasks and challenging daily work activities their cognitive
functioning shows less age-related decrease (Fisher & others, 2017; Lovden,
Backman, & Lindenberger, 2017; Wang & Shi, 2016). For example, in a
recent Australian study, older adults who had retired from occupations that
involved higher complexity maintained their cognitive advantage over their
counterparts whose occupations had involved lower complexity (Lane &
others, 2017). And in another recent study of older adults working in low-
complexity jobs, experiencing novelty in their work (assessed through
recurrent work-task changes) was linked with better processing speed and
working memory (Oltmanns & others, 2017).
Health Successive generations have also been healthier in late adulthood as
more effective treatments for a variety of illnesses (such as hypertension)
have been developed. Many of these illnesses, such as stroke, heart disease,
and diabetes, have a negative impact on intellectual performance (Hagenaars
& others, 2018; Li, Huang, & Gao, 2017; Loprinzi, Crush, & Joyner, 2017;
van der Flier & others, 2018). Further, in a recent study of the oldest-old
Chinese, early-stage chronic kidney disease was associated with cognitive
decline (Bai & others, 2017). Researchers also have found age-related
cognitive decline in adults with mood disorders such as depression (Bourassa
& others, 2017; Farioli-Vecchioli & others, 2018; Knight, Rastegar, & Kim,
2016). Thus, some of the decline in intellectual performance found for older
adults is likely due to health-related factors rather than to age per se (Drew &
others, 2017; Koyanagi & others, 2018).
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How are education, work, and health linked to cognitive functioning in older adults?
(Top) ©Silverstock/Getty Images; (middle) ©Kurt Paulus/Getty Images; (bottom)
©Tom Grill/Corbis RF
Use It or Lose It
Changes in cognitive activity patterns might result in disuse and consequent
atrophy of cognitive skills (Calero, 2019; Kinugawa, 2019; Kuntzmann,
2019; Lovden, Backman, & Lindenberger, 2017; Oltmanns & others, 2017).
This concept is captured in the phrase “Use it or lose it.” The mental
activities that are likely to benefit the maintenance of cognitive skills in older
adults include activities such as reading books, doing crossword puzzles, and
going to lectures and concerts. In one study, reading daily was linked to
reduced mortality in men in their seventies (Jacobs & others, 2008). In
another study, 75- to 85-year-olds were assessed for an average of five years
(Hall & others, 2009). At the beginning of the research, the older adults
indicated how often they participated in six activities on a daily basis:
reading, writing, doing crossword puzzles, playing cards or board games,
having group discussions, and playing music. For each additional activity the
older adult engaged in, the onset of rapid memory loss was delayed by 0.18
year. For older adults who participated in 11 activities per week compared
with their counterparts who engaged in only 4 activities per week, the point at
which accelerated memory decline occurred was delayed by 1.29 years. And
in an analysis of older adults over a 12-year period, those who reduced their
cognitive lifestyle activities (such as using a computer or playing bridge)
subsequently showed declines in verbal speed, episodic memory,
and semantic memory (Small & others, 2012). These declines in
cognitive functioning were linked to subsequent lower
engagement in social activities.
Training Cognitive Skills
If older adults are losing cognitive skills, can these skills be regained through
training? An increasing number of research studies indicate that cognitive
skills can be restored to a degree (Bonfiglio & others, 2018; Calero, 2019;
Cantarella & others, 2017; Gmiat & others, 2018; Kinugawa, 2019; Lopez-
Higes & others, 2018; Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017).
Members of the Young@Heart chorus have an average age of 80. Young@Heart became
a hit documentary in 2008. The documentary displays the singing talents, energy, and
optimism of a remarkable group of older adults, who clearly are on the “use it” side of
“use it or lose it.”
©Everett Collection, Inc./Alamy
Consider a study of 60- to 90-year-olds which found that sustained
engagement in cognitively demanding, novel activities improved the older
adults’ episodic memory (Park & others, 2014). To produce this result, the
older adults spent an average of 16.5 hours a week for three months learning
how to quilt or use digital photography. In a more recent study, 60- to 90-
year-olds who participated in iPad training 15 hours a week for 3 months
improved their episodic memory and processing speed compared with their
counterparts who engaged in social or non-challenging activities (Chan &
others, 2016).
Two key conclusions can be derived from research in this area: (1)
training can improve the cognitive skills of many older adults, but (2) there is
some loss in plasticity in late adulthood, especially in those who are 85 and
older (Baltes, Lindenberger, & Staudinger, 2006).
Meta-examinations of four longitudinal observational studies (Long
Beach Longitudinal Study; Origins of Variance in the Oldest-old [Octo-
Twin] Study in Sweden; Seattle Longitudinal Study; and Victoria
Longitudinal Study in Canada) of older adults’ naturalistic cognitive
activities found that changes in cognitive activity predicted cognitive
outcomes as long as two decades later (Brown & others, 2012; Lindwall &
others, 2012; Mitchell & others, 2012; Rebok & others, 2014). However, the
hypothesis that engaging in cognitive activity at an earlier point in
development might have improved older adults’ ability to later withstand
cognitive decline was not supported. On a positive note, when older adults
continued to increase their engagement in cognitive and physical activities,
they were better able to maintain their cognitive functioning in late
adulthood.
The Stanford Center for Longevity (2011) and together the Stanford
Center for Longevity and the Max Planck Institute for Human Development
(2014) reported information based on a consensus of leading scientists in the
field of aging on how successfully the cognitive skills of older adults can be
improved. One of their concerns is the misinformation given to the public
touting products to improve the functioning of the mind for which there is no
scientific evidence. For example, nutritional supplements have been
advertised as “magic bullets” to slow the decline of mental functioning and
improve the mental ability of older adults. Some of the claims are reasonable
but not scientifically tested, while others are unrealistic and implausible
(Willis & Belleville, 2016).
A research review of dietary supplements and cognitive aging did
indicate that ginkgo biloba was linked with improvements in some aspects of
attention in older adults and that omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (fish
oil) was related to reduced risk of age-related cognitive decline (Gorby,
Brownawell, & Falk, 2010). In this research review, there was no evidence of
cognitive improvements in aging adults who took supplements containing
ginseng and glucose. Also, an experimental study with 50- to 75-year-old
females found that those who took fish oil for 26 weeks had improved
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executive function and beneficial effects in a number of areas of brain
functioning compared with their female counterparts who
took a placebo pill (Witte & others, 2014). In another study,
fish oil supplement use was linked to higher cognitive scores
and less atrophy in one or more brain regions (Daiello & others, 2015). And
in a recent study, fish oil supplementation improved the working memory of
older adults (Boespflug & others, 2016). Overall, though, research has not
provided consistent plausible evidence that dietary supplements can
accomplish major cognitive goals in aging adults over a number of years.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you design
activities and
interventions to elicit
and maintain cognitive
vitality in older adults?
However, some software-based cognitive training games have been found
to improve older adults’ cognitive functioning (Gillian & others, 2019;
Ordonez & others, 2017; West & others, 2017). For example, a study of 60-
to 85-year-olds found that a multitasking video game that simulates day-to-
day driving experiences (NeuroRacer) improved cognitive control skills, such
as sustained attention and working memory, immediately after training on the
video game and six months later (Anguera & others, 2013). In another recent
study, computerized cognitive training slowed the decline in older adults’
overall memory performance, an outcome that was linked to enhanced
connectivity between the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (Suo & others,
2016). And in another recent study, cognitive training using virtual reality-
based games with stroke patients improved their attention and memory
(Gamito & others, 2017). Nonetheless, it is possible that the training games
may improve cognitive skills in a laboratory setting but not generalize to
gains in the real world.
Also, recall our discussion earlier in the chapter that indicated regular
exercise can improve the cognitive functioning of older adults. For example,
a recent research review concluded that engaging in low or moderate levels of
exercise was linked to improved cognitive functioning in older adults with
chronic diseases (Coetsee & Terblanche, 2018; Erickson & Oberlin, 2017;
Gmiat & others, 2018; Strandberg, 2019; Walker, 2019). Also, in a recent
study, engagement in physical activity in late adulthood was linked to less
cognitive decline (Gow, Pattie, & Deary, 2017).
In sum, improvements in the cognitive vitality of older adults can be
accomplished through some types of cognitive, physical fitness, and
nutritional interventions (Farioli-Vecchioli & others, 2018; Gillian & others,
2019; Perkisas & Vandewoude, 2019; Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017;
Strandberg, 2019). However, benefits have not been observed in all studies
(Salthouse, 2017). An important finding in the meta-analysis of four
longitudinal studies was that older adults were better able to maintain their
cognitive functioning over a prolonged period of time when increasing their
engagement in cognitive and physical activities (Rebok & others, 2014).
Further research is needed to determine more precisely which cognitive
improvements occur in older adults as a result of training (Salthouse, 2017).
Cognitive Neuroscience and Aging
On several occasions in this chapter, we have noted that certain regions of the
brain are involved in links between aging and cognitive functioning. In this
section, we further explore the brain’s role in aging and cognitive
functioning. The field of cognitive neuroscience has emerged as the major
discipline that studies links between brain activity and cognitive functioning
(Kennedy & others, 2017; Kinugawa, 2019; Park & Festini, 2018). This field
especially relies on brain-imaging techniques, such as fMRI, PET, and DTI
(diffusion tensor imaging) to reveal the areas of the brain that are activated
when individuals engage in certain cognitive activities (Madden & Parks,
2017; Park & Festini, 2017). For example, as an older adult is asked to
encode and then retrieve verbal materials or images of scenes, the older
adult’s brain activity will be monitored by an fMRI brain scan.
Changes in the brain can influence cognitive functioning, and changes in
cognitive functioning can influence the brain (Kinugawa, 2019). For
example, aging of the brain’s prefrontal cortex may produce a decline in
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working memory (Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017). And, when older adults do
not regularly use their working memory (recall the section “Use It or Lose
It”), neural connections in the prefrontal lobe may atrophy.
Further, cognitive interventions that activate older adults’
working memory may increase these neural connections.
Although in its infancy as a field, the cognitive neuroscience of aging is
beginning to uncover some important links between aging, the brain, and
cognitive functioning (Ezaki & others, 2018; Kinugawa, 2019; Rugg, 2017).
These include the following:
Neural circuits in specific regions of the brain’s prefrontal cortex decline,
and this decline is linked to poorer performance by older adults on tasks
involving complex reasoning, working memory, and episodic memory
(Grady, 2017; Reuter-Lorenz & Lustig, 2017) (see Figure 6).
Figure 6 The Prefrontal Cortex
Advances in neuroimaging are allowing researchers to make significant progress in
connecting changes in the brain with cognitive development. Shown here is an fMRI of
the brain’s prefrontal cortex. What links have been found between the prefrontal cortex,
aging, and cognitive development?
Courtesy of Dr. Sam Gilbert, Institute of
Cognitive Neuroscience, UK
Recall from earlier in the chapter that older adults are more likely than
younger adults to use both hemispheres of the brain to compensate for
age-related declines in attention, memory, and language (Davis & others,
2012; Reuter-Lorenz, Festini, & Jantz, 2016). Two neuroimaging studies
revealed that better memory performance in older adults was linked to
higher levels of activity in both hemispheres of the brain during
information processing (Angel & others, 2011; Manenti, Cotelli, &
Miniussi, 2011).
Functioning of the hippocampus declines but to a lesser degree than the
functioning of the frontal lobes in older adults (Antonenko & Floel,
2014). In K. Warner Schaie’s (2013) recent research, individuals whose
memory and executive function declined in middle age had more
hippocampal atrophy in late adulthood, but those whose memory and
executive function improved in middle age did not show a decline in
hippocampal functioning in late adulthood.
Patterns of neural decline with aging are more noticeable for retrieval
than for encoding (Gutchess & others, 2005).
Compared with younger adults, older adults often show greater activity in
the frontal and parietal lobes of the brain on simple tasks, but as
attentional demands increase, older adults display less effective
functioning in the frontal and parietal lobes of the brain that involve
cognitive control (Campbell & others, 2012).
Cortical thickness in the frontoparietal network predicts executive
function in older adults (Schmidt & others, 2016).
Younger adults have better connectivity between brain regions than older
adults (Damoiseaux, 2017; Madden & Parks, 2017).
An increasing number of cognitive and fitness training studies include
brain imaging techniques such as fMRI to assess the results of such
training on brain functioning (Kinugawa, 2019; Walker, 2019). In one
study, older adults who walked one hour a day three days a week for six
months showed increased volume in the frontal and temporal lobes of the
brain (Colcombe & others, 2006).
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Work and Retirement
What percentage of older adults continue to work? How productive are they?
Who adjusts best to retirement? These are some of the questions we will
examine in this section.
Work
In 2000, 23 percent of U.S. 65- to 69-year-olds were in the work force; in
2015, this percentage had jumped to 32 percent (Short, 2018). For 70- to 74-
year-olds, in 2000, 13 percent were in the workforce, but this percentage had
increased to 19 percent in 2015. This increase has occurred more for women
than men. For example, labor force participation by 75-and-over women has
risen 87 percent since 2000, while participation in the work force by 75-and-
over men has increased 45 percent (Short, 2018). A recent study found that
older workers worked beyond retirement age to improve their financial status,
health, knowledge levels, and sense of purpose (Sewdas & others, 2017).
Since the mid-1990s, a significant shift has occurred in the percentage of
older adults working part-time or full-time (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics,
2008). After 1995, of the adults 65 and older in the workforce, those
engaging in full-time work rose substantially and those working part-time
decreased considerably. This significant rise in full-time employment likely
reflects the increasing number of older adults who realize that they may not
have adequate money to fund their retirement (Rix, 2011). One survey
revealed that 47 percent of Americans 50 years and older now expect to retire
later than they had previously envisioned (Associated Press–NORC Center
for Public Affairs Research, 2013). Seventy-eight percent of the workers
cited financial reasons, with many responding that they had less money
available for retirement than they had before the 2008 recession. A recent
study found that baby boomers expect to work longer than their predecessors
in prior generations (Dong & others, 2017).
Ninety-two-year-old Russell “Bob” Harrell (right) puts in 12-hour days at Sieco
Consulting Engineers in Columbus, Indiana. A highway and bridge engineer, he designs
and plans roads. James Rice (age 48), a vice president of client services at Sieco, says that
Harrell wants to learn something new every day and that he has learned many life lessons
from being around him. Harrell says he is not planning to retire. What are some variations
in work and retirement in older adults?
©Greg Sailor
Older workers have lower rates of absenteeism, fewer accidents, and
increased job satisfaction compared with their younger counterparts (Warr,
2004). This means that older workers can be of considerable value to a
company, above and beyond their cognitive competence. Changes in federal
law now allow individuals over the age of 65 to continue working in most
jobs.
An increasing number of middle-aged and older adults are embarking on
a second or a third career (Cahill & others, 2018). In some cases, this is an
entirely different type of work or a continuation of previous work but at a
reduced level. Many older adults also participate in unpaid work as
volunteers or as active participants in a voluntary association. These options
afford older adults opportunities for productive activity, social interaction,
and a positive identity (Topa, Depolo, & Alcover, 2018).
Several studies have found that older adults who continue to work have
better physical and cognitive profiles that those who retire. For example, one
Page 403
study found that physical functioning declined faster in retirement than in
full-time work for employees 65 years of age and older, with the difference
not explained by absence of chronic diseases and lifestyle risks (Stenholm &
others, 2014). And in another recent study of older adults, those who
continued to work in paid jobs had better physical and cognitive functioning
than retirees (Tan & others, 2017).
What are some keys to adjusting effectively in retirement?
©Bronwyn Kidd/Getty Images
Adjustment to Retirement
In the past, when most people reached an accepted retirement age, usually in
their sixties, retirement meant a one-way exit from full-time work to full-time
leisure (Wang & Shi, 2016). Increasingly, individuals are delaying retirement
and moving into and out of work (Cahill & others, 2018; Kojola & Moen,
2016). Currently, there is no single dominant pattern to retirement but rather
a diverse mix of pathways involving occupational identities, finances, health,
and expectations and perceptions of retirement (Kojola & Moen, 2016).
Leading expert Phyllis Moen (2007) described how today, when people reach
their sixties, the life path they follow is less clear: (1) some
individuals don’t retire from their careers; (2) some retire from
their career work and then take up a new and different job; (3)
some retire from career jobs but do volunteer work; (4) some retire from a
post-retirement job and go on to yet another job; (5) some move in and out of
the workforce, so they never really have a “career” job from which they
retire; (6) some individuals who are in poor health move to a disability status
and eventually into retirement; and (7) some who are laid off define it as
“retirement.”
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you assist older
adults in making
appropriate adjustments
and preparations for a
psychologically
satisfying retirement?
A 2017 survey indicated that only 18 percent of American workers feel
very confident that they will have enough money to have a comfortable
retirement (Greenwald, Copeland, & VanDerhei, 2017). However, 60 percent
said they feel somewhat or very confident they will have enough money to
live a comfortable retirement. In this survey, 30 percent of American workers
reported that preparing for retirement made them feel mentally or emotionally
distressed. In regard to retirement income, the two main worries of
individuals as they approach retirement are: (1) having to draw retirement
income from savings, and (2) paying for health-care expenses (Yakoboski,
2011).
Older adults who adjust best to retirement are healthy, have adequate
income, are active, are educated, have an extended social network including
both friends and family, and usually were satisfied with their lives before
they retired (Ilmakunnas & Ilmakunnas, 2018; Miller, 2018). Older adults
who have inadequate income and are in poor health, and who must adjust to
other stress that occurs at the same time as retirement, such as the death of a
spouse, have the most difficult time adjusting to retirement (Biro & Elek,
2018; Mossburg, 2018).
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Mental Health
Although a substantial portion of the population can now look forward to a
longer life, that life may be hampered by a mental disorder in old age (Brown
& Wolf, 2018; Bruce & Sirey, 2018; Guo & others, 2018; Szanto & others,
2018; van den Brink & others, 2018)—a troubling prospect to individuals and
their families and costly to society. Mental disorders make individuals
increasingly dependent on the help and care of others. The cost of disorders
such as dementia in older adults is estimated at more than $40 billion per year
in the United States. More important, though, is the loss of human potential
and the suffering involved (Frank & others, 2018; Wolff & others, 2017).
Although mental disorders in older adults are a major concern, however,
older adults do not have a higher overall incidence of mental disorders than
younger adults do (Busse & Blazer, 1996).
Dementia and Alzheimer Disease
Among the most debilitating of mental disorders in older adults are the
dementias. In recent years, extensive attention has been focused on the most
common dementia, Alzheimer disease.
Dementia
Dementia is a global term for any neurological disorder in which the primary
symptoms involve a deterioration of mental functioning. Individuals with
dementia often lose the ability to care for themselves and may become unable
to recognize familiar surroundings and people—including family members
(Brown & Wolf, 2018). It is estimated that 23 percent of women and 17
percent of men 85 years and older are at risk for developing dementia
(Alzheimer’s Association, 2014). However, these estimates may be high
because of the Alzheimer’s Association’s lobbying efforts to increase funding
for research and treatment facilities. Dementia is a broad category, and it is
important that every effort is made to narrow the older adult’s disorder and
determine a specific cause of the deteriorating mental functioning
(Dooley, Bass, & McCabe, 2018; MacNeil Vroomen & others,
2018; Mao & others, 2018; Morikawa & others, 2017; Wolters & others,
2018).
Alzheimer Disease
One form of dementia is Alzheimer disease—a progressive, irreversible
brain disorder that is characterized by a gradual deterioration of memory,
reasoning, language, and eventually, physical function. In 2018, an estimated
5.7 million adults in the United States had Alzheimer disease, and it is
projected that 10 million baby boomers will develop Alzheimer disease
(Alzheimer’s Association, 2018). Ten percent of individuals 65 and older
have Alzheimer disease. The percentage of individuals with Alzheimer
disease increases dramatically at older ages: 3 percent of 65- to 74-year-olds,
17 percent of 75- to 84-year-olds, and 32 percent of people 85 and older
(Alzheimer’s Association, 2018).
Women are more likely than men to develop Alzheimer disease because
they live longer than men and their longer life expectancy increases the
number of years during which they can develop it. It is estimated that
Alzheimer disease triples the health-care costs of Americans 65 years of age
and older (Alzheimer’s Association, 2018). Because of the increasing
prevalence of Alzheimer disease, researchers have stepped up their efforts to
discover the causes of the disease and to find more effective ways to treat it
(Di Domenico & others, 2018; Lin & others, 2017; Lin, Zheng, & Zhang,
2018; Perneczky, 2018; Wolters & others, 2018).
Causes and Risk Factors Once destruction of brain tissue occurs from
Alzheimer disease, it is unlikely that treatment of the disease will reverse the
damage, at least based on the state of research now and in the foreseeable
future. Alzheimer disease involves a deficiency in the brain messenger
chemical acetylcholine, which plays an important role in memory (Kamal &
others, 2017; Karthivashan & others, 2018; Kumar & others, 2018). Also, as
Alzheimer disease progresses, the brain shrinks and deteriorates (see Figure
7). This deterioration is characterized by the formation of amyloid plaques
(dense deposits of protein that accumulate in the blood vessels) (Kocahan &
Dogan, 2017; Morbelli & Bauckneht, 2018) and neurofibrillary tangles
(twisted fibers that build up in neurons) (Villemagne & others, 2018; Xiao &
others, 2017). Neurofibrillary tangles consist mainly of a protein called tau
(Islam & others, 2017; Kuznetsov & Kuznetsov, 2018). Currently, there is
considerable research interest in the roles that amyloid and tau play in
Alzheimer disease (Di Domenico & others, 2018; Michalicova & others,
2017; Park & Festini, 2018; Timmers & others, 2018).
Figure 7 Two Brains: Normal Aging and Alzheimer Disease
The photograph on the left shows a slice of a normal aging brain, while the photograph on
the right shows a slice of a brain ravaged by Alzheimer disease. Notice the deterioration
and shrinking in the Alzheimer disease brain.
©Alfred Pasieka/Science Source
Until recently, neuroimaging of plaques and tangles had not been
developed. However, new neuroimaging techniques have been developed that
can detect these key indicators of Alzheimer disease in the brain (Park &
Festini, 2018). This imaging breakthrough is providing scientists with an
improved opportunity to identify the transition from healthy cognitive
functioning to the earliest indication of Alzheimer disease (Morbelli &
Baucknecht, 2018).
Page 405
There is increasing interest in the role that oxidative stress
might play in Alzheimer disease (Butterfield, 2018; D’Acunto
& others, 2018; Mantzavinosa & others, 2017). Oxidative
stress occurs when the body fails to defend itself against free-radical attacks
and oxidation (Chhetri, King, & Gueven, 2018; Feltosa, 2018). Recall from
earlier in the chapter that free-radical theory is a major theory of aging.
Although scientists are not certain what causes Alzheimer disease, age is
an important risk factor and genes also are likely to play an important role
(Del-Aguila & others, 2018; Lane-Donovan & Herz, 2017). The number of
individuals with Alzheimer disease doubles for every five years after the age
of 65. A gene called apolipoprotein E (ApoE) is linked to an increasing
presence of plaques and tangles in the brain. Special attention has focused on
an allele (an alternative form of a gene) labeled ApoE4 that is a strong risk
factor for Alzheimer disease (Carmona, Hardy, & Guerreiro, 2018; Fladby &
others, 2017). More than 60 percent of individuals with Alzheimer disease
have at least one ApoE4 allele, and females are more likely to have this allele
than males (Dubal & Rogine, 2017). Indeed, the ApoE4 gene is the strongest
genetic predictor of late-onset (65 years and older) Alzheimer disease (Giri &
others, 2017). Despite links between the presence of the ApoE4 gene and
Alzheimer disease, less than 50 percent of individuals who carry the ApoE4
gene develop dementia in old age. Advances as a result of the Human
Genome Project have recently allowed identification of other genes that are
risk factors for Alzheimer disease, although they are not as strongly linked to
the disease as the ApoE4 gene is (Costa & others, 2017; Shi & others, 2017).
APP, PSEN1, and PSEN2 also are gene mutations that are linked to early-
onset Alzheimer disease (Carmona, Hardy, & Guerreiro, 2018).
Although individuals with a family history of Alzheimer disease are at
greater risk, the disease is complex and likely to be caused by a number of
factors, including lifestyles (Shackleton, Crawford, & Bachmeier, 2017).
Researchers are increasingly interested in exploring how epigenetics may
improve understanding of Alzheimer disease (Gangisetty, Cabrera, &
Murugan, 2018; Sharma, Raghuraman, & Sajikumar, 2018). A particular
focus is DNA methylation, which we discussed in the chapter on “Biological
Beginnings.” Recall that DNA methylation involves tiny atoms attaching
themselves to the outside of a gene, a process that is increased through
exercise and healthy diet but reduced by tobacco use (Marioni & others,
2018; Zaghlool & others, 2018). Thus, lifestyles likely interact with genes to
influence Alzheimer disease (Kader, Ghai, & Mahraj, 2018; Shackleton,
Crawford, & Bachmeier, 2017).
For many years, scientists have known that a healthy diet, exercise, and
weight control can lower the risk of cardiovascular disease. Now, they are
finding that these healthy lifestyle factors may lower the risk of Alzheimer
disease as well (Bleckwenn & others, 2017; Wolters & others, 2018).
Recently, a number of cardiac risk factors have been implicated in Alzheimer
disease—obesity, smoking, hypertension, arteriosclerosis, high cholesterol,
lipids, and permanent atrial fibrillation (Falsetti & others, 2018; Ihara &
Washida, 2018; Rodrique & Bischof, 2017). One of the best strategies for
intervening in the lives of people who are at risk for Alzheimer disease is to
improve their cardiac functioning through diet, drugs, and exercise (Law &
others, 2018; McLimans & others, 2017; Pedrinolla, Schena, & Venturelli,
2018).
A meta-analysis of modifiable risk factors in Alzheimer disease found
that some medical exposures (estrogen, statins, and nonsteroidal anti-
inflammatory drugs) and some dietary factors (folate, vitamin E/C, and
coffee) were linked to a reduced incidence of Alzheimer disease (Xu &
others, 2015). Also in this meta-analysis, some preexisting diseases
(arteriosclerosis and hypertension) as well as depression increased the risk of
developing Alzheimer disease. Further, cognitive activity and low-to-
moderate alcohol use decreased the risk of developing Alzheimer disease.
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you respond to an
older adult who is
concerned that her
declining short-term
memory is an early
symptom of Alzheimer
disease?
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Mild Cognitive Impairment Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) represents a
transitional state between the cognitive changes of normal aging and very
early Alzheimer disease and other dementias (Cespedes & others, 2017;
Gasquoine, 2018). MCI is increasingly recognized as a risk factor for
Alzheimer disease. Estimates indicate that as many as 10 to 20 percent of
individuals age 65 and older have MCI (Alzheimer’s Association,
2017). Some individuals with MCI do not go on to develop
Alzheimer disease, but MCI is a risk factor for Alzheimer disease.
One study revealed that individuals with mild cognitive impairment who
developed Alzheimer disease had at least one copy of the ApoE4 gene
(Alegret & others, 2014). In this study, the extent of memory impairment was
the key factor that was linked to the speed of decline from mild cognitive
impairment to Alzheimer disease. Distinguishing between individuals who
merely have age-associated declines in memory and those with MCI is
difficult, as is predicting which individuals with MCI will subsequently
develop Alzheimer disease (Eliassen & others, 2017; Mendoza Laiz & others,
2018).
Drug Treatment of Alzheimer Disease Five drugs have been approved
by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of
Alzheimer disease (Almeida, 2018). Three of the medications, Aricept
(donepezil), Razadyne (galantamine), and Exelon (rivastigmine), are
cholinesterase inhibitors designed to improve memory and other cognitive
functions by increasing levels of acetylcholine in the brain (Gareri & others,
2017). A fourth drug, Namenda (memantine), regulates the activity of
glutamate, which is involved in processing information. Namzatric, a
combination of memantine and donepezil, is the fifth approved medicine to
treat Alzheimer disease; this medicine is designed to improve cognition and
overall mental ability (Almeida, 2018). A research review concluded that
cholinesterase inhibitors do not reduce progression to dementia from mild
cognitive impairment (Masoodi, 2013). Also, keep in mind that the current
drugs used to treat Alzheimer disease only slow the downward progression of
the disease; they do not address its cause (Boccardi & others, 2017). Also, no
drugs have yet been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
for the treatment of MCI (Alzheimer’s Association, 2018).
Caring for Individuals with Alzheimer Disease A special concern is
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caring for Alzheimer patients (Alzheimer’s Association, 2018; Callahan &
others, 2017; Merlo & others, 2018; Wolff & others, 2018). Health-care
professionals believe that the family can be an important support system for
the Alzheimer patient, but this support can have costs for family members,
who can become emotionally and physically drained by the extensive care
required for a person with Alzheimer disease (Wawrziczny & others, 2017;
White & others, 2018). A recent study confirmed that family caregivers’
health-related quality of life in the first three years after they began caring for
a family member with Alzheimer disease deteriorated more than that of their
counterparts of the same age and gender who were not caring for an
Alzheimer patient (Valimaki & others, 2016). Another study compared
family members’ perceptions of caring for someone with Alzheimer disease,
cancer, or schizophrenia (Papastavrou & others, 2012). In this study, the
highest perceived burden was reported for Alzheimer disease.
Respite care (services that provide temporary relief to those who are
caring for individuals with disabilities, illnesses, or the elderly) has been
developed to help people who have to meet the day-to-day needs of
Alzheimer patients. This type of care provides much-needed breaks from the
burden of providing chronic care (Washington & Tachman, 2017; Wolff &
others, 2018).
Parkinson Disease
Another type of dementia is Parkinson disease, a chronic, progressive
disorder characterized by muscle tremors, slowing of movement, and partial
facial paralysis. Parkinson disease is triggered by degeneration of dopamine-
producing neurons in the brain (Chung & others, 2018; Goldstein & others,
2018; Rastedt, Vaughan, & Foster, 2017). Dopamine is a neurotransmitter
that is necessary for normal brain functioning. Why these neurons degenerate
is not known.
The main treatment for Parkinson disease involves administering drugs
that enhance the effect of dopamine (dopamine agonists) in the disease’s
earlier stages and later administering the drug L-dopa, which is converted by
the brain into dopamine (Juhasz & others, 2017; Radhakrishnan & Goval,
2018). However, it is difficult to determine the correct level of
dosage of L-dopa, and the medication loses its efficacy over
time (Nomoto & others, 2009). Another treatment for advanced Parkinson
disease is deep brain stimulation (DBS), which involves implantation of
electrodes within the brain (Krishnan & others, 2018; Singh & others, 2018;
Stefani & others, 2017). The electrodes are then stimulated by a pacemaker-
like device. Stem cell transplantation and gene therapy also offer hope for
treating Parkinson disease (Choi & others, 2017; Parmar, 2018).
Summary
Longevity, Biological Aging, and Physical Development
Life expectancy has increased dramatically, but life span has not. In the
United States, the number of people living to age 100 or older is
increasing.
Biological theories of aging include evolutionary theory, cellular clock
theory, free-radical theory, mitochondrial theory, sirtuin theory, the
mTOR pathway theory, and hormonal stress theory.
The aging brain retains considerable plasticity and adaptability.
Among physical changes that accompany aging are slower movement and
the appearance of wrinkled skin and age spots on the skin. There are also
declines in perceptual abilities, cardiovascular functioning, and lung
capacity. Many older adults’ sleep difficulties are linked to health
problems.
Although sexual activity declines in late adulthood, many individuals
continue to be sexually active as long as they are healthy.
Health
The probability of disease or illness increases with age. Chronic
disorders, such as arthritis and osteoporosis, become more common in
late adulthood. Cancer and cardiovascular disease are the leading causes
of death in late adulthood.
The physical benefits of exercise have been clearly demonstrated in older
adults. Leaner adults, especially women, live longer, healthier lives.
The quality of nursing homes varies enormously. Alternatives include
home health care, elder-care centers, and preventive medicine clinics.
Cognitive Functioning
Although older adults are not as adept as middle-aged and younger adults
at complicated tasks that involve selective and divided attention, they
perform just as well on measures of sustained attention. Some aspects of
memory, such as episodic memory, decline in older adults. Components
of executive function—such as cognitive control and working memory—
decline in late adulthood, although there is individual variation in older
adults’ executive function. Wisdom has been theorized to increase in
older adults, but researchers have not consistently documented this
increase.
Older adults who engage in cognitive activities, especially challenging
ones, have higher cognitive functioning than those who don’t use their
cognitive skills.
Cognitive and fitness training can improve some cognitive skills of older
adults, but there is some loss of plasticity in late adulthood.
There is considerable interest in the cognitive neuroscience of aging. A
consistent finding is a decline in the functioning of the prefrontal cortex
in late adulthood, which is linked to poorer performance in complex
reasoning and aspects of memory.
Work and Retirement
Increasing numbers of older adults engage in part-time work or volunteer
work and continue being productive throughout late adulthood.
Healthy, economically stable, educated, satisfied individuals with an
extended social network adjust best to retirement.
Mental Health
Individuals with dementias, such as Alzheimer disease, often lose the
ability to care for themselves. Alzheimer disease is by far the most
common dementia.
Parkinson disease is a chronic, progressive disease characterized by
muscle tremors, slowing of movement, and facial tremors.
Key Terms
Alzheimer disease
arthritis
cataracts
cellular clock theory
dementia
episodic memory
evolutionary theory of aging
explicit memory
free-radical theory
glaucoma
hormonal stress theory
implicit memory
life expectancy
life span
macular degeneration
mitochondrial theory
mTOR pathway
osteoporosis
Parkinson disease
semantic memory
sirtuins
wisdom
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©Blend Images/Ariel Skelley/Getty Images
16
Socioemotional
Development in Late
Adulthood
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Theories of Socioemotional Development
Erikson’s Theory
Activity Theory
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory
Selective Optimization with Compensation Theory
Personality and Society
Personality
Older Adults in Society
Families and Social Relationships
Lifestyle Diversity
Attachment
Older Adult Parents and Their Adult Children
Friendship
Social Support and Social Integration
Altruism and Volunteerism
Ethnicity, Gender, and Culture
Ethnicity
Gender
Culture
Successful Aging
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Bob Cousy, Adapting to Life as an
Older Adult
Bob Cousy was a star player on Boston Celtics teams that won
numerous National Basketball Association championships. In
recognition of his athletic accomplishments, Cousy was honored
by ESPN as one of the top 100 athletes of the twentieth century.
After he retired from basketball, he became a college basketball
coach and then into his seventies was a broadcaster of Boston
Celtics basketball games. Now in his eighties, Cousy has retired
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from broadcasting but continues to play golf and tennis on a
regular basis. He has enjoyed a number of positive social
relationships, including his marriage, children and grandchildren,
and many friends. In 2013, after 63 years of marriage, Cousy said a
last goodbye to his wife, who had dementia and died. After she
developed dementia, he cared for her in their home on a daily basis
as she slowly succumbed to the deterioration of her mind and
body. Since her death, when he goes to bed each night, he tells her
he loves her (Williamson, 2013).
As is the case with many famous people, Cousy’s awards
reveal little about his personal life and contributions. In addition to
his extensive provision of care for his wife in her last years, two
other examples illustrate his humanitarian efforts to help others
(McClellan, 2004). First, when Cousy played for the Boston
Celtics, his African American teammate, Chuck Cooper, was
refused a hotel room on a road trip because of his
race. Cousy expressed anger to his coach about the
situation and then accompanied an appreciative
Cooper on a train back to Boston. Second, the Bob Cousy
Humanitarian Fund “honors individuals who have given their lives
to using the game of basketball as a medium to help others” (p. 4).
The Humanitarian Fund reflects Cousy’s motivation to care for
others, be appreciative and give something back, and make the
world less self-centered.
Bob Cousy’s active, involved life as an older adult reflects
some of the themes of socioemotional development in older adults,
including the important role that being active plays in life
satisfaction, how people adapt to changing skills, and the positive
role of close relationships with friends and family in an
emotionally fulfilling life. Our coverage of socioemotional
development in late adulthood describes a number of theories
about the socioemotional lives of older adults; the older adult’s
personality and roles in society; the importance of family ties and
social relationships; the social contexts of ethnicity, gender, and
culture; and the increasing attention on elements of successful
aging.■
Bob Cousy, as a Boston Celtics star when he was a young adult (left) and as
an older adult (right). What are some changes he has made in his life as an
older adult?(Left ) ©Hulton Archive/Getty Images; (right ) ©Charles
Krupa/AP Image
Theories of Socioemotional
Development
In this section, we explore four main theories of socioemotional development
that focus on late adulthood: Erikson’s theory, activity theory, socioemotional
selectivity theory, and selective optimization with compensation theory.
Erikson’s Theory
Earlier we described Erik Erikson’s (1968) eight stages of the human life
span and, as we explored different periods of development, we examined the
stages in more detail. Integrity versus despair is Erikson’s eighth and final
stage of development, which individuals experience during late adulthood.
This stage involves reflecting on the past and either piecing together a
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positive review or concluding that one’s life has not been well spent. Through
many different routes, the older adult may have developed a positive outlook
in each of the preceding periods. If so, retrospective glances and
reminiscences will reveal a picture of a life well spent, and the older adult
will be satisfied (integrity). But if the older adult resolved one or more of the
earlier stages in a negative way (being socially isolated in early adulthood or
stagnating in middle adulthood, for example), retrospective glances about the
total worth of his or her life might be negative (despair).
What characterizes a life review in late adulthood?
©PeopleImages/Getty Images
Life review is prominent in this final stage. It involves looking back at
one’s life experiences and evaluating, interpreting, and often reinterpreting
them (Hitchcock & others, 2017; Zhang & Ho, 2017). Distinguished aging
researcher Robert Butler (2007) argues that the life review is set in motion by
looking forward to death. Sometimes the life review proceeds quietly; at
other times it is intense, requiring considerable work to achieve some sense
of personality integration. The life review may be observed
initially in stray and insignificant thoughts about oneself and
one’s life history. These thoughts may continue to emerge in
brief intermittent spurts or become essentially continuous.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you explain to an
older adult the benefits
of engaging in a life
review?
One aspect of life review involves identifying and reflecting on not only
the positive aspects of one’s life but also regrets as part of developing a
mature wisdom and self-understanding (Korte & others, 2014; Randall,
2013). The hope is that by examining both positive experiences and things an
individual regrets doing, a more accurate vision of the complexity of one’s
life and possibly increased life satisfaction will be attained (King & Hicks,
2007).
Although thinking about regrets can be helpful as part of a life review,
research indicates that older adults should not dwell on regrets, especially
since opportunities to undo regrettable actions decline with age (Suri &
Gross, 2012). One study revealed that an important factor in the outlook of
older adults who showed a higher level of emotion regulation and successful
aging was reduced responsiveness to regrets (Brassen & others, 2012).
In working with older clients, some clinicians use reminiscence therapy,
which involves discussing past activities and experiences with another
individual or group (Woods & others, 2018; Wu & others, 2018). Therapy
may include the use of photographs, familiar items, and video/audio
recordings. Reminiscence therapy can improve the mood and quality of life
of older adults, including those with dementia (Han & others, 2017; Siverova
& Buzgova, 2018; Yen & Lin, 2018). In a study with older adults who had
dementia, reminiscence therapy reduced their depressive symptoms and
improved their self-acceptance and positive relations with others (Gonzalez
& others, 2015). Another recent study found that a reminiscence intervention
improved the coping skills of older adults (Satorres & others, 2018). Further,
in a version of reminiscence therapy, attachment-focused reminiscence
therapy reduced depressive symptoms, perceived stress, and emergency room
visits in older African Americans (Sabir & others, 2016).
Activity Theory
Activity theory states that the more active and involved older adults are, the
more likely they are to be satisfied with their lives. Researchers have found
that when older adults are active, energetic, and productive, they age more
successfully and are happier than they are if they disengage from society
(Antonucci & Webster, 2019; Duggal & others, 2018; Strandberg, 2019;
Walker, 2019). A recent study found that older adults who increased their
leisure-time activity levels were three times more likely to have a slower
progression to having a functional disability (Chen & others, 2016). Also, a
study of Canadian older adults revealed that those who were more physically
active had higher life satisfaction and greater social interaction than their
physically inactive counterparts (Azagba & Sharaf, 2014). And a recent study
indicated that an activity-based lifestyle was linked to lower levels of
depression in older adults (Juang & others, 2018).
Should adults stay active or become more disengaged as they become older? Explain.
©Chuck Savage/Getty Images
Activity theory suggests that many individuals will achieve greater life
satisfaction if they continue their middle-adulthood roles into late adulthood
(Walker, 2019). If these roles are stripped from them (as in early retirement),
Page 411
it is important for them to find substitute roles that keep them active and
involved.
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory
Socioemotional selectivity theory states that older adults become more
selective about their social networks. Because they place a high value on
emotional satisfaction, older adults spend more time with familiar individuals
with whom they have had rewarding relationships. Developed by
Laura Carstensen (1998, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2014, 2015;
Carstensen & DeLiema, 2018; Carstensen & others, 2015), this
theory argues that older adults deliberately withdraw from social contact with
individuals peripheral to their lives while they maintain or increase contact
with close friends and family members with whom they have had enjoyable
relationships. This selective narrowing of social interaction maximizes
positive emotional experiences and minimizes emotional risks as individuals
become older. The fact that older adults have a decreasing number of years to
live likely increases their emphasis on prioritizing meaningful relationships
(Moss & Wilson, 2018).
Socioemotional selectivity theory challenges the stereotype that the
majority of older adults are in emotional despair because of their social
isolation (Carstensen, 2014, 2015; Carstensen & others, 2015). Rather, older
adults consciously choose to decrease the total number of their social contacts
in favor of spending increased time in emotionally rewarding moments with
friends and family. That is, they systematically prune their social networks so
that available social partners satisfy their emotional needs (Carstensen &
others, 2015; Sims, Hogan, & Carstensen, 2015). Not surprisingly, older
adults have far smaller social networks than younger adults do (Carstensen &
Fried, 2012). In a study of individuals from 18 to 94 years of age, as they
grew older they had fewer peripheral social contacts but retained close
relationships with people who provided them with emotional support
(English & Carstensen, 2014).
Laura Carstensen (right), in a caring relationship with an older woman. Her theory of
socioemotional selectivity is gaining recognition as an explanation for changes in social
networks as people age.
Courtesy of Dr. Laura Carstensen
However, when the Stanford Center on Longevity conducted a recent
large-scale examination of healthy living in different age groups called the
Sightlines Project, social engagement with individuals and communities
appeared to be weaker today than it was 15 years ago for 55- to 64-year-olds
(Parker, 2016). Many of these individuals, who are about to reach retirement
age, had weaker relationships with spouses, partners, family, friends, and
neighbors than their counterparts of 15 years ago. The Sightlines Project
(2016) recommends implementing the following strategies to increase the
social engagement of older adults: employer wellness programs that
strengthen support networks, environmental design that improves
neighborhood and community life, technologies that improve personal
relationships, and opportunities for volunteerism.
Socioemotional selectivity theory also focuses on the types of goals that
individuals are motivated to achieve (Sims, Hogan, & Carstensen, 2015).
Two important classes of goals are (1) knowledge-related and (2) emotion-
related. The trajectory of motivation for knowledge-related goals starts
relatively high in the early years of life, peaks in adolescence and early
adulthood, and then declines in middle and late adulthood. The emotion-
related trajectory is high during infancy and early childhood, declines from
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middle childhood through early adulthood, and increases in middle and late
adulthood. In a recent commentary, Laura Carstensen (2016) noted that when
older adults focus on emotionally meaningful goals, they are more satisfied
with their lives, feel better, and experience fewer negative emotions.
In general, compared with younger adults, the feelings of older adults
mellow. Emotional life is on a more even keel, with fewer highs and lows. It
may be that although older adults have less extreme joy, they have more
contentment, especially when they are connected in positive ways with
friends and family. Older adults react less strongly to negative circumstances,
are better at ignoring irrelevant negative information, and remember more
positive than negative information (Mather, 2012; Paul, 2019). And in a
recent study, older adults reacted with less anger about a personal memory
than younger adults did (Kunzmann & others, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you assess
whether an older adult’s
limited social contacts
signal unhealthy social
isolation or healthy
socioemotional
selectivity?
In other research, positive emotions increased and negative emotions
(except for sadness) decreased from 50 years of age through the mid-eighties
(Stone & others, 2010). In this study, older adults reported experiencing more
positive emotions than younger adults did. Other research also indicates that
happier people live longer (Frey, 2011). Also, in a recent meta-analysis of 72
studies of more than 19,000 individuals in 19 countries, it was concluded that
emotional experiences are more positive in late adulthood
than in early adulthood (Laureiro-Martinez, Trujillo, & Unda,
2017). Also, in this review, it was concluded that older adults
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focus less on negative events in their past than younger adults do. In sum, the
emotional life of older adults is more positive and less negative than
stereotypes suggest (Carstensen, 2016; Sims, Hogan, & Carstensen, 2015).
Selective Optimization with Compensation Theory
Selective optimization with compensation theory states that successful
aging is linked with three main factors: selection, optimization, and
compensation (SOC). The theory describes how people can produce new
resources and allocate them effectively to the tasks they want to master
(Alonso-Fernandez & others, 2016; Baltes, Lindenberger, & Staudinger,
2006; Freund & Hennecke, 2015; Freund, Nikitin, & Riediger, 2013; Nikitin
& Freund, 2019). Selection is based on the concept that older adults have a
reduced capacity and loss of functioning, which require a reduction in
performance in most life domains. Optimization suggests that it is possible to
maintain performance in some areas through continued practice and the use
of new technologies. Compensation becomes relevant when life tasks require
a level of capacity beyond the current level of the older adult’s performance
potential. In a recent study of individuals from 22 to 94 years of age, on days
when middle-aged and older adults, as well as individuals who were less
healthy, used more selective optimization with compensation strategies, they
reported a higher level of happiness (Teshale & Lachman, 2016).
Older adults especially need to compensate in circumstances involving
high mental or physical demands, such as when thinking about and
memorizing new material in a very short period of time, reacting quickly
when driving a car, or playing a competitive game of tennis. When older
adults develop an illness, the need for compensation is obvious.
In the view of Paul Baltes and his colleagues (2006), the selection of
domains and life priorities is an important aspect of development. Life goals
and personal life investments likely vary across the life course for most
people. For many individuals, it is not just the sheer attainment of goals, but
rather the attainment of meaningful goals, that makes life satisfying. In one
cross-sectional study, the personal life investments of 25- to 105-year-olds
were assessed (Staudinger, 1996) (see Figure 1). From 25 to 34 years of age,
participants said that they personally invested more time in
work, friends, family, and independence, in that order. From
35 to 54 and 55 to 65 years of age, family became more important than
friends in terms of their personal investment. Little changed in the rank
ordering of persons 70 to 84 years old, but for participants 85 to 105 years
old, health became the most important personal investment. Thinking about
life showed up for the first time on the most important list for those who were
85 to 105 years old.
Figure 1 Degree of Personal Life Investment at Different Points in Life
Shown here are the top four domains of personal life investment at different points in life.
The highest degree of investment is listed at the top (for example, work was the highest
personal investment from 25 to 34 years of age, family from 35 to 84, and health from 85
to 105).Left to right: ©Ryan McVay/Getty Images; ©image100/PunchStock;
©Image Source/Getty Images; ©Fuse/Getty Images; ©Image Source/Getty
Images
Personality and Society
Is personality linked to mortality in older adults? How are older adults
perceived and treated by society?
Personality
In the chapter on “Socioemotional Development in Middle Adulthood,” we
described the Big Five factors of personality: openness to experience,
conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. (Recall that
combining the first letter of each factor creates the word OCEAN.) Several of
the Big Five factors of personality continue to change in late adulthood
(Graham & others, 2017; Hill & Roberts, 2016; Hampson & Edmonds, 2018;
Roberts & others, 2017). For example, in one study, older adults were more
conscientious and agreeable than middle-aged and younger adults (Allemand,
Zimprich, & Hendriks, 2008). Another study examined developmental
changes in the components of conscientiousness (Jackson & others, 2009). In
this study, the transition into late adulthood was characterized by increases in
the following aspects of conscientiousness: impulse control, reliability, and
conventionality.
Conscientiousness is associated with a number of other positive outcomes
for older adults. For example, older adults with a higher level of
conscientiousness experience less cognitive decline as they age (Luchetti &
others, 2016). Also, in older adults, higher levels of conscientiousness,
openness to experience, agreeableness, and extraversion were linked to
positive emotions, while neuroticism was associated with negative emotions
(Kahlbaugh & Huffman, 2017).
Some personality traits are associated with the mortality of older adults
(Hill & Roberts, 2016; Roberts & others, 2017). Having a higher level of
conscientiousness has been linked to living a longer life than the other four
factors (Jackson & Roberts, 2016; Graham & others, 2017; Roberts &
Damian, 2018). Also, individuals who are extraverted live longer, as do
individuals who are low on neuroticism (Graham & others, 2017). Affect and
outlook on life are linked to mortality in older adults (Carstensen, 2014,
2015; Carstensen & others, 2015). Older adults characterized by negative
affect don’t live as long as those who display more positive affect, and
optimistic older adults who have a positive outlook on life live longer than
their pessimistic and negative counterparts (Kolokotroni, Anagnostopoulos &
Hantzi, 2018; Reed & Carstensen, 2015).
Older Adults in Society
Does society negatively stereotype older adults? What are some social policy
issues in an aging society? What role does technology play in the lives of
older adults?
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Stereotyping of Older Adults
Social participation by older adults is often discouraged by ageism, which is
prejudice against others because of their age, especially prejudice against
older adults (Avalon, 2018; Avalon & Tesch-Romer, 2017; Gendron, Inker,
& Welleford, 2018; Harris & others, 2018; Lytle, Levy, & Meeks, 2018).
They are often perceived as incapable of thinking clearly, learning new
things, enjoying sex, contributing to the community, or holding responsible
jobs. Many older adults face painful discrimination and might be too polite
and timid to attack it. Because of their age, older adults might not
be hired for new jobs or might be eased out of old ones; they
might be shunned socially; and they might be edged out of their
family life.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you design a
public awareness
campaign to reduce
ageism?
Ageism is widespread (de Leo, 2018; O’Connor & Kelson, 2018; Sao
Jose & Amado, 2017; Sargent-Cox, 2017; Wilson & Roscigno, 2018). One
study found that men were more likely to negatively stereotype older adults
than were women (Rupp, Vodanovich, & Crede, 2005). The most frequent
form of ageism is disrespect for older adults, followed by assumptions about
ailments or frailty caused by age (Palmore, 2004). Also, a recent study in 29
European countries examined age discrimination among individuals from 15
to 115 years of age (Bratt & others, 2018). In this study, younger individuals
showed more age discrimination toward older adults than did older
individuals.
Policy Issues in an Aging Society
The aging society and older persons’ status in this society raise policy issues
about the well-being of older adults (Fernandez-Ballesteros, 2019; Mendoza-
Nunez & de la Luz Martinez-Maldonado, 2019; Moon, 2016). These include
the status of the economy and income, provision of health care, and eldercare,
each of which we consider in turn.
Status of the Economy and Income Many older adults are concerned
about their ability to have enough money to live a comfortable life as older
adults (Cahill, Giandrea, & Quinn, 2016). An important issue is whether our
economy can bear the burden of so many older persons, who by reason of
their age alone are usually consumers rather than producers. Especially
troublesome is the low rate of savings among U.S. adults, which has
contributed to the financial problems of some older adults since the recent
economic downturn (Topa, Lunceford, & Boyatzis, 2018; Williamson &
Beland, 2016). Surveys indicate that Americans’ confidence in their ability to
retire comfortably has reached all-time lows in recent years (Helman,
Copeland, & VanDerhei, 2012).
Of special concern are older adults who are poor (Domenech-Abella &
others, 2018; George & Ferraro, 2016). One study found that cognitive
processing speed was slower in older adults living in poverty (Zhang &
others, 2015). Researchers also have found that poverty in late adulthood is
linked to an increase in physical and mental health problems (Domenech-
Abella & others, 2018; George & Ferraro, 2016). Also, one study revealed
that low SES increases the risk of earlier death in older adults (Krueger &
Chang, 2008).
Census data suggest that the overall number of older people living in
poverty has declined since the 1960s, but in 2016, 9.3 percent of older adults
in the United States still were living in poverty (U.S. Census Bureau, 2018).
In 2016, U.S. women 65 years and older (10.6 percent) were much more
likely to live in poverty than their male counterparts (7.6 percent) (U.S.
Census Bureau, 2018). Nineteen percent of single, divorced, or widowed
women 65 years and older lived in poverty. There is a special concern about
poverty among older women and considerable discussion about the role of
Social Security in providing a broad economic safety net for them (Couch &
others, 2017).
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Poverty rates among older adults who belong to ethnic minorities are
much higher than the rate for non-Latino Whites. In 2015, 24.1 percent of
African American older adults and 21.1 percent of Latino older adults lived
in poverty, compared with 11.6 percent of non-Latino Whites (U.S. Census
Bureau, 2016).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you recommend
addressing the medical
community’s emphasis
on “cure” rather than
“care” when treating
chronic illness in older
adults?
Health Care An aging society also brings with it various problems
involving health care, especially those involving chronic diseases (Onder &
others, 2018; Papanicolas, Wolski, & Jha, 2018), including escalating costs
(Bail & others, 2018; Hudson, 2016; Roohan, 2018). Approximately one-
third of total health-care expenses in the United States involve the care of
adults 65 and over, who comprise only 12 percent of the population.
Medicare is the program that provides health-care insurance to adults over 65
under the Social Security system (Trivedi, 2016). Until the Affordable Care
Act was enacted, the United States was the only developed
country that did not have a national health care system.
Are older adults keeping up with changes in technology?
©Paul Sutherland/Getty Images
Technology The Internet plays an increasingly important role in providing
access to information and communication for adults as well as youth (Gavett
& others, 2017; Gillain & others, 2019; Ware & others, 2017). In 2016, 67
percent of U.S. adults 65 and over used the Internet, up from 59 percent in
2013 and 14 percent in 2000 (Anderson, 2017). Among the general U.S.
population, 90 percent are Internet users. Younger seniors use the Internet
more than older seniors do (82 percent of 65- to 69-year-olds, compared with
44 percent of people 80 and older. Increasing numbers of older adults use e-
mail and smartphones to communicate, especially with friends and relatives
(Gillain & others, 2019). In 2016, approximately 40 percent of U.S. adults 65
and over were smartphone users, up 24 percent from 2013 (Anderson, 2017).
In this survey, 59 percent of 65- to 69-year-olds but only 17 percent of people
80 and over used smartphones. Lower-SES older adults use smartphones and
the Internet much less than middle- and upper-SES older adults do.
Older adults also are using social media more today than in the past. In
2016, 34 percent of U.S. adults 65 and over reported using social networking
sites like Facebook and Twitter, 7 percent higher than in 2013 (Anderson,
2017).
A recent study in Hong Kong found that adults 75 and older who used
smartphones and the Internet to connect with family, friends, and neighbors
had a higher level of psychological well-being than their counterparts who
did not use this information and communicative technology (Fang & others,
2018). Also, as with children and younger adults, cautions about verifying the
accuracy of information—especially on topics involving health care—on the
Internet should always be kept in mind (Miller & Bell, 2012).
Although computers, smartphones, and the Internet are now playing more
important roles in the lives of people of all ages, people continue to watch
extensive amounts of television, especially in late adulthood. In a 2016
Nielsen survey, adults age 65 and older watched television an average of 51
hours, 32 minutes per week (Recode, 2016). That 51+ hours per week is far
more than any other age group—25 to 34 years (23 hrs, 26 min), 35 to 49
years (32 hrs, 7 min), and 50 to 64 years (44 min, 6 sec). The staggering
number of hours older adults watch television each week raises concerns
about how such lengthy sedentary behavior might interfere with engaging in
adequate amounts of physical exercise and social activities, which are linked
to healthy development.
Families and Social Relationships
Are the close relationships of older adults different from those of younger
adults? What are the lifestyles of older adults like? What characterizes the
relationships of older adult parents and their adult children? What benefits do
friendships and social networks contribute to the lives of older adults? How
might older adults’ altruism and volunteerism contribute to positive
outcomes?
Lifestyle Diversity
The lifestyles of older adults are changing. Formerly, the later years of life
were likely to consist of marriage for men and widowhood for women. With
demographic shifts toward marital dissolution characterized by divorce, one-
third of adults can now expect to marry, divorce, and remarry during their
lifetime.
Married Older Adults
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In 2016, 57.8 percent of U.S. adults over 65 years of age were married (U.S.
Census Bureau, 2017). Older men were far more likely to be married than
older women. In 2016, 24 percent of U.S. adults over 65 years of age were
widowed (U.S. Census Bureau, 2017). There were more than four
times as many widows as widowers.
Individuals who are in a marriage or a partnership in late
adulthood are usually happier, feel less distressed, and live longer than those
who are single (Blieszner, 2018). A longitudinal study of adults 75 years of
age and older revealed that individuals who were married were less likely to
die during a seven-year time span (Rasulo, Christensen, & Tomassini, 2005).
What are some adaptations that many married older adults need to make?
©Thinkstock/Getty Images
In late adulthood, married individuals are more likely to find themselves
having to care for a sick partner with a limiting health condition (Blieszner &
Ogletree, 2017, 2018; Monin & others, 2018). The stress of caring for a
spouse who has a chronic disease can place demands on intimacy (Polenick
& DePasquale, 2018).
How might marriage affect the health and well-being of LGBT older
adults? In a recent study, 24 percent of LGBT individuals 50 years and older,
24 percent were legally married, 26 percent unmarried and partnered, and 50
percent single (Goldsen & others, 2017). In this study, couples who were
legally married reported having a better quality of life and more economic
and social resources than unmarried couples. And those who were single
reported having poorer health and fewer resources than legally married or
unmarried couples.
Divorced and Remarried Older Adults
An increasing number of older adults are divorced (Lin & others, 2018;
Suitor, Gilligan, & Pillemer, 2016). In a recent comparison, in 1980, 3
percent of women 65 years and older were divorced but that rate increased to
13 percent in 2015; for men, in 1980 4 percent of those 65 and older were
divorced but that rate increased to 11 percent in 2015 (U.S. Census Bureau,
2017). Many of these individuals were divorced or separated before they
entered late adulthood.
The majority of divorced older adults are women due to their greater
longevity, and men are more likely to remarry, thus removing themselves
from the pool of divorced older adults (Peek, 2009). Divorce is far less
common among older adults than younger adults, likely reflecting cohort
effects rather than age effects since divorce was somewhat rare when current
cohorts of older adults were young (Peek, 2009).
In a recent study, many of the same factors traditionally associated with
divorce in younger adults were also likely to occur in older adults (Lin &
others, 2018). The longer older adults had been married, the more likely they
were to have better marital quality, own a home, and be wealthy, and the less
likely they were to become divorced. Another recent study found that
partnered older adults were more likely to receive relatively high Social
Security benefits and less likely to live in poverty (Lin, Brown, &
Hammersmith, 2017).
In sum, there are social, financial, and physical consequences of divorce
for older adults (Butrica & Smith, 2012). Divorce can weaken kinship ties
when it occurs in later life, especially in the case of older men. Divorced
older women are less likely to have adequate financial resources than married
older women, and divorce is linked to higher rates of health problems in older
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adults (Bennett, 2006).
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you assist older
adults in coping with the
unique challenges faced
by divorcées at this age?
Rising divorce rates, increased longevity, and better health have led to an
increase in remarriage by older adults (Ganong, Coleman, & Sanner, 2018;
Koren & others, 2016; Papernow, 2018). What happens when an older adult
wants to remarry or does remarry? Some older adults perceive negative social
pressure about their decision to remarry. These negative sanctions range from
raised eyebrows to rejection by adult children (Ganong & Coleman, 2018).
However, the majority of adult children support the decision of their older
adult parents to remarry.
Adult children can be personally affected by remarriage between older
adults. Researchers have found that remarried parents and stepparents
provide less support to adult stepchildren than do parents in first marriages
(Ganong, Coleman, & Sanner, 2018).
Cohabiting Older Adults
An increasing number of older adults cohabit (Wu, Schimmele, & Quellet,
2015). In 2016, cohabitation levels more than doubled for older men from
1990 (1.5 percent) to 2015 (3.8 percent) and increased for older women in the
same time frame from less than 1 percent to 2.6 percent (Brown & Wright,
2017). These percentages are expected to continue increasing in the next
decade. In many cases, the cohabiting is more for companionship than for
love. In other cases, such as when one partner faces the potential need for
expensive care, a couple may decide to maintain their assets separately and
thus not marry. One study found that older adults who cohabited had a more
positive, stable relationship than younger adults who cohabited, although
cohabiting older adults were less likely to have plans to marry their partner
than younger ones were (King & Scott, 2005). Other research also has
revealed that middle-aged and older adult cohabiting men and women
reported higher levels of depression than their married counterparts (Brown,
Bulanda, & Lee, 2005). And in a recent national study of older adults, among
men, cohabitors’ psychological well-being (lower levels of depression, stress,
and loneliness) fared similarly to married men and better than daters and the
unpartnered (Wright & Brown, 2017). In contrast, there were few differences
related to partnership status in the psychological well-being of women.
Attachment
Far less research has been conducted on how attachment affects aging adults
than on attachment in children, adolescents, and young adults (Freitas &
Rahioul, 2017; Homan, 2018). However, it has been found that older adults
have fewer attachment relationships than younger adults (Cicirelli, 2010).
Also, in a longitudinal study from 13 to 72 years of age, attachment anxiety
declined in middle-aged and older adults (Chopik, Edelstein, & Grimm,
2018). Attachment avoidance decreased in a linear fashion across the life
span. Being in a relationship was linked to lower attachment anxiety and
attachment avoidance across adulthood. And men were higher in attachment
avoidance throughout the life span.
Older Adult Parents and Their Adult Children
Approximately 80 percent of older adults have living children, many of
whom are middle-aged. About 10 percent of older adults have children who
are 65 years or older. Adult children are an important part of the aging
parent’s social network. Older adults with children have more contacts with
relatives than do those without children.
Increasingly, diversity characterizes older adult parents and their adult
children (Antonucci & others, 2016; Birditt & others, 2018; Huo & others,
2018a, b; Lowenstein, Katz, & Tur-Sanai, 2019; Sechrist & Fingerman,
2018). Divorce, cohabitation, and nonmarital childbearing are more common
in the history of older adults today than in the past.
Gender plays an important role in relationships involving older adult
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parents and their children (Antonucci & others, 2016). Adult daughters are
more likely than adult sons to be involved in the lives of aging parents. For
example, adult daughters are three times more likely than adult sons to give
parents assistance with daily living activities (Dwyer & Coward, 1991).
A valuable task that adult children can perform is to coordinate and
monitor services for an aging parent (or other relative) who becomes disabled
(Huo & others, 2018b). This might involve locating a nursing home and
monitoring its quality, procuring medical services, arranging public service
assistance, and handling finances. In some cases, adult children provide direct
assistance with activities of daily living such as eating, bathing, and dressing.
Even less severely impaired older adults may need help with shopping,
housework, transportation, home maintenance, and bill paying. Also, some
researchers have found that relationships between aging parents and their
children are usually characterized by ambivalence (Birditt & others, 2018;
Sechrist & Fingerman, 2018). For example, researchers have found that
middle-aged adults feel more positive about providing support for their
children than their aging parents (Birditt & others, 2018).
Friendship
In early adulthood, friendship networks expand as new social connections are
made away from home. In late adulthood, new friendships are less likely to
be forged, although some adults do seek out new friendships, especially
following the death of a spouse (Adams, Hahmann, & Blieszner, 2017;
Blieszner, & Ogletree, 2017, 2018). Aging expert Laura Carstensen (2006)
concluded that people choose close friends over new friends as they grow
older. And as long as they have several close people in their network, they
seem content, says Carstensen.
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you characterize
the importance of
friendships for older
adults?
In a recent study, compared with younger adults, older adults reported
fewer problems with friends, fewer negative friendship qualities, less
frequent contact with friends, and more positive friendship qualities with a
specific friend (Schlosnagle & Strough, 2017). In another study of married
older adults, women were more depressed than men if they did not have a
best friend, and women who did have a friend reported lower levels of
depression (Antonucci, Lansford, & Akiyama, 2001). Similarly, women who
did not have a best friend were less satisfied with life than women who did
have a best friend. And a longitudinal study of adults 75 years of age and
older revealed that individuals who maintained close ties with friends were
less likely to die across a seven-year age span (Rasulo, Christensen, &
Tomassini, 2005). These findings were stronger for women than for men.
Social Support and Social Integration
Social support and social integration play important roles in the physical and
mental health of older adults (Antonucci & Webster, 2019; Howard & others,
2017; Smith & others, 2018; Tkatch & others, 2017). In the social convoy
model of social relations, individuals go through life embedded in a personal
network of individuals to whom they give, and from whom they receive,
social support (Antonucci & others, 2016; Antonucci & Webster, 2019).
Social support can help individuals of all ages cope more effectively with
life’s challenges. For older adults, social support is related to their physical
health, mental health, and life satisfaction (Antonucci & other, 2016). For
example, a recent study found that a higher level of social support was
associated with older adults’ increased life satisfaction (Dumitrache, Rubio,
& Rubio-Herrera, 2017). Social support also decreases the probability that an
older adult will be institutionalized or become depressed (Heard & others,
2011). Further, one study revealed that older adults who experienced a higher
level of social support showed later cognitive decline than their counterparts
with a lower level of social support (Dickinson & others, 2011). In recent
Page 419
analyses, it was concluded that 80 percent of the supportive care for older
adults with some form of limitation was provided by family members or
other informal caregivers, which places an enormous burden on the caregiver
(Antonucci & others, 2016; Antonucci & Webster, 2019; Sherman, Webster,
& Antonucci, 2016).
Social integration also plays an important role in the lives of many older
adults (Antonucci & others, 2016; Antonucci & Webster, 2019; Hawkley &
Kocherginsky, 2018). Remember from our earlier discussion of
socioemotional selectivity theory that many older adults choose to have fewer
peripheral social contacts and more emotionally positive contacts with friends
and family (Carstensen & others, 2011). Thus, a decrease in the overall social
activity of many older adults may reflect their greater interest in spending
more time in a small circle of friends and family members where they are less
likely to have negative emotional experiences (Blieszner & Ogletree, 2017,
2018). And one study found that increased use of the Internet by older adults
was associated with having more opportunities to meet new people, feeling
less isolated, and feeling more connected with friends and family (Cotten,
Anderson, & McCullough, 2013).
Older adults tend to report being less lonely than younger adults and less
lonely than would be expected based on their circumstances (Schnittker,
2007). This likely reflects their more selective social networks and greater
acceptance of loneliness in their lives (Koropeckyj-Cox, 2009; Antonucci &
Webster, 2019). In a recent study, 18 percent of older adults stated they were
often or frequently lonely (Due, Sandholdt, & Waldorff,
2018). In this study, the most important predictors of feeling
lonely were anxiety and depressive symptoms, living alone,
and low social participation.
Altruism and Volunteerism
Are older adults more altruistic than younger adults? In one investigation,
older adults’ strategies were more likely to be aimed at contributing to the
public good while younger adults’ strategies were more likely to focus on
optimizing personal financial gain (Freund & Blanchard-Fields, 2014). Also,
a national survey found that 24 percent of U.S. adults 65 years and older
engaged in volunteering in 2015 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016). In
this survey, the highest percentage of volunteering occurred between 35 and
44 years of age (31.8 percent).
Ninety-eight-year-old volunteer Iva Broadus plays cards with 10-year-old DeAngela
Williams in Dallas, Texas. Iva was recognized as the oldest volunteer in the Big Sister
program in the United States. Iva says that card-playing helps to keep her memory and
thinking skills sharp and can help DeAngela’s as well.
©Dallas Morning News, photographer Jim Mahoney
A common perception is that older adults need to be given help rather
than give help themselves. However, one study found that older adults
perceived their well-being as better when they provided social support to
others than when they received it, except when social support was provided
by a spouse or sibling (Thomas, 2010). And a 12-year longitudinal study
revealed that older adults who had persistently low or declining feelings of
usefulness to others had an increased risk of earlier death (Gruenewald &
others, 2009).
Volunteering is associated with a number of positive outcomes for aging
adults (Carr, 2018; Guiney & Machado, 2018). Recent studies have found
that when aging adults volunteer they have better health (Burr & others,
2018; Carr, Kail, & Rowe, 2018), have better cognitive functioning (Proulx,
Curl, & Ermer, 2018), and are less lonely (Carr & others, 2018). And, in a
meta-analysis, older adults who engaged in organizational volunteering had a
lower mortality risk than those who did not (Okun, Yeung, & Brown, 2013).
How Would
You…?
As an educator, how
would you persuade the
school board to sponsor
a volunteer program to
bring older adults into
the school system to
work with elementary
students?
Why might volunteering be linked to these positive outcomes for aging
adults? Among the reasons for the positive outcomes of volunteering are
increased opportunities to engage in constructive physical, cognitive, and
social activities that convey meaning and purpose to one’s life. And such
benefits may spill over to other aspects of older adults’ lives (Carr, 2018). For
example, volunteering may lead to increased socializing with others outside
of the volunteering activity. This social engagement may help to reduce time
spent in sedentary activities such as watching television.
Ethnicity, Gender, and Culture
How is ethnicity linked to aging? Do gender roles change in late adulthood?
What are some of the social aspects of aging in different cultures?
Ethnicity
Ethnic minority older adults, especially African Americans and Latinos, are
overrepresented in poverty statistics (Antonucci & others, 2016).
Comparative information about African Americans, Latinos, and non-Latino
Whites indicates a possible double jeopardy for elderly ethnic minority
individuals who face problems related to both ageism and racism (Allen,
2016; McCluney & others, 2018). They also are more likely to have a history
Page 420
of less education, longer periods of unemployment, worse housing
conditions, and shorter life expectancies (Treas & Gubernskaya, 2016). In
recent analyses, non-Latino White men and women with 16 years or more of
schooling had a life expectancy that was 14 years higher than that of African
Americans with fewer than 12 years of education (Antonucci & others,
2016).
Careers in life-span development
Norma Thomas, Social Work Professor and
Administrator
Dr. Norma Thomas has worked for more than three decades in the
field of aging. She obtained her undergraduate degree in social work
from Pennsylvania State University and her doctoral degree in social
work from the University of Pennsylvania. Thomas’ activities are
varied. Earlier in her career when she was a social work practitioner,
she provided services to older adults of color in an effort to improve
their lives. She currently is a professor and academic administrator at
Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania, a fellow of the Institute
of Aging at the University of Pennsylvania, and the chief executive
officer and co-founder of the Center on Ethnic and Minority Aging
(CEMA). CEMA was formed to provide research, consultation,
training, and services to benefit aging individuals of color, their
families, and their communities. Thomas has created numerous
community service events that benefit older adults of color, especially
African Americans and Latinos. She has also been a consultant to
various national, regional, and state agencies in her effort to improve
the lives of aging adults of color.
Norma Thomas.
Courtesy of Dr. Norma Thomas
Despite the stress and discrimination older ethnic minority individuals
face, many of these older adults have developed coping mechanisms that
allow them to survive in the dominant non-Latino White world. Extension of
family networks helps older minority group individuals cope with the bare
essentials of living and gives them a sense of being loved. Churches in
African American and Latino communities provide avenues for meaningful
social participation, feelings of power, and a sense of internal satisfaction
(Hill & others, 2005). To read about one individual who is providing help for
aging minorities, see Careers in Life-Span Development.
Gender
Many older women face the burden of both ageism and sexism (Angel,
Mudrazija, & Benson, 2016) and also racism for female ethnic minorities
(Hinze, Lin, & Andersson, 2012). The poverty rate for older adult females is
almost double that of older adult males.
Culture
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Six factors are most likely to predict high status for older adults in a culture
(Sangree, 1989):
Cultures vary in the prestige they give to older adults. In the Navajo culture, older adults
are especially treated with respect because of their wisdom and extensive life experiences.
What are some other factors that are linked with respect for older adults in a culture?
©Alison Wright/Corbis/Getty Images
Older persons have valuable knowledge.
Older persons control key family/community resources.
Older persons are permitted to engage in useful and valued functions as
long as possible.
Age-related role changes involve greater responsibility, authority, and
advisory capacity.
The extended family is a common family arrangement in the culture, and
the older person is integrated into the extended family.
In general, respect for older adults is greater in collectivistic cultures
(such as China and Japan) than in individualistic cultures (such as the
United States). However, some researchers are finding that this
collectivistic/individualistic difference in respect for older adults is not as
strong as it used to be and that, in some cases, older adults in
individualistic cultures receive considerable respect (Antonucci,
Vandewater, & Lansford, 2000).
Successful Aging
As we have discussed aging, it should be apparent that there are large
individual differences in the patterns of change for older adults. The most
common pattern is normal aging, which characterizes most individuals
(Schaie, 2016). Their psychological functioning often peaks in early midlife,
plateaus until the late fifties to early sixties, then modestly declines through
the early eighties, although marked decline often occurs prior to death.
Another pattern involves pathological aging, which characterizes individuals
who in late adulthood show greater than average decline. These individuals
may have mild cognitive impairment in early old age, develop Alzheimer
disease later, or have chronic disease that impairs their daily functioning. A
third pattern of change in old age is successful aging, which characterizes
individuals whose physical, cognitive, and socioemotional development is
maintained longer than for most individuals and declines later than for most
people.
For too long successful aging has been ignored (Docking & Stock, 2018;
Fernandez-Ballesteros, 2019; Robine, 2019). Throughout this edition, we
have called attention to the positive aspects of aging. With a proper diet, an
active lifestyle, mental stimulation and flexibility, positive coping skills,
good social relationships and support, and the absence of disease, many
abilities can be maintained or in some cases even improved as we get older
(Amano, Park, & Morrow-Howell, 2018; Antonucci & Webster, 2019;
Caprara & Mendoza-Ruvalcaba, 2019; Loprinzi & Crush, 2018; Marquez-
Gonzalez, Cheng, & Losada, 2019; Strandberg, 2019). Even when
individuals develop a disease, improvements in medicine and lifestyle
modifications mean that increasing numbers of older adults can continue to
lead active, constructive lives (Batis & Zagaria, 2018; Orkaby & others,
2018; Santacreu, Rodriguez, & Molina, 2019). A Canadian study found that
the predicted self-rated probability of aging successfully was 41 percent for
those 65 to 74, 33 percent for those 75 to 84, and 22 percent for those 85+
years of age (Meng & D’Arcy, 2014). In this study, being younger, married, a
regular drinker, in better health (self-perceived), and satisfied with life were
associated with successful aging. Presence of disease was linked to a
significant decline in successful aging. In a more recent study, the following
four factors emerged as best characterizing successful aging: proactive
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engagement, wellness resources, positive spirit, and valued relationships
(Lee, Kahana, & Kahana, 2017).
Being active and engaged is an especially important aspect of successful
aging (Carr, 2018; Walker, 2019). Older adults who exercise regularly, attend
meetings, participate in church activities, and go on trips are more satisfied
with their lives than their counterparts who disengage from society (Arrieta &
others, 2018; Strandberg, 2019). Older adults who engage in challenging
cognitive activities are more likely to retain their cognitive skills for a longer
period of time (Calero, 2019; Kinugawa, 2019; Kunzmann, 2019; Reuter-
Lorenz & Lustig, 2017). Older adults who are emotionally selective, optimize
their choices, and compensate effectively for losses increase their chances of
aging successfully (Carstensen, 2015; Moss & Wilson, 2018; Nikitin &
Freund, 2019; Paul, 2019). Also, a study of 90- to 91-year-olds found that
living circumstances, especially owning one’s own home and living there as
long as possible; independence in various aspects of life; good health; and a
good death were described as important themes of successful aging (Nosraty
& others, 2015). In this study, social and cognitive aspects were thought to be
more important than physical health.
Successful aging also involves perceived control over the environment
(Bercovitz, Ngnoumen, & Langer, 2019; Robinson & Lachman, 2017). In the
chapter on “Physical and Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood,” we
described how perceived control over the environment had a positive effect
on nursing home residents’ health and longevity. In recent years, the term
self-efficacy has often been used to describe perceived control over the
environment and the ability to produce positive outcomes (Bandura, 2010,
2012).
Examining the positive aspects of aging is an important trend in life-span
development that is likely to benefit future generations of older adults
(Calero, 2019; Fernandez-Ballesteros, 2019; Reed & Carstensen, 2015;
Strandberg, 2019). And a very important agenda is to continue to improve
our understanding of how people can live longer, healthier, more productive
and satisfying lives (Antonucci & Webster, 2019; Docking & Stock, 2018;
Dombrowsky, 2018; Walker, 2019).
In the “Introduction” chapter, we described Laura
Carstensen’s (2015) perspective on the challenges and
opportunities involved in the dramatic increase in life
expectancy that has been occurring and continues to occur. In her view, the
remarkable increase in the number of people living to older ages has occurred
in such a short time that science, technology, and behavioral adaptations have
not kept pace. She proposes that the challenge is to change a world
constructed mainly for young people to a world that is more compatible and
supportive for the increasing number of people living to 100 and older.
In further commentary, Carstensen (2015, p. 70) remarked that making
such changes would be no small feat:
. . . parks, transportation systems, staircases, and even hospitals
presume that the users have both strength and stamina; suburbs across
the country are built for two parents and their young children, not
single people, multiple generations or elderly people who are not able
to drive. Our education system serves the needs of young children and
young adults and offers little more than recreation for experienced
people.
Indeed, the very conception of work as a full-time endeavor ending in the
early sixties is ill suited for long lives. Arguably the most troubling aspect of
our attitude toward aging is that we fret about ways that older people lack the
qualities of younger people rather than exploit a growing new resource right
before our eyes: citizens who have deep expertise, emotional balance, and the
motivation to make a difference.
Summary
Theories of Socioemotional Development
Erikson’s eighth stage of development is called integrity versus despair.
Life review is an important theme during this stage.
Older adults who are active are more likely to be satisfied with their lives.
Older adults are more selective about their social networks than are
younger adults. Older adults also experience more positive emotions and
less negative emotions than younger adults.
Successful aging involves selection, optimization, and compensation.
Personality and Society
Some of the Big Five factors of personality, such as conscientiousness,
extraversion, and openness, are linked to well-being and mortality in
older adults.
Ageism, which is prejudice against others because of their age, is
widespread. Social policy issues in an aging society include the status of
the economy and income, as well as provision of health care. Older adults
are the fastest-growing segment of Internet users.
Families and Social Relationships
Married older adults are often happier than single older adults. Divorce
and remarriage present challenges to older adults. An increasing number
of older adults cohabit.
Older adults have fewer attachment relationships than younger adults;
attachment anxiety decreases with increasing age; attachment security is
linked to psychological and physical well-being in older adults.
Approximately 80 percent of older adults have adult children who are an
important part of their social network.
Older adults tend to choose long-term friends over new friends.
Social support is linked to improved physical and mental health in older
adults. Older adults who participate in more organizations live longer
than their counterparts who have low participation rates.
Altruism and volunteering are associated with positive benefits for older
adults.
Ethnicity, Gender, and Culture
Aging minorities in the United States face the double burden of ageism
and racism.
Many women face the burden of both ageism and sexism.
Factors that predict high status for the elderly across cultures range from
value placed on their accumulated knowledge to integration into the
extended family.
Successful Aging
Three patterns of aging are normal, pathological, and successful.
Increasingly, the positive aspects of older adulthood are being studied.
Factors that are linked with successful aging include an active lifestyle,
positive coping skills, good social relationships and support, and the
absence of disease.
Key Terms
activity theory
ageism
integrity versus despair
selective optimization with compensation theory
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©Fuse/Getty Images
17
Death, Dying, and
Grieving
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Defining Death and Life/Death Issues
Determining Death
Decisions Regarding Life, Death, and Health Care
Death and Sociohistorical, Cultural Contexts
Changing Historical Circumstances
Death in Different Cultures
Facing One’s Own Death
Kübler-Ross’ Stages of Dying
Perceived Control and Denial
Coping with the Death of Someone Else
Communicating with a Dying Person
Grieving
Making Sense of the World
Losing a Life Partner
Forms of Mourning
Stories of Life-Span Development:
Paige Farley-Hackel and Ruth
McCourt, 9/11/2001
Paige Farley-Hackel and her best friend Ruth McCourt teamed up
to take McCourt’s 4-year-old daughter, Juliana, to Disneyland.
They were originally booked on the same flight from Boston to
Los Angeles, but McCourt decided to use her frequent flyer miles
and go on a different airplane. Both their flights exploded 17
minutes apart after terrorists hijacked them, then rammed them into
the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City on
9/11/2001.
Forty-six-year-old Farley-Hackel was a writer, motivational
speaker, and spiritual counselor who lived in Newton,
Massachusetts. She was looking forward to the airing of the first
few episodes of her new radio program, Spiritually Speaking, and
wanted to eventually be on The Oprah Winfrey Show, said her
husband, Allan Hackel. Following 9/11, Oprah televised a
memorial tribute to Farley-Hackel, McCourt, and Juliana.
Forty-five-year-old Ruth McCourt was a homemaker from
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New London, Connecticut, who met Farley-Hackel at a day spa
she used to own in Boston. McCourt gave up the business when
she got married, but the friendship between the two women lasted.
They often traveled together and shared their passion for reading,
cooking, and learning.
In this chapter, we explore many aspects of death and dying.
Among the questions that we will ask are: How can death be
defined? How is death viewed in other cultures? How do people
face their own death? How do people cope with the death of
someone they love? ■
Defining Death and Life/Death
Issues
Is there one point in the process of dying that is the point at which death takes
place, or is death a more gradual process? What are some decisions
individuals can make about life, death, and health care?
Determining Death
Twenty-five years ago, determining whether someone was dead was simpler
than it is today. The end of certain biological functions—such as breathing
and blood pressure—and the rigidity of the body (rigor mortis) were
considered to be clear signs of death. Defining death today is more complex
(Ganapathy, 2018; Hammand & others, 2017; Johnson, 2017).
What are some issues in determining death?
©Dario Mitidieri/Getty Images
Brain death is a neurological definition of death which states that a
person is brain dead when all electrical activity of the brain has ceased for a
specified period of time. A flat EEG (electroencephalogram) recording for a
specified period of time is one criterion of brain death. The higher portions of
the brain often die sooner than the lower portions. Because the brain’s lower
portions monitor heartbeat and respiration, individuals whose higher brain
areas have died may continue to breathe and have a heartbeat (MacDougall &
others, 2014). The definition of brain death currently followed by most
physicians includes the death of both the higher cortical functions and the
lower brain stem functions (Oliva & others, 2017; Waweru-Siika & others,
2017).
How Would
You…?
As a health-care
professional, how
would you explain
“brain death” to the
family of an individual
who has suffered a
severe head injury in an
automobile accident?
Some medical experts argue that the criteria for death should include only
higher cortical functioning. If the cortical death definition were adopted, then
physicians could claim a person is dead who has no cortical functioning, even
if the lower brain stem is functioning. Supporters of the cortical death policy
argue that the functions we associate with being human, such as intelligence
and personality, are located in the higher cortical part of the brain. They
believe that when these functions are lost, the “human being” is no longer
alive.
Decisions Regarding Life, Death, and Health Care
In cases of catastrophic illness or accidents, patients might not be able to
respond adequately to participate in decisions about their medical care. To
prepare for this situation, some individuals make choices earlier.
Advance Care Planning
Advance care planning refers to the process of patients thinking about and
communicating their preferences regarding end-of-life care (Pereira-Salgado
& others, 2018; Rietjens & others, 2017; Sulmasy, 2018). For many patients
in a coma, it is not clear what their wishes regarding termination of treatment
might be if they still were conscious (Abu Snineh, Camicioli, & Miyasaki,
2017). In one study, researchers found that advance care planning decreased
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life-sustaining treatment, increased hospice use, and decreased hospital use
(Brinkman-Stoppelenburg, Rietjens, & van der Heide, 2014). A recent study
revealed that completion of an advance directive was associated
with a lower probability of receiving life-sustaining treatments
(Yen & others, 2018). Recognizing that some terminally ill
patients might prefer to die rather than linger in a painful or vegetative state,
the organization “Choice in Dying” created the living will, a legal document
that reflects the patient’s advance care planning. One study of older adults
found that advance care planning was associated with improved quality of
care at the end of life, including less in-hospital death and greater use of
hospice care (Bischoff & others, 2013).
Physicians’ concerns over malpractice suits and the efforts of people who
support the living will concept have produced natural death legislation. Laws
in all 50 states now accept an advance directive, such as a living will (Olsen,
2016). An advance directive states such preferences as whether life-
sustaining procedures should or should not be used to prolong the life of an
individual when death is imminent. An advance directive must be signed
while the individual still is able to think clearly (Myers & others, 2018; Shin
& others, 2016). A study of end-of-life planning revealed that only 15 percent
of patients 18 years of age and older had a living will (Clements, 2009).
Almost 90 percent of the patients reported that it was important to discuss
health-care wishes with their family, but only 60 percent of them had done
so. A research review concluded that physicians have a positive attitude
toward advance directives (Coleman, 2013).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you explain
to individuals the
advantages of engaging
in advance care
planning?
Available or being considered in 34 states, Physician Orders for Life-
Sustaining Treatment (POLST) is a more specific document that involves the
health-care professional and the patient or surrogate in stating the wishes of
the patient (Hopping-Winn & others, 2018; Lammers & others, 2018; Moss
& others, 2017; Struck, Brown & Madison, 2017). POLST translates
treatment preferences into medical orders such as those involving
cardiopulmonary resuscitation, extent of treatment, and artificial nutrition via
a tube (Mayoral & others, 2018; Stuart & Thielke, 2017).
Euthanasia
Euthanasia (“easy death”) is the act of painlessly ending the lives of
individuals who are suffering from an incurable disease or severe disability
(Kanniyakonil, 2018; Miller, Dresser, & Kim, 2018; Preston, 2018;
Savulescu, 2018). Sometimes euthanasia is called “mercy killing.”
Distinctions are made between two types of euthanasia: passive and active.
Passive euthanasia occurs when a person is allowed to die by withholding
available treatment, such as withdrawing a life-sustaining device. For
example, this might involve turning off a respirator or a heart-lung machine.
Active euthanasia occurs when death is deliberately induced, as when a
physician or a third party ends the patient’s life by administering a lethal dose
of a drug.
Terri Schiavo (right) shown with her mother. What issues did the Terri Schiavo case
raise?
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©Stringer/Getty Images
Technological advances in life-support devices raise the issue of quality
of life (Dean, 2017; Goligher & others, 2017; Jouffre & others, 2018; Lum &
others, 2017). Nowhere was this more apparent than in the highly publicized
case of Terri Schiavo, who suffered severe brain damage related to cardiac
arrest and a lack of oxygen to the brain. She went into a coma and spent 15
years in a vegetative state. Across the 15 years, the question of whether
passive euthanasia should be implemented, or whether she should be kept in
the vegetative state with the hope that her condition might change for the
better, was debated between family members and eventually
at a number of levels in the judicial system. At one point
toward the end of her life, a judge ordered that her feeding
tube be removed. However, subsequent appeals led to its reinsertion twice.
The feeding tube was removed a third and final time on March 18, 2005, and
she died 13 days later from passive euthanasia.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you counsel the
family of a brain-dead
patient on the topic of
euthanasia when there is
no living will or
advance directive for
guidance?
Should individuals like Terri Schiavo be kept alive in a vegetative state?
The trend is toward acceptance of passive euthanasia in the case of terminally
ill patients (Hurst & Mauron, 2017; Sannita, 2017).
The most widely publicized cases of active euthanasia involve “assisted
suicide.” In assisted suicide, a physician supplies the information and/or the
means of committing suicide (such as giving the patient a prescription for a
lethal dose of sleeping pills) but requires the patient to self-administer the
lethal medication and to determine when and where to do this. Thus, assisted
suicide differs from active euthanasia, in which a physician causes the death
of an individual through a direct action in response to a request by the person
(Hosie, 2018; Miller & Appelbaum, 2018; Vandenberghe, 2018). The most
widely publicized incidents of assisted suicide and active euthanasia were
carried out by Michigan physician Jack Kevorkian, who assisted terminally
ill patients in ending their lives. After a series of trials, Kevorkian was
convicted of second-degree murder and served eight years in prison for his
actions. In 2007 he was released from prison at age 79 for good behavior and
promised not to participate in any further assisted suicides. Kevorkian died at
the age of 83.
Assisted suicide is legal in Belgium, Canada, Finland, Luxembourg, the
Netherlands, and Switzerland. The U.S. government has no official policy on
assisted suicide and leaves the decision up to each of the states. Currently, six
states allow assisted suicide—California, Colorado, Montana, Oregon,
Vermont, and Washington, as well as Washington DC. In states where
assisted suicide is illegal, the crime is typically considered manslaughter or a
felony.
In one research review, the percentage of physician-assisted deaths
ranged from 0.1 to 0.2 percent in the United States and Luxembourg to 1.8 to
2.9 percent in the Netherlands (Steck & others, 2013). In this review, the
percentage of assisted suicide cases reported to authorities has increased in
recent years and the individuals who die through assisted suicide are most
likely to be males from 60 to 75 years of age.
To what extent do people in the United States think euthanasia and
assisted suicide should be legal? A recent Gallup poll found that 69 percent
of U.S. adults said euthanasia should be legal, 51 percent said they would
consider ending their own lives if faced with a terminal illness, and 50
percent reported that physician-assisted suicide is morally acceptable (Swift,
2016).
Why is euthanasia so controversial? Those in favor of euthanasia argue
that death should be calm and dignified, not a painful and prolonged ordeal
(Jouffre & others, 2018; Lum & others, 2017; Porteri, 2018). Those against
euthanasia stress that it is a criminal act of murder in most states in the
United States and in most other countries. Many religious individuals,
especially Christians, say that taking a life for any reason is against God’s
will and is an act of murder.
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Needed: Better Care for Dying Individuals
Too often, death in America is lonely, prolonged, and painful. Scientific
advances sometimes have made dying harder by delaying the inevitable.
Also, even though painkillers are available, too many people experience
severe pain during their last days and months of life (Buiting & de Graas,
2018; Chi & others, 2018; Hughes, Volicer, & van der Steen, 2018;
Montague & others, 2017). One study found that 61 percent of dying patients
were in pain in the last year of life and that nearly one-third had symptoms of
depression and confusion prior to death (Singer & others, 2015).
Care providers are increasingly interested in helping individuals
experience a “good death” (Flaskerud, 2017; Tenzek & Depner, 2017) that
involves physical comfort, support from loved ones, acceptance, and
appropriate medical care. For some individuals, a good death
involves accepting one’s impending death and not feeling like
a burden to others (Krishnan, 2017). Three frequent themes
identified in articles on a good death involve (1) preference for dying process
(94 percent of reports), (2) pain-free status (81 percent), and (3) emotional
well-being (64 percent) (Meier & others, 2016).
Recent criticisms of the “good death” concept emphasize that death itself
has shifted from being an event at a single point in time to being a process
that takes place over years and even decades (Pollock & Seymour, 2018;
Smith & Periyakoli, 2018). Thus, say the critics, we need to move away from
the concept of a “good death” as a specific event for an individual person to a
larger vision of a world that not only meets the needs of individuals at their
moment of death but also focuses on making their lives better during the last
years and decades of their lives.
Hospice is a program committed to making the end of life as free from
pain, anxiety, and depression as possible (Fridman & others, 2018; Wang &
others, 2017). Traditionally, a hospital’s goal has been to cure illness and
prolong life (Koksvik, 2018). In contrast, hospice care emphasizes palliative
care, which involves reducing pain and suffering and helping individuals die
with dignity (Bangerter & others, 2018; Chi & others, 2018; Nilsen & others,
2018; Pidgeon & others, 2018). However, U.S. hospitals recently have
rapidly expanded their provision of palliative care. More than 85 percent of
mid- to large-size U.S. hospitals have a palliative care team (Morrison, 2013).
Hospice-care professionals work together to treat the dying person’s
symptoms, make the individual as comfortable as possible, show interest in
the person and the person’s family, and help everyone involved cope with
death (Bogusz, Pekacka-Falkowska, & Magowska, 2018; Stiel & others,
2018; Wise, 2017).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you advocate for
a terminally ill person’s
desire for hospice care?
Today more hospice programs are home-based, a blend of institutional
and home care designed to humanize the end-of-life experience for the dying
person. To read about the work of a home hospice nurse, see the Careers in
Life-Span Development profile.
Careers in life-span development
Kathy McLaughlin, Home Hospice Nurse
Kathy McLaughlin is a home hospice nurse in Alexandria, Virginia.
She provides care for individuals with terminal cancer, Alzheimer
disease, and other illnesses. There currently is a shortage of home
hospice nurses in the United States.
Kathy says that she has seen too many people dying in pain, away
from home, hooked up to needless machines. In her work as a home
hospice nurse, she comments, “I know I’m making a difference. I just
feel privileged to get the chance to meet this person who is not going
to be around much longer. I want to enjoy the moment with this
person. And I want them to enjoy the moment. They have great
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stories. They are better than novels” (McLaughlin, 2003, p. 1).
Hospice nurses like Kathy McLaughlin care for terminally ill
patients and seek to make their remaining days of life as pain-free and
comfortable as possible. They typically spend several hours a day in
the terminally ill patient’s home, serving not just as a medical
caregiver but also as an emotional caregiver. Hospice nurses usually
coordinate the patient’s care through an advising physician.
Hospice nurses must be registered nurses (RNs) and also be
certified for hospice work. Educational requirements are an
undergraduate degree in nursing; some hospice nurses also have
graduate degrees in nursing. Certification as a hospice nurse requires
a current license as an RN, a minimum of two years of experience as
an RN in hospice-nursing settings, and achievement of a passing score
on an exam administered by the National Board for the Certification
of Hospice Nurses.
Kathy McLaughlin with her hospice patient.
Courtesy of The Family of Mary Monteiro
Death and Sociohistorical,
Cultural Contexts
Today in the United States, the deaths of older adults account for
approximately two-thirds of the 2 million deaths that occur each year. Thus,
what we know about death, dying, and grieving mainly is based on
information about older adults. Youthful death is far less common. When,
where, and how people die have changed historically in the United States.
Also, attitudes toward death vary across cultures.
Changing Historical Circumstances
We have already described one of the historical changes involving death—
the increasing complexity of determining when someone is truly dead.
Another involves the age group in which death most often strikes. Two
hundred years ago, almost one of every two children died before the age of
10, and often one parent died before children grew up. Today, death occurs
most often among older adults. In the United States, life expectancy has
increased from 47 years for a person born in 1900 to 79 years for someone
born today (U.S. Census Bureau, 2018). Today, the life expectancy in the
United States for women is 81, for men 76. In 1900, most people died at
home, cared for by their family. As our population has aged and become
more mobile, growing numbers of older adults die apart from their families.
More than 80 percent of all U.S. deaths occur in institutions or hospitals. The
care of a dying older person has shifted away from the family and minimized
our exposure to death and its painful surroundings.
Death in Different Cultures
Cultural variations characterize the experience of death and attitudes about
death (Guilbeau, 2018; Miller, 2016; Prince, 2018; Wang & others, 2018;
Whitehouse, 2018). Individuals are more conscious of death in times of war,
famine, and plague. Most societies throughout history have had philosophical
or religious beliefs about death, and most societies have a ritual that deals
with death (see Figure 1). Death may be seen as a punishment for one’s sins,
an act of atonement, or a judgment of a just God. For some, death means
loneliness; for others, death is a quest for happiness. For still others, death
represents redemption, a relief from the trials and tribulations of the earthly
world. Some embrace death and welcome it; others abhor and fear it. Death
may be seen as the fitting end to a fulfilled life. From this perspective, how
we depart from earth is influenced by how we have lived.
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Figure 1 A Ritual Associated with Death
Family memorial day at the national cemetery in Seoul, South Korea.
©Ahn Young-joon/AP Images
In most societies, death is not viewed as the end of existence—although
the biological body has died, the spirit is believed to live on (Hamilton &
others, 2018; Jones & Nie, 2018; Pun & others, 2018). This religious
perspective is favored by most Americans as well. Cultural variations in
attitudes toward death include belief in reincarnation, which is an important
aspect of the Hindu and Buddhist religions. In the Gond culture of India,
death is believed to be caused by magic and demons.
In many ways, we in the United States are death avoiders and death
deniers (Norouzieh, 2005). This denial can take many forms: the tendency of
the funeral industry to gloss over death and fashion lifelike qualities in the
dead; the persistent search for a “fountain of youth”; the rejection and
isolation of the aged, who may remind us of death; and the medical
community’s emphasis on prolonging biological life rather than on
diminishing human suffering.
Facing One’s Own Death
Most dying individuals want an opportunity to make some decisions
regarding their own life and death (Kastenbaum, 2012). Some individuals
want to complete unfinished business; they want time to resolve problems
and conflicts and to put their affairs in order. As individuals face death, a
majority prefer to be at home when they are near death. A Canadian study
found that 71 percent wanted to be at home when they die, 15 percent
preferred to be in a hospice/palliative care facility, 7 percent wanted to be in a
hospital, and only 2 percent preferred to be in a nursing home (Wilson &
others, 2013).
Kübler-Ross’ Stages of Dying
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (1969) divided the behavior and thinking of dying
persons into five stages: denial and isolation, anger, bargaining, depression,
and acceptance.
Denial and isolation is Kübler-Ross’ first stage of dying, in which the
person denies that death is really going to take place. The person may say,
“No, this can’t happen to me. It’s not possible.” This is a common reaction to
terminal illness. However, denial is usually only a temporary defense. It is
eventually replaced with increased awareness when the person is confronted
with such matters as financial considerations, unfinished business, and worry
about the well-being of surviving family members.
Anger is the second stage of dying, in which the dying person recognizes
that denial can no longer be maintained. Denial often gives way to anger,
resentment, rage, and envy. The dying person’s question is “Why me?” At
this point, the person becomes increasingly difficult to care for as anger may
become displaced and projected onto physicians, nurses, family members,
and even God. The realization of loss is great, and those who symbolize life,
energy, and competent functioning are especially salient targets of the dying
person’s resentment and jealousy.
Bargaining is the third stage of dying, in which the person develops the
hope that death can somehow be postponed or delayed. Some persons enter
into a bargaining or negotiation—often with God—as they try to delay their
death. Psychologically, the person is saying, “Yes, me, but . . .” In exchange
for a few more days, the person promises to lead a reformed life dedicated to
God or to the service of others.
How Would
You…?
As a psychologist, how
would you prepare a
dying individual for the
emotional and
psychological stages
they may go through as
they approach death?
Depression is the fourth stage of dying, in which the dying person comes
to accept the certainty of death. A period of depression or preparatory grief
may appear. The dying person may become silent, refuse visitors, and spend
much of the time crying or grieving. This behavior is normal and is an effort
to disconnect the self from love objects. Attempts to cheer up the dying
person at this stage should be discouraged, says Kübler-Ross, because the
dying person has a need to contemplate impending death.
Acceptance is the fifth stage of dying, in which the person develops a
sense of peace, an acceptance of his or her fate, and in many cases, a desire to
be left alone. Feelings and physical pain may be virtually absent. Kübler-
Ross describes this stage as the end of the dying struggle, the final resting
stage before death. Figure 2 is a summary of Kübler-Ross’ dying stages.
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Figure 2 Kübler-Ross’ Stages of Dying
According to Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, we go through five stages of dying: denial and
isolation, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Does everyone go through these
stages, or go through them in the same order? Explain.
©Science Photo Library/Getty Images
According to Robert Kastenbaum (2009, 2012), there are
some problems with Kübler-Ross’ approach. For example, the
existence of the five-stage sequence has not been demonstrated
by either Kübler-Ross or independent research. Also, the stage interpretation
neglects variations in patients’ situations, including relationship support,
specific effects of illness, family obligations, and the institutional climate in
which they were interviewed. However, Kübler-Ross’ pioneering efforts were
important in calling attention to those who are attempting to cope with life-
threatening illnesses. She did much to encourage attention to the quality of
life for dying persons and their families.
Perceived Control and Denial
Perceived control may work as an adaptive strategy for some older adults
who face death. When individuals are led to believe they can influence and
control events—such as prolonging their lives—they may become more alert
and cheerful. As discussed in the chapter on “Socioemotional Development
in Late Adulthood,” nursing home residents who were given options for
control felt better and lived longer than their counterparts who had no control
over their environment or activities (Rodin & Langer, 1977).
How Would
You…?
As a human
development and
family studies
professional, how
would you advise
family members to
empower dying loved
ones to feel they have
more control over the
end of their lives?
Denial also may be a fruitful way for some individuals to approach death.
It can be adaptive or maladaptive (Cottrell & Duggleby, 2016). Denial can be
used to avoid the destructive impact of shock by delaying the necessity of
dealing with one’s death. Denial can insulate the individual from having to
cope with intense feelings of anger and hurt; however, if denial keeps us from
having a life-saving operation, it clearly is maladaptive. Denial is neither
good nor bad; its adaptive qualities need to be evaluated on an individual
basis.
Coping with the Death of Someone Else
Loss can come in many forms in our lives—divorce, the death of a pet, being
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fired from a job, losing a limb—but no loss is greater than that which comes
through the death of someone we love and care for—a parent, sibling, spouse,
relative, or friend. In the ratings of life’s stresses that require the most
adjustment, death of a spouse is given the highest number. How should we
communicate with a dying individual? How does grieving help us cope with
the death of someone we love? How do we make sense of the world when a
loved one has passed away? How are people affected by losing a life partner?
And what are some forms of mourning and funeral rites?
Communicating with a Dying Person
Most psychologists believe that dying individuals should know they are
dying and significant others know that their loved one is dying, so they can
interact and communicate with each other on the basis of this mutual
knowledge (Banja, 2005). What are some of the advantages of this open
awareness for the dying individual? First, dying individuals can close their
lives in accord with their own ideas about proper dying. Second, they may be
able to complete some plans and projects, make arrangements for survivors,
and participate in decisions about a funeral and burial. Third, dying
individuals have the opportunity to reminisce, to converse with others who
have been important to them, and to end life conscious of their unique
struggles and accomplishments. And fourth, dying individuals have more
understanding of what is happening within their bodies and what the medical
staff is doing for them (Kalish, 1981).
In addition, some experts believe that conversation should not focus on
mental pathology or preparation for death but instead on strengths of the
individual and preparation for the remainder of life. Because external
accomplishments are not possible, communication should be
directed more at internal growth. Important support for a
dying individual may come not only from mental health
professionals but also from nurses, physicians, a spouse, or intimate friends
(DeSpelder & Strickland, 2005). Effective strategies for communicating with
a dying person include the following:
What are some good strategies for communicating with a dying person?
©Stockbroker/Photolibrary
1. Establish your presence, be at the same eye level; don’t be afraid to
touch the dying person—dying individuals are often starved for human
touch.
2. Eliminate distractions—for example, ask if it is okay to turn off the TV.
Realize that excessive small talk can be a distraction.
3. Dying individuals who are very frail often have little energy. If the dying
person you are visiting is very frail, you may want to keep your visit
short.
4. Don’t insist that the dying person feel acceptance about death if the
dying person wants to deny the reality of the situation; on the other hand,
don’t insist on denial if the dying individual indicates acceptance.
5. Allow the dying person to express guilt or anger; encourage the
expression of feelings.
6. Ask the person what the expected outcome for the illness is. Discuss
alternatives and unfinished business.
7. Sometimes dying individuals have limited access to other people. Ask
the dying person if there is anyone he or she would like to see that you
can contact.
8. Encourage the dying individual to reminisce, especially if you have
memories in common.
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9. Talk with the individual when she or he wishes to talk. If this is
impossible, make an appointment for a later time, and keep it.
10. Express your regard for the dying individual. Don’t be afraid to express
love, and don’t be afraid to say good-bye.
Grieving
Grief is a complex emotional state that is an evolving process with multiple
dimensions. Our exploration of grief focuses on dimensions of grieving and
how coping may vary with the type of death.
Dimensions of Grieving
Grief is the emotional numbness, disbelief, separation anxiety, despair,
sadness, and loneliness that accompany the loss of someone we love (Bui &
Okereke, 2018). An important dimension of grief is pining for the lost person.
Pining or yearning reflects an intermittent, recurrent wish or need to recover
the lost person. Another important dimension of grief is separation anxiety,
which not only includes pining and preoccupation with thoughts of the
deceased person but also focuses on places and things associated with the
deceased, as well as crying or sighing (Sirrine, Salloum, & Boothroyd, 2017).
Grief may also involve despair and sadness, including a sense of
hopelessness and defeat, depressive symptoms, apathy, loss of meaning for
activities that used to involve the person who is gone, and growing desolation
(Milic & others, 2018; Schwartz, Howell, & Jamison, 2018). One study
found that older adults who were bereaved had more dysregulated cortisol
patterns, indicative of the intensity of their stress (Holland & others, 2014).
Another study found that college students who lost someone close to them in
campus shootings and had experienced severe posttraumatic
stress symptoms four months after the shootings were more likely
to have severe grief one year after the shootings (Smith & others,
2015).
These feelings occur repeatedly shortly after a loss. As time passes,
pining and protest over the loss tend to diminish, although episodes of
depression and apathy may remain or increase. The sense of separation
anxiety and loss may continue to the end of one’s life, but most of us emerge
from grief’s tears, turning our attention once again to productive tasks and
regaining a more positive view of life (Mendes, 2016).
The grieving process is more like a roller-coaster ride than an orderly
progression of stages with clear-cut time frames. The ups and downs of grief
often involve rapidly changing emotions, meeting the challenges of learning
new skills, detecting personal weaknesses and limitations, creating new
patterns of behavior, and forming new friendships and relationships. For most
individuals, grief becomes more manageable over time, with fewer abrupt
highs and lows. But many grieving spouses report that even though time has
brought some healing, they have never gotten over their loss. They have just
learned to live with it. However, even six months after their loss, some
individuals have difficulty moving on with their life. They feel numb or
detached, believe their life is empty without the deceased, and feel that the
future has no meaning. This type of grief reaction has been labeled as
complicated grief or prolonged grief disorder (Breen & others, 2018; Li,
Tendeiro, & Stroebe, 2018; Maciejewski & Prigerson, 2017; Tsai & others,
2018). Approximately 7 to 10 percent of bereaved individuals experience
prolonged or complicated grief (Maccalum & Bryant, 2013). In a recent
meta-analysis, 9.8 percent of adult bereavement cases were classified as
characterized by prolonged grief disorder (Lundorff & others, 2017). In this
study, the older individuals were, the more likely prolonged grief disorder
was present. A person who loses someone on whom he or she was
emotionally dependent is often at greatest risk for developing prolonged grief
(Rodriguez Villar & others, 2012). A recent study revealed that individuals
with complicated grief had a higher level of the personality trait of
neuroticism (Goetter & others, 2018).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you respond
to bereaved clients who
ask, “What is normal
grieving?” as they
attempt to cope with the
death of a loved one?
Page 433
Complicated grief usually has negative consequences for physical and
mental health (Djelantik & others, 2017; Tang & Chow, 2017; Trevino &
others, 2018). A recent 7-year longitudinal study of older adults found that
those experiencing prolonged grief had greater cognitive decline than their
counterparts with normal grief (Perez & others, 2018). Recent research
indicates that cognitive-behavior therapy reduced prolonged grief symptoms
(Bartl & others, 2018).
Another type of grief is disenfranchised grief, which describes an
individual’s grief over a deceased person that is a socially ambiguous loss
that can’t be openly mourned or supported (Patlamazoglou, Simmonds, &
Snell, 2018; Tullis, 2017). Examples of disenfranchised grief include a
relationship that isn’t socially recognized such as an ex-spouse, a hidden loss
such as an abortion, and circumstances of the death that are stigmatized such
as death because of AIDS. Disenfranchised grief may intensify an
individual’s grief because it cannot be publicly acknowledged. This type of
grief may be hidden or repressed for many years, only to be reawakened by
later deaths.
Coping and Type of Death
The impact of death on surviving individuals is strongly influenced by the
circumstances under which the death occurs (Lovgren & others, 2018; Tobin,
Lambert, & McCarthy, 2018). Deaths that are sudden, untimely, violent, or
traumatic are likely to have more intense and prolonged effects on surviving
individuals and make the coping process more difficult for them (Creighton
& others, 2018; Feigelman & others, 2018; Pitman & others, 2018). Such
deaths often are accompanied by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
symptoms, such as intrusive thoughts, flashbacks, nightmares, sleep
disturbances, or problems in concentrating. The death of a child can be
especially devastating and extremely difficult for parents (Eskola & others,
2017; Fu & others, 2018; Keim & others, 2017).
Making Sense of the World
Not only do many individuals who face death search for meaning in life, so
do many bereaved individuals (Breen & others, 2018; Steffen & Coyle,
2017). One beneficial aspect of grieving is that it stimulates many individuals
to try to make sense of their world (Bianco, Sambin, & Palmieri, 2017; Breen
& others, 2018). Many grieving persons ruminate on the events that led up to
the death of their loved one. In the days and weeks after the death, the closest
family members share memories with each other, sometimes reminiscing
about family experiences. One study examined meaning-making following a
child’s death (Meert & others, 2015). From 8 to 20 weeks following the
child’s death, the child’s intensive care physician conducted a bereavement
meeting with 53 parents of 35 children who had died. Four meaning-making
processes were identified in the meetings: (1) sense making (seeking
biomedical explanations for the death, revisiting parents’ prior decisions and
roles, and assigning blame); (2) benefit finding (exploring possible positive
consequences of the death such as ways to help others, providing feedback to
the hospital, and making donations); (3) continuing bonds (reminiscing about
the child, sharing photographs, and holding community events to honor the
child); and (4) identity reconstruction (changes in the parents’ sense of self,
including changes in relationships, work, and home).
These restaurant workers, who lost their jobs on 9/11/01, made a bittersweet return with a
New York restaurant they call their own. Colors, named for the many nationalities and
ethnic groups among its owners, is believed to be the city’s first cooperative restaurant.
World-famous restaurant Windows on the World was destroyed and 73 workers killed
when the Twin Towers were destroyed by terrorists. The former Windows survivors at the
new venture planned to split 60 percent of the profits between themselves and to donate
the rest to a fund to open other cooperative restaurants.
©Thomas Hinton/Splash News/Newscom
Page 434
When a death is caused by an accident or a disaster, the effort to make
sense of it is pursued more vigorously (Park, 2016). As added pieces of news
come trickling in, they are integrated into the puzzle. The bereaved want to
put the death into a perspective that they can understand—divine
intervention, a curse from a neighboring tribe, a logical sequence of cause
and effect, or whatever it may be. A study of more than 1,000 college
students found that making sense was an important factor in their grieving of
a violent loss by accident, homicide, or suicide (Currier, Holland, &
Neimeyer, 2006).
Losing a Life Partner
In 2015 in the United States, 14 percent of 65- to 74-year-olds, 31 percent of
75-to 84-year-olds, and 59 percent of those 85 and over were widowed
(Administration on Aging, 2015). Approximately three times as many women
as men are widowed. Those left behind after the death of an intimate partner
often suffer profound grief and may endure financial loss, loneliness,
increased physical illness, and psychological disorders such as depression
(Daoulah & others, 2017; Siflinger, 2017). In one study, becoming widowed
was associated with a 48 percent increase in risk of mortality (Sullivan &
Fenelon, 2014). Mortality risk increased for men if their wives’ deaths were
not expected, but for women the unexpected death of a husband mattered less
in terms of their mortality risk. In another study, Mexican American older
adults experienced a significant increase in depressive symptoms during the
transition to widowhood (Monserud & Markides, 2017). Frequent church
attendance was a protective factor against increases in depressive symptoms.
Also, in a recent cross-cultural study in the United States, England, Europe,
Korea, and China, depression peaked in the first year of widowhood for men
and women (Jadhav & Weir, 2018). In this study, women recovered to levels
comparable to married individuals in all countries, but widowed men
continued to have high levels of depression 6 to 10 years post-bereavement
everywhere except in Europe.
How surviving spouses cope varies considerably (Hasmanova
Marhankova, 2016). Becoming widowed is likely to be especially difficult
when individuals have been happily married for a number of decades. In such
circumstances, losing your spouse, who may also be your best
friend and with whom you have lived a deeply connected life,
can be extremely emotional and difficult to cope with. A six-year longitudinal
study of individuals aged 80 and older found that the loss of a spouse,
especially in men, was related to a lower level of life satisfaction over time
(Berg & others, 2009). Another study revealed that widowed persons who did
not expect to be reunited with their loved ones in the afterlife reported more
depression, anger, and intrusive thoughts at 6 and 18 months after their loss
(Carr & Sharp, 2014).
How Would
You…?
As a social worker,
how would you help a
widow or widower to
connect with a support
group to deal with the
death of a loved one?
Many widows are lonely. The poorer and less educated they are, the
lonelier they tend to be. The bereaved are also at increased risk for many
health problems (Jadhav & Weir, 2018). For either widows or widowers,
social support helps them adjust to the death of a spouse (Dahlberg, Agahi, &
Lennartsson, 2018; Hendrickson & others, 2018; Huang & others, 2017). The
Widow-to-Widow program, begun in the 1960s, provides support for newly
widowed women. Volunteer widows reach out to other widows, introducing
them to others who may have similar problems, leading group discussions,
and organizing social activities. The program has been adopted by AARP and
disseminated throughout the United States as the Widowed Persons Service.
The model has since been adopted by numerous community organizations to
provide support for those going through a difficult transition. Also, in recent
research, when widows engaged in volunteering to help others, it reduced
their loneliness (Carr & others, 2018).
Forms of Mourning
One decision facing the bereaved is what to do with the body. In the United
States in 2017, 51.6 percent of deaths were followed by cremation—a
significant increase from 14 percent in 1985 and 27 percent in 2000
(Cremation Association of North America, 2018). In 2017 in Canada, 70.5
percent of deaths were followed by cremation. Projections indicate that in
2022, 57.5 percent of U.S. deaths will be followed by cremation while the
cremation rate in Canada will increase to 75.1 percent. Cremation is more
popular in the Pacific region of the United States and less popular in the
South. It is more popular in Canada than in the United States and most
popular of all in Japan and other Asian countries.
The funeral industry has been a target of controversy in recent years.
Funeral directors and their supporters argue that the funeral provides a form
of closure to the relationship with the deceased, especially when there is an
open casket. Their critics claim that funeral directors are just trying to make
money and that embalming is grotesque. One way to avoid being exploited
during bereavement is to purchase funeral arrangements in advance.
A funeral procession of horse-drawn buggies on their way to the burial of five young
Amish girls who were murdered in October 2006. A remarkable aspect of their mourning
involved the outpouring of support and forgiveness they gave to the widow of the
murderer.
©Glenn Fawcett/Baltimore Sun/MCT/Getty Images
The family and the community have important roles in mourning in some
Page 435
cultures. One of those cultures is the Amish, a conservative group with
approximately 80,000 members in the United States, Ontario, and several
small settlements in South and Central America. The Amish live in a family-
oriented society in which family and community support are essential for
survival. At the time of death, close neighbors assume the responsibility of
notifying others of the death. The Amish community handles virtually all
aspects of the funeral.
The funeral service is held in a barn in warmer months and in a house
during colder months. Calm acceptance of death, influenced by a deep
religious faith, is an integral part of the Amish culture.
Following the funeral, a high level of support is given to the
bereaved family for at least a year. Visits to the family,
special scrapbooks and handmade items for the family, new work projects
started for the widow, and quilting days that combine fellowship and
productivity are among the supports given to the bereaved family.
We have arrived at the end of this edition. Our study of the human life
span has been long and complex. You have read about many physical,
cognitive, and socioemotional changes that take place from conception
through death. This is a good time to reflect on what you have learned.
Which theories, studies, and ideas were especially interesting to you? What
did you learn about your own development?
I hope this edition and course have been a window to the life span of the
human species and a window to your own personal journey in life. I wish you
all the best in the remaining years of your journey through the human life
span.
Summary
Defining Death and Life/Death Issues
Most physicians today agree that the higher and lower portions of the
brain must stop functioning in order for an individual to be considered
brain dead.
Decisions regarding life, death, and health care can involve a number of
circumstances and issues, and individuals can use a living will to make
these choices while they can still think clearly. Hospice care emphasizes
reducing pain and suffering rather than prolonging life.
Death and Sociohistorical, Cultural Contexts
Over the years, the circumstances of when, where, and why people die
have changed. Throughout history, most societies have had philosophical
or religious beliefs about death, and most societies have rituals that deal
with death.
The United States has been described as a death-denying and death-
avoiding culture.
Facing One’s Own Death
Kübler-Ross proposed five stages of facing death, and although her view
has been criticized, her efforts were important in calling attention to the
experience of coping with life-threatening illness.
Perceived control over events and denial may work together as an
adaptive orientation for a dying individual.
Coping with the Death of Someone Else
Most psychologists recommend an open communication system with a
dying person and his or her significant others.
Grief is multidimensional and in some cases may last for years.
Complicated grief or prolonged grief disorder and disenfranchised grief
are especially challenging.
The grieving process may stimulate individuals to strive to make sense
Page 436
out of the world.
Usually the most difficult loss is the death of a spouse. The bereaved are
at increased risk for health problems.
Forms of mourning vary across cultures.
Key Terms
acceptance
active euthanasia
anger
assisted suicide
bargaining
brain death
complicated grief or prolonged grief disorder
denial and isolation
depression
euthanasia
grief
hospice
palliative care
passive euthanasia
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Glossary
A
A-not-B error This term is used to describe the tendency of infants to reach
where an object was located earlier rather than where the object was last
hidden.
acceptance Kübler-Ross’ fifth stage of dying, in which the dying person
develops a sense of peace, an acceptance of her or his fate, and in many
cases, a desire to be left alone.
accommodation Piagetian concept of adjusting schemes to fit new
information and experiences.
active euthanasia Death induced deliberately, as when a physician or a third
party ends the patient’s life by administering a lethal dose of a drug.
activity theory Theory that the more active and involved older adults are, the
more likely they are to be satisfied with their lives.
adolescent egocentrism The heightened self-consciousness of adolescents.
adoption study A study in which investigators seek to discover whether, in
behavior and psychological characteristics, adopted children are more like
their adoptive parents, who provided a home environment, or more like their
biological parents, who contributed their heredity. Another form of the
adoption study compares adoptive and biological siblings.
aerobic exercise Sustained exercise (such as jogging, swimming, or cycling).
affectionate love In this type of love, also called companionate love, an
individual desires to have the other person near and has a deep, caring
affection for the other person.
ageism Prejudice against people because of their age, especially prejudice
against older adults.
Alzheimer disease A progressive, irreversible brain disorder characterized
by a gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and eventually
physical function.
amygdala The region of the brain that is the seat of emotions.
anger Kübler-Ross’ second stage of dying, in which the dying person’s
denial often gives way to anger, resentment, rage, and envy.
anger cry A cry similar to the basic cry, with more excess air forced through
the vocal cords.
animism The belief that inanimate objects have lifelike qualities and are
capable of action.
anorexia nervosa An eating disorder that involves the relentless pursuit of
thinness through starvation.
anxious attachment style An attachment style that describes adults who
demand closeness, are less trusting, and are more emotional, jealous, and
possessive.
Apgar Scale A widely used assessment of the newborn’s health at 1 and 5
minutes after birth.
arthritis Inflammation of the joints that is accompanied by pain, stiffness,
and movement problems; especially common in older adults.
assimilation Piagetian concept of using existing schemes to deal with new
information or experiences.
assisted suicide Involves a physician supplying the information and/or the
means of committing suicide but requiring the patient to self-administer the
lethal medication and to decide when and where to do this.
attachment A close emotional bond between two people.
attention The focusing of mental resources on select information.
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) A disability in which
children consistently show one or more of the following characteristics: (1)
inattention, (2) hyperactivity, and (3) impulsivity.
authoritarian parenting A restrictive, punitive style in which parents exhort
the child to follow their directions and to respect work and effort. The
authoritarian parent places firm limits and controls on the child and allows
little verbal exchange. Authoritarian parenting is associated with children’s
social incompetence.
authoritative parenting A parenting style in which parents encourage their
children to be independent but still place limits and controls on their actions.
Extensive verbal give-and-take is allowed, and parents are warm and
nurturant toward the child. Authoritative parenting is associated with
children’s social competence.
autism spectrum disorders (ASD) Also called pervasive developmental
disorders, they range from the severe disorder labeled autistic disorder to the
milder disorder called Asperger syndrome. These disorders are characterized
by problems in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication, and
repetitive behaviors.
autonomous morality The second stage of moral development in Piaget’s
theory, displayed by older children (about 10 years of age and older). The
child becomes aware that rules and laws are created by people and that in
judging an action, one should consider the actor’s intentions as well as the
consequences.
average children Children who receive an average number of both positive
and negative nominations from their peers.
avoidant attachment style An attachment style that describes adults who are
hesitant about getting involved in romantic relationships and once they are in
a relationship tend to distance themselves from their partner.
B
bargaining Kübler-Ross’ third stage of dying, in which the dying person
develops the hope that death can somehow be postponed.
basic cry A rhythmic pattern usually consisting of a cry, a briefer silence, a
shorter inspiratory whistle that is higher-pitched than the main cry, and a
brief rest before the next cry.
behavior genetics The field that seeks to discover the influence of heredity
and environment on individual differences in human traits and development.
behavioral and social cognitive theories Theories holding that development
can be described in terms of the behaviors learned through interactions with
the environment.
Big Five factors of personality Emotional stability (neuroticism),
extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness.
biological processes Changes in an individual’s physical nature.
brain death A neurological definition of death. A person is brain dead when
all electrical activity of the brain has ceased for a specified period of time. A
flat EEG recording is one criterion of brain death.
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory Bronfenbrenner’s environmental
systems theory, which focuses on five environmental systems: microsystem,
mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem.
bulimia nervosa An eating disorder in which the individual consistently
follows a binge-and-purge pattern.
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C
care perspective The moral perspective of Carol Gilligan, which views
people in terms of their connectedness with others and emphasizes
interpersonal communication, relationships with others, and concern for
others.
case study An in-depth examination of an individual.
cataracts Involve a thickening of the lens of the eye that causes
vision to become cloudy and distorted.
cellular clock theory Leonard Hayflick’s theory that the maximum number
of times human cells can divide is about 75 to 80. As we age, our cells
become increasingly less capable of dividing.
centration The focusing of attention on one characteristic to the exclusion of
all others.
cephalocaudal pattern Developmental sequence in which the earliest
growth always occurs at the top—the head—with physical growth in size,
weight, and feature differentiation gradually working from top to bottom.
child-centered kindergarten Education that involves the whole child by
considering both the child’s physical, cognitive, and socioemotional
development and the child’s needs, interests, and learning styles.
child-directed speech Also called parentese, language spoken in a higher
pitch, slower tempo, and with more exaggerated intonation than normal, with
simple words and sentences.
chromosomes Threadlike structures made up of deoxyribonucleic acid, or
DNA.
climacteric The midlife transition in which fertility declines.
clique A small group that ranges from 2 to about 12 individuals, averaging
about 5 or 6 individuals, and often consists of adolescents who engage in
similar activities.
cognitive processes Changes in an individual’s thought, intelligence, and
language.
cohort effects Effects that are due to a subject’s time of birth or generation
but not age.
commitment Marcia’s term for the part of identity development in which
adolescents show a personal investment in forming an identity.
complicated grief or prolonged grief disorder Grief that involves enduring
despair and remains unresolved over an extended period of time.
concepts Cognitive groupings of similar objects, events, people, or ideas.
conservation In Piaget’s theory, awareness that altering an object’s or a
substance’s appearance does not change its basic properties.
constructive play Play that combines sensorimotor and repetitive activity
with symbolic representation of ideas. Constructive play occurs when
children engage in self-regulated creation or construction of a product or a
problem solution.
constructivist approach A learner-centered approach that emphasizes the
importance of individuals actively constructing their knowledge and
understanding with guidance from the teacher.
contemporary life-events approach An approach emphasizing that how a
life event influences the individual’s development depends not only on the
life event itself but also on mediating factors, the individual’s adaptation to
the life event, the life-stage context, and the sociohistorical context.
context The setting in which development occurs, which is influenced by
historical, economic, social, and cultural factors.
continuity-discontinuity issue The debate about the extent to which
development involves gradual, cumulative change (continuity) or distinct
stages (discontinuity).
controversial children Children who are frequently nominated both as
someone’s best friend and as being disliked.
conventional reasoning The second, or intermediate, level in Kohlberg’s
theory of moral development. At this level, individuals abide by certain
standards, but they are the standards of others, such as parents or the laws of
society.
convergent thinking The type of thinking that produces one correct answer
and is typically assessed by standardized intelligence tests.
core knowledge approach Theory that infants are born with domain-specific
innate knowledge systems.
corpus callosum The location where nerve fibers connect the brain’s left and
right hemispheres.
correlation coefficient A number based on statistical analysis that is used to
describe the degree of association between two variables.
correlational research A type of research that focuses on describing the
strength of the relation between two or more events or characteristics.
creative thinking The ability to think in novel and unusual ways and to come
up with unique solutions to problems.
crisis Marcia’s term for a period of identity development during which the
adolescent is exploring alternatives.
critical thinking Thinking reflectively and productively, as well as
evaluating the evidence.
cross-cultural studies Comparisons of one culture with one or more other
cultures. These provide information about the degree to which children’s
development is similar, or universal, across cultures, and the degree to which
it is culture-specific.
cross-sectional approach A research strategy in which individuals of
different ages are compared at one time.
crowd A larger group structure than a clique, a crowd is usually formed
based on reputation, and members may or may not spend much time together.
crystallized intelligence Accumulated information and verbal skills, which
increase in middle age, according to Horn.
cultural-familial intellectual disability Intellectual disability in which
there is no evidence of organic brain damage, but the individual’s IQ
generally is between 50 and 70.
culture The behavior patterns, beliefs, and all other products of a group that
are passed on from generation to generation.
culture-fair tests Tests of intelligence that are designed to be free of cultural
bias.
cumulative personality model The principle that with time and age, people
become more adept at interacting with their environment in ways that
promote stability of personality.
D
deferred imitation Imitation that occurs after a delay of hours or days.
dementia A global term for any neurological disorder in which the primary
symptoms involve a deterioration of mental functioning.
denial and isolation Kübler-Ross’ first stage of dying, in which the dying
person denies that she or he is really going to die.
depression Kübler-Ross’ fourth stage of dying, in which the dying person
begins to acknowledge the certainty of her or his death. A period of
depression or preparatory grief may appear.
descriptive research Type of research that aims to observe and record
behavior.
development The pattern of movement or change that starts at conception
and continues through the life span.
developmental cascade model Involves connections across domains over
time that influence developmental pathways and outcomes.
developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) Education that focuses on the
typical developmental patterns of children (age appropriateness) and the
uniqueness of each child (individual appropriateness).
difficult child A child who tends to react negatively and cry frequently, who
engages in irregular daily routines, and who is slow to accept new
experiences.
direct instruction approach A structured, teacher-centered approach that is
characterized by teacher direction and control, high teacher expectations for
students’ progress, maximum time spent by students on learning tasks, and
efforts by the teacher to keep negative affect to a minimum.
dishabituation Recovery of a habituated response after a change in
stimulation.
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divergent thinking Thinking that produces many answers to the same
question and is characteristic of creativity.
DNA A complex molecule with a double helix shape that contains genetic
information.
domain theory of moral development Theory that identifies
different domains of social knowledge and reasoning, including
moral, social conventional, and personal domains. These domains
arise from children’s and adolescents’ attempts to understand and deal with
different forms of social experience.
Down syndrome A chromosomally transmitted form of intellectual
disability, caused by the presence of an extra copy of chromosome 21.
dynamic systems theory The perspective on motor development that seeks
to explain how motor behaviors are assembled for perceiving and acting.
E
easy child A child who is generally in a positive mood, who quickly
establishes regular routines in infancy, and who adapts easily to new
experiences.
eclectic theoretical orientation An approach that selects and uses whatever
is considered the best in many theories.
ecological view The view that perception functions to bring organisms in
contact with the environment and to increase adaptation.
egocentrism The inability to distinguish between one’s own perspective and
someone else’s (salient feature of the first substage of preoperational
thought).
elaboration An important strategy that involves engaging in more extensive
processing of information.
embryonic period The period of prenatal development that occurs two to
eight weeks after conception. During the embryonic period, the rate of cell
differentiation intensifies, support systems for the cells form, and organs
appear.
emerging adulthood A period of transition from adolescence to adulthood
(approximately 18 to 25 years of age) that involves experimentation and
exploration.
emotion Feeling, or affect, that occurs when a person is in a state or
interaction that is important to them. Emotion is characterized by behavior
that reflects (expresses) the pleasantness or unpleasantness of the state a
person is in or the transactions being experienced.
empty nest syndrome A term used to indicate a decrease in marital
satisfaction after children leave home.
epigenetic view Emphasizes that development is the result of an ongoing,
bidirectional interchange between heredity and environment.
episodic memory The retention of information about the where and when of
life’s happenings.
equilibration A mechanism that Piaget proposed to explain how children
shift from one stage of thought to the next.
Erikson’s theory A psychoanalytic theory in which eight stages of
psychosocial development unfold throughout the life span. Each stage
consists of a unique developmental task that confronts individuals with a
crisis that must be faced.
ethnic identity An enduring, basic aspect of the self that includes a sense of
membership in an ethnic group and the attitudes and feelings related to that
membership.
ethnicity A range of characteristics rooted in cultural heritage, including
nationality, race, religion, and language.
ethology An approach stressing that behavior is strongly influenced by
biology, tied to evolution, and characterized by critical or sensitive periods.
euthanasia The act of painlessly ending the lives of persons who are
suffering from incurable diseases or severe disabilities; sometimes called
“mercy killing.”
evolutionary psychology Emphasizes the importance of adaptation,
reproduction, and “survival of the fittest” in shaping behavior.
evolutionary theory of aging The view that natural selection has not
eliminated many harmful conditions and nonadaptive characteristics in older
adults.
executive attention Involves planning actions, allocating attention to goals,
detecting and compensating for errors, monitoring progress on tasks, and
dealing with novel or difficult circumstances.
executive function An umbrella-like concept that consists of a number of
higher-level cognitive processes linked to the development of the brain’s
prefrontal cortex. Executive function involves managing one’s thoughts to
engage in goal-directed behavior and to use self-control.
experiment A carefully regulated procedure in which one or more of the
factors believed to influence the behavior being studied is manipulated and
all other factors are held constant. Experimental research permits the
determination of cause.
explicit memory Memory of facts and experiences that individuals
consciously know and can state.
F
fast mapping A process that helps to explain how young children learn the
connection between a word and its referent so quickly.
fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) A cluster of abnormalities that
appears in the offspring of mothers who drink alcohol heavily during
pregnancy.
fetal period The prenatal period of development that begins two months after
conception and usually lasts for seven months.
fight-or-flight The view that when men experience stress, they are more
likely to become aggressive, withdraw from social contact, or drink alcohol.
fine motor skills Motor skills that involve more finely tuned movements,
such as finger dexterity.
fluid intelligence The ability to reason abstractly, which steadily declines
from middle adulthood on, according to Horn.
free-radical theory A theory of aging proposing that people age because
normal cell metabolism produces unstable oxygen molecules known as free
radicals. These molecules ricochet around inside cells, damaging DNA and
other cellular structures.
fuzzy trace theory States that memory is best understood by considering two
types of memory representations: (1) verbatim memory trace and (2) gist. In
this theory, older children’s better memory is attributed to the fuzzy traces
created by extracting the gist of information.
Page G-4
G
games Activities engaged in for pleasure that include rules and often involve
competition between two or more individuals.
gender The characteristics of people as females and males.
gender identity The sense of being male or female, which most children
acquire by the time they are 3 years old.
gender roles Sets of expectations that prescribe how females or males should
think, act, and feel.
gender schema theory The theory that gender typing emerges as children
gradually develop gender schemas of what is gender-appropriate and gender-
inappropriate in their culture.
gender stereotypes Broad categories that reflect society’s impressions and
beliefs about females and males.
gene × environment (G × E) interaction The interaction of a specified
measured variation in DNA and a specific measured aspect of the
environment.
generativity Adults’ desire to leave legacies of themselves to the next
generation; the positive side of Erikson’s middle adulthood stage of
generativity versus stagnation.
genes Units of hereditary information composed of DNA. Genes direct cells
to reproduce themselves and manufacture the proteins that maintain life.
genotype A person’s genetic heritage; the actual genetic material.
germinal period The period of prenatal development that takes
place during the first two weeks after conception. It includes the
creation of the zygote, continued cell division, and the attachment
of the zygote to the uterine wall.
gifted Having above-average intelligence (an IQ of 130 or higher) and/or
superior talent for something.
glaucoma Damage to the optic nerve because of the pressure created by a
buildup of fluid in the eye.
gonads The sex glands—the testes in males and the ovaries in females.
goodness of fit Refers to the match between a child’s temperament and the
environmental demands with which the child must cope.
grief The emotional numbness, disbelief, separation anxiety, despair,
sadness, and loneliness that accompany the loss of someone we love.
gross motor skills Motor skills that involve large-muscle activities, such as
walking.
H
habituation Decreased responsiveness to a stimulus after repeated
presentations of the stimulus.
heteronomous morality The first stage of moral development in Piaget’s
theory, occurring from approximately 4 to 7 years of age. Justice and rules
are conceived of as unchangeable properties of the world, beyond the control
of people.
hormonal stress theory The theory that aging in the body’s hormonal
system can lower resilience under stress and increase the likelihood of
disease.
hormones Powerful chemical substances secreted by the endocrine glands
and carried through the body by the bloodstream.
hospice A program committed to making the end of life as free from pain,
anxiety, and depression as possible. The goals of hospice care contrast with
those of a hospital, which are to cure disease and prolong life.
hypothalamus A structure in the higher portion of the brain that monitors
eating and sex.
hypotheses Assertions or predictions, often derived from theories, that can be
tested.
hypothetical-deductive reasoning Piaget’s formal operational concept that
adolescents have the cognitive ability to develop hypotheses, or best guesses,
about ways to solve problems.
I
identity achievement Marcia’s term for adolescents who have undergone a
crisis and have made a commitment.
identity diffusion Marcia’s term for adolescents who have not yet
experienced a crisis (explored meaningful alternatives) or made any
commitments.
identity foreclosure Marcia’s term for adolescents who have made a
commitment but have not experienced a crisis.
identity moratorium Marcia’s term for adolescents who are in the midst of a
crisis, but their commitments are either absent or vaguely defined.
imaginary audience Involves adolescents’ belief that others are as interested
in them as they themselves are; attention-getting behavior motivated by a
desire to be noticed, visible, and “on stage.”
immanent justice The expectation that, if a rule is broken, punishment will
be meted out immediately.
implicit memory Memory without conscious recollection; involves skills
and routine procedures that are automatically performed.
inclusion Educating a child who requires special education full-time in the
regular classroom.
individualized education plan (IEP) A written statement that spells out a
program tailored to a child with a disability.
indulgent parenting A style of parenting in which parents are highly
involved with their children but place few demands or controls on them.
Indulgent parenting is associated with children’s social incompetence,
especially a lack of self-control.
infinite generativity The ability to produce and comprehend an endless
number of meaningful sentences using a finite set of words and rules.
information-processing theory A theory emphasizing that individuals
manipulate information, monitor it, and strategize about it. The processes of
memory and thinking are central.
insecure avoidant babies Babies that show insecurity by avoiding their
mothers.
insecure disorganized babies Babies that show insecurity by being
disorganized and disoriented.
insecure resistant babies Babies that often cling to the caregiver, then resist
her by fighting against the closeness, perhaps by kicking or pushing away.
integrity versus despair Erikson’s eighth and final stage of development,
which individuals experience in late adulthood. This involves reflecting on
the past and either piecing together a positive review or concluding that one’s
life has not been well spent.
intellectual disability A condition of limited mental ability in which an
individual has a low IQ, usually below 70 on a traditional test of intelligence,
and has difficulty adapting to the demands of everyday life.
intelligence Problem-solving skills and the ability to learn from, and adapt to,
the experiences of everyday life.
intelligence quotient (IQ) A person’s mental age divided by chronological
age and multiplied by 100.
intermodal perception The ability to relate and integrate information from
two or more sensory modalities, such as vision and hearing.
intuitive thought substage Piaget’s second substage of preoperational
thought, in which children begin to use primitive reasoning and want to know
the answers to all sorts of questions (between about 4 and 7 years of age).
J
joint attention Process that occurs when (1) individuals focus on the same
object and track each other’s behavior, (2) one individual directs another’s
attention, and (3) reciprocal interaction takes place.
justice perspective A moral perspective that focuses on the rights of the
individual; individuals independently make moral decisions.
juvenile delinquent An adolescent who breaks the law or engages in
behavior that is considered illegal.
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L
laboratory A controlled setting in which research can take place.
language A form of communication, whether spoken, written, or signed, that
is based on a system of symbols. Language consists of the words used by a
community and the rules for varying and combining them.
language acquisition device (LAD) Chomsky’s term that describes a
biological endowment enabling the child to detect the features and rules of
language, including phonology, syntax, and semantics.
lateralization Specialization of function in one hemisphere of the cerebral
cortex or the other.
learning disability Describes a child who has difficulty understanding or
using spoken or written language or doing mathematics. To be classified as a
learning disability, the problem is not primarily the result of visual, hearing,
or motor disabilities; intellectual disability; emotional disorders; or due to
environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage.
least restrictive environment (LRE) The concept that a child with a
disability should be educated in a setting that is as similar as possible to the
one in which children who do not have a disability are educated.
leisure The pleasant times after work when individuals are free to pursue
activities and interests of their own choosing.
life expectancy The number of years that will probably be lived
by the average person born in a particular year.
life span The upper boundary of life, which is the maximum number of years
an individual can live. The maximum life span of human beings is about 120
to 125 years of age.
life-span perspective The perspective that development is lifelong,
multidimensional, multidirectional, plastic, multidisciplinary, and contextual;
that it involves growth, maintenance, and regulation; and that it is constructed
through biological, sociocultural, and individual factors working together.
limbic system A lower, subcortical system in the brain that is the seat of
emotions and experience of rewards.
long-term memory A relatively permanent type of memory that holds huge
amounts of information for a long period of time.
longitudinal approach A research strategy in which the same individuals are
studied over a period of time, usually several years or more.
M
macular degeneration A disease that involves deterioration of the macula of
the retina, which corresponds to the focal center of the visual field.
meiosis A specialized form of cell division that occurs to form eggs and
sperm (or gametes).
memory A central feature of cognitive development, pertaining to all
situations in which an individual retains information over time.
menarche A girl’s first menstruation.
menopause The complete cessation of a woman’s menstrual cycles, which
usually occurs in the late forties or early fifties.
mental age (MA) Binet’s measure of an individual’s level of mental
development, compared with that of others.
metacognition Cognition about cognition, or knowing about knowing.
metalinguistic awareness Refers to knowledge about language, such as
knowing what a preposition is or being able to discuss the sounds of a
language.
middle adulthood The developmental period beginning at approximately 40
years of age and extending to about 60 to 65 years of age.
mindset The cognitive view that individuals develop for themselves.
mitochondrial theory The theory that aging is caused by the decay of
mitochondria, tiny cellular bodies that supply energy for function, growth,
and repair.
mitosis Cellular reproduction in which the cell’s nucleus duplicates itself
with two new cells being formed, each containing the same DNA as the
parent cell, arranged in the same 23 pairs of chromosomes.
Montessori approach An educational philosophy in which children are
given considerable freedom and spontaneity in choosing activities and are
allowed to move from one activity to another as they desire.
moral development Development that involves thoughts, feelings, and
actions regarding rules and conventions about what people should do in their
interactions with other people.
morphology Units of meaning involved in word formation.
mTOR pathway A cellular pathway involving the regulation of growth and
metabolism that has been proposed as a key aspect of longevity
myelination The process by which axons are covered and insulated with a
layer of fat cells, which increases the speed at which information travels
through the nervous system.
N
natural childbirth A childbirth method in which no drugs are given to
relieve pain or assist in the birth process. The mother and her partner are
taught to use breathing methods and relaxation techniques during delivery.
naturalistic observation Observation that occurs in a real-world setting
without any attempt to manipulate the situation.
nature-nurture issue The debate about the extent to which development is
influenced by nature and by nurture. Nature refers to an organism’s
biological inheritance, nurture to its environmental experiences.
neglected children Children who are infrequently nominated as a best friend
but are not disliked by their peers.
neglectful parenting A style of parenting in which the parent is very
uninvolved in the child’s life; it is associated with children’s social
incompetence, especially a lack of self-control.
neo-Piagetians Developmentalists who have elaborated on Piaget’s theory,
giving more emphasis to how children use attention, memory, and strategies
to process information.
neuroconstructivist view Developmental perspective in which biological
processes and environmental conditions influence the brain’s development;
the brain has plasticity and is context dependent; and cognitive development
is closely linked with brain development.
neurons Nerve cells that handle information processing at the cellular level
in the brain.
nonnormative life events Unusual occurrences that have a major impact on a
person’s life. The occurrence, pattern, and sequence of these events are not
applicable to many individuals.
normal distribution A symmetrical distribution with most scores falling in
the middle of the possible range of scores and few scores appearing toward
the extremes of the range.
normative age-graded influences Biological and environmental influences
that are similar for individuals in a particular age group.
normative history-graded influences Biological and environmental
influences that are associated with history. These influences are common to
people of a particular generation.
O
object permanence The Piagetian term for understanding that objects and
events continue to exist, even when they cannot directly be seen, heard, or
touched.
operations In Piaget’s theory, these are internalized, reversible sets of actions
that allow children to do mentally what they formerly did physically.
organic intellectual disability Intellectual disability that involves some
physical damage and is caused by a genetic disorder or brain damage.
organization Piaget’s concept of grouping isolated behaviors and thoughts
into a higher-order, more smoothly functioning cognitive system.
organogenesis Organ formation that takes place during the first two months
of prenatal development.
osteoporosis A chronic condition that involves an extensive loss of bone
tissue and is the main reason many older adults walk with a marked stoop.
Women are especially vulnerable to osteoporosis.
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P
pain cry A sudden outburst of loud crying without preliminary moaning,
followed by breath holding.
palliative care Emphasized in hospice care; involves reducing pain and
suffering and helping individuals die with dignity.
Parkinson disease A chronic, progressive disease characterized by muscle
tremors, slowing of movement, and partial facial paralysis.
passive euthanasia Withholding available treatments, such as the use of life-
sustaining devices, and allowing a person to die.
perception The interpretation of what is sensed.
personal fable The part of adolescent egocentrism that involves
an adolescent’s sense of uniqueness and invincibility (or
invulnerability).
perspective taking The social cognitive process involved in assuming the
perspective of others and understanding their thoughts and feelings.
phenotype The way an individual’s genotype is expressed in observed and
measurable characteristics.
phonics approach The idea that reading instruction should teach the basic
rules for translating written symbols into sounds.
phonology The sound system of a language, including the sounds used and
how they may be combined.
Piaget’s theory The theory that children construct their understanding of the
world and go through four stages of cognitive development.
pituitary gland An important endocrine gland that controls growth and
regulates other glands, including the gonads.
popular children Children who are frequently nominated as a best friend and
are rarely disliked by their peers.
postconventional reasoning The highest level in Kohlberg’s theory of moral
development. At this level, the individual recognizes alternative moral
courses, explores the options, and then decides on a personal moral code
postformal thought Thinking that is reflective, relativistic, and contextual;
provisional; realistic; and influenced by emotions.
postpartum period The period after childbirth when the mother adjusts, both
physically and psychologically, to the process of childbearing. This period
lasts for about six weeks or until her body has completed its adjustment and
returned to a nearly prepregnant state.
practice play Play that involves repetition of behavior when new skills are
being learned or when physical or mental mastery and coordination of skills
are required for games or sports.
pragmatics The appropriate use of language in different contexts.
preconventional reasoning The lowest level in Kohlberg’s theory of moral
development. The individual’s moral reasoning is controlled primarily by
external rewards and punishment.
preoperational stage Piaget’s second stage, lasting from about 2 to 7 years
of age, during which children begin to represent the world with words,
images, and drawings, and symbolic thought goes beyond simple connections
of sensory information and physical action; stable concepts are formed,
mental reasoning emerges, egocentrism is present, and magical beliefs are
constructed.
prepared childbirth Developed by French obstetrician Ferdinand Lamaze,
this childbirth strategy is similar to natural childbirth but includes a special
breathing technique to control pushing in the final stages of labor and more
detailed anatomy and physiology instruction.
pretense/symbolic play Play in which the child transforms the physical
environment into a symbol.
Project Head Start A government-funded program that is designed to
provide children from low-income families the opportunity to acquire the
skills and experiences important for school success.
proximodistal pattern Developmental sequence in which growth starts at
the center of the body and moves toward the extremities.
psychoanalytic theories Theories holding that development depends
primarily on the unconscious mind and is heavily couched in emotion, that
behavior is merely a surface characteristic, that it is important to analyze the
symbolic meanings of behavior, and that early experiences are important in
development.
psychoanalytic theory of gender A theory deriving from Freud’s view that
the preschool child develops a sexual attraction to the opposite-sex parent, by
approximately 5 or 6 years of age renounces this attraction because of
anxious feelings, and subsequently identifies with the same-sex parent,
unconsciously adopting the same-sex parent’s characteristics.
puberty A brain-neuroendocrine process occurring primarily in early
adolescence that provides stimulation for the rapid physical changes that
occur in this period of development.
R
rapport talk Use of conversation to establish connections and maintain
relationships.
reciprocal socialization Socialization that is bidirectional, meaning that
children socialize parents, just as parents socialize children.
reflexive smile A smile that does not occur in response to external stimuli. It
appears during the first month after birth, usually during sleep.
rejected children Children who are infrequently nominated as a best friend
and are actively disliked by their peers.
report talk Talk that is designed to convey information.
rite of passage A ceremony or ritual that marks an individual’s transition
from one status to another. Most rites of passage focus on the transition to
adult status.
romantic love Also called passionate love, or eros; romantic love has strong
sexual and infatuation components and often predominates in the early period
of a love relationship.
S
scaffolding Process in which parents time interactions so that infants
experience turn-taking with their parents.
schemes In Piaget’s theory, actions or mental representations that organize
knowledge.
secure attachment style An attachment style that describes adults who have
positive views of relationships, find it easy to get close to others, and are not
overly concerned or stressed out about their romantic relationships.
securely attached babies Babies that use the caregiver as a secure base from
which to explore their environment.
selective optimization with compensation theory The theory that
successful aging involves three main factors: selection, optimization, and
compensation.
self-concept Domain-specific evaluations of the self.
self-efficacy The belief that one can master a situation and produce favorable
outcomes.
self-esteem The global evaluative dimension of the self. Self-esteem is also
referred to as self-worth or self-image.
self-understanding The child’s cognitive representation of self, the
substance and content of the child’s self-conceptions.
semantic memory A person’s knowledge about the world—including a
person’s fields of expertise, general academic knowledge of the sort learned
in school, and “everyday knowledge.”
semantics The meaning of words and sentences.
sensation The product of the interaction between information and the sensory
receptors—the eyes, ears, tongue, nostrils, and skin.
sensorimotor play Behavior engaged in by infants to derive pleasure from
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exercising their existing sensorimotor schemes.
sensorimotor stage The first of Piaget’s stages, which lasts from birth to
about 2 years of age; during this stage, infants construct an understanding of
the world by coordinating sensory experiences with motoric actions.
separation protest An infant’s distressed crying when the caregiver leaves.
seriation The concrete operation that involves ordering stimuli along a
quantitative dimension (such as length).
service learning A form of education that promotes social
responsibility and service to the community.
sexually transmitted infections (STIs) Infections contracted primarily
through sexual contact, including oral-genital and anal-genital contact.
short-term memory The memory component in which individuals retain
information for up to 30 seconds, assuming there is no rehearsal of the
information.
sirtuins A family of proteins that have been linked to longevity, regulation of
mitochondrial functioning in energy, potential benefits of calorie restriction,
resistance to stress, and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer.
slow-to-warm-up child A child who has a low activity level, is somewhat
negative, and displays a low intensity of mood.
social cognitive theory The theory that behavior, environment, and
person/cognitive factors are important in understanding development.
social cognitive theory of gender A theory emphasizing that children’s
gender development occurs through the observation and imitation of gender
behavior and through the rewards and punishments children experience for
gender-appropriate and gender-inappropriate behavior.
social constructivist approach An approach that emphasizes the social
contexts of learning and that knowledge is mutually built and constructed.
Vygotsky’s theory reflects this approach.
social conventional reasoning Thoughts about social consensus and
convention, in contrast with moral reasoning, which stresses ethical issues.
social play Play that involves social interactions with peers.
social policy A national government’s course of action designed to promote
the welfare of its citizens.
social referencing “Reading” emotional cues in others to help determine how
to act in a particular situation.
social role theory A theory that gender differences result from the
contrasting roles of men and women.
social smile A smile in response to an external stimulus, which, early in
development, typically is a face.
socioeconomic status (SES) Refers to the conceptual grouping of people
with similar occupational, educational, and economic characteristics.
socioemotional processes Changes in an individual’s relationships with
other people, emotions, and personality.
socioemotional selectivity theory The theory that older adults become more
selective about their social networks. Because they place a high value on
emotional satisfaction, older adults often prefer to spend time with familiar
individuals with whom they have had rewarding relationships.
stability-change issue The debate about the degree to which early traits and
characteristics persist through life or change.
stagnation Sometimes called “self-absorption,” this state of mind develops
when individuals sense that they have done little or nothing for the next
generation; this is the negative side of Erikson’s middle adulthood stage of
generativity versus stagnation.
standardized test A test that is given with uniform procedures for
administration and scoring.
stereotype threat Anxiety that one’s behavior might confirm a negative
stereotype about one’s group, such as an ethnic group.
Strange Situation An observational measure of infant attachment that
requires the infant to move through a series of introductions, separations, and
reunions with the caregiver and an adult stranger in a prescribed order.
stranger anxiety An infant’s fear and wariness of strangers that typically
appears in the second half of the first year of life.
strategies Deliberate mental activities designed to improve the processing of
information.
sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) A condition that occurs when an
infant stops breathing, usually during the night, and suddenly dies without an
apparent cause.
sustained attention Also referred to as vigilance; involves focused and
extended engagement with an object, task, event, or other aspect of the
environment.
symbolic function substage Piaget’s first substage of preoperational thought,
in which the child gains the ability to mentally represent an object that is not
present (between about 2 and 4 years of age).
syntax The ways words are combined to form acceptable phrases and
sentences.
T
telegraphic speech The use of short and precise words without grammatical
markers such as articles, auxiliary verbs, and other connectives.
temperament An individual’s behavioral style and characteristic way of
responding emotionally.
tend-and-befriend Taylor’s view that when women experience stress, they
are more likely to seek social alliances with others, especially female friends.
teratogen Any agent that can potentially cause a birth defect or negatively
alter cognitive and behavioral outcomes.
theory A coherent set of ideas that helps to explain data and to make
predictions.
theory of mind Refers to the awareness of one’s own mental processes and
the mental processes of others.
thinking Manipulating and transforming information in memory.
top-dog phenomenon The circumstance of moving from the top position in
elementary school to the lowest position in middle or junior high school.
transgender A broad term that refers to individuals whose gender identity or
behavior is either completely or partially at odds with the sex into which they
were born.
transitivity The ability to logically combine relations to understand certain
conclusions.
triarchic theory of intelligence Sternberg’s theory that intelligence consists
of analytical intelligence, creative intelligence, and practical intelligence.
twin study A study in which the behavioral similarity of identical twins is
compared with the behavioral similarity of fraternal twins.
V
visual preference method A method developed by Fantz to determine
whether infants can distinguish one stimulus from another by measuring the
length of time they attend to different stimuli.
Vygotsky’s theory A sociocultural cognitive theory that emphasizes how
culture and social interaction guide cognitive development.
W
whole-language approach An approach to reading instruction based on the
idea that instruction should parallel children’s natural language learning.
Reading materials should be whole and meaningful.
wisdom Expert knowledge about the practical aspects of life that permits
excellent judgment about important matters.
working memory Closely related to short-term memory but places more
emphasis on mental work. Working memory is like a mental “workbench”
where individuals can manipulate and assemble information when making
decisions, solving problems, and deciphering written and spoken language.
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Z
zone of proximal development (ZPD) Vygotsky’s term for tasks that are too
difficult for children to master alone but can be mastered with assistance.
Page R-1
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Page NI-1
Name Index
A
Abbink, M. R., 385
Abbott, A. E., 205
AbouAssi, H., 390
Abulizi, X., 119
Abu-Rayya, H. M., 286
Abu Snineh, M., 424
Accornero, V. H., 59, 60
Acock, A. C., 157
Adams, A., 151
Adams, B. G., 110, 112, 286
Adams, J., 343
Adams, M. L., 4
Adams, R., 241
Adams, R. G., 418
Adesman, A., 303
Adkins, D. E., 301
Adler, J. M., 284
Adler, R., 321
Adlof, E. W., 385
Adolph, K. E., 78, 86, 88, 89, 91–93, 98, 100, 101, 126
Affleck, W., 336
Afifi, T. O., 181
Agahi, N., 434
Agerup, T., 289
Agostini, C., 96
Agras, W. S., 273, 274
Agricola, E., 64
Agrigoroaei, S., 347, 366, 368, 371
Ahern, E., 155
Ahern, E. C., 155, 156
Ahmadi, F., 361
Ahn, H. Y., 96
Ahun, M. N., 110, 112
Aichele, S., 357, 396
Ainsworth, M. D. S., 128
Ajetunmobi, O. M., 84
Akbari, A., 84
Akbarzadeh, M., 68
Akbulut, V., 313
Akers, K. G., 385
Akhtar, N., 161
Akinsola, E. F., 9
Akiyama, H., 418
Aksglaede, L., 45
Al Alwan, I. A., 258
Alarcon, C., 164
Albar-Almazan, A., 349
Alberga, A. S., 269
Alber-Morgan, S., 206, 219
Albert, D., 277
Albert, R. R., 106
Alberto, P. A., 206
Alberts, E., 276
Alcover, C. M., 402
Aldercotte, A., 184
Alegret, M., 406
Alexander, C. P., 114, 135
Alexander, G. E., 38
Alexander, K. W., 155
Alexander, R. A., 221, 222
Alfredsson, J., 380, 381
Al-Ghanim, K. A., 239
Allameh, Z., 68
Alleman, J., 246
Allemand, M., 413
Allen, A. P., 390, 395
Allen, D. B., 141
Allen, G. D., 361
Allen, H. A., 387
Allen, J., 16, 296, 364
Allen, J. O., 419
Allen, J. P., 288, 289, 294
Allen, K., 8
Allen, M., 211
Allen, S., 264
Allen, T. D., 324
Alley, J., 262, 293, 316
Allwood, C. M., 211
Alm, B., 83
Al Mamun, A., 269, 270
Almas, A., 172
Almeida, D. M., 367
Almeida, M. J., 406
Almeida, N. D., 63
Almont, T., 354
Almquist, Y. B., 242
Almy, B., 16, 17, 33, 50, 116, 130, 131, 134, 156, 177, 181, 183, 184, 231,
304, 326, 396
Alonzo, M., 14
Alonzo-Fernandez, M., 412
Alves, M. V., 266
Alzahabi, R., 298
Amado, C. A., 414
Amador-Campos, J. A., 204
Amano, T., 421
Amare, A. T., 40
Amato, P. R., 186
Ambrose, D., 220
Amole, M. C., 30
Amrithraj, A. I., 61
Amsterdam, B. K., 124
Anagnostopoulos, F., 370, 413
Andel, R., 359
Andersen, S. L., 381
Anderson, D. R., 93
Anderson, E., 241
Anderson, E. R., 337
Anderson, G. J., 387
Anderson, M., 5, 299
Anderson, M. A., 415
Anderson, P. A., 342
Anderson, R. C., 223
Anderson, S. E., 85
Anderson, W. A., 418
Andersson, G., 352
Andersson, H., 359
Andersson, T. E., 420
Andescavage, N. N., 54
Anding, J. E., 74
Andreas, J. B., 299
Andrew, N., 10
Andrews, S. J., 155, 156
Andriani, H., 201
Angel, J. L., 420
Angel, L., 401
Angelotta, C., 60
Anglin, D. M., 286, 287
Anguera, J. A., 400
Anguiano, R. M., 5, 190
Ansari, A., 164, 332, 383
Anson, E., 387
Antfolk, J., 175, 241
Anthony, C. J., 186
Anthony, M., 385
Antonenko, D., 401
Antonucci, T. C., 14, 16, 17, 376, 377, 410, 417–421
Antovich, D. M., 223
Anupama, N., 383
Apatoff, M. B. L., 388
Apostolaris, N. H., 177
Appel, M., 276
Appelbaum, P. S., 60, 426
Apter, D., 264
Arabi, A. M. E., 66
Araujo, K., 263
Araujo, L., 13
Arba-Mosquera, S., 349
Archangeli, C., 210
Ardelt, M., 365
Ariceli, G., 273
Arkes, J., 186
Armour, M., 68
Armstrong, B., 144, 145
Armstrong, L. M., 121
Arnell, K. M., 298
Arnett, J. J., 12, 285, 306, 308
Aron, A., 30, 31
Aron, E. N., 30, 31
Aronson, A., 297
Aronson, E., 250
Aronson, J., 218
Arriaga, X. B., 288, 326
Arrieta, H., 421
Arseneault, L., 244
Arseth, A., 286
Arterberry, M. E., 98
Ary, D., 28, 30, 34
Ashcraft, A. M., 263
Ashcraft, M. H., 22, 154, 209
Asher, S. R., 242
Ashman, M., 384
Aslin, R., 100, 101, 107
Aslin, R. N., 93, 96
Aslund, C., 288
Assini-Meytin, L. C., 266
Asthana, D., 384
Atkins, R., 280
Attar-Schwartz, S., 375
Attrill-Smith, A., 329
Aubuchon-Endsley, N., 62
Audesirk, G., 37
Audesirk, T., 37
Aune, D., 311
Austin, J. P., 131
Avalon, L., 413
Avila, A. I., 382
Avis, N. E., 353
Avvenuti, G., 370
Aylwin, C. F., 259
Ayoub, C., 164
Ayoub, M., 371
Azagba, S., 410
Azar, S., 46
B
Babbie, E. R., 28
Baca Zinn, M., 340
Bacchi, M., 65
Bach, L. E., 354
Bachman, J. G., 272
Bachmeier, C., 405
Bacikova-Sleskova, M., 186
Backman, H., 267
Backman, L., 16, 385, 398
Bacon, J. L., 67
Bacso, S. A., 228
Badahdah, A. M., 239
Baddeley, A. D., 208, 209, 357, 396
Bader, L. R., 184
Bae, H. S., 222
Bagwell, C. L., 245, 291
Bahmaee, A. B., 163
Bahrick, L. E., 97
Bai, K., 398
Baiardini, I., 370
Bail, K., 414
Bailey, H. R., 396
Baillargeon, R., 100, 158
Bain, K., 326
Baird, D., 382
Bajanowski, T., 83
Bajoghli, H., 329
Bakeman, R., 72
Baker, B., 373
Baker, B. L., 133, 172
Baker, D. J., 390
Baker, J. H., 260, 273
Baker, J. K., 172
Baker, M. J., 46
Baker, P. N., 265
Bakermans-Kranenburg, M., 131
Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., 49, 130
Bakhtiari, F., 279
Bakken, J. P., 191
Bakker, A. B., 367
Bakondi, B., 388
Bakota, L., 384
Bakusic, J., 49
Balantekin, K. N., 291
Balazs, M. A., 272
Balfour, G. M., 83
Ball, C. L., 172, 189
Ballane, G., 391
Ballou, D., 247
Balsam, K. F., 338
Baltes, P. B., 4–6, 13, 16, 347, 397, 399, 412
Balzer, B. W., 258
Bamaca-Colbert, M., 288
Banati, P., 7, 9
Banducci, S. E., 395
Bandura, A., 23, 24, 39, 174, 175, 229, 234, 421
Banerjee, M., 44
Bangerter, L. R., 13, 30, 427
Banja, J., 430
Page NI-2
Banks, J. A., 248
Banks, M. S., 93
Bannon, B. L., 365
Baptista, F., 269
Baptista, J., 123, 133
Barakat, R., 65
Barbaro, N., 38
Barber, B. L., 10, 298
Bardeen, J. R., 211
Bardikoff, N., 276
Barger, M., 64
Bargh, J. A., 330
Barker, R., 242
Barkin, C., 303
Barlow, E., 264
Barnes, A., 244
Barnes, J., 265
Barnett, L. M., 143
Barnett, M., 118
Barnett, W. S., 164, 165
Baron, N. S., 111
Baron, S., 393
Barr, E. M., 267
Barr, R., 102
Barrett, T., 90
Barron, J., 392
Barry, J. A., 368
Barry, M., 264
Barry, M. J., 151
Barstead, M., 16, 241, 244, 291
Bartel, A. P., 114, 134
Bartholomew, A. N., 395
Bartick, M. C., 84
Bartl, H., 432
Barton, M., 269
Barzilay, S., 303
Baskaran, C., 145
Bass, N., 404
Bas-Sarmiento, P., 190
Bassett, H. H., 230
Basso, O., 33
Bastaitis, K., 187
Batel, S., 246
Bates, J. E., 24, 119–122
Bateson, P., 24
Bathory, E., 82
Batis, J. A., 421
Baucknecht, M., 404
Baudry, S., 396
Bauer, P., 211
Bauer, P. J., 104, 105, 154, 156, 209, 210
Baugh, N., 62
Baumeister, R. F., 228, 229
Baumrind, D., 178
Baur, K., 316
Bavelier, D., 154
Bavishi, C., 321
Baye, K., 85
Beal, M. A., 64
Bearman, S. K., 259
Beaver, K. M., 301
Beaver, N., 163
Bebeau, M., 234
Bechi Gabrielli, G., 394
Becht, A., 288
Becht, A. I., 33
Beck, L. A., 328
Beck, T. L., 297
Becker, D. R., 156
Becker, M. W., 298
Bedford, R., 116, 374
Bednar, R. L., 229
Beghetto, R. A., 211
Beguin, M., 222
Behrens, H., 221
Beier, K. M., 183
Beland, D., 414
Belenko, S, 303
Bell, K. A., 102
Bell, M. A., 79, 115–117, 142, 153
Bell, M. F., 11, 29, 79, 100, 101, 115, 142, 183
Bell, R. A., 415
Bell, S. P., 33
Belleville, S., 5, 399
Belling, K., 45
Bellini, C. V., 96
Bellmore, A., 290
Belon, K., 270
Belsky, D. W., 230
Belsky, J., 120, 123, 130, 132
Beltran-Catalan, M., 243
Beltran-Sanchez, H., 381
Beltz, A. M., 316
Ben-Artzi, E., 222, 223
Benck, L. R., 350
Benders, M. J. N. L., 54
Bendersky, M., 92, 93
Bendezu, J. J., 172, 287, 300
Benenson, J. F., 177
Benetos, A., 14, 25, 30, 382, 390
Benitez, V. L., 153
Benjamin, C. F., 80
Benka, J., 186
Benner, A. D., 279
Bennett, C. I., 248
Bennett, J. M., 351
Bennett, K. M., 416
Bennett, N., 353, 390
Benson, J. E., 159
Benson, P. L., 257
Benson, R., 420
Benyi, E., 258
Berardi, A., 395
Bercovitz, K. E., 14, 421
Berenbaum, S. A., 134, 235–237, 316
Berenguer, C., 159
Berg, A. I., 434
Berg, N., 323
Berge, J. M., 269
Bergen, D., 192, 193
Berger, S. E., 88
Bergeron, K. E., 229
Berglind, D., 195
Bergman, L. R., 359
Berke, D. S., 238
Berko, J., 160
Berko Gleason, J., 221, 222
Berlyne, D. E., 192
Berman, M. G., 156
Berman, R. S., 297
Bernard, J. Y., 84
Bernard, K., 128, 131, 328
Bernardo, S., 56
Berndt, T. J., 245
Berne, J., 285
Bernier, A., 79, 157
Bernier, E. P., 101
Bernstein, J. H., 276
Bernstein, R. E., 288
Berntson, J., 351
Berry-Kravis, E., 45
Berryman, N., 397
Bersamin, M. M., 313
Berscheid, E., 328, 329, 331
Bertenthal, B. I., 94
Bertoni, A., 181
Bervoets, J., 212
Besser, A. G., 46
Betts, K. S., 63
Beyene, Y., 352
Beyers, W., 306, 307
Bhatt, R. S., 104, 105
Bialystok, E., 223, 224
Bian, Z., 387
Bianco, S., 433
Bibbo, J., 392
Bick, J., 81, 82, 101
Biddle, S. J. H., 200
Biehle, S. N., 132
Biernat, M., 236
Bigelow, J. H., 166
Bigler, R. S., 175, 236
Bijur, P. E., 360
Billeci, L., 30
Binder, E. B., 17, 41, 49
Bindler, R. C., 68
Birch, L. L., 291
Birch, S. A., 158, 170
Birditt, K. S., 337, 376, 417
Birkeland, M. S., 228
Birman, B. F., 247
Birmingham, R. S., 117, 131
Birnbaum, J. H., 383
Biro, A., 403
Bischof, G., 405
Bischoff, K. E., 425
Bjorkenstam, C., 302
Bjorkenstam, E., 302
Bjorklund, D. F., 25, 38
Black, A. A., 387
Black, J. J., 260
Black, M. M., 85, 142–146
Blackwell, L. S., 253
Blair, C., 152, 156, 157, 171, 172, 212, 230
Blair, S. N., 391
Blake, J. S., 6, 84, 85, 143, 200, 267, 311
Blakemore, J. E. O., 134, 235–237
Blaker, N. M., 38
Blanchard-Fields, F., 419
Blanck, H. M., 311
Blank, M. F., 383
Blankenburg, H., 43, 381
Blau, H. M., 382
Blaye, A., 21, 153, 276
Blayney, J. A., 313
Blazer, D. G., 403
Bleckwenn, M., 405
Bleys, D., 302
Blieszner, R., 374, 418
Blieszner, R. A., 16, 328, 329, 342, 343, 416, 418
Bloom, B., 220, 221
Bloom, L., 108
Blumel, J. E., 353
Boardman, J. P., 30, 93
Boccardi, V., 406
Bode, P., 8, 189, 190, 248, 250, 297
Bodrova, E., 152, 192, 212
Boelen, P. A., 370
Boespflug, E. L., 400
Bogusz, H., 427
Bohlin, G., 118
Boivin, M., 191, 241, 290
Bol, T., 375
Bombard, J. M., 83
Bonanno, G. A., 323
Bonanno, R. A., 244
Bonazzo, C., 280
Bond, V. L., 140
Bonfiglio, T., 399
Bonney, C. R., 210
Bonzano. S., 385
Booker, J. A., 172
Boonstra, H., 267
Booth, A., 105
Booth, D. A., 96
Booth, M., 179, 295
Booth-Laforce, C., 191
Boothroyd, R., 431
Boraxbekk, C. J., 395
Borchert, J., 94
Bordoni, L., 44
Borella, E., 396
Borelli, J. L., 337
Borghuis, J., 368
Borgquist, S., 352
Borich, G. D., 246
Borneman, M. J., 218
Bornick, P., 60
Bornstein, M. H., 98, 99, 289
Borowsky, I. W., 245
Borraz-Leon, J. I., 38
Borrelli, A., 383
Borsa, V. M., 385
Boschen, K. E., 57
Bouchard, T. J., 37
Boudreau, J. P., 90
Boukhris, T., 63
Boundy, E. O., 71
Bourassa, K. J., 336, 398
Bourgin, D. D., 38
Boutot, E. A., 205
Boutsikou, T., 266
Bovbjerg, M. L., 68
Bovee, J. V. M. G., 44
Bower, A. R., 175
Bowker, J., 176
Bowlby, J., 25, 127
Boyatzis, R. E., 414
Boyd, M., 262
Boylan, J. M., 390
Boyle, A. E., 279
Boyle, O. F., 224
Braccio, S., 61
Bradbury, T. N., 334
Brainerd, C. J., 210
Braithwaite, D. W., 21, 153, 208, 209, 275, 357
Braithwaite, S., 333, 334
Brand, J., 358
Brandon, A. R., 265
Brandt, R., 384
Branje, S., 288
Brannon, L., 236
Brannstrom, L., 242
Bransford, J., 246
Brassen, S., 410
Bratke, H., 259
Bratt, C., 414
Braun, R. T., 10
Braun, S. S., 176
Braungart-Rieker, J. M., 115, 119
Braver, S. L., 186, 336, 337
Brawner, C. A., 391
Bredekamp, S., 140, 162, 163, 165, 192
Breen, L. J., 432, 433
Brefka, S., 387
Breiner, K., 276, 277
Brember, I., 229
Bremner, A. J., 97, 100
Bremner, J. G., 98
Brent, D. A., 302
Brent, R. L., 61
Breslau, J., 301
Bretherton, I., 118, 128
Brewster, G. S., 389
Briana, D. D., 61
Bridges, J. S., 376
Bridgett, D. J., 118
Brietzke, M., 297
Brigham, M., 206
Briley, D. A., 369
Brim, G., 347
Brim, O., 354, 360, 372
Brimah, P., 310
Brindis, C. D., 264
Brinkman-Stoppelenburg, A., 424
Page NI-3
Brinskma, D. M., 71
Brinton, B., 161
Brockmeyer, T., 272
Brodribb, W., 85
Brody, G. H., 262
Brody, L. R., 238
Brody, N., 215, 218
Brody, R. M., 315
Broekman, B. F., 83
Broesch, T., 111
Broihier, H. T., 82
Bromley, D., 227
Bronfenbrenner, U., 25, 26
Bronstein, P., 176
Brook, J. S., 290
Brooker, R., 40
Brooks, J. G., 210
Brooks, M. G., 210
Brooks, R., 102
Brooks-Gunn, J., 9, 124, 136, 154, 258, 260
Broomell, A. P. R., 115, 117, 142
Brophy, J., 246
Brothers, A., 345
Broughton, J., 108
Brown, B. B., 189, 191, 291, 292, 295
Brown, C. L., 399
Brown, C. S., 175, 176
Brown, E. A., 425
Brown, H. L., 59
Brown, J. E., 84, 85
Brown, J. V., 72
Brown, L., 110, 111, 183, 352
Brown, M. T., 403
Brown, Q. L., 60
Brown, R., 111, 145
Brown, S., 419
Brown, S. L., 416, 417
Brown, S. M., 58
Brownawell, A. M., 399
Browne, T. K., 56
Brownell, C. A., 116, 126, 128
Browning, C., 10
Bruce, M. L., 403
Bruck, M., 155, 156
Bruckner, S., 109
Brumariu, L. E., 240
Brummelman, J. E., 229
Brummelte, S., 71, 73
Brunborg, G. S., 299
Brusseau, T. A, 199
Bryant, C., 352
Bryant, G. A., 111
Bryant, R. A., 432
Bryson, S. E., 159
Bub, K. L., 117, 131
Buchanan, A., 135
Buchman, A. S., 392
Buck, M., 134
Budge, S. L., 8, 343
Budner, R., 346
Buhl, H. M., 306
Buhrmester, D., 291
Bui, E., 431
Buiting, H. M., 426
Bukowski, R., 62
Bukowski, W. M., 176, 191, 242, 245, 290, 291
Bulanda, J. R., 417
Bullard, J., 7
Bullock, M., 124
Bumpus, M. F., 288
Buratti, S., 211
Burchinal, M., 135, 136
Bureau, J. F., 288
Burgette, J. M., 164
Burkitt, I., 115
Burleson, G. R., 384
Burnett, A. C., 70
Burnette, C. B., 259
Burnham, D., 50
Burns, R. A., 10
Burr, J. A., 419
Burt, K., 10
Burton, E., 392
Burton, G. J., 52
Buss, D. M., 38
Busse, E. W., 403
Bussey, K., 175
Butler, R. N., 409
Butler, Y. G., 224
Butler-Barnes, S. T., 286
Butrica, B. A., 416
Butterfield, D. A., 405
Butterfill, C., 90
Butts, B., 41
Buzgova, R., 410
Byers, B. E., 37
Byne, W., 343
Bynner, J. M., 307
C
Cabeza, R., 386
Cabrera, M. A., 405
Cabrera, N. J., 114, 134, 135
Cacioppo, J. T., 330
Cage, J., 183
Cahill, K. E., 358, 414
Cahill, M., 402
Cain, M. A., 60
Cain, M. S., 298
Caino, S., 78
Cairncross, M., 204
Calero, M. D., 5, 397–399, 421
Calkins, S. D., 79, 115, 116, 119, 122, 125, 126, 171, 172, 230
Callaghan, M. E., 385
Callahan, C. M., 406
Callan, J. E., 175
Calvert, S. L., 194, 195
Calvo-Garcia, M. A., 55
Calzada, E. J., 177, 297
Camacho, D. E., 279
Cambron, C., 272
Camerota, M., 59
Camicioli, R., 424
Campbell, B., 215
Campbell, K. L., 401
Campbell, L., 215
Campbell, W. K., 269
Campione-Barr, N., 184
Campos, J., 117, 119
Campos, J. J., 89
Canfield, J., 394
Cangelli Filho, R., 274
Cangelosi, A., 23
Canivez, G. L., 214
Cantarella, A., 396, 399
Cantone, E., 245
Cantor, N., 156
Cao, Q., 278
Cao Van, H., 96
Capaldi, D. M., 293
Caplan, M. A., 390
Capone Singleton, N., 112
Caprara, G. V., 370
Caprara, M. G., 421
Carbajal-Valenzuela, C. C., 118, 119
Card, N. A., 238
Cardoso, C., 58
Carey, S., 159
Carlin, R. E., 83, 84
Carlo, G., 178, 235, 236
Carlson, M., 55
Carlson, M. J., 132
Carlson, N. S., 67
Carlson, S. M., 212
Carlson Jones, D., 259
Carlsson, A. C., 350
Carlton, M. P., 151
Carmichael, V., 336
Carmona, S., 405
Carney, A. K., 366
Carpendale, J. I., 101, 158
Carpendale, J. I. M., 124, 243
Carr, D., 419, 421, 434
Carroll, A. E., 245
Carroll, J. L., 262, 264
Carskadon, M. A., 270
Carson, V., 195
Carstensen, L. L., 3, 4, 14, 366, 411–413, 418, 421, 422
Carta, J. J., 136
Carter, A. S., 205
Carter, S. L., 206
Case, R., 208
Casey, B. J., 142, 261
Casillas, A., 296
Casper, D. M., 238
Caspers, K. M., 49
Caspi, A., 49, 371
Cassidy, J., 16, 128
Cassina, M., 57
Castagne, R., 384
Castel, A. D., 395
Castellano-Castillo, D., 41
Castellvi, P., 302
Castillo, M., 273
Catalano, P. M., 84
Cataldo, D. M., 109
Cauffman, E., 299
Caughy, M., 250
Causadias, J. M., 115, 116
Cavanagh, S. E., 260
Cazzato, V., 273
Ceci, S. J., 155, 156, 217
Cercignani, M., 80
Cerillo-Urbina, A. J., 204
Cesari, M., 391
Cespedes, M. I., 405
Cha, S., 263
Chae, S. Y., 64
Chalupa, L. M., 385
Champagne, M. C., 287
Chan, G. C., 272
Chan, M. Y., 399
Chandler, M. J., 158
Chandra, A., 313, 315
Chandra-Mouli, V., 264
Chang, A. C. Y., 382
Chang, C., 381
Chang, E. C., 370
Chang, H. Y., 63
Chang, M. W., 145
Chang, V. W., 414
Chao, R. K., 179
Chaplin, T. M., 272
Charles, S. T., 367, 368
Charlton, B. M., 263
Charness, N., 349, 357
Charney, E., 47
Charpak, N., 71
Chase-Lansdale, P. L., 9, 136
Chasnoff, I. J., 60
Chatterjee, D., 16
Chatterton, Z., 41
Chaudry, A., 296
Chavarria, M. C., 261
Chavez, R. S., 159
Chein, J., 260, 261, 277
Chemla, E., 101
Chen, C., 251, 252
Chen, F. R., 260
Chen, J., 260, 301
Chen, J-Q., 215, 216
Chen, L., 16, 175, 176, 294
Chen, L. C., 86
Chen, L. W., 58, 145, 410
Chen, P. J., 44, 65, 97, 98
Chen, R., 131
Chen, S. W., 276
Chen, X., 16, 175, 176, 294
Cheng, H. M., 389
Cheng, N., 157, 172
Cheng, S-T., 421
Cheng, T. C., 335, 372
Cheon, Y. M., 286
Cheong, J. I., 260
Cheong, J. L. Y., 56
Cherlin, A. J., 241, 332, 334
Chervin, R. D., 310
Chess, S., 120
Cheung, C. S., 252
Chevalier, N., 21, 153, 155, 276
Cheyney, M., 68
Chhaya, R., 30, 93
Chhetri, J., 405
Chi, M. T., 209
Chi, N. C., 426, 427
Chiaramonte, D., 352
Chikritzhs, T., 272
Childers, J. B., 161
Chin, B., 351
Chin, K. J., 67
Chinn, P. C., 297
Chiocca, E. M., 180
Chiou, W. B., 276
Chiu, H. L., 396
Cho, D., 391
Cho, G. E., 228
Choi, D. H., 407
Choi, H., 372
Choi, Y., 349
Choi, Y. J., 124
Chomsky, N., 109
Chopik, W. J., 327, 368, 370, 371, 417
Chor, E., 164
Chou, C. C., 204
Choudhri, A. F., 56
Choukas-Bradley, S., 264, 291
Chow, A. Y., 432
Christ, S. L., 302
Christen, M., 234
Christensen, D. L., 205
Christensen, K., 17, 416, 418
Christodoulou, J., 102
Chu, F. W., 209
Chung, S. J., 269, 406
Chung, S. T., 201
Cicchetti, D., 16, 17, 33, 50, 116, 130, 131, 134, 177, 181–184, 231, 240,
304, 326
Cicek, D., 257
Cicirelli, V., 374, 417
Cigler, H., 217
Cillessen, A. H. N., 191, 242
Cimarolli, V. R., 387
Claes, H. I., 353
Clark, C. D., 192
Clark, E. V., 106, 110, 112, 159, 160, 221
Clark, J. E., 86
Clarke-Stewart, A. K., 134, 136, 186, 188
Claro, S., 253
Clausen, M., 310
Cleal, K., 382
Clearfield, M. W., 100
Cleary, T. J., 279
Clegg, J. M., 38
Clements, J. M., 425
Cleveland, M. J., 181
Clevers, H., 52
Clifton, R. K., 90, 97
Cnattingius, S., 62
Coatsworth, J. D., 10
Coetsee, C., 392, 396, 400
Cohen, A. A., 382
Cohen, A. O., 142, 261
Page NI-4
Cohen, J. R., 301
Cohen, P., 307, 346
Cohen, R., 244, 321
Cohen, V., 278
Cohen, W. R., 66
Coie, J., 243
Coker, T. R., 195
Colcombe, S. J., 401
Cole, M., 313
Cole, M. A., 348
Cole, P. M., 115, 116, 121, 122, 125, 171, 172, 230
Cole, T. J., 258
Cole, W. G., 89
Coleman, A. M., 425
Coleman, M., 240, 241, 337, 416
Coleman, P. D., 385
Colen, C. G., 84
Coley, R. L., 136, 190, 248, 296
Collene, A., 144, 268, 311
Collene, A. L., 143, 144, 200
Collins, W. A., 242, 289
Comalli, D. M., 86
Comer, J., 250
Comhaire, F., 353
Compton, W. M., 60
Conger, K. J., 184
Conger, R. D., 370
Conlin, S. E., 338
Connelly, B. S., 218
Conner, T. S., 369
Connolly, H. L., 238
Connolly, J. A., 292
Connolly, M. D., 343
Conroy, D. E., 387
Conry-Murray, C., 177
Consedine, N. S., 5
Consoli, A., 302
Constantinescu, M., 390
Conway, B. N., 10
Conway, L. J., 46
Cook, R., 177
Cook, R. E., 206
Coontz, S., 339
Cooper, C. R., 286
Cooper, M., 68
Cooperrider, K., 106
Cooter, R. B., 162, 221, 222
Copeland, C., 403, 414
Copeland, W. E., 244
Copen, C. E., 315, 333–335
Coplan, R. J., 191, 244
Copple, C., 163
Cordier, S., 64
Cordova, D., 263
Cornelissen, K. K., 273
Corona, G., 389
Correia, C., 388
Corwin, E. J., 67
Costa, I. B., 405
Costa, P. T., 369
Costa, R. M., 315
Cote, J., 307
Cote, S. M., 50
Cotelli, M., 401
Cotten, S. R., 418
Cottrell, L., 430
Cottrell, L. A., 287
Coubart, A., 101
Couch, K. A., 4, 414
Coulson, S., 109
Counsell, S. J., 54
Coups, E. J., 30, 31
Courage, M. L., 124, 298
Courtois, G., 349
Cousin, M., 245
Cousins, L., 302
Cowan, C. P., 132
Cowan, P. A., 132
Coward, R. T., 417
Cox, K. S., 365
Cox, M. J., 180
Cox, R. M., 388
Coy, K. C., 289
Coyle, A., 433
Coyne, J., 128, 129, 131, 240
Coyne, S. M., 194
Cozza, S. J., 184
Craik, F. I. M., 223
Crain, S., 222
Cramer, P., 228
Crane, J. D., 386
Craven, R., 170
Crawford, B., 41
Crawford, D., 199
Crawford, F., 405
Crede, M., 414
Creighton, G., 432
Crichlow-Ball, C., 271
Crimmins, E. M., 381
Criss, M. M., 287
Crnic, K. A., 172
Crocetti, E., 283, 285, 286, 306
Crockenberg, S. B., 115, 122
Croffut, S. E., 77
Crone, E. A., 78, 81, 260, 261, 276, 277
Crooks, C. V., 303
Crooks, R. L., 316
Crosnoe, R., 279, 280
Cross, D., 158, 244
Cross, W. E., 26
Croteau-Chonka, E. C., 81
Crouter, A. C., 186, 288
Crowe, E., 159
Crowley, J. E., 372
Crowley, K., 28
Crush, E., 398
Crush, E. A., 421
Cruz, R. A., 272
Cruz-Jentoft, A. J., 349
Csikszentmihalyi, M., 6, 319, 320
Cucina, J. M., 215
Cuevas, K., 102, 153
Cuffe, J. S., 52, 61
Culen, C., 45
Cullen, L. E., 241
Cummings, E. M., 7, 187
Cundiff, J. M., 390
Cunha, A. B., 90, 91
Cunningham, M., 324
Cunningham, P. J., 10
Cunningham, P. M., 203, 222, 246
Cunningham, S. A., 144, 268
Curl, A. L., 392, 419
Curran, K., 180
Currier, D., 65
Currier, J. M., 433
Cvencek, D., 236
Czekalla, C., 348
D
Dabholkar, A. S., 80, 81, 260
da Costa Souza, A., 41
D’Acunto, C. W., 405
Daelmans, B., 143, 145
Dagan, O., 328
Dahl, A., 133, 173, 234, 235
Dahl, R. E., 11, 142, 260, 261
Dahlberg, L., 434
Dahm, C. C., 350
Dai, R., 396
Daiello, L. A., 400
Daien, C. I., 390
Dale, B., 218
Dale, P., 108
Dale, W., 4
Daly, M., 323
Damasio, A., 106
Damian, R. I., 369, 371, 413
Damiano, S. R., 228
Damoiseaux, J. S., 401
Damon, F., 93
Damon, W., 320, 321
Daniels, C. E., 333, 334
Daniels, H., 21, 151, 246
Danielson, C. K., 232
Danilovich, M. K., 386, 387
Danovitch, J. H., 170
Dao-Fu, D., 380
Daoulah, A., 337, 433
Darcy, E., 273
D’Arcy, C., 421
Dardas, L. A., 302
Dariotis, J. K., 210
Darnell, A. J., 300
Darwin, C., 37
Datar, A., 200
Dathe, K., 58
Dato, S., 43
Dauvier, B., 21, 153, 276
Davidson, A. J., 176
Davidson, J. G. S., 388
Davidson, M., 69
Davies, A. P. C., 241
Davies, G., 216
Davies, J., 229
Davies, P. T., 187
Davies, R., 68
Davila, J., 293
Davis, A. N., 297
Davis, E. L., 172
Davis, J. C., 396
Davis, K., 286
Davis, L., 340
Davis, M. C., 386
Davis, S. F., 17
Davis, S. W., 401
Dawes, N. P., 295
Dawson-McClure, S., 300
Day, N. L., 60
Dayton, C. J., 118, 238
De, R., 44
de Abreu, C. N., 274
Dean, D. C., 79
Dean, E., 425
Dean, G. E., 389
Dearing, E., 239, 240, 249
Deary, I. J., 400
Deater-Deckard, K., 133
Deaton, A., 14, 15
de Barse, L. M., 85
de Boer, B., 109
De Bruyne, L. K., 84
DeCarlo, C. A., 345
DeCasper, A. J., 95
DeCesare. J. Z., 64
DeCosmi, V., 96
Dee, D. L., 265
Deeg, D. J. H., 347
De Genna, N. M., 59
De Giovanni, N., 59
de Graas, T., 426
de Greeff, J. W., 199
de Gregorio, C., 350
Degrelle, S. A., 56
de Haan, M., 80, 101, 199, 261, 262
de Heer, H. D., 199
DeJong, G. F., 100
Dekhtyar, S., 217
De La Fuente, M., 6, 16
Del-Aguila, J. L., 405
de la Haye, K., 245
de la Luz Martinez-Maldonado, N., 414
DeLamater, J. D., 39, 262, 333
Del Campo, M., 58
de Leo, D., 414
Del Giudice, M., 329
Del Gobbo, L. C., 389
DeLiema, M., 411
DeLisi, R., 192
Delker, B. C., 288
DeLongis, A., 337
de Magalhaes, J. P., 384
Demakakos, P., 397
Demanchick, S. P., 192
De Marchis, S., 385
Demaria, M., 382
Demby, S. L., 187
de Medeiros, T. S., 58
Demeyere, N., 354
Dempster, F. N., 155
Denard, P. J., 389
Denchi, E. L., 382
Deneris, A., 74
Denes, G., 198
Denford, S., 267
Deng, C., 252
Deng, Y., 259
Denham, S. A., 171, 230
Den Heijer, A. E., 204, 205
Denkinger, M. D., 387
Dennis, C. L., 74
Dennis, N. A., 386
de Oliveira, S. R., 79
Deoni, S., 260, 261
Deoni, S. C., 142
DePasquale, N., 416
DePaulo, B., 333
Depner, R., 426
Depolo, M., 402
Derks, D., 367
Derlan, C. L., 190
Derry, H., 351
Derry, H. M., 351
Desilver, D., 248, 251
Desparois G., 52
DeSpelder, L. A., 431
Despres, O., 395
Dette-Hagenmeyer, D. E., 114, 134
Dettori, E., 8
Deutsch, A. R., 272
Devaney, S. A., 56
de Villiers, T. J., 349
Devine, R. T., 158, 159, 170
Devinish, B., 267
De Vitis, M., 382
Devore, E. E., 389
de Weerth, C., 84
DeZolt, D. M., 238
Dhananjaya, D., 385
Diamond, A., 11, 100, 102, 212
Page NI-5
Diamond, L. M., 262, 293, 316, 337
Dias, C. C., 82
Diaz, A., 115, 116
Diaz-Rico, L. T., 224
DiBennardo, R., 338
Dickinson, D., 215
Dickinson, W. J., 418
Di Domenico, F., 383, 404
Diedrich, J. T., 264
Diego, M. A., 72
Diener, E., 15
Di Florio, A., 73
Di Giuseppe, D., 390
Dillon, M., 360
Di Luigi, L., 353
Dimaghani, M., 360
Dimitropoulos, G., 273
Dimitrova, R., 285
Dimmitt, C., 211
Dinella, L. M., 175
Ding, Y., 258
Dion, K. K., 332
Dion, K. L., 332
Dirks, M. A., 236
Dishion, T. J., 238, 272
Dittus, P. J., 287
Diwadkar, V. A., 58
Dixon, C. A., 146
Dixon, R. A., 345
Djelantik, A. A., 432
Docking, R. E., 421
Dodd, S. L., 143, 199, 201
Dodge, K. A., 243
Dodson, L. J., 241
Doenyas, C., 159
Doering, J. J., 73
Dogan, Z., 404
Dohlman, T. H., 387
Doi, S. A. R., 269, 270
Dolbin-MacNab, M. L., 374, 375
Dombrowski, S. C., 214
Dombrowsky, T. A., 421
Domenech-Abella, J., 414
Domingues, F. S., 43, 381
Domiteaux, M., 369
Donaldson, G., 354
Donatelle, R. J., 6, 144, 200, 267, 268, 310
Dong, X. S., 402
Donnellan, M. B., 370
Donovan, M. K., 267
Dooley, J., 404
Doom, J. R., 296
Dorfeshan, P., 56
Dorjee, D., 116
Dorn, L. D., 258
Dosso, J. A., 90
Dotti Sani, G. M., 239
Douglass, R. P., 338
Douglass, S., 8, 190, 286
Dow, B. J., 342
Dowda, M., 199, 200
Dowling, N. A., 326
Doydum, A., 104
Doyle, C., 182, 183
Dozier, M., 128, 129, 131
Dragano, N., 322
Dragoset, L., 8, 249
Dresser, R., 425
Drew, D. A., 398
Dryfoos, J. G., 303
D’Souza, H., 82, 86
Du, D., 262, 367
Dubal, D. B., 405
Dube, E., 52
Dube, S., 313
Dubois, J., 112
Dubol, M., 261
Dubow, E. F., 132
Due, T. D., 419
Duell, N., 8, 260
Duff, F. J., 108
Duggal, N. A., 410
Duggleby, W., 430
Duke, S. A., 258
Dumitrache, C. G., 418
Dumuid, D., 199, 200
Duncan, G. J., 7, 9, 164, 248, 296, 297
Duncan, R., 157
Dunfield, K. A., 236
Dunkel, L., 259
Dunlop, W. L., 365
Dunlosky, J., 396
Dunn, J., 184, 185, 374
Dunsmore, J. C., 172
Dupere, V., 280
Dupre, M. E., 337
Durbach, C., 326
Durrant, J. E., 181
Durston, S., 198
Dush, C. M., 132
Dutt, A. J., 345
Dutton, H., 62
Dweck, C. S., 252–254
Dworkin, S. L., 263
Dwyer, J. W., 417
E
Eagan, K., 308, 309
Eagly, A. H., 175, 238
East, P., 184
Eastman, M., 244
Eccles, J. S., 210, 211, 240, 278, 279
Echevarria, J. J., 224
Eckerman, C., 125
Eckler, P., 259
Edelstein, R. S., 327, 417
Edgington, C., 294
Edison, S. C., 124
Edmonds, G. W., 369, 413
Edwards, K. S., 298
Edwards, M. L., 67
Ee, C., 68
Eggebrecht, A. T., 80
Eggenberger, P., 397
Egloff, B., 185, 369
Ehninger, D., 383
Eichorn, D., 311
Eichorn, D. H., 370
Eidelman, A. I., 71
Eiferman, R. R., 193
Ein-Dor, T., 49
Einziger, T., 121
Eisen, S., 192–194
Eisenberg, N., 230, 236, 238
Eisharkawy, H., 67
Eisman, A. B., 238
Eitzen, D. S., 340
Ekas, N. A., 115, 119
Eklund, K., 202, 220
Elashi, F. B., 170, 228
Elek, P., 403
Eley, T. C., 301
Eliasieh, K., 385
Eliassen, C. F., 406
Elkind, D., 148, 275, 276
El-Kotob, R., 391
Ellemers, N., 8, 236
Ellenberg, D., 65
Elliot, A. J., 347
Elliott, E. M., 396
Ellis, L., 170
Ellis, W., 292
Elmhurst, J. M., 321
Elmore, C., 74
Else-Quest, N., 237
Ember, C. R., 295
Ember, M. R., 295
Emberson, L. L., 79
Emde, R. N., 118
Eneh, C. I., 84
Engeldinger, J., 73, 74
Engelke, K., 391
Engels, A. C., 55
English, G. W., 9
English, T., 14, 411
Eno Persson, J., 145
Enslin, P., 267
Ensor, R., 171
Eo, Y. S., 189
Erentaite, R., 283, 285, 306
Erez, M., 7
Erickson, K. I., 5, 385, 391, 392, 400
Ericsson, K. A., 209, 220, 357
Erikson, E. H., 18, 123, 124, 127, 169, 230, 284, 286, 300, 329, 364, 409
Ermer, A. E., 419
Ersig, A. L., 269
Erskine, H. E., 203
Erzinger, A. G., 114, 134
Eskola, K., 432
Espinosa, A., 286
Esposito, A. G., 224
Esposito, G., 117, 130
Estill, A., 389
Estrada, E., 213, 272
Etaugh, C., 376
Ethier, K. A., 263
Eun, J. D., 272
Evans, G. W., 9
Evans, S. Z., 291, 300
Evans, W. J., 386
Evans-Lacko, S., 244
Evers, C., 15, 38
Everson, C., 68
Ezaki, T., 401
Ezkurdia, L., 41
F
Fabes, R. A., 177, 236, 290
Fabricius, W. V., 187, 188
Facompre, C. R., 328
Faghihi, F., 23
Faghiri, A., 199
Fagot, B. I., 176
Fagundes, C. P., 351
Fahlke, C., 183
Fais, L., 107
Fajkowska, M., 368
Falandry, C., 25, 30, 382
Falbo, T., 185
Falck, R. S., 391
Falck-Ytter, T., 30, 93, 102
Falconier, M. K., 367
Fali, T., 351
Falk, M. C., 399
Falsetti, L., 405
Fan, L., 296
Fang, Y., 415
Fanning, P. A. J., 93
Fantz, R. L., 92
Farah, M. J., 142
Farajinia, S., 389
Faria, A-M., 164
Farioli-Vecchioli, S., 398, 400
Faris, M. A. E., 310
Farkas, G., 164
Farr, R. H., 7, 188, 189, 338
Farrell, A. D., 300
Farrell, M. E., 386
Fasig, L., 124
Fatemi, A., 80
Fatima, M., 63
Fatima, Y., 269, 270
Fatusi, A. O., 310
Faucher, M. A., 64, 66
Faye, P. M., 71
Febo-Vasquez, I., 315
Feeney, S., 162, 166, 192, 208
Fei, J., 329
Feigelman, W., 432
Feiring, C., 129, 327
Feist, G. J., 319
Fekonja-Peklaj, U., 111
Feldkamp, M. L., 57
Feldman, H. D., 220
Feldman, J. F., 155
Feldman, R., 71
Feldman, S., 156
Feldman, S. S., 263
Feldman-Winter, L., 85
Feltosa, C. M., 405
Felver, J. C., 211
Fenelon, A., 433
Fenning, R. M., 172
Fergus, T. A., 211
Ferguson, C. J., 181
Ferguson, D. M., 84
Ferjan Ramirez, N., 79
Fernandez, M., 205
Fernandez-Ballesteros, R., 13, 14, 414, 421
Ferraro, K. F., 414
Ferrazzi, G., 54, 56
Ferreira, D., 357
Ferreira, T., 186
Ferryhough, C., 288
Festini, S. B., 3, 5, 11, 13, 16, 29, 30, 400, 401, 404
Field, D., 377
Field, T., 72, 94
Field, T. M., 60, 74
Fielder, R. L., 313
Fife, T., 187
Figueiredo, B., 188
Fileborn, B., 353
Finch, C. E., 356, 381
Fincham, F. D., 333, 334
Fine, A., 299, 300
Finegood, E. D., 172
Finelli, J., 129
Fingerhut, A. W., 315, 316, 338
Fingerman, K. L., 16, 373, 374, 376, 377, 417
Finke, E. H., 30, 93
Finkel, D., 359
Finkelstein, E. A., 311
Finkelstein, L. M., 324
Finley, C., 266
Finnegan, M., 115
Finzi-Dottan. R., 326
Page NI-6
Firk, C., 117
Firth, K. M. P., 368
Fischer, K. W., 123, 318
Fischhoff, B., 276
Fisher, G. G., 14, 398
Fitzpatrick, K. K., 273
Fitzsimmons-Craft, E. E., 274
Fivush, R., 104, 156
Fladby, T., 405
Flam, K. K., 188
Flanagan, T., 64
Flannigan, R., 45
Flaskerud, J. H., 426
Flatt, T., 384
Flavell, E. R., 158
Flavell, J. H., 158, 211, 212
Fleeson, W., 369
Flegal, K. M., 311
Fleming, A. S., 73
Flensborg-Madsen, T., 90
Fletcher, J. M., 300
Fletcher, S., 144
Fletcher-Watson, S., 30, 93
Flicek, P., 41
Flint, M. S., 41
Floel, A., 401
Flood, S. M., 324
Florencio, R. S., 56
Florsheim, P., 294, 339
Flouri, E., 135, 230
Flynn, J. R., 217
Foehr, U. G., 298, 299
Follari, L., 141, 143, 165, 166, 192, 208, 217
Fonagy, P., 130, 301
Fonseca-Machado Mde, O., 64
Font, S. A., 183
Fontaine, M., 324
Forbes, J. M., 383
Ford, D. Y., 219
Ford, L., 170
Foroughe, M., 115
Forrest, K. Y. Z., 348
Forrest, L. N., 274
Forzano, L. B., 27, 30, 31
Foster, C., 269
Foster, J. D., 406
Fougare, B., 391
Fournier, T., 56
Fouts, H. N., 184
Fox, E., 221, 222
Fox, M. K., 85, 144
Fozard, J. L., 389
Fraiberg, S., 90
Fraley, R. C., 130
Franchak, J. M., 86, 89, 92, 98
Francis, J., 286
Frank, J. C., 403
Frankenhuis, W. E., 38
Frankl, V., 361
Fransson, M., 327
Franzoza, E., 393
Fraser, G., 286
Frasquilho, D., 323
Frausel, R. R., 209
Frawley, J. M., 68
Freberg, L. A., 29
Frederikse, M., 237
Fredriksen-Goldsen, K. I., 6
Freeman, M., 9
Freeman, S., 42, 43
Freitas, M., 417
Freud, S., 17
Freund, A. M., 412, 419, 421
Frey, B. S., 411
Frick, M. A., 119
Fridman, I., 427
Fridy, R. L., 264
Fried, L. P., 411
Friedman, A. H., 164
Friedman, E. A., 66
Friedman, S. L., 138
Friedrich, A., 310
Friedrichs, A., 212
Friend, M., 202
Frimer, J. A., 235
Frisen, A., 259
Frith, E., 391
Froimson, J., 125, 181
Frost, D. M., 338
Fruhauf, C. A., 374, 375
Fry, R., 307
Fry, R. C., 41
Frydenberg, E., 256
Fu, F., 432
Fu, G., 228
Fuhs, M. W., 156
Fujiki, M., 161
Fuligni, A. J., 270, 279, 290
Fuller-Thompson, E., 375
Fullwood, C., 329
Fulop, T., 384
Fumagalli, M., 49
Furman, E., 373
Furman, L., 71, 290, 292, 294, 302
Furman, W., 292, 293, 328, 330
Furstenberg, F. F., 241, 335
Furth, H. G., 207
G
Gabbe, P. T., 64
Gabrian, M., 345
Gaensbauer, T. G., 118
Gaillardin, F., 396
Galambos, N. L., 271
Galatzer-Levy, I. R., 323
Gale, C. R., 370
Galea, L. A., 73
Galinsky, E., 111, 162, 230, 276
Galland, B. C., 82
Gallant, S. N., 212
Galliher, R. V., 283
Gallo, R. B. S., 68
Galloway, J. C., 78
Gamito, P., 400
Gamsby, J. J., 261
Ganapathy, K., 424
Ganci, M., 273
Gangamma, R., 190
Gangisetty, O., 405
Ganguli, M., 33
Ganong, L., 240, 241, 337, 416
Gao, G., 331, 332
Gao, S., 398
Garaschuk, O., 385
Garber, J., 301
Garcia-Gomariz, C., 391
Garcia-Huidobro, D., 272
Garcia-Sierra, A., 111
Gardner, H., 215, 216
Gardner, M., 9
Gardosi, J., 62
Gareau, S., 65
Gareri, P., 406
Gariepy, G., 296
Garnier-Villarreal, M., 65
Garon, N., 159
Garschall, K., 384
Garthe, A., 385
Gartner, J., 361
Gartstein, M. A., 117, 119, 121, 177
Garvey, C., 193
Gaskins, S., 128
Gasquoine, P. G., 405
Gates, C. J., 315
Gates, G. J., 188, 338
Gates, W., 220
Gattamorta, K. A., 289
Gauvain, M., 26, 150, 152
Gavett, B. E., 415
Gaysina, D., 187
Gazzaley, A., 394
Gebremariam, M. K., 194
Geeraert, B., 198
Gehrman, P. R., 389
Gekker, M., 183
Gekle, M., 384
Gelman, R., 150, 161, 207
Gelman, S. A., 160
Genadek, K. R., 324
Gendron, T. L., 413
Genesee, F., 224
Genetti, C., 106
Gennetian, L. A., 9
Gentile, D. A., 195
George, C., 128
George, L. K., 414
George Dalmida, S., 264
Georgsson, S., 68
Gerenser, J., 205
Gerlach, K. R., 365
Gershoff, E., 164
Gershoff, E. T., 180, 181
Gerst, E. H., 276
Gerstorf, D., 33, 397
Geschwind, D. H., 40
Gesell, A., 86
Gesser-Edelsburg, A., 353, 390
Gest, S. D., 241
Gestwicki, C., 162
Gewirtz-Meydan, A., 326
Ghai, M., 41, 405
Ghasemi, M., 68
Ghetti, S., 155
Ghisletta, P., 357, 396
Gialamas, A., 136
Giandrea, M. D., 358, 414
Giangregorio, L., 391
Giardini, A., 370
Gibbons, L., 69
Gibbs, J. C., 234
Gibson, E. J., 91, 94, 95, 100, 359
Gibson, J. J., 91
Giedd, J. N., 237
Gilbert, K., 353
Giles, E. D., 41
Giletta, M., 292
Gillain, D., 400, 415
Gillen, M. M., 313
Gillen-O’Neel, C., 270
Gillespie, C., 311
Gilliam, W. S., 165
Gilligan, C., 235
Gilligan, M., 416
Gilmore, L. A., 145
Gilsoul, J., 394
Gilstrap, L. L., 217
Gingo, M., 173, 234, 235
Ginsberg, S., 276
Girgis, F., 318
Giri, D., 258
Giri, M., 405
Giuntella, O., 190
Gleason, T. R., 234
Glei, D. A., 264
Gliga, T., 101
Gluck, J., 14, 397
Glueck, J., 397
Glynn, L. M., 122
Gmiat, A., 399, 400
Gnambs, T., 276
Gniewosz, B., 297
Goad, H., 160
Gobinath, A. R., 74
Gockley, A. A., 63
Godbout, J. P., 384
Goddings, A-L., 260, 261
Goel, N., 280
Goetter, E., 432
Goff, S., 335
Goffman, L., 107
Gogtay, N., 81, 142
Goh, S. K. Y., 82
Goker, A., 68
Goldberg, A. E., 7, 188, 338
Goldberg, E., 82
Goldberg, S. K., 262
Goldberg, W. A., 186
Goldenberg, R. L., 64
Golding, J., 62
Goldin-Meadow, S., 106
Goldman, D. P., 7, 8
Goldman-Mellor, S., 8
Goldschmidt, L., 59, 60
Goldsen, J., 416
Goldstein, D. S., 406
Goldstein, E. B., 21
Goldstein, K. M., 353
Goldstein, M. H., 106
Goldstein, R., 263
Goligher, E. C., 425
Goligorsky, M. S., 383
Golinkoff, R. M., 26, 107, 111, 161, 193, 194
Gollnick, D. M., 297
Golombok, S., 57, 188, 189
Golub, J. S., 388
Gomes, M. J., 384
Gomes, R. S., 201
Gomez, S. H., 183
Gonzalez, J., 410
Gonzalez-Backen, M. A., 297
Gonzalez-Freire, M., 383
Good, C., 254
Goode, A. P., 204
Goodenough, J., 40
Goodman, J., 108
Goodnight, J. A., 326
Goodvin, R., 116, 122, 124, 230
Goodyer, I. M., 302
Gooneratne, N. S., 389
Gopinath, B., 388
Gopnik, A., 105
Gorby, H. E., 399
Gorchoff, S. M., 372, 373
Gordon, R., 212
Gordon Simons, L., 290
Gorenjak, V., 382
Gorgon, E. J. R., 143
Goswami, U., 50, 108
Gothe, N. P., 395
Gottfredson, N. C., 121
Gottlieb, G., 41, 49
Gottman, J., 132
Gottman, J. M., 172, 245, 338
Gottman, J. S., 338
Gouin, K., 59
Gould, J. F., 80
Gould, S. J., 39
Gouldner, H., 342
Gove, W. R., 335
Gow, A. J., 400
Gower, A. L., 245
Goyal, V., 406
Graber, J. A., 260, 300
Grady, C. L., 385, 401
Graf Estes, K., 223
Graham, E. K., 368–370, 413
Graham, J., 173, 234
Graham, S., 209, 212, 221
Grand, J. A., 218
Granja, M. R., 9
Grant, J., 77
Grant, N., 311
Graven, S., 83
Graves, C. R., 59
Gravetter, F. J., 27, 30, 31
Gravningen, K., 336
Gray, K., 173, 234
Gray-Miceli, D., 387
Green, F. L., 158
Green, K. M., 266
Page NI-7
Green, M. J., 296
Green, T. L., 10
Greenberg, E., 382
Greene, J. A., 230, 238
Greene, S., 287
Greene, S. M., 337
Greenhaus, J. H., 322
Greenwald, A. G., 236
Greenwald, L., 403
Greenwald, M. L., 109
Greer, K. B., 184
Grgic, J., 391
Griffin, P. W., 371
Griffiths, M. D., 369
Griffiths, P. D., 56
Griffiths, S., 259
Griffiths, T. L., 38
Grigorenko, E., 216
Grimberg, A., 141
Grimm, K. J., 327, 417
Grob, A., 215, 216
Grodstein, F., 389
Grogan-Kaylor, A., 181
Groh, A. M., 119, 129, 131, 191
Grolnick, W. S., 239, 252
Gross, J. J., 410
Gross, T. T., 145
Grossman, M. R., 364
Grossman, T., 124
Gruen, J. R., 202
Gruenewald, T. L., 364, 365, 419
Gruhn, D., 318
Grummt, I., 383
Grunblatt, E., 49
Grusec, J., 172
Grusec, J. E., 177, 181, 239
Gudmundson, J. A., 118
Gueron-Sela, N., 103, 126
Guerreiro, R., 405
Gueven, N., 405
Guilbeau, C., 428
Guilford, J. P., 211
Guillaumet-Adkins, A., 383
Guimaraes, E. L., 90
Guiney, H., 419
Gulick, D., 261
Gulsahi, A., 349
Gunderson, E. A., 237
Gunes, C., 382
Gunn, J. K., 60
Gunnar, M. R., 96
Guo, M., 403
Guo, S., 300
Gupta, S., 333
Gur, R. C., 237
Gurbernskaya, Z., 419
Gurwitch, R. H., 232
Gustafsson, J-E., 217
Gutchess, A. H., 401
Gutherie, D. M., 388
Gutman, L. M., 256
Guttmannova, K., 272
Gutzwiller, E., 234
Guy, A., 244
Guyer, A. E., 120
Guzik, T. J., 349
H
Haas, A. L., 287
Habeck, C., 385
Hackett, G., 353, 390
Haden, C. A., 156
Hadfield, J. C., 375
Hadington, L., 298
Hadiwijaya, H., 288
Haertle, L., 61
Hagborg, J. M., 183
Hagekull, B., 118
Hagen, E. S., 4, 397
Hagen, J. W., 164
Hagen, K. M., 256, 257
Hagenaars, S. P., 398
Hagestad, G. O., 375
Hagmann-von Arx, P., 215, 216
Hagnas, M. J., 359
Hahmann, J., 418
Hahn, E. A., 368
Hahn, W. K., 80
Haidt, J., 234
Hail, L., 273
Haimovitz, K., 253
Hair, N. L., 142
Hakuno, Y., 101
Hakuta, K., 224
Hale, D., 393
Hale, L., 195
Hales, D., 6, 310
Haliburn, J., 272
Halim, M. L., 177
Hall, C. B., 398
Hall, D. A., 45
Hall, D. T., 322
Hall, J. A., 238
Hall, S. S., 335
Hall, W., 243, 245
Hallahan, D. P., 7, 203, 206
Halldorsdottir, T., 17, 41, 49
Halonen, J., 308
Halonen, J. I., 322
Halpern, C. T., 262, 263
Halpern, D. F., 237, 238
Halpern-Felsher, B., 263
Ham, O. K., 302
Hamer, M., 397
Hamilton, J. B., 428
Hamilton, J. L., 260
Hamilton, K. L., 383
Hamlin, J. K., 100, 101
Hammand, S., 424
Hammersmith, A. M., 416
Hammond, S. I., 101
Hampson, S. E., 369, 413
Han, J. H., 388
Han, J. W., 410
Han, J. Y., 64
Hancock, G. R., 117
Handley, E. D., 183
Handrinos, J., 176
Hanish, L. D., 177, 290
Hankin, B. L., 302
Hannigan, L. J., 301
Hannon, E. E., 94, 97, 98, 275
Hansen, M. V., 394
Hanson, L., 65
Hanss, Z., 383
Hantzi, A., 370, 413
Haraguchi, K., 382
Harden, K. P., 260
Harder, R. J., 246
Hardy, B., 185, 217
Hardy, J., 405
Hari, R., 79
Harii, K., 348
Harkness, S., 130
Harlow, H. F., 127
Harmon, R. J., 118
Harris, G., 96
Harris, J., 161
Harris, K., 209, 212, 413
Harris, K. M., 310
Harris, P. L., 158, 159
Harrison, C., 382
Harrison, M., 85
Hart, B., 110
Hart, C. H., 163
Hart, D., 124, 280
Hart, W., 343
Harter, S., 169–171, 227–229
Hartshorne, H., 174
Hartup, W. W., 242, 245
Harwood, L. J., 84
Hasbrouck, S. L., 136
Hashiya, K., 30, 93
Hasmanova Marhankova, M. J., 433
Hassard, J., 322
Hasselmo, K., 336
Hastings, P. D., 188, 238
Hatano, K., 284
Hatoun, J., 146
Hawk, S. T., 288
Hawkes, C., 388
Hawkins, A. J., 330
Hawkley, L. C., 418
Hawley, P. H. l., 175
Haxby, J. V., 395
Hay, W. W., 141
Hayashi, A., 110
Hayatbakhsh, R., 146
Haycraft, A. L., 60
Haydon, K. C., 119, 131
Hayflick, L., 382
Hayman, K. J., 5
Haynes, C. W., 202
Hayslip, B., 374, 375
Hayward, R. D., 360, 362
Hazan, C., 327, 328
He, C., 95
He, J., 258
He, M., 89
Heard, E., 418
Heatherton, T. F., 159
Heberlein, E. C., 64
Hechtman, L., 203
Hedge, N., 267
Hegedus, C., 383
Heimann, M., 103
Heinonen, M. T., 44
Heinrich, J., 84
Helgeson, V. S., 175, 342, 343
Helgesson, G., 58
Helka, A. M., 245
Hellgren, K., 79
Helm, R. K., 277
Helman, R., 414
Helson, R., 365, 372, 373
Hemmy, L. S., 386
Henderson, R. M., 391, 392
Henderson, V. W., 352
Hendricks-Munoz, K. D., 71
Hendrickson, Z. M., 434
Hendriks, A. A. J., 413
Hendy, A. M., 392
Hengartner, M. P., 368
Hennecke, M., 412
Hennessy, G., 60
Henretta, J. C., 335
Henricks, T. S., 192
Henslin, J. M., 28
Heo, J., 5, 33
Hepworth, J., 85
Herlitz, A., 217
Herman-Giddens, M. E., 258
Hernandez, S. M., 263
Hernandez-Reif, M., 72, 94
Hernandez-Segura, A., 382
Hernandez-Zimbron, L. F., 388
Herold, K., 161
Heron, M., 83
Herrera, S. V., 90
Hershner, S. D., 310
Herting, M. M., 258
Hertlein, K. M., 187
Hertzog, C., 396
Herz, J., 405
Herzog, E., 176
Hesketh, K. D., 143
Hess, J. L., 204
Hess, R., 389
Hessel, E. T., 294
Hessel, P., 397
Hetherington, E. M., 26, 186–188, 241, 341
Heward, W. L., 206, 219
Hewlett, B. S., 134
Heyman, G. D., 228
Hickerson, B. D., 30, 93
Hickey, M., 352
Hicks, J. A., 410
Highfield, R., 101
Hijazi, R., 353, 390
Hill, B. J., 285, 306
Hill, C., 138
Hill, C. R., 239
Hill, K. D., 44, 216, 392
Hill, M. A., 348
Hill, P. C., 360, 361
Hill, P. L., 321, 369, 371, 413
Hill, T. D., 420
Hillman, C. H., 392
Himes, C. L., 347
Hindin, M. J., 310
Hines, F. G., 349
Hines, M., 175
Hinshaw, H. P., 204
Hintz, S. R., 70
Hinze, S. W., 420
Hipwell, A. E., 300
Hirsch, B. J., 278
Hirsch, J. K., 390
Hirsh-Pasek, K., 107, 161, 193, 194
Hirsh-Pasek, K. H., 111
Hitchcock, C., 409
Hjortsvang, K., 231
Ho, M. J., 293
Ho, R. C., 409
Hoch, J. E., 86, 88, 98, 101, 126
Hochberg, C., 387
Hockenberry, M. J., 141, 142, 198, 199
Hockenberry, S., 299
Hocking, E. C., 288
Hodder, R. K., 267
Hodges, E. V. E., 243, 244
Hoefnagels, M., 16, 38, 40, 42
Hoelter, L., 336
Hoerl, C., 90
Hofer, A., 237
Hofer, B. K., 251
Hofer, S. M., 33
Hoff, E., 110, 190
Hoffman, K., 128, 131, 240, 288
Hoffman, P., 395
Hoffman, S., 259
Hogan, C., 366, 411, 412
Hogan, D., 287
Holden, G. W., 133, 134, 181
Holfeld, B., 244
Hollams, E. M., 59
Holland, J. M., 431, 433
Hollarek, M., 11
Hollenstein, T., 115, 172, 230
Holler-Wallscheid, M. S., 80
Holley, S. R., 337, 338
Hollister, M., 322
Hollmann, P., 10
Holmes, E. K., 340
Holmes, T. H., 366
Holmgren, H. G., 194
Holmin, J. S., 395
Holmqvist, K., 259
Holsen, I., 259
Holt, C. L., 361
Page NI-8
Holt-Lunstad, J., 333, 334
Holub, S. C., 143
Holway, G. V., 263
Holzman, L., 21, 150–152
Homae, F., 79
Homan, K. J., 417
Hong, S. M., 311
Hong, X., 385
Honzik, M., 311
Hoogenhout, M., 159
Hook, P. E., 202
Hooley, M., 267
Hooper, S. Y., 253
Hoover, J., 173, 234
Hope, D. A., 338
Hope, D. A. M., 315
Hopping-Winn, J., 425
Hoppmann, C. A., 345
Hopwood, C. J., 298
Horgusluoglu, E., 385
Horissian, M., 271
Horn, J. L., 354
Horn, M. C., 367
Hornby, T. G., 387
Horne, R. S. C., 83
Hornick, J. L., 44
Horowitz-Kraus, T., 200
Horwood, J. L., 303
Hosie, A., 426
Hoskin, J., 115
Hoskyn, M. J., 156
Hotta, R., 396
Hou, L., 392
Hou, Y., 8, 290, 297
Houssaini, A., 383
Houwing, F. L., 172
Howard, A. L., 271
Howard, J., 46
Howard, K. S., 74
Howard, M. M., 74
Howard, S., 418
Howard, S. R., 259
Howe, G. W., 323
Howe, M. J. A., 220
Howe, M. L., 124
Howell, D. C., 31
Howell, K. H., 431
Howes, C., 136
Howley, E., 143, 145, 199, 269, 311
Hoyer, W. J., 13, 348, 357, 358, 384, 386, 388
Hoyt, J., 212
Hoyt, L. T., 270
Hritz, A., 155, 156
Hsieh, H. H., 321
Hsin, A., 251
Hsueh, A. J., 258
Hu, G., 150, 152
Hua, J., 96
Hua, L., 44
Huang, C. J., 204
Huang, E., 398
Huang, J. T., 321
Huang, J-H., 312
Huang, K. Y., 177
Huang, L., 59, 65
Huang, L. B., 46, 434
Huang, Y., 101
Huckle, W. R., 52
Huda, S. S., 62
Hudson, A., 171
Hudson, J. L., 172
Hudson, N. W., 129
Hudson, R. B., 414
Hudziak, J., 210
Huelsnitz, C. O., 328
Huesmann, L. R., 242
Huestegge, L., 298
Huffman, J. C., 370
Huffman, L., 413
Hughes, A. C., 131
Hughes, C., 158, 159, 170, 171, 184
Hughes, E. K., 273
Hughes, J. C., 426
Hughes, J. E., 298
Hughes, J. N., 278
Hughes, M., 335
Hui, L., 56
Hull, S. H., 238
Huo, M., 374, 375, 417
Huppi, P. S., 55
Hur, Y. I., 311
Hurd, Y. L., 49
Hurley, K. M., 85, 144
Hurrell, K. E., 172
Hurst, S. A., 426
Hustedt, J. T., 164
Huston, A. C., 239
Huston, T. L., 340
Huttenlocher, P. R., 80, 81, 260
Hutton, J. S., 200
Huyck, M. H., 358
Huynh, V. W., 270
Hyde, J. S., 39, 235–238, 262, 315, 333, 342
Hymel, S., 244
Hyson, M. C., 163
I
Iarocci, G., 156
Igarashi, H., 376
Ihara, M., 405
Ihle, A., 359
Ihongbe, T. O., 263
Ilmakunnas, P., 403
Ilmakunnas, S., 403
Im, Y., 303
Inderkum, A. P., 47
Inhelder, B., 147
Inker, J., 413
Insel, P., 145, 200, 268, 311
Ironson, G., 360
Isgut, M., 62, 63
Ishi, R., 385
Ishtiak-Ahmed, K., 33
Isidori, A. M., 390
Islam, B. U., 404
Ismaeel, N., 353
Ismail, F. Y., 80
Israel, M., 106
Ito-Jager, S., 102
Iverson, S. L., 117
Ivey-Stephenson, A. Z., 302
Iwata, S., 71
J
Jabeen, H., 25, 383
Jacher, J. E., 46
Jackman, H., 163
Jackson, A. D., 67
Jackson, J. J., 145, 413
Jackson, J. R., 64
Jackson, W. M., 199
Jacobs, J. M., 398
Jacobson, S. W., 58
Jacoby, N., 30
Jacques, S., 171
Jadhav, A., 433, 434
JafariNasabian, P., 387, 391
Jaffee, S., 235
Jaffee, S. R., 260
Jager, J., 289
Jakobsen, I. S., 303
Jambon, M., 235, 236
James, S. L., 335
Jamison, L. E., 431
Jang, S., 8
Jankowski, J. J., 155
Jannini, E. A., 353
Janowich, J. R., 394
Jansen, E. C., 259
Jansen, J., 84
Janssen, I., 145
Janssen, J. A., 119
Janssens, A., 242
Jantz, T. K., 401
Janz, K. F., 269
Jaramillo, N., 267
Jardri, R., 95
Jaremka, L. M., 351
Jarris, P. E., 64
Jaruatanasirikul, S., 63
Jasinska, K. K., 223
Jasiulionis, M. G., 384
Jaul, E., 392
Jauniaux, E., 52
Jaworska, N., 269
Jayawickreme, E., 256
Jee, S. H., 384
Jeka, J., 86
Jenks, R. A., 354
Jenni, O. G., 270
Jennifer, R. E., 10
Jennings, S. L., 123
Jensen, H., 387
Jensen, L. A., 306
Jensen, M. M., 385
Jensen, T. M., 241
Jeong, K. S., 62
Jeong, Y., 52
Jeremic, S., 25, 383
Jha, A. K., 414
Ji, G., 185
Ji, J., 30
Jia, G., 348
Jia, H., 5
Jia, R., 181
Jiang, N., 256, 387
Jiang, Y., 9
Jiang, Z., 115
Jiao, S., 185
Jin, I., 100
Jing, Q., 185
Jirstrom, K., 352
Johansson, M., 211
John, A., 303
John, O. P., 372, 373
Johnson, D. R., 372
Johnson, J. A. , 246
Johnson, J. A., 246, 388
Johnson, J. S., 223
Johnson, M. D., 16, 37, 40, 42, 424
Johnson, M. H., 101, 199, 223, 261, 262
Johnson, M. L., 78
Johnson, P., 115–117, 131
Johnson, R. A., 392
Johnson, S. P., 94, 98, 275
Johnston, C., 71
Johnston, J., 204
Johnston, L. D., 271, 272, 312
Johnston, M. V., 80
Joling, K. J., 16
Jolly, C. A., 392
Jones, A. P., 46
Jones, C. R. G., 159, 205
Jones, D. G., 428
Jones, E., 140
Jones, E. J. H., 96, 102
Jones, J., 163
Jones, K. L., 58
Jones, M. C., 259
Jones, T. H., 353, 390
Jonsson, E., 58
Jorch, G., 83
Jorgensen, M. J., 264
Jose, A., 334
Joshi, H., 230
Joshi, M., 222
Josselson, R., 285
Jouffre, S., 425, 426
Joyner, C., 398
Juang, C., 410
Juang, L., 5, 8, 122, 130, 189, 294
Juang, L. P., 285
Judd, F. K., 352
Juhasz, A., 406
Julvez, J., 62
Jung, C., 346
Jung, E. Y., 55, 329
Jung, W. P., 91
Juraska, J. M., 80, 142, 260
Jusczyk, P. W., 96, 108
Jutengren, G., 244
K
Kader, F., 41, 405
Kadosh, K. C., 242, 302
Kagan, J., 116, 117, 119–122, 130
Kagan, J. J., 118
Kahana, B., 421
Kahana, E., 421
Kahlbaugh, P., 413
Kahn, N. F., 263
Kahrs, B. A., 91
Kail, B. L., 419
Kalashnikova, M., 50
Kalat, J. W., 17
Kalish, C. W., 160
Kalish, R. A., 431
Kalmijn, M., 375
Kalsi, D. S., 383
Kalstabakken, A. W., 10, 231, 232
Kalyango, Y., 259
Kamal, M. A., 404
Kambas, A., 143
Kammer, T., 109
Kanazawa, S., 102
Kancherla, V., 62
Kandemir, N., 145
Kandler, C., 319
Kane, R. L., 10
Kanesarajah, J., 349
Kang, J. Y., 224
Page NI-9
Kang, X., 56
Kann, L., 262–264, 269, 270, 302
Kanniyakonil, S., 425
Kansky, J., 16
Kantoch, A., 389
Kantrowitz, B., 168
Kaplan, R. M., 29
Karbach, J., 276
Karmel, M. P., 124
Karmiloff-Smith, A., 82
Karoly, L. A., 166
Karreman, A., 181
Karthivashan, G., 404
Kaseva, N., 61
Kashdan, T. B., 315
Kastenbaum, R. J., 429, 430
Kato, T., 71
Katsiaficas, D., 308
Katz, B., 396
Katz, L., 165
Katz, R., 417
Katz-Wise, S. L., 343
Kauffman, J. M., 7, 203, 206
Kaufman, J. C., 211, 219, 220
Kaufman, S. B., 319, 369
Kaunhoven, R. J., 116
Kauppila, J. H., 25
Kauppila, T. E., 25
Kauser, R., 179
Kavanaugh, R. D., 147, 159
Kavosi, Z., 68
Kavsek, M., 102
Kawakita, T., 63
Kazdin, A. E., 34
Kearsley, R. B., 118
Keating, D. P., 277
Keen, R., 91, 93
Keener, E., 343
Keim, M. C., 432
Keles, S., 367
Keller, A., 170
Keller, H., 130
Kelley, C. P., 347
Kelley-Moore, J., 351
Kelly, C., 160
Kelly, D. M., 353, 390
Kelly, J., 241, 341
Kelly, J. P., 94
Kelly, M. T., 74
Kelson, E., 414
Keltner, K. W., 252
Kemmler, W., 391
Kemner, C., 115
Kemp, J., 388
Kempermann, G., 385
Kempner, S. G., 252
Kendig, H. L., 10
Kendler, K. S., 48, 272, 337
Kendrick, C., 185
Kendrick, K., 244
Kennedy, B. K., 392
Kennedy, K. M., 384, 385, 400
Kennell, J. H., 72
Kenny, L. C., 265
Kenny, S., 94
Kerns, K. A., 240, 294
Kerse, N., 5
Kershaw, K. N., 366
Kerstis, B., 74, 288
Ketcham, P., 268
Keunen, K., 54
Khalsa, A. S., 145
Kharasch, S., 84
Kharazmi, N., 68
Kharitonova, M., 209
Khashan, A. S., 265
Khatun, M., 265
Khoury, J. E., 58
Khundrakpam, B. S., 198
Kiang, L., 287
Kida, Y., 383
Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K., 351
Kiess, W., 257, 259
Kilic, A., 396
Kilic, S., 59
Killen, M., 173, 234, 235
Kilwein, T. M., 311
Kim, A. S., 393
Kim, B. R., 130, 263, 350
Kim, E. M., 252
Kim, E. S., 370
Kim, G. R., 384
Kim, J., 300
Kim, J. I., 7, 41, 64, 297
Kim, J. M., 177
Kim, J. S., 189
Kim, K. H., 211
Kim, N. H., 57
Kim, S., 129, 173, 398
Kim, S. K., 391
Kim, S. Y., 8, 290, 297
Kim, S. Y. H., 425
Kimberlin, D. W., 61
Kimlin, J. A., 387
Kimmel, M. S., 297
Kindermann, T. A., 241
King, A. E., 405
King, B. M., 264
King, C. T., 9
King, J. D., 302
King, L. A., 315, 316, 343, 344, 410
King, V., 417
Kingdon, D., 58
Kingerlee, R., 368
Kingo, O. S., 93
Kingsbury, A. M., 63
Kins, E., 306, 307
Kinugawa, K., 5, 17, 385, 394, 398–401, 421
Kinzler, K. D., 126
Kiray, H., 80
Kirby, M., 353, 390
Kircaburun, K., 369
Kirk, G. M., 310
Kirk, I. J., 199
Kirkham, N. Z., 97, 107
Kirkorian, H. L., 93
Kisilevsky, B. S., 95
Kitayama, S., 368, 371
Kito, M., 332
Kitsantas, A., 279
Kiviniemi, A. M., 348
Klauda, S. L., 278
Klein, A. C., 247
Klein, D. A., 264
Klein, L., 117
Klein, M. R., 132, 180
Kleinman, C., 74
Kliegman, R. M., 141, 198
Kliewer, R., 121
Kline, D. W., 349, 387
Klinenberg, E., 332, 333
Klingman, A., 232
Kloss, J. D., 271
Klug, J., 238
Klug, W. S., 43
Knapen, J. E. P., 38
Knapp, K., 156, 212, 276
Knight, B. G., 398
Knight, L. F., 315
Knopfli, B., 373
Knowles, E. E., 40
Knyazev, G. G., 49, 50
Koball, H., 9
Kobayashi, S., 67
Kocahan, S., 404
Kochanek, K. D., 352
Kochanska, G., 129, 173
Kochendorfer, L. B., 294
Kocherginsky, M., 418
Kocur, J. L., 183
Koehn, A. J., 240
Koenig, H. G., 361
Koffer, R., 367
Koh, H., 265
Koh, V., 387
Kohen, D. E., 248
Kohl, M., 391
Kohlberg, L., 232
Kojola, E., 402
Kok, A. A., 366
Kok, F. M., 203
Kok, R., 142
Koksvik, G. H., 427
Kolb, B., 41
Koller, S. H., 9
Kolokotroni, P., 370, 413
Kominiarek, M. A., 61
Kondolot, M., 195
Konijn, E. A., 277
Konrad, M., 206, 219
Konrath, S. H., 328
Kontis, V., 380
Koo, Y. J., 63
Kopecky, S. L., 350
Kopp, F., 103
Koppelman, K. L., 189
Korczak, D. J., 122
Koren, C., 416
Koren, G., 52, 61
Korja, R., 63
Kornhaber, W., 215, 216
Koropeckyj-Cox, T., 418
Korte, J., 364, 410
Kosidou, K., 302
Kostic, M., 84
Kotter-Gruhn, D., 345
Kouros, C. D., 301
Kowalski, M., 155
Kowalski, R. M., 244
Koyanagi, A., 351, 390, 398
Kozhimmanil, K. B., 67
Kozloski, M., 381
Kozol, J., 226
Krabbendam, L., 11
Kraig, E., 383
Kramer, A. F., 392, 395
Kramer, H. J., 231
Kramer, L., 184
Kramer, M. R., 144, 268
Krampe, R., 220
Krampe, R. T., 357
Krans, E. E., 60
Krause, N., 360, 362
Kressig, R. W., 393
Kretch, K. S., 86, 89, 92, 93, 98, 126
Kreukels, B. P., 343
Kreutzer, M., 212
Kreye, M., 118
Krieger, V., 204
Kriemler, S., 200
Kring, A. M., 238
Krishnan, P., 427
Krishnan, S., 407
Krizan, Z., 369, 370
Krogh-Jespersen, S., 126
Krojgaard, P., 93
Kroll-Desrosiers, A. R., 64
Krous, H. F., 83
Krueger, J. I., 229
Krueger, P. M., 414
Kruger, J., 311
Kruger, R., 383
Kruse, A., 184
Kübler-Ross, E., 429
Kuebli, J., 230
Kuersten-Hogan, R., 132
Kuhl, P. K., 106, 107, 110, 111
Kuhn, B. R., 181
Kuhn, D., 260, 275, 276, 318
Kuhnert, R. L., 171
Kuiper, J., 269
Kulu, H., 336
Kumar, K., 404
Kumar, S. V., 74
Kumpulainen, S. M., 62
Kung, K. T., 175
Kuntzmann, 2019, 4, 5, 397, 398
Kunzmann, U., 397, 411, 421
Kuo, H. W., 201
Kuo, L. J., 223
Kuperberg, A., 334
Kuzik, N., 269
Kuznetsov, A. V., 404
Kuznetsov, I. A., 404
Kvaavik, E., 299
Kvalo, S. E., 212
Kwak, Y. Y., 302
Kwitowski, M. A., 259
Kymre, I. G., 71
L
Labayen Goñi, I., 145
Labella, M. H., 49, 157
Laborte-Lemoyne, E., 65
Labouvie-Vief, G., 318
Lacaze-Masmonteil, T., 60
Lachman, M. E., 346–348, 366–368, 371, 412, 421
Laciga, J., 217
Ladd, H. C., 247
Ladewig, P. W., 69
Ladhani, S. N., 61
Laflin, M. T., 264
Lafond, J., 52
Lafreniere, D., 388
Laftman, S. B., 244
Lagattuta, K. H., 231
La Greca, A. M., 293
Lahat, A., 120
Lai, A., 30, 60
Laible, D. J., 125, 181, 236
Lam, C. B., 181
Lam, S., 252
Lamb, M. E., 73, 99, 129, 134–136, 155, 156, 186, 336, 337
Lambert, S., 432
Lamb-Parker, F. G., 164
Lamela, D., 188
Lammers, A. J., 425
Lampard, A. M., 273
Lampl, M., 78
Lamy, S., 322
Landale, N. S., 297
Landberg, M., 285
Landes, S. D., 365
Landi, F., 349
Landrum, A. R., 170
Lane, A. P., 398
Lane, H., 105
Lane-Donovan, C., 405
Langer, E. J., 14, 393, 421, 430
Langer, R. D., 352
Langstrom, N., 316
Lansford, J. E., 7, 9, 187, 188, 239, 264, 418, 420
Lantagne, A., 292, 293, 328, 330
Lantolf, J., 151
Lany, J., 107
Lanz, M., 306
Lanzillotta, C., 383
Laranjo, J., 159
Larkina, M., 104, 105, 154, 156
Larsen, K. J., 303
Larsen, S. B., 383
Larsen-Rife, D., 370
Larson, D. B., 361
Larson, J., 291
Larson, R. W., 189, 295
Larsson, M., 55
Larsson, N. G., 25
Larzelere, R. E., 181
Latendresse, G., 74
Latham, R. M., 181
Page NI-10
Lathrop, A. L., 93
Lau, E. Y., 370
Lau, J. S., 310
Lau, J. Y., 242, 277, 302
Laumann, E. O., 354
Laureiro-Martinez, D., 412
Laurent, H. K., 115, 288
Laursen, B., 190, 191, 241, 245, 289, 290, 300
Lautenbacher, S., 389
Lavender, J. M., 273
Lavner, J. A., 228, 334
Law, B. H. Y., 93
Law, L. L., 405
Lawrence, A. A., 343
Layland, E. K., 285, 306
Leaper, C., 175, 236, 342, 343
Leary, M. R., 28
Lebel, C., 198, 260, 261
Lebenbaum, M., 348
Lecce, S., 159
Ledonne, A., 204
Lee, C. C., 106, 302
Lee, D. K., 86, 89, 98, 100
Lee, F., 145
Lee, G., 302
Lee, G. R., 417
Lee, H. J., 349
Lee, H. W., 369
Lee, I. M., 392
Lee, J., 16, 96, 175, 176, 294
Lee, J. E., 421
Lee, K., 94, 170, 212, 228, 244
Lee, K. S., 243
Lee, K. Y., 41
Lee, M-H., 91
Lee, N. C., 11
Lee, R., 164, 370
Lee, R. M., 115, 116
Lee, S. J., 181
Leeds, M. J., 348
Leerkes, E. M., 115, 118, 130, 326
Lefkowitz, E., 313
Lefkowitz, E. S., 313
Leftwich, H. K., 266
Legare, C. H., 38
Leger, K. A., 369, 370
Legerstee, M., 126
Le Grange, D., 273
Lehman, E. B., 155
Lehman, H. C., 319
Lehr, C. A., 280
Leinaweaver, J., 375
Leinbach, M. D., 176
Leis, T. L., 97
Leland, D. S., 102
Lemola, S., 215, 216
Lenhart, A., 299
Lennartsson, C., 434
Leonard, B. E., 351
Leonard, C., 212
Leong, D. J., 152, 192, 212
Leonhardt, N. D., 330
Le Page, A., 384
le Ray, I., 56
Lereya, S. T., 244
Lerner, H. G., 325
Lerner, R. M., 9, 256, 262
Lesaux, N. K., 224
Leseman, P., 209
Leslie, S. J., 218
Lester, L., 244
Leung, R. C., 159
Levelt, W. J. M., 4
Leventon, S. J., 104
Lever-Duffy, J., 10, 298
Levin, J., 141
Levine, M. E., 381
Levine, T. P., 59
Levinson, D. J., 358, 365, 366
Levy, S. R., 413
Lewanda, A. F., 44
Lewis, A. C., 247
Lewis, B. A., 73
Lewis, C., 124, 129, 134–136, 243
Lewis, D. M. G., 25
Lewis, J. P., 364
Lewis, L., 68
Lewis, M., 116, 124, 129, 171, 327
Lewis, R. B., 206
Lewis, T. L., 97
Lewis-Morrarty, E., 129
Li, G., 175
Li, J., 47, 54, 62, 389, 432
Li, J. S. Z., 382
Li, J. W., 194, 269
Li, W., 138, 398
Li, Y., 296, 382
Liang, S. E., 353
Liang, W., 272
Liang, Y. J., 200
Liao, C. Y., 201
Liao, D. C., 276
Liben, L. S., 8, 134, 177, 235–237
Liberati, A., 93
Liberman, Z., 126
Libertus, K., 91
Lickliter, R., 25, 38, 41, 43
Licoppe, C., 342
Liddon, L., 368
Lieber, M., 232
Liebermann, J., 56
Lieblich, A., 285
Liets, L. C., 385
Liew, J., 287
Lifter, K., 108
Lillard, A., 193
Lillard, A. S., 147, 192–194
Lim, E., 68
Lim, J. A., 383
Lim, S. H., 348
Lin, F., 385
Lin, F. R., 388
Lin, I. F., 372, 373, 416
Lin, J., 420
Lin, L., 404
Lin, L. J., 410
Lin, L. Y., 110
Lind, L., 389
Lind, R. R., 199
Lindahl-Jacobsen, R., 17
Lindau, S. T., 390
Lindberg, L. D., 267
Lindberg, S. M., 237
Lindenberger, U., 4, 16, 103, 347, 385, 398, 399, 412
Lindholm-Leary, K., 224
Lindsay, A. C., 143, 177, 287
Lindwall, M., 399
Linsell, L., 70
Lintu, N., 145
Lipowski, M., 264
Lippa, R. A., 315
Lipson, S. K., 310
Lisha, N. E., 307
Lissak, G., 195, 298
Litz, J., 159
Liu, H., 384
Liu, L., 382
Liu, P. Z., 385
Liu, R., 64, 115, 116
Liu, S., 100, 101
Liu, X., 62
Liu, Y., 40, 156, 172
Livesly, W., 227
Livingston, G., 134, 313, 335, 337
Llewellyn, R., 230
Llop, S., 62
Lo, C. C., 182, 297, 335, 372
Lo, H. H. M., 204
Lo, J. C., 389
Lo, K. Y., 199
Lobo, R. A., 352
Locher, J. L., 393
Locke, A. M., 352
Lockhart, G., 7, 228, 288
Lockman, J. J., 91
Locquet, M., 349
Loenneke, J. P., 392
Lohmander, A., 106
Loi, E. C., 30
Loizou, E., 192
Lojko, D., 311
Lomanowska, A. M., 133
Lomniczi, A., 259
London, M. L., 67, 69, 78
Longo, F., 239, 240
Longo, M. R., 94
Longobardi, C., 183
Lonstein, J. S., 73
Looby, A., 311
Lopez, K., 205
Lopez-Higes, R., 396, 399
Lopez-Tello, G., 288
Loprinzi, P. D., 359, 392, 398, 421
Lorenz, K. Z., 24
Lorenzo-Blanco, E. L., 297
Loria, H., 250
Lorinzi, P. D., 391
Lortie-Forgues, H., 21
Losada, A., 421
Louch, G., 367
Lougheed, J. P., 115, 125, 172, 230
Lovaglia, M. J., 347
Lovden, M., 16, 385, 398
Love, J. M., 164
Lovell, J. L., 256, 257
Lovely, C., 44
Lovgren, M., 432
Low, S., 293
Lowe, N. K., 67
Lowenstein, A., 417
Lowry, R., 263, 303
Lu, P. H., 385
Lu, T., 302
Lubetkin, E. I., 5
Lucas, J. E., 145
Lucas-Thompson, R., 186
Lucchetti, A. L., 361
Lucchetti, G., 361
Luchetti, M., 369, 413
Luders, E., 237
Ludyga, S., 199
Lugo, R. G., 173
Lukowski, A. F., 211
Lum, H., 425, 426
Lunceford, G., 414
Lund, H. G., 271
Lundin, A., 323
Lundorff, M., 432
Luo, W., 287
Luo, Y., 124
Luria, A., 176
Lusby, C. M., 115
Lushchak, V. I., 385
Lustig, C., 385, 395, 396, 399–401, 421
Lutkenhaus, P., 124
Luyckx, K., 285
Luyster, F. S., 311
Luyten, P., 130, 301
Lyon, T. D., 211
Lyons, D. M., 385
Lyons, E. M., 218
Lyons, H., 313
Lyons, J. L., 375
Lyrra, A. L., 272
Lytle, A., 413
M
Ma, C. L., 385
Ma, F., 170, 174
Maag, J. W., 23
Maalouf, F. T., 302
Maccalum, F., 432
Maccoby, E. E., 132, 133, 176, 179, 240
MacDonald, G., 328
MacDonald, S. W., 345
MacDonald, S. W. S., 13, 33
MacDougall, B. J., 424
MacFarlan, S. J., 134
MacFarlane, J. A., 96
Machado, A., 203, 204
Machado, B., 273
Machado, L., 419
Machalek, D. A., 47
Maciejewski, P. K., 432
MacKenzie, A., 267
Macneil, L. G., 386
MacNeill, L., 100
MacNeil Vroomen, J. L., 404
Madden, D. J., 385–387, 400, 401
Maddow-Zimet, I., 267
Mader, S., 15, 38, 43
Madison, S., 425
Madjar, N., 278
Madrasi, K., 391
Maduro, G., 61
Magge, S. N., 201
Maggs, J. L., 271
Magnuson, K., 7, 9, 248, 296, 297
Magowska, A., 427
Magro-Malosso, E. R., 65
Mah, A., 198
Mahabee-Gittens, E. M., 146
Maher, H., 285
Maher, J. P., 312
Maher, L. M., 109
Mahraj, L., 41, 405
Maid, S., 383
Maier, H., 346
Maillard, P., 350
Maitre, N. L., 133
Malamitsi-Puchner, A., 266
Malcolm-Smith, S., 159
Malinowski, P., 395
Mallard, C., 55
Mallin, B. M., 79, 101, 105
Malmberg, L. E., 135
Malone, J. C., 238
Maloy, R. W., 298
Mandara, J., 103, 105, 240
Mandler, J. M., 105
Manenti, R., 401
Manfredini, R., 335
Manganaro, L., 56
Mann, F. D., 300
Mann, N., 388
Manning. R. P., 328
Page NI-11
Manore, M., 84, 143, 200
Mantzavinosa, V., 405
Manuck, S. B., 49
Many, A., 67
Manzanares, S., 56
Mao, H. F., 404
Maoz, H., 204
Maravilla, J. C., 265
Marcell, J. J., 349
Marchetti, D., 59
Marchetti, F., 64
Marchman, V. A., 110, 112
Marcia, J. E., 284, 286
Mares, M-L., 194
Marion, R. M., 382
Marioni, R. E., 41, 49, 405
Marjanovic-Umek, L., 111
Mark, K. M., 181
Markant, J. C., 198
Markham, C. M., 264
Markides, K. S., 433
Markovic, G., 391
Markovitch, S., 119
Marotta, P., 303
Marquez-Gonzalez, M., 421
Marrus, N., 81
Marsh, H., 170
Marsh, H. L., 126
Marshall, K. A., 393
Marshall, N. A., 142
Marshall, S. L., 228
Marshall, T. R., 117
Martin, A., 154, 199, 201
Martin, A. J., 60, 238
Martin, C., 246
Martin, C. L., 177, 290
Martin, E. M., 41
Martin, G. N., 269
Martin, J. A., 66, 69, 70, 179, 265
Martin, K. B., 118
Martin, M. J., 187
Martin-Espinosa, N., 201
Martinez-Brockman, J. L., 145
Marx, J. M., 144
Mary, A., 204
Marzetti, E., 392
Masapollo, M., 106
Mascolo, M. F., 123, 318
Mash, C., 98
Mash, E. J., 203, 304
Masho, S. W., 263
Maslovitz, S., 67
Mason, A., 269
Mason, K., 38, 40, 42
Mason, T. B., 273
Mason-Apps, E., 103
Masoodi, N., 406
Masten, A. S., 10, 49, 157, 231, 232
Master, A., 253, 254
Mastergeorge, A. M., 164
Masters, A. R., 384
Mastropieri, M. A., 206
Matas, L., 118
Mateus, V., 102
Mather, M., 411
Matias, M., 324
Matlow, J. N., 52
Matos, K., 338
Matsumoto, D., 5, 8, 122, 130, 189, 294
Matthews, K. A., 390
Matzel, L. D., 217
Maule, M., 117
Maunder, R. G., 328
Maurer, D., 97
Mauron, A., 426
May, D., 176
May, L., 65
May, M. S., 174
May, R. W., 333, 334
Mayas, J., 394
Maye, M. P., 205
Mayer, K. D., 60
Mayerl, H., 322
Mayoral, V. F. S., 425
Mazuka, R., 110
Mazul, M. C., 64
Mazzeo, S. E., 259
Mazzu-Nascimento, T., 57
McAdams, D. P., 285, 365, 371
McAdams, T. A., 301
McAuley, E., 395
McCabe, F., 74
McCabe, K. O., 369
McCabe, R., 404
McCaffery, J. M., 49
McCarroll, J. E., 184
McCarthy, A. M., 269
McCarthy, J., 432
McCartney, K., 137, 138
McCaskey, U., 202
McClellan, M. D., 408
McClelland, M. M., 153, 154, 156, 157
McCluney, C. L., 419
McClure, E. M., 64
McClure, E. R., 103, 126
McCormack, T., 90
McCormick, C. B., 211
McCormick, M., 277
McCoy, M. B., 145
McCrae, R. R., 369
McCullogh, S., 69
McCullough, B. M., 418
McCurdy, A. P., 74
McCutcheon, H., 68
McDermott, E. R., 190
McDonald, J., 10, 298
McDonald, K. L., 242
McDonough, L., 105
McElhaney, K. B., 288
McElvaney, R., 287
McFarland, M. J., 337
McGarry, J., 74
McGee, K., 206
McGillion, M., 106, 110, 112
McGough, E. L., 397
McGrath, J. J., 58
McGrath, S. K., 72
McGregor, K. K., 161
McGuire, B. A., 40
McHale, S. M., 184, 288, 374
McIsaac, C., 292
McKenna, K. Y. A., 330
McKone, K. M. P., 260
McLaughlin, C. N., 82
McLaughlin, K., 427
McLaughlin, K. A., 81
McLean, K. C., 283, 285, 286
McLeish, J., 67
McLimans, K. E., 405
McMahon, D. M., 54
McMillan, J. H., 246
McMurray, B., 109, 112
McNicholas, C., 238
McNicholas, F., 70
McPherran Lombardi, C., 239, 240
McQueen, D. V., 9
McRae, C., 389
Meacham, J., 170
Meaney, M. J., 41
Medford, E., 45
Medrano, M., 269
Meeks, S., 10, 413
Meerlo, P., 73
Meert, K. L., 433
Meeus, W., 284–286
Mehari, K. R., 300
Mehler, M. F., 49
Mehta, C. M., 343
Mehta, N. D., 74
Meier, E. A., 427
Meins, E., 159, 288
Mejia, S. T., 4, 13
Meldrum, R. C., 216
Melehan, K. L., 353
Melhuish, E., 138
Melis Yavuz, H., 178
Mellor, D., 267
Meltzer, A. N., 103
Meltzer, L., 208, 270, 276
Meltzoff, A. N., 101–103, 105, 236
Memari, A., 206
Memitz, S. A., 334
Menard, L., 106
Mendelson, M., 269
Mendes, A., 432
Mendle, J., 260
Mendoza Laiz, N., 406
Mendoza-Nunez, M., 414
Mendoza-Ruvalcaba, N., 421
Menesini, E., 245
Meng, X., 30, 93, 421
Menn, L., 160
Menon, R., 52
Menon, V., 311
Menotti, A., 350
Mercer, N., 300
Mercy, J. A., 146
Meredith, N. V., 141
Merianos, A. L., 146
Merlo, P., 406
Mermelshtine, R., 133
Merrill, D. M., 373, 377
Meruri, N. B., 204
Meschkow, A. M., 277
Mesman, J., 326
Messerlian, C., 33
Messiah, S. E., 60
Messinger, D. B., 118
Messinger, D. S., 92, 115, 119
Metha, A., 246
Meyer, A., 204
Meyer, L. E., 162
Meyre, D., 273
Michael, R. T., 314, 315, 354
Michalicova, A., 404
Michaud, I., 269
Michelmore, K., 333
Mick, P., 388
Mickelson, K. D., 132
Micoch, T., 45
Middleton, R. J., 57
Midouhas, E., 230
Miele, D. B., 238
Miga, E. M., 289
Migliano, A. B., 109
Mikkola, T. M., 388
Mikulincer, M., 327, 328
Mila, M., 45
Milic, J., 431
Miller, A. B., 29
Miller, A. C., 428
Miller, B., 295
Miller, B. F., 383
Miller, C., 9, 338
Miller, C. J., 204
Miller, D. D., 73
Miller, D. G., 425
Miller, E. B., 164
Miller, F. G., 426
Miller, J. G., 238
Miller, L. M., 187, 415
Miller, M. S., 54, 403
Miller, P. H., 19, 21, 275
Miller, P. J., 228
Miller, R., 49
Miller, S. L., 55
Miller, S. P., 56
Miller-Perrin, C. L., 183
Milligan, K., 58
Mills, C. M., 170, 228
Mills, K., 260, 261
Mills-Koonce, W. R., 118
Milne, E., 64
Milner, A., 323
Mindell, L. A., 82
Miner, J. L., 136
Miniussi, C., 401
Minkler, M., 375
Minnes, S., 59
Minsart, A. F., 62
Mireles-Rios, R., 288
Mirvis, P. H., 322
Mischel, W., 156, 174
Mishna, F., 244
Mishra, G. D., 352
Miskovsky, M. J., 310
Mitanchez, D., 61
Mitchell, E. A., 83
Mitchell, M. B., 399
Mitchison, D., 259
Mithun, M., 106
Miyahara, R., 146
Miyake, S., 66
Miyakoshi, K., 69
Miyasaki, J. M., 424
Miyata, K., 387
Miyazaki, K., 54
Mnyani, C. N., 77
Modecki, K. L., 10, 298
Moen, P., 320, 324, 358, 402
Moharei, F., 201
Mok, Y., 349, 350
Mola, J. R., 353
Molden, D. C., 252, 253
Molgora, S., 64
Molina, M. A., 14, 421
Moline, H. R., 61
Mollart, L., 68
Mollborn, S., 266
Mollinedo-Gajate, I., 205
Molton, I. R., 389
Mondal, A. C., 63
Mondloch, C. J., 97
Monge, Z. A., 387
Monin, J. K., 416
Monn, A. R., 157
Monroy, C. D., 107
Monserud, M. A., 377, 433
Montague, T., 426
Mont’Alvao, A., 322
Moon, M., 414
Moon, R. Y., 83, 84
Mooney-Leber, S. M., 71
Moore, B. S., 156
Moore, D., 294
Moore, D. S., 17, 41, 43, 48–50, 82, 102, 133
Moore, L., 146
Moore, S. J., 384
Moore, S. R., 260
Moorefield, B. S., 241
Moosmann, D. A., 293
Mooya, H., 131
Mora, J. C., 392
Moradi, B., 343
Moran, G., 365
Page NI-12
Moran, V. H., 85
Moravcik, E., 162, 166, 192, 208
Morbelli, S., 404
Morcom, A. M., 395
Moreau, D., 199
Moreno, I., 60
Mori, H., 258
Morikawa, T., 404
Morin, A. J. S., 259
Morosan, L., 228
Morra, S., 208
Morris, A. S., 121
Morris, B. J., 96
Morris, M. C., 301
Morris, P. A., 25
Morris, S., 116, 119, 171, 230
Morrison, G. S., 7, 141, 143, 162, 163, 165, 192, 208, 217
Morrison, R. S., 427
Morrison, S. C., 187
Morrison-Beedy, D., 264
Morrissey, T. W., 135
Morrow-Howell, N., 421
Morse, A. F., 23
Mortelmans, D., 187
Mortensen, E. L., 90
Mortimer, J. T., 322
Morton, J. B., 156, 212, 276
Mosher, W. D., 333, 334
Moss, A. H., 425
Moss, P., 134, 270
Moss, S. A., 4, 14, 411, 421
Mossburg, S. E., 403
Motti-Stefanidi, F., 9, 10
Moulson, M. C., 94, 125
Mounts, E. L., 46
Mouquet-River, C., 85
Moura da Costa, E., 150
Moustafa, A. A., 23
Moyer, A., 334
Mparmpakas, D., 63
Mroczek, D., 371
Mroczek, D. K., 351, 371
Mrowka, R., 349
Mucke, M., 82
Mudrazija, S., 420
Mueller, B. A., 59
Mueller, M. R., 208
Mueller, S. C., 277
Muftic, L. R., 300
Muhammad, A., 41
Muijs, D., 243, 245
Mukherjee, P., 8, 190
Mulder, T. M., 183
Muller, M. J., 172
Muller, U., 156, 212, 350
Munholland, K. A., 128
Muniz Terrera, G., 397
Munn-Chernoff, M. A., 273
Munoz, K. D., 6, 84, 85, 143, 200
Munroe, B. A., 204
Munsters, N. M., 115
Muntane, G., 381
Murachver, T., 342
Murcia, M., 62
Murdock, K. K., 271
Murki, S., 71
Murphy, G. G., 384
Murphy, K., 298
Murphy, P. A., 64
Murray, H. B., 273
Murray, P. J., 263
Murugan, S., 405
Musher-Eizenman, D. R., 144
Mussen, P. H., 311
Mychasiuk, R., 41
Myers, D. G., 50
Myers, J., 425
Myerson, J., 218
N
Nabe-Nielsen, K., 358
Nagel, B. J., 204
Nahapetyan, L., 238
Nai, Z. L., 369
Naicker, K., 301
Naiman, J. M., 63
Nair, R. L., 5, 190
Nair, S., 205
Najari, B. B., 353
Najman, J. M., 248, 300
Nakagawa, T., 381
Nakamichi, K., 172
Namgoong, S., 57
Namuth, T., 168
Nansel, T. R., 243
Nappi, R. E., 353
Narayan, A. J., 10, 232
Narayan, K. M., 144, 268
Narváez, D., 173, 234
Naughton, A. M., 182
Naumova, O. Y., 49
Nave, K. A., 80
Nave-Blodgett, J. E., 97
Ncube, C. N., 59
Ndu, I. K., 84
Needham, A., 91
Needham, A. W., 90
Neff, F., 383
Negriff, S., 260
Negru-Subtirica, O., 283
Nehme J., 382
Nehrkorn, A. M., 366
Neimeyer, R. A., 433
Nelson, C. A., 54, 81, 82, 101, 261, 385
Nelson, G., 202
Nelson, J. A., 171
Nelson, L. J., 285, 306–308
Nelson, S. E., 272
Nelson, S. K., 177
Nemet, D., 199, 201
Nene, R. V., 382
Nergard-Nilssen, T., 202
Nesi, J., 241, 291
Netz, Y., 312
Neupert, S. D., 368
Nevalainen, T., 348
Neville, H. J., 223
Nevitt, S. J., 46
Newport, E. L., 223
Newton, E. R., 65
Ng, F. F., 252
Ng, M., 71
Ng, Q. X., 303
Ngantcha, M., 298
Ngnoumen, C., 14, 421
Ngui, E. M., 64
Nguyen, T. V., 258
Nicolaou, E., 209
Nicosia, N., 200
Nicoteri, J. A., 310
Nie, J. B., 428
Nieto, S., 8, 189, 190, 248, 250, 297
Nikitin, J., 412, 421
Nikolas, M. A., 259
Nilsen, E. S., 228
Nilsen, P., 427
Niraula, A., 384
Nisbett, R., 216
Nishina, A., 290
Nissim, N. R., 396
Nitzke, S., 145
Niu, M., 45
Nnaka, T., 313
Noble, N., 352
Noll, J. G., 259
Nolte, S., 162, 166, 192, 208
Nomoto, M., 407
Non, A. L., 190
Nora, A., 80
Nordheim, K. L., 391
Nordstrom, K., 393
Norman, E., 211
Norman, J. F., 395
Norona, A. N., 133, 172
Norouzieh, K., 428
Norris, K., 382
Nosraty, L., 421
Nottelmann, E. D., 258
Nouchi, R., 396
Novack, M. A., 106
Novak, J., 328, 330
Novello, L., 258
Novick, G., 65
Nowson, C. A., 389
Nunes, A. S., 205
Nuri Ben-Shushan, Y., 222, 223
Nusslock, R., 385
Nuthmann, A., 101
Nye, C., 371
Nygard, C-H., 358
N’zi, A., 131
O
Oakley, G. P., 62
Oakley, M., 188
Oakley, M. K., 189, 338
Oates, K., 183
Oberle, E., 228
Oberlin, L. E., 5, 385, 391, 392, 400
Obradovic, J., 133, 217
O’Brien, J. L., 394
O’Brien, M., 134, 185
Occhino, C., 106
O’Connor, D., 414
O’Connor, D. B., 353
O’Connor, T. G., 121
Offer, D., 256
O’Flaherty, P., 60
Ogbuanu, I. U., 61
Ogden, C. L., 144, 200
Ogden, T., 256, 257
Ogino, T., 209
Ogletree, A. M., 328, 329, 342, 416, 418
Oh, S., 59
Oh, S. J., 396
Oh, W. O., 303
O’Halloran, A. M., 395
O’Hara, M. W., 73, 74
Ohlin, A., 71
O’Kearney, R., 228
Okereke, O., 431
Okun, M. A., 419
Okuzono, S., 181
Olderbak, S., 238
O’Leary, K. D., 334
O’Leary, M., 392
O’Leary, O. F., 385
Olesen, M. V., 385
Oleti, T. P., 71
Oliffe, J. L., 74
Oliva, A., 424
Oliver, B. R., 181, 184
Ollen, E. W., 189, 338
Ollendick, T. H., 172
Olsen, D. P., 425
Olson, B. D., 371
Olson, N. C., 40
Olszewski-Kubilius, P., 219
Oltmanns, J., 16, 398
Olweus, D., 245
Omaggio, N. F., 46
Onder, G., 414
Onders, B., 146
Onen, F., 389
Onen, S. H., 389
Ong, A. L. C., 382
Ono, D., 360
Onuzuruike, A. U., 201
Oppenheimer, C. W., 302
Orav, E. J., 374
Ordonez, T. N., 400
Oren, E., 366
Oren, N., 394
Orkaby, A. R., 13, 421
Orlich, D. C., 246
Ornoy, A., 52, 61
Orosova, O., 186
Orosz, G., 329
Orovecz, J. J., 8, 343
Orpinas, P., 238
Orth, U., 228
Ostan, R., 380
Oster, H., 96
Ostergaard, S. D., 203
Ostfeld, B. M., 59
Ostrove, J. M., 365
Ota, M., 107
Otsuki-Clutter, M., 179
Otto, H., 116, 130
Ou, S. R., 190, 249
Ouch, S., 338
Owen, K. B., 269
Owens, J. A., 270
Owsley, C., 388
Owsley, C. J., 100
Oyeyemi, A. L., 312
Ozcan, L., 353, 390
Oztekin, I., 396
Ozturk, M. B., 382
P
Paasch, E., 259
Pace, A., 107, 110, 112
Padilla-Walker, L. M., 194, 287, 306, 308
Pagani, L. S., 146
Pakhomov, S. V., 386
Palacios, E. L., 190
Palanisamy, J., 212
Palmer, A., 10, 231
Palmer, C. A., 270
Palmieri, A., 433
Palmore, E. B., 414
Pan, B. A., 222
Pan, C. Y., 204
Pan, Z., 194, 381
Pantell, R. H., 155
Paolucci, E. M., 312
Papanicolas, I., 414
Papastavrou, E., 406
Papernow, P., 240, 416
Parade, S. H., 118, 122
Parashar, S., 41
Parasuraman, R., 395
Parcianello, R. R., 60
Parcon, P. A., 30
Parens, E., 204
Pargament, K. I., 361
Parish-Morris, J., 107
Park, C. L., 357, 360, 361, 433
Page NI-13
Park, D. C., 3, 5, 11, 13, 16, 29, 30, 386, 399, 400, 404
Park, H. S., 43, 287, 385
Park, M., 63
Park, M. J., 302, 310
Park, S., 421
Park, Y. M., 303
Parke, R. D., 134, 185, 186, 188
Parker, C. B., 411
Parker, J. G., 191, 242, 245
Parker, K., 334, 335
Parkes, K. R., 359
Parks, E. L., 385, 400, 401
Parmar, M., 407
Parnass, J., 177
Parrott, A. C., 52
Parsons, C. E., 115
Pascal, A., 70
Paschall, K. W., 164
Pasley, K., 241
Pasteels, I., 187
Pate, R., 200
Pate, R. R., 145
Patel, J. S., 351
Patel, R., 43
Patel, S., 61
Pater, J., 159
Pathman, T., 104
Patlamazoglou, L., 432
Patrick, J. E., 312
Patrick, J. H., 366
Patrick, M. E., 312
Patterson, C. J., 188, 189, 338
Patterson, G. D., 46, 185
Pattie, A., 400
Patton, G. C., 16, 268
Patton, L. K., 115, 117, 142
Paul, C., 411, 421
Paulhus, D. L., 185
Paunesku, D., 253
Paus, T., 262
Pawluski, J. L., 73
Paxton, S. J., 228
Payer, L., 352
Payne, K., 337
Pazoki, R., 348
Pea, R., 298
Peaceman, A. M., 61
Pearson, K. J., 62, 392
Pearson, N., 200, 269
Peck, T., 145, 195
Pedersen, L. R., 380
Pedersen, N. L., 359
Pedrinolla, A., 405
Peek, M. K., 416
Peets, K., 243–245
Pei, J., 58
Peipert, J. F., 264
Peixoto, C. E., 155
Pekacka-Falkowska, K., 427
Pellegrini, A. D., 38
Peltola, M. J., 125
Penagarikano, O., 205
Penazzi, L., 384
Peng, F., 384
Peng, Z., 353
Penhollow, T. M., 313
Penn, S., 71
Peplau, L. A., 315, 316, 338
Pepping, C. A., 328
Peregoy, S. F., 224
Peregrine, P. N., 295
Pereira, C., 387
Pereira-Salgado, A., 424
Perelli-Harris, B., 333, 336, 341
Perez, H. C. S., 432
Perez, S., 152
Perez-Edgar, K. E., 120
Perez-Escamilla, R., 85
Periyakoli, V. S., 427
Perkisas, S., 400
Perls, T. T., 381
Perneczky, R., 404
Perone, S., 156, 212, 396
Perozynski, L., 184
Perreira, K., 297
Perren, S., 117
Perrin, R. D., 183
Perry, N. B., 115, 116, 119, 122, 125, 126, 144, 171, 172, 230
Perry, S. E., 142, 198
Perry, T. B., 245
Persand, D., 86
Peskin, H., 259
Peterman, K., 90
Peters, S., 260, 276
Petersen, A. C., 9, 16, 256, 275
Petersen, I. T., 49
Petersen, J. L., 315
Petersen, R. C., 390
Peterson, C. B., 274
Peterson, C. C., 159
Peterson, S. R., 229
Peterson-Badali, M., 9
Petitto, L-A., 223
Petrie, J. R., 349
Petry, N., 145
Pettit, G. S., 24, 119, 121
Peyre, H., 302
Pflaum, A., 170
Pham, T. B., 303
Phinney, J. S., 287
Phull, A. R., 383
Piaget, J., 20, 98, 147, 173, 192, 207, 274
Pianta, R., 136
Piazza, J. R., 351, 368
Picherot, G., 194
Pickard, J. A., 112
Pidgeon, T. M., 427
Piehler, T. F., 238
Piekarski, D. J., 258
Pietromonaco, P. R., 328
Pike, A., 184
Pikhart, H., 384
Piko, B. F., 272
Pillemer, K., 416
Pinhas, L., 272
Pinheiro, M. B., 47
Pinker, S., 109, 112
Pinna, K., 6, 84, 85
Pinninti, S. G., 61
Pino, E. C., 296
Pinquart, M., 178, 179
Pinto, T. M., 63
Pinto Pereira, S. M., 62
Pipp, S. L., 123
Pirillo, A., 349
Pisoni, D. B., 96
Pitkänen, T., 272
Pitman, A. L., 432
Planalp, E. M., 122
Platt, B., 242, 302
Platt, J. M., 260
Plotnikova, M., 63
Plourde, K. F., 303
Plucker, J., 211
Pluess, M., 120, 123
Podrebarac, S. K., 63
Poehlmann-Tynan, J., 210
Pohlabein, H., 59
Polenick, C. A., 376, 416
Polenova, E., 286
Polka, L., 106, 107
Pollock, K., 427
Pomerantz, E. M., 239, 251, 252
Pong, S., 297
Poole, L. A., 302
Pooley, J. A., 204
Pop, E. L., 283
Popadin, K., 44
Popenoe, D., 333, 334
Popham, W. J., 246
Porcelli, B., 366
Porteri, C., 426
Posner, M., 102, 153, 208
Posner, M. I., 118, 154
Possel, P., 302
Post, J., 391
Poston, D. L., 185
Poti, J. M., 178
Poulain, T., 298
Poulakis, K., 384
Poulin, F., 191, 241, 290
Poulsen, R. D., 41
Powell, L. J., 159
Powell, R. E., 46
Powell, S. D., 7, 246
Powell, S. R., 202
Power, J. H. T., 383
Powers, K. E., 159
Powers, S. K., 143, 145, 199, 201, 269, 311
Powrie, R., 74
Poyatos-Leon, R., 74
Pradel, M., 273
Pramstaller, P. P., 43, 381
Prenoveau, J. M., 74
Pressley, M., 212
Preston, J. D., 62, 392
Preston, R., 425
Price, J., 338
Prigerson, H. G., 432
Prince, H., 428
Prino, L. E., 183
Prinstein, M. J., 191, 242, 244, 264, 291, 292, 300
Printzlau, F., 45
Profili, E., 144
Propper, C., 59
Propper, C. B., 118
Proulx, C. M., 419
Pruett, M. K., 181
Puce, A., 79
Puerto, M., 60
Pufal, M. A., 200
Pugmire, J., 146
Pulcini, C. D., 296
Pulkkinen, L., 272
Pullen, P. C., 7, 203, 206
Puma, M., 164
Pun, J. K. H., 428
Putallaz, M., 238
Putnam, S., 121
Puts, M. T., 5
Puura, K., 125
Puzzanchera, C., 299
Q
Qian, Z., 333
Qin, B., 178
Qin, J., 351
Qin, L., 252
Qiu, R., 349
Qu, Y., 252
Quaranta, M., 239
Quellet, N., 417
Quereshi, I. A., 49
Quimby, D., 286
Quinn, J. F., 358, 414
Quinn, P. C., 104, 105
Quinones-Camacho, L. E., 172
Quintanar, L., 193
R
Raajashri, R., 71
Rabbitt, P., 357, 396
Raby, K. L., 183
Rachwani, J., 86, 88
Radey, C., 184
Radhakrishnan, D., 406
Radhakrishnan, S., 387
Radvansky, G. A., 22, 154, 209
Raemaekers, M., 80
Raffaelli, M., 9
Ragavan, M., 7
Raghu, K. G., 383
Raghuraman, R., 405
Rahe, R. H., 366
Rahioul, H., 417
Raichlen, D. A., 38
Raikes, H., 111
Rajan, S., 278
Rajan, T. M., 311
Rajaraman, P., 61
Rajeh, A., 204
Raketic, D., 369
Rakoczy, H., 5, 14, 158
Raley, R. K., 333
Ram, N., 115, 125, 172, 230
Ramani, G., 245
Ramani, G. B., 126
Ramasamy, T. S., 382
Ramaswami, G., 40
Ramey, D. M., 84
Ramirez-Esparza, N., 111
Ramus, F., 202
Rana, B. K., 47
Randall, W. L., 410
Randel, B., 251
Randolph, S. M., 375
Rangey, P. S., 71
Ranka, R., 383
Rankin, J., 67
Rao Gupta, G., 8
Rapee, R. M., 120
Rapkin, B. D., 278
Rapp, S. R., 397
Rastedt, D. E., 406
Rastegar, S., 398
Rasulo, D., 416, 418
Rathunde, K., 6
Rattan, A., 254
Raudsepp, L., 291
Raver, C. C., 152, 172
Ray, J., 300
Razavi, S. M., 57
Razaz, N., 69
Razza, R. A., 154
Razza, R. P., 157, 212
Read, J., 182
Reader, J. M., 181
Rebok, G. W., 399, 400
Recchia, H. E., 236
Page NI-14
Redshaw, M., 67
Reece, E., 284
Reed, A. E., 413, 421
Rees, M., 353, 354
Reese, B. M., 263
Regalado, M., 180
Regan, M., 264
Regev, R. H., 69
Regnart, J., 204
Reich, S. M., 286
Reichle, B., 114, 134
Reidy, D., 238
Reiersen, A. M., 205
Reilly, D., 237
Reizer, A., 74
Rejeski, W. J., 387
Ren, B. X., 60
Ren, H., 200
Renzulli, J., 211, 221
Reuter-Lorene, P., 4, 6
Reuter-Lorenz, P. A., 385, 395, 396, 399–401, 421
Reutzel, D. R., 162, 221, 222
Revelas, M., 381
Reyna, V. E., 210
Reyna, V. F., 11, 260, 275–277
Reynolds, A. J., 190, 249
Reynolds, G., 140
Reynolds, G. D., 102
Reynolds, L. J., 62, 392
Rhodes, R. E., 396
Rholes, W. S., 326
Riaz, A., 204
Ribeiro, O., 13
Ribeiro, S., 41
Richards, J. E., 79, 101, 102, 105
Richardson, G. A., 59
Richardson, M. A., 60
Richardson-Gibbs, A M., 206
Richland, E. E., 209
Richter, L. M., 145
Richtsmeier, P. T., 107
Rickert, N. P., 241
Rideout, V., 298, 299
Riediger, M., 412
Riegel, B., 389
Rietjens, J. A., 424
Rietjens, J. A. C., 424
Riggins, T., 104
Riggle, E. D., 338
Riksen-Walraven, J. M., 84
Rimfeld, K., 216
Rimsza, M. E., 310
Ring, M., 352
Ringe, D., 106
Rios, A. C., 52
Rioux, C., 303
Ripke, N. N., 239
Risley, T. R., 110
Riso, E. M., 291, 300
Rissel, C., 195
Rivas-Drake, D., 286
Rivers, S. E., 276
Rix, S., 402
Rizvi, S. J., 323
Roben, C. K. P., 131
Roberts, B. W., 14, 369, 371, 413
Roberts, D. P., 298, 299
Roberts, K. L., 387
Roberts, L., 144
Roberts, S. D., 208
Robine, J-M., 13, 421
Robins, R. W., 5, 297
Robinson, A., 347, 348, 368, 421
Robinson, A. T., 383
Robinson, K., 65
Robinson, S. R., 89
Robinson, S. R. R., 86, 89
Roblyer, M. D., 298
Roche, K. M., 5, 190
Rochlen, A. B., 134
Rode, S. S., 72
Rodgers, C. C., 141, 142, 198, 199
Rodgers, C. S., 176
Rodgers, R. F., 259
Rodin, J., 393, 430
Rodriguez, M. A., 421
Rodriguez Villar, S., 432
Rodrique, K. M., 384, 385, 405
Roeder, I., 385
Roehlkepartain, E. C., 9, 257
Roelfs, D. J., 323
Roese, N. J., 359
Roeser, R. W., 210, 211, 278, 279
Rofey, D. L., 260
Rogers, C. R., 261
Rogers, E. E., 70
Rogers, M. L., 171
Roggman, L., 114, 134, 135
Roggman, L. A., 164
Rogine, C., 405
Rognum, I. J., 83
Rogosch, F. A., 183, 184
Rohrer, J. M., 185
Roisman, G. I., 129–131, 240
Rojas-Flores, L., 256, 297
Rolfes, S. R., 6, 85
Rolland, B., 58
Rollins, B. Y., 144
Romer, D., 275, 276
Romero, L. M., 264
Romo, L. F., 288
Roodin, P. A., 13, 348, 357, 358, 386, 388
Roohan, P. J., 414
Roopnarine, J. L., 114, 135
Roosa, M. W., 293
Roring, R. W., 349
Roscigno, V. J., 414
Rose, A. J., 175, 176, 191, 238, 291, 302
Rose, S. A., 155
Roseberry, S., 110
Rosen, L. H., 133, 134
Rosen, M. L., 146, 248, 296
Rosen, R. C., 353
Rosengard, C., 265
Rosenstein, D., 96
Rosenstrom, T., 47
Rosenthal, S., 129, 327
Rosenthal, Z., 71
Rosenzweig, E. Q., 278, 279
Rösler, F., 4, 6
Ross, A. P., 142
Ross, J., 171
Rossi, A. S., 377
Rossler, W., 351
Rostamian, S., 397
Rostosky, S. S., 338
Rote, W. M., 287
Rotenberg, J., 393
Roth, B., 216
Roth, J., 267
Roth, W. T., 200, 268, 311
Rothbart, M. K., 120, 122, 153, 154
Rothbaum, F., 291
Rothman, E. F., 260
Rovee-Collier, C., 102, 103
Rovner, P., 258
Rowe, J. W., 419
Rowland, T., 145, 269
Royer, C. E., 155, 156
Rozanski, A., 321
Rozenblat, V., 49
Rubin, K. H., 16, 176, 191, 241, 242, 244, 290, 291
Rubio, L., 418
Rubio-Fernandez, P., 223
Rubio-Herrera, R., 418
Ruble, D., 227
Ruble, D. N., 177
Ruck, M. D., 9
Rudolph, K. D., 260
Rudolph, K. L., 382
Rueda, M. R., 154
Ruffman, T., 159
Rugg, M. D., 401
Ruisch, I. H., 60
Ruitenberg, M. F., 385
Ruitenberg, M. J., 385
Ruiz-Casares, M., 263
Rumberger, R. W., 280
Rupp, D. E., 414
Rusby, J. C., 287
Russell, L., 240, 241
Russo-Netzer, P., 365
Ruzek, E., 16
Ryan, A. M., 245
Ryan, R. M., 260
Ryff, C. D., 365
S
Saab, A. S., 80
Saad, L., 322
Saadatmand, Z., 163
Saarni, C., 231, 232
Sabbagh, M., 276
Sabbagh, M. A., 159
Sabir, M., 410
Saccuzzo, D. P., 29
Sackett, P. R., 213, 218
Sadeh, A., 82, 83
Sadker, D. M., 247
Saez de Urabain, I. R., 101
Saffran, J. R., 95, 96, 107
Saha, S. K., 383
Saint-Onge, J. M., 380
Sajikumar, S., 5, 405
Sakaluk, J. K., 315
Salama, R. H., 59
Salapatek, P., 93
Saliba, D., 10
Salkind, N. J., 27
Salloum, A., 431
Salmivalli, C., 243–245
Salmon, J., 143, 200
Salm Ward, T. C., 64, 83
Salthouse, T. A., 5, 13, 356–358, 384, 396, 400
Saltvedt, S., 68
Salvatore, J. E., 48, 327
Salzwedel, A. P., 59
Sambin, M., 433
Samek, D. R., 49
Sameroff, A. J., 133
Samjoo, I. A., 383
Sampath, A., 61
Sanchez-Perez, N., 209
Sanchez-Roige, S., 40
Sandholdt, H., 419
Sandler, I., 7
Sands, A., 187
Sangree, W. H., 420
Sanikhani, M., 383
Sanner, C., 416
Sannita, W. G., 426
Sanson, A., 122
Santacreu, M., 421
Santana, J. P., 9
Santangeli, L., 62
Santelli, J., 263, 267
Santos, C. E., 286
Santos, L. M., 54
Santrock, J. W., 241, 308
Sao Jose, J. M., 414
Sarchiapone, M., 270
Sargent-Cox, K., 414
Sargrad, S., 246
Sarid, O., 367
Sarman, I., 58
Sarquella-Brugada, G., 83
Sassler, S., 333
Satorres, E., 410
Sattar, N., 62
Satterthwaite, T. D., 275, 276
Sauce, B., 217
Sauce, D., 351
Sauchelli, A., 285
Saul, J. S., 259
Saunders, N. R., 146
Saunders, R., 200
Savage, J. S., 291
Sävendahl, L., 258
Savin-Williams, R. C., 8, 262, 293, 315, 316, 344
Savulescu, J., 425
Sawyer, S. C., 328
Sawyer, S. M., 16
Sawyer, W., 248, 250
Saxena, M., 44
Sayali, Z. C., 396
Sbarra, D. A., 335–337
Scaglioni, S., 96, 143
Scales, P. C., 9, 257
Scapagnini, G., 381
Scarabino, D., 43, 382
Scarr, S., 48
Scelfo, J., 343
Scerif, G., 102, 105, 153, 208, 275, 277
Schachner, A., 97
Schaefer, C., 58
Schaefer, I. M., 44
Schafer, M. J., 392
Schaffer, H. R., 127
Schaffer, M. A., 266
Schaie, K. W., 3, 5, 14, 33, 355–357, 397, 401, 421
Schaumberg, K., 273
Schemhammer, E. S., 389
Schena, F., 405
Scherer, D. G., 188
Scheuer, H., 261
Schieber, F., 349
Schiff, R., 222, 223
Schiff, W., 145, 201, 268, 311
Schiffman, S. S., 388
Schillinger, J. A., 61
Schimmele, C. M., 417
Schittny, J. C., 52
Schlam, T. R., 156, 157
Schlarb, A. A., 310
Schlegel, M., 157
Schlegel, P. N., 45
Schlosnagle, L., 418
Schmeidler, J., 394
Schmidt, E. L., 401
Schmitt, S. A., 153, 172
Schmukle, S. C., 185
Schneider, N., 83
Schneider, W., 155
Schnittker, J., 418
Schnohr, P., 359
Schoen, M., 78
Schoeneberger, J., 280
Schoenfeld, E. A., 339
Page NI-15
Schoffstall, C. L., 244
Schofield, T. J., 186, 188
Schonert-Reichl, K. A., 210
Schooreel, T., 324
Schoppe-Sullivan, S. J., 132, 181
Schreiber, K. H., 392
Schreuders, E., 82
Schuch, F. B., 312
Schuengel, C., 128
Schukle, S. C., 369
Schulenberg, J. E., 310, 312
Schuler, M. S., 300
Schulster, M. L., 353
Schultz, M. L., 84
Schumann, L., 122
Schunk, D. H., 229, 230, 238
Schutten, D., 298
Schutze, U., 109
Schwade, J. A., 106
Schwartz, E. G., 84
Schwartz, L. E., 431
Schwartz, M. A., 132, 332, 334, 340
Schwartz, S. J., 284
Schwartz-Mette, R. A., 238
Schweinhart, L. J., 165
Sciafe, J. C., 273
Scialfa, C. T., 349, 387
Sciberras, E., 83
Sclar, D. A., 204
Scott, B. M., 132, 332, 334, 340
Scott, D., 367, 392
Scott, M. E., 417
Scott, R. M., 158
Scott-Goodwin, A. C., 60
Scruggs, T. E., 206
Sebastiani, P., 381
Sechrist, J., 376, 377, 417
Sedgh, G., 265
Seibert, A. C., 240
Seider, S., 256
Seiter, L. N., 308
Selcuk, B., 159, 178
Selim, A. J., 381
Selkie, E., 259, 260
Semchyshyn, H. M., 385
Sen, B., 272
Senin-Calderon, C., 259
Seo, Y. S., 96
Serrano-Villar, M., 177
Serrat, R., 364, 365
Sethna, V., 114, 135
Settanni, M., 183
Setterson, R. A., 345, 346
Sewdas, R., 402
Seymour, J., 427
Sgoifo, A., 73
Sgro, P., 353
Shackleton, B., 405
Shah, A. A., 6
Shahoei, R., 68
Shalitin, S., 257, 259
Shankar, A., 10
Shankar, K., 84
Shannon, F. T., 84
Shapiro, A., 132
Shapka, J. D., 8
Sharaf, M. F., 410
Sharland, M., 61
Sharma, D., 71
Sharma, M., 405
Sharma, R., 64, 353
Sharony, R., 46
Sharp, S., 434
Shatz, M., 161
Shaver, P., 331
Shaver, P. R., 327, 328
Shaw, P., 204
Shaywitz, B. A., 202
Shaywitz, S. E., 202
Shebloski, B., 184
Sheinbaum, T., 328
Sheldrick, R. C., 205
Shenk, D., 217
Sheridan, J. F., 384
Sheridan, M. A., 81, 209
Sherman, C. W., 418
Sherman, L., 260, 261, 277
Sherwood, C. C., 384
Sheth, M., 71
Shi, C., 405
Shi, J., 358, 398, 402
Shin, D. W., 425
Shin, H., 245
Shin, M., 298
Shiner, S., 67
Shipman, D., 190
Shivarama Shetty, M., 5
Shohayeb, B., 385
Shorey, S., 74
Shors, T. J., 385
Short, D., 358, 402
Short, D. J., 224
Shoval, G., 278
Sichimba, F., 131
Sidtis, J. J., 80
Siegel, A. L. M., 395
Siegel, L. S., 224
Siegel, R. S., 265
Siegler, R., 21
Siegler, R. S., 153, 208, 209, 275, 357
Siennick, S. E., 302
Sievert, L. L., 352
Siflinger, B., 433
Sigman, M., 64
Silber, S., 56
Silva, C., 282, 283
Silva, D. R., 312
Silva, K., 277
Silver, N., 338
Silverman, J. M., 394
Silverman, M. E., 74
Silverstein, M., 375
Sim, Z. L., 192
Simmonds, J. G., 432
Simmons, L. A., 302
Simms, N. K., 209
Simon, E. J., 38, 42
Simon, K. A., 188, 338
Simon, P., 296
Simons, L. G., 263, 291, 300
Simons, R. L., 291, 300
Simpkins, S. D., 239
Simpson, D. M., 330
Simpson, G. M., 335, 372
Simpson, J. A., 38, 291, 326
Sims, D. A., 73
Sims, T., 366, 411, 412
Sin, N. L., 351
Sinclair, E. M., 111
Singarajah, A., 93
Singer, A. E., 426
Singer, D., 193, 194
Singer, M. A., 382
Singh, L., 223
Singh, M., 407
Singh, N. N., 210
Singh, R., 8, 190, 387
Sinhu, G., 383
Sinnott, J. D., 318
Sirard, J. R., 269
Sirey, J. A., 403
Sirois, F. M., 390
Sirrine, E. H., 431
Sirsch, U., 306
Sitterle, K. A., 241
Siverova, J., 410
Skaper, S. D., 384
Skarabela, B., 107
Skerrett, P. J., 392
Skinner, B. F., 23
Skloot, G. S., 389
Skogbrott Birkeland, M., 259
Skovronek, E., 357
Skrzypek, H., 56
Skuse, D., 45
Slade, L., 159
Slater, A., 94, 273
Slater, A. M., 98
Slaughter, V., 159
Sleet, D. A., 146
Sliwinski, M. J., 33
Sloan, D. H., 361
Slobin, D., 108
Sloutsky, V., 275
Slutske, W. S., 272
Smaldino, S. E., 298
Small, B. J., 399
Small, H., 379
Small, M., 9
Smarius, L. J., 117
Smeeding, T., 185, 217
Smetana, J. G., 27, 172, 189, 235, 236, 287
Smith, A., 5, 144, 268, 299, 311
Smith, A. D., 395
Smith, A. E., 392
Smith, A. J., 432
Smith, A. K., 427
Smith, A. M., 143, 144, 200
Smith, A. R., 71, 307
Smith, C. A., 68
Smith, I. M., 159
Smith, J., 13, 345, 370, 397
Smith, J. D., 130, 182, 203, 206, 418
Smith, J. F., 61
Smith, K. E., 273, 416
Smith, L. B., 86, 88, 98, 102, 103
Smith, L. E., 74
Smith, M. A., 82
Smith, R. A., 17
Smith, R. L., 175, 176, 191, 238, 291, 302
Smith, T. E., 206, 342
SmithBattie, L., 265, 266
Smock, P. J., 333
Smokowksi, P. R., 289, 290, 302
Smoreda, Z., 342
Smyke, A. T., 129
Smyth, J. M., 367
Snarey, J., 234
Snedeker, J., 101
Snell, T. L., 432
Snow, C. E., 224
Snowdon, D. A., 386
Snyder, A. C., 82
Snyder, W., 159, 160
Soboroff, S. D., 347
Sobowale, K., 369
Socan, G., 111
Sokol, R. L., 178
Sokolowski, M., 40
Soli, A., 374
Solomon, J., 128
Solomon-Moore, E., 131, 199
Solovieva, Y., 193
Someya, S., 392
Song, J. W., 54
Song, Y., 258, 384
Sonnby, K., 288
Sonneville, K. R., 310
Sonny, A., 67
Sontag, L. M., 300
Sophian, C., 100
Soto, C. J., 369
Sousa, S. S., 261
Sowell, E. R., 258
Sowers, J. A., 348
Spangler, G., 130
Spatz, D. L., 84
Specht, J., 369
Speelman, C. P., 204
Speiser, P. W., 258
Spelke, E., 101
Spelke, E. S., 100, 101
Spence, A. P., 385
Spence, C., 97
Spence, M. J., 95
Spencer, D., 171
Spencer, S. J., 218
Sperhake, J., 83
Spieker, S., 73
Spinrad, T. L., 230, 236, 238
Spiro, A., 371
Sprecher, S., 315
Springelkamp, H., 40
Springer, M. G., 247
Sreetharan, S., 60
Srivastav, S., 63
Srivastava, N., 44
Sroufe, L. A., 118, 129, 131
St. James-Roberts, I., 117
Stadelmann, S., 228
Staes, N., 109
Staff, J., 322
Stafford, E. P., 239
Staley, C., 308
Stancil, S. L., 57, 58
Stanley-Hagan, M., 186, 187
Stanovich, K. E., 27, 28
Stansfield, S. A., 187
Starr, C., 15, 38
Starr, L., 15, 38
Starr, L. R., 294
Staszewski, J., 209
Stattin, H., 244
Staudinger, U., 4, 347, 399, 412
Staudinger, U. M., 412
Stavans, M., 100
Stawski, R. S., 13, 33
Steck, N., 426
Steckler, C. M., 101, 126
Steele, C. M., 218
Steele, H., 129
Steele, J., 327
Steele, M., 129
Stefani, A., 407
Steffen, E., 433
Steffen, V. J., 238
Steffener, J., 397
Steiger, A. E., 228
Steinbeck, K. S., 258
Steinbeis, N., 260, 276
Steinberg, L., 11, 29, 179, 260, 261, 277, 289
Steinborn, M. B., 298
Steiner, J. E., 96
Stenberg, G., 119
Stenholm, S., 402
Stephens, F. B., 41
Stepler, R., 333, 334, 372
Steptoe, A., 14, 15, 311, 384
Steric, M., 54
Sterkenburg, P. S., 128
Sternberg, K., 211, 328, 331
Sternberg, R. J., 4, 22, 210, 211, 214–220, 328, 331, 397
Sterns, H., 358
Stevens, C., 154
Stevens, E. A., 223
Page NI-16
Stevens, M., 131
Stevenson, H. W., 179, 251, 252
Stewart, A. J., 365
Stewart, J. C., 351
Stewart, J. G., 276
Stice, E., 268, 273
Stiel, S., 427
Stifter, C. A., 121
Stiggins, R., 247
Stimpson, J. P., 372
Stipek, D., 229
Stock, J., 421
Stoel-Gammon, C., 160
Stokes, C. E., 333
Stokes, K. A., 298
Stokes, L. R., 238
Stolberg, U., 118
Stolove, C. A., 323
Stone, A. A., 14, 411
Stone, E. A., 175, 176
Strandberg, T., 4, 391, 400, 410, 421
Strasser, B., 392
Strathearn, L., 125
Straus, M. B., 288
Strenze, T., 215
Strickhouser, J. E., 369, 370
Strickland, A. L., 431
Strickland, B., 101
Stroebe, M., 432
Strong, D. R., 272
Strong, M. M., 342
Stroope, S., 337
Strough, J., 345, 418
Struck, B. D., 425
Stuart, R. B., 425
Stubbs, B., 387
Studer, J., 318
Stuebe, A. M., 84
Stumper, A., 120
Sturge-Apple, M. L., 187
Style, C. B., 335
Su, C. H., 385
Su, D., 372
Su, L., 44
Suárez-Orozco, C., 7–9, 250, 297
Suárez-Orozco, M., 7, 9, 250, 297
Suchecki, D., 73
Sucheston-Campbell, L. E., 40
Suchow, J. W., 38
Sugden, N. A., 94, 125
Sugimura, K., 284
Sugiura, M., 386
Suitor, J. J., 416
Suk, M., 303
Suleiman, A. B., 11, 29
Sullivan, A., 289
Sullivan, A. R., 433
Sullivan, H. S., 290
Sullivan, K., 289
Sullivan, M. D., 223
Sullivan, M. W., 92, 93
Sullivan, R., 11, 29, 78, 116
Sulmasy, D. P., 424
Sumersille, M., 66
Summerville, A., 359
Sumontha, J., 338
Sun, A., 145, 204
Sun, G., 387
Sun, K. L., 253
Sun, R., 56
Sun, X., 189, 324
Sunderam, S., 57
Suo, C., 400
Super, E. M., 130
Suri, G., 410
Susman, E. J., 258, 260
Sutcliffe, K., 66
Sutin, A. R., 244
Sutterlin, S., 173
Svatikova, A., 350
Svensson, Y., 285
Swanner, L., 390
Swanson, H. L., 209
Swartout, K., 302
Sweeney, M. M., 337
Sweeting, H., 146
Swift, A., 426
Syed, M., 283, 285
Sykes, C. J., 229
Szanto, K., 403
Szente, J., 141
Szepsenwol, O., 38
Szutorisz, H., 49
Szwedo, D. E., 294
T
Tachman, J. A., 406
Tacutu, R., 384
Taga, G., 79
Taggart, J., 192–194
Tahmaseb-McConatha, J., 10
Taige, N. M., 63
Takahashi, E., 54
Takehara, K., 74
Talbot, D., 349, 350
Tamai, K., 55
Tamnes, C. K., 260
Tan, B. W., 204
Tan, C. C., 143
Tan, J., 289
Tan, M. E., 402
Tan, P. Z., 116, 121
Tanajak, P., 392
Tanaka, H., 14
Tang, F. R., 60
Tang, S., 432
Tanilon, J., 303
Tannen, D., 342, 343
Tardif, T., 190
Tariku, A., 85
Tarn, W. Y., 385
Tarnopolsky, M. A., 386
Tarokh, L., 47
Tartaglia, N. R., 45
Taussig, H. N., 184
Taverno Ross, S., 200
Taylor, A. W., 61, 132
Taylor, H., 68
Taylor, H. A., 396
Taylor, H. O., 16
Taylor, L. H., 163
Taylor, S. E., 368
Taylor, Z. E., 5, 297
Tearne, J. E., 63
Tegin, G., 59
Tehrani, H. G., 68
Teivaanmaki, T., 301
Teller, D. Y., 94
Telzer, E. H., 115, 116, 261
Tempest, G. D., 392
Temple, C. A., 162, 203, 246
Temple, J. A., 190, 249
Tendeiro, J. N., 432
Tenenbaum, H., 176
Tenzek, K. E., 426
Terblanche, E., 392, 396, 400
Tergaonkar, V., 382
Terman, L., 219
Terracciano, A., 370
Terrill, A. L., 389
Terry, D. F., 382
Tesch-Romer, C., 14, 220, 413
Teshale, S., 347, 366, 368, 371
Teshale, S. M., 412
Teti, D. M., 99, 181
Tevendale, H. D., 264
Tham, E. K., 83
Thanh, N. X., 58
Tharmaratnam, T., 385
The, N. S., 268
Thelen, E., 78, 86, 88, 98
Thibault, R. T., 204
Thielke, S., 425
Thoma, S. J., 234
Thomas, A., 96, 120
Thomas, A. K., 396
Thomas, C. A., 60
Thomas, H. N., 389
Thomas, J. C., 119
Thomas, K. A., 73
Thomas, K. M., 198
Thomas, M. L., 5, 14
Thomas, M. S. C., 82, 223
Thomas, P. A., 419
Thompson, A. E., 238
Thompson, B., 109
Thompson, E. J., 187
Thompson, E. L., 300
Thompson, J. J., 84, 143, 200
Thompson, M. P., 302
Thompson, P. M., 81, 142
Thompson, R., 133, 342
Thompson, R. A., 115–117, 122, 124–127, 129, 131, 169, 170, 173, 181,
228, 230, 240
Thomson, D., 219
Thorburn, D. R., 383
Thornton, R., 160
Thorsen, M. L., 333
Thorvaldsson, V., 5
Thurman, A. J., 43, 45
Thurston, R. C., 389
Tian, J., 357
Tian, S., 349
Tidefors, I., 183
Tieu, L., 160
Tiggemann, M., 273
Timmers, T., 404
Tincoff, R., 108
Tiokhin, L., 38
Titzmann, P. F., 297
Tkatch, R., 418
Tobin, M., 432
Tolani, N., 136
Tolppanen, A. M., 359
Tomasello, M., 103, 126, 161, 170
Tomassini, C., 416, 418
Tomich, P., 67
Tomopoulos, S., 82
Tompkins, G. E., 162, 203, 222, 223
Tompkins, V., 158
Tongsong, T., 63
Tonks, S. M., 278
Top, N., 287
Topa, G., 402, 414
Toro, C. A., 259
Torstveit, L., 173
Toth, B., 54
Toth, S. L., 183, 184
Tottenham, N., 115
Toupance, S., 25, 30, 382
Touyz, R. M., 349
Toy, W., 369
Trainor, L. J., 95
Traisrisilp, K., 63
Tramultola, A., 383
Trauten, M. E., 346
Treas, J., 419
Treger, S., 315
Trehub, S. E., 95
Trejos-Castillo, E., 7
Tremblay, R. E., 50
Trevino, K. M., 432
Trevino-Schafer, N., 7
Trickett, P. K., 183, 260
Trivedi, A. N., 414
Troop-Gordon, W., 244
Trotman, G., 65
Troutman, A. C., 206
Troxel, N. R., 238
Trude, A. C. B., 303
Trudellia, E., 90
Trujillo, C. A., 412
Truter, I., 204
Trzesniewski, K. H., 253
Tsang, A., 389
Tsang, T. W., 58
Tseng, V., 179
Tsintzas, K., 41
Tsubomi, H., 209
Tsui, E. K., 393
Tsurumi, S., 102
Tu, K. N., 391
Tubaek, G., 387
Tucker-Drob, E. M., 369
Tuleski, S. C., 150
Tullett, A., 343
Tullis, J. A., 432
Turecki, G., 41
Turiel, E., 173, 177, 234, 235
Turkeltaub, P. E., 198
Turnbull, A., 203
Turner, R., 263
Turner, S., 303
Tur-Sanai, A., 417
Tweed, E. J., 69
Twenge, J. M., 269
Tyas, S. L., 386
Tyrell, F. A., 293
U
Uccelli, P., 222
Uecker, J. E., 337
Ufelle, A. C., 348
Uhlenberg, P., 375
Ulfsdottir, H., 68
Ullsperger, J. M., 259
Umana-Taylor, A., 286
Umana-Taylor, A. J., 8, 190, 286
Umemura, T., 328
Unalmis Erdogan, S., 68
Unda, J., 412
Ungar, M., 232
Updegraff, K. A., 184
Ur, S., 285
Urqueta Alfaro, A., 102
Usher, E. L., 230, 238
Uto, Y., 30, 93
Uwaezuoke, S. N., 84
V
Vacaru, V. S., 128
Vacca, J. A., 222, 223
Vaillancort, T., 243
Vaillant, G. E., 365, 366, 370, 371, 374
Valdiserri, R. O., 338
Valencia, W. M., 392
Valentino, K. V., 187
Valera, M. C., 381
Valero, S., 370
Valgarda, S., 200
Valiathan, R., 384
Valiente, C., 230
Valiente-Palleja, A., 46, 205
Valimaki, T. H., 406
Vallet, H., 351
Vallotton, C. D., 164
Van Assche, E., 301
Vandell, D. L., 138
Vandenberghe, J., 426
van den Boomen, C., 115
van den Brink, A. M. A., 403
van den Heuvel, M. I., 54, 55
van der Flier, W. M., 398
VanDerhei, J., 403, 414
van der Heide, A., 424
van der Hulst, H., 106
van der Steen, J. T., 426
Van de Vondervoort, J., 100, 101
Page NI-17van de Water, B., 302
Vandewater, E. A., 420
Vandewoude, M., 400
van Doeselaar, L., 284
van Dulmen, M., 242
Van Elderen, S. S., 384
van Geel, M., 303
van Goethem, A., 280
Vanhaelen, Q., 382
Van Hecke, V., 103
Van Hedel, K., 335
van Hooft, E. A., 323
Van Hoorn, J., 261
van Hout, A., 161
Van Hulle, C. A., 118
Vanicek, T., 204
van Ijzendoorn, M. H., 123, 130
van IJzendoorn, M. H., 49, 130
Van Lissa, C. J., 290
VanOrman, A. G., 132
van Renswoude, D. R., 30, 93
Van Ryzin, M. J., 130, 272
Van Skike, C. E., 383
van Tilborg, E., 80, 142
Van Vugt, M., 38
Varahra, A., 391
Vardavas, C. I., 59
Varga, N. L., 209
Varner, M. W., 59, 60
Vasa, F., 79
Vatalaro, A., 141
Vatolin, S., 382
Vaughan, O. R., 52
Vaughan, R. A., 406
Vaughn, B. E., 117, 131
Vaughn, S., 223
Vedder, P., 287, 303
Veldman, S. L., 143
Veness, C., 103
Venetsanou, F., 143
Venkatesan, U. M., 394
Venners, S. A., 64
Venturelli, M., 405
Verbruggen, M., 324
Verhagen, J., 209
Verma, S., 349
Vernon, L., 10, 298
Vespa, J., 307
Vidal, S., 300
Vignoles, V. L., 8
Vijayakumar, N., 260
Villamor, E., 259
Villeda, S., 82
Villemagne, V. L., 404
Vinciguerra, P., 349
Vinicius, L., 109
Vinik, J., 172
Virta, J. J., 350, 359
Viswanathan, M., 54, 62
Vitaro, F., 50, 191, 241, 290
Vitiello, M. V., 389
Vittrup, B., 133, 134
Vo, P., 146
Vodanovich, S. J., 414
Vogt, M. J., 224
Vohs, K. D., 229
Voigt, R. G., 203
Volicer, L., 426
Volkmar, F. R., 205
Volkow, N. D., 60
Volkwein-Caplan, K., 10
Volpe, S., 6, 84, 85, 143, 200
von Bonsdorff, M. B., 358
von Stengel, S., 391
& von Stengel, S., 391
Voorpostel, M., 374
Vora, N. L., 55
Vorona, R. D., 271
Vosylis, R., 283, 285, 306
Votavova, H., 59
Votruba-Drzal, E., 7, 9, 136, 248, 296, 297
Voyer, D., 238
Vreeman, R. C., 245
Vu, J. A., 136
Vujovic, V., 23
Vuolo, M., 322
Vurpillot, E., 154
Vygotsky, L. S., 21, 150–152, 192
Vysniauske, R., 205
W
Waber, D. P., 276
Wachs, H., 207
Wachs, T. D., 122
Wagner, D. A., 275
Wagner, N. J., 59
Wahl, H. W., 14, 345
Wahlstrom, C. M., 328
Waismeyer, A., 103
Waldenstrom, U., 63
Waldie, K. E., 199
Waldinger, R. J., 374
Waldorff, F. B., 419
Walk, R. D., 94, 95
Walker, A., 5, 397, 400, 401, 410, 421, 422
Walker, L. J., 234, 235
Walker, M. A., 223
Wallace, L. N., 300
Walle, E. A., 89
Waller, E. M., 302
Waller, K. L., 350
Walsh, R., 277
Walton, R., 145
Walton-Fisette, J., 143, 145, 199, 268, 269, 311
Wanatabe, K., 209
Wang, B., 272, 335
Wang, C., 291
Wang, H., 260
Wang, J., 264
Wang, L., 190
Wang, M., 358, 398, 402
Wang, R., 353
Wang, S. Y., 427
Wang, W., 335
Wang, W. Y., 46
Wang, X., 428
Wang, Y., 290
Wang, Z., 159
Wang, Z. W., 96
Wangmo, T., 393
Wardlaw, G. M., 143, 144, 200
Wardle, J., 15, 311
Ware, P., 415
Wargo, E. M., 60
Warland, J., 68
Warner, T. D., 264
Warr, P., 402
Warren, M. P., 258, 260
Warren, S. F., 45
Warschburger, P., 259
Warshak, R. A., 241
Washida, K., 405
Washington, T. R., 390, 406
Wasserman, D., 40
Wasserman, J., 40
Wataganara, T., 56
Watamura, S. E., 138
Watanabe, E., 200
Watanabe, H., 79
Waterman, A. S., 285
Waterman, E. A., 313
Waters, A. M., 277
Waters, E., 118
Watkins, M. W., 214
Watson, G. L., 203
Watson, J., 158
Watson, J. A., 375
Watson, V., 248
Wattamwar, K., 388
Waweru-Silka, W., 424
Wawrziczny, E., 406
Waxman, S., 108
Weatherhead, D., 125
Weaver, J. M., 186, 188
Webb, L. D., 246
Webber, T. A., 261
Weber, D., 217
Webster, J. D., 318
Webster, N. J., 14, 16, 17, 410, 418, 421
Webster, N. S., 280
Wechsler, H., 312
Wedell-Neergaard, A. S., 349
Weersing, V. R., 301
Weger, H. W., 313
Wegmann, M., 218
Weikert, D. P., 165
Weiler, L. M., 184
Weinraub, M., 82
Weinstein, E., 286
Weir, D., 433, 434
Weiselberg, E., 273
Weisgram, E. S., 175
Weisleder, A., 110, 112
Weisman, J., 263
Weissenberger, S., 204
Welleford, E. A., 413
Wellman, H. M., 158, 159
Wellman, R. J., 296
Wells, B, 340
Wells, E. M., 62
Wells, M. G., 229
Wen, L. M., 195
Wen, N. J., 38
Wendelken, C., 198, 199
Wentzel, K. R., 238, 245
Werenga, L. M., 258, 273
Werker, J. F., 95, 96, 107
Werneck, A. O., 312
Werner, L. A., 95, 96
Werner, N. E., 191
Wertz, J., 47
Wesche, R., 313
West, G. L., 400
Westerhof, G. J., 346
Westermann, G., 82
Westrate, N. M., 14, 397
Whaley, S. E., 145
Wheaton, A. G., 270
Wheeler, J. J., 206
Wheeler, L. A., 297
White, C. L., 406
White, E. R., 271, 286, 312
White, J. L., 256, 257
White, K. S., 125
White, M. J., 392
White, N., 184
White, R. M., 189
White, R. M. B., 5, 190
Whitehead, B. D., 333, 334
Whitehead, H., 125
Whitehouse, H., 428
Whiteman, S. D., 184, 374
Whiteman, V., 60
Whiting, W. L., 271
Whitley, R., 336
Whitney, E., 6
Whitton, S. W., 337
Wichmann, S., 351
Widaman, K. F., 5, 184, 297
Widman, L., 264, 292
Widom, C. S., 183
Wiebe, S. A., 276
Wigfield, A., 238, 278, 279
Wijndaele, K., 312
Wike, R., 332
Wikman, A., 15
Wilcox, S., 106
Wilfley, D. E., 274
Wilkinson, K. M., 30, 93
Willcox, B. J., 381
Willcox, D. C., 381
Willford, J., 59
Williams, B. K., 328
Williams, D. P., 218, 271
Williams, K. E., 83
Williamson, D., 408
Williamson, J. B., 414
Williamson, R. A., 103
Willing. J., 80, 142, 260
Willis, S. L., 3, 5, 399
Willoughby, B. J., 335
Willoughby, M. T., 121, 156, 157
Wilson, D., 11, 29, 78, 116, 141, 142, 198, 199
Wilson, D. M., 429
Wilson, F. A., 372
Wilson, G., 414
Wilson, M. N., 67, 271
Wilson, R. S., 14, 396
Wilson, S., 351
Wilson, S. F., 67
Wilson, S. G., 4, 14, 411, 421
Windelspecht, M., 15, 38, 43
Windle, W. F., 96
Winer, A. C., 122, 124, 230
Wink, P., 360
Winne, P. H., 230
Winner, E., 220, 221
Winsler, A., 151
Winsper, C., 244
Winston, C. N., 285
Winter, W., 209
Wise, P. H., 427
Page NI-18
Wise, P. M., 352
Witherington, D. C., 118
Withers, M., 68
Witkin, H. A., 45
Witkow, M. R., 241, 287
Witt, D., 224
Witte, A. V., 400
Wittig, S. L., 84
Wojcicki, J. M., 77
Wojcik, M., 245
Wolf, D. A., 403
Wolfe, D. A., 203, 304
Wolfe, K. L., 302
Wolff, J. L., 403, 406
Wolford, E., 204
Wolke, D., 244
Wolski, L. R., 414
Wolstencroft, J., 45
Wolters, F. J., 404, 405
Wombacher, K., 312
Wong, T. E., 46
Wood, D., 371
Wood, J., 342
Wood, J. G., 383
Wood, J. M., 387
Wood, P. K., 272
Wood, W., 175
Woodhouse, S. S., 129, 131, 240
Woods, B., 410
Woodward, A. L., 126
Worrell, F. C., 280
Woyka, J., 353
Wright, D., 115
Wright, H., 354
Wright, H. F., 242
Wright, M. R., 417
Wright, M. W., 417
Wu, D., 23, 410
Wu, N., 280
Wu, R., 102, 105, 153, 208, 275, 277
Wu, T., 311
Wu, Y., 54
Wu, Z., 417
Wuest, D., 143, 145, 199, 268, 269, 311
Wyatt, S., 163
Wyatt, T., 230
X
Xaverius, P., 64
Xiao, J., 349
Xiao, T., 404
Xie, K., 383
Xie, W., 79, 101, 105
Xie, Y., 251
Xing, Y. Q., 30
Xu, F., 192
Xu, H., 195, 200
Xu, J., 381, 388
Xu, W., 405
Xu, Y., 349
Xu, Y. H., 96
Xue, F., 62
Y
Yackobovitch-Gavan, M., 201
Yakoboski, P. J., 403
Yamaguchi, M. K., 102
Yamanaka-Altenstein, M., 368
Yan, H., 199
Yan, Z., 298, 299
Yanai, H., 382
Yancura, L. A., 375
Yang, B., 60
Yang, P., 54
Yang, Y., 14, 381
Yang, Y. X., 348, 349
Yanikkerem, E., 68
Yaniv-Salem, S., 62
Yanovski, J. A., 200
Yanovski, S. Z., 200
Yap, M. B., 267, 272
Yarmohammadian, M. H., 163
Yasukochi, Y., 40
Yau, J. C., 286
Yauk, C. L., 64
Yavorsky, J. E., 132
Yavuz, H. M., 159
Yazigi, A., 61
Yen, H. Y., 410
Yen, Y. F., 425
Yeon, S., 222
Yeung, E. W., 419
Yildirim, E. D., 114, 135
Yin, H., 44
Yin, Z., 296
Yip, D. K., 44
Yip, P. S., 337
Yolton, K., 146
Yoo, J., 4, 13
Yoo, K. B., 323
Yoon, E., 286, 293, 297
Yoon, S. H., 351
Yorgason, J. B., 372
Yoshikawa, H., 9, 190, 217, 297
Young, A. R., 156
Young, D. R., 311
Young, J., 302
Young, K. T., 84
Young, M., 313
Youyou, W., 331
Yow, W. Q., 223, 224
Yu, C., 102, 103
Yu, C. Y., 135
Yu, J., 54
Yu, S., 57, 150, 152, 351
Yuan, B., 206
Z
Zabaneh, D., 44
Zachrisson, H. D., 138
Zagaria, A. B., 421
Zaghlool, S. B., 41, 405
Zalzali, H., 57
Zammit, A. R., 4, 394, 396
Zamuner, T., 107
Zannas, A. S., 49
Zanolie, K., 260, 261
Zanto, T. P., 394
Zarbatany, L., 292
Zarit, S. H., 376
Zayas, V., 275, 277
Zeanah, C. H., 129
Zeichner, A., 238
Zeifman, D., 328
Zeifman, D. M., 117
Zelazo, P. D., 156, 210, 260, 396
Zelazo, P. R., 118
Zell, E., 369, 370
Zerwas, S., 126
Zeskind, P. S., 117
Zettel-Watson, L., 396
Zgheib, N. K., 382
Zhang, D., 59, 109, 252, 270, 383, 385
Zhang, L., 60
Zhang, L. J., 404
Zhang, M., 414
Zhang, M. W., 409
Zhang, S., 52, 245, 311, 385
Zhang, Y., 352
Zhang, Z., 362
Zheng, B., 349, 385
Zheng, L. J., 404
Zhou, Q., 252, 296
Zhou, Y., 80, 200, 350, 369, 382, 385
Zhu, Y., 54
Zhu, Z., 40
Ziegler, D. A., 394
Ziermans, T., 205
Zigler, E. F., 165, 166
Ziliak, J. P., 185, 217
Zimprich, D., 413
Zittleman, K., 247
Zole, E., 383
Zozuls, K., 176
Zucker, K. J., 343
Zusho, A., 179
Zwicker, A., 337
Page SI-1
Subject Index
A
Abstinence-only-until-marriage (AOUM) policies and programs, 267
Abuse. See Child maltreatment
Academic achievement. See Achievement
Acceptance stage of dying, 429–430
Accidents
in early childhood, 146
in late adulthood, 380
motor vehicle, 270–271
Accommodation, in infancy, 99
Accountability, of schools, 246–247
Achievement. See also Education; Schools
cross-cultural comparisons in, 251–254
friendship and, 245
gender and, 237–238
mathematics and science, 237, 250
role of parents in, 239, 251–252
self-esteem and, 229
substance use and, 271
Active euthanasia, 425
Active genotype-environment correlations, 48
Activity theory, 410
Acupuncture, 68
Adaptation, 98
Adaptive behavior, 27
Adderall, 204
ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), 203–205
Adolescence. See also Children; Middle and late childhood
attachment in, 288–289
autonomy in, 288–289
brain development in, 260–262
cognitive development in, 274–277
conflict with parents in, 289–290
contraceptive use by, 264
culture and, 294–299
dating and romantic relationships in, 292–294
death in, 271, 310
depression in, 300–302
developmental changes in, 284–286
eating disorders in, 272–274
educational issues for, 277–280
effects of maltreatment on, 183
egocentrism in, 275–276
ethnicity and, 296–297
explanation of, 12, 256
families and, 287–290, 295
friendship in, 290–291
health issues in, 267–274
identity in, 282–287
immigration and, 290
information processing in, 276–277
juvenile delinquency in, 299–300
media and, 298–299
moral reasoning in, 233
nature of, 256–257
nutrition and exercise in, 268–269
parental management and monitoring in, 287–288, 300
peer relations and, 290–294
pregnancy in, 264–267
prevention/intervention programs for at-risk, 303–304
puberty in, 257–260
service learning for, 280
sex education in, 267
sexuality in, 262–267
sleep in, 269–271
substance use/abuse in, 271–272
suicide in, 302–303
transition to adulthood from, 306–307
Adoption studies, 47
Adult children, 417
Adulthood. See also Early adulthood; Late adulthood; Middle adulthood
features of emerging, 306–307
friendship in, 329
lifestyles in, 332–338
markers of, 307–308
stability and change from childhood to, 326–328
transition to, 306–309
Adults
adult children of older, 417
cohabitating, 333–334
divorced, 336–337
gay and lesbian, 337–338
married, 334–336
remarried, 337
single, 332–333
Adult stage theories, 364–366
Advance care planning, 424–425
Aerobic exercise, 199, 204, 311. See also Exercise
Affectionate love, 331
African Americans. See also Ethnicity
adolescent pregnancy among, 265
education and, 249–250
homicides, 271
Afterbirth, 66
Age. See also specific age groups
biological, 13
chronological, 13–14
conceptions of, 13–15
happiness and, 14–15
maternal, 63
psychological, 14
social, 14
Age identity, 346
Ageism, 413–414
Aggression
authoritarian parenting and, 178–179, 252
biological and environmental factors related to, 238
bullying and, 244
gender and, 238
peer rejection and, 242
punishment and, 181
relational, 238
television viewing and, 194–195
Aging. See also Late adulthood
biological theories of, 381–384
brain functioning and, 384–386, 400–401
cellular clock theory of, 382
cognitive neuroscience and, 400–401
cognitive skills training and, 399–400
evolutionary theory of, 382
genetic/cellular process theories of, 382–383
hormonal stress theory of, 384
keys to successful, 421–422
memory and, 395–396
policy issues and, 414–415
visible signs of, 348
AIDS. See HIV/AIDS
Alcohol use/abuse. See also Substance use/abuse
in adolescence, 271–272
in early adulthood, 312–313
motor vehicle accidents and, 271
teratogenic effects of, 58–59
Altruism, 419
Alzheimer disease
caring for individuals with, 406
causes and risk factors for, 404–405
explanation of, 404
medications for, 406
Amenorrhea, 272–273
American Psychological Association (APA), 34, 203
Amniocentesis, 55
Amygdala, 261
Analgesia, 67
Analytical intelligence, 214
Anencephaly, 54
Anesthesia, 67
Anger cry, 117
Anger stage of dying, 429
Animism, 148
Anorexia nervosa, 272–273
A-not-B error, 100
Antidepressants, 74
Anxiety
during pregnancy, 63
stranger, 118
Anxious attachment style, 327–328
AOUM (abstinence-only-until-marriage) policies and programs, 267
APA (American Psychological Association), 34, 203
Apgar Scale, 69
Aphasia, 109
Appearance. See Physical appearance
Arthritis, 390
ASD (Autism spectrum disorders), 205
Asian Americans
educational achievement and, 250, 251–252
parenting styles of, 179, 252
Asperger syndrome, 205
Assimilation, in infancy, 99
Assisted suicide, 426
Attachment
in adolescence, 288–289
anxious, 327–328
avoidant, 327
caregiving styles and, 131
in early adulthood, 326–328
explanation of, 127
individual differences in, 128–131
in infancy, 84, 127–131
in late adulthood, 417
in middle and late childhood, 240
secure, 128, 240, 327
Attention
in adolescence, 277
in early childhood, 153–154
executive, 153, 156
explanation of, 102–103, 153
in infancy, 101–102
joint, 102, 103, 126
in late adulthood, 394–395
school readiness and, 154
sustained, 153, 395
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), 203–205
Authoritarian parenting
aggressive children and, 178–179, 252
effects of, 252
explanation of, 178
Authoritative parenting, 178, 179
Autism, theory of mind and, 159
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD), 205
Autistic disorder, 205
Autobiographical memory, 156
Autonomous morality, 173
Autonomy, in adolescence, 288–289
Autonomy vs. shame and doubt stage (Erikson’s theory), 18, 124
Average children, 242
Avoidant attachment style, 327
Axons, 80
B
Babbling, 106
Baby Boomers, 34
Bandura’s social cognitive theory, 23–24
Bargaining stage of dying, 429
Basic cry, 117
Behavioral and social cognitive theories, 23–24
Behavior genetics, 47–48
Berkeley Longitudinal Studies, 311, 370
Big Five factors of personality, 369, 413
Binet tests, 213–214
Binge drinking, 312–313
Biological age, 13
Biological influences
on emotional development, 115–116
on language development, 109–110
on temperament, 121–122
Biological processes, 11, 12
Biological sensitivity to context model, 123
Birth. See Childbirth
Birth control, 264
Birth order, 185
Birth process. See Childbirth
Body image, 259
Body-kinesthetic intelligence, 215
Bonding, parent-infant, 72–73
Bottle feeding, 84, 85
Brain death, 424
Brain development
Page SI-2
in adolescence, 260–262
aging and, 384–386, 400–401
attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and, 204
autism spectrum disorders and, 205
in early childhood, 142
evolutionary psychology and, 38–39
in infancy, 78–82
in middle and late childhood, 198–199
neuroconstructivist view of, 82
neurogenesis and, 54
prenatal, 54–55
Brain-imaging techniques, 204, 260
Brainology workshop, 252–253
Breast feeding, 84–85
Broca’s area, 109
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory, 25–26
Bulimia nervosa, 273–274
Bullying, 243–245
C
Caffeine, 58
Calorie restriction (CR), 392
Cancer, in children, 146
Cardiovascular disease, 349–350, 392
Cardiovascular system, in middle adulthood, 349–350
Career counselors, 309
Careers. See also Work
in early adulthood, 320–324
in middle adulthood, 358–359
Careers in life-span development
child-care director, 137
child clinical psychologist, 7
child life specialist, 201
child psychiatrist, 233
college/career counselor, 309
developmental psychologist, 157
family and consumer science educator, 266
genetic counselor, 47
geriatric nurse, 394
Head Start director, 165
health psychologist, 301
home hospice nurse, 427
marriage and family therapist, 182
parent educator, 340
pastoral counselor and university professor, 361
pediatrician, 85
pediatrics professor, 268
perinatal nurse, 70
social work professor and administrator, 420
Teach for America instructor, 249
Caregiving/caregivers
attachment and, 128
emotional development and, 115–116
gender and, 239
maternal vs. paternal, 134–135
for patients with Alzheimer disease, 406
Care perspective, 235
Case studies, 29
Cataracts, 387
Celera Corporation, 40
Cellular clock theory of aging, 382
Centenarians, 381. See also Late adulthood
CenteringPregnancy program, 64–65
Centration, 148–150
Cephalocaudal pattern, 77
Cerebral cortex, 79
Cesarean delivery, 68–69
Child abuse. See Child maltreatment
Childbirth. See also Postpartum period
Cesarean, 68–69
maternal age and, 63
methods of, 67–68
setting and attendants for, 66–67
stages of, 65–66
Child care
intelligence and, 217
longitudinal study of, 137–138
policies related to, 135–136
strategies for, 135, 136
variations in, 136–137
Child-care directors, 137
Child-centered kindergarten, 162
Child clinical psychologists, 7
Child-directed speech, 110–111
Childhood amnesia, 104
Child life specialists, 201
Child maltreatment. See also Punishment
context of, 183
developmental consequences of, 183–184
prevention of, 184
statistics related to, 182
types of, 182–183
Child neglect, 182–183
Child psychiatrists, 233
Children. See also Adult children; Early childhood; Infancy; Middle and late
childhood; Parent-child relationships
age of having, 340
birth order of, 185
divorce and, 186–188
effects of maltreatment on, 183–184
infant sleep and cognitive development in, 83
living with grandparents, 374–375
with same-sex parents, 337–338
sibling relationships and, 184–185
in stepfamilies, 240–241
Children with disabilities
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, 203–205
autism spectrum disorders, 205
educational issues related to, 206
intellectual disabilities, 218–219
learning disabilities, 202–203
statistics related to, 202
Chlamydia, 317
Cholesterol, 144, 350
Chorionic villus sampling (CVS), 55
Chromosomes
abnormalities of, 43, 44–45
explanation of, 40
fertilization and, 42
Chronological age, 13–14
Chronosystem, 26
Cigarette smoking. See Tobacco/tobacco use
Circulatory system, 389
Cisgender, 343
Climacteric, 352
Clinical psychologists, 7
Cliques, 292
Cocaine, as teratogen, 59–60, 72
Cognitive activity patterns, 398–399
Cognitive control, 199
Cognitive development. See also Information processing; Intelligence;
Memory; Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory; Thinking; Vygotsky’s
sociocultural cognitive theory
in adolescence, 274–277
in early adulthood, 317–320
in early childhood, 147–159
gender differences in, 177, 237–238
in infancy, 98–105
in late adulthood, 394–401
in middle adulthood, 354–357
in middle and late childhood, 206–221
play and, 192
sleep and, 83
Cognitive neuroscience, 400–401
Cognitive processes, 11, 12
Cognitive skills training, 399–400
Cognitive theories
evaluation of, 23
explanation of, 19
types of, 19–21
Cohabiting adults
explanation of, 333–334
older, 417
research on, 334
Cohort effects, 33–34
College administrators, 309
College counselors, 309
Colleges/universities, 322–323
Color vision, in infancy, 93–94
Commitment, 284
Common Core State Standards Initiative (2009), 247
Communication
with dying persons, 430–431
gender and, 342
play and, 192
self-regulation and, 151
Complicated grief disorder, 432
Compression of morbidity, 381
Concept formation, in infancy, 104–105
Concepts, 104–105
Concrete operational stage (Piaget), 20, 207–208
Conditioning, 102
Confidentiality, 34
Conservation, in preoperational stage, 148–150
Constructive play, 193
Constructivist approach, 246
Consummate love, 331
Contemporary life-events approach, 366–367
Context, 5
Continuity-discontinuity issue, 16, 27
Contraceptive use, 264
Control groups, 32
Controversial children, 242
Conventional reasoning (Kohlberg), 233
Convergent thinking, 211
Cooing, 106
Coparenting, 181
Coping
death and, 432
in infancy, 119
self-esteem and, 229
with stress, 231–232
Core knowledge approach, 101
Corporal punishment, 179. See also Punishment
Corpus callosum, 260, 261
Correlational research, 30–31, 228
Correlation coefficient, 30
Co-rumination, 301
Crawling, 88, 90
Creative intelligence, 214
Creative thinking, 211
Creativity, 319–320
Cremation, 434
Crisis, 284
Critical thinking, in middle and late childhood, 211
Cross-cultural studies, 8. See also Cultural diversity
Cross-sectional studies, 32–33
Crowds, 292
Crying, 106, 117–118
Crystallized intelligence, 354–355
Cultural diversity. See also Ethnicity
academic achievement and, 251–254
adolescent pregnancy and, 265
adolescents and, 294–299
child care policies and, 135–136
cognitive development and, 208
cross-cultural studies, 8
death and, 428
emphasis on creative thinking and, 211
families and, 189–191, 295
gender roles and, 239
intelligence and, 216
intergenerational relationships and, 376–377
language development and, 159
mourning traditions and, 434–435
obesity and, 145
older adults and, 420
overweight and obesity and, 200
parenting and, 179, 189–191
peer pressure and, 291–292
peers and, 295
punishment and, 180–181
romantic relationships and, 331–332
temperament and, 122
timing of puberty and, 258
Cultural-familial intellectual disability, 219
Cultural identity, in adolescence, 286–287
Culture. See also Ethnicity
career mystique, 320
eating disorders and, 273
explanation of, 7–8
intelligence and, 216
moral reasoning and, 234
older adults and, 420
Culture-fair tests, 218
Cumulative personal model, 371
Curriculum, for early childhood education, 165–166
CVS (chorionic villus sampling), 55
Cyberbullying, 244
Cystic fibrosis, 46
Page SI-3
D
DAP (developmentally appropriate practice), 163–164
Data collection, 27–30
Dating, in adolescence, 292–294
Death
in adolescence, 271, 310
advance care planning and, 424–425
brain, 424
care for dying individuals and, 426–427
communicating with dying persons and, 430–431
culture and, 428
in early adulthood, 310
in early childhood, 146
euthanasia and, 425–426
grief and, 431–432
historical circumstances, changes in, 428
Kübler-Ross’ stages of dying and, 429–430
in late adulthood, 390
of life partner, 433–434
making sense of, 433
mourning following, 434–435
perceived control and denial and, 430
Debriefing, 34
Deception, in research, 34
Decision making, in adolescence, 277
Declarative memory. See Explicit memory
Dementia, 403–404
Dendrites, 80, 384
Denial and isolation stage of dying, 429
Page SI-4
Dependent variables, 31
Depression
in adolescence, 300–302
exercise and, 312
peer relations and, 244, 301–302
postpartum, 73, 74
during pregnancy, 63
socioeconomic status and, 296
as stage of dying, 429
suicide and, 302–303
Depth perception, 94, 95
Descriptive research, 30
Development. See also Human development; Life-span development
characteristics of, 4–6
explanation of, 2
nature of, 11–17
periods of, 12–13
Developmental cascade model, 130
Developmental cognitive neuroscience, 11, 198–199
Developmentally appropriate practice (DAP), 163–164
Developmental psychologists, 157
Developmental research. See Research
Developmental social neuroscience, 11, 261
Diabetes, 46, 145
Diet. See Nutrition
Differential susceptibility model, 123
Difficult child, 120
Direct instruction approach, 246
Disabilities. See Children with disabilities
Disasters, coping with, 231–232
Discipline, for infants, 134
Disease. See Illness and disease; specific conditions
Disenfranchised grief, 432
Dishabituation, 92, 102
Divergent thinking, 211
Diversity. See Cultural diversity
Divorce. See also Remarriage
among older individuals, 416
challenges of, 337
children and, 186–188
in middle adulthood, 372
prior cohabitation and, 334
socioeconomic status and, 188
stepfamilies and, 240–241
strategies to deal with, 341
trends in, 186, 336
DNA, 40–42, 49–50
Domain theory of moral development, 235–236
Dominant genes, 43
Dopamine, 406
Doulas, 67
Down syndrome, 44–45
Dropout rate, school, 279–280
Drugs. See Medication; Substance use/abuse
Dual-career couples, 324
Dual-language education, 224
Dynamic systems theory, 86–87
Dyscalculia, 202
Dysgraphia, 202
Dyslexia, 202
E
Early adulthood
careers and work in, 320–324
cognitive development in, 317–320
creativity in, 319–320
divorce in, 341
eating and weight in, 311
exercise in, 311–312
explanation of, 12
friendship in, 329
gender and relationships, 341–342
gender classification in, 342–343
gender communication styles in, 341
health in, 310–311
key features of, 306–307
lifestyles in, 332–338
love and intimacy in, 328–332
marriage in, 338–339
parenting in, 339–341
physical performance and development in, 309–310
sexually transmitted infections in, 316–317
sexual orientation and behavior in, 313–316
sleep in, 271
substance abuse in, 312–313
transition from high school to college in, 308–309
Early bloomers, 293
Early childhood. See also Children
birth order and, 185
brain development in, 142
child maltreatment and, 182–183
cognitive development in, 147–159
development of self in, 169–170
educational programs for, 162–163
emotional development in, 171–172
executive function in, 156–157
exercise in, 145
explanation of, 12
families and, 177–191
gender issues in, 174–177
height and weight in, 141
illness and death in, 146
information processing in, 153–159
language development in, 151, 159–162
media and screen time in, 194–195
memory in, 154–156, 211
moral development in, 172–174
motor development in, 142–143
nutrition in, 143–145
peer relations in, 191
play in, 192–194
sibling relationships and, 184–185
theory of mind and, 158–159
Early childhood education
child-centered kindergarten as, 162
controversies in, 165–166
curriculum for, 165–166
developmentally appropriate and inappropriate, 163–164
disadvantaged children and, 164–165
Montessori approach to, 162–163
Early Head Start, 165
Easy child, 120
Eating disorders, 272–274
Eclectic theoretical orientation, 27
Ecological theory, 25–26
Ecological view, of perceptual development, 91–92, 97
ED (erectile dysfunction), 353
Education. See also Achievement; Colleges/universities; Early childhood
education; Schools
of children from low-income families, 164–165, 247
of children who are gifted, 221
of children with disabilities, 206
cognitive functioning in late adulthood and, 397
constructivist and direct instruction approaches to, 246
contemporary concerns in, 7
dual-language, 224
early childhood, 162–166
ethnic diversity and, 249–250
family life, 266
gender and, 8
intelligence and, 217
for second-language learners, 224
service learning, 280
sex, 267
Education for All Handicapped Children Act (1975), 206
Egocentrism
adolescent, 275–276
in young children, 147, 170–171
Eight frames of mind theory (Gardner), 215
Elaboration, 209
ELLs (English language learners), 224
Embryonic period, 52
Emerging adulthood, 306
Emotional abuse, 183
Emotional development. See also Socioemotional development
in early childhood, 171–172
in infancy, 115–119
in middle and late childhood, 230–232
Emotional expression
crying as, 117–118
in early childhood, 171
fear as, 118
smiling as, 118
social referencing as, 118–119
Emotion-coaching parents, 172
Emotion-dismissing parents, 172
Emotions
biological and environmental influences on, 115–116
explanation of, 115
expression of, 115–119
postpartum fluctuations in, 73–74
regulation of, 119, 171–172
self-conscious, 171
Empiricists, 97
Empty nest syndrome, 373–374
English language learners (ELLs), 224
Environmental influences. See also Nature-nurture issue
on emotional development, 115–116
on giftedness, 220
on intelligence, 216–217
on language development, 110–112
on overweight, 200
prenatal development and, 60–61
on temperament, 123
Epidural block, 67
Epigenetic view, 48–49
Episodic memory, 395
Equilibration, in cognitive development, 99
Erectile dysfunction (ED), 353
Erikson’s psychosocial theory
autonomy vs. shame and doubt stage in, 18, 124
explanation of, 18–19, 27
generativity vs. stagnation stage in, 19, 364–365
identity vs. identity confusion, 19, 284
industry vs. inferiority stage in, 19, 230
initiative vs. guilt stage in, 18–19, 169
integrity vs. despair stage in, 19, 409–410
intimacy vs. isolation and, 19
trust vs. mistrust stage in, 18, 123, 127
ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act), 247–248
Estradiol, 258
Estrogen, 258
Ethical issues
in fetal sex determination, 56
in research, 34–35
Ethnic identity, 286–287
Ethnicity. See also Cultural diversity; Culture; specific groups
adolescent pregnancy and, 265
adolescents and, 296–297
explanation of, 8
families and, 189–190
gifted program underrepresentation and, 219–220
immigration and, 297
intelligence tests and, 218
older adults and, 419–420
preterm birth and, 69–70
school dropout rate and, 279–280
Ethological theory, 24–25, 127
Ethology, 24
Euthanasia, 425–426
Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), 247–248
Evocative genotype-environment correlations, 48
Evolutionary perspective, 37–39
Evolutionary psychology, 38–39
Evolutionary theory of aging, 382
Executive attention, 153, 156
Executive function
in adolescence, 276–277
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and, 204–205
in early childhood, 156–157
explanation of, 156
in late adulthood, 396–397
in middle and late childhood, 212
Exercise
in adolescence, 268–269
aerobic, 199, 204, 311
depression and, 312
in early adulthood, 311–312
in early childhood, 145
in late adulthood, 391–392, 398, 400
in middle adulthood, 350
in middle and late childhood, 199–200
Exosystem, 26
Experimental research, 30–31, 228
Experiments, 30
Expertise, 209, 357
Explicit memory, 104, 154, 395
Extreme binge drinking, 312
Extremely low birth weight newborns, 69
Extremely preterm infants, 69
Eye-tracking studies, in infants, 93
Eye-witness testimony, 155–156
F
False beliefs, 158
Families. See also Divorce; Fathers; Marriage; Mothers; Parents
adolescence and, 287–290, 295
attachment in, 240
child maltreatment and, 182–183
children in divorced, 186–188
cultural, ethnic and socioeconomic variations in, 189–191, 294–295
extended, 189
with gay and lesbian parents, 188–189
immigrant, 297
infant caregiving in, 134–135
in late adulthood, 415–417
managing and guiding infant behavior in, 133–134
moral development and, 234–235
parental management in, 240, 287–288, 300
parent-child relationships in, 239–240
reciprocal socialization and, 132–133
sibling relationships and, 184–185
single-parent, 189
stepfamilies, 240–241
subsystems within, 131–132
transition to parenthood in, 132
with two working parents, 185–186, 324
Family and consumer science educators, 266
Family life education, 266
FASD (fetal alcohol spectrum disorders), 58–59
Fast mapping, 161
Fathers. See also Families; Parents
as caregivers, 134–135
gender development and, 176
in postpartum period, 74
Fear, in infancy, 118
Feelings. See Emotions
Females. See also Gender/gender differences
achievement and, 237–238
body image and, 259
early-maturing, 259–260
education of, 8
friendship among, 291, 329
as juvenile delinquents, 299
prosocial behavior and, 238
Fertilization, 42
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD), 58–59
Fetal MRI, 56
Fetal period, 52–54
Fetus. See also Prenatal development
brain development in, 54–55
determining sex of, 56
development of, 51–55
diagnostic tests for, 55–56
hearing in, 95
nutritional status of, 62
transition to newborn from, 69
Fight-or-flight pattern, 368
Fine motor skills
in early childhood, 143
in infancy, 90–91
in middle and late childhood, 199
Fish, during pregnancy, 62–63
5-HTTLPR, 49, 130
Fluid intelligence, 354–355
Folic acid, 62
Formal operational stage (Piaget), 20–21, 274–275
Fractional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), 29
Fragile X syndrome, 43–45
Free radicals, 383
Free-radical theory of aging, 383
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, 17–18, 173
Friendship. See also Peer relations
in adolescence, 290–291
in early adulthood, 329
gender differences in, 291, 329, 342–343
in late adulthood, 418
in middle adulthood, 374
in middle and late childhood, 245
Frontal lobes, 79
Funerals, 434–435
Fuzzy trace theory, 210
G
Games, 193. See also Play
Gays
attitudes and behavior of, 316
dating among, 293
as parents, 188–189
same-sex relationships among, 337–338
sexual identity and, 262
Gender bias, 235
Gender/gender differences. See also Females; Males
in adolescence, 294
in aggression, 238
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and, 203
autism spectrum disorders and, 205
body image and, 259
in children with working mothers, 186
classification of, 343–344
in cognitive development, 177, 237–238
communication styles and, 342
cultural diversity and, 239
divorce and, 337
educational opportunities and, 8
explanation of, 8, 174
in friendship, 291, 329, 342–343
in interest in religion, 360
in intergenerational relationships, 377
in juvenile delinquency, 299
learning disabilities and, 202
in life expectancy, 380–381, 428
moral development and, 235
older adults and, 420
parental influences on, 175–176
peer influences on, 176–177
in physical development, 141, 236–237
psychoanalytic theory of, 175
relationships and, 342–343
school dropout rate and, 279
social cognitive theory of, 175
social influences on, 175
social role theory of, 175
social theories of, 175
in socioemotional development, 238
stress and, 368
temperament and, 122
Gender identity, 174
Gender roles
culture and, 239
explanation of, 174–175
Gender schema theory, 177
Gender stereotypes
explanation of, 236
function of, 239
math ability, 254
Gene-gene interaction, 44
Gene-linked abnormalities, 45–46
Generation X, 34
Generativity, 364, 365
Generativity vs. stagnation stage (Erikson’s theory), 19, 364–365
Genes
dominant, 43
explanation of, 40, 41
longevity, 43
mitosis, meiosis, and fertilization and, 42
mutated, 42
recessive, 43
sex-linked, 43
sources of variability and, 42–43
susceptibility, 43
Genetic code, 40
Genetic counselors, 47
Genetic expression, 41
Genetic factors
autism spectrum disorders and, 205
background of, 40–41
in depression, 301
eating disorders and, 273
giftedness and, 220
intelligence and, 216
overweight and, 200
Genetics
behavior, 47–48
chromosomal abnormalities and, 44–46
human genome and, 40, 41
Genetic susceptibility, 57
Gene x environment (G x E) interaction, 49
Genital herpes, 61, 317
Genital warts, 317
Genome-wide association method, 40
Genotype, 43
Geriatric nurses, 394
Germinal period, 51–52
Gestures, in infancy, 106
Giftedness, 219–221
Glaucoma, 387
Gonads, 258
Gonorrhea, 317
Goodness of fit, 122–123
Grammar, 221–222. See also Language development
Grandparenting, 374–375
Grasping, 90
Grief, 431
Grieving, 431–432
Gross motor skills
in early childhood, 142–143
in infancy, 88–90
in middle and late childhood, 199
Growth. See Physical development; specific age groups
H
Habituation, 92, 102
Happiness, age and, 14–15
Head Start, 164–165
Health care
for older adults, 393, 414–415
prenatal, 64–65
Health issues. See also Illness and disease; specific conditions
in adolescence, 267–274, 294
in early adulthood, 310–313
in early childhood, 146
in late adulthood, 390–391
in middle adulthood, 349–351
in middle and late childhood, 200–201
overweight and obesity as, 200–201
poverty and, 146
religion and, 360–361
Health psychologists, 301
Hearing
in fetus, 95
in infancy, 95–96
in late adulthood, 388
in middle adulthood, 349
Height
in adolescence, 257
in early childhood, 141
in infancy, 78
in middle adulthood, 348–349
in middle and late childhood, 198
Page SI-5
Hemophilia, 46
Heredity. See Genetic factors
Heredity-environment correlations, 48–49. See also Nature-nurture issue
Heroin, 60
Heteronomous morality (Kohlberg), 173, 232
Heterosexuality, 314–315
High school
features of, 279–280
transition to college from, 308–309
Hispanics. See Latinos/Latinas
HIV/AIDS. See also Sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
in children, 146
explanation of, 317
infants and, 61
statistics related to, 316–317
strategies for protection from, 316–317
Home hospice nurses, 427
Homicide, 271
Homosexuals. See Gays; Lesbians
Hormonal stress theory of aging, 384
Hormones
genes and, 41
for infertility, 57
menopause and, 352
in middle-aged men, 353
in postpartum period, 73
in puberty, 30, 258
transgender people and, 342–343
Hospice, 427
Human development, 6. See also Life-span development
Human genome, 40
Human Genome Project, 40–41
Huntington disease, 46
Hypertension, 349–350
Hypothalamus, 258
Hypotheses, 17
Hypothetical-deductive reasoning, 274
I
IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 1997), 206
Identity
cultural and ethnic, 286–287
developmental changes and, 284–286
in early adulthood, 306
Erikson’s view of, 19, 284
explanation of, 282–283
gender, 174
sexual, 262
Identity achievement, 285
Identity diffusion, 284
Identity foreclosure, 284
Identity moratorium, 285
Identity vs. identity confusion (Erikson), 19, 284
IEPs (individualized education plans), 206
Illness and disease. See also Health issues; specific conditions
in early childhood, 146
in middle adulthood, 351
during pregnancy, 61
Imaginary audience, 275
Imitation
deferred, 103
explanation of, 23–24
in infancy, 103
Immanent justice, 174
Immigrants/immigration
adolescents as, 290, 297
families and, 190
second-language learning and, 224
undocumented, 297
Implicit memory, 104, 154, 395
Imprinting, 25
Inclusion, 206
Income, 414. See also Socioeconomic status (SES)
Independence, in infancy, 124–125
Independent variables, 31
Individuality, respect for, 122–123
Individualized education plans (IEPs), 206
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (1997, IDEA), 206
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004), 206
Indulgent parenting, 178
Industry vs. inferiority stage (Erikson’s theory), 19, 230
Infancy. See also Newborns
attachment in, 84, 127–131
attention in, 101–102
biological influences on language development in, 109–110
brain development in, 78–82
child care for, 135–138
cognitive development in, 98–105
conception formation and categorization in, 104–105
conditioning in, 102
emotional development in, 115–119
explanation of, 12
family and, 131–135
hearing in, 95
height and weight in, 78
HIV/AIDS and, 61
imitation in, 103
independence in, 124–125
intention, goal-directed behavior, and cooperation in, 126
language development in, 106–107
locomotion in, 88–89, 126
low birth weight and preterm, 69–71
memory in, 103–104
motor development in, 86–91
nature-nurture issue and, 97–98
nutrition in, 84–85
patterns of growth in, 77–78
perceptual development in, 91–93
personality development in, 123–125
reciprocal socialization and, 132–133
reflexes in, 87–88
sensory and perceptual development in, 91–98
sleep in, 82–83
smell sensation in, 96
social orientation in, 125–126
social sophistication and insight in, 126
temperament in, 119–123
visual perception in, 93–94
Infantile amnesia, 104
Infertility, 56–57
Infinite generativity, 106
Information processing. See also Memory; Metacognition; Thinking
in adolescence, 276–277
in early childhood, 153–159
in infancy, 105
in middle adulthood, 357
in middle and late childhood, 208–212
speed of, 357
Information-processing theory, 21–23
Informed consent, 34
Inhibition to the unfamiliar, 120
Initiative vs. guilt stage (Erikson’s theory), 18–19, 169
Injuries. See Accidents
Inner speech, 151
Insecure avoidant babies, 128
Insecure disorganized babies, 129
Insecure resistant babies, 128
Integrity vs. despair stage (Erikson’s theory), 19, 409–410
Intellectual disability, 218–219
Intelligence
analytical, 214
creative, 214
crystallized, 354–355
culture and, 218
environmental influences on, 216–217
explanation of, 213
extremes of, 218–221
fluid, 354–355
Gardner’s eight frames of mind theory of, 215
genetics and, 216
in middle adulthood, 354–356
multiple, 215–216
practical, 214
Seattle Longitudinal Study of, 355–356
triarchic theory of, 214
types of, 215–216
Intelligence quotient (IQ), 213, 216–218
Intelligence tests
Binet, 213–214
culture-fair, 218
group differences in, 218
intellectual disabilities and, 218–219
IQ, 216–218
Wechsler, 214
Interactionist view, of language development, 112
Intergenerational relationships, 376–377. See also Families
Intermodal perception, 96–97
Internet. See also Screen time; Technology use
adolescents’ use of, 298–299
cyberbullying and, 244
Interpersonal intelligence, 215
Interviews, 28–29
Intimacy
in adolescence, 291
in early adulthood, 328–329
Intimacy vs. isolation stage (Erikson’s theory), 19
Intrapersonal intelligence, 215
Intuitive thought substage (Piaget), 148
In vitro fertilization (IVF), 57
Involution, 73
IQ (intelligence quotient), 213, 216–218
J
Jigsaw classroom, 250
Joint attention, 102, 103, 126
Junior high school, transition to, 278
Justice perspective, 235
Juvenile delinquency, 299–300
K
Kangaroo care, 71
Kindergarten, child-centered, 162
Klinefelter’s syndrome, 44, 45
Knowledge, memory and, 209
Kohlberg’s moral development theory
critics of, 234–235
influences on, 233–234
stages of, 233–235
Kübler-Ross’ stages of dying, 429–430
L
Labor. See Childbirth
Laboratory, 28
Lamaze childbirth method, 67
Language
brain lateralization and, 79
explanation of, 106
social aspect of, 151
Language acquisition device (LAD), 109
Language development
biological influences on, 109–110
in early childhood, 159–162
environmental influences on, 110–112
in infancy, 106–107
interactionist view of, 112
in middle and late childhood, 221–224
play and, 192
poverty and, 110
second-language learning and, 223–224
strategies to promote, 111–112
vocabulary and, 107–108
Late adulthood. See also Aging
adult children and, 417
altruism and volunteerism in, 419
Alzheimer disease in, 404–406
attachment in, 417
attention in, 394–395
biological theories of aging and, 381–384
brain function in, 384–386
circulatory system and lungs in, 389
cognitive activity patterns in, 398–399
cognitive functioning in, 394–401
cognitive neuroscience and, 400–401
cognitive skills training and, 399–400
culture and, 420
dementia in, 403–404
education and, 397
ethnicity and, 419–420
executive function in, 396–397
exercise in, 391–392, 398, 400
explanation of, 13
friendship in, 418
gender and, 420
health in, 390–391, 398
health treatment in, 393
lifestyle diversity in, 415–417
longevity in, 379–381
memory in, 395–396
mental health in, 403–407
nutrition and weight in, 392–393
Parkinson disease in, 406–407
personality in, 413
retirement in, 402–403
sensory development in, 387–389
sexuality in, 389–390
sleep in, 389
social policy and, 414–415
social support and social integration in, 418–419
socioemotional development theories and, 409–413
stereotypes of, 413–414
Page SI-6
successful aging in, 421–422
wisdom in, 397
work in, 398, 402
Late bloomers, 293
Late childhood. See Adolescence; Middle and late childhood
Lateralization, brain, 79
Latinos/Latinas. See also Ethnicity
adolescent pregnancy among, 265
education and, 249–250
Learning disabilities, 202–203
Least restrictive environment (LRE), 206
Leisure, in middle adulthood, 359–360
Lesbians
attitudes and behavior of, 316
dating among, 293
as parents, 188–189
same-sex relationships among, 337–338
sexual identity and, 262
Leukemia, 64
Life-events approach, 366–367
Life expectancy, 3–4, 380–381, 428
Life span, 380
Life-span development
biological processes in, 11
careers in (See Careers in life-span development)
cognitive processes in, 11
conceptions of age and, 13–15
contemporary concerns in, 6–10
continuity and discontinuity in, 16
evaluating issues in, 16–17
importance of studying, 2–3
nature-nurture issue in, 15–16
periods of, 12–13
socioemotional processes in, 11
stability and change in, 16
Life-span development research. See Research
Life-span development theories
behavioral and social cognitive, 23–24
cognitive, 19–21
eclectic orientation to, 27
ecological, 25–26
ethological, 24–25
psychoanalytic, 17–19
summary of, 27
Life-span perspective
characteristics of, 3–6
explanation of, 4
Limbic system, 261
Literacy, in early childhood, 162
Locomotion, 88–89, 126
Longevity genes, 43
Longitudinal studies
explanation of, 33
in middle adulthood, 367–368
Long-term memory, 155–156, 209. See also Memory
Love. See also Romantic relationships
affectionate, 331
consummate, 331
in early adulthood, 329–331
intimacy and, 328–329
in middle adulthood, 372–373
romantic, 329–330
Low birth weight infants
adolescent mothers and, 265
consequence of, 70–71
explanation of, 69
incidence and causes of, 70
methods to nurture, 71–72
prenatal care and, 64
in vitro fertilization and, 57
Low-income families. See also Poverty
child-rearing practices in, 190–191
education of children from, 164–165, 247
intelligence tests and, 218
tobacco smoke exposure in, 146
well-being and, 9
LRE (least restrictive environment), 206
Lungs, 350
M
Macrosystem, 26
Macular degeneration, 388
Males. See also Fathers; Gender/gender differences; Parents
achievement and, 237–238
early- and late-maturing, 259–260
helping behavior and, 239
juvenile delinquency and, 299
learning disabilities in, 202
MAMA cycles, 286
MA (mental age), 213
Marijuana, 60, 271
Marriage. See also Divorce; Remarriage
assessment of, 338–339
benefits of, 335–336
in late adulthood, 415–416
in middle adulthood, 372–373
prior cohabitation and, 334
remarriage, 240–241
same-sex marriage, 337–338
trends in, 334–335
Marriage and family therapists, 182
Massage therapy
during childbirth, 68
for preterm infants, 72
Maternal blood screening, 56
Mathematical intelligence, 215
Mathematics achievement, 237, 250, 254
MCI (mild cognitive impairment), 405–406
Media influences
in adolescence, 298–299
in early childhood, 194–195
Medication. See also Substance use/abuse
for Alzheimer disease, 406
antidepressant, 74
for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, 204
during childbirth, 67
for Parkinson disease, 406–407
prescription and nonprescription, 58
Meiosis, 42
Memory
autobiographical, 156
in early childhood, 154–156, 211
episodic, 395
explanation of, 103, 154
explicit, 104, 154, 395
implicit, 104, 154, 395
in infancy, 104
in late adulthood, 395–396
long-term, 155–156, 209
in middle adulthood, 357
in middle and late childhood, 208–209
semantic, 395
short-term, 154–155
working, 212, 395–396
Men. See Gender/gender differences; Males
Menarche, 257, 260
Menopause, 352
Mental age (MA), 213
Mental health, 403–407. See also Depression
Mercury, in fish, 62–63
Mesosystem, 26
Metacognition, 210–211
Metalinguistic awareness, 222
Metamemory, 211
MFIP (Minnesota Family Investment Program), 9
Microgenetic method, 21
Microsystem, 26
Middle adulthood
changing nature of, 346–347
empty nest and refilling in, 373–374
explanation of, 12, 347
grandparenting in, 374–375
health in, 351, 360–361
information processing in, 357
intelligence in, 354–356
intergenerational relationships in, 376–377
leisure in, 359–360
love and marriage in, 372–373
midlife crisis in, 366
mortality rates in, 351–352
personality development in, 364–368
physical changes in, 348–351
religion and spirituality in, 360–362
sexuality in, 352–354
sibling relationships and friendships in, 374
stability and change in, 368–371
stress and personal control in, 367–368
work and careers in, 357–360
Middle and late childhood. See also Children
attachment in, 240
body growth and change in, 198
brain development in, 198–199
bullying in, 243–245
children with disabilities in, 202–203
cognitive changes in, 206–221
development of self in, 227–230
educational approaches for, 246–247
education issues in, 206, 223–224, 249–250
emotional development in, 230–232
exercise and, 199–200
explanation of, 12
friendship in, 245
gender issues in, 236–239
health, illness and disease in, 200–201
information processing in, 208–212
intelligence in, 213–221
issues of socioeconomic status, ethnicity and culture in, 248–254
language development in, 221–222
moral development in, 232–236
motor development in, 199
overweight children in, 200–201
parent-child relationships in, 239–240
peer relationships in, 241–245
reading in, 222–223
second-language learning and dual-language education in, 223–224
stepfamilies and, 240–241
Middle school, transition to, 278
Midlife crises, 366
Midlife in the United States Study (MIDUS), 360
Midwives, 66
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI), 405–406
Millennials, 34
Mindfulness training, 204
Mindset, 252, 253–254
Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP), 9
Minorities. See Cultural diversity; Ethnicity; specific groups
Mirror technique, 124
Mitochondria, 383
Mitochondrial theory of aging, 383
Mitosis, 42
Modeling, 23–24
Montessori approach, 162–163
Moral behavior, 174, 234
Moral development
culture and, 234
in early childhood, 172–174, 235–236
explanation of, 173
families and, 234–235
gender and, 235
in infants, 101
Kohlberg’s stages of, 233–235
in middle and late childhood, 232–236
prosocial behavior and, 236
social conventional reasoning and, 235
Moral feelings, 173
Moral reasoning
in early childhood, 173–174
peer relations and, 234
Moro reflex, 87
Morphology, 160
Mortality rates, 310, 351–352. See also Death
Mothers. See also Families; Parents
adolescent, 265
as caregivers, 115–116, 134–135
gender development and, 176
working, 185–186
Motor development
dynamic systems theory and, 86–87
in early childhood, 142–143
in infancy, 86–91
in middle and late childhood, 199
reflexes and, 87–88
Motor skills
fine, 90–91
gross, 88–90
Motor vehicle accidents, 271
Mourning, 434–435
MRI, fetal, 56
mTOR pathway, 383
Multiple-intelligence approach, 215–216
Musical intelligence, 215
Mutated genes, 43
Myelination, 80, 81, 142, 199
Myelin sheath, 80
Page SI-7
N
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), 165
National Longitudinal Study of Child Care (NICHD), 137–138
Native Americans, school dropout rate among, 279
Nativists, 97
Natural childbirth, 67–68
Naturalistic intelligence, 215
Naturalistic observation, 28
Natural selection, 37, 38
Nature, 15–16
Nature-nurture issue. See also Environmental influences; Genetic factors
behavior genetics and, 47–48
conclusions regarding, 50
epigenetic view of, 48–49
explanation of, 15–16
gene x environment (G x E) interaction and, 49
heredity-environment correlations and, 48
perceptual development and, 97–98
NCLB (No Child Left Behind Act of, 2002), 247
Neglected children, 242
Neglectful parenting, 178
Neonates. See Infancy; Newborns
Neo-Piagetians, 208
Neural connectivity, 54
Neural migration, 54
Neural tube, 54
Neural tube defects, 54, 62
Neuroconstructivist view, 82
Neurofeedback, 204
Neurogenesis, 385
Neurons, 79, 80
Neurotransmitters, 80, 385
Newborns. See also Infancy
assessment of, 69
bonding between parents and, 72–73
hearing in, 95
height and weight in, 78
intermodal perception in, 96–97
kangaroo care for, 71
massage therapy for, 72
maternal genital herpes and, 61
preterm and low birth weight, 69–71
reflexes in, 87–88
smell in, 96
touch in, 96
transition from fetus to, 69
NICHD (National Longitudinal Study of Child Care), 137–138
Niche-picking, 48
Nicotine, 59. See also Tobacco/tobacco use
No Child Left Behind Act of (2002, NCLB), 247
Nonnormative life events, 6
Nonprescription drugs, during pregnancy, 58
Normal aging, 14
Normal distribution, 213
Normative age-graded influences, 5
Normative history-graded influences, 5
Nun Study, 386
Nurses, 70, 394
Nursing homes, 393
Nurture, 15–16. See also Nature-nurture issue
Nutrition
in adolescence, 268–269
in early adulthood, 311
in early childhood, 143–145
in infancy, 84–85
in late adulthood, 392–393
in middle adulthood, 350
during pregnancy, 61–63
O
Obesity. See also Overweight
in adolescence, 268–269
in early adulthood, 311
in early childhood, 145
intervention programs for, 201
in middle adulthood, 348–349
in middle and late childhood, 200–201
during pregnancy, 62
Object permanence, 100, 101
Observation, 28
Observational learning, 23–24
Occipital lobes, 79
Occluded objects, 94
Occupational Outlook Handbook (2016–2017), 323
Older adults. See Aging; Late adulthood
Operant conditioning (Skinner), 23, 102
Operations, in Piaget’s theory, 147
Organic intellectual disability, 219
Organization, cognitive development and, 99
Organogenesis, 52, 57
Osteoporosis, 391
Overweight. See also Obesity
in adolescence, 268–269
in early adulthood, 311
in early childhood, 143–144
genetic factors related to, 200–201
intervention programs for, 201
in middle adulthood, 348–349
in middle and late childhood, 200–201
P
Pain cry, 117
Pain sensation
during childbirth, 67, 68
in infancy, 96
in late adulthood, 388–389
Palliative care, 427
Parental leave, 135–136
Parent-child relationships
in infancy, 72–73
in middle and late childhood, 239–240
stepfamilies and, 240–241
Parent educators, 340
Parenthood, transition to, 132
Parenting
academic achievement and, 239–240, 251–252
of adolescents, 300
in divorced families, 186–188
in early adulthood, 339–341
gender development and, 175–176
goodness of fit and, 122–123
language development and, 110–112
overview of, 177–178
socioeconomic status and, 190–191
substance abuse prevention and, 271
Parenting styles
authoritarian, 178–179, 252
authoritative, 178
children’s achievement and, 252
classification of, 178–179
in context, 179
coparenting, 181
indulgent, 178
neglectful, 178
Parents. See also Families; Fathers; Mothers
attachment to, 131
child maltreatment by, 182–183
emotion-coaching, 172
emotion-dismissing, 172
as managers, 240, 287–288, 300
overweight/obese, 200–201
same-sex, 188–189, 337–338
working, 185–186
Parietal lobes, 79
Parkinson disease, 406–407
Passive euthanasia, 425
Passive genotype-environment correlations, 48
Pastoral counselors, 361
Pathological aging, 14
Pediatricians, 85
Pediatrics professor, 268
Peer groups, adolescent, 291–292
Peer pressure, 291–292
Peer relations. See also Friendship
in adolescence, 290–294
bullying and, 243–245
depression and, 301–302
in early childhood, 191
early-maturing boys and, 259
gender behavior and, 176–177
gender development and, 176–177
in middle and late childhood, 241–245
moral reasoning and, 234
Peer statuses, 242
People with disabilities. See Children with disabilities
Perceived control, 430
Perception
depth, 94, 95
explanation of, 91
hearing, 95
in infants, 91–93
intermodal, 96–97
smell, 96
taste, 96
touch and pain, 96
visual, 93–94
Perceptual categorization, 105
Perceptual development
ecological view of, 91–92, 97
empiricists view of, 97
in infancy, 91–98
nature-nurture issue and, 97–98
Perceptual motor coupling, 98
Perceptual speed, 396
Perinatal nurses, 70
Perry Preschool (Ypsilanti, Michigan), 165
Personal fables, 275–276
Personality/personality development
Big Five factors of, 369, 413
in infancy, 123–125
in late adulthood, 413
in middle adulthood, 364–368
Perspective taking, 227–228
Phenotype, 43
Phenylketonuria (PKU), 45–46
Phonemes, 106–107
Phonics approach, 222
Phonology, 159
Physical abuse, 182. See also Child maltreatment
Physical activity. See Exercise
Physical appearance
in late adulthood, 386–387
in middle adulthood, 348–349
Physical development. See also Height; Weight
in adolescence, 257–260
in early adulthood, 309–313
in early childhood, 142
gender differences in, 141, 236–237
in infancy, 78
in late adulthood, 386–389
in middle adulthood, 348–351
in middle and late childhood, 198–199
Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory
adolescence and, 274–275
concrete operational stage in, 20, 207–208
early adulthood and, 318
evaluation of, 275
explanation of, 19–20, 27
formal operational stage in, 20–21, 274–275
infancy and, 98–99
middle and late childhood and, 232
moral reasoning and, 173–174
preoperational stage in, 20, 147–148
sensorimotor stage in, 20
Vygotsky’s theory vs., 152, 153
Pitch, 96
Pituitary gland, 258
PKU (phenylketonuria), 45–46
Placenta, 52, 59, 61
Play
functions of, 192
trends in, 193–194
types of, 192–193
Pointing, 112
Polygenic inheritance, 43–44
Popular children, 242
Postconventional reasoning (Kohlberg), 233
Postformal thought, 318–319
Postpartum depression, 73, 74
Postpartum period
bonding in, 72–73
emotional and psychological adjustments in, 73–74
explanation of, 73
physical adjustments in, 73
Poverty. See also Low-income families
development and, 296
education of children living in, 164–165, 247
ethnicity and, 297
health and, 146
social policy and, 9
statistics related to, 9
Page SI-8
Practical intelligence, 214
Practice play, 192–193
Pragmatics, 161, 222
Preconventional reasoning (Kohlberg), 233
Prefrontal cortex, 81, 142, 198–199, 261, 262
Pregnancy. See also Prenatal development
adolescent, 264–267
diet and nutrition during, 61–63
maternal age and, 63
paternal factors and, 64
sleep during, 73
stress during, 54, 63
Prenatal care, 64–65
Prenatal development
brain development during, 54–55
diagnostic tests to monitor, 55–56
embryonic period of, 52
explanation of, 12
fetal period of, 52–54
germinal period of, 51–52
infertility, 56–57
maternal diseases and, 61
paternal factors and, 64
prenatal care and, 64–65
stress and, 54
trimesters in, 53, 54
Prenatal development hazards
environmental, 60–61
explanation of, 57
fish as, 62–63
maternal diet and nutrition as, 61–63
maternal diseases as, 61
prescription and nonprescription drugs as, 58
psychoactive drugs as, 58–60
Prenatal tests, 55–56
Preoperational stage (Piaget)
centration and limits of, 148–150
explanation of, 20, 147
intuitive thought substage of, 148
symbolic function substage of, 147–148
Prepared childbirth, 67
Preschool education
Head Start, 164–165
universal, 166
Preschoolers. See Early childhood
Prescription drugs, 58. See also Medication
Pretense/symbolic play, 193
Preterm infants. See also Low birth weight infants
explanation of, 69
methods to nurture, 71–72
in vitro fertilization and, 57
Private speech, 151
Project Head Start, 164–165
Prolonged grief disorder, 432
Prosocial behavior
gender and, 238
moral development and, 236
Proteins, 41
Proximodistal pattern, 78
Psychoactive drugs, during pregnancy, 58–60
Psychoanalysis, 17
Psychoanalytic theories. See also Erikson’s psychosocial theory
Erikson’s psychosocial theory, 18–19
evaluation of, 19
explanation of, 17
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, 17–18
of gender, 175
Psychological age, 14
Psychological measures, 29–30
Psychologists, 7, 157
Psychosocial moratorium, 284
Psychosocial theory. See Erikson’s psychosocial theory
Puberty. See also Adolescence
body image in, 259
early and late, 259–260
explanation of, 257
hormonal changes in, 30
sexual maturation and, 257
timing and variations in, 258–259
Punishment, 180–181. See also Child maltreatment
Purpose, 320–321
R
Random assignment, 32
Rapport talk, 342
Reading
gender and, 237
in middle and late childhood, 222–223
Reasoning
conventional, 233
hypothetical-deductive, 274
moral, 234
postconventional, 233
preconventional, 233
social conventional, 235
Recasting, 111
Receptive vocabulary, 108
Recessive genes, 43
Reciprocal socialization, 132–133
Reflexes, 87–88
Reflexive smile, 118
Rejected children, 242
Relational aggression, 238
Religion
health and, 360–361
meaning of life and, 361–362
in middle adulthood, 360–362
Remarriage
nature of, 240–241, 337
stepfamilies and, 240–241
trends in, 337
Reminiscence therapy, 410
REM sleep, 82–83
Report talk, 342
Reproductive technology, 56–57
Research
correlational, 30–31
data collection for, 27–30
descriptive, 30
ethics in, 34–35
experimental, 30–31
time span of, 32–34
Resilience, factors contributing to, 9–10
Respite care, 406
Retirement, 402–403
Ritalin, 204
Rite of passage, 295–296
Romantic love, 329–330
Romantic relationships. See also Love
in adolescence, 292–294
in early adulthood, 329–331
friendship and, 292
Rooting reflex, 87
Rubella, 61
S
Safety, in early childhood, 146
Same-sex marriage, 337–338
Same-sex parents, 188–189, 337–338
Same-sex relationships, 337–338. See also Gays; Lesbians
Sarcopenia, 349
Scaffolding, 133, 150–151
Schemes, 98–99
School dropout rate, 279–280
School readiness, 154
Schools. See also Achievement; Colleges/universities; Early childhood
education; Education
accountability in, 246–247
ethnic diversity in, 249–250
exercise programs in, 199–200
high school, 279–280
service learning in, 280
transition to middle or junior high, 278
for young adolescents, 278
Science achievement, 250
Screen time, 194–195. See also Television viewing
The Seasons of a Man’s Life (Levinson), 365
Seasons of a man’s life theory, 365–366
Seattle Longitudinal Study, 355–356
Second-language learning, 223–224
Secure attachment, 128, 133, 327
Selective optimization with compensation theory, 412–413
Self
development of sense of, 123–125
in early childhood, 169–170
in middle and late childhood, 227–230
Self-awareness
in early childhood, 171
in infancy, 124
Self-concept, 228–229
Self-conscious emotions, 171
Self-control, 212
Self-efficacy, in middle and late childhood, 229–230
Self-esteem
achievement and, 229
friendship and, 245
in middle and late childhood, 228–229
overweight and, 200–201
Self-image. See Self-esteem
Self-recognition, 124
Self-regulation
in early childhood, 151
in infancy, 120–122
in middle and late childhood, 230
Self-talk, 151
Self-understanding
in early childhood, 169–170
explanation of, 169
in infancy, 124
in middle and late childhood, 227
Self-worth. See Self-esteem
Semantic memory, 395
Semantics, 160–161. See also Language development
Sensation, 91
Sensorimotor play, 192
Sensorimotor stage (Piaget)
evaluation of, 99–101
explanation of, 20, 100
object permanence in, 99–101
Sensory development
in infancy, 91–98
in late adulthood, 387–389
Separation protest, 118
Seriation, 207
Service learning, 280
SES. See Socioeconomic status
Sex education programs, 267
Sex in America Survey, 354
Sex-linked chromosomal abnormalities, 45
Sex-linked genes, 43
Sexual abuse, 183. See also Child maltreatment
Sexual activity
in adolescence, 263–264
in early adulthood, 313–316
in middle adulthood, 353–354
Sexual identity, 262
Sexuality
in adolescence, 262–267
in early adulthood, 313–316
gender differences in, 314–315
in late adulthood, 389–390
in middle adulthood, 352–354
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs). See also HIV/AIDS
in adolescence, 264
explanation of, 316
statistics related to, 316–317
strategies to avoid, 316–317
types of, 317
Sexual maturation. See Puberty
Sexual orientation, 315–316. See also Gays; Lesbians; Same-sex
relationships
Shaken baby syndrome, 79
Short-term memory, 154–155. See also Memory
Sibling relationships
delinquency and, 300
in early childhood, 184–185
in middle adulthood, 374
Sickle-cell anemia, 46
SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome), 83
Silent Generation, 34
Single adults, 332–333
Single-parent families, 189
Sirtuins, 383
Skinner’s operant conditioning theory, 23
Sleep
in adolescence, 269–271
in early adulthood, 271, 310–311
in infancy, 82–83
in late adulthood, 389
in middle adulthood, 350–351
in postpartum period, 73
REM, 73
Slow-to-warm-up child, 120
Small for gestational age infants, 69
Smell sense
in infancy, 96
Page SI-9
in late adulthood, 388
Smiling, in infancy, 118
Smoking. See Tobacco/tobacco use
Social age, 14
Social cognition, 243
Social cognitive theory
explanation of, 23–24
of gender, 175
moral development and, 173–174
Social constructivist approach, 150
Social conventional reasoning, 235
Social integration, 418–419
Social media, 299
Social orientation, in infancy, 125–126
Social play, 193
Social policy, 9–10, 135–136, 414–415
Social referencing, 118–119
Social role theory, 175
Social smile, 118
Social support, in late adulthood, 418–419, 434
Social work professors and administrators, 420
Sociocultural cognitive theory. See Vygotsky’s sociocultural
cognitive theory
Socioeconomic status (SES)
child-rearing practices in, 190–191
delinquency and, 300
development and, 296
divorce and, 188
education and, 164–165, 247
ethnicity and, 297
explanation of, 8
families and, 190–191
intelligence tests and, 218
tobacco smoke exposure and, 146
Socioemotional development. See also Emotional development; Emotions;
Personality/personality development
in adolescence, 282–304
aging and theories of, 409–410
in early adulthood, 326
in early childhood, 168–196
in infancy, 114–139
in middle and late childhood, 226–254
theories of, 409–413
Socioemotional processes, 11
Socioemotional selectivity theory, 410–412
Spatial intelligence, 215
Speech. See also Language development
child-directed, 110–111
telegraphic, 108
Spina bifida, 46, 54
Spirituality, in middle adulthood, 360–361
Stability-change issue, 16
Stagnation, 364
Standardized tests, 29
Stanford-Binet tests, 213–214
Stanford Center for Longevity, 399
Stepfamilies, 240–241
Stereotypes
gender, 236, 239
of older adults, 413–414
STIs. See Sexually transmitted infections
Stranger anxiety, 118
Strange Situation, 128
Stress
in caregivers, 115–116
coping with, 231–232
in families, 190
gender and, 368
immigrants and, 297
in middle adulthood, 367–368
during pregnancy, 54, 63
work and, 323
Substance use/abuse. See also Alcohol use/abuse; Tobacco/tobacco use
in adolescence, 271–272
in early adulthood, 312–313
during pregnancy, 58–60
Successful aging, 14
Sucking reflex, 87
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), 83
Suicide, in adolescence, 302–303
Supercentenarians, 381
Surveys, 28–29
Susceptibility genes, 43
Sustained attention, 153, 395
Symbolic function substage (Piaget), 147–148
Symbolic play, 193
Synapses, 80–81
Syntax, 160–161
Syphilis, 61, 317
T
Taste
in infancy, 96
in late adulthood, 388
Tay-Sachs disease, 46
Teach for America instructors, 249
Technology use
in adolescence, 298–299
contemporary concerns and, 10
in early childhood, 154
to improve attention, 154
in late adulthood, 415
reproductive, 56–57
Telegraphic speech, 108
Television viewing, 194–195
Telomerase, 382
Telomeres, 382
Temperament
biological influences on, 121–122
classification of, 119–121
explanation of, 119
goodness of fit and, 122–123
Temporal lobes, 79
Tend-and-befriend pattern, 368
Teratogens
environmental, 60–61
explanation of, 57
prescription and nonprescription drugs as, 58
psychoactive drugs as, 58–60
Teratology, 57
Testosterone, 258, 353
Theories, 17. See also Life-span development theories
Theory of mind
autism and, 159
developmental changes in, 158–159, 170
explanation of, 158
individual differences and, 158–159
Thinking. See also Cognitive development
convergent, 211
creative, 211
critical, 210–211
explanation of, 210
Time out, 181
Tobacco/tobacco use. See also Substance use/abuse
childhood exposure to, 146
placenta development and, 52
as teratogen, 59, 64
Toddlers. See also Early childhood; Infancy
executive function in, 156–157
language development in, 159 (See also Language development)
memory in, 155
theory of mind in, 158–159
Top-dog phenomenon, 278
Touch
in infancy, 96
in late adulthood, 388–389
Transgender, 343
Transitivity, 207–208
Triarchic theory of intelligence, 214
Trimesters, 53, 54
Trust vs. mistrust stage (Erikson’s theory), 18, 123, 127
Turner syndrome, 44, 45
Twin studies, 47, 216
Two-word utterances, 108
U
Ultrasound sonography, 55
Umbilical cord, 52, 69
Unconscious thought, 19
Unemployment, 323
Universal preschool education, 166
Universities. See Colleges/universities
University professors, 268, 361, 420
V
Verbal intelligence, 215
Very low birth weight newborns, 69
Very preterm infants, 71
Violence, 194–195. See also Aggression
Vision
in infancy, 93–94, 97
in late adulthood, 387–388
in middle adulthood, 349
Visual acuity, 93–94
Visual preference method, 92–93
Vocabulary development. See also Language development
in infancy, 107–108
in middle and late childhood, 221–222
Vocabulary spurt, 108
Vygotsky’s sociocultural cognitive theory
evaluation of, 152–153
explanation of, 21, 27, 150
language and thought and, 151
Piaget’s theory vs., 152, 153
scaffolding and, 150–151
teaching strategies based on, 151–152
zone of proximal development and, 150–151
W
Waterbirth, 68
Wechsler scales, 214
Weight. See also Obesity; Overweight
in adolescence, 257
in early adulthood, 311
in early childhood, 141
in infancy, 78
in middle adulthood, 348–349
in middle and late childhood, 198
Wernicke’s area, 109
Whole-language approach, 222
Widowers, 415, 433–434
Widows, 415, 433–434
Widow-to-Widow program, 434
Wisdom, 397
Women. See Females; Gender/gender differences
Work. See also Careers
aging and, 398, 402
during college, 322–323
in early adulthood, 321–322
impact of, 321–322
in middle adulthood, 358
occupational outlook and, 323
Working memory
in late adulthood, 395–396
in middle adulthood, 357
in middle and late childhood, 208
Working parents, 185–186
Writing skills, gender and, 237
X
X chromosomes, 43–45
X-linked inheritance, 43
XYY syndrome, 44, 45
Y
Y chromosomes, 43–45
Page SI-10
Z
Zone of proximal development (ZPD), 150–151
Zygote, 42, 51
APA-1
MCGRAW-HILL PSYCHOLOGY
APA DOCUMENTATION STYLE
GUIDE
This chapter describes the documentation style of the American
Psychological Association (APA). The formats described here come from the
sixth edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association, which was published in 2009. These formats are used primarily
in the social sciences and related courses, such as anthropology, education,
political science, psychology, sociology, and various business courses.
LEARN HOW TO PLACE
RESEARCHED MATERIAL INTO
A PAPER
1. Summarized or Paraphrased Material In most cases, the easiest way to
cite summarized or paraphrased material is with a parenthetical citation that
contains the last name of the author and the year of publication of the source
from which you took the information. In the following example, the student
has paraphrased information from an article written by S. I. Hayakawa.
In relation to their son Mark, who was afflicted with Down syndrome, the
Hayakawas were told the best thing they could do was to place him in an
institution where he could be cared for properly (Hayakawa, 1995).
Note that a comma separates the author’s last name and the year of
publication. The period that ends the sentence appears after the closing
parenthesis.
2. Direct Quotation with the Author’s Last Name in the Text of Your
Paper It is a good idea to introduce the material, including a direct
quotation, with the author’s last name. In the following example, the direct
quotation from an article by S. I. Hayakawa has been placed into the text.
Since the quotation from Hayakawa is a complete sentence, the student has
set it off from his own writing with a colon.
In response to the generally accepted advice that children born with Down
syndrome be institutionalized, Hayakawa (1995) has written: “Fortunately
Mark was born at a time when a whole generation of parents of retarded
children had begun to question the accepted dogmas about retardation” (p.
106).
Note
APA style requires page numbers when you include direct quotations.
The year of publication appears in parentheses after the author’s name in the
signal phrase. Because the passage contains a direct quotation, the
abbreviation p. (for “page”) and the page number of the quotation follow in
Page APA-2
parentheses.
3. Direct Quotation Without The Author’s Last Name in the Text of
Your Paper You can introduce a direct quotation without mentioning the
author’s name. If you do that, however, remember to put the author’s last
name, the year of publication, and the number of the page from which the
quotation was taken in parentheses at the end of the quotation.
As one writer has pointed out, “people with Down syndrome
have an extra copy of chromosome 21, resulting in mild to
moderate mental retardation and abnormal facial features”
(Miller, 2005, p. 1975).
In the original quotation, the word people was capitalized; however, APA
format allows you to change the first letter of the first word of a quotation to
an uppercase or a lowercase letter. Note that commas separate the elements of
the citation.
4. Direct Quotation as Part of Your Own Sentence To make a direct
quotation part of your own sentence, you don’t have to set off the quotation
with punctuation. Just combine it with your own words naturally, as in the
next example. But don’t forget the quotation marks.
After all, it should be remembered that “adolescents with Down syndrome
progress through the same stages of development as do normally developing
children” (Davis, 2008, p. 272).
5. Direct Quotation of Forty or More Words If you are including a direct
quotation of 40 or more words, indent it five spaces or half an inch from the
left margin. This format is called a block quotation.
As Davis (2008) points out,
Down syndrome is the most common genetic cause of mental retardation and
one of the most frequently occurring neurodevelopmental genetic disorders in
children. Children with Down syndrome typically experience a constellation
of symptomology that includes developmental motor and language delay,
specific deficits in verbal memory, and broad cognitive deficits, (p. 271)
Note that in the preceding example no quotation marks are used; this is
because the indented format itself tells the readers that you are quoting
directly from a source. (Quotation marks would be used only around quoted
material that appeared within the block quotation.) Note, too, that in a block
quotation, the page number appears in parentheses after the end punctuation.
Page APA-3
6. Source with No Author Given If no author is given for a source from
which you took information, place a shortened title of the source, followed by
a comma and the year of publication, in the parentheses.
One source reports that “more than 60% of babies with Down syndrome have
vision problems” (“Birth Defects,” 2009).
7. Selection in an Anthology When referring to a selection in an anthology,
reference the author of the selection, not the editor of the anthology.
According to Hayakawa (1995), “disabled children get along just fine when
placed in everyday situations” (p. 106).
8. Material From Two or More Works at the Same Time When naming
two or more works by different authors within the same parentheses, list them
in the order in which they appear in the reference list, separated by a
semicolon.
Two studies (Frampton, 1997; Lapidus, 1998) examined the placement of
Down syndrome children in the traditional classroom.
When naming two or more works by the same author, list them according to
the year of publication. Use the author’s last name with only the first
reference; for each of the subsequent references, give only the date.
A number of more recent studies (Hollister, 1999, 2000)
continued to examine the placement of Down syndrome
children in the traditional classroom.
When naming two or more works by the same author published in the same
year, list them by using the letters a, b, c, and so on after the year. These
letters are also attached to the works in the reference list, where the works are
listed alphabetically according to the first major word in the title.
Several studies (Faber, 2011a, 2011b, 2011c; Maglione, 2010a, 2010b) have
indicated that mainstreaming Down syndrome students has been extremely
effective.
9. Internet or Other Electronic Source Use the author-date format as you
would in a print source. However, if the author’s name is not available,
include the title in the signal phrase or use a shortened version of the title in
the parenthetical citation. Include the date of publication or update of the
source. If no date is indicated in the source, use n.d. (“no date”).
There is ample evidence that “quality educational programs, a stimulating
home environment, good health care, and positive support from family,
friends, and the community enable people with Down syndrome to develop
their full potential and lead fulfilling lives” (“About Down syndrome,” n.d.).
Non-Paginated Work When a non-paginated work appears in an electronic
medium, reference the paragraph from which you took the information if the
paragraphs are numbered. Use the abbreviation para. followed by the
paragraph number.
Broward (2011) claims that although “people with Down syndrome may
experience cognitive delays,” they can possess many talents useful to the
community (“Reassessing people with Down syndrome,” para. 3).
10. Work with Two Authors When referencing a source that has two
authors, use the last names of both authors joined by an ampersand (&) if the
names are used in a parenthetical reference or by and if they are used in a
signal phrase.
Parenthetical Reference
The authors claim that “a significant number of people with Down syndrome
will develop Alzheimer’s disease. . .” (Beaumont & Carey, 2011, p. 33).
Signal Phrase
According to Beaumont and Carey (2011), “a significant number of people
with Down syndrome will develop Alzheimer’s disease. . .” (p. 33).
11. Work with Three to Five Authors When referencing for the first time
a source that has three to five authors, use the last names of all the authors. In
a parenthetical reference, use an ampersand; in a signal phrase, use and
before the final name.
Parenthetical Reference
Studies show that obesity is more likely in females with Down syndrome
than in males with this condition (Rimmer, Braddock, & Fujiura, 1993, p.
105).
Signal Phrase
Rimmer, Braddock, and Fujiura (1993) maintain that obesity is more likely in
females with Down syndrome than in males with this condition (p. 105).
In subsequent references, use only the first author’s last name, followed by et
al. (“and others”) in either the signal phrase or the parenthetical reference. No
comma follows the author’s last name, and et al. is not italicized.
12. Work with More Than Five Authors When you
Page APA-4reference a work by more than five authors, list only the last
name of the first author, followed by et al. (not italicized) and
the year in parentheses.
One study indicates that among “adults with mental retardation, the
frequency of common age-related disorders was comparable to that in the
general population …” (Kapell et al., 1998).
13. Work Authored by a Corporation or Organization When you take
information from a source that lists a corporation or organization as the
author, use the name of that organization in the signal phrase or in the
citation.
According to the Web site of the National Down Syndrome Society (2011),
“life expectancy for people with Down syndrome has increased dramatically
in recent years. . . .”
14. Quotation to Which You have Added Material or From Which You
have Deleted Material When you delete something from a quotation,
indicate you have done so by inserting ellipsis points (three spaced periods),
with a space before and after. When you add something to a quotation, place
the addition in brackets.
As Gorman (2002) has pointed out:
initial shock of Sept. 11 has worn off . . . but millions of Americans continue
to share a kind of generalized mass anxiety. A recent Time/CNN poll found
that eight months after the event [May 2002], nearly two-thirds of Americans
think about the terror attack at least several times a week. (p. 46)
15. Personal Communication A personal communication can be a letter, a
memorandum, an e-mail, an interview, a telephone conversation, and the like.
Because such communications usually cannot be recovered, they are not
included in the reference list. Rather, they are cited only in the text of the
paper. When you do so, provide the initials and last name of the
communicator, the phrase personal communication, and as exact a date as
possible.
Needless to say, he was as surprised as anyone at the progress his brother
made when he was mainstreamed, since they had all been told there was a
chance that his brother would encounter even more difficulties (L. M. Doll,
personal communication, November 29, 2003).
16. Indirect Source When using information that has been quoted,
paraphrased, or summarized in another source, indicate the original source in
a signal phrase. Then mention the secondary source in the citation.
Ouldred and Bryant (2008) argue that “the extra copy of chromosome 21 in
people with Down syndrome may increase their risk of developing
Alzheimer’s disease” (as cited in Beaumont and Carey, 2011, p. 33).
Page APA-5
Use Notes with Parenthetical Documentation
Content footnotes can be used as an addition to the essay, providing details
that can make your essay stronger. However, they should be short and used
sparingly.
To indicate these notes, place a superscript (small, raised) Arabic numeral at
the appropriate place in your text, and write the information after a matching
numeral at the end of the text. Type these notes double-spaced on a separate
page before the reference list. Indent the first line of each numbered note five
spaces or half an inch. Center the title Footnotes (not necessarily italic) at the
top of the page.
LEARN HOW TO PREPARE A
REFERENCE LIST
To make sure information in a reference list is accurate, refer to your
bibliography cards or computerized reference list.
Learn the Pattern of a Reference List
1. Entries are listed alphabetically by the last name of the author or, if there
is no author named, by the first major word of the title. If there is more
than one work by the same author, the entries are arranged by date, with
the earliest appearing first. If works by the same author appeared in the
same year, the entries are arranged alphabetically by title, with the
lowercase letters a, b, and so forth after the year within the parentheses–
for example (2002a).
2. As in MLA style, the author’s last name appears first. However, unlike
MLA style, initials rather than full first names are used. When you have
more than one author for an entry, use an ampersand (&), rather than the
word and, before the last name. Invert the names of all authors.
3. For two authors, separate their names and initials with a comma and an
ampersand (&). Do the same for a work by three to seven authors,
placing the ampersand before the last name. If there are more than seven
authors, list the first six authors and then insert three ellipsis points (…).
Follow the ellipses with the name and initials of the last author indicated
in the work.
4. Begin the first line of each entry flush with the left margin, indent
subsequent lines five spaces or half an inch (this is called a hanging
indent), and double-space throughout.
5. Italicize (APA style preference) the titles and subtitles of books.
Capitalize only the first word of titles and subtitles and any proper nouns.
Use upper- and lowercase for the names of periodicals, and italicize
them. Do not capitalize the second word of hyphenated words in a title
(“Down-syndrome statistics,” not Down-Syndrome statistics”). Do not
use quotation marks around the titles of articles.
Page APA-6
Review Sample Entries for a Reference List Books
Note
Use n.d., the abbreviation for “no date,” for works with no available
publication date.
1. Book by a Single Author
Skallerup, S. (2008). Babies with Down syndrome: A parents’ guide.
Bethesda, MD: Woodbine.
Elements of the Preceding Entry
Skallerup, S. The author’s last name, a comma, the initial of the author’s
first name, and a period.
(2008). The year of publication, in parentheses, followed by a
period.
Babies with
Down
syndrome: A
parents’
guide:
The title and subtitle of the book, italicized, followed by a
period. Only the first word of the title, the word after a
colon, and proper nouns are capitalized.
Bethesda,
MD:
The place of publication, city and state followed by a
colon. In the case of foreign cities, include the country
name.
Woodbine
(House).
The publisher of the book, followed by a period. Note that
you can shorten the name of a commercial-but not an
academic-publisher as long as it is easily identifiable by
the reader.
2. Book by Two Authors For two authors, separate the names and initials
with a comma and an ampersand (&).
Ainsworth, P., & Baker, P. C. (2004). Understanding mental retardation: A
resource for parents, caregivers, and counselors. Jackson: University Press
of Mississippi.
3. Book by Three to Seven Authors
Beirne-Smith, M., Patton, J. R., & Kim, S. H. (2005). Mental retardation: An
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introduction to intellectual disability (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall.
In a book by between three and seven authors, separate the names and initials
with commas, and use an ampersand before the last name in the list. In a
book by more than seven authors, list the first six authors’ names and initials,
followed by ellipses (. . .). Then end with the last author’s name and initials.
4. Selection From an Anthology
Berger, J. Interactions between parents and their infants with Down
syndrome (1998). In D. Cicchieti & M. Beeghly (Eds.), Children with Down
syndrome: A developmental perspective (pp. 101-146). Cambridge, England:
Cambridge University Press.
Note that APA requires the use of entire numbers in inclusive pages.
5. Book with an Editor or Editors
Fighler, E., & Bennett-Gates, D. (Eds.). (1999). Personality development in
individuals with mental retardation. Cambridge, England: Cambridge
University Press.
6. Book in More than One Volume
Ceci, S. J. (Ed.). (1986). Handbook of cognitive, social, and
neuropsychological aspects of learning disabilities (Vols. 1-2). Hillsdale, NJ:
Erlbaum.
7. Book by a Corporate Author If the author is an organization, the
organization is usually the publisher. In that case, use Author as the
publisher’s name.
American Psychological Association. (2009). Graduate study in psychology.
Washington, DC: Author.
8. Later Edition
Toy, E., & Klamen, D. (2009). Case files in psychiatry (3rd ed.) New York:
McGraw-Hill.
9. Revised Edition
Pueschel, S. M. (2001). A parent’s guide to Down syndrome: Toward a
brighter future (Rev. ed.). Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brooks.
10. Translation
Wunderlich, C. (1977). The mongoloid child: Recognition and
care (R. L. Tinsley, Jr., T. R. Harris, & D. I. Marquart, Trans.). Tucson, AZ:
University of Arizona Press. (Original work published 1973.)
11. Two or More Books by the Same Author Alphabetize by the author’s
last name, arranging the entries by date with the earliest first.
Harris, J. C. (1998). Developmental neuropsychiatry. New York: Oxford
University Press.
Harris, J. C. (2006). Intellectual disability: Understanding its development,
causes, classification, evolution, and treatment. New York: Oxford
University Press.
12. Two or More Books by the Same Author, Published in the Same
Year List the works as usual, but arrange them alphabetically according to
the first major word in the title, rather than by date. To the date in
parentheses, add the lowercase letters a, b, and so on.
Evanovich, J. (2002a). Hard eight. New York, NY: St. Martin’s.
Evanovich, J. (2002b). Visions of sugar plums. New York, NY: St. Martin’s.
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Articles in Periodicals
13. Article in a Magazine–Signed and Unsigned
Signed
Martinez, L. (2005, March/April). Enjoying my daughter with Down
syndrome. Mothering, 129, 28–32.
Elements of the Preceding Entry
Martinez, L. The author’s name (last name first, with initial of
first name), followed by a period.
(2005, March/April). The date of issue–month spelled out, in
parentheses, followed by a period.
Enjoying my
daughter with Down
syndrome.
The title of the article, with no quotation marks
and only the first word capitalized, followed by a
period.
Mothering, 129, The title of the magazine and the volume number,
both followed by a comma, both italicized.
28-32. The page numbers of the article, followed by a
period.
Unsigned
Calling for kids with Down syndrome. (1994, November). Parents, 69,
25.
14. Article in a Scholarly Journal Paginated by Volume
Knott, F., Lewis, C., & Williams, T. I. (1995). Sibling interaction of children
with learning disabilities: A comparison of autism and Down’s syndrome.
Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 36, 965–
976.
15. Article in a Scholarly Journal Paginated by Issue
Leonard, H. S. (2003). Leadership development for the postindustrial,
postmodern information age. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and
Research, 55(1), 3–14.
Include the month or season with the year only if the journal
does not have a volume number. Include the issue number (not
italicized) in parentheses immediately after the volume number (with no
space between the volume number and the opening parenthesis of the issue
number) only if each issue starts at page 1.
16. Article in a Newspaper
Vevea, R. (2011, June 6). Program for special-needs pupils is jeopardized.
The New York Times, p. 29A.
With a newspaper article, the abbreviation p. (for “page”) or pp. (for “pages”)
is used. The page number may be preceded by the number of the section in
which the article appears. If the article referred to appears on discontinuous
pages, all pages are listed, separated by commas–for example, C15, C24,
C34.
Electronic Sources
17. Article in an Online Journal APA recommends using the Digital
Object Identifier (DOI), when available, rather than the URL. The chances of
finding an article via a DOI are greater than with a URL, because DOIs are
more permanent links, while URLs tend to change over time.
With DOI Assigned:
Kirsch, I., Moore, T. J., Scoboria, A., & Nicholls, S. (2002). The
emperor’s new drugs: An analysis of antidepressant medication data
submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Prevention &
Treatment, 5(1), Article 23. doi: 10.1037/1522-3736.5.1.523a
Note that if a page range is available, you should type the page numbers
instead of the article number.
Note
No period follows the URL. Following the name of the publication, the
italicized 12 is the volume number, and the 2 in parentheses is the issue
number.
With No DOI Assigned:
Doman, R. J. (1999). Down syndrome perspectives: A message to parents
of Down syndrome children. National Association of Child Development
Journal, 12(2). Retrieved October 20, 2011, from
http:/nacd.org/journal/article7.php
With a Print Source:
Dick, P. T., & Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination.
(1996, June). Periodic health examination, 1996 update: Prenatal
screening for and diagnosis of Down syndrome. Canadian Medical
Association Journal, 154, 465–479. Retrieved April 16, 2003, from
http://www.cma.ca/cmaj/voll54/0465e.htm
18. Article From an Online Database
Lopez, F. G., Melendez, M. C., Sauer, E. M., Berger, E., & Wyssmann, J.
(1998). Internal working models, self-reported problems, and help-seeking
attitudes among college students. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 45, 79–
http://nacd.org/journal/article7.php
http://www.cma.ca/cmaj/voll54/0465e.htm
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83. Retrieved June 9, 2002, from PsycARTICLES database.
Dalva, A., Hemmingson, H., Gustavsson, A., & Barell, L. (2010). Children
with Down syndrome in mainstream schools: Peer interaction in activities.
European Journal of Special Needs Education, 25, 283–294. Retrieved
September 17, 2011, from Academic Search Premier database.
APA no longer requires including the name of the database from which you
retrieved the article. However, you may want to include this information to
make retrieval of the article easier for your reader.
Note
If a URL runs over to another line, break it after a slash or
before a period.
19. Article From an Internet-Only Journal
Kirsch, I., & Sapirstain, G. (1998, June 26). Listening to Prozac but hearing
placebo: A meta-analysis of antidepressant medication. Prevention &
Treatment, 1, Article 0002a. Retrieved July 27, 2011, from
http://journals.apa.org/prevetion/volumel/pre0010002a.html
20. Article in an Internet-Only Newsletter
Some steps in helping children following disaster. (2002, January 11). Rocky
Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Newsletter, 5(1). Retrieved April
10, 2010, from http://www.angelfire.com/biz3/news/mhm71.html
If no author is indicated, move the title to the author position.
21. Article Available on a University Program or Department Web Site
Black, J. B., McClintock, R., & Hill, C. (1994). Assessing student
understanding and learning in constructivist environments. Retrieved
September 17, 2011, from Columbia University, Institute for Learning
Technologies Web site:
http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/publications/asulcse.html
22. Online Newspaper Article
Roan, S. (2011, October 19). Prenatal blood test for Down syndrome
available. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 29, 2010, from
http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/la-heb-down-syndrome-
test20111019,0,6442.story
23. E-Mail Communication An e-mail message is not included in the
reference list, because it is a personal communication not available to other
http://journals.apa.org/prevetion/volumel/pre0010002a.html
http://www.angelfire.com/biz3/news/mhm71.html
http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/publications/asulcse.html
http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/la-heb-down-syndrome-test20111019,0,6442.story
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researchers. However, the e-mail should be mentioned in the body of the
paper in a parenthetical note:
According to M. Cornell, the new treatment was successful (personal
communication, June 9, 2012).
24. Document From a Web Site
Zigman, W. (n.d.) Aging and Down syndrome. National Down Syndrome
Society. Retrieved January 25, 2012, from http://ndss.org/content
If no date is available, type “n.d.” in place of the date. Also, if you are citing
an entire Web site and not a specific document on that site, give the address
of the Web site in the text only. An entry in the reference list is not required.
25. Government Report From the Internet
United States Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes
of Health, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. (2007).
Practical oral care for people with Down syndrome (NIH Publication no. 07–
5193). Retrieved November 30, 2011, from
http://nihpublications.od.nih.gov/search.aspy
26. Document From a Weblog (“Blog”)
Parker-Pope, T. (2009, January 2). A sister copes with her brother’s autism.
[Web log post]. Retrieved October 19, 2011, from
http://well.blogs.nytimees.com/2009/01/02a-sister-copes-with-her-brothers-
autism/
If individual segments of the Weblog (or “blog”) are untitled, provide a
description of the article in brackets in place of the article title. Be sure to
provide enough information so that someone looking for the article can
identify it.
27. Computer Program or Software
Norton Antivirus. [Computer software]. (2010). Cupertino, CA: Symantec.
Retrieved April 1, 2011, from http://www.norton.org
http://well.blogs.nytimees.com/2009/01/02a-sister-copes-with-her-brothers-autism/
http://www.norton.org
Other Sources: Print and Nonprint
28. Abstract
Rudolph, M., & Destexhe, A. (2002). Models of neocortical pyramidal
neurons in the presence of correlated synaptic background activity: High
discharge variability, enhanced responsiveness and independence of input
location [Abstract]. Society for Neuroscience Abstracts, 26, 1623.
29. Book Review
Groopman, J. (2011, October 3). Birth pangs. [Review of the book How the
nine months before birth change the rest of our lives]. The New York Times
Book Review, p. 1.
30. Dissertation–Abstract
Adamie, K. N. (2001). Social interaction in hospice work: A study of humor.
(Doctoral dissertation, Kent State University, 2001). Dissertation Abstracts
International, 62, 779.
31. Dissertation Published and Unpublished
Published
Edwards, F. (1986). The theater of the black diaspora: A comparative study
of black drama in Brazil, Cuba, and the United States. (Doctoral dissertation,
New York University). Retrieved from Xerox University Microfilms (4235).
For a published dissertation, include the words “doctoral dissertation” and the
name of the university. Follow with “Retrieved from” and the name of the
database, as well as the order number.
Unpublished
Blalock, J. (1997). A study of conceptualization and related abilities in
learning disabled and normal preschool children. Unpublished doctoral
dissertation, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.
32. Encyclopedia Article
Autism. (2002). In The new Encyclopaedia Britannica (Vol. 1, p. 722).
Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica.
For a signed article, start the entry with the name of the author, followed by
the date and the title of the article.
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33. Government Document
U.S. Census Bureau. (2010). Statistical abstract of the United States.
Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
34. Letter to the Editor
Manzoni, A. (2011, July 9). The Down-syndrome child in our midst. [Letter
to the editor]. The Montgomery Gazette, p. 16.
35. Motion Picture (In Any Format)
Green, S. (Director), & Siegel, B. (Director). (2003). The weather
underground. [Motion picture]. United States: Independent Television
Service/KQED, San Francisco, CA.
36. Sound Recording
Sartori, F. (1995). Time to say goodbye. [Recorded by Andrea Boccelli]. On
Romanza [CD]. New York, NY: Philips.
37. Television Series
Bruckheimer, J. (Producer). (2003). Shock Waves.
[Television series episode]. In J. Bruckheimer (Producer),
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. New York: CBS.
Page APA-12
STUDY A STUDENT’S
RESEARCH PAPER
The following is a research paper written by Steven Hoebel, a student in a
first-year composition class. Study it carefully.
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CHECKLIST
1. Reference your researched material by placing the
author’s last name and the date of publication of the
work, separated by a comma, within parentheses after the referenced
material.
2. When you introduce the researched material with the author’s name in a
signal phrase, use only the date of publication in parentheses after the
material.
3. Direct quotations must include the page number or numbers, preceded by
p. or pp.
4. Check to be sure that every source mentioned in your paper appears in
your reference list and that every source that appears in your reference
list is cited in the paper.
Cover
Title page
Copyright Information
Brief Contents
Contents
How Would You?
About the Author
Connecting Research and Results
The Essential Approach to Life-Span Development
Content Revisions
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1: Introduction
The Life-Span Perspective
The Nature of Development
Theories of Development
Research in Life-Span Development
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 2: Biological Beginnings
The Evolutionary Perspective
Genetic Foundations of Development
The Interaction of Heredity and Environment: The Nature-Nurture Debate
Prenatal Development
Birth and the Postpartum Period
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 3: Physical and Cognitive Development in Infancy
Physical Growth and Development in Infancy
Motor Development
Sensory and Perceptual Development
Cognitive Development
Language Development
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 4: Socioemotional Development in Infancy
Emotional and Personality Development
Social Orientation and Attachment
Social Contexts
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 5: Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Childhood
Physical Changes
Cognitive Changes
Language Development
Early Childhood Education
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 6: Socioemotional Development in Early Childhood
Emotional and Personality Development
Families
Peer Relations, Play, and Media/Screen Time
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 7: Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle and Late Childhood
Physical Changes and Health
Children with Disabilities
Cognitive Changes
Language Development
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 8: Socioemotional Development in Middle and Late Childhood
Emotional and Personality Development
Families
Peers
Schools
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 9: Physical and Cognitive Development in Adolescence
The Nature of Adolescence
Physical Changes
Adolescent Health
Adolescent Cognition
Schools
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 10: Socioemotional Development in Adolescence
Identity
Families
Peers
Culture and Adolescent Development
Adolescent Problems
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 11: Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Adulthood
The Transition from Adolescence to Adulthood
Physical Development
Sexuality
Cognitive Development
Careers and Work
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 12: Socioemotional Development in Early Adulthood
Stability and Change from Childhood to Adulthood
Love and Close Relationships
Adult Lifestyles
Challenges in Marriage, Parenting, and Divorce
Gender and Communication Styles, Relationships, and Classification
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 13: Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Adulthood
The Nature of Middle Adulthood
Physical Development
Cognitive Development
Careers, Work, and Leisure
Religion and Meaning in Life
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 14: Socioemotional Development in Middle Adulthood
Personality Theories and Development
Stability and Change
Close Relationships
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 15: Physical and Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood
Longevity, Biological Aging, and Physical Development
Health
Cognitive Functioning
Work and Retirement
Mental Health
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 16: Socioemotional Development in Late Adulthood
Theories of Socioemotional Development
Personality and Society
Families and Social Relationships
Ethnicity, Gender, and Culture
Successful Aging
Summary
Key Terms
Chapter 17: Death, Dying, and Grieving
Defining Death and Life/Death Issues
Death and Sociohistorical, Cultural Contexts
Facing One’s Own Death
Coping with the Death of Someone Else
Summary
Key Terms
Glossary
References
Name Index
Subject Index
APA Style Guide
PSY41: Life-Span Psychology
Writing Assignment #2: Application Essay (100 points)
Over the course of the class we have discussed a number of different psychological concepts and
theories. For your second writing assignment you will be asked to connect a real life experience or
observation with a concept or theory from lecture and/or your textbook. At some point we have likely
covered a topic that made you think “Oh! I always wondered why that happened” or maybe “Hey!
That’s exactly like my cousin!” or perhaps “Ohhhhhh, that makes so much more sense now!” or
something similar. This assignment is asking you to tell me about that revelation and apply what you
have learned to your personal experience.
Your writing assignment (not an essay) should be organized into three sections, as follows:
1) Section 1 (Personal Experience): A brief description of a personal experience or
observation that is related to a psychological concept/theory. You will write this
section as if you were telling a friend a story about something that happened to you
personally, or something that you directly observed.
a. For example, you could describe your own experiences with something
like attachment, parenting styles, school experiences, grieving, etc.
or an observation of someone else’s experiences (parents, children,
siblings, friends, romantic partners, etc.)
b. This section should only include your experience/observation, do not
include any of the Psychology.
c. This section is worth 30 points. The most common way that people
miss points here is by not giving enough detail or information about
their experiences or observations.
2) Section 2 (Psychology Mini-Report): A brief explanation of the theory, research or
psychological principle connected to your experience/observation described in Section
1. Write this section as though you were explaining a concept to a friend who had never
heard of it before (which means define and describe words like ‘attachment’ or
‘temperament’). Think of this section as a “mini-report” on your psychological
concept/theory/principle.
a. For example: Adult Attachment, Parenting Styles, Piaget, Adolescent
Egocentrism, Erickson, etc. (Do NOT pick something too broad/vague)
b. This section requires at least one citation (your textbook is likely the
easiest/best option). If you would like to include additional citations
from outside sources, you are more than welcome to (but make sure
they are scientific sources).
c. This section should only include a description of the psychological
principle. Do not include information about your experience here (that
is what Section 1 is for) or relate it to your experience (that is what
Section 3 is for).
d. This section is worth 30 points. Again, think of this as a “mini-report” on
your topic. It does not have to be exhaustive, but should be detailed
enough that someone who has never heard of this concept will have a
basic understanding after reading your section. The most common
reason for people to miss points on this section is because they are
missing information or have provided inaccurate (or unscientific)
statements. Additionally, you should be identifying something specific
to discuss. Topics like “Memory” or “Puberty” or “Adolescence” are too
broad for this assignment.
3) Section 3 (Application): This will be a combination of the first two sections. You will
apply the Psychology to your personal experience and discuss/evaluate how well the
research or theory applies to and explains your experience/observation.
a. For example, if your topic was Parenting Styles and in section 1 you
were telling me about your own parents and how they have treated and
interacted with you, and in section 2 you told me about Baumrinds 4
parenting styles, here you would explicitly state what you think each of
your parents parenting styles would be. You would then draw
connections between your personal experiences and the psychology
you reported. If you think your Mom is an Authoritative parent… why
do you think that? Examples are excellent here.
b. Remember that in class we always discuss what happens on average,
and there are always individual differences. So your experience may be
quite different than the average experience. Or, you may have thought
“Oh my goodness, that is exactly how it was!” This section asks you to
describe what matched up, and what did not. It may be helpful for you
to include questions or thoughts that this example has raised for you.
c. This section is worth 30 points. You will need to connect the first two
sections and give enough details and examples to demonstrate you
have thought this through and have applied what you learned
appropriately. The most common way people miss points here is by not
being complete or highlighting the connections. Additionally,
sometimes the story that was told in Part 1 does not match the
Psychology discussed in Part 2, which makes this section almost
impossible to complete appropriately. So be sure your personal story
connects to the psychology.
4) Organization/Format/Misc.: This will be worth 10 points. This component includes
things like grammar, spelling and formatting. Your assignment *MUST* follow the
format as outlined above (3 individual sections). If you do not follow the proper format
for this assignment, you will automatically receive a 0/10 for this component. So make
sure you understand the requirements and adhere to the guidelines. As always, if you
have any questions please feel free to ask for clarification!
5) Additional Information:
a. Assignment must be typed and double-spaced.
b. Assignment will be approximately 2 to 5 pages in length, although these are not
hard limits. I think it would be difficult to adequately address the prompt in less
than two pages, but if you are a concise writer then that is acceptable. If you
have a more in-depth story and it goes over 5 pages, that’s ok too! Take the
space you need to adequately address the prompt. However, on average,
student papers for this prompt are approximately 2 to 5 pages long.
c. NO QUOTES. Quotes are not allowed, instead paraphrase information into your
own words. This primarily applies to the Psychology portions of your paper. If
you are giving a quote about something your Mom said for example, that is
perfectly fine. If you are copy-pasting the description of Parenting Styles from
the textbook… that is not acceptable and an automatic zero for that section.
d. This is not an essay. You do not need (nor should you have) an introduction and
a conclusion, or a cover page, etc. Instead, follow the formatting as indicated in
the prompt with three separate and distinct sections.
e. Be very mindful of plagiarism. If any part of your paper is plagiarized, that will
be an automatic zero for the entire assignment, with no opportunity to redo or
resubmit for a better grade.
f. You are responsible for your assignment. If the file that is uploaded to Canvas is
corrupted, that is your responsibility to fix before the deadline. If the file that is
uploaded to Canvas is missing pages, that is your responsibility. If the file that is
uploaded to Canvas is the wrong paper, that is your responsibility. You should
*always* double-check your submitted file to make sure it looks the way that
you want it to (and that it is the correct file). I can only grade what is uploaded
and submitted, so make sure whatever you submit is exactly what you want.
g. As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask!
6) Helpful Resources:
a. The last two pages of this prompt is an example of the basic format I am
expecting of you, as well as a broader description of what I am expecting in each
section.
b. I have posted a video on Canvas of me going through the basics of this
assignment, I highly recommend that you watch it.
c. I have posted a sample paper on Canvas from a previous student who did an
excellent job to give you an idea of what I am looking for. Do not just take the
basic information in that sample and swap out a few names/examples for your
own paper. That would be plagiarism and would earn an automatic zero.
d. To repeat myself one last time, don’t hesitate to ask questions!
Student Name
PSY 41: Semester/Year
Professor Godfrey
Chapter: Topic
[TITLE OF PAPER]
Section 1: Personal Experience
Your first section is simply you telling me a story. It can be about a personal experience
(probably easier) or it can be about an observation you may have made of someone else (friends, family,
partner, etc.). For this section, you do not need (and should not) talk about Psychology, instead simply
tell me a story as though you were telling a friend about your experience. This section can vary greatly
in length, depending on how much detail you give (give as much as you like, but make sure you give
enough detail that I have a good understanding of what you experienced/felt/observed).
Section 2: Psychology Mini-Report
Your second section is basically a “mini-report” on a psychological concept or theory. If you
believe your observation in section 1 relates to Parenting Styles, then in section 2 you would give me a
mini-report about Parenting Styles. What is a Parenting Styles? What are the different styles that we
have noted? Give descriptions of each including expected outcomes, etc. If you think your observation
in section 1 relates to Adult Attachment, then you would want to tell me about what attachment is, how
it is measured, what types of attachment there are, what they might lead to, etc. This section can also
vary in length, depending on which concept/theory you believe relates to your experience. This does
not have to be an exhaustive or comprehensive report, it’s a “mini” report. But make sure that you give
enough information that someone who has never heard of it before would be able to understand the
basics. You need to give at least one scientific citation in this section (your textbook is probably the
easiest/best source for you to use). I will also note that the concept you pick should be fairly specific.
Topics like “Infancy” or “Puberty” or “Attention” are far, far too broad and are poor choices.
Section 3: Application
For the final section you will be combining the first two sections. You will interpret your
experienced based on the psychological concept/theory. For example, if you are using Parenting Styles,
you will want to identify what the parenting style of both of your parents would be. You could have a
paragraph dedicated to your Mom: what parenting style do you think that she is? What leads you to
believe that? What aspects of that parenting style has your Mom demonstrated in your life? Examples
are going to be key here. Then you would have a separate paragraph for your Dad answering the same
questions. Even if you think they have the same style, you should have them separated with their own
unique connections. If you are doing something like Adult Attachment, what attachment style do you
think that you have? Why? What experiences that you discussed in section 1 connect to the
information you presented in section 2? Etc.
For some concepts/theories your experience may not match up perfectly. That’s totally fine! It
can be just as interesting to note where things differ as when things match up (include examples of both
if possible). As with the previous two sections, this section will vary in length depending on what you
choose to discuss. Some may be quite long and some may be relatively short. As with the other
sections, do not worry about the length of your paper overall, instead focus on the content. Make sure
you are adequately addressing the prompts and giving enough detail (and examples!) to make it clear
what you are presenting.
References:
You need to let me know where you are getting your information from. You are only required to
have one source, and as I said previously your textbook is likely the best option for you. However, you
are more than welcome to choose other sources, as long as they are scientific. Wikipedia does not
count. Bob’s Blog on Parenting does not count. Your Grandmother does not count. If you have any
questions as to whether or not a source is scientific, please feel free to show it to me and I can let you
know for sure if it is acceptable or not.
I do not require any specific formatting for this assignment, but you SHOULD make it clear
where your information is coming from with an in-text citation (section 2) and please include a
reference list at the end of the paper. Anything you cite should be references and anything you
reference should be cited.
StudentName
Application Essay
PSY 1 – Semester/Year
Chapter: Topic
[TITLE]
Section 1: Observation
I have a cousin named Melissa who is close to turning five years old. She is full of energy and
loves to be near her parents, especially her mom. In the last few years, I have babysat her a number of
times and have been able to watch her grow and acquire new skills. She has always been an early
learner and started to crawl and walk a lot sooner than other children her age. After mastering
crawling, Melissa started to learn to walk with the help of her mom and dad. She was able to pull
herself up on her own to a standing position while holding onto something, such as a low coffee table.
Her parents would take her little hands or hold her under her arms to help hold her while she practiced
the walking motion with her legs. Her parents got her a jumper that had an elastic-like cord that hung
from the top of a door frame in their home; it allowed her to put more weight on her bottom half and
practice balancing without her parents being physically present. Over the course of a few months,
Melissa was able to get stronger and gain enough muscle to walk on her own.
Once she got moving, her parents became even more alert about leaving doors ajar or things
out they did not want her to get ahold of. Now that Melissa is a little older, she is starting to learn to tie
her shoes. She still struggles with completing the full motion of actually tying a bow but she gets close.
Her dad sings a cute song with her about how to tie her shoes and puts one of his fingers on the ties
after she does a basic crisscross before the bow. Sometimes Melissa is able to complete the bow but
not on her own. She gets frustrated, but she is able to do it with help from her parents some of the
time. For now, most of the shoes her parents buy for her are slip-ons or Velcro sneakers.
Section 2: Theory
Vygotsky’s theory of proximal development helps to explain how children learn new skills and
construct the world around them by interacting and receiving aid from a more experienced and
knowledgeable adult. The zone of proximal development (ZPD) is the phrase that he uses to describe
the activities and the tasks that a child cannot achieve on their own but they can do with the aid of
someone guiding them. The ZPD is a sort of a continuum between what a child can accomplish on their
own at the lower limit while the upper limit of the ZPD is what the child can do with the help or
guidance of an adult (Santrock 2012, 132).
Vygotsky also uses the term scaffolding to describe the changing level or amount of support a
parent or more experienced person gives to a child when teaching them. In the beginning, a teacher
may give a great deal of support when for example, teaching a student to read. They may choose to
start off by guiding the child by pointing to a word and helping them to sound it out. After the child
becomes more familiar with a word, or has enough knowledge to sound out the word on their own, the
teacher may help guide them by only pointing to the word. That would be an example of altering the
level of scaffolding; less support is made available to the learner when they are able to do more on their
own (Santrock 2012, 132).
Private speech is an additional concept Vygotsky believed was beneficial for the progression of
children’s cognitive as well as social abilities. Private speech is when a child or adult speaks out loud to
themselves about what they are thinking about; this might include the steps of a task or problem they
are trying to work through or it could be thoughts they have about something. Private speech is also
referred to as making inner speech, or private thoughts public through voicing them (Santrock 2012,
133). Vygotsky observed children who used private speech and found that they were able to work
through problems more easily than those who did not. He also found those who used private speech to
be more socially competent; this is probably due to the fact that the child actually processed a great
deal of their thoughts in their head to themselves before saying them to a peer (Santrock 2012, 132).
Section 3: Evaluation
I believe the observations I have made of Melissa are a perfect example of how her parents used
scaffolding and her zone of proximal development to teach her new skills. An example of the higher end
of Melissa’s zone of proximal development was when she was starting to learn to walk and was able to
take a few steps with the aid of one of her parents holding her up. The lower end of her zone of
proximal development was when she reverted back to crawling or when she was able to pull herself up
to a standing position with the aid of holding on to a table. Without realizing it, Melissa’s parents
assessed her ZPD to figure out how much support to give her so that she was able to get stronger and
eventually walk on her own. After Melissa was able to take a few steps on her own, her parents would
sit a few feet away from each other and encourage her to walk the few feet between them by holding
up one of her toys. They would gradually make the gap larger once Melissa was comfortable. The
adjustments her parents were making in regards to the amount of aid or protection they were providing
their baby with is an example of scaffolding.
The other example of Melissa’s parents assessing her ZPD to help teach her is when her dad aids
her in tying her shoes. The lower end of Melissa’s ZPD is when she physically puts her shoes on her feet
without the help of either of her parents. The higher end of her ZPD is when her dad helps her complete
tying the bows in her laces. Her father guides her with the task of tying her shoes by using a song that
involves the use of private speech. The song that they sing together aids Melissa in remembering the
steps in how to tie the bow. She now uses the song on her own when she practices without the help of
her parents, which is an example of how she can use private speech on her own to complete tasks.
References
Santrock, J.W. (2012). Essentials of Life-Span Development (2nd Edition). New York: McGraw-Hill.
