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Pages 226-267

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From page 226...
... Even when young children spend most of their waking hours in child care, parents remain the most influential adults in their lives. We shall also see, however, that efforts to change the course of development by strengthening parenting have met with mixed success.
From page 227...
... These contexts include the child care programs that children attend, the peers they associate with, the stability and socioeconomic strata of their families, their parents' marital relationship, the neighborhoods they live in, and the times they live in. Challenges to the notion that children are relatively passive players in the socialization process (Bell, 1968; Bell and Chapman, 1986; Engfer et al., 1994)
From page 228...
... This began to change in the 1970s with a growing emphasis on family dynamics, including the marital relationship, as they affect child development (see Belsky, 1984; Cummings and O'Reilly, 1997; Dunst, 1985) and is continuing to change as an increasingly interdisciplinary group of scholars is exploring how fathers affect developmental trajectories (see Cabrera et al., 2000~.
From page 229...
... . This entails not only financial responsibility, but also functions that have typically been thought of as the purview of mothers tasks such as taking children to the doctor or to lessons, arranging for and transporting the child to and from child care, monitoring the child's safety and whereabouts, and scheduling play dates.
From page 230...
... Assessmeets of attachment security, whether conducted in a laboratory or at home, focus on the child's exploratory behavior in the presence of the
From page 231...
... The interest in documenting unusual patterns of attachment behavior in search of a better understanding of infant mental health and disorder increases the need to broaden cultural understanding of attachment and the assessment of its security. It is important to realize that the laboratory assessments that have formed the basis for much of the research on attachment security have been designed to produce only mild challenges for the infant.
From page 232...
... . Secure attachments are seen more often in the context of parenting that is dependable and sensitive to the child's intentions and needs, enabling the child to count on the caregiver's future availability and assistance (Ainsworth et al., 1978; Belsky, 1999; De Wolff
From page 233...
... For example, newborns who continue to react to repeated stimuli after other newborns have tuned out or habituated to the repeated stimulation are somewhat more likely to form insecure attachment relationships to caregivers (Warren et al., 1997~. Babies who become disorganized when stressed and those who get very upset when limits are placed on their actions are also somewhat more likely to develop insecure attachments (Fox, 1985; Gunnar et al., 1996; Izard et al., 1991~.
From page 234...
... There is a tremendous need for research in this area, given its role in elucidating child factors and surrounding conditions that impinge on early attachments, as well as the developmental significance of behavioral differences in patterns of relating to important others among both atypically and typically developing children (see Vondra and Barnett, 1999~. Mothers and Others The large majority of research on early attachments has focused on the parent-child relationship and, specifically, on the mother-infant relationship, despite the fact that young children establish close relationships with a surprising variety of people, including relatives, child care providers, and friends.
From page 235...
... . Infants and toddlers who develop secure attachments either to their mothers or their child care providers are observed to be more mature and positive in their interactions with adults and peers than are children who lack a secure attachment.
From page 236...
... as well. It appears, however, that the positive expectations for close relationships that are inspired by a secure parent-child relationship or, in the case of insecurely attached children, their distrust or ambivalence are most apparent in their encounters with familiar partners.
From page 237...
... These associations are especially evident when attachment security and other behaviors are measured at the same point in time, thus displaying a dense web of associated outcomes. Beyond these specific developmental outcomes, secure attachments seem to play a very important role in shaping the systems that underlie children's reactivity to stressful situations.
From page 238...
... BEYOND ATTACHMENT SECURITY Although the attachment relationship may bolster the parent's attempts to produce desired behavior in the child, fostering a secure attachment relationship is far from all that parents do in the early years of the child's life to promote healthy development. In essence, parents must have the personal skills to interact constructively with their children, the organizational skills to manage their lives inside and outside the home, and the problem-solving skills to address the many challenges that children invari
From page 239...
... It also requires supports, like child care and social networks, and resources that come with economic security. Capturing the almost infinite variety of ways in which parents carry out their childrearing responsibilities is, of course, an impossible task.
From page 240...
... Conflicts and the negotiations they entail also provide essential practice as children learn acceptable ways to elicit help and to be assertive about their own needs and interests. They also provide opportunities for parents to learn how best to issue directives and make requests of their child.
From page 241...
... NURTURING RELATIONSHIPS 24 negotiate a compromise (Kuczynski, 1993; Kuczynski and Kochanska, 1990~. Among the strategies that children learn are deferral ("later, ok?
From page 242...
... 242 FR OM NE UR ONS TO NEIGHB ORHO ODS Complicating this process is the fact that young children want to fee! that they are in control of their lives.
From page 243...
... Alternatively, when these interactions are characterized by clear and consistently enforced limits, low levels of emotional arousal, ample affection, and a Reemphasis on the use of power, threats, and criticism (Campbell, 1997; Herrera and Dunn, 1997; Lepper, 1981; Maccoby, 1992; Zahn-Waxier et al., 1979) , children learn to observe and ultimately internalize their parents' standards of conduct.
From page 244...
... , there is reason to believe that they are also important in the child's relationships with other caregivers, including fathers, grandparents, child care providers, and teachers. The ways that caregivers can best support early conscience development also depend on the young child's temperamental characteristics (Kochanska, 1991, 1993, 1995~.
From page 245...
... They undoubtedly apply, as well, to other situations in which parents attempt to manage or shape children's experiences from making play dates to arranging child care so that they remain within the child's tolerances for stimulation and challenge, while also fostering new capabilities (see, for example, Parke and Buriel, 1998~.
From page 246...
... For example, as mentioned earlier, maternal speech patterns predict vocabulary growth during the first three years of life (Hart and Risley, 1995; Hutteniocher et al., 1991) , as well as prekindergarten measures of emergent literacy and print-related skills (De Temple and Snow, 1992~.
From page 247...
... These family decisions are, of course, constrained by the decisions of government policy makers and employers, much more for some families than for others. Unfortunately, with the major exceptions of research on child care and family income (reviewed in the next two chapters)
From page 248...
... Gusii mothers seldom gaze into the eyes of their infants, and their children are discouraged from looking adults in the eye (which is seen as an act of disrespect) vet they readily establish secure attachments (Levine, 1990~.
From page 249...
... Extended family members, notably grandmothers, play a particularly important role in these processes, contributing, for example, material support, income, child care, and social regulation (Wilson, 1986, 1989~. This mode!
From page 250...
... DISRUPTIONS IN PARENTING The challenges associated with parenting become abundantly evident when we take a look at parents who are struggling. There is an extensive literature on the effects of maternal depression, a relatively common, but potentially very serious, problem for parent-child interactions and child development.
From page 251...
... . Compared with children of nondepressed mothers, those with depressed mothers show greater risk of developing socioemo-tional and behavior problems, which translate into difficulties in school, poor peer relationships, reduced ability for self-control, and aggression (Campbell et al., 1995, Cummings and Davies, 1994b, Dawson and Ashman, in press; Zeanah et al., 1997~.
From page 252...
... levels in the children were more highly related to maternal depression in the children's first year than to maternal depression in the year prior to testing. Thus, the neurobiology and neuroendocrinology associated with adult depression is observed in young children of depressed mothers in ways that may be somewhat specific to when, during the young child's life, the mother (and presumably the child)
From page 253...
... and Harmon, 1996; NICHD Early Child Care Research Network, 1998a) , there is no definitive evidence regarding how the timing of maternal depression in the course of a child's life affects the child (Cummings and Davies, 1994b; Gelfand and Teti, 1990; Seifer et al., 1996~.
From page 254...
... The high rates of depression among low-income mothers combined with emerging evidence that depression can be a major deterrent to enrollment and full participation in intervention programs, such as home visiting, highlights the critical importance of this relatively hidden issue for those who design, implement, and evaluate early childhood programs (Teti, 1999~. Maternal depression can also undermine the intended benefits of early intervention, as illustrated by the New Chance Demonstration.
From page 255...
... On average, children who have experienced physical abuse also have lower social competence, show less empathy for others, have difficulty recognizing others' emotions, and are more likely to be insecurely attached to their parents. Deficits have also been noted in IQ scores, language ability, and school performance, even when the effects of social class are controlled.
From page 256...
... Many suspect that chronic activation of the physiology of stress during periods of rapid brain development may be producing pathology because of the effects of stress physiology on brain development (e.g., Cicchetti, 1994~. However, there has been only one peer-reviewed scientific study that imaged the brains of maltreated children.
From page 257...
... These results are preliminary and require replication, but they suggest that a history of chronic and severe trauma in early childhood can be associated with alterations in fear-stress physiology and in brain development. At the same time, there is no reason to interpret these results as indicating permanent impairment.
From page 258...
... and language development (Ames, 1997; Rutter, 1972, 1981b; Rutter and the English and Romanian Adoptees LERA] Study Team, 1998~.
From page 259...
... A substantial minority have difficulties establishing secure attachments with adoptive or foster parents (Chisholm, 1998; Hodges and Tizard, 1989b; O'Connor et al., 1999~. Some also display quite shallow relations with others and reduced likelihood of forming intimate relationships with peers later in development (Hodges and Tizard, 1989b)
From page 260...
... Almost all of the children had biological parents with overt psychopathology. The rearing provided by the foster parents differed significantly and in positive ways from the rearing received by the institutionalized children.
From page 261...
... The exceptions have, however, provided compelling evidence that successfully applying what is known about beneficial parenting to intervention efforts can improve outcomes for children. Carefully designed intervention programs have proven successful in improving the sensitivity and reciprocity of care that parents give their infants and toddlers, with some programs also succeeding in strengthening the security of attachment in young children as a consequence (van ITzendoorn et al., 1995~.
From page 262...
... While these mode! programs with explicitly defined goals and painstaking attention to implementation and service quality can be effective in changing parenting practices and affecting targeted child outcomes, the literature on larger-scale parenting interventions is substantially less consistent.
From page 263...
... Widely implemented programs that have extended their services beyond home visiting to provide a mix of adult education, job training, parenting education, and child care have also yielded, at best, modest results (Berrey and Lennon, 1998; St. Pierre and Layzer, 1998; St.
From page 264...
... Early in life, a young child enjoys relationships that are unique to different partners. Relationships with mothers are different from relationships with fathers, grandparents, and a caregiver in child care, but each relationship can be supportive and secure in its own way.
From page 265...
... In these ways, relationships shape the development of self-awareness, social competence, conscience, emotional growth and emotion regulation, learning and cognitive growth, and a variety of other foundational developmental accomplishments. Relationships are also important because these attachments buffer young children against the development of serious behavior problems, in Dart by strengthening the human connections and providing the structure and monitoring that curb violent or aggressive tendencies.
From page 266...
... The central and irreplaceable nature of young children's close relationships also point to the importance of evaluating the impact of programs affecting families (such as welfare reform, child care policies, and economic/child support policies) through the prism of young children's relational needs.
From page 267...
... Today, this work is undergoing a transition from asking whether family resources affect child development to asking why research shows so consistently that they do. This shift in emphasis is described in this chapter, starting with the evidence linking family resources to developmental outcomes and then summarizing what has been learned about the mechanisms that account for the links.


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