From Neurons to Neighborhoods The Science of Early Childhood Development (2000) / Chapter Skim
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From page 58... ...
underscored the limitations of most empirically based developmental psychology, characterizing it as "the science of the strange behavior of children in strange situations with strange adults for the briefest possible periods of time." Subsequently, in contrast to Piaget's image of the young child as a solitary scientist, a growing subgroup of child development researchers returned to the concept of human development as a socially embedded phenomenon, thereby emphasizing the importance of culture (e.g., Rogoff and Chavajay, 1995~. Building on this evolving framework, the committee began its work with a strong conviction about the importance of culture as a highly salient influence on early childhood development.
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inheritances (Shweder et al., 1998~. In the realm of early childhood development, symbolic inheritances include (but are not limited to)
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7~. Thus, according to Miller and Goodnow, their value for child development researchers is reflected in the way cultural practices: (1)
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THE CHALLENGE OF STUDYING CULTURE 6 one or more of their parents or siblings, even when separate rooms are available (Caudill and Plath, 1966; Konner and Worthman, 1980; Shweder et al., 1995~. In two-thirds of the cultures surveyed in one international study, mothers routinely slept in the same bed with their infants, and the percentage was even higher when sleeping in the same room was included (Barry and Paxon, 1971; Burton and Whiting, 1961~.
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learned about the relation between culture and child development from cross-national studies, there is also much to be learned from the rich diversity of childrearing beliefs and practices exhibited by families in the United States. A great deal of that variability can be found in that part of the population whose ancestors emigrated from Europe.
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From page 63... ...
THE CHALLENGE OF STUDYING CULTURE 63 ancestral origins can be traced to various countries in Africa, Latin America, and Asia and who continue to be self-identified or socially identified with those origins. In fact, except for the contributions of the Native American population, most aspects of mainstream culture in the United States have been transported from another society.
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From page 64... ...
. This is usually followed by the identification of distinguishing features related to their specific country of origin, the generation and timing of immigration, the region of settlement in the United States, religious affiliation and practice, current community structure, and current socioeconomic status.
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The foundations of relationships and the fundamentals of socialization are culturally embedded and established during the early childhood years (see Chapter 9~. Consequently, further research on how young children learn about and develop attitudes toward human differences will help to elucidate both the roots of categorical discrimination and the origins of social .
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66 FR OM NE UR ONS TO NEIGHB ORHO ODS CULTURALLY COMPETENT POLICIES AND SERVICE DELIVERY As the population of young children in the United States becomes increasingly diverse, policy makers and service providers face the complex task of tailoring their efforts to build on the strengths and address the needs of a wide variety of constituencies. Central to this challenge is a recognition that significant cultural distance between providers and recipients of health and human services can make it difficult to build and sustain the kinds of relationships that often determine the short-term acceptability and ultimate success of an early childhood intervention or family support program.
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The underlying science remains to be developed. EVOLVING PERSPECTIVES ON THE STUDY OF CULTURE AND DEVELOPMENT One of the fundamental choices facing those who study the complex relation between culture and child development is the need to find an appropriate balance between the identification of universals and the task of cataloging its variations (Cocking, 1994~.
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society over the past few decades (see Chapter 1~ provide vivid examples of such powerful influences on the lives of children and families. Increases in maternal employment and
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Numerous examples of its influence on early childhood development are included throughout this report, but much further work remains to be done. However, unlike research in the neurobiology of early childhood development, studies of the relation between competence and culture are heavily infused with values and personal beliefs.
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From page 70... ...
In this chapter, we focus on studies that seek to identify causal connections between a specific influence (e.g., mothers' talk to children, an intervention program) and child development (e.g., the child's vocabulary, scores on a test of school readiness)
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