Review of Articles on Children's Developmental Theories

The attachment style that an individual exhibits as an infant can affect their adult romantic relationships. An attachment pattern is established in early childhood attachments and continues to function as a working model for relationships in adulthood. This model of attachment influences how each of us reacts to our needs and how we go about getting them met. The ability to recognize one 's attachment can help someone to understand their strengths and vulnerabilities in a relationship.

When an infant arrives in the world they are helpless tiny humans who depend on adults for every need from love, to feeding them. It is amazing how these tiny babies grow into adults able to make decisions and become self-dependent. There are many theories about how children develop and what roles the environment plays, what people affect their lives and how events can shape their personalities. Some of these children have and easy life and some have a harder time making that journey to adulthood.

The purpose of this essay is to compare and contrast two theorists on how children learn and develop and how their theories work in the early years setting. Piaget and Skinner are both very well known for their theories, they contrast each other as one shows the behaviourist view while the other shows the cognitive view. Piaget is a nativist, he believes that children learn best through active learning, doing for themselves. Whereas Skinner is an empiricist he believes that children’s knowledge is learnt from their sense experience and environment.

There is a plethora of child development theories that have a degree of influence over current practice. Each of which both have criticism and contrasting theories.

A healthy or secure attachment develops over time because of a caregiver’s consistent, sensitive care that they have towards a young child. Each time a caregiver interacts in ways that focus fully on the individual child, it furthers connections. When a caregiver attempts to read a baby’s cues and tries to respond to the child’s needs and wishes, the baby learns the caregiver is a source of comfort and security. Children with secure attachments learn that their world is a safe place because the people in it are caring and understanding. They also learn that their ways of communicating result in others responding and understanding them. This reinforces their efforts to continue to express themselves to others. Consistent back-and-forth exchanges that happen over time are one of the ways to build positive relationships. Children with secure attachments feel confident in exploring their environment, which allows them to learn. It’s the accumulation of intimacy during these numerous interactions that turns ordinary tasks into a relationship-based curriculum.

The first years of the development of an individual are the most crucial years because it more than likely determines the outcome of the individual’s adulthood. This overview of previous studies in secure attachment aims at questioning the effect of childhood secure attachment on individuals during emerging adulthood. To really understand the effect of secure attachment on adults, one must first analyze and understand the meaning and the focus of secure attachment. This research will review the original definition of secure attachment, the importance of secure attachment during childhood, the benefits it has during developmental years and emerging adulthood, as well as some negative outcomes, possible limitations, and future research

The relationship between security of attachment and cognitive development creates the underlying foundation from which individual’s operate throughout the lifespan (Carruth, 2006). The security of attachment between an infant and their primary caregiver can have profound consequences for the developing brain, impacting an infant’s future relationships, self-esteem, and ability to self-regulate emotions (Carruth, 2006). Attachment theory, first theorized by John Bowlby (1988), stresses the significance of secure attachments in relation to cognitive development. Secure attachment is correlated with a decrease in high risk behaviors, fewer mental health issues, positive coping strategies, and healthy social skills (Burkett & Young, 2012

In chapter 3, the theory of attachment proposed by John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth is explored. First, Bowlby’s theory of attachment was influenced by the ethological theorist, Darwin, Lorenz, and Tinbergen, who were previously mentioned in the chapter. Bowlby emphasized that behaviors found in animals, such as seeking close proximity from mothers to reduce the chance of becoming a prey, can also be found in toddlers. For example, Bowlby defined that actions such as following, crying out, and clinging found in children are displayed in order to keep close distance to parents is called attachment behaviors. Bowlby incorporates imprinting and instincts, which are ethological terms, to explain different phases of attachment. As the child develops through time, the attachment of child and parent deepens their

Attachment theory focuses on the bond between a caregiver and a child and how these fragile bonds, if not made properly has effects on the child’s future. The attachment process itself responds to the developing identity of the child which is very dependent of the sensitivity and guidance of the caregiver. John Bowlby takes attachment theory in a more biological/ evolutionary perspective, in which he views these forming of bonds as a survival mechanism in which the infant insures its survival by attaching themselves to an adult (caregiver) who can meet their needs in order to survive. This take on the attachment theory suggests that parents and infants may be biologically programmed to form an attachment and that each behavior between the child and the caregiver helps facilitate this (Ashford 2013, 266). On a bio-social level children look for this attachment because they are biologically wired to be relate to others and be social. Regardless if the attachment theory is taken through a biological, social or even psychological approach what is certain is that the child views the caregiver as a source of protection, comfort, and emotional regulation (Howe 2009, 43). If a positive attachment is made with the caregiver the child will have confidence in themselves and others, they will be more likely to develop a good self-esteem, autonomy, and relationships with others (Kreutzer 1999, 9).

Attachment is a necessity in psychological development, because it has long term effects on the infant's entire life. Parents will want to develop a secure attachment with their child by building up a sense of trust. Furthermore, the development of trust and a secure attachment all depends on the parents' interactions starting at birth: neglectful parents, who don't respond within a reasonable amount of time to their crying baby, will not have a strong attachment with the baby. He or she will feel abandoned, resulting in slower brain development and difficulties at coping to new social interactions in toddlerhood. On the other hand, parents, who almost immediately respond to their child's cries, will have a strong attachment. This will lead

Parents play many significant roles in their child’s life, including teacher or guidance, playmate, disciplinarian, caregiver, and attachment figure (Benoit, 2004). However, the most important role for parents is as an attachment figure, which can predict the child’s later social and emotional outcome. The first six months, therefore, is the most crucial period for parents and infants to develop this connection. Many people often have mistaken attachment with bonding. Bonding is referring to physical contact, and in this case depended on skin-to-skin contact child during early infant years. This concept of bonding is not the same with the attachment theory, however, providing physical contact when an infant cry until they are calm may help with forming a secure base for a child. According to Diane Benoit, the attachment is where the child uses its caregiver as a secure base from which to explore and, when necessary, as a haven of safety and a source of comfort (Benoit, 2004).

This paper will focus on two theories in moral development within developmental Psychology. There are three components to our morality; these are emotional, cognitive and behavioural.

There are many theories on how a human develops. Most babies follow a certain pattern of development but the controversy is which person 's developmental pattern of development is correct? Erik Erickson, Sigmund Freud and Jean Piaget 's developmental theories are similar. Each of the theories goes through a human 's development chronologically, giving a guideline of when certain developments happen. For example when a child is supposed to walk or when a child is going to speak. It is only a guideline and these theories are not supposed to be held too strictly.

A parent-child interaction happens prenatal and continues throughout a child 's development soon after a child is born, an attachment begins. This attachment begins with imprinting which some call the sensitive period. During this time the child will become attached to the first caregiver seen (usually the mother) and look to it for any sort of comfort. This was discovered through Bowlby 's experiment with ducks in the 1970 's, Bowlby defined attachment theory as “Attachment theory conceptualizes "the propensity of human beings to make strong affectional bonds to particular others" (Bowlby, 1977, p. 201).” (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991 p. 226). “A basic principle of attachment theory is that attachment relationships continue to be important throughout the life span (Ainsworth, 1982,1989; Bowlby, 1977,1980,1982b).” (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991 p. 226). Many theories have been proposed to explain what motivates human interactions and behaviors in relationships. This literature review on Shelley A. Riggs, Angela M. Cusimano, and Karen M. Benson paper Childhood Emotional Abuse and Attachment Processes in the Dyadic Adjustment of Dating Couples and W. Steven Rholes, Ramona L. Paetzold, Jamie L. Kohn paper Disorganized attachment mediates the link from early trauma to externalizing behavior in adult relationships will primarily be looking at how childhood maltreatment leads to disorganized attachment which is thus exhibited in later life relations. Secondarily, this review will

Different theorists have different ideas about the development of children. Two of these include Urie Brofenbrenner and Mason Durie. The western theorist, Bronfenbrenner (1917-2005) was born in Russia however was relocated to the United States in his early years, where his father worked as a clinical pathologist. This is likely to have impacted on Bronfenbrenners future career path of psychology (Moffitt, n.d.). Bronfenbrenner explores the ideas around ecological theory. A Maori perspective is Durie, born in New Zealand in 1938. He studied medicine and surgery at University of Otago, and continued on to do a postgraduate diploma in psychiatry (Massey University, 2010). Durie explores ideas around Maori wellbeing. Both of these theorists have implications on teaching.