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Social and Emotional Development - Coggle Diagram
Social and Emotional Development
What are emotions?
Emotions are feelings that involve physiological reactions, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience. They help us communicate, survive, and connect socially.
What develops in emotional development?
Primary Emotions: emotions that are present in all human/some animals. Examples: Joy, anger, sadness, fear, disgust, and interest.
Self-conscious emotions: requires self awareness and consciousness of oneself. It develops later as individuals develops senses of oneself. Examples: embarrassment, guilt, shame, and pride.
Emotional Competence: The ability to recognize, express, and regulate emotions in socially appropriate ways.
Recognize: ability to recognize different emotional experiences
RegulateL ability to regulate emotional reactions and experiences
Social Development: This is how children learn: Social skills, understanding of others, and how to function in relationships.
Social Referencing: using emotional cues from others to make decisions about how to act. --> a child looks at parents reaction before approaching a stranger or a new object.
What is attachment? --> A strong emotional bond between infants and their caregivers.
Stranger Anxiety: Fear of unfamiliar people, begins around 8 months, and shows the infant has formed specific attachments
Erikson's Psychosocial Theory: Development occurs across the entire life span. Each stage (8) involves psychosocial crisis and how we resolve each crisis influences personality and emotional development. Example: Trust vs Mistrust (birth - 1.5 years old) --> If caregivers are responsive, the child develops trust in people and the world).
Attachment theories
1.Harry Harlow: Contact comfort is more important than food for attchament (monkey expirement)
John Bowlby: Attachment is evolutionary and forms internal working models
Mary Ainsworth Theory: Developed strange situations and identified attachment styles.
Bowlby's Theory: Believes attachment serves a survival function and has key characteristics:
Proximity Maintenance: Wanting to be near the caregiver
Seperation Distress: Anxiety when caregiver is absent
Secure Base: Caregiver provides safety so the child can explore
Safe Heaven: Turning to caregiver for comfort when distressed
Attachment in Adulthood (Hazen & Shaver): Attachment patterns continue into adult romantic relationships
There similarities between infant-caregiver and romantic paterns:
need for closeness and safety
Distress during seperation
Sharing experiences
Mutual Preoccupation (thinking about each other a lot)
Temperament
what are they? They are innate (inborn) aspects of personality - emotional reactivity and behavior style.
✅ Chess & Thomas (Classification)
Easy child – adaptable, regular routines, positive mood
Difficult child – irregular routines, reacts negatively, easily upset
Slow-to-warm-up child – low activity, cautious, low intensity of emotion
✅ Kagan’s Inhibition Theory
Focuses on shyness vs. boldness
“Behavioral inhibition” = children who are shy and react strongly to unfamiliar situations
“Goodness of Fit” — What does that mean?
Goodness of Fit = how well a caregiver’s style matches the child’s natural temperament.
When there is a good fit, the child thrives.
✅ Example of GOOD fit
Child temperament: shy, slow-to-warm-up
Parent: patient, gentle, introduces new situations slowly
Result: the child feels safe, gains confidence → healthy personality development