Chapter Notes: Module 3

PSYC 200 Chapter Notes

 

 Chapter 3: Infancy and Toddlerhood (pages 68-92)

This chapter begins with general patterns of growth and average North American newborn statistics.  I would like to insert a few points about Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS).  SBS is a form of head trauma.  Head injury, as a form of child abuse, can be caused by direct blows to the head, dropping or throwing a child, or shaking a child.  Head trauma is the leading cause of death in child abuse cases in the United States.  SBS results from injuries caused by vigorously shaking an infant—their neck muscles aren’t well developed and provide little support for their head, especially when there is violent movement.  The vast majority of incidents of Shaken Baby Syndrome occur in infants who are younger than 1 year old.

 Approximately 60% of shaken babies are males.  SBS often causes irreversible damage or death.  I encourage you to read more about SBS:  effects, signs and symptoms, how it’s diagnosed, effect on development and education, and effective ways to prevent this tragic abuse.  Shaken Baby Syndrome is 100% preventable!

The section on Brain Development notes the lateralization of the brain hemisphere.  Many have heard of the “right brain/left brain” differences in people.  I don’t want to overstate nor oversimplify this issue, but there do seem to be tendencies and preferences that vary in demonstration among people.  Again, you may want to dig into this deeper and explore connections between those who are more logical/analytical and others who are more creative and in touch with their emotions.

The section on sleep (page 71) is interesting. Many families support the notion of “shared sleeping” or “co-sleeping” or “the family bed”.  Do you know your thoughts and feelings about this topic?

Another difficult issue is raised in this chapter:  Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).  There is a brief presentation of risk factors associated with SIDS that are worth noting.

If you’ve been around babies much, you’ll enjoy the focus on reflexes and motor development (page 73).   I would add to the discussion of reflexes, the observation that there are 3 sets of reflexes that are critical for survival and become stronger as the baby matures.  They are:  reflexes that maintain oxygen supply (breathing reflex), reflexes that maintain constant body temperature (shivering, tucking in legs close to body, pushing away blankets, etc.), and reflexes that manage feeding (sucking, rooting, swallowing).

Please note the discussion beginning on page 78 about the nutritional needs of children. Different aspects of breast feeding are also covered.  I appreciate the authors raising the issue of global malnutrition also.

The discussion of cognitive development in infancy begins with a review of key Piagetian terms.  Sometimes, students (except for Early Childhood Education or Pediatric majors or new parents) get a bit bogged down in this section.  It is a helpful chapter to be reminded of how children begin to understand and organize their world.  Piaget’s 4 stages of development are:  sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. The sensorimotor stage lasts from birth to around 2 years of age. 

The notion of object permanence is introduced on page 83.  Separation anxiety is a behavioral issue tied to object permanence that can be upsetting to children and parents alike.  Memory and language development are also surveyed.  A brief section on specific theories and theorists related to language development are also noted. 

 You might be interested in the topic of “feral children” such as Victor the wild boy of Aveyron (page 91). His case, and others (like Genie, a modern day wild child, are often used to support a critical period hypothesis for language development.  In other words, it is proposed that if you are not exposed to human language early in life, it will be much more difficult to learn language when you are older.  Other well-known stories of feral children are Amala and Kamala, who were discovered while living with wolves in India.  Oxana Malaya was found as an 8-year old in the Ukraine, living with dogs.

The progression of language development is seen in the movement from crying, cooing, babbling, gesturing, then on to first words and short two-word sentences.  Adding to this discussion a bit, researchers call the special way we talk to babies as “parentese.” And babies love it!  Parentese is higher-pitched, sometimes as much as an octave higher (basses become sopranos around babies).  Parentese uses short and simple sentences, often repeated over and over again.  Parentese  features elongated vowels and overly precise consonants and exaggerated facial expressions.  And I say it again…babies love it!  And as they hear you speak in parentese, they’re beginning to figure out how language is put together.