MODULE II: INFANCY, CHILDHOOD & ADOLESCENCE

1. Development of Physical & Motor Skills & Maturation

Physical Growth — Infancy (Birth–2 years)
• Average birth weight: ~2.5–3.5 kg; height ~50 cm. Birth weight triples by end of Year 1;
height increases ~50%.
• Brain development: Reaches ~80% of adult weight by age 2, supporting motor and
cognitive abilities.
• Body proportions: Head initially disproportionately large; trunk and limbs grow faster
over time.

Principles of Motor Development

• Cephalocaudal Principle: Development proceeds head-to-toe — head/neck control
before trunk and legs.
• Proximodistal Principle: Development proceeds centre-outward — shoulder control
precedes finger control.
• Mass to Specific: Movements become more refined over time (whole-arm to precise
finger grasp).

Gross Motor Milestones (Infancy)

Age Milestone

0–3 months Lifts head when on stomach

4–6 months Rolls over; sits with support

6–9 months Sits independently; starts crawling

9–12 months Pulls to stand; may begin walking

12–24 months Walks independently; climbs; begins running

Fine Motor Development (Infancy)
• Reflexive grasp (birth) → Voluntary reaching (3–4 months) → Palmar grasp (5–6 months)
→ Pincer grasp (9–12 months) → Hand-eye coordination (1–2 years)

Role of Reflexes
• Newborn primitive reflexes: Rooting, sucking, grasping — automatic survival
responses.
• As cortex matures, reflexes disappear and voluntary movements replace them.
Persistence beyond expected age may indicate neurological issues.

Childhood & Adolescence

• Early Childhood (2–6 yrs): Brain reaches ~90% adult size by age 5–6; growth rate
slows (~2–3 kg/yr; ~5–7 cm/yr). Gross motor: running, jumping, climbing. Fine motor:
drawing, self-care.
• Middle Childhood (6–12 yrs): Steady growth; improved strength, balance,
coordination, and endurance. Participation in structured sports.
• Adolescence (12–18 yrs): Puberty triggers a growth spurt (girls earlier than boys);
sexual maturation; peak strength, speed, and coordination. Maturation regulated by
the endocrine system.
• Environmental influences: Nutrition, physical activity, health care, and
socioeconomic factors all shape development. Practice significantly improves motor
skills.
2. Cognitive Development: Piaget & Vygotsky

Piaget's Theory
Piaget's approach is fundamentally constructivist — children actively build knowledge
through interaction with their environment.

Core Mechanisms:
Schemas: Organised psychological structures for making sense of experiences.
Assimilation: Using existing schemes to interpret new information.
Accommodation: Adjusting or creating new schemes when existing ones do not fit.
Equilibration: The balance between equilibrium and disequilibrium that drives cognitive
growth.

Stage Age Key Features

Sensorimotor Birth–2 yrs Circular reactions; develops object permanence; A-not-B

error; mental representation by end of stage

Preoperational 2–7 yrs Symbolic/representational thinking; egocentrism;

animism; centration; inability to conserve; irreversibility

Concrete 7–11 yrs Logical thought applied to concrete problems;

Operational conservation; reversibility; classification; seriation;
transitive inference

Formal Operational 11+ yrs Abstract and hypothetico-deductive reasoning;

propositional thought; imaginary audience; personal fable

• Criticisms: Underestimates infant abilities; cultural bias; change may be more gradual
than stage-based shifts suggest.
• Educational implication: Discovery learning; teacher as facilitator; sensitivity to
readiness; hands-on activities.
Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory
Vygotsky emphasised the role of social interaction and language in shaping cognition.
Children move from lower cognitive functions to uniquely human higher processes through
dialogue.

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): The gap between what a child can do
independently and what they can achieve with guidance.
Scaffolding: Adjusting the level of support based on the child's current performance;
withdrawn as competence grows.
Private Speech: Self-directed talk used to guide problem-solving; internalises into silent
inner speech over time.
Intersubjectivity: Shared understanding achieved when two participants with different
views arrive at a common perspective.

• Make-believe play: A "broadly influential ZPD" — children act on internal ideas,

practise rule-following, and strengthen self-regulation.
• Classroom strategies: Reciprocal teaching (collaborative group dialogues) and
cooperative learning (peer groups work toward shared goals).
• Criticisms: Overemphasises verbal dialogue; neglects biological contributions; vague
on how social experience becomes internalised.

Comparing Piaget & Vygotsky

Dimension Vygotsky Piaget

Sociocultural context Strong emphasis Little emphasis

Constructivism Social constructivist Cognitive constructivist

Stages No general stages Four universal stages

Role of language Major — shapes thought Minimal — cognition directs

language

View of education Central role; children learn Refines already-emerged skills

cultural tools
3. Moral Development: Kohlberg's Theory
Kohlberg used moral dilemmas (conflicts between two values) and clinical interviews to
assess moral reasoning. He identified six stages across three levels, which he argued are
invariant, universal, and sequentially organised.
Level Stage Description

Preconventional Stage 1 — Punishment Avoid punishment; authority is obeyed out of fear;

(self-interest) & Obedience intentions ignored.

Preconventional Stage 2 — "What's in it for me?" Right action serves self-

Instrumental Purpose interest; reciprocity is a concrete exchange.

Conventional Stage 3 — Good Maintain approval of others; be loyal and

(social Boy/Good Girl trustworthy; view from impartial observer.
conformity)

Conventional Stage 4 — Social- Laws must be upheld consistently to maintain

Order Maintaining societal order.

Postconventional Stage 5 — Social Laws are flexible instruments for human good;
(abstract Contract follow them by willing agreement.
principles)

Postconventional Stage 6 — Universal Self-chosen principles (e.g., human dignity,

Ethical Principles equality) valid for all humanity, beyond law.

• Methodology: Moral Judgment Interview (dilemmas) and Sociomoral Reflection

Measure–Short Form (SRM-SF).
• Drivers of growth: Disequilibrium (grappling with weaknesses in current reasoning),
perspective-taking gains, schooling, warm rational parenting, and peer negotiation.
• Reasoning vs. behaviour: Moral maturity moderately predicts moral behaviour;
emotions, temperament, and personality also play a role.
• Criticisms: Dilemmas are remote from everyday experience; may underestimate
children's everyday moral reasoning; cultural context matters for reaching higher
stages.
4. Emotional Development
An emotion is a feeling or affect that occurs when a person is in a state or interaction
important to their well-being. Emotions are influenced by biological foundations (limbic
system, brain stem) and experience.

Functionalist View of Emotions

• Emotions arise from attempts to adapt to specific contextual demands — they are
relational, not purely intrapsychic.
• Emotions serve to: signal others, regulate one's own behaviour, and play key roles in
social exchange.
• Emotions are linked to goals: achieving a goal → happiness; relinquishing a goal →
sadness; unfair obstacles → frustration/anger.

Primary vs. Self-Conscious Emotions (Lewis)

Primary Emotions: Present in humans and animals; appear in first 6 months — surprise,
interest, joy, anger, sadness, fear, disgust.
Self-Conscious Emotions: Require self-awareness ("me"); include jealousy, empathy,
embarrassment, pride, shame, guilt. Emerge in second half of Year 1 through Year 2.
• Note: Both Kagan and Campos argue self-conscious emotions do not occur until after
the first year due to brain immaturity.

Emotional Expression in Infancy

• Crying types: Basic cry (rhythmic pattern); anger cry (excess air through vocal cords);
pain cry (sudden, loud, with breath-holding).
• Smiling types: Reflexive smile (first month, during sleep, not triggered externally);
social smile (response to external stimulus, typically a face).
• Fear and stranger anxiety: Fear first appears ~6 months; peaks ~18 months. Stranger
anxiety emerges ~6 months, intensifies by 9 months.
• Separation protest: Crying when caregiver leaves; peaks ~15 months in US infants.

Emotional Regulation
• Infancy: Caregivers soothe infants, modulating stress hormones. By Year 2, toddlers
redirect attention and use language to describe feelings.
• Early childhood: Children learn to reflect on emotions (ages 4–5); understand the
same event evokes different feelings in different people; by age 5 can accurately
identify and describe coping strategies.
• Parenting styles: Emotion-coaching parents (treat negative emotions as teaching
opportunities) produce children with better self-regulation. Emotion-dismissing
parents (deny/ignore) are linked to poor emotional regulation.

Middle & Late Childhood

• Improved emotional understanding: Complex emotions (pride, shame) become
more self-generated and linked to personal responsibility.
• Children begin to understand that multiple emotions can occur simultaneously.
• Self-initiated strategies: Children become more reflective, cognitively manage
emotions, and develop genuine empathy.

Adolescence
• Emotions closely tied to self and identity; emotional highs and lows are more frequent
in early adolescence.
• Hormones & experience: Pubertal hormonal changes contribute to negative emotion,
but researchers conclude environmental experiences (school transitions, romantic
encounters) contribute more.
• Cognitive reappraisal: Actively changing how one thinks about a situation to regulate
emotional impact — linked to positive self-concept and fewer internalising problems.
• Emotional competence in adolescence: Awareness of emotional cycles; skilled
presentation of emotions to others; understanding the importance of constructive
communication in relationships.

Emotional Competence (Saarni)

• Awareness of one's own emotional states
• Detecting and understanding others' emotions
• Using emotion vocabulary in culturally appropriate ways
• Empathic and sympathetic sensitivity to others
• Recognising that inner states need not match outer expressions
• Adaptively coping with negative emotions through self-regulation
• Awareness of the role emotions play in relationships
5. Temperament
Temperament refers to individual differences in behavioural styles, emotions, and
characteristic ways of responding. It is moderately stable across childhood.

Chess & Thomas Classification

Type Characteristics

Easy Child (~40%) Generally positive mood; establishes regular routines quickly; adapts
easily to new experiences.

Difficult Child (~10%) Reacts negatively; cries frequently; irregular daily routines; slow to
accept change.

Slow-to-Warm-Up Low activity level; somewhat negative; low intensity of mood; 35% did
Child (~15%) not fit any category.

Note: 35% of children do not fit any category. These clusters are moderately stable across
childhood.

Rothbart & Bates Classification

• Extraversion/Surgency: Positive anticipation, impulsivity, activity level, sensation-
seeking (Kagan's uninhibited children).
• Negative Affectivity: Fear, frustration, sadness, discomfort; easily distressed (Kagan's
inhibited children; Chess & Thomas's "difficult").
• Effortful Control (Self-Regulation): Attentional focusing/shifting, inhibitory control,
perceptual sensitivity. Infants high on effortful control can manage arousal and soothe
themselves.
Stability of Temperament
• Temperament characteristics are moderately stable across childhood, though not
fixed. Individual differences in effortful control emerge as the prefrontal cortex
matures.
• Positive emotionality stabilises later in infancy; extraversion/surgency can be
determined in the toddler period.

Behavioural Inhibition (Kagan)

• Inhibited children: React to unfamiliar stimuli with avoidance, distress, or subdued
affect, beginning ~7–9 months. Kagan regards shyness with strangers as a feature of a
broad category called inhibition to the unfamiliar.
• Stability: Inhibition shows considerable stability from infancy through early childhood,
though some inhibited children move to the intermediate range by age 7.

Temperament & Child-Rearing (Goodness of Fit)

• Attention to individuality: No single "good parenting" prescription; parents need
sensitivity to each child's unique signals and needs.
• Structuring the environment: Crowded/noisy environments pose greater problems
for difficult children. Fearful children benefit from slower entry into new contexts.
• Avoid negative labels: Labelling a child "difficult" can become self-fulfilling.
Caregivers should be sensitive, flexible, and avoid negative labels.
6. Attachment — Bowlby & Ainsworth
Definition & Theory
Attachment is a close emotional bond between two people that persists across time and
space. Bowlby (1969) proposed it as a biologically rooted motivational system for
protection and emotional security — persisting "from the cradle to the grave." Ainsworth
added the concept of the attachment figure as a secure base and the role of maternal
sensitivity in shaping attachment patterns.

Phases of Attachment Development (Bowlby/Schaffer)

• Phase 1 (0–2 months): Indiscriminate attachment to all human figures.
• Phase 2 (2–7 months): Focused attachment on primary caregiver; beginning to
distinguish familiar from unfamiliar.
• Phase 3 (7–24 months): Specific attachment; infant actively seeks contact with
regular caregivers; stranger anxiety and separation protest emerge.
• Phase 4 (24+ months): Goal-corrected partnership; child considers caregiver's
feelings, goals, and plans.

Strange Situation & Attachment Patterns (Ainsworth)

• Secure Attachment: Uses caregiver as safe base; mild distress when separated;
quickly comforted on reunion. Associated with sensitive, responsive caregiving.
• Insecure-Avoidant: Shows little distress when caregiver leaves; avoids or ignores
caregiver on return. Linked to consistently unresponsive caregiving.
• Insecure-Resistant/Ambivalent: Highly distressed by separation; ambivalent (seeks
contact but resists) on reunion. Associated with inconsistent caregiving.
• Disorganised/Disoriented: No consistent strategy; confused or contradictory
behaviours on reunion. Linked to frightening or abusive caregiving.
Internal Working Models
• Based on early caregiving experiences, children form mental representations of self
and others (working models). A secure model → expects emotional needs will be met;
an insecure model → uncertainty about others' availability.
• Two dimensions (Bartholomew): Model of self (positive/negative) × model of others
(positive/negative) yields four adult styles: Secure, Preoccupied, Dismissing, Fearful-
Avoidant.

Continuity & Adolescent Attachment

• Early secure attachment predicts better peer competence, emotional regulation, and
reduced relationship problems later.
• In adolescence: The primary task is shifting from parents as attachment figures to
peers and romantic partners, while still retaining parents as a secure base. Autonomy-
seeking behaviour typically co-exists with a positive underlying relationship with
parents.

Factors Influencing Attachment Security

• Caregiver sensitivity: Responsiveness to infant cues is the most consistent predictor
of secure attachment.
• Consistency: Inconsistent responses lead to anxiety; consistent responses promote
trust.
• Infant characteristics: Temperament can influence the quality of caregiving
interactions.
• Environmental stressors: Poverty, maternal depression, and family instability can
compromise attachment security.
7. Role of Rearing Practices
Socialisation increases in earnest in the second year. Effective caregivers pace demands
to fit with children's capacities. Four primary parenting styles have been identified
(Baumrind):

Style Acceptance/ Control Autonomy Typical Outcome

Involvement

Authoritative High Firm with Gradual, Best outcomes; high self-

explanations appropriate esteem, social maturity,
academic competence

Authoritarian Low Coercive, Restricted Lower self-esteem;

high obedient but less socially
competent

Permissive High Low/lax Excessive Immature, impulsive, low

(overindulging) achievement

Uninvolved Low Minimal Minimal Poor outcomes across all

effort domains; minimal
commitment to parenting

Why Authoritative Parenting Works

• Fair control, not arbitrary — more likely to be internalised by the child.
• Warm, involved parents model confident, self-controlled behaviour and use
reinforcement and disapproval effectively.
• Autonomy granting matched to the child's ability → fosters high self-esteem and
cognitive/social maturity.

Adapting Parenting Across Development

• Coregulation (Middle Childhood): Parents exercise general oversight while children
manage moment-to-moment decisions.
• Fostering Autonomy (Adolescence): Supporting the adolescent's development as a
self-governing individual, central to identity formation.
8. Development of Identity — Marcia's Theory
James Marcia extended Erikson's stage of identity vs. role confusion by using two
dimensions — crisis (exploration) and commitment — to define four identity statuses.

Status Crisis/Exploration Commitment Description

Identity Diffusion No No Not explored meaningful

alternatives; little interest in
occupational/ideological choices.

Identity No Yes Commitments adopted from

Foreclosure parents without personal
exploration; often authoritarian
hand-down.

Identity Yes (ongoing) No clear Actively exploring but has not yet
Moratorium commitment committed to an identity.

Identity Yes (completed) Yes Has undergone exploration and

Achievement made a personal commitment —
the most mature status.

• Criticisms of Marcia: Some researchers argue the framework oversimplifies Erikson's

deeper concepts of crisis and commitment, reducing them to binary decisions about
whether issues have been considered.
• Identity has multiple dimensions: Career, ideology, religion, gender, relationships —
not just occupational choices.
9. Gender Roles, Gender Stereotypes & Gender Schema
Theory
Key Definitions
• Gender Stereotypes: Widely held beliefs about characteristics deemed appropriate
for males and females.
• Gender Roles: The reflection of gender stereotypes in everyday behaviour.
• Instrumental Traits: Masculine-stereotyped traits — competence, rationality,
assertiveness.
• Expressive Traits: Feminine-stereotyped traits — warmth, caring, sensitivity.
• Gender Identity: The perception of oneself as relatively masculine or feminine in
characteristics.
• Gender Typing: The process of developing gender-linked beliefs, gender roles, and a
gender identity.

Development of Gender Stereotyping

• Gender stereotypes and gender roles begin forming in the preschool years;
stereotyping is inflexible at this age due to cognitive limitations.
• Gender-stereotype flexibility increases in middle childhood and adolescence;
children develop a more open-minded view, though boys often hold more rigid views
than girls.
• Early adolescence = period of gender intensification — gender identities become
more traditional. As adolescents form a mature identity, highly stereotypic self-
perceptions decline.

Influences on Gender-Role Adoption

• Biological: Prenatal androgen levels linked to play styles and same-sex peer
preference. Research on CAH (congenital adrenal hyperplasia) girls supports a
biological role in some masculine gender-role preferences.
• Parents: From infancy, adults hold gender-stereotyped perceptions, create different
environments, reinforce gender-appropriate play. Fathers differentiate more between
sons and daughters than mothers do.
• Peers: Same-sex peer interaction reinforces gender-appropriate play; boys use
commands and force; girls use polite requests — differences that strengthen gender
segregation.
• Teachers: Reinforce "feminine" behaviour in both sexes and act in ways promoting
traditional roles.
• Siblings: In small families, younger siblings imitate the older sibling's gender-role. In
larger families, same-sex siblings often differentiate, leading to less stereotyped
behaviour.

Kohlberg's Gender Constancy Model

Gender Labelling: Stage 1 — Correctly labelling own and others' gender.
Gender Stability: Stage 2 — Understanding sex is stable over time.
Gender Consistency: Stage 3 — Understanding sex remains the same regardless of
appearance/activity.
• Note: Gender-appropriate behaviour is acquired long before gender constancy —
challenging Kohlberg's prediction that constancy must come first.

Bem's Gender Schema Theory

Gender Schema Theory (Sandra Bem) is an information-processing approach that
combines social learning and cognitive-developmental features into a unified account of
gender typing.
• As children learn gender-typed preferences, they form gender schemas
(masculine/feminine cognitive categories) and use them to interpret their world.
• Schema-consistent information is attended to; schema-inconsistent information is
ignored or misinterpreted. Result: children learn far more about gender-appropriate
than gender-inappropriate activities.
• Gender schemas then guide gender-role adoption, stereotyping, and gender identity in
a self-reinforcing cycle.
• Androgyny: Scoring high on both masculine and feminine characteristics. The
masculine component of androgyny is largely responsible for its association with
positive psychological adjustment.
10. Issues in Adolescence: Personal Relationships, Drug
Abuse & Suicidal Ideation
A. Personal Relationships
Adolescence is a critical period for the development of both peer relationships and
romantic relationships. Relationships serve to fulfil needs for companionship, intimacy,
and identity formation.
• Peer relationships: Peer groups become the primary social context. Peer influence
shapes attitudes, romantic behaviour, and risk-taking. Positive peer relationships are
linked to greater social competence and better mental health.
• Friendship: Close friendships in adolescence are characterised by intimacy, loyalty,
and mutual disclosure. Strong close friendships in ages 16–18 predict greater romantic
life satisfaction in adulthood.
• Romantic relationships: Begin as extensions of peer relationships; grow more
intimate through late adolescence and begin taking over attachment functions
previously held by parents. Positive romantic interactions are linked to less dating
anxiety and better mental health; negative interactions are linked to poorer well-being.
• Parental influence: Adolescents who have more positive parent-adolescent
relationships show more positive peer and romantic relationships. Interaction patterns
learned with parents are applied in peer and romantic contexts.
• Autonomy & attachment: Adolescents can explore emotional independence from
parents partly because they retain parents as a secure base in times of real need.

B. Drug Abuse
Adolescence is the developmental period of highest risk for the onset of problematic
alcohol and drug (AOD) use. Some experimentation may be normative, but escalation to
substance use disorders is a significant concern.
• Why adolescents are vulnerable: The prefrontal cortex (impulse control, decision-
making) is still developing, while the reward system (limbic) is highly active — a
mismatch that increases risk-taking and susceptibility to addiction.
Risk Factors:
◦ Individual: High impulsivity; poor emotional regulation; conduct problems;
depression; low self-worth; sensation-seeking; previous substance exposure.
◦ Family: Parental substance use; poor parental supervision; low parental
education; family mismanagement.
 ◦ Peer/Community: Association with substance-using peers — the single strongest
community-level risk factor.
Protective Factors:
◦ Individual: Optimism; high mindfulness; strong beliefs against substance use;
desire to maintain health.
◦ Family: High parental awareness; warm, involved authoritative parenting.
◦ School/Community: School connectedness; structured activities; strong religious
beliefs; evidence-based prevention programmes (e.g., Lifeskills Training, Positive
Action).
• Consequences: Academic difficulties, physical health problems, increased risk for
mental health disorders, legal issues, and progression to more serious substance use
disorders.

C. Suicidal Ideation
Suicide is among the leading causes of death for adolescents aged 15–29. Suicidal
ideation (SI) refers to fleeting or recurring thoughts about wanting to die, which may or
may not involve a plan. Adolescence is a high-risk period due to rapid physical,
psychological, and social changes.
Risk Factors:
◦ Psychological: Depression, hopelessness, anxiety, and stress are the strongest
predictors of SI.
◦ Behavioural: Previous suicidal ideation or attempts, self-harm, substance use.
◦ Social: Bullying, social isolation, peer rejection, negative family environment.
◦ Identity-related: LGBTQ+ adolescents face significantly elevated risk.
◦ Gender: "Gender paradox" — females report more SI and attempts; males have
higher rates of completed suicide.
Protective Factors:
◦ Positive self-perception: Self-worth and social competence are key buffers
against SI.
◦ Social support: Strong family bonds and peer relationships reduce risk. Secure
attachment and positive family functioning are protective, especially for females.
◦ School connectedness: A sense of belonging and wellbeing at school is a
consistent protective factor.
◦ Physical activity: Regular physical activity is negatively associated with SI.
 ◦ Adaptive coping: Cognitive reappraisal (vs. emotion-focused or suppression
coping) is protective.
Warning Signs:
◦ Statements such as "I wish I were dead" or "When I'm gone..."
◦ Withdrawal from friends, family, and usual activities
◦ Giving away prized possessions; saying goodbye
◦ Sudden calmness after a period of depression (may indicate a decision has been
made)
◦ Increased substance use; reckless behaviour
• Important note: Moodiness is a normal feature of early adolescence. However,
persistent hopelessness, withdrawal, and direct statements about wanting to die
should always be taken seriously and referred to a mental health professional.