THERE IS A TOTAL OF SIX DISCUSSION RESPONSE. PLEASE RESPOND TO EACH WITH ONE TO TWO PARAGRAPHS.
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weekonediscussionresponse.docxJackie Best
Week 1 Discussion 1
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According to the American Psychological Association, they claim that a low socioeconomic status (SES) includes attributes such as, "...lower educational achievement, poverty and poor health". These are but a few examples of the results of a low SES but the effects are much greater with a developing child, psychologically, physically, and educationally. Psychologically, a child of a low SES can exhibit behavior problems and even premature delinquent like symptoms. Physically, a child is more likely to develop diseases, such as childhood obesity or cardiovascular disease later in life. Educationally, it is more common for these children to frequently miss school and/ or even drop out in high school. Regarding cultural context, this varies from each individual family or community and how they express their beliefs. In certain geographic areas, this can potentially result in a "gang mentality" as one culture rivals another and challenges itself to be the best.
Regarding my own development, I was brought up in a middle-class family with both of my parents in the home. I grew up fortunate with a hardworking father who provided for my family while my mother stayed home to take care of my siblings and I. My family always had enough money to buy whatever we wanted, within reason, and all of us kids did relatively well in school. Looking back, it is evident to see that my family's decent socioeconomic status truly did shape our social construction in both childhood and adolescence.
Children, Youth, Families and Socioeconomic Status. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/children-families
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18 hours ago
Andrea Ochoa
Cultural and Social Economic Influence
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The socio-cultural context and economic situations can affect early child development in different ways. Social economic situations can affect early childhood development because if the family has the finances to provide a greater amount of care or be able to provide top end enrichment to the child it could help stimulate the child’s brain. Whether it be paying for different types of classes like music or sports, even just toys that continuously help advance the child.
In the article, “A Call to Cultural Competence: The Science of Early Child Development and Mental Health” it gives 4 very important highlights of what the different roles play into early child development. For example it points out how important it is that during the child’s early life through real life experiences because it aides in developing their brain. Something that really stuck a cord with me in the article was when it stated, “Early environments and nurturing relationships are essential; both of which are influence by culture and reflected in childbearing beliefs and practices” I could personally account for how in my Mexican culture the social construction of how family dynamics work vary greatly from others. For example when your a baby or toddler you are well taken care of and doted on however as you grow up they start introducing chores and work that must be accomplished. This is done in order to help out the family unit as a whole like when everyone gets together to make the families tortillas for the week. It may seem harsh to other people but I actually appreciated it a tad bit more because it taught me how I have to work hard to earn certain achievements or rewards as it is not just given to me.
Economic situations in my household as a child was lower middle class and we weren’t able to pay to participate in those team sports or music lessons but we were given board games that stimulated our critical thinking as well as plenty of trips to the park to run around and discover and make observations on our own. During our sensitive period of learning my parents were Spanish-speaking only and what they did for us since we were going to be attending school that was English only they would put on English cartoons that way we could start familiarizing ourselves with he language.
Citations:
“Culture | Culture and Early Socio-Emotional Development.” Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development, www.child-encyclopedia.com/culture/according-experts/culture-and-early-socio-emotional-development.
“Tutorial 10 · Cultural and Linguistic Competence in Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation.” CECMHC | Center for Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation, www.ecmhc.org/tutorials/competence/mod1_1.html.
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6 hours ago
Crystal Cane
Cultural and socioeconomic effects on developing children
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Cultural and social economic situations influence early childhood in a various ways. For instance, I being of Hispanic and Native American decent, do not speak any Spanish nor do I have any strong Hispanic traditions. Why is that? I was raised in a middle class, military town that consisted of mainly white, non-Spanish speaking people. Twice a week we would go to church with other Hispanic, Spanish speaking individuals but yet the gatherings were more Americanized and the children I played with did not speak Spanish. At home my parents did not speak Spanish to me and my cultural influence was mainly that of the American culture. In the book the developing person, Kathleen Burgess states that, “Culture is far more than food or ritual; it is a powerful social construction”. (Berger, 2012) Regardless of the color of my skin, the culture that I identify most is not Hispanic nor native but American. Given that I am a 5th or 6th generation Hispanic that was raised in a predominantly white town, I am not surprised nor am I ashamed. I have learned to accept who I am and I love the culture that I was nurtured in.
The social economic background of a child will offer different opportunities for the child. Not stating that 2 children of different social economic standings won’t have the same opportunities such as going to college, but one child might have a college fund that has been created for them while the other child has to apply for student loans to pay for it. The SES plays a huge part in the developing child. Burgess also states, “All developmentalists appreciate that SES impacts each person’s life, perhaps even more in the early years than the later ones.” (Berger, 2012) However the socioeconomic status or SES does not only consist of the individual’s income, it also consists of the type of education we receive and what job we hold
References
Berger, K. S. (2012). The Developing Person Through Childhood and Adolescence. New York: Worth Publishers.
Jackie Best
Week 1 Discussion 2
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The article by Winnicott and Harlow's monkey experiment helped me develop a deeper understanding of how crucial the Trust v. Mistrust stage is during the early years of a child. Winnicott's analogy of a child looking at their mother as if she were a mirror made me realize that young children are beginning to develop that sense of understanding and trust in the world around them. If the child does not see a familiar, friendly face it can make them feel insecure or scared. Regarding Harlow's experiment, I found it fascinating that the baby monkey had more trust in the cloth mother rather than the wire mother despite its ability to feed it when needed. Both of these examples have made me understand that it is essential for children to feel loved and comforted in their early stages of development in order to healthily grow.
Regarding the at home birthing videos, I found it fascinating how it seemed (almost) effortless to give birth in a natural way. The father seemed surprised as to how quickly his child was born and the wife didn't appear to be in as much pain as we typically see in a generic hospital environment. I've heard about midwives and the process of an at home birth but seeing the actual footage made me feel that this was far more comfortable for the entire family.
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23 hours ago
Cynthia Green
week 1 Discussion 2
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Parent-infant bonding in the first hours after the infant’s birth is essential. Bonding is the intense attachment that develops between parents and their baby. Parents' responsiveness to an infant's signals can affect the child's social and cognitive development. This bond builds into attachments which are important in every stage of development. The first few days of a baby's life are believed to offer an optimum opportunity for bonding to take place between infant and mother and is essential for normal infant development. Often within just hours of birth, mothers report feelings of overwhelming love and attachment for their new baby.
Erikson’s theory of trust vs. mistrust acknowledges how important nurture is for the development of a child. In his theory, “babies either trust that others will care for their basic needs…, or develop mistrust about the care of others” (Berg, 2012, p.41). This stage begins at birth and lasts through one year of age. Infants learn to trust that their caregivers will meet their basic needs. If these needs are not consistently met, mistrust, suspicion, and anxiety may develop.
Brandon et at (2009) points out Mary Ainsworth’s experiment on "Strange Situation", which studied attachments between infant and mother. Ainsworth believed the attachment process of mother and infant was not just biological, but included the infant’s judgment of the mother's behaviors. This research indicates when a mother is attuned to her infant, secure attachments form. The mother responds appropriately by taking care of the infant's needs. Secure attachment not only helps in healthy development of the infant, but also affects relationships as an adult.
References
Berger, K. S. (2012). The developing person through childhood and adolescence (9th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
Brandon, A., Pitts, S., Denton, W., Stringer, C., & Evans, H. (2009). A History of the Theory of Prenatal Attachment. Journal of Prenatal & Perinatal Psychology & Health, 23(4), 201-222.Retrieved from https://nuls.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.nuls.idm.oclc.org/docview/340379913?accountid=25320
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Ilima Tavares
Wow, well first of all I must say that both of these videos made me tear up, and for very different reasons. In the first video of Harlow’s monkeys, he used monkeys to research the effects of infants and mothers bonding. I seriously cried the entire time. Those poor baby monkeys with no mother to love or cuddle. How that baby monkey ran to the cloth monkey (oh my eyes) was too sad. I see why Harlow decided to research this because I do believe that it has a lot to do with how a mother’s, or nurturers, touch and love can affect how a baby is brought up.
An infant depends on you for everything, and all they want is love. You are their everything. I can’t even imagine a poor baby whose parents don’t give them love or attention.
Kangaroo care is now a big thing in modern day births. This is when mothers rest their babies on their naked chests after birth to build that closeness with one another (Berger. 121). I did this with my son and daughter after they were born. I believe that closeness is very important from the start of the newborn stage. I want my children to feel very loved at all times and never feel neglected (like those poor monkeys in the video).
The second video was just so sweet that I cried too. This was an extreme opposite video from the monkey one. In this video, the mother and father show closeness, love, and use kangaroo care when looking after their newborn. Implementation of many strategies, especially for fragile infants and their parents, is especially needed in developing nations, where kangaroo care and other measures could reduce infant deaths by 20 to 40 percent (Bhutta et al. 2008).
My thoughts about trust vs mistrust stage during the first year of life are that it makes a drastic difference in how an infant is cared for. If an infant is not shown love and neglected by their mother’s it has to have a deep impact on that baby, and impacts the way that baby will grow up, and how he/she will develop.
Berger, K. S. (2012). The developing person through childhood and adolescence (9th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.
Winnicott, D. Collected Papers: Through Pediatrics to Psychoanalysis. New York: Basic Books; 1956. Primary maternal preoccupation. Z
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