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Social & Personality
Development in the
Preschool Years
Chapter 8
Development Across
the Lifespan
Self Concept in the School Years:
Thinking About the Self
During the preschool period,
children wonder about the
nature of self
 The way they answer the
question “Who am I?” at this
stage may affect their whole
life!

(Self concept in the preschool years,
continued)



Preschoolers begin to form their SELFCONCEPT (their identity, or their set of
beliefs about what one is like as an
individual).
Youngsters typically overestimate their
skills and knowledge (their self concepts
are NOT necessarily accurate).
They also begin to develop a view of self
that reflects the way their particular culture
considers the self.
Different cultural philosophies may lead to
differences in how children view the self during the
preschool years
a.
b.
Asian societies tend to have a COLLECTIVE
ORIENTATION, promoting the notion of
interdependence, blending in, and being
interconnected.
Western cultures tend to Preschoolers’ self
concepts are NOT only the result of parental
influence, but also of social and cultural influence!
embrace an INDIVIDUALISTIC ORIENTATION that
emphasizes personal identity, uniqueness, and
competition.
In short…

Preschoolers develop their selfconcepts as a result of how their
parents treat them AND based on
the society and culture they live in!

(NATURE & NURTURE!!)
Psychosocial Development
According to Erik Erikson’s theory of psychosocial
development, preschoolers have already passed
through a couple of Developmental stages.
As discussed in Chapter 6…
PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT encompasses
changes in the understanding individuals have of
themselves as members of society, and in their
comprehension of the meaning of others’
behavior.
More about Erikson’s theory…
Remember that Erikson proposed an 8 stage
theory of psychosocial development, from
infancy to old age

To pass through the stages, a conflict/crisis
must be resolved at each stage
 From age 3 to 6, children experience the
INITIATIVE-VERSUS-GUILT STAGE, the period
during which children experience conflict
between independence of action and the
sometimes negative results of that action.

The initiative-versus-guilt stage, continued

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Conflict occurs between the desire to become more
independent and autonomous and the guilt that may
occur
Preschoolers with supportive parents =independent &
autonomous
Preschoolers with restrictive, overprotective parents =
shame & self-doubt
The foundational concept of this stage is that children
become aware that they are people too! They begin to
make decisions and shape the kind of person they are
to become!
Developing Racial & Ethnic Awareness


By the time they are 3 or 4 years of
age, preschoolers distinguish between
members of different races and begin
to understand the significance of race
in society.
Some youngsters begin to show
preferential feelings for members of
their own race.
(Developing Racial & Ethnic Awareness,
continued)

Many minority children experience ambivalence
over the meaning of their racial identity.
 In some studies, as many as 90% of African
American children reacted more negatively to
drawings of black children than white children.
• WHY?
• Not because of lower self esteem
• The reason: the influence of the dominant,
predominantly white culture

More about the influence of the dominant,
predominantly White culture
Peggy McIntosh
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack
(1988)
~ Describing White privilege makes one newly
accountable
~ Talks about how she came to realize that AfricanAmericans can not count on conditions that
Caucasian Americans take for granted as members
of the dominant group
“I can turn on the TV or open to the front page of
the paper and see people of my race widely and
positively represented”
(Developing Racial & Ethnic Awareness,
continued)

Some preschool age children may
experience RACE DISSONANCE,
the phenomenon in which minority
youngsters indicate preference for
white values or people.
Gender Identity:
Developing Femaleness & Maleness
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Gender, the sense of being male or female, is well
established in young children. (Sex typically refers to
sexual anatomy.)
One way gender is manifested is in play.
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During the preschool years boys increasingly play with
boys.
Girls tend to play with girls.
Gender out-weighs ethnic variables when it comes to
play

An Asian American boy would prefer to play with an African
American boy than with an Asian American girl
(Gender Identity: Developing Femaleness &
Maleness, continued)
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Preschoolers also begin to develop expectations
about appropriate behavior for girls and boys.
Like adults, preschoolers expect males to be more
independent, forceful and competitive and females
to be warm, nurturing, expressive and submissive.
These are expectations and not truths about actual
behavior! But viewing the world this way affects
preschoolers behavior!
However, young children typically hold stronger
gender-stereotypes than adults.
Several theoretical explanations for
gender related attitudes exist.

Biological perspectives argue that
physical characteristics associated with
the different sexes, hormone
differences, and differences in the
structure of female and male brains
might lead to gender differences.
• (inborn genetic factors  gender
differences)
(Theoretical explanations for gender
related attitudes, continued)

Psychoanalytic perspectives attribute
gender differences to
IDENTIFICATION, the process in which
children attempt to be similar to their
same-sex parent, incorporating the
parent's attitudes and values.
• (gender development results from
moving thru stages related to biological
urges)
(Theoretical explanations for gender related
attitudes, continued)

Social-learning approaches argue that
children learn gender-related behavior
and expectations from direct training
and from their observation of others,
including the media.
• (Gender related behavior & expectations
learned from observations of others in
their environment)
(Theoretical explanations for gender related
attitudes, continued)

Cognitive approaches argue that individuals
develop a GENDER IDENTITY, the perception
of oneself as male or female.

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To do this they develop a GENDER SCHEMA (a
cognitive framework that organizes information
relevant to gender).
Preschoolers begin developing "rules"about what
is right, and what is inappropriate, for males and
females.

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(The cognitive approach as an explanation for gender
related attitudes, continued)
By the time they are 4 or 5 years of age, children
develop an understanding of GENDER CONSTANCY
(the belief that people are permanently males or
females, depending on fixed, unchangeable biological
factors).
Sandra Bem believes that one can minimize rigid
views of gender by encouraging children to be
ANDROGYNOUS (a state in which gender roles
encompass characteristics thought typical of both
sexes)

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Males as assertive & gentle,
Females as empathetic & competitive
Preschoolers' Social Lives
The preschool years are marked by increased
interactions with the world at large.

Around age 3, children begin to develop real
friendships.

Peers come to be seen as individuals with special
qualities.

Relationships are based on companionship, play,
and entertainment.

Friendship is focused on the carrying out of
shared activities (rather than just being in the
same place at the same time!).
With age, preschooler's view of
friendship evolves.
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Older preschoolers see friendship as a
continuing state, and as a stable relationship
that has meaning beyond the immediate
moment.
Older preschoolers pay more attention to
concepts such as trust, support, and shared
interests.
Even by age 3, children are interested in
maintaining smooth social relationships with
their friends, trying to avoid disagreements.
(Preschool Social Life,continued)
Some children are more readily liked by their peers
than others.
Qualities associated with Qualities associated with
popularity
disliked children
 physical attractiveness 
more likely to be
 being outgoing
aggressive
 being sociable
 More disruptive,
 speaking more
 impose themselves on
 smiling more
their peers
 having a greater
 less cooperative
understanding of others‘
 do not take turns.
emotions
(Preschool Social Life,continued)

Are unpopular preschoolers destined for a
life with few friends? Not necessarily!

Social skills that are associated with
popularity can be taught by parents and
teachers as well as enhanced through a
warm, supportive home environment.
Playing by the Rules: How Play Affects Social &
Personality Development
Categorizing play
 Three year olds typically engage in
FUNCTIONAL PLAY which
involves simple, repetitive
activities, that is, doing something
for the sake of being active.
(playing with dolls, skipping, jumping
rope, etc)
(Categorizing play, continued)

By age 4, children typically engage in CONSTRUCTIVE
PLAY which involves manipulating objects to produce
or build something (legos, puzzles, etc.)
 Constructive play allows children to test developing
cognitive skills.
 Constructive play allows children to practice motor
skills.
 Constructive play allows children to problem solve.
 Constructive play allows children to learn to
cooperate
The social aspects of play
(How Play Affects Social & Personality
Development, continued)
Mildred Parten (1932) noted various
types of play…
 PARALLEL PLAY is
 ONLOOKER PLAY
when children play
occurs when
with similar toys, in
children simply
a similar manner,
watch others play
but do not interact
but do not actually
with each other.
participate
themselves
(Mildred Parten’s various
types of play, continued)

ASSOCIATIVE  In COOPERATIVE
PLAY is where two PLAY, children
or more children
genuinely play with
actually interact with one another, taking
one another by
turns, playing
sharing or
games, or devising
borrowing toys or
materials, although contests.
they do not do the
same thing.
More about the effects of play on social
and personality development…
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Associative and cooperative play generally do not
emerge until the end of the preschool years.
The nature of a child's play is influenced by their
social experiences.
 Children with preschool experience engage in
more social behaviors earlier (associative &
cooperative play, etc.)
(the effects of play on social and personality
development, continued)
Play becomes increasing unrealistic during the
preschool period (“pretend play” increases)
• using a matchbox as a car instead of a
metal toy car
 Vygotsky argues that pretend play (especially
social) aids cognitive development and
understanding of the world/other cultures
Cultural background also results in different
styles of play…
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Comparing
Play Complexity…
Clear differences exist in patterns of play
Korean American:
more parallel play than Anglo
Anglo Americans:
more pretend play
American
The continuing development of theory of
Mind and its affect on children's play
Recall from chapter 6 that Theory of
mind refers to knowledge and
beliefs about the mental world.
Using theory of mind, children are able
to come up with explanations for
how others think and the reasons
for their behaving the way they do.
(Theory of Mind and its affect on children's play,
continued)
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During preschool years, children
increasingly can see the world through
others‘ perspectives.
Preschool children can understand that
people have motives and reasons for their
behavior.
These changes in preschoolers theory of mind
affect how they play (and contributes to social &
personality development)
(Theory of Mind and its affect on children's play,
continued)
 There are also cultural differences in theory of
mind.

Western children are likely to regard others‘
behavior as due to the kind of people they are,
seeing it as a function of their personalities.

Non-Western children may see others‘ behavior
as produced by forces that are less under their
personal control, such as unhappy gods or bad
fortune
 These cultural differences also contribute to
differences in social & personality development!
Discipline: Teaching Preschoolers
Desired Behaviors

Diana Baumrind (1980) notes 3 major
types of parenting or patterns of
discipline:
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AUTHORITARIAN PARENTS
PERMISSIVE PARENTS
AUTHORITATIVE PARENTS
(Diana Baumrind’s 3 major types of parenting or
patterns of discipline, continued)
1) AUTHORITARIAN PARENTS
are controlling, punitive, rigid, and
cold, and whose word is law; they
value strict, unquestioning
obedience from their children and
do not tolerate expressions of
disagreement..
(Diana Baumrind’s 3 major types of parenting or
patterns of discipline, continued)
2) PERMISSIVE PARENTS provide lax and
inconsistent feedback and require little of their
children.
 2 types of permissive parents:
 Permissive-indifferent parents are usually
uninvolved in their children's lives.
 Their children tend to be dependent and
moody.
 Their children also tend to have low social
skills and low self-control
(2 types of permissive parents, continued)
 Permissive-indulgent parents are more
involved with their children, but they place
little or no limits or control on their
behavior.

Their children typically show low control
and low social skills.

However, these children tend to feel that
they are especially privileged.
(Diana Baumrind’s 3 major types of parenting or
patterns of discipline, continued)
3) AUTHORITATIVE PARENTS are
firm, setting clear and consistent
limits, but try to reason with their
children giving explanations for
why they should behave in a
particular way.
(Diana Baumrind’s 3 major types of parenting or
patterns of discipline, continued)

Children of authoritative parents tend to
fare best: they are independent, friendly
with their peers, self-assertive, and
cooperative parents are not always
consistent in their parenting or discipline
styles.
(Diana Baumrind’s 3 major types of parenting or
patterns of discipline, continued)

Children whose parents engage in aspects
of the authoritative style related to
supportive parenting
 Supportive parenting encompasses
parental warmth, proactive teaching,
calm discussion during disciplinary
episodes, and interest and involvement
in children's peer activities show better
adjustment and are protected from the
consequences of later adversity.
(parenting & patterns of discipline, continued)

Childrearing practices that parents are urged to
follow reflect cultural perspectives about the
nature of children and the role of the parents.
 Childrearing practices in Eastern societies are
more likely to involve strict control. Such
control is seen as a measure of parents‘
involvement in and concern for the welfare of
their children.
 In Western societies, and especially in the
United States, parents are more often advised to
use authoritative methods.
 No one parenting style is is
likely to be successful or
universally accepted! Cultural
context must be taken into
consideration
Child Abuse and Psychological Maltreatment
Obviously child abuse, neglect and
maltreatment seriously affect the social
& personality development of many
preschoolers
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Five children are killed by their caretakers
every day.
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140,000 others are physically injured every
year.
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Three million children are abused or
neglected annually in the U. S.
Types
of Child Abuse
(Child Abuse and Psychological Maltreatment,
continued)
 Child abuse can occur in any home,
though it is most frequent in families
living in stressful environment.
 Poverty
 Single-parent homes
 Families with high levels of marital
discord
Most parents don't intend to abuse their
children
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Children who are fussy, resistant to control,
slow to adapt to new situations, overly
anxious, frequent bed wetters, and who have
developmental delays are more prone to being
victims of abuse.
Labeling children as being at higher risk for
abuse does not make them responsible for
their abuse (blaming the victim)
There are many reasons for why child
abuse occurs…
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There is a vague demarcation between
permissible and impermissible forms of
physical punishment or violence.
Factors related to the privacy of child care in
Western societies present unrealistic
expectations about children's abilities.
The CYCLE-OF-VIOLENCE HYPOTHESIS
argues that the abuse and neglect children
suffer predisposes them as adults to be
abusive.
(child abuse, continued)

Not all abuse is physical:
PSYCHOLOGICALMALTREATMENT is abuse that
occurs when parents or other caregivers harm
children's behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or
physical functioning.
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Overt behaviors (frightening, humiliating children,
threats of abandonment)
Covert behaviors (“neglect”; ignoring child,
emotionally unresponsive, inattentive to needs)
(child abuse, continued)
Obstacles stand in the way of identifying cases in
the U.S
• Privacy issues
• levels of harm requirements
 The consequences of psychological maltreatment
• Some preschoolers suffer lasting damage
• Low self esteem
* lying
• misbehavior
* aggression
• Underachievement *criminal behavior
• suicide

Some children are resilient and grow into psychologically
healthy adults despite abuse and maltreatment (sometimes
with the help of psychologists)
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RESILIENCE refers to the ability to overcome
circumstances that place a child at high risk
for psychological or physical damage.
Resilient children are affectionate, easygoing,
good communicators, intelligent.
They are able to elicit positive responses
from others.
They tend to feel that they can shape their
own fate and are not dependent on others or
luck.
Moral Development
During the Preschool Years
Changes in moral development are an
important aspect of growth during the
preschool years

MORAL DEVELOPMENT refers to
changes in people's sense of justice and of
what is right and wrong, and in their
behavior related to moral issues.

Several theoretical approaches have evolved for
explaining moral development in children.
Piaget’s view of moral development
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HETERONOMOUS MORALITY is the initial stage of
moral development (from 4 to 7 years old) in which
rules are seen as invariant and unchangeable.
Youngsters in this stage do not take intention into
account.
Children in the heteronomous stage also believe in
IMMANENT JUSTICE, the notion that broken rules
earn immediate punishment
(Piaget’s view of moral development, continued)
The next stage, according to Piaget, is
the incipient cooperation stage
(from age 7 to 10).
 Here children become more social
and learn the rules.
 They play according to a shared
conception of the rules
(Piaget’s view of moral development, continued)
During the autonomous cooperation
stage (beginning at age 10) children
become fully aware that game rules
can be modified if the people who play
them agree.
~~ Critics of Piaget's theory argue that he
underestimated the age at which
children's moral skills develop.

More theoretical approaches for explaining
moral development in children…
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Social-learning approaches to morality focus
on how the environment influences children's
moral behavior.
• Prosocial behavior (helping behavior
that benefits others
In this view, moral conduct is learned through
reinforcement and modeling.
Preschoolers are more apt to model the behavior
of warm, responsive adults and models viewed
as highly competent or high in prestige.
(Social-learning approaches to morality, continued)
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Children do more than simply mimic
modeled behavior.
By observing others‘ behavior, they
begin to learn society's norms.
This leads to ABSTRACT
MODELING, the process of
developing more general rules and
principles that underlie behavior.
Another approach to morality…

According to some developmentalists,
EMPATHY - the understanding of what
another individual feels - lies at the heart of
some kinds of moral behavior.
• Empathy starts early (1 yr old infants cry
if others do)
• During the preschool years, empathy
continues to grow
(Another approach to morality…empathy &
emotions continued)
Positive emotions such as empathy,
sympathy, and admiration lead children to
behave in a moral fashion and thus
contributes to social and personality
development
 Also, the desire to avoid negative feelings
leads them to act in moral helpful ways
(Freud)

Aggression and Violence in Preschool
Children
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AGGRESSION is the intentional injury
or harm to another person.
Infants do not act aggressively, however,
by the preschool years children
demonstrate true aggression.
(Aggression and Violence in Preschool
Children, continued)
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The frequency and duration of
aggressive acts declines throughout
early childhood.
Aggression is a relatively stable trait,
the most aggressive preschoolers
tend to be the most aggressive
school aged children.
There are varying explanations for aggressive
behavior among children
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Freud claimed we all have a death drive,
which leads us to act aggressively.
Konrad Lorenz argues that humans, like all
animals, share a fighting instinct.
Sociobiologists, scientists who consider the
biological roots of social behavior, argue that
aggression facilitates the goal of
strengthening the species and the gene pool
in general.
(explanations for aggressive behavior among children,
continued)

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Cognitive approaches argue that
aggression stems, in part, from the
manner in which children interpret other's
actions and situations.
Social-learning approaches contend that
aggression is based on prior learning, and
how social and environmental conditions
and models teach individuals to be
aggressive.
Even though most children are not exposed directly to
real-life violence, television models aggression for them!
 TV has a clear impact on cognitive development
 We know that preschoolers imitate violence they see
on cartoons
~Does imitation lead to actual aggression?
 Tough to answer definitively!
• Conducting a true experiment would be unethical
• Correlational studies clearly suggest subsequent
aggression
~Just as kids can learn aggression, they can
unlearn! Observation of nonaggressive models
leads to reduced aggression levels.
Television Acts
According
of Violence
to research, violence occurred on TV
in Washington, D.C. during a weekday during
every time period!
All of the psychological theories explored have
interesting aspects to them, and it is important that we
continue to try to understand them!
 Most children are at least
occasionally aggressive
 Aggression is a relatively stable
characteristic
 Aggressive preschoolers become
aggressive school age children
 There are serious affects on social
and personality development in
preschool children

Don’t forget to keep up with
your reading!