Lifespan Development Psychology: Observation at Cosmo Park Term Paper

Abstract

This paper is a summary of an observation that took place at Cosmo Park in Columbia, Missouri for approximately two hours. A checklist, which was prepared before the observation took place, was used during the observation. Also observed were the child’s interactions with her parents, other children, and the environment. Included in this paper will be a comparison of this child to other children in her age group, determining whether or not she is on track developmentally and estimate the age of the child. Piaget and his theory of child development will be used to reinforce the assumptions made. Finally, the paper will discern the parenting style that the parents were using on the subject being observed.

Observation at Cosmo Park

“Life Span is the study of life from the womb to the tomb” (Berk, 2003, p.7).

The milestones of development of a normal child are specific and each change occurs at a particular age during growth. Motor development and emotional development occur side by side.

Motor development involves the development of coarse movements and fine movements. When the child walks or runs or performs more complicated movements depends on the growth and development of the various systems in the body, it is. The emotional or social development depends on the attachment to its primary care-giver and to its siblings, both parents, grandparents, school teachers and peers. The theories of attachment include the social learning theory where the child learns to become attached to its mother. Piaget’s cognitive theory is a 4 stage model, the 4 stages being the sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete, and formal according to how the mind processes (Piaget, Learning theories). The sensorimotor stage lasts till the age of 2. The child interacts with the environment and builds an understanding of itself and reality. Learning occurs through assimilation and accommodation. The preoperational stage lasts from 2-4 years. The child cannot conceptualizes abstract things and needs physical situations. The concrete operations stage lasts from 7-11 years. The physical experiences increase accommodation. The child thinks abstractedly and creates logical structures. The formal operations are seen in the ages of 11-15. Cognitive development is maximum. The person can make rational judgements. There is deductive and hypothetical reasoning (Piaget, Learning theories). Bowlby’s attachment theory is the result of evolutionary selection process (Ethology theory). He saw a biological basis for attachment. Crying, proximity seeking and clinging were the attachment behaviours. The child is attached to its primary care-giver through the tendency of monotropy ( attachment to one person). If one care giver is lost, another has to replace. Bowlby’s theory has four phases. The pre-attachment stage lasts from birth to 6 weeks when it shows the grasp reflex and crying. The attachment-in-making phase lasts upto 8 months. The baby’s separation from mother or other people cause it anxiety. The clear cut attachment phase from 8 months to two years causes anxiety in case of separation from the mother. From 2 years onwards the baby forms a reciprocal relationship and it recognizes factors which influence the mother’s comings and goings. The development stage reached in a child who is being observed without its knowing is being done in this study.

Method

A simple observation design was used in this study. A checklist was prepared to note the expected behaviours in a particular age group. The developments expected for gross motor skills, play, attachment styles, parenting styles and authority figures were noted in the checklist prepared before observation. Gross motor skills include the gait posture assumed, climbing of stairs, running with head erect, negotiating obstacles, pulling toys along the ground, carrying teddy bears and climbing into adult chairs. The play styles were to focus on the evidence of toilet training, handling of toys whether taking them into the mouth, casting them off in anger, sensing danger and fascination of household objects. Attachment styles of babies are called secure, avoidant, resistant ambivalent and disorganised disoriented. The styles of parenting could vary between authoritarian, permissive, democratic authoritative. Observation of the children and family provide a picture of the parenting styles. Ethical issues are provided by the moral design. How the child responds to its mother would reveal the kind of attachment and the parenting style. Peer figures may also be present. The attachment could be secure and the parenting style could be democratic.

The participants

The participants are the mother and child. The other friends or children may also be incidental participants.

Materials

They include the checklist that was originally chalked up, the observation notes and any such material.

The Procedure

I entered the Cosmo Park at around 4 p. m. today hoping to finish my assignment. The other day I had noticed a few children in this place with at least one of their parents. Someone will surely come. Look who’s here. A little girl in a pink dress walks up holding her mother’s hand. She let’s go of her mummy’s hand as soon as she sees the large animal dolls waiting for her. Her gait is interesting to watch. Her feet are kept in a broad base and she walks fairly smoothly with no sudden starts or stops. She has started finding her equilibrium. Upper arms are not held in extension for balance. Her gaze falls on the Donald Duck doll behind the Mickey Mouse. Screeching with delight, she runs forward slowly but surely to her favourite and stumbles against the Mickey Mouse in her anxiety to reach Donald Duck. She has not got over stumbling against obstacles. Calling out to her mummy about ‘duckie’, she drags it towards her and then carries it with the intention of sharing it with her mummy. The moment she reaches her mummy, she climbs onto the seat nearby and then turns to settle herself. During this time, other children had entered the park. An older child asked her if she is coming with her on the slide. She immediately got down and ran after the other girl. However when she reached the steps, she wanted her mummy to hold her hand and guide her up. Two steps up and she wants to come down again. She does not want to continue. It was fun watching her climb back downstairs. She yells “ uckie” and there she is back with duckie. Mummy is talking slowly with the little girl who is also replying in seemingly good language but they were only speech like sounds and sometimes single words. She keeps on chattering sweet nothings to duckie. She asks for a hanky as duckie has a cold. Her mummy passes her a hanky. She immediately drops but picks it up with a pincer grasp. Her fine movements are establishing themselves. Wiping duckie’s nose, she continuously admonishes her for playing in water, mumbling sounds as if using proper language. She opens her mother’s bag looking for a pen. Holding on to it in the middle of its shaft by her right hand (She has found preference for her right hand ), she then scribbles on the paper she finds in the bag and keeps showing duckie the result. Her mother hands her the picture book she has with her. She puts it in her lap and turns the pages. Her vision is definitely good. She keeps turning to duckie telling him lots of things, all vocalisations, pointing to the pictures and recognizing the animals in them. Just then she notices her friend coming in. She calls out in excitement and points out Jacy, conveying that Jacy has come, to her mummy. Her older friend then comes up and starts to sing nursery rhymes. The little one tries to join in. Mummy asks her to put everything in the bag as it is time to go home. She responds as if she understood. She is able to understand instructions. Mummy then gives her a sweet drink.She hold onto the bottle with both hands and drinks without spilling. Handing over the empty bottle to her mummy, she puts her shoe properly. Indicating her desire to visit the toilet, she moves forward to cross the small pathway in the direction of the toilet. She hardly notices the bicycle coming across her path. Her mother catches hold of her just ion time or else she may have been knocked down. She is yet to develop a sense of danger. Back for her visit to the toilet, she takes duckie back to where she originally found him.

Results

Emmy (a false name) appears to be about 18 month of age. By Piaget’s theory, she is in the sensorimotor phase of development. By Bowlby’s theory of attachment, she is in the clear-cut attachment period. Her walking probably shows some difference. She is still walking with a broad base but has stopped holding up her arms extended for balance. She is attaining coordination in her gait. Soon she would be making her base narrower when she walks steadily. Her head is now held erectly while she runs. She carries her doll. From where she was sitting abruptly , now she controls herself and climbs into the chair or sits steadily backwards to occupy the chair. Where she previously looked with interest at pictures, she is now able to recognize them and even attempts to name them. She enjoys picture books and can turn many pages at a time. Showing a preference for right hand, she can actually scribble. Obeying instructions is now easier. Attempting to sing, she is able to join in to sing. Pointing to an object, she manages to get things done by. She is of the age where she can feed herself with a spoon. Urgent toilet needs are expressed by restlessness and vocalization. The habit of putting toys into the mouth is lost by now. Remembering to keep objects in the original place has become a habit. She can play by herself but needs the company of an adult. Her doll playing now includes the feeding, bathing and putting it to sleep.

Discussion

The child is very attached to its mother and it can be a secure attachment where the child is frequently returning to its mother and feels safe in her company. The parenting style could be democratic in this instance and the attachment is secure.

. The age of the child is mostly that of a toddler of about 18 months of age gauging from the behaviours seen on observation. The attachment is secure. The secure infants are very attached to the care-giver and protest when taken away or separated from the care-giver. They rush to keep close to their care-giver when reunited (Sheridan, 2007). The avoidant attachment style makes the infant ignore the care-giver when he moves away and continues this pattern when the care giver returns. A rejection is felt and he avoids the attempts of the care-giver to regain contact and closeness, amounting to a rejection (Hardy, 2007, p. 28). The resistant-ambivalent pattern occurs when there is a fixation of the infant on the care-giver. The child seeks the comfort of the care-giver alternately for comfort and reassuarance and at times rejects him. The child with disorganised pattern simultaneously rejects and reaches out for the care-giver. This is due to a conflict in the mind of the maltreated child by the attachment figure (Hardy, 2007, p. 28).

References

Berk, L. (2003). Development Through Life Span (4 ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Hardy, L.T. ‘Attachment theory and Reactive attachment disorder.: Theoretical perspectives and treatment implications’. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing. 2007, Vol 20 No. 1. Proquest Educational Journals.

Sheridan, Mary D. et al; (2007). From birth to five years : children’s developmental progress, Hawthorn: Australian Council for Educational Research.

Observation List

Gross motorskills. Posture and large movements:

1. Walks with feet apart,starts and stops safely.
2. Runs carefully but has difficulty negotiating obstacles.
3. Cimbs into adult’s chair and turns around.
4. Walks upstairs with helping hand.
5. Creeps back downstairs.
6. Kneels upright.
7. Flexes knees and hips to reach for toys.
8. Rises to feet using hands as support.

Social behaviour and play:

1. Pushes or pulls large toys on the floor.
2. Caries large doll or teddybear.
3. Uses spoon well.
4. Holds cup between both hands and drinks without spilling.
5. Hands the empty cup back to adult.
6. Gives notice of urgent toilet needs.
7. Occasionally wets or soils pants.
8. No sense of danger, explores energetically.
9. No toys in mouth, remembers to replace toys.
10. Throws objects to floor still in anger.
11. Fascinated by household objects
12. Imitates simple activities like feeding doll, reading book etc.
13. Plays alone but prefers adult nearby.
14. Emotionally dependent still on adult.
15. Puts objects into containers, removes them and puts them back frequently.
16. Learns the size of objects.

Vision and fine movements:

1. Picks up objects with delicate pincer grasp.
2. Holds pencil in mid shaft.
3. Crude approximation of thumb and fingers.
4. Scribbles and makes dots.
5. Makes a tower of 3 cubes.
6. Enjoys simple picture books.
7. Turns pages.
8. Preference for one hand.
9. Recognises familiar people.

Hearing and speech:

1. Makes speech like sounds continually.
2. Conversational tunes used.
3. Listens and responds to spoken communications.
4. Uses 6-20 recognisable words.
5. Echoes prominent or last word.
6. Points at desired object demanding it.
7. Enjoys nursery rhymes and tries to sing.
8. Hands familiar objects to adults when requested.
9. Obeys simple instructions.
10. Understands the meaning of no.