Aggression in youth: Erikson versus Skinner

Childhood Aggression

The placement of preschool children in day-care is a contentious issue that is fervently debated among parents, teachers, day-care providers and clinicians. With the costs of living continually rising in the Western world, it is becoming increasingly necessary for families to rely on the receipt of two incomes. This often necessitates placement of very young children in the hands of childcare providers during the day. This is a difficult decision for parents to make, considering the fact that daytime hours are when children are most active and engage in the most learning activity. Can childcare professionals provide the quantity and quality of attention and stimulation necessary for the healthy development of children? Is this provided care comparable to the care the child would receive at home, or are there components of care provided by the parents of children that can not be substituted by anyone else? What long-term emotional and behavioral effects may children in day-care face?

Baron and Richardson (1994) made the claim that "children who attended daycare regularly for 5 years before entering (public school) were rated by their teachers as more aggressive than those that attended less regularly (p.419)." Strong opinions lie on both sides of this issue, and a general survey would reveal that people's opinions are most likely correlated with their own experiences and circumstances. However, a more unbiased approach to examining this issue can be conducted by examining research in this area. Like public opinion, research on the association between daycare and aggression also supports both sides of the issue. Some studies claim that daycare results in adverse behavioral effects, including aggression (Greenspan, 2003; Haskins, 1985; Egeland & Hiester, 1995), while other research supports daycare as a positive environment for children (Sims, Guilfoyle, Parry, 2006; Field, 1991; Bower, 1991). The polarized findings on this issue illustrate the importance of understanding the diverse factors that are involved in the behavioral outcomes associated with daycare. It is also important to bear in mind the perspective from which the issue is examined. The purpose of this analysis is to examine the association between aggressive behavior and daycare among children from three different perspectives: 1) an objective unbiased perspective in which research on both sides of the issue will be presented; 2) a perspective based in Erikson's stage theory of psychosocial development; and 3) a perspective grounded in the Operant conditioning theory of B.F. Skinner.

The Issue

The claim presented by Baron and Richardson (1994), that children who spend a lot of time in daycare exhibit increased aggressive behavior, finds some support in research literature. Haskins (1985) examined children with varying types and amounts of experience in daycares over their first couple of years in public school and found that children who attended daycare over the long-term beginning in infancy displayed more aggressive behavior. However, this aggression was observed to decrease over time, and the researcher suggested that the initial aggressive behavior was more of a reaction to the adaptation to the structured school setting rather than a sign of a pervasive behavioral problem.

Another study that purported an increase in aggressive behavior among children with daycare experience was conducted by Greenspan (2003). This researcher examined the observation of increased aggression among these children from a clinical context. This perspective takes individual differences in the children, their families, and their child-care environments into account for the analysis. Increased aggressive behavior demonstrated by young children and amount of time spent in day care are positively correlated. This researcher examined the specific factors involved in this relationship and determined that risk factors for the development of aggression in relation to daycare included "sensory processing and modulation challenges, family stress, and lack of sensitive, nurturing interactions associated with less high-quality child care (p.1064)." Furthermore, considering the positive correlation between time spent in daycare and aggressive behavior, as well as the fact that the vast majority of daycare available may not be considered as high-quality, Greenspan (2003) encourages parents to carefully assess their childcare options and provide as much direct nurturing care for their young children for as much time as possible.

Biological evidence for increased stress among children in daycare, which is associated to problem behavior, is presented by Geoffroy, Cote, Parent, and Seguin (2006). These researchers assessed daycare stress through the measurement of cortisol, which has been implicated in the initial onset and development of various mental health disorders, some of which are characterized by the exhibition of aggression. The aim of this study was to quantitatively examine associations between daycare and cortisol and to identify conditions that factor into this association. Results of the study indicated that cortisol levels among children in daycare increased throughout the day, while these levels decreased when children were not in daycare and stayed at home. The researchers identified three conditions under which this association varied. First, the increase in cortisol was larger for children in low-quality daycare, and children in high quality daycare showed little to no effect at all. Second, this increase in cortisol was most significant among preschoolers in comparison to infants and school-aged children. Finally, children with temperament problems, such as those displaying aggressive behavior, were more likely to demonstrate increased cortisol levels than children without temperament issues. The researchers concluded that increased attention needs to be directed at the development of higher quality daycares in order to ensure adequate physiological adaptation to this environment and decrease the likelihood of problem behavior, such as aggression, among children (Geoffroy et al., 2006).

How can daycare environments be improved upon in order to decrease the stress experienced by children and further decrease the development of aggressive behavior? Dettling, Parker, Lane, Sebane, and Gunnar (2000) used patterns of cortisol production in young children to assess whether levels were influenced by situational factors involved in daycare such as size of the group, adult-to-child ratio, separation from parents, and quality of stimulation and attention from the child-care provider. The results of this study indicated that cortisol patterns among the children over the span of a day correlated significantly with the quantity of stimulation and attention provided by the child-care provider. Also, cortisol levels among children that were more emotionally negative and those with less self-control, such as aggressive children, also dramatically increased throughout the day. Overall, this study further reinforces how quality of daycare is key in determining the stress levels experienced by the children (Dettling et al., 2000).

Other research has noted that daycare may have negative behavioral results for some children and beneficial, positive behavioral results for other children. Egeland & Hiester (1995) explored the within-groups effects day-care and mother-infant attachment on the emotional and social adaptation of children at 3 1/2 years of age and in early school years. The results indicated that the effects of daycare on the children varied as a function of mother-infant attachment, in that daycare negatively affected secure children, but positively affected insecure children. The secure children in daycare demonstrated significantly more aggressive behavior than secure children who did not attend daycare. Daycare children who were insecurely attached were less withdrawn and displayed more positive social behavior at the early school level than insecure children who did not attend daycare (Egeland & Hiester, 1995). What factors could be involved and influential in this phenomenon? This issue will be addressed later when Erikson's psychosocial perspective is explored.

More evidence for the important role that quality of day care plays when it comes to effects experienced by children is outlined in an article by Bower (1991). This article in "Science News" highlights the positive effects that day care can have on the social growth and emotional security of children. Interestingly, it is suggested that young children in early grades who had spent most of their time in daycare had more friends, showed greater assertiveness and well-being, and demonstrated less aggressive behavior than children who had not had the daycare experience. In another claim it is suggested that preschoolers that experienced full-time infant daycare were proven to be more competent on problem solving and abstract thinking tasks than children who did not attend daycare on a full-time basis. However, these same children demonstrated more hostility and aggressive behavior, which was attributed by the author to poor-quality day care. Once again, contradictory findings have been demonstrated by researchers exploring the association between daycare and childhood aggression.

On the positive side, the daycare experience has been demonstrated by some researchers to have beneficial effects for children as long as the care they are receiving is of high quality. Sims, Guilfoyle and Parry (2006) determined that cortisol levels, which measure stress, of children that attended high quality daycare demonstrated significant decline throughout the day, while children in low quality care showed increased cortisol levels throughout the day. This evidence emphasizes the importance of ensuring that children are receiving high quality care so that they are under less stress and are less likely to develop behavioral problems, such as aggressive behavior.

Another study that highlighted the positive benefits that children experience from high quality daycare was conducted by Field (1991). This study determined that the amount of time spent in full-time daycare was positively correlated with the number of friends children had as well as their participation in extracurricular activities. Also, more time spent in daycare was positively correlated to parents' ratings of popularity, leadership, the children's emotional well-being, and assertiveness, and was negatively correlated to ratings of aggressiveness. Based on these findings, it could be concluded that participation in full-time, high-quality daycare decreases the likelihood that children will have a propensity towards aggressive behavior.

After objectively reviewing the existing literature on this topic, insights may be gained by taking on diverse perspectives. The issue of daycare and its relation to aggressive behavior among children will be explored through the perspectives of two theorists from vastly different theoretical camps: Erik Erikson and B.F. Skinner.

Erik Erikson's perspective

Erikson's stage theory of psychosocial development consists of eight stages that expand across the entire lifespan and are not limited only to development in childhood, unlike the theories of his developmental predecessors (Niolan, 2007). The period of time between birth and the early school years can be categorized into four distinct stages in which individuals encounter a central themed conflict that must be overcome in order to progress to the next developmental stage. These three stages and their corresponding conflicts are infancy (trust vs. mistrust), toddlerhood (autonomy vs. shame and doubt), preschool (initiative vs. guilt), and school age (industry vs. inferiority).

Infancy, the first of Erikson's psychosocial stages of development, is characterized by the conflict of trust vs. mistrust. In this stage it is of the utmost importance that basic needs be met in order to ensure a sense of basic trust within the individual. These needs must especially be met by the mother, the provider of life and sustenance to the infant. If this basic trust is not established, the individual may develop a general mistrust of the world, which can lead to emotional and social maladaptations. Overall, this basic trust is grounded in the quality of care received by the individual and the quality of the relationship between the individual and the primary caregivers.

The second psychosocial stage in Erikson's theory is toddlerhood. This stage is characterized by the conflict of autonomy vs. shame and doubt. The acquisition of autonomy is considered to be the central task of children of this age, and this process involves decision making and the learning of self-control. Feelings of shame and doubt must be overcome in children at this stage through confidence. The conflict of this stage is a result of difficulties experienced in the adaptations required in order to adhere to the rules and restrictions of society.

The next stage of development is preschool, and this period is characterized by the conflict of initiative vs. guilt. During this time period, between the ages of 3 and 5 years, children begin to take initiatives to explore their own environments and start activities. The development of a sense of purpose occurs at this stage. This sense of purpose results in the setting and pursuit of goals. This process brings about feelings of guilt associated with asserting oneself in the face of possible failure.

The next stage of psychosocial development described by Erikson occurs mong school age children, and it is characterized by conflict between industry and inferiority. This conflict is based around the necessity to overcome feelings of inadequacy in order to successfully master new skills and tasks, with the ultimate goal being the development of competence. This stage along with the three before it, work together to provide individuals with a sold foundation for challenges that will be faced at future psychosocial stages. Furthermore, problems with any components of the stages discussed thus far have far reaching effects on future development. Bearing this in mind, Erikson would certainly express a strong opinion in regards to the relationship between daycare and aggressive behavior.

The claim expressed by Baron and Richardson (1994) that young children who have been in daycare exhibit increased aggressive behavior during the early school years would be theoretically explained by Erikson's theory with reference to the conflicts that must be overcome at each psychosocial stage. For instance, Erikson may argue that children who have been in daycare full-time since infancy display more aggressive behavior because they did not have the attachment to their mothers during infancy that is necessary for the development of basic trust. This lack of basic trust leads to a general mistrust of the world, which may be expressed by the child through aggressive behavior. How would Erikson's theory explain certain phenomena presented by research in this area?

Massie and Szajnberg (2002) assessed how the quality if mothering received by children within the first year of life affects their long-term emotional well-being. The researchers found that individuals that received more effective care during infancy demonstrated more advanced psychological defense mechanisms than children that receive less effective care. In the context of daycare, it could be proposed based on the findings of this study that less effective nurturing experienced at daycare by infants may have prolonged effects on the psychological well-being of individuals, and difficulties may be expressed in the form of aggressive behavior. Erikson's theory would postulate that the infants in this study that did not receive effective nurturing did not adequately overcome their internal trust vs. mistrust struggle, and this resulted in stunted or deficient development of basic trust. This deficiency may furthermore present itself during future psychosocial stages as problem behavior, such as aggressive tendencies.

Another research example that could be theoretically supported by Erikson's stages of psychosocial development is provided by the work of Deynoot-Schaub and Riksen-Walraven (2006). These researchers examined peer interactions and their relations to socio-emotional adjustment among toddlers in daycare centers. The results of the study indicated that the frequency of negative initiatives towards peers expressed by children was stable from 15 to 23 months of age, and was also predictive of aggressive behavior at 23 months of age. Positive interactions with peers, on the other hand, predicted well-being in the daycare environment at 23 months of age. Overall, the frequency of negative peer interactions significantly increased and the frequency of positive peer interactions significantly decreased between 15 and 23 months of age in the daycare setting. Erikson's theory would look to the toddler stage of psychosocial development in order to explain this phenomenon. The increase in negative peer interactions, which would include aggressive exchanges, during this period of time spent in daycare could be attributed to the fact that the children have not experienced the support required to develop confidence in order to over come the prominent conflict at this stage in life (autonomy vs. shame and doubt). Confidence at this point in life is necessary in order to overcome feelings of shame an effectively adapt to the rules and restrictions imposed by society.