Children go through a number of important phases as they learn and mature through the stages of infancy and early childhood. Parents and families can actually play a fairly profound role in the psychological, emotional and cognitive processes of these little people. Factors such as different parenting styles and early childhood education indicate that families are the principle teachers of infants and children.
¶ … infancy early childhood. Include: Explain families affect
Early Childhood and Adulthood
There are a number of key facets and processes that occur during infancy and early childhood that profoundly affect an individual's growth and development. Some of these factors include early childhood education, a variety of parenting styles, as well as familial involvement in cognitive and physical development. All of these factors indicate that parents and surrounding family members play a highly important role in the development of infants and young children.
One of the most eminent ways in which families produce a direct influence on their children is through the establishment and implementation of rituals or routines. The repetitive nature of these daily constructs provides a valuable structuring for activities that has been linked to cognitive and emotional processes in children and infants -- most discernibly when there is a break or a shifting in a particular ritual that a young person has become accustomed to (Spagnola & Fiese, 2007, p. 284). The establishment of routines helps to provide a firm foundation which supports a child's emotional and cognitive development. By being able to rely on a sense of the familiar via routine, children are better prepared to take on and understand new things due to the degree of stability that family habits (such as eating dinner at a certain time in the evening, or at a certain location and in a certain manner) facilitate.
Children can take comfort in the predictability in such routine, and foster a sense of equanimity that can aid them as they develop throughout varying stages of cognitive, emotional, and even physical development. The chief boon of the establishment of routines is the degree of organization such regular processes give to children, and which are advantageous when they go through or learn new ones. Family routines are defined as anything in which there is "communication that is instrumental, involve a momentary time commitment, and are repeated regularly, holding no special meaning," (Spagnola & Fiese, 2007, p. 285).
A highly influential factor that has a considerable amount of sway in the way that families directly affect the development of children and infants is parenting style. Parenting style is intrinsically related to the expectations that parents have for their children, and involves various measures of discipline or the lack thereof. There are three principle styles of parenting, authoritarian, authoritative, as well as permissive parenting. A dearth of parenting style, expectations, and discipline directed towards one's children is referred to as uninvolved parenting. An authoritarian parenting style is highly rigid and allows little room for interpretation -- or even understanding -- on the part of a child. Parents who utilize this type of style expect children to do as their told, when they are told, for the simple fact that they have been told -- and there are copious amounts of discipline to reinforce this perspective. An authoritative parenting style is less austere yet still places solid demands and expectations upon children. However, this type of parenting style focuses more on explanations to facilitate understanding on the part of the child, and relies on communication more so than punishment. A permissive parenting style has few expectations for children, and even fewer punishments. This type of parenting style is typically more responsive than it is demanding.
A number of authorities regard an authoritative style of parenting most beneficial to infants and young children for the simple fact that its focus is on explanation and moderation, and children are taught the consequences of their actions. Authoritarian parenting styles can help children and infants to lead productive lives, although their own internal sense of felicity and value is usually not as comparable as these qualities in young children reared with the authoritative style of parenting. Children reared on an uninvolved style of parenting typically usually are the least productive members of society, and may have issues dealing with authority figures and concepts of restriction.
You’re 73% through this paper. Sign up to read the full paper.
Sign Up Now — Instant Access Already a member? Log inAlways verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.