Child Psychology If I was to walk up to any random person on the street and ask him/her the first thing that comes into mind when I mentioned child psychology, I believed that I would get many responses of the same nature. I expected responses to the effect of “A shrink,” and “Just somebody that works with kids.” After a few hours of pondering, my curiosity got the best of me. So, taking advantage of the nice weather, I walked outside armed with a notebook and pen to approach people and get there opinions for this introduction. The question I raised was “What is the first thing that comes into your mind when I mention Child Psychology?” Out of thirty different people, (all caught walking out of Cranston after dinner) I got some very interesting responses. As expected, some just said “A shrink.” Others were actually helpful and gave some insight into the topic. One such person went into an in-depth conversation as to the nature of the mind altogether. Being a Psychology major here at Fredonia, he stated that this question had also been raised in many of his classes. I found his insight to be interesting because he mentioned that in his opinion, psychology is not even able fully describe the things we do. Rather the field of psychology is riddled with theories and observations. Most of them not explaining without a doubt why we do the things we do. So, in direct response to my question, he exclaims that child psychology is just “A branch of study of the child psyche. When I hear that term, what comes to mind are the simple acts of children. Such as four different children in a room, you see two of the children fighting over a ball while the other two bounce another ball back and forth. Why is that? That’s why there is child psychologists.” In the following pages, I have employed the use of headings and sub-headings to better allow the flow of logic. This paper will attempt to explain all the different aspects to and my reaction to the field of child psychology. What is Child Psychology? According to Princeton University, Child Psychology can be defined as the branch of psychology that studies the social and mental development of children. A Child Psychologist is one who studies the social and mental development of children. At one point or another, all of us has come into contact with or even worked with a child psychologist. In every school in America there is a child psychologist present to help students through tough times, or
optimistically, the good. To put the definition into my own terms, a child psychologist is one that tries to understand the mental process in why children behave the way they do. I believe that such a person is one to be envied. To be able to work with a mind that has not yet been corrupted by modern adult society must be a very rewarding career. By studying the process in which children process information and react to that information, we are better able to understand the human psyche and hence perhaps better understand ourselves. Child psychologists are also sometimes ...
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optimistically, the good. To put the definition into my own terms, a child psychologist is one that tries to understand the mental process in why children behave the way they do. I believe that such a person is one to be envied. To be able to work with a mind that has not yet been corrupted by modern adult society must be a very rewarding career. By studying the process in which children process information and react to that information, we are better able to understand the human psyche and hence perhaps better understand ourselves. Child psychologists are also sometimes referred to as personality psychologists. This referral is only made because many child psychologists work in schools, social situations, hence making for sometimes more of a personality psychologist. In some ways we all are social in personality psychologists. This is because we try to understand why people say or do the things that they do. They don’t just think about and question and it’s possible answers. What they do is to systematically observe and describe social situations we encounter every day. Much like what a child psychologist would do. History of and Present State of Psychology Psychology was born back in the days of Socrates and Plato. (More than two-thousand years ago). In the middle ages, “tests” were developed to determine if someone was possessed by the devil. If someone was found to be associated with the devil, they were killed; showing that psychology has come a long way since. The 1500s-1700s was the birth of modern science. The ideas of Copernicus and Sir Isaac Newton led to the modern psychology of the 1800s. Human behavior and mental processes were studied and examined and then further explored. Sigmund Freud is a very famous, maybe the most famous, early psychologist. He developed psychoanalysis, still a very popular theory today. This theory emphasizes the importance of unconscious motives and internal conflicts. Most psychologists conducted research in laboratories, but Freud did so in sessions with his patients. On early development, Freud published his Collected Papers and wrote on Psychologists, specifically childhood psychologists, so noted, “Students of human nature and philosophers have long taught us that we are mistaken in regarding our intelligence as an independent force and in overlooking its dependence upon the emotional life. Our intelligence… can function reliably only when it is removed from the influences of strong emotional impulses; otherwise, it behaves merely as an instrument of the will and delivers the inference which the will requires. Thus… logical arguments are impotent against effective interests and that is why reasons which in Falstaff’s phrase are ‘as plenty as blackberries’ produce so few victories.”(Magary, 449) Today, more than 182,000 psychologists hold jobs in the United States. It is also estimated that one out of every three Americans at some point in their life will suffer some sort of psychological disorder. These statistics make the need for psychologists almost mandatory. Investigations and Findings Child psychologists also must try to understand not only how the child grows up physically in his/her natural surroundings with others, but focusing mainly on how the mind grows with the body, or lack there of. In my opinion, the prerequisite for sound thinking and effective participation in our democratic society rests on the ability of the school and the family to help children think on the basis of facts and realities, rather than on the basis of individual emotional conflicts or defects. According to Erikson, the socialization process consists of eight phases - the "eight stages of man."(Clark, 400) His eight stages of man were formulated, not through experimental work, but through wide - ranging experience in psychotherapy, including extensive experience with children and adolescents from low - as well as upper - and middle - social classes. Each stage is regarded by Erikson as a "psychosocial crisis,"(Clark, 411) which arises and demands resolution before the next stage can be satisfactorily negotiated. These stages are conceived in an almost architectural sense: satisfactory learning and resolution of each crisis is necessary if the child is to manage the next and subsequent ones satisfactorily, just as the foundation of a house is essential to the first floor, which in turn must be structurally sound to support and the second story, and so on. Erikson proposed this theory in 1956. Erickson proposed these eight stages: (1) Trust vs. Mistrust, the infancy period from birth to two years; (2) Autonomy vs. Shame, the early childhood period from two to four years; (3) Initiative vs. Guilt, the “play age” period from four to six years; (4) Industry vs. Inferiority, the elementary school age between six and twelve; (5) Identity vs. Identity Diffusion, the adolescence years from fourteen to twenty; (6) Intimacy vs. Isolation, the young adult years; (7) Generality vs. Self-Absorption, the “adulthood” years; and (8) Integrity vs. Despair, the “maturity age” years.(Clark, 411) Erickson’s theory is still considered a possible theory to this day. A more current theory is Maslow. Maslow had a concept that all individuals have specific needs that must be satisfied in a certain sequence. This was shown by a pyramid that illustrated the importance of each need by having the most needed at the bottom, with it digressing towards the top. This was directly related to a person’s motives and their behavior. Your personal life is an example of how each level of the pyramid is met or not. The first level is Physiological needs. These include your basic needs such as food, water, warmth, and shelter. Without these, a person would not be able to continue living. The second level is safety needs. A person must feel secure in their environment in order to function normally. If a threat or imposing danger is often evident, a person’s behavior and motives can be greatly impacted. The need for love and belonging is the third level. A person needs a certain amount of comfort and emotion throughout their days. The sense of being loved and being accepted by people is very important to a person’s self confidence which greatly affects their behavior and motives in life. The fourth level is the need for esteem. A person’s self esteem is very important in living life. How someone feels about their own self worth and pride can affect many things such as mood, motive to do work, and even sometimes, physical health. The fifth level is cognitive needs, which is the idea of being self sufficient. Basically it is the goals that someone sets for themselves, the plan to carry out them out, and the belief they have the ability to do so. This is a very important factor in someone’s life because it allows them to feel independent. Aesthetic needs are the sixth level, and these are the “extra” needs in life. These include music, art, and sports. Having these in your life allows people to permit their creative and athletic qualities to shine. By utilizing things that interest individuals, they are able to enjoy them and sometimes relieve stress. The final level is self actualization. This is the need to develop to one’s full potential as a human being. The sense of fulfilling your importance in life is a very sophisticated and highly complex idea. However not generally upheld by most child psychologists, Maslow believed that by reaching this, along with the rest of the pyramid, would mean that your life would be fulfilled. See attached photo. Recently, most new studies done in the field of child psychology have been based on negative aspects; mainly domestic child abuse and child molestation. To me, this is a very interesting fact. Has there just been an increase in child molestation and abuse? Yes. I think that American society has finally devolved to the point where the general population is no longer afraid to come out and actually cry wolf; instead of trying to rectify the situation, parents will now take out frustration and anger out on their kids. During the 1990’s, child abuse and neglect rose an astonishing rate. Unfortunately, the outcomes have become more severe as overtaxed social systems are unable to respond with enough services to protect the children. According to the Children’s Defense Fund in 1997, the number of children seriously injured quadrupled from 1986 to 1993. The percentage of reported cases that were investigated fell during that same time from 44 percent to 28 percent. Very young children as well as older teenagers are victimized. Almost all of these children will be abused by someone they know and trust. There are many organizations that were formed for the sole purpose of helping to prevent child abuse, such as the Committee for the Prevention of Child Abuse, Societies 8 for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, and Big Brothers/Big Sisters of America. There are also thousands of thoughtful and concerned Americans working to halt the spread of child abuse. There are many things people can do to help this cause, so one day there may be a conclusion to a horrible problem that haunts many American children. One way for someone to help children is to speak out. Silence enables the abuse to continue. Silence protects the offenders and hurts children who are being abused. Abuse is an extremely difficult and damaging experience. With many of America’s children growing up, not having a “proper” American upbringing, many fear that the United States is headed for a brick wall in the future. At the end of all this, child psychologists are the ones who try and deal with the emotional stress brought upon the children. The only way I can see to rectify the situation is basically a baptism by fire. If child abuse has continued this long, how are we going to stop it now? Conclusion In conclusion, child psychologists have a great role in many lives of children. Child psychologists use different theories to explain why children do or don’t do certain actions. These theories could include Maslow’s and Erikson’s theories on the stages of life and their fulfillment. Child psychologists have in recent years had to deal with rising problems of child abuse. In the past decade, child abuse has been on the rise, much to the concern of many.
