Children are sociable from birth onwards. Give a brief account of the evidence that supports this claim and discuss its possible implications for social development.

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Children are sociable from birth onwards. Give a brief account of the evidence that supports this claim and discuss its possible implications for social development.

The experiences of our childhood are seen as a central part of our development. As children, our characters are developed through interaction within a social world; by living and learning in a world of other people we become aware of, and learn to accept, the way others are, while also developing our own self and personality. In order to tackle the question that children are sociable from birth onwards and to be able to discuss the possible implications of this on social development, we must first define the terms 'sociable' and 'social development'. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, sociable is defined as 'fitted for or liking the society of other people, being ready and willing to talk and act with others'. Social development, however, is split into two parts: firstly, to be socially developed we must become integrated into the social world by becoming accepted members of society, establishing and maintaining relationships with others. Moreover, we also have to be differentiated from the social world, having our own individual behaviour and thoughts. Both