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12: Emotional Development: Student Objectives

The document discusses emotional development in children and adolescents. It defines emotional development as the emergence and regulation of emotions from birth through adolescence. Key points covered include: emotional development involves cognitive, behavioral and neural factors; milestones include smiling at 6 weeks, crying to communicate needs, and laughing at 3-4 months; school-aged children understand mixed emotions and display rules; and adolescents experience more complex emotions due to cognitive maturation. Regulating emotions is an important part of development.

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12: Emotional Development: Student Objectives

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Şterbeţ Ruxandra

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Module 12 : Emotional

Development

Student Objectives:
To learn the definition of emotional development
To learn about the emotional development of a school-
aged child
To learn about the emotional development during
adolescence
To learn about regulating emotions
To understand how to assess and deal with negative
emotional development

12.1 Introduction
Along with cognitive, physical, and social
development, all children go through the
stages of emotional development.

A person’s emotions are challenging to study and recognize,

and when it comes to children, they do not always understand
what their emotions mean. In the world of child psychology,
the study of emotional development is a bit further behind the
other types of development we have covered so far, as it was
not until the early 21st century that theories about emotions
began to appear. This module will look at the development of
emotions, along with how factors such as schooling might
affect this development.
12.2 The Definition of Emotional
Development
Emotional development can be defined as the
emergence of a child’s expression,
experience, understanding, and the
regulation of their emotions from the time
they are born through to adolescence.

The study of emotional development also looks at how emotional

processing occurs. This process does not occur on its own,
however. Instead, cognitive, behavioral, and neural
development interact with cultural and social influence to
create emotional development. There are several emotional
development theories in existence, but there is generally a
universal agreement among researchers that there are certain
milestones that children should meet as their emotions
develop.

Emotional and social development are linked, and in some

cases, they are studied as one or as a pair. Parents and
carers certainly play a role in the development of the
emotions, but so do other people as the child’s world begins
to expand.
The debate continues as to exactly when children begin to
experience emotions.

For example, an infant might smile early in their lives, but

it is more likely that the smile is more of a reflex than
social or emotional interaction. Generally, a child might
smile at about six weeks old, which may express emotion, but
they will not smile in a social way until they are
approximately six months old.
Crying is the most powerful way for an infant to express
emotion, and it is often used as a way for them to
communicate. They use crying to display distress, fear, anger,
sadness, pain, and several other emotions. By around three to
four months of age, the child will begin laughing, which is a
new way that they can express emotions.

Development
As you might remember from previous modules, by the time a
child reaches toddlerhood, they have started to develop their
sense of self. They also begin developing new emotions such as
shame and pride thanks to the maturation of the frontal lobe
and other areas of the brain. This also facilitates a new
sense of independence in these children, and they will begin
to defy authority. When the child reaches the age of two or
three, they will begin showing signs of empathy, which
indicates that they can read the emotional cues of others.

Verbal skills also begin to develop around this time, and with
these skills, children develop verbal reasoning. This means
that they will start talking about their feelings, which is
something they have not been able to do before. This continues
into preschool, and they can verbalize emotion, such as “I am
sad” or “I am mad.”
Preschoolers also begin to understand the rules that have been
set forth by their school, family, and even society in regards
to emotions. They recognize non-verbal cues from each other,
and they can finally distinguish between negative emotions
such as anger, fear, and sadness. These children also have
empathy, though, at this point, they can only understand
empathy when using it with people they know well, such as
their family.

12.3 Emotional Development as a

School-Aged Child
As a child enters elementary school, they begin
to gain more of a sense of self and realize how
specific situations cause emotions.

For example, a child who has been teased for showing that they
are scared of something might feel shame the next time they
get scared. They understand the concept of mixed emotions.
Research shows that by the time a child reaches the age of
six, they start to understand that people can experience one
emotion, and then a different emotion almost immediately
following the first.

As these children continue to age, they also learn that there

are “rules” for displaying emotion. For instance, a child
might be taught to avoid showing disappointment when they get
a gift that they do not want. These children will often also
develop emotional coping skills, even if at a basic level.

For example, a child might rationalize behaviors or situations

to make them less upsetting.

12.4 Emotional Development as an

Adolescent
During adolescence, the emotions of a child
are still developing.

This period of a child’s life is often the most emotional

period of their psychological development. Though adolescents
will begin to be more independent, which is a good thing, they
often feel more negative emotions during this time.
Researchers believe that this could be traced directly to the
cognitive development that is also happening during this time.
For the first time in their lives, these children can imagine
theoretical and complex scenarios for their life, especially
when it comes to relationships, which may cause emotional
distress. In turn, this causes their social problems to become
more complex, so they look to their peers, many times without
realizing it, to see how they are handling similar situations.

Academic pressures, family struggles, curfews, and their new-

found independence puts pressure on the emotions of
adolescents, and many will feel new emotions such as
worthlessness or self-doubt. They also realize, for the first
time, that their emotions are very different from the emotions
of their parents or carers, and this often causes conflict.

12.5 Regulating Emotions

A major part of the emotional development of
children is how they label, recognize, and
control their emotions. This is known as
emotional regulation.

The self-regulation of a child’s emotions includes both the

recognition and delineation of their emotions. Once a child
begins to articulate one of their emotions, this action can
have a regulatory effect. Children also learn when it is
important to regulate their emotions in certain situations.

For example, they might control some negative emotions when

they are in an adult’s presence, but they do not control them
when they are around their peers. By around four years old, a
child also learns how to alter the way they express their
emotions to suit how they believe others want them to express
their emotions. This is known as their “emotional display
rules.”
By the time a child is between the ages of seven and 11, they
can better regulate emotions by using several self-regulation
skills. They also better understand that they can adapt their
emotions, and in some cases, manipulate them, to specific
relationships.

For example, older children might express negative emotions to

their mothers rather than their fathers, as they believe that
their fathers will have an adverse reaction to a display of
emotions. Adolescents also have a heightened sense of how
others are evaluating them.
The guidelines of their culture, for instance, might govern
how appropriate certain emotional expressions are in certain
situations.

There are several models and theories surrounding emotional

development. One, the functionalist perspective, states that
emotions serve as a way of focusing actions in order to
achieve a specific personal goal, again, a form of self-
regulation. Self-regulation is a critical part of emotional
development, as it marks a personal ability to regulate their
emotions to meet the demands of the world. Those that cannot
do this are unable to function in a way that the rest of us
see as “normal.”

FACT
Emotional regulation, identified as a child’s ability to
label, recognize and control their actions, is a major part of
social development

Source: CPD

12.6 Emotions and School

Research has shown that there is a strong
link between the emotional development of a
child and how they perform in school.

This link is particularly evident in the first few years of

elementary school. If a child’s school tasks are interrupted
by events such as with issues involving other students,
controlling negative emotions, or following directions, a
child can have difficulties staying on task with their
educational activities. Research has further linked decreased
academic performance with antisocial behavior.

Understanding emotions can relate positively to positive

social behaviors, but it can also cause people to internalize
their emotions. This can lead to feelings of loneliness,
anxiety, and depression. The knowledge of negative emotion can
sometimes also affect verbal abilities, which could negatively
affect academic performance.

Verbal skills are crucial to academic achievement, as a child

must communicate with their instructor and be able to read
emotional cues.
Those who do not learn to do this tend to display destructive
behavior or receive inadequate instruction, which can
negatively affect their academic performance.

Take a Quick Recap Test

12.7 Assessing the Development of

Emotions
By taking a preventive approach to
challenging any negative behaviors caused by
emotions, many students can learn how to
utilize different emotions and skills.

This can help to eliminate these behaviors. Other children,

however, might continue to display negative behaviors
regardless of an attempted change. Although behaviors that are
emotionally related are usually obvious, it is important that
data is gathered to come up with a plan to fix the behavior,
especially when in a school setting.

This is usually done by school staff with the assistance of

medical professionals and psychologists.
Assessing this behavior is essential, and it is the first step
to deciding which behaviors are the most challenging.

For example, if the behavior is harmful to another child or if

the behavior interferes with their school work, immediate
assessments and action are necessary. It is essential to get a
detailed explanation of the behaviors from family, teaching
staff, and others.
Once that is done, a formal assessment should be conducted.
Formal interviews with people who know the child are usually
conducted, and a discussion about the consequences of the
behavior is often considered.

After this, experts might attempt to develop a hypothesis

about the child’s behavior patterns, and then suggest a
support plan with several steps. Finally, the plan can be
implemented, though it will be evaluated with much regularity,
and then modified, if necessary.

Assignment
Emotional Development

Time: 35+ minutes

Now it is time to put what you have learned in Module 12 to

the test. Work your way through this worksheet and do your
best to fully participate in every activity set.

Download the worksheet below, print out and complete.

Download Worksheet (pdf)

Conclusion
Emotional development occurs from the first months of birth
all the way through to the adolescent years. Some researchers
even argue that our emotional development continues well into
adulthood, and for some, throughout our lives. Many adults
have problems with their own emotions, and in many cases, this
can be traced back to the way their emotions developed in
childhood. This is why it is so important that children be
allowed to develop their emotions naturally and not be forced
to suppress them when at an impressionable age.