Social Development

UNIT 3 SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT IN in Childhood

CHILDHOOD
Structure
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Objectives
3.3 Defining Psycho-social Development
3.4 Why Should Teacher Study about Psychosocial Development?
3.5 Emotional Development
3.6 Social Development
3.7 Moral Development
3.8 Impact of Parents and Teachers
3.9 How Does it Relate to Teacher’s Work?
3.10 Let Us Sum-up
3.11 Unit-End Exercises
3.12 Answers to Check Your Progress
3.13 Suggested Readings

3.1 INTRODUCTION
When a child comes to school, she brings along with her, her whole world, which
includes her feelings, experiences, habits, ways in which she relates with others, and
numerous other facets. Therefore, in order to gain an understanding of a child, one
has to also understand the social, emotional and moral aspects of her development
along with the physical and cognitive dimensions of growth. In the previous units we
learnt about the social world of the child and ways in which it influences the child. The
present unit discusses the psychological and social components of child development.
Although the term Social Development is used in the title we will take a broader view
and understand it as a Psycho-Social development as that is a more comprehensive
term. It refers to the child’s engagement with the social world and the process through
which she understands and relates to the world and the process through which various
psycho-social aspects unfold.
Activity I
Our time in school is an important aspect of our life, all of us have a number of memories of
our school days. Before we proceed, take a minute and think about your own school days.
Think about what you liked to do? Who did you like to spend your time with? Write down
five memories that come to your mind when you think about school.
1) .....................................................................................................................................................
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2) .....................................................................................................................................................
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3) .....................................................................................................................................................
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4) .....................................................................................................................................................
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5) .....................................................................................................................................................
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Contexts of Development Compare and discuss your answers with your friends.
From the above activity you can understand that the experiences we have in school,
both the good and the bad ones, last for the whole lifetime. You will also notice that
most of your memories are associated with (i) ‘ how you felt – your feelings’ and (ii)
with the relationships you had - friends, rivals or emotional bonds with teachers. This
Unit will help you understand how the child grows and develops from a totally
helpless baby in her mother’s arms, dependent on the mother and caring adults for
everything, expressing her feelings of discomfort and joy without reserve to becoming
a child who can relate to others, have friendships and a person who has an identity of
her own. Like other Units, this Unit will help you understand the way in which child
develops. It also dwells on how child’s emotions and social development takes place.
In a way it attempts to explain how the child absorbs and processes the gamut of
experiences of infancy and early childhood to becoming a person who begins to
understand the ways of the society and imbibe them, to becoming a person who begins
to define her identity and relate to others in a meaningful way. In technical terms, this
unit discusses the psycho-social development of child. The first section will explain
the meaning of psycho-social development in brief. The next sections will discuss the
different components (social, emotional and moral) of psycho-social development. All
these components though discussed in separate sections, are closely interrelated. In
the final section the influence and role of parents and teachers in the psycho-social
development of child will be discussed.

3.2 OBJECTIVES
The present unit aims at providing a picture of the psychological and social development
of an elementary school child. After reading this unit you will be able to:
● Explain the meaning of psychosocial development of children.
● Identify the different components and stages of psychosocial development of
children.
● Develop a theoretical understanding of psychosocial and moral development of a
child.
● Understand the role of parents and teachers in the optimum social, emotional and
moral development of a child.
● Define role of teacher in promoting psychosocial development amongst elementary
school children.

3.3 DEFINING PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Psychosocial development may be understood as the emotional development of a
child in his/her social context. It includes the emotional and social aspects of growth.
Emotional aspect includes the affect or feeling of an individual towards certain objects,
persons or situations. Social aspect of development includes the interplay between the
child and the social context in which she is born into. It must be understood that the
social and emotional development of a child is closely related to the physical and
cognitive development of the child. The mobility and control he/she acquires on her
physical and motor development and his/her increasing cognitive ability to understand
the world around play a major role in social and cognitive development. It is essential
to understand that, the psychosocial development of a child takes place in ways that
are unique and individualized depending upon the interaction between biological
processes and one’s immediate environment. Yet there are certain visible patterns of
growth that provide insights into the psychosocial world of a child.
What is a social context? Urie Bronfenbrenner, a famous Russian-American
38 psychologist gave a model of human development called the ecological model (fig.
3.1). In this model he showed the relationship between a developing individual and Social Development
different components of his/her environment such as family, school, culture, politics in Childhood
etc.

Fig. 3.1: Ecological Model of Human Development

To understand a child therefore, it is necessary to look at development of a child in

social context, also taking into account the influences of family, peers, teachers,
community and socio-political environment. As you will study further, you will be able
to understand clearly, the relationship between a child and his/her physical and social
environment.

3.4 WHY SHOULD TEACHER STUDY ABOUT

PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT?
You must be wondering why it is important for a teacher to study the psychosocial
development of a child. An understanding of the psychosocial dimension of child’s
growth would enable a teacher not only to learn about some universal patterns of
growth among children of particular age, but it would also help to appreciate the
individual differences among children. By studying psychosocial development, a teacher
would also be able to understand the relationship between a child and his/her
environment. She would become aware of the importance of a safe and supportive
environment for the all round development of a child. This understanding of a child will
allow a teacher to relate better with learners. She will be able to identify their problems
and help find solutions to them. Knowing the psychosocial needs of the learners also
help a teacher in developing effective teaching-learning strategies for them which
makes learning a truly enjoyable experience for them.
In the following sections you will learn about the emotional, social and moral components
of a child’s development. Although these components are discussed in separate sections,
you would be able to see that they are very much interconnected and thus need to be
understood in the larger context of psychosocial development.

3.5 EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Emotions are the feelings or affect of an individual towards a person, object or situation,
which may generate physiological arousal, conscious experience and/or behavioral
expressions. For example, imagine your first interview for a job, your first speech on
a stage, your conversation with a stranger. What was your physiological response?
Was your heart beating fast? Were you perspiring? Were you smiling or your discomfort
visible on your face? Did you think about that moment? How does it make you feel
now? It is an individuals feeling towards a situation that adds value to it. Human
beings experience a range of emotions, some that make you feel ‘good’ and some that
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Contexts of Development make you feel ‘uncomfortable’. The essential point to understand is that like all other
developments children go through a process of development, moving through stages
that are universal, but yet maintaining individual differences that are shaped by their
genetic endowment and personal experiences.
A similar situation may generate different emotional response among different
individuals.

Check Your Progress

Notes: (i) Write your answers in the space given below.
(ii) Compare your answers with the one given at the end of the unit.
2. Read the following situation and answer the questions that follow:
Meera is eight year old. She lived in a small town with her parents and a
younger brother. She has a very pleasant personality. She is kind and helpful to
her friends and therefore her friends admire her. She had many friends who
lived in her neighborhood and studied in her class. Meera’s father got promoted,
and along with a higher position and salary raise, he was also given a new
house in another city. In the new city, Meera is finding it difficult to make
friends. While her brother goes out to play with the neighboring boys, Meera
stays at home and watches television. In her new school also, while other girls
in the class, chat and play together, Meera stays quiet and aloof.
a) What do you think Meera’s problem is?
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b) Could you think of a reason for her problem?
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c) Do you think that every child would behave in the same way in such a
situation?
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In the above situation you could see the impact of change in place, on a child and her
behavior. A similar move from one place to another may not be as difficult a situation
for any other child, as it was for Meera. That is because each child has his /her
individual way of dealing with different situations. For some children moving from
one place to another, meeting new people and making new friends is a pleasant
experience, but for others it is a challenging situation.
Although every child undergoes an individualized pattern of growth, researches in this
area have identified the following common patterns in emotional development of a
child:
● Children show a wide range of emotions like joy, happiness, anger, jealousy, anxiety,
guilt etc. Her emotions are intense and transitory i.e. they fluctuate often and
they appear frequently, but for very short duration.
● Most rapid changes in the emotional behavior take place in early years of a
child’s life, but they start getting stabilized by the time a child reaches late
childhood.
● Even psycho social development follows the epigenetic principle which means
that children go through a pre-determined pattern of development moving from
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one stage of development to the next.
● A child’s life experiences have a great influence on her emotional behavior. Due Social Development
to the diversity of life experience among children, their emotional behaviors in in Childhood
similar situations differ from each other.
● The emotional behavior patterns are unique based on their innate factors and
experiences yet, there are common patterns that are universal, that are general
to all the members of a common social and cultural context.
● Children learn to express their emotions in socially acceptable ways. In early
period of childhood a child expresses her emotions more openly, but as she grows
she learns to regulate and repress her emotions in more socially accepted ways.
The emotional expression of a child thus, has a significant influence of the
emotional environment of their home and school.
As mentioned earlier also, a child’s emotional expression is spontaneous in the initial
period of her life. As she grows she learns the socially accepted ways of expressing
her emotions from her family, peers and school. Thus the family and school have a
very important responsibility of teaching a child to express her emotions in ways which
are acceptable to other. They can either foster positive emotional health of a child or
they can severely hamper the child’s emotional development.

Check Your Progress

Notes: (i) Write your answers in the space given below.
(ii) Compare your answers with the one given at the end of the unit.
3. Observe the children in your class, and identify five different emotions expressed
by them.
a) ……………………………………………………………………...…
b) ………………………………………………………………………...
c) ……………………………………………………………………......
d) ………………………………………………………………………...
e) ………………………………………………………………………...
4. Children display a range of emotions, fear is one of them. What actions would
you take as a teacher, to make the learning environment free of fear for the
learners? Write down three ways with rationale.
a) ........................................................................................................
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b) ........................................................................................................
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c) ........................................................................................................
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When it comes to emotions, children are very spontaneous. Along with the parents a
teacher has an important role in teaching a child to express her emotions in ways
which are acceptable to others. As the child grows and learns to regulate her emotions,
her behavior becomes a mirror of her emotional state. Whereas it is good that children
learn to express emotions in a socially acceptable manner, sometimes it can go to an
extreme in which child instead of regulating her emotions, starts suppressing them.
This may be problematic as unexpressed feelings of fear, trauma, hate, jealousy, anxiety
or even aggression can be detrimental to child’s development and personality. These
deep seated problems could often remain unresolved right into adulthood as well.
Children should be taught constructive ways of venting these negative emotions and
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Contexts of Development manage stress. As adults it becomes essential that parents and teachers remain sensitive
to emotions of children.
This means that they closely observe children, listen to them and give them opportunities
for emotional expression. Sometimes by closely observing the behavior of a child a
parent or a teacher could know about the emotional state of a child. For example bed
wetting is one such behavior that is an indicator of an emotional stress a child might be
undergoing. In order to promote positive emotional development of a child it is important
for parents and teachers to understand the emotional aspects of a child’s growth.
The psychological development of a child cannot take place in vacuum, her social
context has a significant impact on her development. In the next section we will learn
about the social dimension of a child’s development.

3.6 SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Social development refers to the way child learns to interact with others and develop
social relationships with others. It is the trust the child develops through early experiences
at home and the independence that developed in exploring things around that impacts
the social development of a child. Further, it is influenced by the knowledge that the
child develops a network of beliefs a child has about who she is.
The social development of a child deals with her social context, which includes her
parents, siblings, peers, neighbors, teachers and relatives, and the influence of these
on the attitude of the child. The social development of a child involves the interpersonal
relationships of an individual, her acquired social skills, values and the ways in which
an individual adjusts with the society.

Fig. 3.2: Social Development of Children

Through social development, the child learns to accept others and their points of view
and also to work in a group. Further, learning such qualities as sharing, cooperation,
waiting for one’s turn, respecting other people and things and so on, forms a part of

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the social development process. The social behavior of a child also follows certain Social Development
age-related patterns, which many theorists have identified. The work of Erikson, on in Childhood
the psychosocial development is prominent among those.
Erik Erikson, a modern psychoanalyst, in his theory of psychosocial development
provided a course of social development of an individual. According to his theory an
individual has to pass through eight psychosocial stages each with its particular goals,
issues and achievements. At every stage an individual faces developmental crisis –
where faces a conflict between a positive alternative and a potentially unhealthy
alternative, which must be resolved, for a healthy development. These conflicts arise
due to the interaction of the individual with other members of his society as well as
due to the social and cultural forces. Following are the eight stages described by
Erikson:
Stage 1- Basic trust versus mistrust (Infancy)
A newborn is totally dependent on mother and other care takers for her very survival
& the roots of trust in this intimate relationship. The quality of care and loving relationship
builds the fundamental feeling of trust in the child. The conflict and contrary is that
absence of this creates mistrust, this is the basic conflict – trust versus mistrust. That
means if the parent or prime care-giver handles the child with love and affection, and
the child’s need of care and food are met with regularity, the child will develop the
feelings of trust. If the child’s relationship with the parent lacks love and trust the child
develops feelings of mistrust.
Stage 2- Autonomy versus shame/doubt (Early Childhood)
The second stage is related to development of feeling of autonomy (a feeling of
confidence and self determination).With the increased muscle coordination and
development of bladder and bowel control the child develops confidence and autonomy-
a sense of doing things himself like brushing her teeth, bathing, getting ready for school
etc. However, if the parents become too demanding or too protective the child is
expected to do things too soon or too late, respectively, the child may develop the
feelings of shame or doubt on his capabilities. The problem is that these unresolved
conflicts linger on in later stages, and well into adulthood, as such a child who has been
shamed persistently in childhood may continue to feel the same at later stages too.
Stage 3- Initiative versus guilt (Middle Childhood)
Initiative refers to the quality of undertaking, planning and executing a task. Again
with increased physical, motor and cognitive development children are eager to explore
the world and their newly gained capacities, it is not quite normal to find 4 and 5 year
olds perpetually on the move trying out different things. It is essential that even if
children make mistakes, parents be gentle but firm with them. If parents or teacher
discourage and ridicule the child, the child would develop feeling of guilt. Again the
feeling of guilt and diffidence affect child’s ability to take initiative in doing things,
affecting her participation in various activities at school and home.
Stage 4- Industry versus inferiority (Late Childhood)
At this stage child is expected to learn many skills and she knows that she can gain
recognition of adults by using them. When the child is encouraged to make or do
things and when she is praised for her effort, the child demonstrates industry i.e. a
pattern of working hard and gaining satisfaction from the work done. If the child is
unable to attain the expected skills and/or fails to meet the expectations of adults, she
develops a sense of inferiority. The child may begin to feel that whatever she does
would always be wrong.
Stage 5- Identity versus identity confusion (Adolescence and Pre-Adolescence)
The focus at this stage is the need for children to understand and define themselves.
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Contexts of Development It is about their identity – who and what they are. The learning from the previous
stage as well as the competencies gained largely informs the child’s identity. It also
includes cultural identity as well as personal identity, identity as a member of a
community as well as identity as an individual. During this stage the adolescent thinks
a great deal about her possible role in the adult world. She struggles to resolve the
questions of ‘who I am?’, and thus she moves from her parents to her peers, who are
more like her. It is usual to find children at this stage get into affiliation of different
groups or gangs. The major psychological task is to gain an identity.
Stage 6- Intimacy versus isolation (Early Adulthood)
Once a person has established his/her identity they are ready to make intimate
heterosexual relationship. At this stage an individual is willing to make sacrifices and
compromises that a committed relationship might require. Individuals who cannot
experience this intimacy, they develop a sense of isolation and thus tend to avoid
getting into committed relationships.
Stage 7- Generativity versus stagnation (Middle Adulthood)
During the middle age the primary developmental task of an individual is to take care
of the future generation and contribute productively to the society. If an individual
succeeds in raising a family and or working towards the development of the society he
feels a sense of generativity. But if the individual fails to feel that way he/she will
become overly self-occupied and will experience stagnation.
Stage 8- Integrity versus despair (Old Age)
According to Erikson, individual who has successfully resolved the conflicts of earlier
stages looks back on his/her life. If he/she is contended with the achievements of his/
her life, the individual gains a sense of integrity. Others, who have failed to gain that
satisfaction, develop a sense of despair when they look back at their life full of
disappointments and unachieved goals.
It is important to mention here that Indian born, renowned psycho-analyst, Sudhir
Kakar has done some critical work in understanding and expanding on Erikson’s theory
in the Indian context. In that Kakar (1981) expands on rich and multiple influences on
a child growing in India, these influences include the experience of growing up in
extended families, the influence that the community exerts by setting norms and informal
structures of influence, the influence of many a cultural practices – from religious
rituals and festivals, to the myths, literatures and fables that are so much a part of
Indian families. Kakar tries to see how the different stages of Erikson unfold in this
context and shapes the identity of the child.
Recognizing the discrimination and bias that exists against girls and women in Indian
society Kakar made some relevant observations on unfolding of women’s identity.
The following gives some of these, they are profound and need some thinking.

Identity and Gender

“At the birth of a son drums are beaten in some parts of the country, conch-shells blown in
others and the mid-wife paid lavishly, while no such spontaneous rejoicing accompanies
the birth of daughter.”
“ the presence of a son is absolutely necessary for the performance of many sacraments,
especially those carried out upon the death of parents………. In addition to her negligible
ritual significance , a daughter is unmitigated expense, someone who will not contribute to
family income, and who upon marriage will take away considerable part of her family’s
fortune as dowry”
“ a daughter is considered a guest in her ‘natal’ home”
“ the possibility is that girls and women in a dramatically patriarchal society will turn that
aggression against themselves and transform the cultural devaluation into feelings of
worthlessness and inferiority”
Kakar, S. (1981). The Inner World. Delhi : Oxford University Press, pp. 58-59.
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It is essential for teachers to understand Erikson’s theory and Kakar’s perspective Social Development
because of two reasons – one is that the teacher becomes aware of child’s psycho- in Childhood
social development and the issues that can affect the child. In particular the un-resolved
conflicts can manifest in different problems and behaviours in the child. There is a
need to understand and approach these with sensitivity. It is also essential to understand
how some of the discriminatory practices in our society affect girls and other
marginalized groups. The second reason is that school is an important social context
for the child and it is the responsibility of the teacher to provide an environment that
responds to the child’s needs, the importance of love, care and acceptance of child by
her family and school for her all round healthy development cannot be underscored
enough. This is the time which lays foundation of the entire life of a child. Thus, a
teacher should device methods of encouraging children to develop decision making
skills and gain hands on experiences.

Check Your Progress

Notes: (i) Write your answers in the space given below.
(ii) Compare your answers with the one given at the end of the unit.
5. Give some specific ways in which you as a teacher can promote the following
amongst the learners in your classroom?
(a) Sense of Initiative:
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(b) Sense of Industry:
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The activities should be selected in way that they allow each child a chance to experience
success and gain diverse competencies. During this whole process teacher should
ensure constant support to those who seem discouraged.
Some Related Concepts
As the child grows, her world expands too she gains new experiences everyday and
begins to interact with more people as her social world expands. Child’s obsession
with herself is well observed by all of us – how often we have seen them playing in
front of the mirror, insisting on combing hair in a particular way, asking reassurance
and praise on their performance. The seeds of knowing oneself are there from an
early age. However it is only as she grows that she comes to know about her abilities,
potentials, weaknesses and talents. She develops an opinion about herself which is
based to a large extent based on her understanding of her capabilities. However self
concept also gets informed by factors like physical attributes like height, weight or
colour. It also gets influenced by factor like gender, family background, caste and
religion background. This opinion of a child about herself is known as self concept.
Based on her self concept a child constantly evaluates herself, like whether she is
good at singing, she makes friends easily, she does not have a good handwriting etc.
The value that a child attaches to herself while describing herself is known as self
esteem. Self-esteem is important, as it impacts the whole behavior of a child. If a
child believes that she has more positive qualities, her self esteem will be high and she
would be more confident. Similarly if a child believes that she has more negative
qualities, then she will have low self esteem and as a result she would not be very 45
Contexts of Development confident about herself. It is essential that self concept be realistic and be based on
expansive qualities like what the child can do .
Children also develop an opinion of themselves from their interaction with their physical
and social environment. For example a child who is loved and appreciated will have
high self esteem than the child who is often scolded and punished. Thus, one can
gauge that a child’s self concept includes the cognitive, emotional and social component.
Since, a child’s concept of herself regulates her behavior, it is important for parents
and teachers to help children develop a positive opinion of herself. A teacher should
create an environment that is non-threatening to the child, she should accept her students
and appreciate their efforts. Certain behaviours are unacceptable in class like spitting,
abusing, bullying, fighting etc., while dealing with such issues teacher should keep in
mind that she only rejects the behaviour and not the child. Teacher should try not to
label a child as ‘bad’.
Sometimes the opinion a child has about herself may not be a true reflection of her
abilities. For example, a child who may not be very good at drawing, but her parents
appreciate whatever she draws, just to encourage her. The child might grow up to
believe that she is exceptionally good at drawing. Now her opinion about her drawing
abilities is not true representative of her capabilities. Therefore, apart from encouraging
children to have a high self esteem it is also necessary for parents and teachers to help
a child evaluate her potential appropriately. The teacher should genuinely appreciate
the child for her efforts but she should also discuss with the child the possibilities for
improvement.

3.7 MORAL DEVELOPMENT

Simply put, morality refers to the concept of right and wrong. Moral development
deals with the development of processes through which a child learns the principles of
right and wrong. According to Santrock (2008), moral development concerns with
rules and conventions about just interactions between people. It involves thoughts,
feelings and actions regarding rules and conventions about what people should do in
their interactions with other people.
Moral development includes the learning of moral concepts and moral behaviors. It
refers to acquisition of values such as honesty, integrity, respect for others, sincerity,
conformity to group standards and so on, that a society expects the children to imbibe
and practice. In every social group, certain acts or behaviors are either considered
right or wrong. It also presents how children develop moral concepts.

Read the following situations

1. Tina and Amita are best friends. One day in the arts class Amita sees that Tina has
brought a new box of crayons. Tina does not let Amita use her new colors during the
whole class. Amita thought of stealing the color box, when Tina had gone to drink
water. But then she realized that her mother had told her that stealing is a bad thing, and
if she came to know that Amita has stolen Tina’s doll she will punish her. Therefore she
reluctantly gave up the idea of stealing Tina’s crayons.
2. It’s a school lunch time and all the children are standing in a long queue near the
canteen window to buy eatables for themselves. Salim goes in front of the queue and
pushes a child to get ahead. The child falls down on the ground and bruises his knee.
Salim feels bad about his action. He feels he has been a bad boy by breaking into the
queue. He helps his friend to the medical room.
3. Amrit is new to the school. A group of boys constantly trouble him. One day one of the
boys placed ink on his chair. When Amrit sat on it, all his clothes got stained in red.
Amrit knew who did and felt bad about it. When the teacher asked him to name the child
who did Amrit lied that he does not know who did. Later in the class the boy came up to
Amrit and asked why he did not tell his name to the teacher. Amrit replied that he did not
want to get him into trouble.
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Each one of the above situations depicts a different stage of moral development in Social Development
children. Initially, their moral decisions are governed by what their elder have told in Childhood
them to be ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. As children grow they learn to obey rules based on
their understanding of the socially accepted norms and the importance of rules and
regulations in maintaining law and order. At the highest level of moral maturity an
individual takes moral decisions based on self-chosen set of principles, which sometimes
means not abiding by the socially laid rules and regulations. Like in case of Amrit, who
lies to his teacher in order to save his classmate from getting reprimanded by their
teacher.
Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist conducted open-ended interviews with children
between the ages of 5 to 13. He used children’s stories to understand how children
take decisions of right and wrong behavior. Based on his findings, he proposed two
stages of moral development in children. At the age 5 to 10 the child thought that rules
are unchangeable, and if one breaks the rule he/she ought to get punished for the
damage he/she has caused, irrespective of the intensions of the person. As you can
see in the first example of box, Amita sees stealing as a bad thing because her mother
has told her so. She gave up the idea of stealing because she thought she will be
punished by her mother for doing so. For Amita, rules are what her mother has told
her. Piaget called this form of moral morality, heteronomous morality. As the child
grows she learns that the rules are made for human convenience and can be subjected
to change. The child begins to consider the intentions of an individual behind his/her
actions. In the third example of the box you can see that Amrit realizes that telling the
truth to the teacher can get his friend in trouble, therefore he decided to lie, in order to
save his friend from getting punished. This form of morality was termed as autonomous
morality by Piaget. Moral development is thus, related a great deal to the cognitive
development or thinking of the child. As discussed earlier, when the child is young she
is unable to understand other’s perspective and as an adult it becomes essential to
help children understand others perspective or a situation, through dialogue and
discussion. As the child grows she gains her own notions about ‘right’ and ‘wrong’.
A major perspective on moral development was given by Kohlberg, who arrived at a
theory of moral development after interviewing hundreds of people on moral dilemmas.
Kohlberg’s theory of morality consisted of three levels i.e. the pre-conventional, the
conventional and the post-conventional levels; each of these levels has two stages in it:
Level I- Pre-conventional Level: This is the lowest level of moral development,
where the child has not yet internalized moral values, and the good or the bad is
determined by external rewards and punishments. This level is further divided into
two stages:
a) Punishment-avoidance and obedience: At this stage moral decisions are based
on what is best for oneself, without thinking about the needs and regards of the
others. Those rules are obeyed which are established by individuals in the position
of power.
b) Instrumental purpose-orientation: At this stage an individual begin to understand
the needs and feelings of others. Although an individual may attempt to satisfy
the needs of the other but right and wrong continue to define mostly in terms of
consequences to the individual.
Level II- Conventional Level: Conventional morality is characterized by intermediate
level of internalization of morality. The child obeys rules to fulfill the expectations of
adults and to gain their appreciation. The two stages of this level are:
a) Good boy- good girl orientation: At this stage moral decisions are made to gain
admiration of others, especially those in position of power.
b) Law and order orientation: There is a shift in view of an individual from his/her
own family to the larger society. At this stage moral decisions are taken to uphold
laws and rules for their own sake. 47
Contexts of Development Level III- Post-Conventional Level: This is the highest level of moral development
where the moral values have been internalized by the individual and the rules that are
followed are self-chosen, universal and consistent. The two stages of this level are:
a) Social-contract orientation: The individual now views laws and rules as flexible
instruments made for furthering human purposes and thus they can be changed
if they do not meet the needs of the society.
b) Universal ethical principle orientation: This is the highest level of moral
development. Here moral decisions are decisions of conscience taken according
to self-chosen ethical principles. The individual is answerable to his/her own
inner conscience and might break rules that go against once own principles.
Kohlberg’s theory of moral development was based on his interviews on moral
dilemmas. But the subjects of Kohlberg’s theory were almost all males. Another
theorist Carol Gilligan argued that Kohlberg’s theory does not sufficiently describe the
moral development in females. She was the first theorist to consider gender differences
in moral development. In her own research, Gilligan had noted that girls are more
concerned with care and compassion in their interpersonal relationships, than boys.
According to her, the socialization process of girls emphasizes more on interpersonal
relationships and on taking responsibility of the well being of others, thus females
develop a morality that lays more stress on the welfare of the others.
Giligan’s theory, on one hand highlighted that people can think about other people in a
compassionate and caring way. Her work brought out the ways in which development
of morality differs between males and females. But on the other hand her theory was
criticized for looking at males and females in a very stereotypical way. Her theory
views women as more nurturing and caring of the two genders, while men are viewed
as more rational among the two.
A study of moral development emphasizes the role of parents and teachers in promoting
development of morality among children. A teacher should teach children, socially
accepted moral standards. Children should be taught about respecting the emotions
and property of others. Teacher should help learners develop tolerance and consideration
for others. They should know that rules and laws are there for the proper functioning
of the society and therefore they need to be followed. Apart from informing students
about rules and regulation emphasis should be on enabling learners to take decisions.
For this a teacher may use stories, role-plays, give situations to learners to think and
reflect upon. Learners need to know the ways to develop self-control in order to resist
temptations.
Some ways of helping children develop moral development is through appropriate
stories, for example the animal based Panchtantra and Jataka stories are a great way
storehouse which can be used by teachers. So also some of the Akbar and Birbal
stories help children to understand logic in a given situation. Teachers should also
encourage children to bring in examples from home, newspapers and media so that
there is a discussion around the moral dimension. Above all it is important that teachers
and other adults in child’s life exemplify as role models, for children are quick to see
contradictions. One should realize that moral development is a process and child gains
understanding and logic as s/he grows, a lot also depends on the kind of life experiences
the child has had. Teachers and other adults should refrain from labeling children who
sometimes make mistakes, it is part of growing up and children evolve but if once they
are labeled it affects them for life.
Throughout this unit the influence and role of parents and school in promoting
psychosocial development of children has been emphasized. The next section would
discuss this issue in more detail.

48
 Social Development
3.8 IMPACT OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS in Childhood

Family and school play a very crucial role in a child’s development. The way a child
associate with his parents, peer and teacher is primarily governed by her experiences
with them and her feelings towards them. Therefore the ways in which adults behave
with a child also shape her behavior towards them. For example if a child says
something to her parents and the parents do not pay her due attention, the child would
device ways of gaining their attention. The child may shout, cry, throw temper tantrums
etc. Gradually, if the same situation persists, the child will establish her behavior as a
method of gaining her parents attention.
Diana Baumrind gave four main forms of parenting. The main characteristic of these
parenting styles and the impact they have on a child are discussed as follows:
1. Authoritative Style: Authoritative parents provide a loving, supportive, home
environment for their children to grow up in. They hold high expectations and
standards from their children’s behaviour and enforce household rules consistently.
There is a space for open dialogue between the parents and children, children
are explained why some behaviours are acceptable while others are not.
Authoritative parents often include their children in the family decision making.
The children of authoritative parents are found to be happy, self-confident, curious,
independent, likeable, respectful of others, good decision makers and successful
in school.
2. Authoritarian Style: Authoritarian parents show less emotional warmth to their
children than authoritative parents. They expect high standards from their children’s
behaviour, and establish rules of behaviour without much regard for the need of
the children. There is hardly any space for dialogue between the parents and the
children, parents expect the rules, put for children, to be obeyed without question.
Discipline is levied forcefully, without leaving any scope for free expression.
Authoritarian parents allow little give-and-take in parent-child discussions. The
children of authoritarian parents are seen to be mostly unhappy, anxious, low in
self-esteem, lacking initiative, dependent, lacking social-skills and sometimes
defiant.
3. Permissive Style: Like authoritative parents permissive parents also provide a
warm, loving and supportive home environment. But they hold very few
expectations or standards from their children’s behaviour. They allow their children
to make most of their decisions and rarely punish any inappropriate behaviour.
Since everything is allowed, the power lies in the hands of the child, who decided
everything. The parent-child relationship is basically instrumental in nature and
thus there is no concept of respect between the parent and the child. The children
of permissive parents tend to be selfish, materialistic, possessive, unmotivated,
dependent on others, demanding attention and impulsive.
4. Uninvolved/Indifferent Style: Indifferent parents provide little if any emotional
support for their children. They hold very few expectations or standards from
their children’s behaviour. They are often so preoccupied with their own life that
they have very little interest in their children’s life. Sometimes the child is mere
obligation to the parents. In such a relationship both the parents and the children
decide for themselves and thus live separate lives in the same house. The children
of indifferent parents are seen to be non-trusting, incapable of loving others,
stressed out, disobedient, demanding, low in self-control, lacking long-term goals
and more prone to frustrations.
These forms of parenting could also be extended to other forms of adult-child
relationship, for example like authoritarian parenting, there could also be authoritarian
teaching, where there is no room for teacher-pupil dialogue, and rules are laid down to
be followed without questioning.
49
Contexts of Development
Check Your Progress
Notes: (i) Write your answers in the space given below.
(ii) Compare your answers with the one given at the end of the unit.
6. You have read about four different styles of parenting. Discuss them with your
friends and answer the following:
(a) How do you think an indifferent teacher would be like? Write down her
qualities.
........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................
(b) What would be the difference between an authoritative and an authoritarian
teacher?
........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................
(c) What kind of classroom do you visualize of a permissive teacher?
........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................
........................................................................................................

In the next section of this unit you will understand that how all your understanding of
the psychosocial development of child does relate to your work as a teacher.

3.9 HOW DOES IT RELATE TO A TEACHER’S WORK?

Based on the above one can understand apart from teacher’s role as a facilitator of
learning, she also needs observe children, identify their problems and help them solve
the same. In this unit the role of teacher as a counselor has been emphasized. Therefore
a teacher’s role further involves:
● understanding the needs of the children
● observing and interacting with children
● identifying the problems of the learners and help them in solving the same
● engaging with the parents of the children
● creating a safe and supportive environment for the children, that is conducive to
their optimum growth and development
● making the process of learning enjoyable to the learners
According to Ranganathan (2000), a teacher who understands the psycho-social needs
of a child will reject any system that tends to make one child feel either inferior or
falsely superior to another. A child’s happiness or unhappiness is directly related to his
experiences in the school. The schools can either foster or hamper emotional well-
being and stability in a child. Therefore, a teacher should pay attention to the
psychosocial needs of a child and use her understanding of the same in making her
classroom environment conducive to the all round development of a child.

50
 Social Development
3.10 LET US SUM-UP in Childhood

In this unit the social development is explained in a broader view by taking into
consideration of psycho-social aspects also. Psychosocial development includes the
emotional and social aspects of growth. This development takes place due to the
interaction between biological processes and one’s immediate environment. For a
teacher, the understanding of this development help to indentify the relationship between
a child and his/her environment.
The next aspect is emotional development of the child. A child’s emotional expression
is spontaneous in the initial period of her life and as she grows she learns the socially
accepted ways of expressing her emotions. The social development of a child deals
with her social context. The social behavior of a child also follows certain age-related
patterns. In this context, the works of Erikson and Kakar were specially mentioned.
Self-concept and self-esteem of the child are other factors which influenced the
development of the child. Along with these, the moral development of children is also
important. The theory of Kohlberg deserves special attention.
The last part deals with the four main forms of parenting styles put forward by Diana
Baumrind. They are authoritative style and uninvolved/indifferent style. Not only being
a facilitator of learning, a teacher also needs to observe children and identify their
problems.

3.11 UNIT-END EXERCISES

1. Observe a child at home or in school. Note down his/her social and emotional
behavior. Identify the reasons for such behavior. Prepare a brief report highlighting
the relationship between his/her psychosocial development and the behavior
observed by you.

You may include:

i. Basic information of the child like, name, age, gender, family.
ii. Your reasons for selecting the particular child.
iii. Relationship with his/her parents, siblings, peers.
iv. Behaviour in the class.
v. Possible cause of such behavior.
2. Could you think about ways in which problems of children can be identified by
observing their behavior? Identify one behavioural problem of a child. Discuss
ways in which a teacher can help the child.
3. Select 5 children from your class who belong to different socio-economic, caste
or religious groups. Ensure a fair gender balance. Interact with children on a
personal basis and try to understand what they think about themselves, how they
describe themselves. Document your observations as five case studies on ‘ self
concept’ of children in your class.
4. How will you make your classroom and teaching responsive to the psycho-social
needs of the child?

3.12 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS.

1. Write your own memories.
2. (a) Meera feels difficult to get friends in the new situation.
(b) Adjustment Problem
(c) No Each child has his/her individual way of dealing with different situations. 51
Contexts of Development 3. Write your own observations.
4. (1) Giving opportunities for emotional expression.
(2) Providing opportunities for fun.
(3) Providing individualized learning for children.
5 (a) Sense of initiative.
(i) Conducting Role-Play.
(ii) Conducting debates.
(iii) Encouraging child-directed play.
(iv) Using children’s literature to increase the child’s awareness of how
others plan and solve problems that arise in the process.
(b) Sense of Industry.
(i) Cleaning classrooms by students.
(ii) Pasting relevant topics on the display board.
(iii) Appointing one student to collect the note books of others.
6. (a) An indifferent teacher would adopt an uninvolved style.

Qualities
1. Preoccupied in one’s own life.
2. Little interest in students’ achievement.
3. Lack of discipline in the classroom.
4. No rapport between teacher and student.
5. Lack of accountability to his/her profession.
(b)
Authoritarian Teacher Authoritative Teacher
Exercises firm, rigid and autocratic Exercises firm control, but the control
control. is paired with warmth and genuine
concern for the well-being of the
students.
The domination of classroom is not There is positive personal growth of
directed at the positive personal students.
growth of students.
No space for open dialogue between Space for open dialogue between
teacher and students. teacher and students.
Discipline is levied forcefully. Discipline is not levied force fully.

(c) Permissive teachers provide a warm, loving and supportive classroom

environment. But they hold very few expectations from their students. There is
lack of control in the class. They focus on effort while de-emphasize the quality
of students’ productions. Constructive learning does not flow well.

3.13 SUGGESTED READINGS

● Berk, L. (2003). Child development. New Delhi: Pearson.
● Berk, L. (2007). Development through the lifespan. New Delhi: Pearson.
● Kakar, S. (1981). ‘The Inner World’. Delhi: Oxford University Press
● Ormrod, J.E. (1998). Educational Psychology: Developing Learners. (2nd ed.)
New Jersey: Ohio
● Ranganathan, N. (2000). The Primary School Child: Development and
Education. New Delhi: Orient Longman
● Santrock, J. W. (2008). A Topical Approach to Life-Span Development (3rd ed).
52 New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.
● Woolfolk, A. (2004). Educational Psychology. New Delhi: Pearson.