Reflecting on one’s childhood and remembering the various emotions experienced is important. It is essential to recognize that our parents or caregivers play a significant role in shaping our understanding of emotions. In the early stages of life, from infancy to toddlerhood, we go through different phases of emotional development. This process starts at birth when we display minimal emotion, but as we grow into toddlers, our emotions become more pronounced. Initially, infants exhibit basic emotions such as happiness, sadness, fear, and anger. As they get older, they start to comprehend and react to the emotions expressed by others – whether it is their parents or caregivers.
As toddlers grow, they gain an understanding of self-conscious emotions such as guilt, shame, pride, and envy. Additionally, they learn when it is appropriate to experience these emotions. Although infants have limited emotional experiences involving attraction to pleasant stimulation and withdrawal from unpleasant stimulation, they can still show signs of emotions. As children develop further, their emotions become more defined and organized signals. According to Laura Berk’s book “Infants and Children Infants” (pg. 250), infants are unable to verbally express their feelings but instead rely on facial expressions, body movements, and vocalizations to communicate.
Infants develop an understanding of emotions by observing their parent’s facial expressions and listening to their voice. By around 6 months old, infants have well-coordinated facial expressions, gaze, voice, and body movements that adapt to different situations. If a caregiver has a joyful face, the baby will respond with laughter and smiles. Infants also interrupt play to seek attention from adults when they are excited. As they grow older, infants show different types of smiles but reserve the most significant smile for their parents. When encountering a friendly stranger, babies may display a smaller and more subdued smile. Unlike adults, children experience emotions differently; their feelings are fleeting and can quickly shift from upset or angry to happy again. For example, giving a crying child one of their toys usually results in immediate laughter and play.
Children frequently demonstrate their emotional distress through physical behaviors, including kicking, hitting, throwing objects, and biting. Unlike adults, kids struggle to conceal their emotions and often express them due to their limited emotional regulation. Even minor triggers can provoke intense emotional responses in young children. It is crucial to recognize that various children may exhibit distinct behaviors despite experiencing the same emotion.
As children grow older, their emotions become stronger and more intense. When scared, a child may either run away or start crying, while another child may simply hide behind their mother or caregiver (source: Jatin Dutta, Essay on Emotional Development in Children, http://www.preservearticles.com 10/02/2012). It may be more challenging to calm down an upset or crying child as they get older compared to when they were younger.
Happiness is one of the basic emotions that infants initially express through smiles and later through laughter. This emotion creates a warm and supportive bond between the parent and baby, contributing to the development of the infant’s skills and abilities.
According to Laura Berk, infants smile for various reasons during the first few weeks, such as after eating, during REM sleep, in response to gentle touches, and upon hearing the mother’s soft high-pitched voice (Infants and Children Infants pg. 251). As infants become more attentive to their parents’ faces, they exhibit excited movements in their arms and legs, indicating increased emotional positivity. Between six and ten weeks, the parents’ communication elicits a broad grin, which is commonly referred to as the social smile. Babies learn to use this smile to facilitate enjoyable face-to-face interaction with their parents.
Once a newborn baby masters the art of smiling, they also acquire the ability to laugh, which signifies an enhancement in their cognitive processing speed. Engaging in simple activities like playing peekaboo can prompt babies to exhibit both laughter and smiles. As babies approach their first year’s midpoint, they tend to display more frequent episodes of laughing and smiling when interacting with familiar individuals. Conversely, newly born infants may demonstrate anger and sadness in reaction to different stimuli, including hunger, excessive or insufficient stimulation, and fluctuations in body temperature. As toddlers reach two and a half years old, their expressions of anger intensify.
Both toddlers and infants exhibit distinct reactions when their toys are taken away or they experience distress. While a toddler may respond by kicking and screaming, an infant typically responds by crying. As children become more aware of differing behaviors, they strive to control their own actions and their consequences. Furthermore, as infants grow older, they begin to recognize the individuals responsible for upsetting them or taking away their toys. Consequently, they display varying emotions towards these individuals. For example, if I inadvertently upset my cousin, she will demonstrate anger towards me. However, when others are present, she will mask her true emotions and exhibit a joyful demeanor.
When my child displays that behavior, it is her way of expressing dissatisfaction towards me for taking away her toy or denying her access to makeup. However, due to the silence of others present, she does not feel the need to direct her anger towards them. Infants and young children tend to experience more anger rather than sadness. If children do not spend adequate time with a familiar caregiver or lack interaction with their parent, they are more likely to become upset (Laura Berk, Infants and Children Infants pg. 252). Stranger anxiety refers to a child’s fear of unfamiliar adults. Although toddlers and babies are cautious around strangers, they may not always exhibit a visible reaction.
The child’s response to unknown individuals is affected by a variety of factors, including their temperament, past encounters with unfamiliar people, and the current situation. When an unfamiliar adult holds or lifts the child in an unfamiliar environment, the likelihood of stranger anxiety increases. However, if the child’s parent is present during interactions between the child and a stranger, this anxiety is diminished. Moreover, demonstrating warmth, participating in a familiar game, or offering an appealing toy can help alleviate the baby’s fear. Research has also indicated that infant rearing practices, as observed among the Efe hunters and gatherers of the Republic of Congo, can impact stranger anxiety.
After birth, Efe babies in the Efe People community experience frequent swapping between adults, spending only 40% of the day with their mothers and being switched approximately 8.3 times every hour by 14 different individuals. This unique caregiving system contributes to a lower occurrence of stranger anxiety in Efe infants (Efe People, www.parentingscience.com).
In contrast, Israeli kibbutzim babies exhibit higher levels of stranger anxiety due to their communal upbringing. By the end of their first year, these infants rely on others to determine their emotional responses and also learn emotions through imitation. If their mother or caregiver expresses fear towards something, the baby will develop the same fear.
Infants and toddlers manifest fear in various ways, such as fleeing or seeking shelter behind their mother. As they mature, they may articulate their fears verbally. The emotions of infants are closely tied to those around them. During the initial months of a child’s life, they mimic the actions of their caregiver. Some researchers propose that babies’ responses to others are influenced by operant conditioning. They observe the timing of face-to-face interactions and anticipate positive reactions when they smile or make sounds towards someone. This aids them in perceiving others as similar to themselves and comprehending others’ thoughts and emotions.
Around six months old, infants can differentiate between positive and negative emotions expressed through voices and facial expressions. They also grasp appropriate versus inappropriate combinations of face-voice pairings; for instance, a joyful expression with a cheerful voice is suitable while a joyful expression with an angry voice is not. As children grow older, emotions become increasingly significant to them.
Infants and toddlers develop an understanding of emotions and learn that certain events or objects can elicit specific emotional reactions. They rely on trusted individuals for emotional guidance in uncertain situations, a behavior known as social referencing (Laura Berk, Infants and Children, pg. 253).
In unfamiliar situations, infants and toddlers typically observe their parent or caregiver’s behavior to determine their own reaction. The caregiver’s actions directly influence whether the child will experience fear or happiness. It is interesting to note that an adult’s voice has a greater impact on the child’s emotional state compared to facial expressions.
According to Laura Berk’s book “Infants and Children Infants” (pg. 253), babies can comprehend adults’ emotions by listening to their voice rather than relying on facial expressions. Parents can express discomfort or disapproval through these emotional cues, which infants perceive and remember. As children develop, it takes them more time to respond appropriately to these emotional signals. By the age of one, a child may take several minutes to react, and by fourteen months, it could take an hour or even longer. Toddlers not only react to emotional messages but also utilize them to assess their own feelings about specific situations.
Additionally, self-conscious emotions such as shame, guilt, embarrassment, envy, and pride contribute to our self-awareness. Each of these emotions triggers a distinct response from individuals. For instance, if we cause harm to someone we care about, we may experience guilt and feel compelled to make amends for our actions. On the other hand, when we accomplish something significant and feel proud of it ourselves desire recognition from others in order to showcase our accomplishment. These self-conscious emotions begin emerging in children around the second year as they start perceiving themselves as separate individuals.
According to Laura Berk, in her book “Infants and Children”, when a toddler is ashamed of something, they may exhibit behaviors such as lowering their eyes and head and possibly covering their face (pg. 254). Moreover, how a toddler perceives their actions can be influenced by the comments made by adults. During our class discussions, we explored self-conscious emotions and shared personal experiences related to them. Personally, I have encountered situations where I feel compelled to tell my cousin that she is doing a good job while painting my nails, even if she may not be proficient, as I fear that expressing otherwise would result in her feeling ashamed.
After complimenting her on her work, I observe the delight and satisfaction on her face as she continues to paint my nails (Focus Group, 10/11/12). The emotions that adults stimulate can be seen across different cultures. In Western countries, adults teach their children to take pride in personal accomplishments such as receiving good grades or winning a game or competition. Conversely, in places like China or Japan, children do not draw attention to their individual successes. In these cultures, it is considered embarrassing or shameful to take pride in one’s achievements (Laura Berk, Infants and Children Infants pg. 254).
Over the years, I have witnessed the various stages of emotional development that my youngest cousin, Hailey, has experienced. I can recall observing her as a newborn and contemplating the challenges of meeting her needs without her being able to communicate verbally. The diverse range of facial expressions, sounds, and movements that a baby exhibits truly assist in understanding their desires and necessities. Whenever I played with a toy that she wanted to hold, she would extend her arms as if attempting to grab it. Similarly, when she desired to be uplifted or held, she would stretch out her arms and emit gentle cooing sounds.
My grandfather played a significant role in Hailey’s life as one of her main caregivers. He would always engage with her and fulfill her desires. The way she laughed and smiled around him showed how much she cherished their time together. Even as a young child, she could identify his presence simply by hearing his voice. Whether playing with her beloved toy or engaged in another activity, she would instantly turn to see him upon recognizing his voice. One specific memory I have is when Hailey became upset.
If she ever began to cry, the only method of soothing her was by lifting her up and singing to her. Whenever she became upset in the presence of my grandfather, he alone could console her. The book explores the correlation between infants’ emotional expressions and their comprehension of others’ emotional cues, as well as how babies imitate their caregiver’s emotions. Now that Hailey is four years old, you can witness the assortment of emotions and personalities she has assimilated from those around her.
The girl displays varying emotions depending on the person she interacts with. When I am with her, I can perceive her happiness and excitement, as these are the same emotions I exhibit in her presence. It is intriguing to observe that she shares similar emotions with me in certain situations when we are together. As infants and toddlers learn to control their feelings, they employ emotional self-regulation to adapt their emotional state to a comfortable level, enabling them to achieve their objectives. For instance, a demonstration of emotional self-regulation could be choosing not to watch a scary horror film because you are aware that you will not enjoy it.
Effort is required to manage and control emotions in order to succeed. This control is important for autonomy, as well as cognitive and social skills. If toddlers have difficulty controlling their emotions, it can lead to delayed mental development and behavior problems that can persist. When infants encounter overwhelming situations, they rely on caregivers to redirect their attention and provide distraction. Teaching children to turn away from unpleasant events can reduce their distress.
As infants gradually master crawling and walking, they acquire the ability to manage their emotions by either approaching or withdrawing from different situations. The way children express their emotions is learned from their caregivers. Infants who suppress negative emotions likely have caregivers who display happiness and surprise more frequently than anger and sadness. Boys generally face more challenges in regulating their emotions compared to girls, which explains why their caregivers often suppress negative emotions. It is observed that Chinese and Japanese infants tend to exhibit less frequent smiling and crying compared to American infants.
