Infant Psychosocial and
Cognitive Development
By Nicole Rios
Unit 4 Project
 Developmental Stages Chart
 Using the charts on milestones of development found
in our text along with other unit material, create a
chart of your own. This chart needs to combine some
landmarks in each of the following stages from birth
to three years of age:
 physical and motor development
 psychosocial development
 cognitive development
Unit 4 Project cont….
 When creating your chart, choose a reasonable
sampling from each area; these could be milestones
of development that strike you as most meaningful.
 Expected developmental milestones are based on the
idea that children tend to follow similar developmental
patterns.
 When doing this activity, keep in mind that current
thinking about expected patterns of growth and
development tells us that multiple biological and
environmental influences affect both the sequence
and timing of motor skills.
 In addition, include a one-paragraph analysis
addressing the fact that individuals develop at varying
rates.
Unit 4 Project Rubric




You used the charts on milestones of development found in
the text along with other unit material to create a chart. A
paragraph reflected current thinking about expected
patterns of growth and development, that multiple
biological and environmental influences affect both the
sequence and timing of motor skills ___/15 points
The chart combined some landmarks and a reasonable
sampling of meaningful milestones from each area in each
of the following stages from birth to three years of age:
physical and motor development; 20 points psychosocial
development; 20 points and cognitive development 20
points___/60 points
Project was free of grammar, usage, mechanics and spelling
errors ___/10 pointsTotal
Points out of a possible 100___/100 points
Psychosocial Development
Milestones and Theories…
Question:
What are some social
and emotional
milestones for
infants?
Psychosocial (Social and Emotional)
Development Milestones
 Birth to Age 1
 Shows trust and attachment to
primary caregiver
 Recognizes familiar voices
 Shows feelings
 Responds positively to family members or
caregivers
 May suffer from separation anxiety or stranger
anxiety
 Enjoys social games (such as peek-a-boo)
Question:
What are some ways to
promote social and
emotional
development
in infants?
Promoting Psychosocial (Social and
Emotional) Development in Infants
 Be nurturing and responsive to their needs
to ensure healthy attachments develop
 Be empathetic and accepting of the infant’s
needs
 Provide predictable care for the infant
 Provide opportunities for exercise and play
in social environments
 Talk, sing, read to and play with infants
Psychosocial Theories
Erickson’s Theory of
Psychosocial
Development
Attachment Theory
Social Learning Theory
Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial
Development
 According to Erikson, the shaping of
the self is marked by:




The search for identity
The individual’s relationships
The role of culture
The passage through developmental
stages (which begin at birth)
Erikson’s Theory:
Infancy Stage
 Trust vs. Mistrust (Birth to age 1)
 Infants develop trust when:
 They encounter nurturing,
warm, and predictable
interactions with their caregivers
 Their needs (physical and
emotional) are met
 Infants develop mistrust when caregivers
neglect, reject, or fail to respond to
infants
Question:
Based on Erikson’s
theory, how can we
help infants develop
trust?
Attachment Theory
 Infants form loving, emotional
attachments with parents
 John Bowlby is a psychiatrist who
studied attachment. He focused his
studies on children who were raised
in institutions.
Attachment Theory:
Findings of John Bowlby:
 Infants who had formed strong
relationships with their mothers and were
separated from their mothers for extended
periods of time developed resistance to
close relationships
 Children raised in institutions were unable
to form lasting relationships with others
 In these institutions, all of their physical needs
were met, however they were not necessarily
cared for in a nurturing and affectionate
manner.
Question:
What does attachment
theory tell us about
the emotional needs of
infants?
Social Learning Theory:
 Role models shape the development
of human beings
 Socialization is a process that
influences the behaviors, values,
interactions, etc.
 An infant’s development depends on
their social interactions and
environment
Question:
What are the
implications of social
learning theory on our
interactions with
infants?
Cognitive and Language
Development
Milestones and Theories…
Question:
What are some
cognitive and
language milestones
for infants?
Cognitive and Language
Development Milestones
 Birth to Age 1
 Communicates through crying, cooing,
whimpering, and facial expressions
 Smiles and laughs
 Uses gestures to communicate (waving,
clapping, baby signs)
 Produces vowel sounds with some
consonants
 Produces words (closer to 1 year old)
 Looks at books and interacts with toys
Question:
What are some ways to
promote language and
cognitive development
in infants?
Promoting Cognitive and Language
Development in Infants
 Birth to Age 1
 Talk, sing, read to, tell stories, and play
with infants
 Provide lots of interaction
 Provide age-appropriate toys
 Use child-directed speech
 Create a safe environment in which
infant can explore
 Provide stimulating experiences (but
avoid over-stimulation)
Cognitive Theories
Piaget’s Theory
Information Processing
Theory
Social Interactionist Theory
Contextualist Theory
Cognitive Development:
Piaget’s Theory
 Cognitive development results because
we are constantly trying to make sense
of the world.
 Four factors influence our cognitive
development—biological maturation,
activity, social experience, and
equilibration (our effort to organize
information and fit it into our knowledge
schemes)
 Cognitive development takes place in
stages
Piaget’s Theory:
The Infant’s Stage of Development
 Sensorimotor Stage (0-2 years)
 0-1 month: reflexes develop with sensory
experiences and human interactions
 1-4 months: motor activity becomes purposeful
and intentional
 4-8 months: infants develop simple cause and
effect understanding (Ex: if they hit water in the
tub, it will splash)
 8-12 months: infants develop object
permanence (they know that an object exists
even if they cannot see or touch it)
 12-24 months: infants develop symbolic
representations (thinking before acting,
imagination)
Question:
How can we promote
cognitive development
in the sensorimotor
stage?
Cognitive Development:
Information Processing Theory
 Cognitive development is based on
inputs, throughputs, and outputs
 Inputs: Infant gathers information
though their senses
 Throughputs: Infants process the
new information by comparing it to
other information already stored
 Outputs: Infants respond to new
information through motor and verbal
responses
Question:
Based on this theory, what
types of activities or
interactions would support
the cognitive development
of infants?
Cognitive Development:
Social Interactionist Theory
 Infants learn new information
through:
 Observations of others
 Imitating others
 Social situations
Question:
In your opinion, does nature
(biological and genetic
influences) or nurture (social
and environmental influences)
have a greater effect on
cognitive development? Why?
Cognitive Development:
Contextualistic Theory
 Development in all domains (not only
cognitive) is a result of reciprocal
influences:
 The child influences the environment as
he/she develops and the environment
influences the child as he/she develops
 Child development is an interactive
process between the child and his/her
social and cultural influences
Weekly Quote
Example isn't another way to
teach, it is the only way to teach."
~Albert Einstein
References
Puckett, M. & Black, J. (2005). The
Young Child. New Jersey: Pearson
Education Inc.