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Child development: myths and misunderstandings
Author
Publisher
SAGE
Publication Date
Varies, see individual formats and editions
Language
English
Summary
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Table of Contents
From the Book
Genetics and prenatal life
Claim 1: Genetic factors play such a strong role in human development that genes alone can determine certain human behavioral characteristics
Claim 2: There is no harm in putting off childbearing until the mother's career is established
Claim 3: If a child's problem is genetically caused, the problem will be present at birth and will stay the same throughout life
Claim 4: Unborn babies are not influenced much by the environment outside the mother's body
Claim 5: As a mother-to-be gets closer to the date when her baby will be born, she needs to be more careful about alcohol and drugs, because the risk of birth defects increases throughout pregnancy
Claim 6: If a woman who is taking antidepressant medication becomes pregnant, she should stop taking the drugs because they may cause birth defects in her baby
Claim 7: Mothers care for their babies well because they have a maternal instinct
Claim 8: Babies work hard to be born
Claim 9: "Crack babies" can't be cured and will always have serious problems
Infants and toddlers
Claim 10: Parents need to have contact with their babies right after birth, so they can bond with them
Claim 11: Babies are born with emotional attachments to their mothers and can recognize their mothers at once
Claim 12: Babies cannot see when they are first born
Claim 13: A baby's sleeping position can cause or prevent suddent infant death syndrome
Claim 14: Development of the brain is caused by experience, so it's possible to cause quick cognitive or emotional changes by stimulating a child's brain in the right way
Claim 15: Parents should not talk baby talk to their children, because this slows their language development
Claim 16: Breast-feeding makes babies more intelligent
Claim 17: It is important for parents to work with babies and teach them how to walk
Claim 18: Toddlers drop food on the floor because they want to make their parents mad
Claim 19: It is a good thing for an infant or a toddler to have experience with many caregivers, not just one or two
Claim 20: Some children would starve to death if their parents did not coax them to eat
Preschoolers
Claim 21: Having kids listen to Mozart makes them smart
Claim 22: The time between birth and age 3 years is the most important period of development and learning in a person's life
Claim 23: Day care is like school, so it provides an excellent foundation for children's development
Claim 24: If a child is able to complete a task with an adult present, he or she is also able to do it alone
Claim 25: Preschoolers who hold their breath when angry are trying to upset their parents and get their own way
Claim 26: Vaccines are a cause of autism
Claim 27: Autism rates are rising rapidly, especially in certain parts of the country, so something must be happening to cause more cases of this serious developmental problem
Claim 28: Children with brain injuries can be rehabilitated by using practices like patterning, and other problems can be treated with similar approaches
Claim 29: Preschoolers who try to bargain with their parents really want to manipulate and control adults, and they should not be allowed to negotiate
School-age children
Claim 30: Children who play with matches will grow up to be seriously disturbed and violent and will probably be serial killers, especially if they are also cruel to animals and wet their beds
Claim 31: Children have different learning styles, depending on whether they are left brained or right brained
Claim 32: Karate lessons help schoolchildren achieve self-discipline and improve their schoolwork
Claim 33: Learning to read is mainly a matter of recognizing letters and reciting the alphabet, so watching TV programs like Sesame Street is the most important preparation for school success
Claim 34: Birth order is an important factor that determines children's intelligence and personality
Claim 35: Bullying is a natural behavior for children, and there's nothing you can do to stop it
Claim 36: sugar is a major cause of hyperactive behavior
Claim 37: Adopted children have many more problems of social and emotional development than nonadopted children do
Claim 38: It is important for parents to be fair and treat all their children in the same way
Claim 39: A child's personality is formed by his or her experiences, especially those within the family
Adolescents
Claim 40: Children are more likely to become delinquent if their fathers are absent or uninvolved
Claim 41: Violent television programs and video games cause increased aggressive behavior
Claim 42: If parents are not strict enough, children will behave badly and may become criminals
Claim 43: Adolescents' brains go through some rapid changes; as a result, teenagers develop new ways of thinking about the world and about themselves
Claim 44: High self-esteem makes children perform better in school
Claim 45: The DARE program is an effective way to prevent children and adolescents from dealing or using drugs
Claim 46: children and adolescents learn bad behavior from their peers
Claim 47: Young teenagers should be tried and sentenced as adults if they commit serious crimes
Claim 48: Adolescence is an emotionally dangerous time when teenagers are likely to attempt or commit suicide
Claim 49: Punishment is an effective way of changing children's and adolescents' undesirable behaviors
Claim 50: Children are reaching puberty earlier with each generation
Claim 51: Teenage boys and girls should have about the same level of fat in their bodies, about 10%.
From the Book - Second edition.
Genetic factors play such a strong role in human development that genes alone can determine certain human behavioral characteristics
There is no harm in putting off childbearing until the mother's career is established
If a child's problem is genetically caused, the problem will be present at birth and will stay the same throughout life
Unborn babies are not influenced much by the environment outside the mother's body
As a mother-to-be gets closer to the date when her child will be born, she needs to be more careful about alcohol and drugs, because the risk of birth defects increases throughout pregnancy
If a woman who is taking antidepressant medication becomes pregnant, she should stop taking the drugs because they may cause birth defects in her baby
Mothers care for their babies well because they have a maternal instinct
Babies work hard to be born
"Crack babies" can't be cured and will always have serious problems
We can learn about human development from studying baby animals, especially primates
Parents need to have contact with their babies right after birth, so they can bond with them
Babies are born with emotional attachments to their mothers and can recognize their mothers at once
Feral children are individuals who have been brought up from infancy by animals
A baby's sleeping position can cause or prevent sudden infant death syndrome
Parents should not talk baby talk to their children, because this slows their language development
Being exposed to two different languages is confusing for babies and interferes with normal language development
Breast-feeding makes babies more intelligent
When parents divorce, it's important for young children to have certain experiences with both parents, or they will form an attachment to only one of them
Toddlers drop food on the floor because they want to make their parents mad
It is important for parents to work with babies and teach them how to walk
It is a good thing for an infant or toddler to have experience with many caregivers, not just one or two
Some children would starve to death if their parents did not coax them to eat
Parents who were abused as children are likely to abuse their own children
Having kids listen to Mozart makes them smart
The time between birth and age 3 years is the most important period of development and learning in a person's life
People who were adopted will always be unhappy because they have suffered a Primal Wound
Children need to develop basic trust and show it by their confidence in other people
If a child is able to complete a task with an adult present, he or she is also able to do it alone
Preschoolers who hold their breath when angry are trying to upset their parents and get their own way
Vaccines and heavy metals cause autism
Autism rates are rising rapidly, especially in certain parts of the country, so something must be happening to cause more cases of this serious developmental problem
Children with brain injuries can be rehabilitated by using practices like patterning, and other problems can be treated with similar approaches
Preschoolers who try to bargain with their parents really want to manipulate and control adults, and they should not be allowed to negotiate
A young child can tell when someone is just teasing
Children with attachment disorders must be treated very sternly and differently from typically developing children, even in ways that are ordinarily considered abusive
Spanking should never be used to discipline a child, because it is ineffective and causes children to model the aggression they experience
Children who play with matches will grow up to be seriously disturbed and violent and will probably be serial killers, especially if they are also cruel to animals and wet their beds
Children have different learning styles, depending on whether they are left brained or right brained
Karate lessons help schoolchildren achieve self-discipline and improve their schoolwork
Birth order is an important factor that determines children's intelligence and personality
When a child is mentally ill, any psychological treatment is better than no treatment
Bullying is a natural behavior for children, and there's nothing you can do to stop it
Sugar is a major cause of hyperactive behavior
Adopted children have many more problems of social and emotional development than do nonadopted children
If a child is sexually molested, he or she will probably repress the memory
Parents really don't influence their children's long-term development very much
Children are more likely to become delinquent if their fathers are absent or uninvolved
Violent television programs and video games cause increased aggressive behavior
If parents are not strict enough, children will behave badly and may become criminals
Adolescents' brains go through some rapid changes; as a result, teenagers develop new ways of thinking about themselves and about the world
High self-esteem makes children perform better in school
Single-sex schools give better outcomes of academic achievement than do coeducational schools
The DARE program is an effective way to prevent children and adolescents from dealing or using drugs
Children and adolescents learn bad behavior from their peers
Young teenagers should be tried and sentenced as adults if they commit serious crimes
Adolescence is an emotionally dangerous time when teenagers are likely to attempt or commit suicide
Punishment is an effective way of changing children's and adolescents' undesirable behaviors
Children are reaching puberty earlier with each generation
Teenage boys and girls should have the same level of fat in their bodies, about 10%.
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ISBN
9781452217680
9781412956468
9781412956468
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