Child development: myths and misunderstandings

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%.

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%.