Reference no: EM133491088

Question 1
Theo pushes into a crawling position onto all fours and rocks back and forth. Theo will soon crawl, about 2 months later than the other babies in the child care center. Much smaller than his peers, Theo is new to the child care center, recently adopted from an overcrowded orphanage in a developing country. At first tiny Theo didn't eat much. The adults around him worried about his poor eating habits and lack of growth. Soon, however, Theo became comfortable in his new, affectionate and nurturing home and he began to grow quickly.

1. How do motor skills unfold during infancy? Should Theo's parents worry about his progress? Why or why not?
2. Theo's mother worries about how his early experiences of deprivation might influence Theo's brain development. Discuss processes of brain development and the role of experience in development.
3. What can she do to help Theo?

Question 2

Infants reared in impoverished orphanages may receive little attention and experience few meaningful interactions with caregivers.
1. What might these experiences mean for the development of attachment?
2. What outcomes and behaviors might you expect from children reared under such conditions? In your view, what can be done to help such children?

Question 3
Eighteen-month-old Stefana toddles across the floor to her mother, gripping her leg as she cries. "Ah, come here, hija," her mother, Perda, says as she scoops Stefana into her arms and soothes her. "Are you tired? Let's take a nap," Perda says. As she puts Stefana in her crib, Perda reminds herself that Stefana has come a long way.
Stefana was a challenge from day 1, as Perda's mother puts it. She cried through the day and night on most days. It was hard to determine what caused her to cry. Was the room too loud or too cold? Did she just wake up on the "wrong side of the crib"? Stefana was unpredictable, to say the least, sometimes liking specific foods-and other times spitting them out. Sometimes she napped and often she didn't. "Challenging or not, I'm here for my little girl," Perda thought.
At 18 months, Stefana is still unpredictable, but she is more easily soothed. Now when she hears a loud noise, like a truck backfiring outside, she no longer wails. Instead she looks to her mother and soon goes back to playing.
The child care center teacher has noted that Stefana adjusts much more easily to her mother leaving. When Perda goes to work, Stefana cries at first but sucks her thumb and begins to play shortly thereafter. She beams and runs to Perda when she returns every afternoon.

• How would you describe Stefana's temperament?
• How do Stefana and Perda's temperament styles interact?
• How would you describe Stefana's attachment style?
• What long-term outcomes do you expect for Stefana?

Question 4
How might contextual factors and cultural preferences influence the prevalence of left or right handedness?

Question 5
Discuss the effect of Culture and parenting practices on children's socio-emotional development.