More Evidence that "Difficult" Babies are Most Influenced by Parents

I've written several times on this blog about children's temperaments and how they may or may not affect a child later in life. Based on the research that is coming out on this topic, it is becoming more and more clear that how a child's temperament influences his/her later behavior has a lot to do with the quality of the parental relationship. A recent study from the University of Maryland further reiterates this idea:

-- Researchers followed 84 infants from birth to age 2

-- Babies were rates on their level of irritability. This was based on how they reacted to stimuli such as hearing a bell ringing or being undressed

-- At 1 year of age, the attachment style of the babies was measured using the classic attachment rating process. 

-- At 18-24 months of age, the children were brought to the laboratory to see how they reacted to an unfamiliar environment

-- Results shows that toddlers who were more irritable as infants were more likely to be sociable and interact well with the new environment if they have a secure attachment to their mothers

-- By contrast, toddlers who were more irritable as infants were less likely to be sociable if they had an insecure attachment to their mothers

-- Interestingly, for toddlers who were only moderately irritable as infants, the quality of attachment with their mothers had little influence on their sociability or willingness to engage with the new environment

So basically what this study tells us is that children who are highly irritable or "difficult" as infants are more vulnerable to the role of parental influence. If parents are responsive to them they have as much (or perhaps greater) likelihood to grow into sociable, engaged toddlers. However, these "difficult" babies are also more vulnerable to a lack of parent responsiveness and if this need is not met they are also more likely to be withdrawn or less sociable as toddlers.

This topic is so important because often times I think parents consider their child's temperament as something permanent or something that they have little influence over. Based on the research that's coming out, it's looking like temperament is more like a moderating factor, that in some ways may affect how susceptible a child is to the outside environment, including parenting actions.

I think a lot about this topic because I worry about all the babies out there who are considered "difficult" or have an irritable temperament. They often put more of a strain on parents--they require hours of holding, rocking, and soothing and as a parent you may wonder if you can keep it up. I worry that many parents or caregivers will simply think the child has a "bad" temperament and not see the positive characteristics the baby or child has to offer.

After reading the research, I have begun to see babies labeled as having a "difficult" temperament as having great promise for being outgoing, social children. These babies seem to be the most sensitive to parents' behavior and reactions, even more so than "easy" babies. Thus, while these babies may require more effort and attention, the amount of influence parents and caregivers have on these babies is also greater. There is something lovely in thinking about an irritable/fussy baby who turns into an outgoing, sociable toddler and this can be in large part due to attentive, responsive parents.

So if you are a parent of a irritable infant, take heart! All the effort you are putting forth for your child really is worth it (as if you had any doubt). In a year or so, you may begin to see an adventurous, engaging toddler emerge in your midst.

Stupica B, Sherman LJ, & Cassidy J (2011). Newborn irritability moderates the association between infant attachment security and toddler exploration and sociability. Child development, 82 (5), 1381-9 PMID: 21883159

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Help Set a Reading Record!

I recently found out about We Give Books, an online campaign to get children and their parents reading and donating books to schools. It's a great idea. You simply sign up to read books online with your children and the organization donates books to schools all over the country every time you read. Additionally, they have several different reading campaigns and you can choose which one to support.

This Thursday, Oct. 6 they are hosting huge reading event to break the record for the  largest shared reading event. All you need to do is pledge to read in person or online to help reach the goal. This year's book is one you and your kids will enjoy--Llama Llama Red Pajama. In addition to the world record, We Give Books hopes to use this campaign to donate 50,000 books to schools across the country.

I just signed up to read on Oct. 6. Join in the fun!

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On SpongeBob, Silence, and the Challenges of Raising a "Digital Native"

You may have noticed that SpongeBob Squarepants was all over the news last week. Who knew a little cartoon character could get so much media attention? Well, I jumped on the bandwagon also and posted a piece on the infamous "SpongeBob study" on Notes on Parenting. You can check out the details there, but the main point of the study was that 4-year-olds who watched SpongeBob for nine minutes had a more difficult time with tasks involving "execute function" (i.e., self-control) than kids who watched nine minutes of a slower-paced cartoon or those who drew pictures instead. The executive function task usually involves seeing how long a child can wait for a desired reward like a piece of candy.

The news media jumped on this story and again brought into public discussion the issue of media and the role in plays in children's development. While the issue of the study itself (fast-paced TV shows) is important, for me it brings to mind the larger issues at hand. What does it mean for us to be parenting our children in an era so consumed by media and technology. A thoughtful commentary by a leading researcher in the area of children's media, Dimitri Christakis, helped me focus my thoughts on this topic. He makes the distinction "digital natives" and "digital immigrants." Today's generation of children are considered digital natives because they were born after the influx of modern digital technology (e.g., email, internet, iPhones, etc.) so they have never known a world without these inventions. Their parents (and older generations), on the other hand, are digital immigrants because we only came to experience the internet and related technology as adults. In a sense, then, it is our role as parents to guide our children through a media landscape that we ourselves did not experience as children. Yes, we had TV as children, but we didn't have the plethora of media choices that now present themselves to our children at every turn. There are online videos, portable game and video players, numerous gaming devices, not to mention smart phones and tablet computers. The availability of media technology is sometimes overwhelming to us as adults, so consider how overwhelming it must be to young children. Of course, it may not seem like it's overwhelming by looking at them. These "digital native" children are often more adept at the new technology than we are, but one thing we as adults are more skilled at (hopefully) is self-regulation. We know how to regulate our use of technology so that we turn it off if it is distracting us from our task at hand or causing other problems. Children, on the other hand, are not usually very skilled in self-regulation at an early age. Many children, if allowed, will use two or three different types of media devices at once. You know you've seen this: the tween who is texting while also playing a video game and watching TV.

Some would argue that there is nothing wrong with this type of multi-tasking, media immersion. Isn't this type of immersion going to prepare children for the work world they will face in the future? Multi-tasking is the name of the game in the business world, right? While I know that this type of technology multi-tasking is commonplace, I think something is lost in the blur of constant noise (not to mention that research shows multi-tasking to be ineffective).

Regardless of one's religious/spiritual beliefs, I think almost everyone recognizes the need for silence in their lives. Time for reflection, thinking about decisions, beliefs, etc. It is increasingly difficult to find this type of silence in our media-laden world. It has become very difficult to find time to disconnect from all our technological devices long enough to focus on our inner thoughts. To me, this is the real concern with the SpongeBob-type shows of the world--it acclimates kids at a fast-paced mindset that is just unnecessary at a young age. Soon enough they will be inundated with media images, video games, etc., why not let young kids enjoy the simple, slow pace of childhood.

We all want our children to be thoughtful and considerate friends and citizens but this is hard to do if you are constantly distracted by technology. It's hard to focus on the ideas of another person if you are texting two other people at the same time you are talking with another. Just as important, we want our children to find and pursue their interests and passions in life--to find something that they really love to do. I feel it's hard to get in touch with this if you are always connected to some type of media or device and do not allow time for silence.

I can already tell that raising a "digital native" will have its challenges. Finding the balance between using technology for productivity, education, and entertainment without having it consume my child's life will be difficult at times. Personally, my goal is to help my son learn to use technology effectively at each age, but also learn how to turn it off and enjoy the silence.

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For Those Science Geeks Like Me...

I just listened to a great Fresh Air episode about children's brain development that I thought I should share. In a quick 16 minutes the scientist/authors cover topics like how to get your kid to eat vegetables, encouraging self-control, and sensitive periods of brain development. It's worth a listen if you enjoy the science behind child development.