develop
How Children
Robert Siegler Judy DeLoache Nancy Eisenberg Jenny Saffran
F o u r t h E d i t i o n
This is an exciting time in the field of child development. The past decade has brought new theories, new ways
of thinking, new areas of research, and innumerable new findings to the field. We originally wrote How Children
Develop to describe this ever improving body of knowledge of children and their development and to convey our
excitement about the progress that is being made in understanding the developmental process. We are pleased to
continue this endeavor with the publication of the Fourth Edition of How Children Develop.
—From the Preface
As new research expands the field’s understanding of child and adolescent development, the authors of How Chil-
dren Develop continue their commitment to bringing the story of today’s developmental science to the classroom in
a clear and memorable way. Joined in this Fourth Edition by Jenny Saffran of the University of Wisconsin–Madison,
they maintain their signature emphasis on the “Seven Classic Themes” of development, which facilitates students’
understanding by highlighting the fundamental questions posed by investigators past and present. The new and ex-
panded coverage in the Fourth Edition spans a wide range of topics—from broad areas like the epigenetic aspects
of development, the links between brain function and behavior, and the pervasive influence of culture to specific
subjects such as the mechanisms of infants’ learning, the effects of math anxiety, and the rapidly growing influence
of social media in children’s and adolescents’ lives. This edition also features the highly anticipated debut of Launch-
Pad, an online learning system that features Worth Publishers’ celebrated video collection; the full e-Book of How
Children Develop; and the LearningCurve quizzing system, which offers students instant feedback on their learning.
Learn more about and request access at www.worthpublishers.com/launchpad.
Order How Children Develop, Fourth Edition, with LaunchPad at no additional cost by using
ISBN 10: 1-4641-8284-1 / ISBN-13: 978-1-4641-8284-6.
Coverage of contemporary developmental science is very important to me. I prefer a text that describes the relevant
research and is updated regularly. I find How Children Develop to be very good in this area, as all of the authors are
primarily researchers.
—Jeffery Gagne, University of Texas at Arlington
I highly recommend this textbook. The main strengths are up-to-date research with clear descriptions of study
methods and findings as well as excellent real-world examples that get students interested in a topic so that they are
excited enough to read about the research and evidence that support real-world developmental phenomenon. I do
not think the text has a major weakness.
—Katherine O’Doherty, Bowdoin College
Since its inception, I think that How Children Develop.
1. develop
How Children
Robert Siegler Judy DeLoache Nancy Eisenberg Jenny
Saffran
F o u r t h E d i t i o n
This is an exciting time in the field of child development. The
past decade has brought new theories, new ways
of thinking, new areas of research, and innumerable new
findings to the field. We originally wrote How Children
Develop to describe this ever improving body of knowledge of
children and their development and to convey our
excitement about the progress that is being made in
understanding the developmental process. We are pleased to
continue this endeavor with the publication of the Fourth
Edition of How Children Develop.
—From the Preface
As new research expands the field’s understanding of child and
adolescent development, the authors of How Chil-
dren Develop continue their commitment to bringing the story
of today’s developmental science to the classroom in
a clear and memorable way. Joined in this Fourth Edition by
Jenny Saffran of the University of Wisconsin–Madison,
they maintain their signature emphasis on the “Seven Classic
Themes” of development, which facilitates students’
understanding by highlighting the fundamental questions posed
by investigators past and present. The new and ex-
panded coverage in the Fourth Edition spans a wide range of
topics—from broad areas like the epigenetic aspects
2. of development, the links between brain function and behavior,
and the pervasive influence of culture to specific
subjects such as the mechanisms of infants’ learning, the
effects of math anxiety, and the rapidly growing influence
of social media in children’s and adolescents’ lives. This
edition also features the highly anticipated debut of Launch-
Pad, an online learning system that features Worth Publishers’
celebrated video collection; the full e-Book of How
Children Develop; and the LearningCurve quizzing system,
which offers students instant feedback on their learning.
Learn more about and request access at
www.worthpublishers.com/launchpad.
Order How Children Develop, Fourth Edition, with LaunchPad
at no additional cost by using
ISBN 10: 1-4641-8284-1 / ISBN-13: 978-1-4641-8284-6.
Coverage of contemporary developmental science is very
important to me. I prefer a text that describes the relevant
research and is updated regularly. I find How Children Develop
to be very good in this area, as all of the authors are
primarily researchers.
—Jeffery Gagne, University of Texas at Arlington
I highly recommend this textbook. The main strengths are up-to-
date research with clear descriptions of study
methods and findings as well as excellent real-world examples
that get students interested in a topic so that they are
excited enough to read about the research and evidence that
support real-world developmental phenomenon. I do
not think the text has a major weakness.
—Katherine O’Doherty, Bowdoin College
4. this page intentionally left blank
develop
How Children
this page intentionally left blank
develop
How Children
F o u r t h E d i t i o n
Robert Siegler
Carnegie Mellon University
Judy DeLoache
University of Virginia
Nancy Eisenberg
Arizona State University
Jenny Saffran
University of Wisconsin–Madison
And Campbell Leaper,
University of California–Santa Cruz, reviser of Chapter 15:
Gender Development
5. This is dedicated to the ones we love
Senior Vice President, Editorial and Production: Catherine
Woods
Publisher: Kevin Feyen
Senior Acquisitions Editor: Daniel DeBonis
Development Editor: Peter Deane
Assistant Editor: Nadina Persaud
Executive Marketing Manager: Katherine Nurre
Associate Director of Market Research: Carlise Stembridge
Executive Media Editor: Rachel Comerford
Media Editor: Lauren Samuelson
Associate Media Editor: Anthony Casciano
Director of Development for Print and Digital Products: Tracey
Kuehn
Associate Managing Editor: Lisa Kinne
Senior Project Editor: Vivien Weiss
Production Manager: Sarah Segal
Art Director: Barbara Reingold
7. New York, NY 10010
www.worthpublishers.com
about the authors:
Robert Siegler is the Teresa Heinz Professor of Cognitive
Psychology at Carnegie
Mellon University. He is author of the cognitive development
textbook Children’s
Thinking and has written or edited several additional books on
child development. His
books have been translated into Japanese, Chinese, Korean,
Spanish, French, Greek,
Hebrew, and Portuguese. In the past few years, he has presented
keynote addresses at
the conventions of the Cognitive Development Society, the
International Society for the
Study of Behavioral Development, the Japanese Psychological
Association, the Eastern
Psychological Association, the American Psychological Society,
and the Conference on
Human Development. He also has served as Associate Editor of
the journal Developmental
Psychology, co-edited the cognitive development volume of the
2006 Handbook of Child
Psychology, and served on the National Mathematics Advisory
Panel from 2006 to 2008.
Dr. Siegler received the American Psychological Association’s
Distinguished Scientific
Contribution Award in 2005, was elected to the National
Academy of Education in 2010,
and was named Director of the Siegler Center for Innovative
Learning at Beijing Normal
8. University in 2012.
Judy DeLoache is the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of
Psychology at the University
of Virginia. She has published extensively on aspects of
cognitive development in infants
and young children. Dr. DeLoache has served as President of
the Developmental Division
of the American Psychological Association, as President of the
Cognitive Development
Society, and as a member of the executive board of the
International Society for the Study of
Infancy. She has presented major invited addresses at
professional meetings, including the
Association for Psychological Science and the Society for
Research in Child Development.
Dr. DeLoache is the holder of a Scientific MERIT Award from
the National Institutes
of Health, and her research is also funded by the National
Science Foundation. She has
been a visiting fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the
Behavioral Sciences in
Palo Alto, California, and at the Rockefeller Foundation Study
Center in Bellagio, Italy.
She is a Fellow of the National Academy of Arts and Sciences.
In 2013, she received
the Distinguished Research Contributions Award from the
Society for Research in Child
Development and the William James Award for Distinguished
Contributions to Research
from the Association for Psychological Science.
Nancy Eisenberg is Regents’ Professor of Psychology at
Arizona State University.
Her research interests include social, emotional, and moral
development, as well as so-
9. cialization influences, especially in the areas of self-regulation
and adjustment. She has
published numerous empirical studies, as well as books and
chapters on these topics.
She has also been editor of Psychological Bulletin and the
Handbook of Child Psychology
and was the founding editor of the Society for Research in Child
Development journal
Child Development Perspectives. Dr. Eisenberg has been a
recipient of Research Scientist
Development Awards and a Research Scientist Award from the
National Institutes of
Health (NICHD and NIMH). She has served as President of the
Western Psychological
Association and of Division 7 of the American Psychological
Association and is president-
elect of the Association for Psychological Science. She is the
2007 recipient of the Ernest
R. Hilgard Award for a Career Contribution to General
Psychology, Division 1, American
Psychological Association; the 2008 recipient of the
International Society for the Study
of Behavioral Development Distinguished Scientific
Contribution Award; the 2009 re-
cipient of the G. Stanley Hall Award for Distinguished
Contribution to Developmental
Psychology, Division 7, American Psychological Association;
and the 2011 William James
vi
Fellow Award for Career Contributions in the Basic Science of
Psychology from the
Association for Psychological Science.
10. Jenny R. Saffran is the College of Letters & Science
Distinguished Professor of
Psychology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and an
investigator at the Waisman
Center. Her research is focused on learning in infancy and early
childhood, with a particular
focus on language. Dr. Saffran currently holds a MERIT award
from the Eunice Kennedy
Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development. She has been the
recipient of numerous awards for her scientific research,
including the Boyd McCandless
Award from the American Psychological Association for early
career contributions to
developmental psychology, and the Presidential Early Career
Award for Scientists and
Engineers from the National Science Foundation.
vii
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . xx
1 An Introduction to Child Development . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 1
2 Prenatal Development and the Newborn Period . . . . . . .
. . . . 39
3 Biology and Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 85
4 Theories of Cognitive Development . . . . . . . . . . . .
13. Darwin’s Theory of Evolution 9
The Beginnings of Research-Based Theories of Child
Development 10
Review 10
Enduring Themes in Child Development . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 10
1 . Nature and Nurture: How Do Nature and Nurture Together
Shape
Development? 10
2 . The Active Child: How Do Children Shape Their Own
Development? 12
3 . Continuity/Discontinuity: In What Ways Is Development
Continuous,
and in What Ways Is It Discontinuous? 13
4 . Mechanisms of Development: How Does Change Occur? 16
5 . The Sociocultural Context: How Does the Sociocultural
Context
Influence Development? 17
6 . Individual Differences: How Do Children Become So
Different
from One Another? 20
7 . Research and Children’s Welfare: How Can Research
Promote
Children’s Well-Being? 21
Review 22
Methods for Studying Child Development . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 22
The Scientific Method 23
14. Contexts for Gathering Data About Children 25
Correlation and Causation 28
Designs for Examining Development 32
Ethical Issues in Child-Development Research 35
Review 36
contents:
ix
Chapter 2 Prenatal Development and
the Newborn Period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 39
Prenatal Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 41
Box 2.1: A Closer look Beng Beginnings 41
Conception 42
Box 2.2: Individual differences The First—and Last—Sex
Differences 44
Developmental Processes 45
Box 2.3: A Closer look Phylogenetic Continuity 46
Early Development 47
An Illustrated Summary of Prenatal Development 48
Fetal Behavior 51
Fetal Experience 52
Fetal Learning 54
Hazards to Prenatal Development 56
Box 2.4: Applications Face Up to Wake Up 61
18. Box 5.1: A Closer look Infants’ Face Perception 176
Box 5.2: A Closer look Picture Perception 183
Auditory Perception 182
Taste and Smell 186
Touch 186
Intermodal Perception 186
Review 188
xi
Motor Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 188
Reflexes 189
Motor Milestones 190
Current Views of Motor Development 191
Box 5.3: A Closer look “The Case of the Disappearing Reflex”
192
The Expanding World of the Infant 192
Box 5.4: Applications A Recent Secular Change in Motor
Development 195
Box 5.5: A Closer look “Gangway—I’m Coming Down” 196
Review 198
Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . 198
Habituation 199
Perceptual Learning 199
19. Statistical Learning 200
Classical Conditioning 201
Instrumental Conditioning 201
Observational Learning/Imitation 202
Rational Learning 204
Review 205
Cognition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . 205
Object Knowledge 206
Physical Knowledge 207
Social Knowledge 208
Looking Ahead 211
Review 211
Chapter 6 Development of Language and
Symbol Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 215
Language Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
The Components of Language 217
What Is Required for Language? 218
Box 6.1: Applications Two Languages Are Better Than One 222
The Process of Language Acquisition 224
Box 6.2: Individual differences The Role of Family and School
Context
in Early Language Development 235
Box 6.3: Applications: iBabies: Technology and Language
Learning 240
Theoretical Issues in Language Development 246
Box 6.4: A Closer look: “I Just Can’t Talk Without My Hands”
20. What Gestures
Tell Us About Language 248
Box 6.5: Individual differences Developmental Language
Disorders 251
Review 252
Nonlinguistic Symbols and Development . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 252
Using Symbols as Information 253
Drawing 254
Review 256
xii
Chapter 7 Conceptual Development . . . . . . . . . . . . .
259
Understanding Who or What . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 261
Dividing Objects into Categories 261
Knowledge of Other People and Oneself 266
Box 7.1: Individual differences Children with Autism Spectrum
Disorders (ASD) 270
Box 7.2: Individual differences Imaginary Companions 273
Knowledge of Living Things 273
Review 278
Understanding Why, Where, When, and How Many . . . . . .
. . . . . 278
21. Causality 279
Box 7.3: A Closer look Magical Thinking and Fantasy 282
Space 283
Time 286
Number 288
Relations Among Understanding of Space, Time, and Number
292
Review 293
Chapter 8 Intelligence and Academic Achievement . . . 297
What Is Intelligence? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 299
Intelligence as a Single Trait 299
Intelligence as a Few Basic Abilities 299
Intelligence as Numerous Processes 300
A Proposed Resolution 300
Review 301
Measuring Intelligence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 301
The Contents of Intelligence Tests 302
The Intelligence Quotient (IQ) 304
Continuity of IQ Scores 305
Box 8.1: Individual differences Gifted Children 306
Review 306
IQ Scores as Predictors of Important Outcomes . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 307
Review 308
Genes, Environment, and the Development of Intelligence . . .
22. . . . . 308
Qualities of the Child 309
Influence of the Immediate Environment 310
Influence of Society 313
Box 8.2: Applications: A Highly Successful Early Intervention:
The Carolina
Abecedarian Project 318
Review 320
Alternative Perspectives on Intelligence . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 320
Review 322
xiii
Acquisition of Academic Skills: Reading, Writing,
and Mathematics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 322
Reading 322
Box 8.3: Individual differences Dyslexia 326
Writing 328
Mathematics 330
Mathematics Anxiety 334
Box 8.4: Applications Mathematics Disabilities 335
Review 335
Chapter 9 Theories of Social Development . . . . . . . . .
339
23. Psychoanalytic Theories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 341
View of Children’s Nature 342
Central Developmental Issues 342
Freud’s Theory of Psychosexual Development 342
Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development 345
Current Perspectives 347
Review 348
Learning Theories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 348
View of Children’s Nature 349
Central Developmental Issues 349
Watson’s Behaviorism 349
Skinner’s Operant Conditioning 350
Social Learning Theory 352
Box 9.1: A Closer look Bandura and Bobo 352
Current Perspectives 355
Review 356
Theories of Social Cognition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 356
View of Children’s Nature 356
Central Developmental Issues 356
Selman’s Stage Theory of Role Taking 357
Dodge’s Information-Processing Theory of Social Problem
Solving 357
Dweck’s Theory of Self-Attributions and Achievement
Motivation 359
Current Perspectives 361
Review 361
Ecological Theories of Development . . . . . . . . . . . . .
24. . . . . . . . 362
View of Children’s Nature 362
Central Developmental Issues 362
Ethological and Evolutionary Theories 362
The Bioecological Model 366
Box 9.2: Individual differences Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder 370
Box 9.3: Applications Preventing Child Abuse 373
Current Perspectives 378
Review 379
xiv
Chapter 10 Emotional Development . . . . . . . . . . . . .
383
The Development of Emotions in Childhood . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 385
Theories on the Nature and Emergence of Emotion 386
The Emergence of Emotion in the Early Years and Childhood
387
Box 10.1: Individual differences Gender Differences in
Adolescent
Depression 396
Review 398
Regulation of Emotion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 398
The Development of Emotional Regulation 399
25. The Relation of Emotional Self-Regulation to Social
Competence and
Adjustment 401
Review 402
Individual Differences in Emotion and Its Regulation . . . . .
. . . . . . 402
Temperament 403
Box 10.2: A Closer look Measurement of Temperament 406
Review 410
Children’s Emotional Development in the Family . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 410
Quality of the Child’s Relationships with Parents 410
Parental Socialization of Children’s Emotional Responding 411
Review 414
Culture and Children’s Emotional Development . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 414
Review 416
Children’s Understanding of Emotion . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 416
Identifying the Emotions of Others 416
Understanding the Causes and Dynamics of Emotion 418
Children’s Understanding of Real and False Emotions 419
Review 421
Chapter 11 Attachment to Others and
Development of Self . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 425
The Caregiver–Child Attachment Relationship . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 427
26. Attachment Theory 428
Measurement of Attachment Security in Infancy 430
Box 11.1: Individual differences Parental Attachment Status 432
Cultural Variations in Attachment 434
Factors Associated with the Security of Children’s Attachment
435
Box 11.2: Applications Interventions and Attachment 436
Does Security of Attachment Have Long-Term Effects? 437
Review 439
Conceptions of the Self . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 439
The Development of Conceptions of Self 440
xv
Identity in Adolescence 446
Review 449
Ethnic Identity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 449
Ethnic Identity in Childhood 450
Ethnic Identity in Adolescence 451
Review 453
Sexual Identity or Orientation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 453
The Origins of Youths’ Sexual Identity 453
Sexual Identity in Sexual-Minority Youth 454
Review 458
27. Self-Esteem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 458
Sources of Self-Esteem 459
Self-Esteem in Minority Children 462
Culture and Self-Esteem 463
Review 464
Chapter 12 The Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . 467
Family Dynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 470
Box 12.1: A Closer look Parent–Child Relationships
in Adolescence 471
Review 472
The Role of Parental Socialization . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 472
Parenting Styles and Practices 472
The Child as an Influence on Parenting 477
Socioeconomic Influences on Parenting 479
Box 12.2: A Closer look Homelessness 481
Review 482
Mothers, Fathers, and Siblings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 482
Differences in Mothers’ and Fathers’ Interactions with Their
Children 482
Sibling Relationships 483
Review 485
Changes in Families in the United States . . . . . . . . . . .
28. . . . . . . . 485
Box 12.3: Individual differences Adolescents as Parents 486
Older Parents 488
Divorce 489
Stepparenting 494
Lesbian and Gay Parents 496
Review 497
Maternal Employment and Child Care . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 498
The Effects of Maternal Employment 498
The Effects of Child Care 500
Review 506
xvi
Chapter 13 Peer Relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . 509
What Is Special About Peer Relationships? . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 512
Friendships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . 513
Early Peer Interactions and Friendships 513
Developmental Changes in Friendship 515
The Functions of Friendships 517
Effects of Friendships on Psychological Functioning and
Behavior
over Time 520
Box 13.1: Individual differences Culture and Children’s Peer
Experience 522
29. Children’s Choice of Friends 523
Review 525
Peers in Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 525
The Nature of Young Children’s Groups 525
Cliques and Social Networks in Middle Childhood and Early
Adolescence 526
Cliques and Social Networks in Adolescence 526
Negative Influences of Cliques and Social Networks 528
Box 13.2: A Closer look Cyberspace and Children’s Peer
Experience 529
Romantic Relationships with Peers 531
Review 532
Status in the Peer Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 532
Measurement of Peer Status 533
Characteristics Associated with Sociometric Status 533
Box 13.3: Applications Fostering Children’s Peer Acceptance
538
Stability of Sociometric Status 539
Cross-Cultural Similarities and Differences in Factors Related
to
Peer Status 539
Peer Status as a Predictor of Risk 540
Review 543
The Role of Parents in Children’s Peer Relationships . . . . .
. . . . . . 544
Relations Between Attachment and Competence with Peers 544
30. Quality of Ongoing Parent–Child Interactions and
Peer Relationships 545
Parental Beliefs 546
Gatekeeping and Coaching 546
Family Stress and Children’s Social Competence 548
Review 548
Chapter 14 Moral Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. 553
Moral Judgment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 555
Piaget’s Theory of Moral Judgment 555
Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Judgment 558
xvii
Prosocial …
Week Three Assignment
Answer the following questions:
1. What did you notice about how the children interacted with
each other?
2. Did one child stay fairly close to his/her parents?
3. What age was this child?
4. Did age play a role in how far a child played from his/her
31. parents?
5. Could you identify any parenting styles while observing?
6. How do you think this assignment helps you to better
understand the material covered this week?
