Social development is crucial for children, encompassing their ability to form relationships and contribute positively to their communities. It is closely linked to emotional development and involves learning social skills through interactions with parents, peers, and cultural participation. Theories by Bowlby, Erikson, Vygotsky, Bandura, and Bronfenbrenner provide frameworks for understanding the complexities of social development throughout the different stages of life.

1. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Hina Jalal (PhD Scholar)

2.  Social development is an important aspect of child development. It is the ability to form positive and pleasing relationships
with others (Cohen and others 2005).
 This is important to note that social development is closely associated with emotional development and these two aspects of
development are frequently termed as socioemotional development. It means that both of the developments occur
simultaneously.
 Social development includes learning the values, knowledge and skills that enable children to relate to others effectively and to
contribute in positive ways to family, school and the community.
 This kind of learning is delivered on to children by three means: directly by parents and teachers; indirectly through social
relationships within the family or with friends, and through children’s participation in the culture around them.
 Social skills include various abilities such as communication, problem-solving, decision making, self-management, and peer
relations.
 Social competence is related to peer acceptance, teacher acceptance, present success, and future (post school) success.
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

3. THEORIES RELATED TO SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
• Attachment theory by John Bowlby (1907-1990)
• Social Development/ Personality Development by Erik Erikson (1902 - 1994)
• Socio_cultural theory of cognitive development by Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky (896-1934)
• Social Learning Theory" (renamed as "Social Cognitive Theory") by Albert Bandura (1925)
• Environmental Ecological Theory by Urie Bronfenbrenner was born (1917-2005)

4. Attachment theory by John Bowlby (1907-1990)
Attachment is a psychological bond between humans. It
lasts for a long period of time. To Bowlby, because of
attachment a baby remains connected to his mother. An
infant’s attachment to a caregiver works as the basis for all
future social development.
Mary Ainsworth (1913-1999)
She found four different categories of attachment:
securely attached, avoidant-insecurely attached,
anxiousambivalently attached and disorganized-
disoriented attached.
According to Ainsworth, the attachment patterns which
are developed in infancy and toddlerhood remains fairly
established throughout the lifetime. So it is important for
parents and teachers to focus on the attachment aspect
in order to help child to develop positive social relations
in future.

5. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT/ PERSONALITY
DEVELOPMENT BY ERIK ERIKSON (1902 - 1994)
Psychosocial Crisis Basic
Virtue
Age Outcomes
Stage 1
Trust vs. Mistrust
Hope 0 - 2 Children develop a sense of trust when caregivers provide reliability, care, and affection. A lack of
this will lead to mistrust.
Stage 2
Autonomy vs. Shame
Will 2 - 3 Children need to develop a sense of personal control over physical skills and a sense of
independence. Success leads to feelings of autonomy, failure results in feelings of shame and
doubt.
Stage 3
Initiative vs. Guilt
Purpose 3 - 5 Children need to begin asserting control and power over the environment. Success in this stage
leads to a sense of purpose. Children who try to exert too much power experience disapproval,
resulting in a sense of guilt.
Stage4
Industry vs. Inferiority
Competency 5 - 12 Children need to cope with new social and academic demands. Success leads to a sense of
competence, while failure results in feelings of inferiority.
Stage 5
Identity vs. Role Confusion
Fidelity 12 - 18 Teens needs to develop a sense of self and personal identity.Success leads to an ability to stay
true to yourself, while failure leads to role confusion and a weak sense of self.
Stage 6
Intimacy vs. Isolation
Love 18 - 40 Young adults need to form intimate, loving relationships with other people. Success leads to
strong relationships, while failure results in loneliness and isolation.
Stage 7
Generativity vs. Stagnation
Care 40 - 65 Adults need to create or nurture things that will outlast them, often by having children or creating
a positive change that benefits other people. Success leads to feelings of usefulness and
accomplishment, while failure results in shallow involvement in the world.
Stage 8
Ego Integrity vs. Despair
Wisdom 65+ Older adults need to look back on life and feel a sense of fulfilment. Success at this stage leads to
feelings of wisdom, while failure results in regret, bitterness, and despair.

6. • Socio_cultural theory of cognitive development by Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky (896-1934)
Vygotsky explained that children learn in a systematic and logical way as a result of dialogue and interaction
with a skilled helper within a zone of proximal development (ZPD). It has two boundaries. The lower boundary
of the ZPD is activities the learner can do independently without the help of a teacher or guide. Similarly, the
upper limit of the ZPD is those learning outcomes that the learner could not achieve at this time even mentor.

7. More Knowledgeable Other
According to Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development, children
learn through social interaction that include collaborative and
cooperative dialogue with someone who is more skilled in tasks they’re
trying to learn. Vygotsky called these people with higher skill level
the More Knowledgeable Other (MKO). They could be teachers,
parents, tutors and even peers.
Scaffolding
Vygotsky’s concept of scaffolding is closely related to the concept of
the Zone of Proximal Development. Scaffolding refers to the temporary
support given to a child by a More Knowledgeable Other that enables
the child to perform a task until such time that the child can perform
this task independently.
• Socio_cultural theory by Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky (896-1934)

8. • Social Learning Theory" (renamed as "Social Cognitive Theory") by Albert Bandura (1925)
He has done a great deal of work on social learning and is famous
for his "Social Learning Theory" (renamed as "Social Cognitive
Theory"). According to Bandura, development of competence
depends on three kinds of factors:
(1) Behaviors children and adults observe within their home or
society
(2) mental factors such as a student’s own expectations of success,
and
(3) social factors such as classroom and school climate.
Each factor affects others equally and changes in one factor will
result in changes in the others. In the classroom, for example, a
child’s beliefs about himself and his competence (self-efficacy) can
affect social behavior which, in turn, will have an impact on the
classroom environment. At the same time, changes in the classroom
that lead to a change in competence will have an impact on self-
efficacy

9. • Environmental Ecological Theory by Urie Bronfenbrenner was born (1917-2005)
Ecological theory stated that people develop within a series of
environmental systems.
At the base is Micro-system, which includes home, family,
neighborhood and school where the individual spends a large
part of his time.
Meso system functions as interconnections between the micro
system.
Exo-system involves links between a social setting in which the
individual does not have an active role and the individual's
immediate context. For example, a child’s experience at home
may be influenced by the parents’ experiences at work.
Macro-system describes the culture in which individuals.
Cultural contexts include developing and industrialized
countries, socioeconomic status, poverty, and ethnicity. Macro-
system describes the culture in which individuals live.
Chrono-system is the deriving of environmental events and
changes
socio-historical conditions