Page 31 - Advanced Biblical Counseling Student Textbook
P. 31

Maturation and Infant Memory:  Our earliest memories seldom come before our third birthday. By 4 to
               5 years, childhood “amnesia” is giving way to remembered experiences.

               Reflection: What is your earliest memory? Write about it below. These memories are usually associated
               with a strong emotion like happiness, sadness, fear or excitement.

               Social Development
               How do parent-infant attachment bonds form?
               “From birth, babies in all cultures are social creatures, developing an intense bond with their caregivers.
               Infants come to prefer familiar faces and voices, then to coo when given their mother’s or father’s
               attention. Soon after object permanence emerges and children become mobile, a curious thing
               happens. Object permanence is the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived.
               At about 8 months, they develop stranger anxiety which is the fear of strangers that infants commonly
               display around 8 months. They may greet strangers by crying and reaching for familiar caregivers. “No!
               Don’t leave me!” their distress seems to say. At about this age, children create schemas of familiar
               faces. A schema is a cognitive framework that helps organize and interpret information in the world
               around us.  When children cannot assimilate the new face into those remembered schemas, they
               become distressed. Once again, we see an important principle: the brain, mind, and social-emotional
                                          38
               behavior develop together.”

               Origins of Attachment
               “By 12 months, infants typically cling tightly to a parent when they
               are frightened or expect separation. Reunited after being
               separated, they shower the parent with smiles and hugs.
               Attachment is an emotional tie with another person. No social
               behavior is more striking than this intense and mutual infant-
               parent bond.  This attachment bond is a powerful survival impulse
               that keeps infants close to their caregivers. Infants become
               attached to those-typically their parents-who are comfortable and
               familiar. For many years, developmental psychologists reasoned
               that infants became attached to those who satisfied their need for
                                                               nourishment.
                                                               It made
                                                               sense. But an
                                                               accidental
                                                               finding
                                                               overturned
                                                               this
                                                               explanation.”


                                                               39  (photos: aviewfromtheright.com and justifiedgrid.com)





               38  Myers, p. 75, 2009
               39  Ibid.

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