Lxchildpsychology

Theories of childpsychology
Dr.LAXMI PANDEY

Psychology: is the science dealing with human nature,
function and phenomenon of his soul in the main.
Child psychology : is the science that deals with the
mental power or interaction between the conscious and
subconscious element in a child.
INTRODUCTION

KNOWLEDGE OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY WILL HELP US TO:-
UNDERSTAND THE CHILD BETTER
BETTER PLANNING & INTERACTION
UNDERSTANDS PROBLEMS OF PSYCHOSOMATIC
ORIGIN
CHILD UNDERSTANDS ORAL HYGIENE
MODIFY CHILD’S DEVELOPMENTAL PROCESS
AIMS & OBJECTIVES OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY

Classified into 2 groups:
PSYCHODYNAMIC THEORIES
oPsychosexual theory by Sigmund Freud
oPsychosocial theory by Eric Erickson
oCognitive theory by Jean Piaget
BEHAVIOUR LEARNING THEORIES
oClassical conditioning theory by Ivan Pavlov
oOperant conditioning theory by B. F. Skinner
oSocial learning theory by Albert Bandura
oHierarchy of needs by Maslow
THEORIES OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY

THEORIES OF
PSYCHODYANAMIC
DEVELOPMENT
PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY GIVEN BY SIGMUND
FREUD IN 1905n

DIVIDED INTO 3 PARTS:
ID : It is the basic structure of personality, serves as the reservoir of instincts
or their mental representative . It is present at birth ,impulse ridden and strives
for immediate pleasure and gratification (pleasure principle).
EGO: It develops out of Id in the 2-6th month of life when the infant begins to
distinguish between itself and the outside world . It is mediation between Id and
Super Ego is governed by the reality principle.
SUPER EGO :It is the prohibition learned from environment . It acts as a
censor of acceptability of thoughts, feelings and behavior . It is determined by
regulations imposed upon the child by parents society, and culture.
PSYCHIC TRIAD/MODEL

Phallic
Stage
Child’s
pleasure
focuses on
genitals
Latency
Stage
Child
represses
sexual
interest
and develops
social and
intellectual
skills
Anal Stage
Child’s
pleasure
focuses on
anus
Genital
Stage
A time of
sexual
reawakening;
source of
sexual
pleasure
becomes
someone
outside of the
family
Oral Stage
Infant’s
pleasure
centers on
mouth
Freudian Stages
6 yrs to
puberty
Birth to 1½
yrs
1½ to 3
yrs
Puberty
onward
3 to 6
years

FREUD’S THEORY:
MERIT
One of the earliest and the most comprehensive
theory of life long psychological development.
DEMERITS:
Freud formulated this theory by his extensive studies
on adult psychological patients & hence its
extrapolation to children is not very justified.
The theory is based on obsessed observation of the
psychologist.

PSYCHOSOCIAL THEORY BY ERIK.H.ERICKSON(1963)

Stage 1: Basic Trust vs Mistrust
Birth to age 1
Totally dependent on others
Care giver meets needs: child develops trust
Caregiver does not meet needs: child develops
mistrust
Basic strength: Hope
◦Belief our desires will be satisfied
◦Feeling of confidence

•This stage identifies with development of
separation anxiety in the child. So if necessary
to provide dental treatment at this early age, it
is preferable to do with the parent present and
preferably with parent holding the child
•Once the child loses basic trust with world, it
is very difficult to gain confidence of the child
and will require special efforts to establish
support with the dentist and staff.
Dental Application

Stage 2: Autonomy vs. Shame
and Doubt
Ages 1-3
Child able to exercise some degree of choice
Child’s independence is thwarted: child
develops feelings of self-doubt, shame in
dealing with others
Basic Strength: Will
◦Determination to exercise freedom of choice in face
of society’s demands

Dental Application
•Child is moving away from mother, but
still retreat to her in threatening
situations. So parent’s presence is
essential in dental clinic
•At this stage as the child takes pleasure
in doing tasks by himself; dentist must
obtain co-operation from him by making
him believe that the treatment is his
choice , not of his parents dentist.

Stage 3: Initiative vs. Guilt
Ages 3-5
Child expresses desire to take initiative in
activities
Parents punish child for initiative: child
develops feelings of guilt that will affect self-
directed activity throughout life
Basic strength: Purpose
◦Courage to envision and pursue goals

Dental Application
•Child can be encouraged to view this
visit as a new adventure and encouraged
to genuine success in it. If this visit fails,
it can lead to sense of guilt in the child.
•He is inherently teachable at this stage
and so can be taught about various
things in dental set up. Independence
has to reinforced rather than
dependence.

Stage 4: Industry vs. Inferiority
Ages 6-11
Child develops cognitive abilities to enable in
task completion (school work, play)
Parents/teachers do not support child’s efforts:
child develops feelings of inferiority and
inadequacy
Basic strength: Competence
◦Exertion of skill and intelligence in pursuing and
completing tasks

Dental Application
•Child drives for sense of industry and
accomplishment, co-operation with treatment
can be obtained. This need to be +vely
reinforced.
•Co-operation at this stage depends on whether
heshe understands what is needed to please
dentistparents, whether the peer group is
supportive and whether the desired behavior is
reinforced by the dentist.

Stage 5: Identity vs. Role Confusion
Ages 12-18
Form ego identity: self-image
Strong sense of identity: face adulthood with
certainty and confidence
Identity crisis: confusion of ego identity
Basic strength: Fidelity
◦Emerges from cohesive ego identity
◦Sincerity, genuineness, sense of duty in
relationships with others

Dental Application
Behavior management of adolescents
can be challenging. Any orthodontic
treatment should be carried out if child
wants it and not parents as this stage,
parental authority is rejected. Approval
of peer group is extremely important.

Stage 6: Intimacy vs. Isolation
Ages 18-35 (approximately)
Undertake productive work and establish
intimate relationships
Inability to establish intimacy leads to social
isolation
Basic strength: Love
◦Mutual devotion in a shared identity
◦Fusing of oneself with another person

Dental Application
•At this stage, external appearances are very important
as it helps in attainment of intimate relation. These
young adults seeks orthodontic treatment to correct
their dental appearances and this is characterized as
internal motivation.
•But alteration of appearances can also interfere with
previously established relations, so the treatment
options must be fully explained to and discussed with
the young adults.

Stage 7: Generativity vs. Stagnation
Ages 35-55 (approximately)
Generativity: Active involvement in
teaching/guiding the next generation
Stagnation involves not seeking outlets for
generativity
Basic strength: Care
◦Broad concern for others
◦Need to teach others

Stage 8: Ego Integrity vs. Despair
Ages 55+
Evaluation of entire life
Integrity: Look back with satisfaction
Despair: Review with anger, frustration
Basic strength: Wisdom
◦Detached concern with the whole of life

Stages 1-4
◦Largely determined by others (parents, teachers)
Stages 5-8
◦Individual has more control over environment
◦Individual responsibility for crisis resolution in each
stage

MERITS:
Based on age wise classification of an individual. Hence
easy to apply at any stage of development.
Simple & comprehensive to understand.
DEMERITS:
Based on extreme ends of personality.

Acc. To Piaget the foll. mechanism help the child to progress from one stage
to another.
OPERATION: An action that the child performs mentally & is reversible.
SCHEMATA : Represents a dynamic process of differentiation &
reorganization of knowledge.
ASSIMILATION : New object interpreted in terms of idea or action the
child has already acquired.
ACCOMMODATION : An individual tendency to modify action to fit into
a new situation.
EQUILIBRIUM: State established as new knowledge to the child.

Preoperational Stage:
The child begins to represent the world with words
and images. These words and images reflect
increased symbolic thinking and go beyond the
connection of sensory information and physical action.
Formal Operational Stage
The adolescent reasons in more abstract idealistic
and logical ways.
Sensorimotor Stage:
The infant constructs an understanding of the world
by coordinating sensory experiences with physical
actions: progressing from reflexive, instinctual action
at birth to the beginning of symbolic thought toward
end of the stage.
Concrete Operational Stage:
The child can now reason logically about concrete
events and classify objects into different sets.
Figure 2.3
11–15 years
of age
through
adulthood
Birth to 2
years of age
2 to 7 years
of age
7 to 11 years
of age
Piaget’s Four Stages of Cognitive
Development

Sensorimotor stage : child begins to interact with the environment, can
be given toys while sitting in dental clinic or chair in his /her hand.
Preoperational stage : pre operational stage constructivism: child
explores things, surveys dental chair, airway syringe etc.
• Cognitive Equilibrium :child explained about equipment & allowed to
deal with it.
• Animism : co-relates with other familiar objects.
DENTAL APPLICATION

Concrete operations: concrete instructions i.e. brushing
technique. Abstract instruction like retainer wearing &
cleaning every night.
• Centering: allow to hold mirror to see what is happening.
• Ego centering :child achieves level of understanding &
involves in the treatment.

Formal operations: Peer influence & abstract thinking increase. They
play an imp. Role in orthodontic appliance and braces. Acceptance from
peers can be used for motivation for dental treatment.

MERITS : Most comprehensive theory of cognitive
development. The theory propagated that we can learn as much
about children’s intellectual development from examining their
incorrect & correct answers to items.
DEMERITS: Underestimates children’s abilities. Overestimates
age difference in thinking. Vagueness about the process of
change. underestimates the role of the social environment.
MERITS AND DEMERITS

None of these theories are completely correct and none of them are incorrect. They are
proposals that shed light on the development of human beings... Guidance of a child’s
behaviour in the dental office is an essential prerequisite to complete dental care. TO treat
a child successfully or to manage a child in dental setting, one should have sufficient
knowledge on psychological and personality development at different stages of
childhood.
Conclusion

Lxchildpsychology

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