Social and Emotional Development in Children
Emotion and behavior are based on the child's developmental stage and disposition. Every child has different character, outlook on life, or mood. Some kids are very cheerful and adaptable. They easily get set in a routine of sleeping, eating, waking and other daily activities. On the other hand, some children do not adapt easily. They may respond negatively to new situations. Yet, there is a 3rd group of children that are someplace in the middle.
A child's social and emotional development is very important to the advancement of the child.
All children exhibit a wide range of feelings. The feelings the child has will cause behaviors. Just like any other humans, when we have a feeling we react. As adults if we are sad, we cry. If we are frustrated at work or home, we realize we are frustrated and try to fix the problem that is frustrating us. If a child gets frustrated, they just “react,” possibly with a temper tantrum, crying, throwing things, an outburst, if you will. These behaviors that develop from feelings can be “good” or “bad” depending on quite a few factors.
- The environment the child is in is one factor. Is it a loving and positive environment? Is it hostile and disorganized?
- The child's ability to communicate can also have some determining factors in their social and emotional growth. If a child has hearing loss, or any speech disorder, they may become frustrated trying to communicate resulting in a negative behavior.
- Health issues are also a concern. If a child is ill or injured resulting in a long hospital stay, the child is busy “healing” and not working toward emotional growth. This may slow the emotional and behavioral growth down.
- The number of siblings in the household can help or heed the growth of another child. A home with 2 or more siblings will have different experiences in it than a home with only one child.
It is estimated that 1 in 5 children have a diagnosable mental health disorder. About 1 in 10 have such a serious behavior or emotional disorder that it interferes with daily living. Functioning at home, and at school can become stressful.
From this information we can gather that these children will grow up to be adolescents and then adults. If the social and emotional issues are not addressed as children we must wonder if they can grow up to be "productive adults." It has been said that one in four teens in the U.S will not become productive positive adults. They may become destructive. If social and emotional issues are not addressed many of these children will end up involved in substance abuse, experience violent and delinquent behavior, do poor in school, and have a high unemployment rate and even increased suicide rate.
As we can see, promoting healthy social and emotional development in our children is vital to the growth of each of them.