When people consider the development of children during their toddler through middle childhood years, they tend to think of the large physical milestones like toilet training or smaller physical accomplishments like a childÆs learning to dress herself and tie her own shoes.
But the years between two and six are as important for cognitive and emotional development as they are for physical development. In fact, of course, physical, cognitive, and emotional development are all linked to each other in iterative ways. They do not occur in isolation from each other but rather a childÆs growing social skills affect her emotional needs, which in turn affect her cognitive ability, and all of these are affected by physical development and well-being (Caplan & Caplan, 1984, p. 19).
Not only do different aspects of a young childÆs development affect each other, but the child is affected by those people who are an important part of her daily life. This includes primarily parents, siblings, any other relatives who live with the child and primary caregivers such as babysitters and childcare workers. What is perhaps less obvious but just as important a dynamic in determining how a child develops emotionally during this period is how the child affects the adults around her. Children are, while relatively powerless, certainly not passive. They do not simply mirror the world around them but act upon it. Thus it is obvious that the attitudes, values, and behaviors of parents toward their children clearly influence patterns of development; the converse is certainly not as obvious but equally as true. ChildrenÆs characteristics influence parental attitudes and behaviors. Handicapped children, for example, require more attention and cause more parental anxiety than do normal children. Engaged parents are affected by their childrenÆs emotional development and unique emotional needs.
Extensive studies have established that parental behaviors towa...