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Chapter 10: Problem 5

Describe the sorts of relationships and friendships that are typical of middle childhood. Children's friendships display status hierarchies, and their understanding of friendship passes through stages, from a focus on mutual liking and time spent together, through the consideration of personal traits and the rewards that friendship provides, to an appreciation of intimacy and loyalty.

Short Answer

Expert verified
Typical relationships and friendships in middle childhood are characterized by status hierarchies and a progression in the understanding of friendship. This understanding evolves from a focus on mutual liking and time spent together, through considering individual traits and the rewards provided by the friendship, to an appreciation of intimacy and loyalty. These changes reflect the increasing social and emotional maturity of children during this period.

Step by step solution

01

Understand the Question

This task requires a description about the kinds of relationships and friendships that typically occur during middle childhood. Some key elements to examine and include are status hierarchies, stages of friendship development, mutual liking, personal traits, rewards of friendship, and the progression to intimacy and loyalty.
02

Define Middle Childhood

Middle childhood typically refers to the stage of child development from about 6 to 11 years old. It is a particularly important period for the evolution of social relationships, as during this time children begin forming friendships that are more complex than those of earlier childhood.
03

Discuss Status Hierarchies

During middle childhood, children's friendships begin to exhibit status hierarchies. This means that some children are perceived as being more popular or desirable as friends than others. This might be based on a range of factors, such as physical abilities, academic achievements, social skills, or simply personal charisma.
04

Understand Stages of Friendship

One aspect to explore is how children's understanding of friendship goes through stages: - The initial stage focuses on mutual liking and spending time together. - Then, their understanding evolves to include the consideration of personal traits – they choose friends based on shared interests, values, or behaviors.- Afterwards, they start to appreciate the rewards that friendship provides – such as companionship, fun, or support.- Eventually, they start valuing intimacy and loyalty – they expect their friends to keep their secrets, stay with them during hard times, and remain loyal even when they're apart.
05

Describe the Rewards of Friendship

Children find numerous rewards in their friendships during middle childhood. In addition to camaraderie and entertainment, friends can offer emotional support during times of stress or sadness, validate their feelings and experiences, stimulate their intellectual development, and serve as a practice field for their developing social skills.
06

Discuss Intimacy and Loyalty

As friendships deepen, children in middle childhood begin to appreciate the values of intimacy and loyalty. They start to share their inner feelings, thoughts, and secrets with their close friends, expecting that their friends will keep these confidential. They also expect their friends to stand by them, providing support and companionship even during difficult times.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Describe how gender affects friendships in middle childhood. Boys and girls in middle childhood increasingly prefer same-gender friendships. Male friendships are characterized by groups, status hierarchies, and restrictive play. Female friendships tend to involve one or two close relationships, equal status, and a reliance on cooperation.

Explain why self-esteem is important during middle childhood. Children in these years are developing self-esteem; those with chronically low self-esteem can become trapped in a cycle of failure in which low self-esteem feeds on itself by producing low expectations and poor performance.

Summarize ways in which children's views of themselves change during middle childhood. Children in the middle childhood years begin to view themselves in terms of psychological characteristics and to differentiate their self-concepts into separate areas. They use social comparison to evaluate their behavior, abilities, expertise, and opinions.

Describe the major developmental challenge of middle childhood. According to Erikson, children in the middle childhood years are in the industry-versus-inferiority stage, focusing on achieving competence and responding to a wide range of personal challenges.

Describe how children's sense of right and wrong changes in middle childhood. According to Kohlberg, people pass from preconventional morality (motivated by rewards and punishments), through conventional morality (motivated by social reference), to postconventional morality (motivated by a sense of universal moral principles). Gilligan has sketched out an alternative progression for girls, from an orientation toward individual survival, through goodness as self-sacrifice, to the morality of nonviolence.
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