Chapter 1

Introduction to a Child’s World

CHAPTER OVERVIEW

This chapter introduces the book as a resource for people who work with children in schools and in agencies. The stresses of a rapidly changing world and some of the ways those challenges affect children are considered as well as the normal developmental concerns in the lives of children. Additionally behaviors that indicate children’s health are listed. Several developmental theories are presented, as are the framework and goals associated with counseling children.

CHAPTER OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this chapter, the student will be able to:

  1. Summarize the problems facing children.
  2. Explain Maslow's hierarchy of needs.
  3. Discuss cognitive and social developmental stages.
  4. Discuss resiliency and protective factors.
  5. Define the counseling process
  6. Outline counseling expectations and goals.
  7. List several different mental health professions.

CHAPTERSUMMARY

Although the United States prides itself on being a child-oriented nation, the problems of children are increasing rapidly. A growing number of children have emotional, behavioral, social, and other problems that require the help of mental health professionals. Counseling Children is a resource for people who work with children in agencies and schools.

Statistics and barriers to the well-being of children are noted. Brazelton and Greenspan’s views on the fundamental components for children’s health are also provided. Those factors include consistent, nurturing relationships; safety; experiences tailored to individual differences; developmentally appropriate opportunities for cognitive, motor, language, emotional, and social skill acquisition; appropriate limits; and a stable, supportive community.

Children’s lives are complicated by the stress that is associated with a rapidly changing and often incomprehensible world as well as normal developmental concerns of childhood. Furthermore, the American home has changed as demands on adults have increased. Often the support of the extended family is missing. In addition to having these sources of stress, children are confronted with issues related to societal crises and changing value systems. Poverty, violence, increased dropout rates, substance abuse, teenage pregnancies and other social and cultural conditions affect the world of the child.

Maslow presented a hierarchy of needs that range from lower level deficiency needs to higher order, growth needs. The physiological needs of food, shelter, water, and warmth are the first level; personal and psychological safety needs are the second. Maslow suggested that only if the first two needs are satisfied can the child progress into the higher order, or next three needs. Those are the need to love and belong, the need for self-esteem, and finally, the need for self-actualization. Other theories of need fulfillment and development are briefly presented, including the perspectives of Glasser, Adler, behavioral psychologists, and Bronfenbrenner.

One aspect of child growth is cognitive maturation. Piaget presented an explanation of a child's development in cognitive ability, proposing that children move through four stages of thought processes: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operations, and formal operations. Views of Wadsworth, Elkind, and Selman regarding the effects of cognitive development on children and adolescents are noted. Counseling methods need to be matched with the child’s cognitive ability.

Theories of social (or psychosocial) development of children are discussed. Erikson and Havighurst each proposed stages and corresponding tasks for social development. The text describes Erikson’s model, which includes the following childhood and adolescent stages:

  • Stage I (birth-1½): Trust versus Mistrust
  • Stage II (1½-3): Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt
  • Stage III (3–6): Initiative versus Guilt
  • Stage IV (6-12): Industry versus Inferiority
  • Stage V (12-18): Identity versus Role Confusion.

Table 1-2 provides an outline of tasks and interventions for each stage. Bowlby’s attachment theory and subsequent research are discussed, including implications of the three types of attachment (secure, avoidant, and insecure/resistant).

Some children progress positively regardless of multiple risk factors. The concept of resiliency – coping well with negative conditions - is presented. Four categories of personal strengths are the positive outcomes of resilience. The identified characteristics are social competence, problem solving, autonomy and a sense of purpose. Resiliency tendencies can be augmented by protective factors or variables that act as buffers. Among the protective variables for many children who overcome difficulties are personal, family, and self-concept factors, and supportive other adults. The environmental characteristics in families and communities that support positive development are caring and support, high expectations, and opportunities for participation. After ascertaining the patterns of helpful habits of a child, the counselor might consider employing some of the following interventions that are recommended by Rak and Patterson: conducting role plays to help the child with self-expression; working on conflict resolution techniques; providing nurturing, empathy, authenticity, and realistic reinforcement; engendering hope; modeling healthy interactions; enlisting peer support; and using creative imagery and bibliotherapy.

Counseling has been defined as “the application of mental health, psychological, or human development principles, through cognitive, affective, behavioral, or systemic intervention strategies, that address wellness, personal growth, or career development as well as pathology. Counseling is a helping process based on trust in which a trained professional lends support and assistance to individuals as they attempt to overcome various obstacles in their lives and move toward optimal development. Although there is much common ground between counseling and psychotherapy, meaningful differences are summarized. We see counseling as a process in which people learn how to help themselves and, in effect, become their own counselors. Counseling may also be a group process, in which the role of helper and helpee can be shared and interchanged among the group members.

Mental health incorporates the way we think, feel, and act; how we look at ourselves, out lives, and other people; how we evaluate and make choices; and how we handle stress, related to others and make decision. Mental health exists along a continuum from good to not so good to poor. Counseling can prevent “normal” problems from becoming more serious and resulting in delinquency, school failure, and emotional disturbance. A counseling relationship can help children through appraisal, individual or group counseling, parent or teacher consultation, or environmental changes. In order to be effective, counselors who work with children need to be aware of the world as the child sees it and adjust counseling procedures to suit the child's world.

Counseling generally involves three areas: 1) the child’s thoughts and feelings about life at present, 2) where the child would like to be in life, and 3) plans to reduce any discrepancy between the first and second area. Counseling is also described as a re-educative process that is designed to replace faulty learning with better strategies for getting what the child wants from life. Most problems brought to the counselor concerning children can be classified in one or more of these five categories: (1) interpersonal conflict, or conflict with others; (2) intrapersonal conflict, or conflict with self; (3) lack of information about self; (4) lack of information about the environment; and (5) lack of skill.

In summary, counseling goals can range from becoming one's own counselor to positive behavior change, problem solving, decision-making, personal growth, remediation, and self-acceptance. The process for children often includes training in communication, assertiveness, and effective study; however, counselors choose the focus that seems most appropriate to the child and the child’s situation.

The chapter concludes with information pertaining to the various helping professions, including the minimal training requirements and typical work settings of each. Accreditation, certification, and licensure issues are briefly discussed.

KEYCONCEPTS

1.Children face a difficult world and many need help in dealing with the stresses caused by societal ills and developmental concerns.

2.Some children exhibit resiliency in spite of difficult conditions. Factors that contribute to this positive coping are summarized.

3.Counseling can be a tool to prevent normal problems from escalating, to help create a more healthy environment, and to intervene for children already in trouble.

4.To understand why children are experiencing more learning and behavior problems, counselors may consider which of the children’s needs are not being met.

5.Maslow explained physiological, safety, love and belonging, self-esteem, and self-actualization needs.

6.Glasser, Adlerian, and behavioral psychologists have other ways of describing human needs.

7.According to Piaget, cognitive development includes the four stages of sensorimotor, preoperational, operational, and formal operations.

8.Understanding a child's social development involves considering developmental tasks and appropriate interventions.

9. Counseling is a process of helping in a variety of ways for various problems.

KEY TERMS, CONCEPTS, and PERSONALITIES

Cognitive development – The process of acquiring increasingly sophisticated thinking skills.

Counseling – The application of mental health, psychological, or human development principles, through cognitive, affective, behavioral, or systemic intervention strategies, that address wellness, personal growth, or career development as well as pathology.

Erik Erikson – A theorist who studied the stages of human development. Erickson described eight stages of human development from birth through adulthood (beyond age 50).

Jean Piaget – A theorist who studied the cognitive development of individuals. Specifically, Piaget described four stages of cognitive development from birth through adulthood. The four stages include sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational.

John Bowlby – A child development psychologist who introduced “attachment theory,” which asserts that the attachment or bond between a mother and infant forms the basis for later relationships.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs – A model which highlights the basic needs of individuals. The needs range from physiological, to safety, to love and belonging, to self-esteem, and finally to self-actualization.

Psychosocial development – The acquisition of attitudes and skills needed to become a productive member of society.

Resiliency – A term used to characterize the ability of some children to progress positively regardless of factors in risky environments.

Robert Havighurst – A theorist who studied the stages of human development. Havighurst specifically focused on the expectations and developmental tasks throughout the life span.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

  1. Name three cognitive traits of the concrete operations stage of cognitive development.

1.

2.

3.

2.Name three family characteristics that can contribute to development of resiliency in a child.

1. ______

2. ______

3. ______

3.According to Maslow, humans’ highest level need is:

A. food.

B. love.

C. self-actualization.

D. power.

  1. The capacity to gain positive attention from other people, the tendency to view experiences optimistically, and the tendency to have a proactive perspective toward life are all characteristics of:

A. a child who is in the preoperational stage of cognitive development.

B. a resilient child.

C. a child who is experiencing what Elkind called the personal fable.

D. A child with resistant attachments.

  1. According to attachment theory research, persons who described their parents as demanding, disrespectful, and critical reported that in childhood they had

A. secure attachments.

B. secure and resistant attachments.

C. avoidant attachments.

D. resistant attachments.

  1. A counselor working with children focuses on:

A. developmental concerns only.

B. treating children with serious emotional and behavioral problems.

C. the effect of childhood experiences on the adult.

D. helping children with learning, social, or behavioral problems, using both remedial and behavioral techniques.

  1. Normal child development is characterized by:

A. a variety of tasks, such as achieving independence and forming basic values.

B. a total lack of pressures, worries, or concerns.

C. a preoccupation with the troubles and struggles faced by adults in this world.

D. a lack of awareness of political, social, or economic world issues.

  1. According to Selman, perspective taking
A. Results from caring parents
B. Moves from limited ideas to more differentiated views

C. Involves extrasensory perception

D. Remains undifferentiated until late adulthood

  1. Which of the following is not generally a focus of counseling?

A. examining the client’s thoughts and feelings about life

B. interventions for severe personality disorders

C. exploring where the client would like to be in life

D. examining discrepancies between client’s thoughts, feelings, and actions

Match the crises below with the appropriate developmental stage, according to Erikson:

a. Industry vs. Inferiority A. Stage I

b. Autonomy vs. Shame and DoubtB. Stage II

  1. Identity vs. Role ConfusionC. Stage III

d. Trust vs. Mistrust ______D. Stage IV

e. Initiative vs. GuiltE. Stage V

Which of the following is not a fundamental component for children’s well-being according to Brazelton and Greenspan?

  1. appropriate transportation
  2. stable communities
  3. suitable limits
  4. consistent relationships

According to the text most problems brought to counselors can be classified as which of the following?

  1. substance abuse, violence, risky sexual behaviors
  2. developmental delays and disabilities
  3. post-traumatic stress and child abuse issues
  4. interpersonal and intrapersonal conflicts, lack of information and lack of skills

ESSAY QUESTIONS

1. In your own words, define counseling. How do counseling and psychotherapy differ?

2. In what ways do counseling adults and counseling children differ and in what ways alike? Describe the factors to be considered when counseling children.

3. Although the U.S. “prides itself on being a child-oriented nation”, statistics show that children in this country are increasingly exposed to poverty, abuse, and violence. Is this a “child-oriented” nation in your opinion? Why or why not? Support your answer with data.

ACTIVITIES

1. As a person interested in counseling children, consider the variety of career options available to you. List five such options, then explore the educational requirements and work settings of each.

2. The text describes Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Using whatever format you choose, create your own hierarchy, describing the ways you meet your needs at each level.

3. List all the attributes you consider important in a “child-friendly” community and compare your list with those of your classmates. Develop a rating scale for the top ten attributes and assess your current neighborhood as well as your childhood neighborhood on those characteristics.

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