Understanding behaviour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Understanding behaviour - Essay Example A specific ‘disturbance’ in children, i.e. ‘temper tantrums’ shall be closely looked at evaluating whether the same derives its roots from ‘nature’ or ‘nurture’ or both. Before concluding we shall consider if the disturbance under our observation can be better explained by ‘transactional model’. The aim of this paper shall be chiefly to identify the factors responsible for shaping social and emotional development in children. I shall argue that not a single factor can shape a child’s development, yet not every theory by its own strength can serve as an explanation for a child’s development. Therefore, it is the amalgamation of the basic ideas of all theories that would best be able to meet our end. Simply understood, the term ‘development’ can be defined as â€Å"changes over time in the child’s understanding of, attitudes towards, and actions with others† (As cited in Smith & Hart 2002 p.3). An essential element inevitable in the process of development of children is ‘change’. Change is not just a forseeable phenomenon in children, they are a prerequisite to development as well. That is because every physical or emotional development entails ‘change’. But what affects this change? Apart from the greater biological mechanism that determine changes in us, certain other factors such as once’s social upbringing and other environmental influences are also responsible. Before we can even start evaluating the causes for the development in children, it is inevitable to find a barrier in having a conclusive take for the same, for, perhaps the biggest debate in the field of psychology, the Nature versus Nurture argument keeps all possible explanation in the state of indeterminacy. Those who supported ‘nature’ claimed that development is essentially the result of the pre-set biological functionings that get encoded from parents to offspring. They argue that â€Å"†¦genetic