The Social & Emotional Wellbeing of the Australian Children

The Social & Emotional Wellbeing of the Australian Children

Purpose

Emotions play a significant function in the growth of the child. They are not only the central to the process of attachment and other social interactions, but they also influence how well a child does in other developmental domains (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2012). This brief review discusses developmental theories of emotion and the developmental course of specific emotions. As the child matures, he or she gains new perspectives on how emotions are used. These processes are reviewed here. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the social and emotional wellbeing of Australian children.

Introduction

Emotional and social wellbeing is a broad expression which comprises behavior, feelings, goals, personal strengths and relationships. From a phenomenological standpoint, emotions are internal feeling states, states over which we seemingly have little control and which frequently disrupt and disorganize our behavior (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2012).

These internal states manifest themselves in outward expressions, through the face, voice, and the actions we perform. Such a view of emotion at one time dominated scientific conceptualizations of the phenomenon, but in the last 25 years, a new conceptualization of emotion has emerged, one which treats emotions as adaptive, relational processes which function to regulate our exchanges with the world (Hamilton, 2010).

The evolutionary/functionalist developmental theory proposes that emotions emerge when they are adaptive. Although there are several different perspectives on the development of emotion, the two that dominate the literature differ as to the mechanisms by which emotions emerge. The cognitive theory of Social and Emotional development, on the other hand, suggests that emotions emerge or differentiate depending upon the development of certain cognitive skills (Graber, et. al., 2006). Interestingly, these mechanisms often converge.

Definition of Terms

Emotional wellbeing - The ability to know the value of one's emotions and employ them to move life forward.

Social Wellbeing - A person's affiliations with others and how one interacts, communicate, and mingle with others.

Emotional Expression - It refers to the communication of nonverbal emotional signals in appropriate contexts and in socially appropriate ways (Bronfenbrenner, 2009).

Background

The perceptions of children and adolescents are influenced by many factors, such as characteristics of the child and family, socioeconomic status, parenting style, parental stress and life events. Socio-economic disadvantage, social isolation, poor living conditions, lone parents, violence and interpersonal conflicts between family members, parental psychopathology, high levels of stress and lack of social support are usually associated with behavior problems in children (Maloney et. Al, 2008). The child and adolescent develop within a family context and are influenced by the characteristics of significant others this context, especially by characteristics of their parents. Individual characteristics trigger reactions in other people's context (Andersen & Nord, 2010).

Emotional and Social development includes several abilities. At birth, the infant is capable of feeling distress, disgust, pain, and interest, although there is debate as to whether interest is an emotion (Daly & Joyce, 2010). By 3 months of age, when the ...