Child's Emotional and Social Development: Dependent on Parental Influences

As children grow up, there are many aspects of their lives which influence and affect their development and behaviors. One of the most important facets during this time period of development is the parental figures in their life. They play a large role in the social and emotional behaviors a child will possess during childhood and later in life as well. The way a parent socializes may have a slight amount to do with their genetic makeup, but due to the child's interactions with and observations of, the parents contribute more to the social and empathy related development than heredity does (Zhou et al, 2002).

Children form very strong emotional feelings about themselves and once they have made up their mind, it is very hard to convince them otherwise. If parents tell their children that they are stupid, that is what they're going to believe because they don't know any better. They have grown up listening to their parents and trusting what they say. A parent who shows concern and compassion for the child, will help their child develop a high level of self esteem. "A national longitudinal study on adolescent health found that parental connectedness (including feelings of warmth, love, and caring from parents) was protective against many adolescent health risks including emotional health." (Halloran, Ross & Carey, 2002, p. 202). It has been proven that children feel better about themselves when they know their parents are interested in their lives and what they do. In the same experiment, these researchers found that family variables are associated with diagnoses of Major Depression, Conduct Disorder, and ADHD (Halloran, Ross & Carey, 2002). The way a parent behaves around their children has a large part in how children's emotions will develop and how they will see themselves.