The Importance of Positive Childhood Experiences: A Psychological Perspective of Child Development

by: Leah Mil

Introduction

We all have our little childhood selves within us. Through unconscious and emotional distinctions, they will, and always have been, the little voice inside of our head. It is through our early childhood experiences, exposure to family dysfunction, and detrimental relationships during our formative years, that trauma and adverse experiences can take deep root in our psyche. It is vital that children are recognized for their early emotional wounds as they can unconsciously manifest themselves into adolescence and adulthood. Positive Childhood Experiences can be developed through safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments. They have the power to prevent and protect children from traumatic events, toxic stresses, or Adverse Childhood Experiences . This article centers around the importance of early prenatal care, significant outcomes of parental categories, and the biological evidences of childhood experiences on epigenetics.

Prenatal Care

During each prenatal stage, genetic and environmental factors can affect development. The developing fetus is completely dependent on the mother for life and this is demonstrated by biological factors and effects such as:

  • Teratogen: an environmental agent - biological, chemical, or physical - that causes damage to the developing embryo or fetus. Drinking heavily during pregnancy has been found to be the leading preventable cause of intellectual disabilities in children in the United States.
  • Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD): a collection of birth defects associated with heavy consumption of alcohol during pregnancy.

Prenatal mental health can significantly affect the unborn child and its future development. According to research, women experiencing depression or anxiety before or during pregnancy may be at greater risk of having a baby with cognitive, social, and behavioral problems later in life

  • Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Disorder: one of the most common types of mental disorders in pregnancy in the United States. These disorders include postpartum depression (PPD), a type of major depressive disorder, and postpartum anxiety disorder (PPA).

Parenting Styles

How we parent is an important factor in a child’s overall socioemotional growth and may continue to be prevalent in the behaviors and actions as they age. All parents have different circumstances to interact with and guide their children. A child’s morals, principles, and conduct are generally established through this bond and each parent can fall into 1 of these categories:

  • Authoritative: parents give reasonable demands and consistent limits, express warmth and affection, and listen to the child’s point of view. While children have input into goals and expectations, there are also frequent and appropriate levels of communication between the parent and their child. Generally, this parenting style leads to the healthiest outcomes for children but requires a lot of patience as well as effort from both parties.
  • Authoritarian: parents place a high value on conformity and obedience, are often strict, tightly monitor their children, and express little warmth. Children who grow up with this type of parenting will usually be the most well-behaved in the room because of the consequences of misbehaving but may also be shy, socially inept, and unable to make their own decisions.
  • Permissive: kids run the show and anything goes; permissive parents make few demands and rarely use punishment. They tend to be very nurturing and loving and may play the role of a friend rather than parent. Children of permissive parents usually have some self-esteem and decent social skills but can be impulsive, demanding, selfish, and lack self-regulation.
  • Uninvolved: parents are indifferent, uninvolved, and neglectful. These parents may provide for the child’s basic needs, but little else. The children raised in this parenting style may even be more self-sufficient than children with other types of upbringings but, however, may have also developed these skills out of necessity. Additionally, they might have trouble controlling their emotions, less effective coping strategies, academic challenges, and difficulty maintaining or nurturing social relationships

Epigenetics of Stress and Trauma

Epigenetics is an area of emerging scientific research that shows how environmental influences - children’s experiences - affect the expression of their genes. During development, DNA accumulates chemical marks that regulate gene expression and this collection of set marks is known as the “epigenome.” Different experiences can alter these marks, further explaining why genetically identical twins can show varying behaviors, skills, health, and achievements; a child’s development is altered through early individual experiences. Epigenetics explains how early childhood experiences can have lifelong impacts:

  • Change in Epigenetic MarksThe environment in which a child develops, before and soon after birth, provides powerful experiences that chemically modify certain genes and the information that guides their development, defining how much and when they are expressed. Thus, the epigenome can be affected by positive experiences, such as supportive relationships and opportunities for learning, or negative influences, such as environmental toxins or stressful life circumstances which leave an altered epigenetic signature on the genes.

These signatures caused by significant early experiences can be temporary or permanent and both types (positive and negative) affect how easily the genes are switched on or off.

  • Reversing Negative Childhood ImpactsRecent research demonstrates that there may be ways to reverse certain negative changes and restore healthy functioning, but the very best strategy is to support responsive relationships and reduce stress to build strong brains from the beginning.

Conclusion

During the crucial stages of early brain development, the experiences children have can deeply shape how their genes express themselves. This can affect their future health, abilities, and resilience and that is why it's so important to surround young children with nurturing and supportive care from the very beginning. Providing high-quality healthcare for pregnant women, infants, and toddlers, along with offering support to new parents and caregivers, can positively influence the genetic environment around children. Loving relationships and rich, engaging experiences can create positive epigenetic effects that help unlock and nurture each child’s unique potential. With this growing body of research linking childhood trauma to negative long-term health effects, psychologists, researchers, and parent guardians must play their unique roles to create a path filled with positive development for children to flourish in their futures.

References