DD6HW1 Chapter 7 Research Wikipedia

When I did the Wikipedia search I decided to look up the topic of parenting, I used the footnotes in the Wikipedia article to help me narrow my topic down to parenting toddlers. I chose this topic because I am a Family Studies and human Development major and learning about child/toddler development interests me. I have also taken a class of Child Development in which I thoroughly enjoyed. I have taken an adolescence course as well, and next semester I am taking a course about issues in ageing.

There were many references in this specific section of the article. One reference was an article called The Terrible Twos Explained. This article was about a period of child development where children start to make their own choices, and because of their decision-making they do not constantly need their caregiver. To assert this new ability, the child does so by disagreeing with their caregivers.

The second reference was an article called 5 tips for dealing with toddler frustration. The article explains that frustration is normal and is essential to their development because toddlers need to experience trial and error. The second tip that the article explains is to stay close. Staying close is a way to show the toddler empathy for their frustration. The third tip is to set them up for success. Paying attention to the toddler’s needs will help them not be as frustrated. Toddlers get easily frustrated if they are hungry, tired, or stressed, so making sure that they are none of these things helps with their frustration. The fourth tip is to tolerate the tears, meaning that it is important to let the toddler experience their emotions. The last tip is to be patient.

The third reference was an article called, what are the terrible twos. The article explains that the terrible twos are usually characterized by oppositional behavior, mood changes, and temper tantrums. The article also mentions how to limit the outburst in the meantime. Some of their suggestions are to stick to a predictable schedule from day to day, to give regular healthy snacks, and gives options for those snacks. The other suggestions were to acknowledge your child’s frustration, to set boundaries, and if all else fails provide a safe and toddler-proof environment. The reason why it is important to stick to a predictable schedule from day to day is because children find routines reassuring. It is important to give regular healthy snacks because as a parent you should keep your toddler’s blood sugar steady and minimize mood swings.

The fourth reference was a scholarly article about caregiver traumatization adversely impacting children’s mental representations on the MacArthur Story-Stem battery. Their study’s purpose was to investigate the impact of maternal exposure to family violence, maltreatment, and related posttraumatic stress disorder on young children’s mental representations of self and caregivers. Their study had 24 mothers, and 25 children from the ages of 4-7 years old. The mother’s experience of domestic violence and severity of violence related PTSD symptoms helped predict aggression, attention bias to danger and distress, avoidance of and withdrawal from conflicts presented, etc. The effects of this were that the maternal experience and symptoms before the child turning 4 affected the child’s mental representations from 4-7 years old.

The fifth reference was another scholarly article in the Journal of Family Psychology called, Domestic violence, maternal parenting, maternal mental health, and infant externalizing behavior. The study looked at whether maternal functioning mediated the relationship between domestic violence and infant externalizing behavior. In the study there were 203 mother-infant dyads. They found that there is a need for early intervention and prevention efforts for families living with domestic violence. 

The sixth reference was a link to the American Time Use Survey Summary by the United States department of labor. The survey showed the results of data that include the average amount of time per day in 2015 that individuals worked, did household activities, and engaged in leisure and sports activities. As well as measures of the average time period spent providing childcare as both primary activity and while doing other things for the years of 2011-2015. 
The last reference was an article about the importance of play in promoting healthy child development and maintaining strong parent-child bonds. The reason why play is essential to development is because it contributes to the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children and youth. Play is also a good opportunity for parents to engage with their children. The article discussed how the time for free play has reduced for some children. The article addresses a variety of factors that have reduced play. For example, a hurried lifestyle, changes in family structure, and increased attention to academics and enrichment activities instead of recess or free child-centered play. The article offers guidelines about how pediatricians can advocate for children by helping families, school systems, and communities consider how to go about ensuring that play is protected as they try and seek a balance in children’s lives to help their development.