Berk: Development Throught the Lifespan

BYRON FROM BIRTH TO AGE 3

Within a two-day period, Lisa, Beth, and Felicia each gave birth to their first child at the same hospital. During their stay, the three mothers got to know one another. Over the next 2 years, they met once a month to talk over questions and concerns about the development of their babies—Byron, Rachel, and April.

From month to month, the changes in the three infants were dramatic. Lisa frequently recorded Byron's physical and behavioral milestones in a baby book. By age 2, the entries on the page entitled Record of Growth looked like this:

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT
Birth	20 inches	7 lb. 8 oz.
1 month	22 inches	10 lb. 0 oz.
2 months	24 inches	13 lb. 2 oz.
4 months	27 inches	17 lb. 8 oz.
6 months	28 inches	20 lb. 0 oz.
10 months	29 inches	21 lb. 14 oz.
12 months	31 inches	24 lb. 1 oz.
18 months	34 inches	27 lb. 4 oz.
24 months	36 inches	31 lb. 2 oz.


Byron about age 1

As Byron's rate of growth suggests, he was an enthusiastic eater from early infancy. He breast-fed vigorously and gained weight quickly. By 5 months, he indicated his need for solid foods by whimpering after a feeding and reaching for food from his parents' plates. Lisa began to offer him mashed and minced fruits, vegetables, starches, and meats. He adapted easily to his changed diet—in fact, so readily that Lisa wondered: Was she overfeeding Byron and increasing his chances of being permanently overweight?

By 3 months of age, Byron had begun to sleep through the night, granting his busy parents restful sleep and, consequently, increased energy for their worklives and attending to his needs. But he demanded to be held, rocked, and walked before being put down in his crib in the evening, and he had phases of night-waking. On a page entitled Daily Schedule, Lisa noted two of these—one around 4 1/2 months, when his first tooth broke through the gums, and another between 18 months and 2 years, when Byron simply wanted reassurance that his mom and dad were nearby.

Lisa chronicled Byron's behavioral development with pride, making many entries under Baby's Accomplishments and Progress. Here are several:

1–2 months: Held up head at 1 month. Smiled at Mom and Dad at 6 weeks and can now lift his head and turn it from side to side with great facility. Loves to ride on Dad's shoulder and to look around. At 2 months, while on his tummy, can now do little pushups with great ease. Just beginning to coo and gurgle. Started to take a pacifier, much to his mother's relief!

3–4 months: Loves to try to pull himself into a sitting position while we hold his hands. At 3 1/2 months, can grasp a rattle and hold onto it, but most of the time acts as it he isn't aware that he has it. At 4 months, a clear change: now reaches for objects and especially likes big ones with bright colors and places to hold on. Loves to be held upright so he can support his weight on his feet. When Dad plays with him, his coos and giggles abound.

5 months: While on his tummy, tries to move on the floor toward his toys, but ends up scooting backward instead and becoming very frustrated. Enjoys splashing as hard as he can in his bath. Drinks juice out of a cup, and sometimes grabs for his spoon.

Byron was an active and curious baby; Lisa an energetic parent, stimulating and prompting him a great deal. At times, Byron appeared overwhelmed by so much attention and withdrew, rolling over on the rug and sucking his thumb as Lisa tried to entice him back into energetic play. By age 1, Byron's play seemed less mature than that of Rachel and April, and Lisa responded by stimulating all the more—talking, initiating games, presenting toys, and showing him how to use them. Increasingly, Byron responded by turning away, sticking his thumb in his mouth, and caressing his blanket. His father, Chad, noticed his reaction and commented, "Maybe Byron needs time to 'recharge his batteries,' Lisa. You're always directing him!"

Lisa puzzled over Chad's observation. As Byron neared age 2, he spoke a handful of words (mama, dada, bye-bye, all-gone, and book), considerably fewer than Rachel and April, who were already forming short sentences. Worried about Byron's progress, Lisa decided to take him to a psychological clinic, where he was given one of many tests available for assessing the mental development of infants and toddlers. Andrew, the psychologist who tested Byron, found that he scored slightly below average but well within normal range. Andrew also interviewed Lisa about her child-rearing practices and watched her play with Byron. He noticed that Lisa, anxious about how well Byron was doing, tended to pressure him a great deal. She constantly bombarded him with questions and instructions that were not related to his ongoing actions.

Andrew explained that when parents are intrusive in these ways, infants and toddlers are likely to be distractible, show less mature forms of play, and do poorly on mental tests. He coached Lisa in how to establish a sensitive give-and-take in the way she played with Byron. At the same time, he assured her that Byron's current performance need not forecast his future development, since warm, responsive parenting that builds on toddlers' current capacities is a much better indicator of how they will do later than is an early mental test score.

As Byron approached his third birthday, his development reflected his more relaxed relationship with Lisa. His high activity level and drive to explore remained hallmark traits. But as his language expanded, so did his sociability. He was positive and cooperative in interacting with agemates and affectionate and content in relating to his parents and to his "special" professional caregiver at the day care center Lisa and Chad had chosen for him. Lisa drew confidence from Byron's progress; her former directiveness gave way to patience and supportiveness. As a result, Byron was doing well.

Extending the Websketch

Chapter 4

Create a graph of Byron's age-related increase in height and weight from birth to age 2. How does the graph reflect the course of physical growth over the first 2 years?
Lisa wondered if she was overfeeding Byron and increasing his chances of being overweight. How would you respond to her concern?
According to dynamic systems theory, what factors contribute to motor development? (See page 134 of your text.) How is Byron's strong desire to master new tasks evident in Lisa's baby book account of his early motor progress?

Chapter 5

What evidence supports Andrew's assurance to Lisa that parenting that builds on toddlers' current capacities is a much better indicator of how they will do later than is an early mental text score?
Lisa returned to work when Byron was a few months old. What features of day care would you recommend Lisa attend to in choosing a day care setting for Byron? Explain.
Note Byron's early vocabulary. Are his first words typical? Explain. How does Byron illustrate research findings on individual differences in early language development?

Chapter 6

Describe Byron's temperament. Evaluate Lisa's parenting in terms of goodness of fit, before and after Andrew's intervention.
In view of the quality of Lisa's interaction with Byron and Byron's response, what attachment pattern would you have expected Byron to display in the Strange Situation at 1 year of age? Do you think Byron's attachment pattern changed during his third year of life? Explain. How does Byron's revised relationship with Lisa fit with evidence on the stability of attachment reported in your text?
Why was it important for Byron to have a "special" professional caregiver at his day care center?