Behaviors of kids can be deduced based on their personality traits. Personalities are relatively enduring traits and may include introversion, friendliness, cheerfulness, et cetera. In this exercise, a child’s mother was interviewed about her baby’s characteristics. The child observed was a one-year-old baby boy who lives with both mother and father, but is mostly taken care of by a middle-aged female nanny. The interview were carried out at the child’s mother’s house. The interview questions and observation areas were divided into nine categories. The whole exercise took one hour and this was the mother’s perspective.
Description of the Child
Activity Level
This is the level of use of motor functions by a child. Based on the observation made, it is clear that the baby was very active. The mother observed her baby as “jumpy, likes playing and moving around.” According to Lickerman (2011), a child who shows jumpiness and likes playing is typical of a happy kid. The mother further observed that her kid does not like to be carried a lot and he would rather be playing with things in the house.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Rhythmicity
Rhythmicity refers to how regular repetitive biological functions are experienced. According to Lickerman (2011), the biological functions that can be used in assessing rhythmicity of kid include circadian cycle (sleep-wake cycle), eating schedules and bowel movements ( Wittmer , & Petersen, 2017 ). According to the kid’s mother, her baby has a regular bowel movement and always sleeps and wakes at the same time. The mother further observed that her baby always sleeps at around 6.30 pm and wakes up at around 8.00 am the following morning. This pattern is consistent with the high level of rhythmicity.
Approach-Withdrawal
Approach-withdrawal refers to the measure of how a child reacts to something new in his or her environment. These characteristic measures whether a child is open to new experiences or often takes the cautious approach of holding back to be sure of what is at stake ( Wittmer , & Petersen, 2017 ). Based on the observation made, the child did not hold back when I tried to carry him. This, however, was after I made funny faces for him and earned his trust. According to Wang et al. (2013), adults who make friendly faces with kids can easily earn their trust. The mother further explained that the baby only rejects those who have scary faces, that is, those who do not smile or make funny faces with him.
Adaptability
Adaptability is the ability of a kid to adjust to new environments. According to the mother, her child adapts easily to changes ( Wittmer , & Petersen, 2017 ). The parents have had to change the nanny twice but according to the mother, the baby adjusted and bonded with the new nannies almost immediately. However, the mother added that the baby is only cautious around people who threaten or shout at him ( Wittmer , & Petersen, 2017 ). The traits described by the mother demonstrates that the baby is highly adaptable. According to Damon, Lerner, and Einsberg (2006), people with high adaptability are less likely to be stressed with changes and can grow up to be liberal-minded adults.
Intensity of Reaction
This refers to the amount of energy and enthusiasm with which a child does something. From the observation made and the mother’s response, it was clear that the baby has high intensity of the reaction . When happy, the mother observed that the baby can be very jumpy and engages a lot of motor activities. According to Lickerman (2011), kids who show a lot of intensity in their reaction are likely to develop into very passionate adults.
Threshold of Responsiveness
This refers to the measure of external stimuli that can elicit a reaction from a baby. In the case of the baby observed, the mother reported that he is easily startled by loud bangs ( Wittmer , & Petersen, 2017 ). According to the mother, sudden and loud bangs often scare the baby and can make him cry.
Quality of Mood
This character describes the pleasant behaviors of a child such as happiness, joyfulness, et cetera, as opposed to crying and other unfriendly behaviors. According to the child’s mother, the baby is pleasant, friendly little soul ( Wittmer , & Petersen, 2017 ). He smiled a lot when the mother made funny faces with him. According to Damon, Lerner, and Einsberg (2006), babies with high mood quality are likely to be loved by many adults.
Distractibility
This measures the effects of external stimuli on the concentration of the kid. According to the mother, her baby is often distracted whenever she walks into the room. Damon, Lerner, and Einsberg (2006), argue that this is a normal reaction of kids when someone they are attached to walks into a room. The default reaction is often to try to get the attention of the person walking, by either crying or running (or crawling) towards them.
Attention Span
This character measures the ability of a kid to concentrate on a given activity for long. According to the mother, her child’s attention span depends on the activity. In other words, “as long as he is enjoying something, he can really stay in it.” The mother further reported that she has observed her baby play with a car toy for more than 10 minutes ( Wittmer , & Petersen, 2017 ).
Conclusion
The interview revealed the true character of the child and these can be used to predict his future behaviors. From the nine characteristics categories, it can be concluded that the child in question is an easy child who shows a high level of passion and exudes a lot of positive energy.
References
Damon, W., Lerner, W., & Einsberg, N. (2006). Handbook of Child Psychology, Social, Emotional, and Personality Development. Wiley Publisher.
Lickerman, A. (2011). Personality versus character-The key to discerning personality from character is time. Psychology today
Wang, Z., Chen, N., Petrill, S., & Deckard, K. (2013). Observed Personality in Childhood: Psychometric and Behavioral Genetic Evidence of Two Broad Personality Factors. European Journal of Personality. 27(1): 96–105.
Wittmer , D. S., & Petersen, S. H. (2017 ). Infant and toddler development and responsive program planning: A relationship-based approach . NY, NY: Pearson.
