COMMON EMOTIONS OF EARLY CHILDHOOD
Anger
The most common causes of anger in young children are conflicts over playthings, the thwarting of wishes, and vigorous attacks from another child. Children express anger through temper tantrums, characterized by crying, screaming, stamping, kicking, jumping up and down, or striking.
Fear
Conditioning, imitation, and memories of unpleasant experiences play important roles in arousing fears, as do stories, pictures, radio and television programs, and movies with frightening elements. At first, a child's response to fear is panic; later, responses become more specific and include running away and hiding, crying, and avoiding frightening situations.
Jealousy
Young children become jealous when they think parental interest and attention are shifting toward someone else in the family, usually a new sibling. Young children may openly express their jealousy or they may show it by reverting to infantile behavior, such as bed-wetting, pretending to be ill, or being generally naughty. All such behavior is a bid for attention.
Curiosity
Children are curious about anything new that they see and also about their own bodies and the bodies of others. Their first responses to curiosity take the form of sensorimotor exploration; later, as a result of social pressures and punishment, they respond by asking questions.
Envy
Young children often become envious of the abilities or material possessions of another child. They express their envy in different ways, the most com mon of which is complaining about what they themselves have, by verbalizing wishes to have what the other has or by appropriating the objects they envy.
Joy
Young children derive joy from such things as a sense of physical well-being, incongruous situations, sudden or unexpected noises, slight calami ties, playing pranks on others, and accomplishing what seem to them to be difficult tasks. They express their joy by smiling and laughing, clapping their hands, jumping up and down, or hugging the object or person that has made them happy.
Grief
Young children are saddened by the loss of any thing they love or that is important to them, whether it be a person, a pet, or an inanimate object, such as a toy. Typically, they express their grief by crying and by losing interest in their nor mal activities, including eating.
Affection
Young children learn to love the things--people, pets, or objects-that give them pleasure. They express their affection verbally as they grow older but, while they are still young, they express it physically by hugging, patting, and kissing the object of their affection.
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