Comparing Two Young children on Their Socio-emotional, Disciplinary and Socialization

Behavior.
Heng Yuen Yee
B1301379
Department of Early Childhood Education
Bece 210
Ms. Maureen Szetho

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Table of Content
Title
1. Introduction

Page
3

2. Methodology
Procedure of the study
Sample of the study
Precaution taken to ensure the validity of study
Threats to internal validity
Data collection instruments used and their appropriateness

3-5
5
5-6
6
6-7

Recording procedure deployed in the study

Suitability of the procedures

3. Findings and Discussion

7-9

Socio-emotional behavior of the children

9 - 11

Disciplinary behavior of the children

11 - 12

Socialization behavior of the children

12 - 13

4. Conclusion

13 - 14

5. References

15 - 16

6. Appendix

17 - 27

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Introduction
The main objective of the study is to examine the socio-emotional, disciplinary and
socialization behavior of two children from different age groups through observation and
comparison. Furthermore, this study also aimed at exploring in depth the young childrens
behavior in order to better understand why children behave in such a way and thus provide
proper solutions, modifications and recommendations on both the childs behavior. Besides,
the purpose of conducting this study is to help professional educators, teachers and parents to
learn more about the children, caters to their needs and desires and thus measure the
appropriateness of each experience that are provided for them so to improve childrens
learning and development. Throughout this study, the socio emotional, disciplinary and
socialization behavior of the targeted children will be investigated. Both of the childrens
behavior will be observed and recorded for further investigation and thus comparison will be
made between the children.
Methodology
Procedure of the study. First of all, I came out with an idea of involving children of
aged four to five years old, teachers and peers in the study as well as choosing the location
which I would be carrying out my observation.
No.

1.

Procedure

Date/Time

Getting Permission
I called to the kindergarten which I have chosen, the
Summer Academy Kindergarten to get permission
from their principal regarding the request of carrying
out observation and interview there.

23rd of September
Afternoon

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2.

Scheduling Appointments
As soon as the principal approved my request, I
started to schedule my appointments.

3.

Morning

Preparation of Interview Questions

I prepared a few interview questions before attending
the appointments with the teachers.

4.

24th of September

27th of September
Afternoon

Childrens Name, Age and Important Data

I have collected the childrens name and age as well as other important information
regarding the child during each observation.

Observation 1: Julian (5 years old)

14th of October
1.00-2.10pm

Observation 2: Hunson (4 years old)

20th of October
2.30-3.40pm

5.

List People to Interview and Schedule Interviews

I have listed a list of people to be interviewed, which are the teachers who usually
work with the targeted children and thus schedule each interviews with the teachers.

First Interview: Julian (5 years old)

Teacher: Anonymous

15th of October
10.00-10.20am

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6.

Second Interview: Hunson (4 years old)

21st of October

Teacher Anonymous

10.00-10.18am

List the Focus.

I listed three major aspects to focus on throughout the observation and the study,
which are the socio emotional, disciplinary as well as socialization behavior of the
children.

7.

Record Observation
I recorded my observation using the running record method and collected other
important data.

8.

Build Explanation and Findings

I built up my own explanation and findings based on all data collections and
observations.

Sample of the study. According to Gay and Airasian (2000), sampling refers to the
process in selecting a number of individuals for the purpose of a study, in which these
individuals represent the larger group from which they are selected. The sample of this study
comprised of two boys of aged four and five year old, which are Hunson and Julian.
Precautions taken to ensure the validity of the study. There were a few precautions
taken in order to ensure the validity of the study, for instance, I leaved my house earlier so to
avoid heavy traffic and because of that, I had more time to do my preparations before having
an observation and interview session with the children and teachers. Other than that, during

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each observation, I observed and recorded the child quietly without having the child noticing
that he was actually being observed by someone. As children might behave differently when
they know there are eyes observing and watching them. Hence, observing the child quietly
might help to improve the validity of the study so that the child would behave naturally and
behave as normal as possible. Furthermore, as a precaution procedure, I recorded only the
facts and every detail of the incident happened throughout each observation without omitting
anything. Besides, I have orderly recorded each incident and facts happened throughout the
observation.
Threats to internal validity. As an observer, there are threats to the internal validity
which I would need to take into considerations, for example, the emotions of the child during
the observation. It was raining during the time I carried out my observation with the children,
while teachers were actually planning to have an outdoor play activity with the children.
However, the scheduled outdoor play activity was forced to cancel due to the weather which I
think it might more or less affect the childrens emotions. Instead of having an outdoor play
activity, they had to stay inside the classroom. Hence, children can easily get angry,
depressed, upset or sad and thus it may affect the internal validity of the study. Other than
that, teachers might also act differently than normal because they knew I was observing them
and the children. Hence, it might also affect the internal validity of the study, which I
considered as one of the threats.
Data collection instruments used and their appropriateness. I used running record
method, paper, stationaries and video recorder to record the observations of Hunson and
Julian. I found that using running record method and video recorder are appropriate for the
study as all behaviors are written by recording every single behavior that occurs. In
conjunction with that, I could play back the video to check if I have left out any important
incidents. Hence, it gives me a complete picture of all incidents happened within that period

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of time and allows me to appropriately analyze and draw conclusions based on the data
collected. Besides, I used voice recorder to record the interviews with teachers. It is
appropriate as it allows me to refer back and check through if I have missed any important
data. Hence, all important data of the child are recorded.
Recording procedure deployed in the study. I prepared a paper, stationaries and
video recorder to record the observations. Each observation was recorded from time to time
and every single incident happened are orderly recorded as well. After the observations, I
played back the video to make sure all incidents are recorded appropriately. As for the
interview, I prepared a teacher interview protocol before interviewing the teachers and set up
my voice recorder before starting an interview session. Then, I referred back to the voice
recorder in order to collect important data. After recording all observations and interviews, I
have deleted the video and audio files due to privacy issues.
Suitability of the procedures. The procedures are suitable in the context of this study
as it reduces my research time by having each step to be clearly planned and arranged before
carrying out my study. Along with that, it becomes much easier for me to manage my data
and findings as well as helping me to effectively compare the data collected and finally draw
conclusions after all.
Findings and Discussion
It was an experimental study, which I focused on three major aspects, examining the
socio-emotional, disciplinary and socialization behavior of young children through observing
and comparing them. According to National Healthy Start Association (n. d.), social
emotional is seen as a fundamental and crucial part of childrens health and well-being.
Social emotional not only reflects but also impacts upon the brains wiring development as
well as the function (National Healthy Start Association, n. d.). National Healthy Start

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Association (n. d.) mentioned that social emotional development, also sometimes known as
the childrens mental health spans from how a child interact with others to how he or she
cope and manage with the stress and adversity. According to National Healthy Start
Association (n. d.), social emotional development in the early years set up a precedent which
prepares the children to have self-confidence in themselves, intellectually inquisitive,
empathic, competent in using language as their communication skills, trusting and thus,
capability to relate well with others.
Hence, it is extremely important that children emerged with good social and
emotional skills as this might help to form a critical foundation for wellness and learning
which will guide them into their future adulthood. Other than social emotional behavior, I
also focused on child discipline in this study. The way that a child is disciplined may affects
the childs behavioral, physical and mental well-being (Bates, Deater-Deckard, Dodge &
Pettit, 2003, as cited in Snyder & Bub, n. d.). American Humane Association (2013) stressed
that it is the part of childrens natural development to sometimes test or challenge the adults
or parents authority and expectations. Childrens misbehavior might simply takes place just
to intentionally gain attention, power, something they want or even peer approval. Therefore,
enforcing positive disciplinary behavior in young children at an early stage is crucial as
discipline is how they learn what is right and what is wrong; what they can do and what they
should not do; what is acceptable and what is unacceptable (American Humane Association,
2013). Besides, adult and parental discipline of young children is designed in a way to help
them to engage better with others as well as to control and modify their behavior (American
Humane Association, 2013).
In addition, the socialization behavior of young children is another major focus in this
study. Perrino (2011) found that the socialization process has most dramatic impacts on
childrens education. According to Perrino (2011), family, peers, school, society, mass media

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as well as religion play a vital and essential role in the socialization process and
fundamentally, the education process. Family as the primary agent of socialization plays a
fundamental role in transmitting the basic values which nurture and encourage learning in
young children (Perrino, 2011). On the other hand, school as the major agent of socialization
also takes the responsibility in transmitting important information and knowledge to the
young children (Perrino, 2011). As children socialize with others, they have the opportunity
to explore the world and thus connect to the rest of the world at their own pace. Children
become more and more independent and later success in their academic. Hence, socialization
process has huge impact on a childs learning and development (Perrino, 2011).
Socio-emotional behavior of the children. Throughout my observations, Julian
exhibited difficult temperament; he has no idea on how his actions might actually affect
people around him. According to the incidents which I have recorded in my observation,
Julian tends to snatch toys from other children. Unfortunately, he accidentally hits his friend,
Gavin. He then excused himself from such action by pointing the blame on others. Julian
could not understand others and he tends to push others away to have his way. Research by
Saudino (2005) showed that there is a correlation between environmental factors and child
temperament. Children who exhibit difficult temperament might probably influenced by the
parents, teachers, peers and social media. According to Banduras social learning theory,
children learn a behavior by observing and imitating others (McLeod, 2011). Parents within
the family are the nearest people to the child. Hence, parents become the model of their
children. Parents who exhibit difficult temperament will directly influence the childs
behavior and children will eventually learn the behavior as well. Additionally, children can
learn behaviors from teachers at school, peer groups as well as the characters on television
(McLeod, 2011).

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In addition, according to the interview with Julians teacher, Julian tends to be

aggressive and destructive. According to the incidents I have recorded in my observation,
Julian destroyed the tower that his friend has built and laughed when the tower collapsed. He
might probably want to join other childrens play; it is just that he does not know how to
express his feelings and desires. According to Eriksons psychosocial stages of development,
children between the ages of three to five years old tend to interact regularly with peers at
school (McLeod, 2008). McLeod (2008) stressed that play allows children to explore and
practice their interpersonal skills through initiating activities. Conversely, lagging of this
opportunity might lead to the child in developing a sense of guilt, either through control or
criticism (McLeod, 2008). According to the teacher, Julian tends to gain attention from others
by being aggressive and destructive. This might due to him did not get sufficient attention at
home as he is from single parent family background in which his parents had divorced. This
affects not only his emotions but also led to his behavioral problems.
In contrast, unlike Julian, Hunson tends to express his feelings more frequently. He
tends to understand and care for others feelings as well as view situations from other
peoples perspectives. According to Kohlbergs stages of moral development, he stressed that
children begins to recognize others viewpoint at the second stage of pre-conventional level
(McLeod, 2011). Additionally, Hunson tends to express his feelings and emotions through
drawing. He can explain to others what he has drawn and tell others about his feelings.
According to the interview with Hunsons teacher, Hunson is able to speak out his feelings
and emotions, for instance, he can tell others when he is angry or even upset.
Other than that, Hunson shows good interpersonal skills, where he often plays and
interacts with other children at school. As what I have mentioned before, Eriksons
psychosocial stages of development stressed that children between the ages of three to five
years old tend to interact regularly with peers and this allows children to practice their

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interpersonal skills (McLeod, 2008). Children feel security when they are able to make
decisions and lead others, in conjunction with that, children will eventually develop a sense
of initiative (McLeod, 2008).
Disciplinary behavior of the children. According to the incidents I have recorded in
my observation, Julian seems to be disrespectful to the teacher. When teacher was talking to
him, he turned his back to the teacher, instead of replying the teacher. Later, Julian showed
anger and screamed at his teacher and friend by saying, I dont like you and I dont like
Gavin too! Besides, he did not follow teachers instruction when teacher asked him to pick
up the toy. From the observation, I found that Julian tends to be disobedient and a little
violent. He threw the toy away in front of the teacher. And when his friend, Gavin invited
him to join his play, Julian rejected and pushed Gavin away. Other than that, Julian tends to
tell lies too. He might have learned the behavior from his parents as well as from the
television programs. Based on Banduras social learning theory, Julian might have learned
the behavior at home. According to the teacher, Julians parents had divorced and he stays
with his mother. It is most probably that Julian learned the behavior from his parents where
his parents might have practice physical punishment and always argue against the use of
physical punishment at home. Hence, it is important that parents model and teach desired
behaviors to the children as well as establish positive reinforcement (Waterson, 2000).
Based on Skinners behavioral learning theory, Skinner mentioned about the term
operant conditioning; he identified three different types of operant that follow the behaviors,
which are the neutral operant, reinforces and punishers (McLeod, 2007). McLeod (2007)
stressed that positive reinforcement strengthens a behavior by rewarding children for
exhibiting good behavior. However, parents and teachers should not reward or praise a child
when the child is exhibiting undesired behavior. In this case, parents and teachers should use
negative reinforcement to help Julian to remove his misbehavior. Teacher can explain to him

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that there are consequences if he snatches things and hits other children. Other than that,
teacher should pay more attention on Julian and caters to his needs. Instead of having him to
lend toys to others without understanding his needs, teacher should help him to reason why
snatching toys from others is unacceptable, how others feel when he snatches things from
them and explains the reasons for being discipline.
Conversely, Hunson exhibits good discipline where he respects teacher and being
obedient to teacher. According to the incidents I have recorded in my observation, Hunson
always ask for teachers opinion about his drawing. He asked, Teacher, can I draw a circle?
When teacher said, Of course, you can draw anything you like., only he continued to draw
the circle. According to the teacher, Hunsons parents hold high expectations on him as he is
the only child in the family. Hence, Hunson is fear of failure; he gets upset when he could not
complete a task. It is probably that Hunsons parents do not always praise him even he
exhibits good behavior. According to Waterson (2000), children progress better when adults
praise them for their good behavior, take interest and involved in what they do, allow
children to have their own choices as well as aware of their emotional reactions to stress and
their needs. Waterson (2000) stressed that children always respond to parental reaction.
Hence, it is crucial for parents and teachers to take part in childrens activities.
Socialization behavior of the children. Throughout the observation, I found that
Julian seldom interacts and socializes with other children at school. He tends to play alone
than playing in groups. According to the teacher, Julian tends to be emotional and moody
when he first came to school, he seldom mix with peers and join in other childrens play.
According to Bronfenbrenner (1979), he stressed that the interactions between children and
their families are the focus of human development. By strengthening the quality as well as the
quantity of relationships, the functioning of a child and his or her family can be enhanced
(Bronfenbrenner, 1979). When children feel loved and have more interactions with their

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families, they tends to socialize more with others, for example, teachers, peers as well as the
community. In this case, Julian did not expose to the environment where he can actually
connect and interact with his parents. It is most probably due to the divorcement of his
parents.
In contrast, Hunson tends to interact and socialize with peers more as compared to
Julian. According to the teacher, Hunson prefers to play in groups than playing alone.
Throughout the observation, I found that Hunson always involves in other childrens play and
he talks to teacher more frequently. I observed that there is a strong attachment between
Hunson and his teacher. Hunson likes to stay closer to his teacher and he often plays with his
teacher. Hence, it could not be denied that parents and teachers as the primary care givers
have greatest influence on the socialization practices of a child.
Conclusions
In conclusion, parents and teachers play important and crucial role in shaping young
childrens behavior. Parents and teachers should guide the behavior of young children by
expecting cooperation from children as well as mutual respecting between one another
(Harrelson, 2009). Hence, by providing effective and positive discipline for children, they
will eventually learn to respect others, learn to take on their responsibility and learn to make
positive choices (Harrelson, 2009). Thus, children can develop positive and appropriate
behavior with the guidance from positive adults. It is important that parents and teachers
understand what children need. It is not the children we need to change, but it is the
inappropriate and undesired behavior that we are going to change and thus, support the good
behavior (Harrelson, 2009). As an adult, we need to let children to understand and know what
behaviors are unacceptable and why they are unacceptable. However, this does not mean that
the child is not being loved. We can positively punish the child if he or she exhibits an

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inappropriate behavior, but we should not hurt their heart. Parents and teachers must always
bear in mind that the only purpose of punishing the child is to correct him or her from that
undesired behavior so it would not occur again in the future. In a nutshell, childrens
behaviors are affected by parental behavior, they are like a piece of blank paper and adults
are the one who write on them.

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References
National Healthy Start Association. (n. d.). The Social Emotional Development of Young
Children. Retrieved from
http://www.nationalhealthystart.org/site/assets/docs/NHSA_SocialEmotional_2.pdf
American Humane Association. (2013). Child Discipline. Retrieved from
http://www.americanhumane.org/children/stop-child-abuse/fact-sheets/child
discipline.html
Perrino, Ralph G. (2011). The Socialization Process and Its Impact on Children and
Learning. Retrieved from http://www.nvtutoring.com/pdfs/Socialization.pdf
Gay, L. R., & Airasian, P. (2000). Educational research: Competencies for analysis and
application (6th Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Saudino, Kimberly J. (2005). Behavioral Genetics and Child Temperament. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1188235/pdf/nihms2462.pdf
McLeod, S. A. (2011). Bandura - Social Learning Theory. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.html
McLeod, S. A. (2008). Erik Erikson. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html
McLeod, S. A. (2011). Kohlberg. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/kohlberg.html
Waterson, Tony. (2000). Giving guidance on child discipline. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1117468/

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Snyder, Aria, & Bub, Samantha. (n. d.). Discipline and Intergenerational Transmission.
Retrieved from
http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/rs/2008/19discipline%20for%20publication.pdf
McLeod, S. A. (2007). Skinner - Operant Conditioning. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/operant-conditioning.html
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. Cambridge,
Mass: Harvard University Press.
Harrelson, Peggy O. (2009). Guiding the Behaviour of Young Children. Retrieved from
http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/350/350-020/350-020_pdf.pdf

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