Often when we think of the word ‘crisis’ we think of something negative, passing through a period that is full of difficulties. But this is not the original meaning of this Greek word. The original translation was ‘judgment’, so that ‘being in a crisis’ implies being in a situation in which one is submitted to a test. In a developmental crisis, what is tested is the degree of preparation needed to progress along the path of humanization. These developmental times do not cause too many problems if you are well prepared and the surrounding environment is favorable.
In the long process of human development, we go through many times of ‘crisis’, many moments of transition from one stage to another. The passages are required and cannot be sidestepped. If everything goes according to plan during the developmental phase, the person will pass the ‘test’ without difficulty and will find herself at a more advanced phase of personal development.
The adults working with children have to be aware of the developmental crises during the first few years of life in order to indirectly prepare the environment. We look at the physical development that is occurring, how the development has been supported and how to sufficiently support the development in the future.
In the first three years of life, there are four main crises that the child goes through; Birth crisis, Weaning crisis, Objectivation crisis, and Self-Affirmation crisis. The Birth crisis is the separation from the mother. In order to stay alive, after being detached from the mother’s body with the cutting of the umbilical cord, the infant must demonstrate that several organs can function on their own. The baby, once separate from the mother, needs to establish an attachment to the outside world, which replaces the connection he had with his mother in utero. Initially the mother is a representation of the ‘world’ for the newborn baby. The infant attaches to the new world he finds himself in, through his mother, in her arms, and through the relationship developed during feeding. This first period of attachment is called the symbiotic period and lasts for the first 6 to 8 weeks after birth.
This is a fundamentally critical time, psychologically speaking, for the infant’s development. If the child has a strong attachment to the mother in this period, and if the mother facilitates this attachment, then after 8 weeks or so, the baby will be ready to separate and attach to the world outside of the mother’s arms. The mother is a secure base, from which the baby can experience the wider world, which he now becomes more interested in.
The second important developmental crisis is that of weaning, which underlines a physical change associated with the ability to eat and digest food other than milk or formula. It also includes a psychological change in the human being consisting of a higher degree of awareness of himself and of the external world. The weaning process starts when the first meal is offered between 4 and 6 months. Bear in mind that the weaning does not refer to the end of breastfeeding or bottle fed, but rather, the start of solid food experiences.
The weaning process is completed at about eight to nine months of age. At this point, infants can eat practically everything that adults can, and can usually do it for the most part on their own. They are physically capable of taking food from a plate and putting it into their mouths and chewing it.
Next the child goes through what we refer to as the Objectivation crisis. This refers to the state where the child realizes that he is the subject acting on an object and has an influence in the world. This crisis comes around 8 to 9 months. Physically at this age the child is able to creep and crawl. He starts to creep away from the adults in the room. By this time the child needs to have a space that is his own and is a safe place for him to practice these new physical changes that he is making. If the child is given the support that he needs from the adults in his environment, the physical developments will continue.
Like weaning, the psychological overlay can either hinder the growth or fully support it. When the child starts to creep away, the psychological support that he receives will determine how far he will go. If the adult is supportive and encouraging of these new physical changes, the child will continue to improve and grow.
This is also the same time that the child starts to go through stranger anxiety. He has discovered that he has some control over objects, but does not have control over people and when they come and go. The child also does not understand that if they cannot see something or someone that it still exists. These two psychological aspects are starting to develop and he will soon become more comfortable with people leaving him, knowing they will return.
The fourth developmental crisis is the Self-Affirmation crisis, also known as the crisis of opposition. It is given that name because this is the time when the child says ‘NO’ to seemingly everything. This crisis can start as early as 18 months and is usually completed by 2½ or 3 years old.
This is the last crisis that the child goes through to complete the final stage of separation from the mother. The child realizes and accepts that he is a completely separate entity from the mother. This is the strongest period of time when the child wants to do things on his own. The more opportunities to be independent, the stronger and more self-confident the child will become.
To be able to psychologically pass through this crisis, the adults working with the child must assist the child. It is important for him to feel like he has a say in day-to-day tasks, feel that he has choices and limits. It is all about the language that he is presented with, ‘Would you like to walk to the bathroom or would you like me to carry you to the bathroom?’, ‘Would you like to wear the white shirt or the black shirt?’, ‘Would you like potatoes or carrots to eat?’, etc. The child is given choices all of which have the same end result. The child has the feeling of choice but the adult has the control in what the end result is. We are not risking anything by offering, whenever it is possible. The child gains very much, because we have demonstrated that we consider him able to choose, and respect his judgment. This is the best thing we can do for his ego and make it even stronger. The aim is to produce a person who is respected and who, therefore, respects others in the environment and shares in responsibilities. There is no difference in making these ‘small’ decisions in his childhood than the big life decisions that he will have to make later in life. Those decisions can only be taken well if he has had the opportunities to practice and learn to consider consequences from decisions.
At 3 years old, the child is an extraordinary human being who is able to establish a relationship of increasing equality. This will lead to important mental steps such as learning to read, write, and other cultural abilities. The child will refer to himself as ‘I’. He is able to move himself about perfectly and has reached an accurate awareness of the world around him.
“With appropriate human mediation everything is possible. Crisis periods are favorable for change, not only in children but in all who participate in them.” – Understanding the Human Being, Silvana Montanaro
By: Theresa Melloy, Toddler Lead