Emotional Life of the Toddler

by Lieberman, Alicia F.

• ISBN13: 9780028740171
• ISBN10: 0028740173
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1995-05-01
• Publisher: Free Press

Summary

Although a number of books discuss the physical and cognitive abilities of the toddler, Alicia F. Lieberman’s is the first to examine the varied and intense emotional life of children from ages one to three in Emotional Life of the Toddler.

Any parent who has followed an active toddler around for a day knows that a child of this age is a whirlwind of explosive, contradictory, and ever-changing emotions. Although there are any number of books that cover the physical and cognitive abilities of the toddler, Lieberman’s is the first to offer an in-depth examination of the varied and intense emotional life of children from ages one to three. Drawing on her lifelong research, Dr. Lieberman addresses commonly asked questions and issues. Why, for example, is “no” often the favorite response of the toddler? How should parents deal with the anger they sometimes feel in the face of their toddler’s unflagging obstinacy? Why does a crying toddler run to his mother for a hug only to push himself vigorously away as soon as she begins to embrace him? With the help of numerous examples and vivid cases, Lieberman answers these and other questions, giving us, in the process, a rich, insightful profile of the roller coaster emotional world of the toddler.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	vii
The Emotional Importance of Early Relationships	1	(5)
Who Is the Toddler?	6	(25)
Discovering the World	8	(15)
Discovering the Body	23	(8)
The Challenges of Being (and Raising) a Toddler	31	(24)
The Parents' Experience	32	(1)
Obstacles to a Secure Base	33	(8)
From Secure Base to Partnership	41	(11)
Encouraging a Partnership	52	(3)
The Question of Temperament	55	(25)
Temperament Types	57	(7)
The Socialization of Temperament	64	(16)
The Active Toddler: Racing Ahead	80	(20)
Exploration from a Secure Base	81	(1)
Movement and Language in Active Toddlers	81	(14)
Some General Reflections: Temperament and Partnership	95	(1)
Living with an Active Toddler	96	(4)
The Shy Toddler: Taking One's Time	100	(23)
The Profile of Early Shyness	101	(19)
Helping Shy Children to Enjoy Who They Are	120	(3)
Early Anxieties	123	(25)
The Early Origins of Anxiety	124	(5)
The Anxieties of Toddlerhood	129	(4)
What Is Optimal Anxiety?	133	(1)
Play and the Mastery of Anxiety	134	(4)
Excessive Anxiety	138	(8)
Encouraging Emotional Security	146	(2)
Issues to Negotiate	148	(30)
Separation Anxiety	149	(5)
The Experience of Toilet Training	154	(5)
Nighttime Difficulties	159	(6)
Sibling Rivalry	165	(6)
Marital Squabbles	171	(1)
Discipline: Is It Really Needed?	172	(6)
When Parents Divorce	178	(24)
Divorce as Secure Base Disruption	181	(2)
What Do Toddlers Understand?	183	(5)
The Divorced Mother's Situation	188	(1)
The Divorced Father's Situation	189	(1)
``Divide the Living Child''	190	(9)
Is There an Ideal Custody Arrangement?	199	(3)
The Toddler in Child Care	202	(25)
Making the Transition: Saying Good-bye	203	(4)
Spending the Day in Child Care	207	(8)
Saying Hello: The Joys and Stresses of Reunion	215	(1)
The Parent---Caregiver Relationship	216	(3)
Signs of Trouble	219	(1)
The Emotional Effects of Child Care	220	(1)
Choosing Good-Quality Child Care	221	(2)
Does the Quality of Child Care Matter?	223	(1)
The Social Realities of Current Child Care	224	(3)
Conclusion: Staying Close and Letting Go	227	(2)
References	229	(10)
Index	239