Affective Domain:

Emotional Development
Victoria Ramirez
Fresno Pacific University
What is Emotional Development?

Emotional development, also described as the affective
domain, is learning about ones emotions, understanding
another persons feelings, acquiring a concept of self, and the
development of self-efficacy (Kostelnik, Soderman &Whiren,
2011).

How does emotional development
emerge?

Emotional development is often seen as progressing in the
same manner, and as being impacted by both internal
(biological predispositions, within-child abilities) and external
(physical and social environment) influences. And, just as
childrens language or mental capabilities develop as a result
of maturation and experience, so too does childrens
emotional development (Brett, Smith, Price & Huitt, 2003).

Ericksons Stage Theory of Emotional
Development
Erik Erikson theorized that
human development ranges on
a continuum characterized by
opposite emotional poles in
each of the stages.
When children are mostly
successful in moving through
these various stages, their
overall affective development
tends to fall toward the
positive emotional pole.
Emotional Intelligence
Daniel Golemen (1997) author of
Emotional Intelligence, describes
healthy emotional development as
emotional intelligence which consist of
the abilities and skills required to
manage emotions, engage in positive
interactions and most importantly,
communicate effectively and positively
(Kostelnik, Soderman &Whiren,
2011).
Basic Skills for Emotional Intelligence
Skill Set Emotional Intelligence Components
Self-Awareness Ability to identify thoughts, feelings, and strengths; understanding and
recognizing how thoughts, feelings and strengths influence choice and
actions
Social-Awareness Capacity to recognize and understand others thoughts and feelings;
developing empathy; ability to take the perspective of others
Self-Management Ability to manage emotions so that they facilitate rather than interfere
with the task at hand; setting long and short term goals; dealing with
obstacles
Responsible
Decision Making
The skill to generate, implement, and evaluate positive and informed
solutions to problems; tendency to consider the long-term consequences
Relationship Skills Ability to resist negative peer pressure and to resolve conflicts in such a
way that you maintain healthy and rewarding connections with
individuals and groups
Fostering Emotional Development
in the Early Childhood Center
Supporting and promoting healthy social and emotional
development in children still remains one of the main
goals of early childhood centers because research has
shown, and early childhood educators universally
understand, that childrens social and emotional skills
are vital for school readiness and are key building blocks
for cognitive development and knowledge acquisition.
Core Elements and Purpose for Emotional
Development
According to the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child
(2005), the core features of emotional development include the ability to
identify and understand ones own feelings, to accurately read and
comprehend emotional states in others, to manage strong emotions and
their expression in a constructive manner, to regulate ones own behavior,
to develop empathy for others and to establish and sustain relationships.
Effective educators and caregivers acknowledge these key elements in
emotional development and implement teaching strategies and practices
within the early learning environment; all with the purpose of addressing
emotional development in which children view themselves as valued and
capable (Kostelnik, Soderman &Whiren, 2011).
Supporting Emotional Development in the
Early Childhood Environment
Providing effective support for
childrens emotional development
starts with paying attention to
their feelings and noticing how they
manage them.
By acknowledging childrens
emotional responses and providing
guidance, caregivers and educators
can help children understand and
accept feelings, and develop
effective strategies for managing
them.
Emotional Development Teaching Strategies:
Self-Awareness and Social-Awareness
Promote childrens emotional awareness and sense of worth.
Structure activities and experiences specifically to build awareness
of situations and events that influence emotions.
Help children learn to acknowledge and label their feelings as
they participate in classroom activities.
Use a wide array of feelings words that represent variations on
happy, mad, sad and afraid.
Acknowledge facial
expressions, feelings
and emotions
Provide activities
that allow children
to explore different
emotions
Provide opportunities
for children to
dramatize different
emotional situations
Assist children with identifying what
others people look like and sound like
when expressing different emotions.
Provide sample scripts to help
children express their emotions and
needs.
For sample scripts visit:
http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/index.html
Help children find satisfying ways to express their emotions to
others and to assert themselves appropriately.
Choose literature in which the characters respond to emotions in
a variety of ways, and discuss how they felt and acted.

Have children dramatize
situations in which different
emotions are handled
appropriately.
Use puppets to model
different emotions
appropriately.


Create activities in which children explore their physical and social
qualities.
Examples might include body tracing, self-portraits,
autobiographical stories and sketches, projects around personal
family traditions, or conversations in which children identify
personal preferences and qualities (e.g., I like , or My favorite
, or I feel happy when .
Invite children to assess their personal qualities in relation to
fictional and nonfictional literary characters; invite children to
describe themselves in relation to a particular characteristics,
noting: A lot like me, a little like me, not like me.
Emotional Development Teaching Strategies:
Self-Management and Responsible Decision
Making
Promote childrens ability to meet age-appropriate
expectations for self-discipline.
Notice when children exhibit self-control
Use positive consequences to bring these constructive
behaviors to childrens attention
Be patient, firm, and objective when you are helping children
modify their behavior.
View childrens inappropriate behavior as a gap in their
knowledge or skills.
Set effective limits with clearly defined expectations.
Involve children in structuring classroom rules, and apply natural
and logical consequences consistently when rules are not observed.

Enhance childrens growing sense of
autonomy and initiative by giving
them frequent opportunities to
make choices and decisions.
Make it easy for children to use
materials and equipment
independently.

Give children opportunities to carry out
classroom jobs.
Encourage them to clean up after
themselves when possible and to assist
other who need help.
Create a job chart for children to use
each day.
Help children develop plans of their own
to follow.
Involve children in planning,
implementing, and evaluating some
class activities and decisions.
Developing Both Emotional and Social
Skills
Additionally, emotional teaching strategies and practices will
promote the development of social skills, which closely
correspond with the development of healthy emotional skills.
Fundamentally, emotional and social skills are both
significant elements in the development of healthy
relationships and the overall development and growth of
young children.
Effective teachers can promote positive relationship building
opportunities by providing children with an environment
that encourages social interactions and experiences.
Conclusion
In sum, healthy emotional development is an
essential part of not only a childs educational
experiences, but a huge part of their development
into competent adults.

Children not only need to be cognitively, physically
and socially prepared for their educational
journey, they also need to be equipped with
emotional skills to take on the many new
experiences that they encounter, not only in their
education, but for life in general.
Resources
About emotional development. (2013, January 1). KidsMatter. Retrieved July 14, 2014, from
http://www.kidsmatter.edu.au/families/about-emotions/childrens-emotions/how-childrens-emotions-develop-and-
change
Boyd, J., Barnett, S., Badrova, E., Leong, D., & Gomby, D. (2005, March 1). Promoting Children's Social and
Emotional Development through Preschool Education. . Retrieved July 13, 2014, from
http://nieer.org/resources/policyreports/report7.pdf
Brett, A., Smith, M., Price, E., & Huitt, W. (2003). Overview of the affective domain. Educational Psychology
Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved
from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/brilstar/chapters/affectdev.pdf
CSEFEL: Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning. (n.d.). CSEFEL: Center on the Social
and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning. Retrieved July 13, 2014, from
http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/resources/strategies.html
Granholm, J. (n.d.). Social-Emotional Development in Young Children. . Retrieved July 14, 2014,
from,http://www.michigan.gov/documents/Social_Emotional_Development_in_Young_Children_Guide_88553_7.pdf
Kostelnik, M. J., Soderman, A. K., & Whiren, A. P. (2011). Affective Domain. Developmentally appropriate
curriculum: best practices in early childhood education (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Merrill Prentice
Hall.
Making Sense of Childrens Emotions. (2013, January 1). KidsMatter. Retrieved July 14, 2014,
from:http://www.kidsmatter.edu.au/sites/default/files/public/KMP_C3_CDUE_MakingSenseOfChildrensEmotions.pdf