We tend to go into parenting thinking that the early years are for getting the basics right – the rest will follow as our little ones grow and start to interact with the world around them.
Scientists in the States have suggested that certain aspects of our kids’ lifelong development could be determined at a very early age, however – self-esteem chief among them.
According to study results published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, children as young as five years old could already have a sense of self-esteem comparable to an adult.
Indeed, while your child may only just be getting to grips with reading and writing, they may have already developed the sense of self that they will carry forth into adulthood.
Explaining the research findings, team member Dr Dario Cvencek told The Huffington Post: “Some rudimentary sense of children’s self-esteem appears to be already established by age five.”
“That does not mean it can’t change with life experiences and maturation. We think self-esteem is malleable, but we also think that it starts earlier than previously thought,” he added.
The latest findings turn previously established ones on their head; until now, scientists thought that young children could not develop an overall negative sense of themselves.
The latest findings were made by getting a group of pre-school children to engage in word association games.
