The Role of Culture and the Neighbourhood - Report Example

The Influence of Childhood Location on the Developmental and Life Outcomes of an Individual: The Role of Culture and the Neighbourhood Introduction This essay is about the relationship between the location in which a child is raised and the overall development and changes in life that a child experiences. The essay examines how the cultural, social and geographical aspects of the environment in which a child is brought up affect how the child develops over the years and the extent to which the child succeeds later in life as an adult. For purposes of clarity, the essay examines the cultural and community or neighbourhood aspects of the childhood environment and their effect on child development separately. Hence, the impact of the community or neighbourhood in which a child is brought up on the development and future outcomes of the child is examined first. This part is followed by an evaluation of how the cultural and geographical setting of the environment in which a child is raised affects the manner in which the child develops and performs later on in life. Therefore, in the essay, it is argued that the geographical and cultural aspects of the environment in which a child is raised have a direct impact on the manner in which the child develops and performs later in life as an adult. The Effect of the Neighbourhood One dimension of the location in which a child is raised that has a profound effect on how a child develops and performs later in life is the neighbourhood. Leventhal and Brooks-Gunn (2000, p. 313) define the neighbourhood in terms of several aspects, including the socioeconomic status (SES) and the ethnic diversity of individuals within a specific location. Furthermore, the level of joblessness and the extent to which families are concentrated within a specific region are regarded as important factors that define a neighbourhood (McCulloch & Joshi 2000, p. 4). Therefore, the influence of the neighbourhood on child development can be evaluated by considering the effect of the individual aspects of the neighbourhood. The social, ethnic and economic dimensions of the neighbourhood have different effects on the way in which children develop and perform later in life (Pebley & Sastry 2003, p. 4). For example, Beauvais and Jenson (2003, p. 11) observe that the SES of families within a neighbourhood determines the manner in which children are brought up and the way the children behave later in life. The SES of a society refers to the overall economic status of the families that live in a given location. Since different families live close to each other, it is likely that the parents and children within those families interact with each other and compete for the same resources (Beauvais & Jenson 2003, p. 13; Duncan 2011, p. 3). Competition for resources means that parents experience problems that are similar in the process of bringing up their children. As a result, children who live in a neighbourhood that is defined by specific social and economic status experience a similar form of upbringing. Engle and Black (2008, p. 2) provide a further examination of how the social and economic status of a neighbourhood affects the way children grow and perform later in life. The study by Engle and Black focused on the effect of poverty on children within different societies. It is observed that poverty within a neighbourhood affects the way children are brought up and that this also affects how the children perform in their studies (Boardman & Onge 2005, p. 141; Engle& Black 2008, p. 3). The impact of poverty on the upbringing and performance of children is obvious. For example, due to lack of resources, many children from poor neighbourhoods are likely to drop out of school or fail to pass their examinations. Also, due to lack of enough resources, parents in poor neighbourhoods are likely to bring up their children in specific ways that ultimately determine how the children grow up and perform in school and in life. It should be noted that the neighbourhood can have either a positive or negative impact on the manner in which children are raised and how the children perform later in their lives. One example of this effect is seen in terms of how children whose families move to more affluent neighbourhoods experience change. Chety and Hendren (2015, p. 2) observe that some studies have shown that when families move from poor to affluent neighbourhoods, the effect of the relocation is seen in the manner in which the parents raise their children. A simple explanation for this is that the children experience positive interactions with their new neighbours and this changes how they grow up and perform later in life. On the other hand, Buu et al. (2009, p. 490) found out that children who are brought up in neighbourhoods that are characterised by widespread abuse of drugs and alcohol are likely to perform poorly in school and life. Since in alcohol-ridden neighbourhoods the children are exposed to the abuse of alcohol and drugs, it becomes easy for the children to pick up the negative vices. As a result, abuse of drugs and alcohol affects the performance of such children in school and later in life. Therefore, it can be seen that the prevailing situations in a neighbourhood affect the manner in which children are brought up. The social and economic status of parents within a neighbourhood may have a direct effect on the manner in which the parents raise their children. Also, other community factors have an indirect influence on the manner in which the children in a neighbourhood are raised. The impacts of all these factors, which may be positive or negative, usually affect the performance of children later on in life when they become adults. The Effect of Culture Culture can be defined as the total of practices, beliefs and approaches that are held by members of a given community (Greenfield et al. 2003, p. 462). Several important aspects of culture emerge from this definition. The first one is that culture is composed of meanings and practices that are shared by a group of individuals. Awde (2009, p. 2) states that the individuals who share a culture interpret events and carry out specific practices in a common manner that forms the essence of their lives. Hence, the lives of individuals in any given community are based on shared values, beliefs and practices. The second dimension is that culture is shared by individuals within a community and that it is passed down within and across generations. Essentially, culture is the fabric of any given society (Greenfield et al. 2003, p. 463). Members of a generation learn about the cultural aspects of their community as they grow up. Similarly, new members of the community inevitably learn about the cultural practices of the community from their childhood. The members have to teach their children about the cultural values of the society. This way, cultural values are not only shared among members of a community but are also passed down to younger members of the community. There are several ways in which culture affects how children develop and perform later in life as adults. For example, Albert and Trommsdorff (2014, p. 7) note that culture influences the manner in which children go through the basic developmental stages in their lives. Hence, culture determines how children are raised, how they behave when they reach the puberty stage, and how they perform later in life when they become adults. The manner in which individuals behave during different stages in their lives is largely shaped by what they are taught. Also, according to Triandis and Suh (2002, p. 136), the influence of culture on the lives of children and how the children behave later in life as adults arises from the children’s interaction with their parents. Further, parent-child interaction is an important way in which the aggregate cultural values of the society are passed down to the children. In the same vein, Zhang (2013, p. 4) observes that culture plays a critical role in determining how children behave. Also, Koster, Schumacher and Kartner (2015, p. 74) note that the extent to which children develop pro-social behaviour depends on how they interact with the different cultural elements of their society. Culture, which provides a code of conduct for children, helps to shape how children develop morally. Additionally, since culture is passed across individuals within a generation as well as across generations, parents share similar values that they use to raise up their children. Marshall (2001, p. 19) emphasises the role that socialisation plays in shaping the behaviour of children. As children interact with their parents, among themselves and with other members of the society, they learn norms and practices that are part and parcel of the cultural heritage of their society. Through interaction, children learn to distinguish between what is acceptable and what is not. This sense of judgement forms the moral basis upon which children’s future behaviour is built. Further, it has been pointed out that culture shapes the manner in which children develop their self-concept (Oyserman & Lee 2008, p. 315). Self-concept is an important attribute of individuality since it determines how individuals view themselves and perform in life. Powell (2009, p. 36) states that individuals who have a high sense of themselves develop a strong sense of self-confidence and this helps them to succeed in their career and life in general. On a different note, Gularnick (2006, p. 51) observes that the concept of the self is an important attribute of the overall personality of an individual since it reflects the specific confidence-related needs of all individuals in the society. Therefore, the necessity of self-confidence is contrasted with the need for resources, security and other aspects that children and individuals in the society need. The attribute of self-concept also shapes how individuals understand their responsibilities in the society, and this has a direct effect on their performance as members of the society (Marshall 2009, p. 21). In this case, culture, which is the sum of knowledge, beliefs and practices, shapes the way children understand who they are. The self-concept that children form, in turn, determines how the children perform in school and in the society later on as adults. Therefore, it can be seen that culture shapes the moral development of children as well as the manner in which the children go through the different developmental stages in their lives. Conclusion Two important conclusions can be drawn from the foregoing discussion. The first point is that the neighbourhood in which children are brought up affects their behaviour, overall development and performance later in life when they are adults. The influence of the neighbourhood occurs in two main ways: first, through children’s interaction with other individuals in the neighbourhood and secondly, in the manner in which parents raise their children. The second pointis that culture, through its variations and similarities within different societies, shapes the development and performance of individuals. Given that there are differences among various cultures across societies, it follows that the manner in which children develop varies with different cultures. References Albert, I & Trommsdorff, G 2014, ‘The role of culture in social development over the lifespan: an interpersonal relations approach,’ Online Reading Psychology and Culture, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 3-30. Awde, N 2009, ‘The influence of cultural values on the parent-child interaction patterns of families from an Asian background,’ ARECLS, vol. 6, pp. 1-7. Beauvais, C & Jenson, J 2003, ‘The well-being of children: are there “neighbourhood effects”? Family NetworkDiscussion Paper F/31, viewed 15th November 2016, . Boardman, JD & Onge, JMS 2005, ‘Neighbourhoods and adolescent development,’ Child Youth Environment, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 138-164. Buu, A, DiPiazza, C, Wang, J, Puttler, LI, Fitzgerald, HE & Zucker RA 2009, ‘Parent, family and neighbourhood effects on the development of child substance use and other psychopathology from preschool to the start of adulthood,’ viewed 15th November 2016, . Chety, R & Hendren, N 2015, ‘The impacts of neighbourhoods on intergenerational mobility: Childhood exposure effects and county-level estimates,’ viewed 15th November 2016, via . Duncan, GJ 2011, ‘Neighbourhoods and adolescent development: how can we determine the links?’ viewed 16th November 2016,. Engle, PL, Black, MM 2008, ‘The effect of poverty on child development educational outcomes,’ viewed 15th November 2016, via . Greenfield, PM, Keller, H, Fuligni, A & Maynard, A 2003, ‘Cultural pathways through universal development,’ Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 54, pp. 461-490. Gularnick, MJ 2006, ‘Family influences on early development: integrating the science of normative development, risk and disability, and intervention,’ in K McCartney& D Phillips (eds), Handbook of early childhood development, Blackwell Publishers, Oxford, pp. 41-61. Harpalani, V 2002, ‘What does “acting white” really mean? Racial identity formation and academic achievement among black youth,’ Perspectives on Urban Education, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 1-5. Koster, M, Schumacher, N & Kartner, J 2015, ‘A cultural perspective on pro-social behaviour,’ Human Ethology Bulletin, vol. 22, pp. 71-82, viewed 16th November 2016, . Leventhal, T & Brooks-Gunn, J 2000, ‘The neighbourhoods they live in: the effects of neighbourhood residence on child and adolescent outcomes.’ Psychological Bulletin, vol. 126, no. 2, pp. 309-337. Marshall, HH 2001, ‘Cultural influences on the development of self-concept: Updating our thinking, ‘Young Children, November, 2011, viewed 16th November 2016, . McCulloch, A & Joshi, HE 2000, ‘Neighbourhood and family influences on the cognitive ability of children in the British national child development study,’ Institute of Economic and Social Affairs, Working Paper 24, viewed 16th November 2016, . Oyserman, D & Lee, SWS 2008, ‘Does culture influence what and how we think? Effects of priming individualism and collectivism,’ Psychological Bulletin, vol. 134, no. 2, pp. 311-342. Pebley, AR & Sastry, N 2003, ‘Neighbourhoods, children poverty and children’s wellbeing: a review,’ viewed 16th November 2016, . Powell, KC, 2009, ‘The role of the concept of self and societal expectations in academic and career development,’ Journal of Higher Education, vol. 38, no. 2, pp. 32-40. Triandis, HC & Suh, EM 2002, ‘Cultural influences on personality,’ Annual Review of Psychology, vol. 53, pp. 133-160. Zhang, X 2013, Children’s moral reasoning: influence of culture and collaborative discussion (Master’s thesis), University of Illinois, Illinois,viewed 16th November 2016, . Read More

It should be noted that the neighbourhood can have either a positive or negative impact on the manner in which children are raised and how the children perform later in their lives. One example of this effect is seen in terms of how children whose families move to more affluent neighbourhoods experience change. Chety and Hendren (2015, p. 2) observe that some studies have shown that when families move from poor to affluent neighbourhoods, the effect of the relocation is seen in the manner in which the parents raise their children.

A simple explanation for this is that the children experience positive interactions with their new neighbours and this changes how they grow up and perform later in life. On the other hand, Buu et al. (2009, p. 490) found out that children who are brought up in neighbourhoods that are characterised by widespread abuse of drugs and alcohol are likely to perform poorly in school and life. Since in alcohol-ridden neighbourhoods the children are exposed to the abuse of alcohol and drugs, it becomes easy for the children to pick up the negative vices.

As a result, abuse of drugs and alcohol affects the performance of such children in school and later in life. Therefore, it can be seen that the prevailing situations in a neighbourhood affect the manner in which children are brought up. The social and economic status of parents within a neighbourhood may have a direct effect on the manner in which the parents raise their children. Also, other community factors have an indirect influence on the manner in which the children in a neighbourhood are raised.

The impacts of all these factors, which may be positive or negative, usually affect the performance of children later on in life when they become adults. The Effect of Culture Culture can be defined as the total of practices, beliefs and approaches that are held by members of a given community (Greenfield et al. 2003, p. 462). Several important aspects of culture emerge from this definition. The first one is that culture is composed of meanings and practices that are shared by a group of individuals.

Awde (2009, p. 2) states that the individuals who share a culture interpret events and carry out specific practices in a common manner that forms the essence of their lives. Hence, the lives of individuals in any given community are based on shared values, beliefs and practices. The second dimension is that culture is shared by individuals within a community and that it is passed down within and across generations. Essentially, culture is the fabric of any given society (Greenfield et al. 2003, p. 463). Members of a generation learn about the cultural aspects of their community as they grow up.

Similarly, new members of the community inevitably learn about the cultural practices of the community from their childhood. The members have to teach their children about the cultural values of the society. This way, cultural values are not only shared among members of a community but are also passed down to younger members of the community. There are several ways in which culture affects how children develop and perform later in life as adults. For example, Albert and Trommsdorff (2014, p. 7) note that culture influences the manner in which children go through the basic developmental stages in their lives.

Hence, culture determines how children are raised, how they behave when they reach the puberty stage, and how they perform later in life when they become adults. The manner in which individuals behave during different stages in their lives is largely shaped by what they are taught. Also, according to Triandis and Suh (2002, p. 136), the influence of culture on the lives of children and how the children behave later in life as adults arises from the children’s interaction with their parents.

Further, parent-child interaction is an important way in which the aggregate cultural values of the society are passed down to the children. In the same vein, Zhang (2013, p. 4) observes that culture plays a critical role in determining how children behave.

Read More