ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the mechanisms and processes by which individuals as they grow up acquire their attitudes and standards of behaviour, the basic dispositions that underlie their actions. The most obvious way by which adults influence children's behaviour is by deliberate training, reward and punishment, instruction and prohibition, telling them what to do and what not to do. A child who is in a state of psychological strain or frustration is likely to snatch at any satisfaction to offset the tension. Children are usually influenced by example through their imitating it; they imitate it because they identify themselves with the exemplar; they do this because of some strong admiration or attachment for him. A mother harassed with financial worries may arouse anxiety in her children whenever any shopping is to be done, so that anxiety—a natural response to certain situations—becomes highly reinforced and established in connection with money.
