Children from Birth to Age Five, Quality of Life in

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Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research

Definition

From birth to age five, children develop at a faster pace than any other time. Also unique to this developmental period is that behavior does not develop in isolation. Young children require modeling, reinforcement, safety, and support unlike humans at any other age (Shonkoff and Phillips 2000). Therefore, elements largely external to a young child set the stage for development and define the parameters for his/her “quality of life.” For children from birth to age five, quality of life is defined by the quality of their relationships, environments, and learning.

Description

Quality of Parent–Child Relationship

Parenting is a bidirectional process, requiring active participation from both the parent(s) and the child (the term “parent(s)” used here is inclusive of guardians and primary home caregivers) (Collins et al. 2000). Multiple, complex variables influence the quality and characteristics of parent–child relationships. But the importance of parent–child relationships is...

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Correspondence to Kristen Missall .

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Missall, K., O’Bleness, J.J. (2023). Children from Birth to Age Five, Quality of Life in. In: Maggino, F. (eds) Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17299-1_796

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