Impact of Poverty on Childhood Development

1
Early Childhood Development
Introduction
Childhood is a period of life when an individual is extremely impressionable and
vulnerable. During this stage, the presence of poverty is seen as a stressor. It grips
families, communities and cities into an unending cycle which cannot be broken
away from easily. Looking for money, individuals perform odds and hazardous tasks
in exchange for money. The children are also unable to avail themselves the care,
nutrition and stimulus to grow and develop into a healthy adult. In this study, the
impact of poverty will be reviewed and its relationship with childhood growth and
development will be reviewed. In the end, a certain recommendation will be provided
for childcare needs that will allow a child to grow into a healthy person.
Relationship between childhood poverty and suppressed cognitive
development
Poverty causes a child to be exposed to a disadvantaged environment where they
are exposed to crime, have limited access to health care and met with rude or crass
behaviour. An individual hailing from such childhood situation has the chances of
developing a physical and mental disorder, low IQ levels and stunted brain
development. The emotional quotient of the child is also impacted as he is only open
to mostly negative emotional stimuli and less positive ones. He may associate
certain emotions to be negative or derogatory and hence refrain from showing a full
range of emotions (Hindawi, 2019).
In a research study which collected data over 20 years, children from low-income
households were selected for measuring the relationship between cognitive
development and poverty. The children chosen belonged to the age of four to eight
years and belonged to public schools. The impact of poverty was seen in context to
the presence of educational and cognitive stimulus present in the environment such
as toys, books and friends to play with. They also took into consideration the
condition of mothers and caregivers (Psychological science, 2017). It was found that
cognitive stimulation from the environment played an important role in enhancing a
child’s language skills and development. The different experiences a child is able to
take part in will need them to come across more words and use them to express
themselves. In another research, it was found that the socioeconomic status of a
child is responsible for their hippocampus growth. The smaller growth volume of the
hippocampus was seen among children hailing from low socioeconomic families.
The hippocampus volume is an indicator of memory performance. The following