Early Emotional Development During Infancy and Toddlerhood

Emotional development is an orderly process where complex emotions grow from primary ones.

Primary emotions—such as contentment, interest, and distress—appear soon after birth.

Over the next six months, these early emotional states grow into distinct emotions, like joy, surprise, and sadness.

Crying is the primary way infants communicate their needs, such as hunger.

By 5 months, infants can monitor caregivers’ expressions. If ignored, they cry harder for attention and stop if their efforts fail.

Smiling is another way infants express emotions. By around 2 months, they begin social smiling as they gaze and smile at caregivers.

By 5 months, infants laugh at absurd things.

By 8 to 10 months, anticipatory smiles appear—infants smile at an object, then look toward an adult while still smiling.

Complex emotions develop between 15 and 24 months as self-awareness grows. These include self-conscious emotions such as embarrassment, empathy, and envy.

By age three, self-evaluative emotions like pride, guilt, and shame emerge as children compare their actions with social standards.