In my Family, Child, and Community class my teacher said that there is a critical age between 10 months and 18 months (during the 'Autonomy VS. Shame' stage of Erikson) where children need freedom to explore in a relatively safe environment and that there is a apparently a connection between the freedom to explore in this time period and confidence. This is the most important age range when setting up your child's sense of self.

The long lasting confidence of the child depends on the type of 'mother' (was the study base, but can apply to any caregiver situation) they had. Mother A would set up her house in a relatively safe manner (everything that is sharp or poisonous out of reach and appropriate baby proofing) she would be comfortable giving her child the freedom to explore the home and be less likely to helicopter over the child. Mother C was the total opposite of Mother A, she is overwhelmed by motherhood and not only baby proof (though some mother C's don't BP and that is the cause of their anxiety) but often always puts the baby in some type of "safety contraption" (play pens, high chairs) when at home and not holding the child, resulting in them not letting the tot on the floor out of fear that they will make a mess or get into something. Mother B is a medium between the two. The children of mother A are more confident, thus more likely to take healthy risks and more likely to be successful. Mother C children are supposidly more likely to have low self-esteem and more likely to be depressed.

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