Are We Different People in Different Environments?

"Failure to recognize the power of the physical and social environment as a strong influence on children’s behavior often confuses parents and teachers...They actually see a different child," wrote Jim Greenman in his best-selling book, Caring Spaces, Learning Places: Children’s Environments that Work.

"At home, Jacob doesn’t eat tomatoes, usually takes two naps, and can’t put on his clothes. Jacob at child care willingly eats tomatoes, never naps, and dresses himself. Emma is never assertive at home with playmates, but at child care she has begun biting. Parents and teachers often react with disbelief...

Why do we underestimate the power of the environment to influence us?...We rarely take into account two things: first, that each of us has 'learned situational personalities' — we respond differently across settings; and second, that the environment is always influencing us, working for us or against us to some degree."

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