(1) Developmental Psychology Themes & Theories Flashcards
What is the cohort effect?
People who were born around the same time and in a similar culture will be exposed to similar characteristics which people from other generations might not be
What is Nature vs Nurture?
is psychological development due to biology or environment?
What is Continuity vs Discontinuity?
is development a process of progressive growth or through a step by step process?
What are Critical and Sensitive Periods?
are some periods of the development process more prone to learning of new skills than others?
What did Locke (1960) consider mind as?
considered the mind as a ‘blank slate’ (the tabula rasa), Babies are open to experience, not bringing anything into the world biologically, their interactions and experiences shape them
What did Kant, Leibnitz and Descartes believe?
believed that children already have an innate understanding to the world, experiences don’t shape them, Already have an ability to understand things, bring them into the world from birth
What is Nativism?
development is primarily determined but inherited factures (nature)
What is Empiricism?
development is determined by environmental influences (nurture)
Which two ways can children learn to read?
It can be incremental but also has qualitative jumps, some psychologists see development as smooth and continuous, building from previous abilities OR Others see is as discontinuous, happening in a series of stages or steps
What does Genie’s case study prove?
Proves that there is a window of opportunity to learn a primary language
What is a Critical Period?
age range during which specific experiences are vital for development to occur in a typical and appropriate way
What is a Sensitive Period?
age range when experiences are important for typical development
What did Darwin do in terms of child development?
Darwin was the first to conduct scientific observations of infants’ sensory abilities and young children’s emotions
Freud’s psycho-dynamic theory was mainly based on?
adults with mental health problems
What is the oral stage?
(experiences with mouth e.g. feeding) 0-1
What is the anal stage?
(starting to be toilet trained) 1-3
What is the phallic stage?
(aware of genitals, notices gender differences) 3-6
What is the latency stage?
(no concerns of sexuality) 6-12
What age does the genital stage occur?
12+
What stage of life does Erik Erikson focus on?
Erik Erikson’s theory of personality development is not limited to childhood, but applied to all of the human lifespan
How do you move onto the next stage of life? (Erikson)
Need to solve conflicts till you can move onto the next stage of life
What did Gessel (1940) study?
Gessel (1940s) studied film of children’s motor activity in a longitudinal study (0-9)
What is the cephalocaudal trend? (Gessel)
from head to feet (e.g. neck before legs)
What is the proximodistal trend? (Gessel)
from centre to periphery of the body (e.g. torso before hands) controlled before control of hands
What did McGraw (1945) observe?
observed two identical twins, who despite having different levels of motor stimulation developed at similar times
What does McGraw (1945) say about biological timetables?
These authors defend the idea that ‘biological timetables’, set out by genes, determine the way that the skills appear and unfold
What does the idea of behaviorism claim?
Supports the idea that changes in behaviour happen gradually and not in shifts or stages
What is Classical conditioning?
A type of leaning in which two stimuli are repeatedly presented together until individuals learn to respond to the unfamiliar stimulus in the same way they respond to the familiar stimulus
Who supported the idea of classical conditioning?
Pavlov, Watson
What is Operant conditioning?
A type of learning that depends on the consequences of behaviour; rewards increase the likelihood that a behaviour will occur, whereas punishment decreases that likelihood
Who supported the idea of operant conditioning?
Thorndike, Skinner
What does the social learning theory show?
SLT stresses the importance of observation and imitation in the acquisition of new behaviours
Research revealed the importance of cognitive processes in learning by imitation, this led to…
This led Bandura to propose the Model of Observational Learning
What is attention in terms of Model of Observational Learning?
Attention (experience, personality characteristics, relationship with model, situational variables)
What is retention in terms of Model of Observational Learning?
Retention (Rehearsal, organisation, recall, other cognitive skills)
What is reproduction in terms of Model of Observational Learning?
Reproduction (cognitive representation, concept matching, use of feedback)
What is motivation in terms of Model of Observational Learning?
Motivation (external incentives, vicarious incentives, self-evaluation, internalised standards)
