AP Psychology Unit 9: Developmental Psychology Flashcards
1
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Developmental Psychology
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A branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout a lifespan
2
Q
Nature vs. Nurture
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How does our genetic inheritance (nature) interact with our experiences (nurture) to influence our development?
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Continuity vs. Stages
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What parts of development are gradual and continuous, like riding an escalator? What parts change abruptly in separate stages, like climbing rungs on a ladder?
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Stability vs. Change
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Which of our traits persist through life? How do we change as we age?
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Stage Theories
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State that we develop in a set sequence. They suggest how people think and act differently when they arrive at a later age.
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Q
Zygote
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The fertilized egg; It enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo. Its inner cells become the embryo while its outer cells become the placenta
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Q
Germinal Stage
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Starts at the time of conception, when the sperm and the egg combine to form a zygote. During the germinal stage, the zygote begins to divide in order to implant into the uterine wall. Once implantation is complete, the embryonic stage begins. Lasts roughly 10 days
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Q
Embryo
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The developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month.
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Embryonic Stage
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Runs from the 5th to the 10th week of pregnancy. Organs begin to form and function and the heart begins to beat
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Fetus
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The developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth. An embryo becomes a fetus about 9 weeks after conception.
11
Q
Placenta
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A disc of tissue that connects a mother’s uterus to the umbilical cord, and is ultimately responsible for delivering nutrients and oxygen to a fetus
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Q
Teratogens
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Agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm
13
Q
Fetal Alchohol Syndrome
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Physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman’s heavy drinking. In severe cases, signs include a small, out-of-proportion head and abnormal facial features. Alcohol has an epigenetic effect, switching genes abnormally on or off
14
Q
Baby’s Reflexes
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- Rooting reflex (searching for a nipple)
- Sucking reflex (drinking breast milk)
- Startle reflex (when arms and legs spring out, followed by fist-clenching and crying)
- Grasping reflex (helps babies stay close to their caregivers)
- Babinski reflex (when the sole of the foot is stroked, the big toe moved upward while the rest of the toes fan out)
15
Q
Habituation
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Decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation. As infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to a stimulus, their interest wanes and they look away sooner
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Q
Maturation
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Biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience
17
Q
Pruning
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Our developing brain’s tendency to shut down unused neural links under the influence of adrenal hormones during puberty
18
Q
Association Areas
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Brain areas that are associated with thinking, memory, and language. They are the last brain areas to develop in the process of maturation
19
Q
Nature vs Nurture in Motor Development
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Genes (nature) guide motor development (children walk at different ages)
Nurture may speed up the process of walking (some cultural groups massage their babies’ legs, speeding up the process of learning to walk)
20
Q
Cognition
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All the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
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Q
Schemas
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A concept or framework that organizes and interprets information
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Assimilation
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Interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas
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Accommodation
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Adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information
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Q
Sensorimotor Stage
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In Piaget’s theory, the stage (from birth to nearly 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities
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Object Permanence
The awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived. Develops at about 8 months of age
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Preoperational Stage
In Piaget's theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic
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Conservation
The principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects
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Egocentrism
In Piaget's theory, the preoperational child's difficulty taking another person's point of view
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Pretend Play
The preoperational child's acting out of stories which involve multiple perspectives, the playful manipulation of ideas and emotions, and the use of symbols
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Theory of Mind
People’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states; about their feelings, perceptions, thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict. Develops during the preoperational stage, although preoperational children are still egocentric
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Concrete Operational Stage
In Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 7 to 11 years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events. Reversibility is developed.
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Formal Operational Stage
In Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts. Reasoning can be applied to imagined realities and symbols
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Scaffold
A framework that offers children temporary support as they develop higher levels of thinking
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Zone of Proximal Development
Vygotsky's concept of a zone between what a child can do and can't do, or what they can do with help. Children learn best when their social environment presents them with something that is between too easy and too difficult
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Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
A disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by significant deficiencies in communication and social interaction, and by rigidly fixed interests and repetitive behaviors. This occurs due to poor communication among brain areas that normally work together to help us understand another person's viewpoint
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Animism
A preoperational child's tendency to give life to an inanimate object
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Hierarchial Classification
The ability to simultaneously sort things into general and more specific groups using different types of comparisons. Develops during the concrete operational stage.
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Reversibility
A mental operation that reverses a sequence of events or restores a changed state of affairs to its original condition
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Centration
A preoperational child's tendency to focus on one salient aspect of a situation and neglect other, possibly relevant aspects
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Stranger Anxiety
The fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning about 8 months of age
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Attachment
An emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to their caregiver and showing distress on separation
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Critical Period
An optimal period early in the life of an organism when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces normal development
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Imprinting
The process by which certain animals form strong attachments early in life
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Strange Situation
A procedure for studying child-caregiver attachment; a child is placed in an unfamiliar environment while their caregiver leaves and then returns, and the child's reactions are observed
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Secure Attachment
Demonstrated by infants who comfortably explore environments in the presence of their caregiver, show only temporary distress when the caregiver leaves, and find comfort in the caregiver's return
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Insecure Attachment
Demonstrated by infants who display either a clinging, anxious attachment or an avoidant attachment that resists closeness
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Temperament
A person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity
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Anxious Attachment
An attachment style where people constantly crave acceptance but remain vigilant to signs of possible rejection
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Avoidant Attachment
An attachment style where people experience discomfort getting close to others and use avoidant strategies to maintain distance from others
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Basic Trust
According to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers
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Self-Concept
All our thoughts and feelings about ourselves in the answer to the question, "Who am I?"
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Authoritarian Parents
Parents who are coercive, imposing rules and accepting obedience. They are highly demanding and not responsive.
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Permissive Parents
Parents who are unrestraining. They make few demands, set few limits, and use little punishment. They are highly responsive and not demanding
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Negligent Parents
Parents who are uninvolved. They are neither demanding nor responsive. They are careless, inattentive, and do not seek to have a close relationship with their child
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Authoritative Parents
Parents who are confrontative. They are both demanding and responsive. They exert control by setting rules, but, especially with older children, they encourage open discussion and allow exceptions.
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Authoritarian Parenting Style's Impact on Children
Children have less social skill and self-esteem, and a brain that overreacts when they make mistakes
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Permissive Parenting Style's Impact on Children
Children are more aggressive and immature
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Negligent Parenting Style's Impact on Children
Children experience poor academic and social outcomes
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Authoritative Parenting Style's Impact on Children
Children have high self-esteem, self-reliance, self-regulation, and social competence
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Separation Anxiety
A baby's fear that a parent will leave and not return. The fear may be worsened in the presence of a stranger. Peaks at 13 months of age
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Sex
In psychology, the biologically influenced characteristics by which people define male and female
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Gender
In psychology, the socially influenced characteristics by which people define boy, girl, man, and woman
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Aggression
Any physical or verbal behavior intended to harm someone physically or emotionally
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Relational Aggression
An act of aggression (physical or verbal) intended to harm a person's relationship or social standing
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Aggression: Men vs. Women
Men are more likely to be physically/verbally aggressive. Women are more likely to commit acts of relational aggression
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Social Power: Men vs. Women
Most people see men as more powerful than women
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Social Connectedness: Men vs. Women
Women are less concerned with viewing themselves as separate individuals and are more concerned with forming intimate social bonds. Women's brains are wired in a way that enables social relationships
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Male Answer Syndrome
A subject's (most likely a man's) exaggerated willingness to answer (or inability to resist the impulse to answer) factual questions regardless of the subject's lack of knowledge of the relevant phenomena or circumstances.
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Role
A set of expectations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave
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Gender Role
A set of expected behaviors, attitudes, and traits for males or for females
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Gender Identity
Our sense of being male, female, or some combination of the two
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Social Learning Theory
The theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded or punished
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Gender Typing
The acquisition of a traditional masculine or feminine role
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Androgyny
Displaying both traditional masculine and feminine psychological characteristics
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Transgender
An umbrella term describing people whose gender identity or expression differs from that associated with their birth-designated sex. Brain scans reveal that transgender people have some neural tracts that differ from those of cisgender people
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Selection Effect
When mids seek out peers with similar attitudes and interests
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Unisex
The same for males and females. 45/46 of the chromosomes we receive from our parents are unisex
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Adolescence
The transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence
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Lifespan Perspective
A developmental psychologist's belief that development is lifelong
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Puberty
The period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing
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Moral Reasoning
The thinking that occurs as we consider right from wrong
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Preconventional Morality
The first level of morality in Kohlberg's model. Occurs before age 9 and states that morality is based on self-interest. Preconventional children obey rules to avoid punishment or gain concrete rewards
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Conventional Morality
The second level of morality in Kohlberg's model. Occurs during early adolescence and states that morality is based on the desire to uphold laws and rules to gain social approval or maintain social order
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Postconventional Morality
The third level of morality in Kohlberg's model. Occurs during adolescence and beyond and states that our actions reflect our belief in basic rights and seld-defined ethical principles. Kohlberg’s critics have noted that this stage is culturally limited, appearing mostly among people from large societies that prize individualism.
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Moral Intuitions
States that the mind quickly and automatically makes moral judgments
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Moral reasoning
The thinking that occurs as we consider right from wrong
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Intuitionist Perspective
States that morality is a two-track process. It is controlled by emotions and intuition, which therefore influence our moral reasoning.
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Delay Gratification
To decline small rewards now for bigger rewards in the future.
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Jonathan Haidt
Studied moral intuitions and their effect on moral actions
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Identity
Our sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles
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Social Identity
The "we" aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to "Who am I?" that comes from our group memberships
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Intimacy
In Erikson's theory, the ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary developmental task in young adulthood
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Infancy
Age: Up to one year
Issue: Trust vs. mistrust
Description: If needs are dependably met, infants develop a sense of basic trust
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Toddlerhood
Age: 1-3 years
Issue: Autonomy vs. shame and doubt
Description: Toddlers learn to exercise their will and do things for themselves, or they doubt their abilities
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Preschool
Age: 3-6
Issue: Initiative vs. guilt
Description: Preschoolers learn to initiate tasks and carry out plans, or they feel guilty about their efforts to be independent
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Elementary School
Age: 6-puberty
Issue: Competence vs. inferiority
Description: Children learn the pleasure of applying themselves to tasks, or they feel inferior
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Adolescence
Age: Teens-20s
Issue: Identity vs. role confusion
Description: Teenagers work at refining a sense of self by testing roles and then integrating them to form a single identity, or they become confused about who they are
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Young Adulthood
Age: 20s-early 40s
Issue: Intimacy vs. Isolation
Description: Young adults struggle to form close relationships and gain the capacity for intimate love, or they feel socially isolated
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Middle Adulthood
Age: 40s-60s
Issue: Generativity vs. Stagnation
Description: Middle-aged people discover a sense of contributing to the world, usually through family and work, or they may feel a lack of purpose
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Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development: Late Adulthood
Age: Late 60s and up
Issue: Integrity vs. despair
Description: Reflecting on their lives, older adults may feel a sense of satisfaction or failure
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Emerging Adulthood
A period from about age 18 to the mid-twenties, when many in Western cultures are no longer adolescents but have not yet achieved full independence as adults
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X Chromosome
The sex chromosome found in both males and females. Females typically have two X chromosomes, males typically have one. An X chromosome from each parent produces a female child
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Y Chromosome
The sex chromosome typically found only in males. When paired with an X chromosome from the mother, it produces a male child
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Testosterone
The most important male sex hormone. Both males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs during the fetal period, and the development of male sex characteristics during puberty
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Primary Sex Characteristics
The body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible
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Secondary Sex Characteristics
Nonreproductive sexual traits, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair
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Spermarche
The first ejaculation
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Menarche
The first menstrual period
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Intersex
A condition present at birth due to unusual combinations of male and female chromosomes, hormones, and anatomy; possessing biological sexual characteristics of both sexes
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AIDS
Also called acquired immune deficiency syndrome. A life-threatening, sexually transmitted infection caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). AIDS depletes the immune system, leaving the person vulnerable to infections
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Sexual Orientation
Our enduring sexual attraction, usually toward members of our own sex (homosexual attraction) it the other sex (heterosexual attraction); variations include attraction toward both sexes (bisexual attraction)
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Pedophilia
A disordered attraction to young boys or girls
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Erotic Plasticity
When a person alternates periods of high sexual activity with periods of low or no sexual activity. More common in women
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Fraternal Birth-Order Effect
Men with older brothers are more likely to be gay. This may be because, with each pregnancy with a male fetus, the maternal antibodies may become stronger and prevent the fetus' brain from developing in a male-typical pattern.
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Gay-Straight Brain Differences
1. One hypothalamic cell cluster is smaller in women and gay men than in straight men
2. Gay men's hypothalamus reacts as does straight women's to the smell of men's sex-related hormones
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Gay-Straight Genetic Influences
1. Shared sexual orientation is higher among identical twins than among fraternal twins
2. Sexual attraction in fruit flies can be genetically manipulated
3. Male homosexuality often appears to be transmitted from the mother's side of the family
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Gay-Straight Prenatal Influences
1. Altered prenatal hormone exposure may lead to homosexuality in humans and other animals
2. Men with several older biological brothers are more likely to be gay, possibly due to a maternal immune-system reaction
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Menopause
The time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines
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Telomeres
Tips of chromosomes that wear down with age. As they shorten, aging cells may die without being replaced by perfect replicas. The shortening of telomeres is aggravated by obesity, smoking, and stress
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Cross-Sectional Study
Research that compares people of different ages at the same point in time
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Longitudinal Study
Research that follows the same people over time
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Terminal Decline
The gradual decline in cognitive function that occurs as a function of time before death
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Neurocognitive Disorders (NCDs)
Acquired (not lifelong) disorders marked by cognitive deficits; often related to Alzheimer's disease, brain injury or disease, or substance abuse. In older adults, neurocognitive disorders were formerly called dementia
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Alzheimer's Disease
A neurocognitive disorder marked by neural plaques, often with onset after age 80, and entailing a progressive decline in memory and other cognitive abilities. It is caused by a loss of brain cells and the deterioration of neurons that produce acetylcholine. Abnormalities in these neurons include: shriveled protein filaments in the cell body and clumps of free-floating protein that accumulates as neural plaque.
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Social Clock
The culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement
