Ch.1 Basic Concepts in Human Development

Question 1

What is human development?

Answer 1

the scientific study of age-related changes in behavior, thinking, emotion, and personality

Question 2

What were the Western beliefs about human development based on?

Answer 2

philosophers’ explanations for differences they observed in individuals of different ages

Question 3

St. Augustine - philosopher

Answer 3

4th century philosopher who believed in the theory of “original sin”

Question 4

(1)Definition of “original sin” and (2) developmental outcomes

Answer 4

(1) The Christine doctrine believed all humans are born selfish and must seek spiritual rebirth
(2) any developmental outcomes–good or bad–are the result of individual’s struggle to overcome inborn tendency to act immoral

Question 5

John Locke

Answer 5

17th century English philosopher who believed in the theory of “empiricism”

Question 6

(1) Definition of empiricism and (2) developmental outcomes

Answer 6

(1) the view that humans possess no innate tendencies and that all differences among humans are attributable to experience ; children are passive recipients of environmental experience, and adults can mold children into whatever they wanted them to be
(2) individual differences–among adults–due to childhood environments

Question 7

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Answer 7

Swiss philosopher who believed in the theory of “innate goodness”

Question 8

(1) Definition of innate goodness and (2) developmental outcomes

Answer 8

(1) all humans have innate goodness and all humans are naturally good and seek out experiences that help them grow and reach their potential *nurturance and protection is needed
(2) good outcomes from growing up in a good environment and poor outcomes are learned from other people; people may experience frustration to follow the innate goodness in which the child was born with

Question 9

Charles Darwin

Answer 9

-believed that he and other evolutionists can understand the development of the human species by studying child development
-they created baby biographies, which were detailed records of their own children’s early development
-first organized studies of human development
-Darwin’s studies were the source of many important ideas in modern development psych

Question 10

G. Stanley Hall (psychologist)

Answer 10

-wanted more objective methods to study development
-used questionnaires and interviews to study large numbers of children
-identified “norms,” average ages at which milestones happen and that norms could be used to learn about the evolution of individual children

Question 11

Arnold Gessel

Answer 11

-believed the idea of “maturation to exist, which is the existence of genetically programed sequential patterns of change
-thought that development occurred regardless of practice, training, or effort
-his finding sled to the basis of many “norm-referenced tests” that are used now to determine whether individual children are developing normally

Question 12

Lifespan perspective

Answer 12

-important changes that occur in each period of development
-children and adults experience major life passages
-increased longevity

Question 13

The 3 Broad Domain Categories - Lifespan Perspective

Answer 13

1) Physical Domain
2) Cognitive Domain
3) Social Domain

Question 14

Physical Domain

Answer 14

changes in the size, shape, and characteristics of the body

Question 15

Cognitive Domain

Answer 15

changes in thinking, memory, problem-solving, and other intellectual skills

Question 16

Social Domain

Answer 16

variables that are associated with the relationship of an individual to others

Question 17

What are the 4 Periods of Development?

Answer 17

1) Prenatal –> 2) Infancy –> 3) Early Childhood –> 4) Middle Childhood –> 5) Adolescence –> 6) Early Adulthood –> 7) Middle Adulthood –> 8) Late Adulthood

Question 17

Prenatal period

Answer 17

Only period that has clearly defined boundaries at its beginning and end (begins at conception and ends at birth)

Question 18

Infancy period

Answer 18

begins at birth and ends when a child begins to use language to communicate

Question 19

Early childhood period

Answer 19

begins when children reach the milestones of beginning to use language (2-6 yrs old)

Question 20

Middle Childhood

Answer 20

marked by a social event, the child’s entrance into school (6-12 yrs old)

Question 21

Adolescence

Answer 21

marked by a biological milestone, puberty, which signals the end of childhood (12-19 yrs)

Question 22

Early adulthood

Answer 22

-marked with a variety of legal boundaries that are highlighted by the social and psychological nature of the transition into adulthood
-variations across cultures led some researchers to believe that a new period of development called “emerging childhood” (20-40 yrs)

Question 23

Middle adulthood

Answer 23

-more arbitrary in its timing
-biological milestones (menopause) vary among individuals and social boundaries are rapidly changing (40-65 yrs)

Question 24

Late adulthood

Answer 24

is not distinguished by any biological or social event that distinguishes it from a middle-aged adult (65 yrs-death)

Question 25

Nature vs. nurture

Answer 25

-Nature: inborn propensities; biological influences; inborn biases
-Nurture: learning from environmental experiences; internal models of experience

Question 26

Continuity vs. discontinuity

Answer 26

-Continuity: continuous process; qualitative change in amount or degree
-Discontinuity: stages; qualitative, step-like change

Question 27

3 Kinds of Qualitative Changes

Answer 27

1. Normative Age-Grade
2. Normative History-Graded Changes
3. Non-normative Changes

Question 28

Normative Age-Graded

Answer 28

-universal changes
-social clock/age norms
-ex: baby’s first steps

Question 29

Normative History-Graded Changes

Answer 29

-affects each generation somewhat differently
-cohort/generational effects

Question 30

Non-normative changes

Answer 30

-unique, unshared changes or individual changes

Question 31

What are vulnerabilities?

Answer 31

ex: tendency towards emotional irritability, a physical abnormality, allergies, a genetic tendency towards alcoholism, etc.
-each child is born with a certain vulnerability

Question 32

What makes a child resilient?

Answer 32

-Children are also born with protective factors, such as high intelligence, good coordination, an easy temperament, or a lovely smile, that makes them resilient in the face of stress
-born with vulnerabilities + protective factors
-these two factors interact with the child’s environment, so that the same environment can have different effects, depending on what qualities the child brings to the interaction

Question 33

What are the 5 origins of delinquency?

Answer 33

1. poor discipline and poor monitoring
2. noncompliant child
3. negative behavior patterns established
4. rejection by peers and school difficulty
5. push towards delinquency

Question 34

Descriptive methods: variables & relationships

Answer 34

-variables: characteristics that vary across people
-relationship: when 2+ variables vary together

Question 35

Descriptive methods

Answer 35

-they are ways to identify relationship
-people observed in their normal environments
-potential observer bias
-limited generalizability
-time consuming

Question 36

Case studies

Answer 36

in-depth examination of a single individual

Question 37

laboratory observations

Answer 37

controlled setting for study

Question 38

Two broad survey areas

Answer 38

-questionnaires and interviews
-questions are asked, answers recorded, and samples are used

Question 39

Correlation

Answer 39

the strength of a relationship between 2 variables
-positive correlation: high scores on both variables
-negative correlation: scores of two variables move in opposite directions

Question 40

Cross-cultural studies

Answer 40

-search for universal and unique development
-demonstrate degree of environmental variation with human development

Question 41

Ethics

Answer 41

-Ethics: broad ethical principles for responsible conduct of research and use of any outcomes resulting from research
-in research…
-protection of animal rights and human subjects
-universities, government, and organizations often have Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

Question 42

Research Ethics

Answer 42

1. Protection from harm
2. Informed consent
3. Confidentiality
4. Knowledge of Result
5. Deception

Question 43

Protection from harm

Answer 43

-unethical to do research that causes permanent physical or psychological harm to subjects
-if temporary harm exists, researchers must provide repair for the damage

Question 44

Informed consent

Answer 44

-subjects are required to sign a consent form stating that they are aware of the risks being involved
-human subjects (children/adults) have the right to discontinue participation in a study at any time

Question 45

Confidentiality

Answer 45

-participants have right to confidentiality
-EXCEPTION: when children reveal to researchers that they are/have been abused in any way by an adult

Question 46

Knowledge of results

Answer 46

-participants, their parents, and administrators of institutions in which the research takes place have a right to a written summary of a study’s result

Question 47

Deception

Answer 47

if deception has been a part of the study, participants have the right to be informed about the deception as soon as the study is over