Chapter 1 Flashcards
It is the scientific study of the systematic processes of change and stability throughout the human lifespan.
Human development
It is the scientific study of human development as a lifelong process, encompassing systematic changes and stability from conception to death.
Life-span development
These are individuals engaged in the professional study of human development.
Developmental Scientists or Developmentalists
What are the 4 Goals of Development?
- Describe/Description
- Explain/Explanation
- Predict/Prediction
- Intervene/Intervention
One of the goals in development wherein you are identifying when and how developmental milestones occur.
Describe/description
In this goal of development, you are understanding the causes
and mechanisms behind development.
Explain/explanation
In this goal of development, you are anticipating future behaviors based on developmental patterns.
Predict/prediction
In this goal of development, you are applying knowledge to
support or improve development.
Intervene/intervention
What are the 3 domains of development?
- Physical development
- Cognitive development
- Psychosocial development
One of the domains of development that tackles the growth of body and brain, including patterns of change in sensory capacities, motor skills, and health.
Physical development
One of the domains of development that tackles a pattern of change in mental abilities, such as learning, attention, memory, language, thinking, reasoning, and creativity.
Cognitive development
One of the domains of development that tackles a pattern of change in emotions, personality, and social relationships.
Psychosocial development
It is a concept or practice created by a specific culture or society that may seem natural but is not inherently universal.
Social construction
● Conception to Birth
● Physical Developments: Rapid growth; organ and brain development; high environmental sensitivity.
● Cognitive Developments: Early sensory responses; memory and learning begin.
● Psychosocial Developments: Early bonding with mother.
Prenatal period
● Birth to Age 3
● Physical Developments: Rapid motor skill and brain development; sensory systems functional.
● Cognitive Developments: Early learning, memory, problem-solving, and language acquisition.
● Psychosocial Developments: Attachment formation; increasing autonomy; early peer interactions.
Infancy and Toddlerhood
● Ages 3 to 6
● Physical Developments: Steady growth; improved motor skills; sleep and appetite changes.
● Cognitive Developments: Egocentric thinking; language and memory growth; early schooling.
● Psychosocial Developments: Gender identity; increasing independence; social play.
Early Childhood
● Ages 6 to 11
● Physical Developments: Slower growth; improved strength and coordination.
● Cognitive Developments: Logical thinking develops; literacy and problem-solving skills increase.
● Psychosocial Developments: Complex self-concept; peer influence strengthens.
Middle Childhood
● Ages 11 to About 20
● Physical Developments: Puberty; reproductive maturity; health risks (e.g., substance use).
● Cognitive Developments: Abstract reasoning; identity exploration.
● Psychosocial Developments: Peer influence; evolving parent relationships; identity formation.
Adolescence
● Ages 20 to 40
● Physical Developments: Peak health; lifestyle choices affect long-term well-being.
● Cognitive Developments: Advanced moral reasoning; career and education choices.
● Psychosocial Developments: Stable personality; intimate relationships and family formation.
Emerging and Young Adulthood
● Ages 40 to 65
● Physical Developments: Gradual decline in strength and senses; menopause in women.
● Cognitive Developments: Peak expertise and problem-solving; career transitions.
● Psychosocial Developments: Midlife transitions; balancing work, family, and aging parents.
Middle Adulthood
● Age 65 and Over
● Physical Developments: Health declines; slower reaction times.
● Cognitive Developments: Memory changes; intelligence mostly stable with adaptations.
● Psychosocial Developments: Retirement; coping with aging and loss; focus on life’s meaning.
Late Adulthood
Differences in characteristics, influences, or developmental outcomes.
Individual differences
Inborn traits or characteristics inherited from the biological parents.
Heredity
It refers to all nonhereditary influences on development, including external surroundings and experiential learning from the womb onward.
Environment
It is the natural unfolding of physical and behavioral changes following a predetermined sequence.
Maturation
Two-generational kinship, economic, and household unit consisting of one or two parents and their biological children, adopted children, or stepchildren.
Nuclear family
Multigenerational kinship network of parents, children, and other relatives, sometimes living together in an extended-family household.
Extended family
It is a measure of an individual or family’s social and economic position, based on income, education, and occupation.
Socioeconomic status
Conditions that increase the likelihood of a negative developmental outcome.
Risk factors
A society or group’s shared way of life, including customs, traditions, beliefs, values, language, and learned behaviors passed across generations.
Culture
A community of people connected by shared ancestry, culture, religion, language, or national origin, fostering a common identity.
Ethnic group
An overgeneralization that oversimplifies and obscures differences within an ethnic or cultural group. (e.g. A term such as black or Hispanic)
Ethnic gloss
Biological or environmental events that affect many or most people in a society in similar ways and events that touch only certain individuals.
Normative influences
Characteristic of an event that occurs in a similar way for most people in a group.
Normative
Highly similar for people in a particular age group. The timing of biological events is fairly predictable within a normal range.
Normative age-graded influences
Significant events (such as the Great Depression or World War II) that shape the behavior and attitudes of a historical generation: a group of people who experience the event at a formative time in their lives.
Normative history-graded influences
A group of people strongly influenced by a major historical event during their formative period.
Historical generation
A group of people born at about the same time.
Cohort
An unusual event that happens to a particular person or a typical event that happens at an unusual time of life.
Nonnormative
These are unusual life events that significantly impact an individual’s development. These may be unexpected events (e.g., losing a parent in childhood) or rare experiences (e.g., surviving a plane crash). Some occur by chance, while others result from personal choices, shaping life’s trajectory in unique ways (by deciding to have a baby in their mid-fifties or taking up a risky hobby such as skydiving)
Nonnormative influences
Instinctive form of learning in which, during a critical period in early development, a young animal forms an attachment to the first moving object it sees, usually the mother.
Imprinting
The readiness of an organism’s nervous system to acquire certain information during a brief critical period in early life.
Predisposition towards learning
A specific time when an event, or its absence, has a crucial impact on development.
Critical period
Range of modifiability of performance.
Plasticity
The time in development when a person is particularly open to certain kinds of experiences.
Sensitive period
Development continues throughout life, with each stage influencing the next. No stage is more important than another.
Development is lifelong
Development occurs across biological, psychological, and social dimensions, which progress at different rates.
Development is multidimensional
Growth in one area may lead to decline in another. Some abilities improve with age, while others fade, but new skills can emerge.
Development is multidirectional
Biological abilities decline with age, but cultural factors like education and social support can help compensate.
Relative influences of biology and culture shift over the life span
People invest time, energy, and resources in growth, maintenance, or coping with loss, with priorities shifting over life stages.
Development involves changing resource allocations
Many abilities can improve with training and practice, though limits exist based on individual and environmental factors.
Development shows plasticity
Development is shaped by the time, place, and cultural context in which a person lives.
Development is influenced by the historical and
cultural context
