Chapter 1

Question 1

Baby Biographies

Answer 1

Detailed, systematic observations of individual children.

Question 2

Applied developmental science

Answer 2

Uses developmental research to promote healthy development, particularly for vulnerable children and families.

Question 3

Theory

Answer 3

A theory is an organized set of ideas that is designed to explain and make predictions about development.

Question 4

Maturational theory

Answer 4

Child development reflects a specific and prearranged scheme or plan within the body.

Question 5

Ethological theory

Answer 5

Views development from a evolutionary perspective.

Question 6

Critical period

Answer 6

A critical period in development is the time when a specific type of learning can take place; before or after the critical period learning is difficult or even impossible.

Question 7

Imprinting

Answer 7

Baby geese following the mother is the first step in imprinting, creating an emotional bond with the mother.

Question 8

Psychodynamic theory

Answer 8

Freud created the first psychodynamic theory, which holds that development is largely determined by how well people resolve certain conflicts at different ages.

Question 9

Id

Answer 9

The Id is a reservoir of primitive instincts and drives.

Question 10

Ego

Answer 10

The ego is the practical, rational component of personality.

Question 11

Superego

Answer 11

The superego is the “moral agent” in the child’s personality.

Question 12

Psychosocial theory

Answer 12

Erikson’s psychosocial theory, development comprises a sequence of stages, each defined by a unique crisis or challenge.

Question 13

Classical conditioning

Answer 13

Watson’s research was based on the form of learning called classical conditioning, first describe by Ivan Provlov, who showed that a previously neutral stimulus could become associated with a naturally occurring response and eventually come to elicit a similiar response.

Question 14

Operant conditioning

Answer 14

Skinner studied operant conditioning, in which the consequences of a behaviour determine wether that behaviour is repeated.

Question 15

Reinforcement

Answer 15

A reinforcement is a consequence that increases the likelihood of the behaviour that it follows.

Question 16

Punishment

Answer 16

A punishment is a consequence that decreases the future likelihood of the behaviour that it follows.

Question 17

Imitations or Observational learning

Answer 17

Children may learn simply by watching those around them, which is know as imitation or observational learning.

Question 18

Social cognitive theory

Answer 18

Albert Bandura. The “Bobo” doll study is a classic example of both direct observational learning and the fact that observation does not always lead to imitation.

Question 19

Self-efficacy

Answer 19

Bandura also argues that experience gives children a sense of self-efficacy, beliefs about their own abilities and talents.

Question 20

Cognitive-developmental perspective

Answer 20

The cognitive-developmental perspective focuses on how children think and on how their thinking changes as they grow.

Question 21

Culture

Answer 21

The knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour associated with a group of people.

Question 22

Ecological systems theory

Answer 22

Ecological system theory the environment is divided into five components: the microsystem, the mesosystem, the exosystem, the macrosystem, and the chronosystem.

Question 23

Microsystem

Answer 23

The microsystem consists of the people and objects in an individuals immediate environment.

Question 24

Mesosytem

Answer 24

Microsystems themselves are connected to creat the mesosytem. The mesosystem represents the fact that what happened in one microsystem is likely to influence what happens in other.

Question 25

Exosystem

Answer 25

The exosystem refers to social setting that a person may not experience first-hand but that still influence development. For example, a mother’s work environment is part of their children’s exosystem.

Question 26

Macrosystem

Answer 26

The broadest environmental context is the macrosystem, the subcultures and cultures in which the micro, meso, and exosystems are embedded.

Question 27

Chronosystem

Answer 27

Finally, these systems all change over time, in a dimension known as the chronosystem. This system reminds us that these systems are always in flux. For example when an older sisters leaves to college.

Question 28

Continuity-versus-discontinuity issue

Answer 28

Continuity-versus-discontinuity issue is really about the “relatedness” of development: are early aspects of development consistently related to later aspects.

Question 29

Nature-nurture issue

Answer 29

What roles do biology (nature) and environment (nurture) play in a child’s development.

Question 30

Active-passive child issue

Answer 30

Are children simply at the mercy of their environment (passive child) or do children actively influence their own development through their unique individual characteristics (active child).

Question 31

Systematic observation

Answer 31

Systematic observation involves watching children and carefully recording what they do or say.

Question 32

Naturalistic observation

Answer 32

In naturalistic observation, children are observed as they behave spontaneously in a real-life situation.

Question 33

Structured observation

Answer 33

In structured observation, the researcher creates a setting likely to elicit the behaviour of interest.

Question 34

Observer bias

Answer 34

Observer bias occurs when the researcher tends to notice the behaviours that supports the hypothesis and to discount those that do not.

Question 35

Observer influence

Answer 35

Observer influence is a form of participant bias, occurring when the participants change their behaviour because they are being observed.

Question 36

Habituation

Answer 36

Habituation allows participants to get used to the researchers presence.

Question 37

Microgenetic study

Answer 37

Children are tested repeatedly over a span of days or weeks, typically with the aim of observing change directly as it occurs.

Question 38

Meta-analysis

Answer 38

Meta-analysis is a tool that allows researchers to synthesize the results of many studies to estimate relations between variables.

Question 39

Quasi-expiremental design

Answer 39

A quasi-expiremental design includes multiple groups that were not formed by random assignment.