Chapter 10; Human Development Flashcards
development psychology
the study of how behaviour and mental processes change over the lifespan
post hoc fallacy
mistaken assumption that because A comes before B, A must cause B
bidirectional influences
childrens experiences (nurture) influence their development, but their development (nature) also influences their experiences
cross-sectional design
design in which researchers examine people of different age groups at the same time
cohort effects
in cross-sectional designs there are effects due systematic generational differences
what are longitudinal designs and what do they allow us to examine?
tracking the development of the same group of subjects over time, allows us to examine developmental effects: changes over time as a consequence of ageing
attrition
in longitudinal designs participants can drop out before the study is complete
selective attrition
in longitudinal designs when the droupouts are disproportionately from a particular group
externalizing behaviours
acting out, ex. breaking rules, defying authority, committing crimes
what are the 2 myths concerning development
- infant determinism: assumption that extremely early experiences are almost always more influential than later experiences in shaping us as adults
- childhood fragility: belief that children are delicate creatures who are easily damaged
gene-environment interaction
the effects of genes depend on the environment and vice-versa, ex. low MAO gene+maltreatment= antisocial behaviour
nature via nurture
children with certain genetic predispositions often seek out and create their own environments, ex. highly fearful children select safer environments, making it appear that growing up in a safe environment created fearfulness, when the environment is actually a consequence of genetic predisposition
gene expression
when environmental experiences turn genes on and off through development, ex. weed/schizophrenia, highly stressful event/anxiety
what develops prenatally?
learning, memory, and preferences for sounds/body positions
zygote
fertalized egg
what are the 3 stages of prenatal development
- germinal stage
- embryonic stage
- fetal stage
germinal stage
0-2 weeks, zygote divides and doubles forming a blastocyst: ball of identical cells that haven’t differentiated yet
embryonic stage
3-8 weeks, cells start to differentiate, limbs, facial features, major organs (heart lungs brain) begin to form, during this stage things are most likely to go wrong like miscarriage and defects
fetal stage
9 weeks-birth, bulking up stage, embryo becomes a fetus, major organs are established, heart starts beating
what are teratogens and give examples
environmental factor that can negatively impact prenatal development, ex. illness, x-rays, alcohol, tobacco, cannabis
proliferation
when neurons in the brain develop at an astronomical rate, starting with the brain stem, 18 days - the end of month 6
what is migration of cells and when does it occur?
neurons sort themselves out, moving to their final positions in specific structures of the brain such as hippocampus/cerebellum, 4 months onward
what are the 3 ways fetal development is disrupted
- exposure to hazardous environmental influences
- biological influences from genetic disorders or errors in cell duplication
- premature birth
FASD
fetal alcohol syndrome disorder, causes learning disabilities, delays in physical growth, facial malformations, behavioural disorders
premature babies
are born before 36 weeks
viability point
point in pregnancy when infants can survive on their own, 25 weeks
infant reflexes
sucking reflex, rooting reflex: if you stroke a baby’s cheek it turns its head
motor behaviours
bodily movements that occur as a result of self-initiated force
what are the 6 major motor milestones and when do they occur?
sitting up (6 months), crawling (9 months), standing unsupported (11 months), cruising (12 months), walking (13 months), and running (18-24 months)
motor patterns
are innately programmed and become active at specific time points
what triggers puberty?
pituitary gland simulates physical growth and reproductive system releases estrogens and androgens (ex. testosterone)
secondary sex characteristics
breats, broader shoulders, deeper voice, ect.
puberty
sexual maturation/attainment of physical potential for reproduction
menarche
onset of menstruation
spermarche
first ejaculation
menopause
termination of menstruation triggered by reduction in estrogen
cognitive development
how we acquire the ability to learn, think, communicate, and remember over time
what are the 3 ways cognitive theories differ?
either stage like or continuous changes in understanding, either domain-general or domain specific, and principle source of learning
stage like changes in understanding
sudden spurts of knowledge followed by periods of stability, at this age we can expect x to happen
continuous changes in understanding
gradual, incremental, no clear cut-off
domain general
development changes in cognitive skills affect most or all areas of cognitive functioning at once
domain specific
cognitive skill develop independently and at different rates across different domains
principle sources of learning
physical experience, social interaction, or biological maturation/natural changes
Jean Piaget;s theory of cognitive development
stage theorist,
domain general
biological maturation
children aren’t miniature adults, understandings differ due to their limited experiences
children aren’t passive observers, but rather active learners
end point of cognitive development is the ability to reason logically about hypothetical problems
cognitive change is marked maintaining a balance between our experience of the world and our thoughts about it
assimilation
piaget; the process of absorbing new experiences into current schemas during which cognitive skills/worldview remains unchanged
accommodation
piaget; the altering of a schema to make it more compatible with experience
Jean Piaget’s stages of development
- sensorimotor stage
- preoperational stage
- concrete operations stage
- formal operations stage
stop pretending chickens fly
sensorimotor stage
birth -2; marked by focus on the here an now, all info is acquired through perception/observing physical consequences of their actions, lack of object permanence: the understanding that objects still exist when out of view and a lack of deferred imitation: ability to perform action observed earlier
preoperational stage
2-7, marked by an ability to construct mental representations: the ability to think about things absent from immediate surroundings
concrete operations stage
7-11, ability to perform mental operations for physical events but poor at performing mental operations in abstract/hypothetical situations, can pass and perform conservation tasks and organizational tasks
formal operations stage
12+ adolescence, hypothetical reasoning beyond the here and now, experiment systematically with hypotheses and explain outcomes, think about abstract questions, if and the statements, and either or statements
horizontal decalage
what Piaget called children who were more advanced in one cognitive domain than another
cons of piagets theory
he underestimated children’s competence and was culturally biased and learning is actually domain-specific and continuous
Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development
continuous
domain-specific
social interaction
interested in how social/cultural factors influence learning
scaffolding
zone of proximal development
scaffolding
learning mechanism where parents provide assistance in children’s learning but gradually remove structure as children become more competent
zone of proximal development
phase where children are receptive to learning a new skill but aren’t yet successful at it
naive physics
infants posses a basic understanding of some aspects of how physical objects work
Michael McCloskey
many adults hold commonsensical, but inaccurate ideas about physics
Bloom/Weisburg
science is hard because it challenges our assumptions/reliance on impressions, intuitions, and observations
self-awareness
how much a child has developed a concept of themselves (dot test) children can recognize themselves in a mirror at 18 months
theory of mind
ability to reason about what other people know, 4-5 years, sally and anne test
Adolescence; David Elkind
return of egocentrism
imaginary audience (belief that everyone is paying attention to you)
personal fable (belief that you are special and unique and can’t be harmed)
what declines with age and what improves with age
memory/processing speed declines, but crystalized intelligence and vocabulary improves
what is temperament and what are the 3 categories?
basic emotional style, genetic, 3 categories:
1. easy (40% of babies)
2. difficult (10% of babies)
3. slow to warm up (15% of babies)
35% of babies don’t fit into the categories
what is behavioural inhibition and what does it predict?
tendency to react negatively and withdraw when faced with unfamiliar people/situations; predicts high anxiety levels and low impulsivity
contact comfort
touch can provide positive emotions
secure attachment style
considers caregiver to be reliable, upset when caregiver leaves, happy upon return
what is insecure attachment style and what are the 3 types?
avoidant, anxious, disorganized
insecure-avoidant attachment style
dettached relationship, doesn’t react when caregiver leaves/returns
anxious attachment style
clingy, nervous about caregiver leaving, upset when they return
disorganized attachment style
reactions are inconsistent (abuse/neglect)
attachment style is a result of what
temperment and parenting style
Erikson’s Model of Identity Development
Each stage is marked by an identity crisis or psychological crisis and how the crisis is resolved impacts later functioning
8 stages:
1. Infancy: trust vs. mistrust
2. Toddlerhood: autonomy vs. shame and doubt
3. Early childhood: Industry vs. inferiority
4. Adolescence: Identity vs. role confusion
5. Young adulthood: intimacy vs. isolation
6. Young adulthood: intimacy vs. isolation
7. Adulthood: generativity vs. stagnation
8. Aging: ego integrity vs. despair
