Chapter 11: Development Flashcards
Developmental Psychology
The study of continuity and change across the life span
Zygote
fertilized egg that contains chromosomes from both a sperm and an egg
Germinal Stage
2-week period that begins at conception
Embryonic Stage
A period that lasts from the second week until about the eighth week
Fetal Stage
a period that lasts from the ninth week until birth
Myelination
the formation of a fatty sheath around the axons of a neuron
Teratogens
Agents that damage the process of development
- Examples
- lead in water
- paint dust in air
- alcohol
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
A developmental disorder that stems from heavy alcohol use by the mother during pregnancy
Infancy
the stage of development that begins at birth and lasts between 18 and 24 months
Motor Development
the emergence of the ability to execute physical actions
- Such as reaching, grasping, crawling, and walking
Reflexes
Speciific patterns of motor response that are triggered by specific patterns sensory stimulation
Cephalocaudal Rule
motor skills to emerge in sequence from the head to the feet
- Top to bottom rule
- infants tend to gain control over their heads first, their arms and trunks next, and their legs last
Proximodistal Rule
the tendency for motor skills to emerge in sequence from the center to the periphery
- the inside to outside rule
- babies learn to control their knees, and they learn to control their elbows and knees before their hands and feet
Cognitive Development
the emergence of the ability to think and understand
- children must come to understand
- how the physical world works
- how their minds represent it, and how other minds represent it
Sensorimotor Stage
a stage of development that begins at birth and lasts through infancy
- infants at this stage use their ability to sense and their ability to move to acquire infromation about the world in which they live
Schemas
theories about ormodels of the way the world works
- infants construct these as they begin to live their lives
- having a prejudice is a schema
Assimilation
infants apply their schemas in novel situations
- tugging on a stuffed animal for it to come closer
- tugging on a actual animal will cause it to run away
- Adding new information to the prejudice is assimilation
Accommodation
Occurs when infants revise their schemas in light of new information
- realizing the prejudice is wrong and restructuring one’s opinion is accommodation
Object Permanence
the idea that objects continue to exist even when they are not visible
Childhood
the stage of development that begins at about 18 to 24 months and lasts util adolescence, which begins between 11 and 14 years
Preoperational Stage
the stage of development that begins at about 2 year and ends at about 6 years
- one of the stages of childhood
- during this stage the child learns about physical or “concrete” objects
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Concrete Operational Stage
the stage of development that begins at about 6 years and ends at about 11 years
- during this stage the child learns how various actions or “operations” can affect or transform those objects
Conservation
The notion that the quantitative properties of an object are invariant despite changes in the object’s appearance
- Water in cups, one poured into a smaller glass, they think that one has more now
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Formal Operational Stage
The stage of development that begins around the age of 11 and lats through adulthood
- Around the time when children can solve nonphysical problems with similar ease as solving physical problems
Egocentrism
the failure to understand that the world appears differently to different observers
Theory of Mind
the idea that human behavior is guided by mental representation
Attachment
an emotional bond - with a primary caregiver
Strange Situation
behavioral test used to determine a child’s attachment style
- taking child into room with parent
- Parent leaves
- the child experiences one of four attachment styles
Internal Working Model of Relationships
a set of beliefs about the self, the primary care-giver, and the relationship between them
Temperaments
characteristic patterns of emotional reactivity
Preconventional Stage
a stage of moral development in which the morality of an action is primarily determined by its consequences for the actor
Conventional Stage
a stage of moral development in which the morality of an action is primarily determined by the extent to which it conforms to social rules
- concerned not just about the punishment, but also about the approval of others
- Immoral actions are those for which one is condemned
Postconventional Stage
a stage of moral development at which hte morality of an action is determined by a set of general principles that reflect core values
Adolescence
the period of development that begins with the onset of sexual maturity (about 11 to 14 years of age) and lasts until the beginning of adulthood (about 18 to 21 years of age)
Puberty
the bodily changes associated with sexual maturity
Primary Sex characteristics
bodily structures that are directly involved in reproduction
Secondary sex characteristics
bodily structures that change dramatically with sexual maturity but that are not directly involved in reproduction
Erikson’s Stages

Adulthood
the stage of development that begins around 18 to 21 years and ends at death
Critical Periods
experience must occur during a certain time for normal development
(language, visual information, attachment)
Sensitive Periods
certain things are easier to learn at certain times during life (foreign languages are easier for young children to acquire than adults)
Piaget
4 Stages of Cognitive Development
- Sensorimotor
- Preoperational
- Concrete Operational
- Formal Operational
Kohlberg
3 Levels of moral development
- Preconventional Level
- Conventional Level
- Postconventional Level
Erikson
8 stages of psychosocial development
- Trust vs. Mistrust
- Autonomy vs. Shame & Doubt
- Initiative vs. Guilt
- Industry vs. Inferiority
- Identity vs. Role Confusion
- Intimacy vs. Isolation
- Generativity vs. Stagnation
- Ego Integrity vs. Despair
Piaget’s Four Stages of Cognitive Development

Socio-emotional Selectivity Theory
younger adults are generally oriented toward the acquisition of information that will be useful to them in the future, whereas older adults are generally oriented toward information that brings emotional satisfaction in the present
- Happiness generally increase in throughout adulthood
- Marital satisfaction typically is high in the beginning, declines after having children, plateaus, declines slightly when children are adolescence, and increase when children leave home
Secure Attachment
children are securely attached generally become visibly upset when their caregivers leave, and are happy when their caregivers return (%60)
Avoidant
children with avoidant attachment tend to avoid caregivers, which is especially pronounced after a period of absence (20%)
- do not seek comfort or contact
- show no preference between a parent and a stranger
Ambivalent
children who are ambivalently attached tend to be extremely suspicious of strangers (15%)
- display considerable distress when separated from caregiver, but do not seem comforted by caregiver return
3 Parenting Styles
- Permissive: indulgent/indifferent
- Authoitarian: have high expectations and very strict rules. Very demanding
- Authoritative: listen to children and encourage independence. Place limits on behaviors. Administer fair discipline.