Chapter 11 - Human Development Flashcards
What are the 3 phases of prenatal development before birth?
- Germinal stage – first 2 weeks
- Conception, implantation (rapid cell division migrates to the uterus and is implanted in the uterine wall), formation of placenta (allows oxygen and nutrients to be passed to the embryo from the mother) - Embryonic stage – 2 weeks to 2 months
- Formation of vital organs and systems (like heart, spine and brain)
- Very vulnerable period which could result in miscarriage - Fetal stage – 2 months to birth
- Bodily growth continues becoming a fetus, movement capability begins, brain cells multiply, sex organs develop
- Age of viability (22-23 weeks): the age where if the baby is born premature, it has some chance of survival (but still low)
- By 26-28 weeks, survival rate is about 85%
How is sex determined?
Egg is fertilized by sperm; egg cell contains an X chromosome and the sperm cell contains either X or Y chromosome; for up to 6 weeks, the fetus is still sexless
During the second half of week 6
- If Y chromosome is present and the SRY (the sex determining region of the Y chromosome) gene is present (part of Y chromosome which stimulates a chain reaction of male hormones) the baby is a male
- If X chromosome or SRY is missing the baby is a female
Why are Schizophrenia and Parkinson’s disease more prevalent in men?
Because the SRY region also is implicated in producing the protein that controls the concentration of dopamine which carries signals from the brain in controlling movement and coordination
What environmental factors can influence prenatal development? (3)
Maternal illness, maternal drug use and maternal nutrition
What are one of the several landmarks that track a child’s progression after birth? (2)
Motor Development: progression of muscular coordination required to move, crawl, sit up, walk, etc.
Orderly, predictable and gradual progression in how the child develops motor coordination
What are the 2 basic principles of motor development?
- Cephalocaudal trend: head to foot; growth and development that occurs from the head down; development of the brain occurs first and is more advanced as it starts at the top; development largely completed by beginning of adulthood
- Proximodistal trend: center-outward; progression from the core of the body in an outward direction; tendency for growth to start at the center towards the extremities; spine first, extremities then the fingers and toes
What does motor development rely on? (2)
Maturation – gradual unfolding of one’s genetic blueprint
Cannot learn to crawl or walk until certain maturational processes are developed
What is temperament? (2)
Reactivity in mood, activity level and emotional reactivity; precursor to adult personality
Looks at fearfulness, ability to sooth the child, reactivity to the world, etc.;
Compare longitudinal and cross-sectional studies
Longitudinal: investigators observe one group of people repeatedly for a significant portion of time and are able to see what happens to development without biases (as they are the same people and will have the same biases the entire time); can be expensive
Cross-sectional designs: investigators compare groups of participants of differing age at a single point in time; basically studying the development in different people
What is attachment? (2)
The emotional development and how babies react to their environment and especially their primary caregiver
The way that babies relate to and form close emotional bonds to their primary caregiver
What factors can impact developing secure attachments? (4)
Bonding at birth (during the first hours); doesn’t seem to be as crucial
Daycare (how early is too early?); shown to have no negative impact
Cultural factors can impact attachment style; ie. German parenting styles differ from American as they intentionally encourage independence which is more likely to lead to avoidant attachment styles
Evolutionary perspectives on attachment: attachment is a product of natural selection that are preprogramed to trigger protective responses in adults; less likely to survive with no attachments
What are the 2 important factors in development of concepts in children?
Zone of Proximal Development: gap that children have between what they can accomplish alone and what they can accomplish with a little guidance; recognizes when a child needs help can make a huge difference in development
Scaffolding: children learn best in small steps; need to be proficient in breaking down a task into manageable chunks to teach a child (learning to tie their shoes)
What is morality?
Distinguishing right from wrong
Moral reasoning is the attitude and behaviors we exhibit about what we are okay with and what we are not okay with it
Humans have a highly developed sense of empathy (the ability to feel someone else’s pain)
Is everyone capable of empathy? (3)
Not everyone is capable of it
Psychopaths don’t have empathy
Some people are more empathetic towards in-groups vs out-groups, meaning we tend to feel more empathy towards people that we like and that are in our tribe (also true in animals)
What are some milestones of the transition into adolescence? (3) What is the difference between primary and secondary sex characteristics?
Physiological changes Pubescence Puberty (beings at around 11 in girls and 13 in boys): changes caused by hormonal activity; physical growth is stimulated by pituitary gland controlled by hypothalamus which regulates release of hormones; hormones contribute to the following - Secondary sex characteristics: changes in body not necessarily part of reproduction but occur in tandem, like pubic hair and increase in breast size and muscle mass - Primary sex characteristics: changes in the body part of reproduction like sperm production and menstruation
