Chapter 2: Theories and issues of child development Flashcards
theory of development
scheme/ system of ideas that is based on evidence and attempts to explain, describe and predict behaviour and development
motor milestone
basic motor skill acquired in infancy and early childhood, such as standing, crawling, walking
cephalocaudal trend
development that proceeds from head to foot along the length of the body
proximodistal trend
development of motor control in infancy which is from the centre of the body outwards to more peripheral segments
dynamic systems theory
theoretical approach applied to many areas of development which views the individuals as interacting dynamically complex system in which all parts interact
psychoanalysis
theoretical view, first developed by Sigmund Freud, that much of our behaviour is determined by unconscious factors
cognitive adaptations
children’s developing cognitive awareness of the world; as a result, they become better able to understand their world
assimilation
process through which children incorporate new experiences into their preexisting schemes; an important process in Piaget’s theory
accommodation
cognitive process through which children adapt to new experiences by modifying their preexisting schemas; an important process in Piaget’s theory
schemas
mental structures in the child’s thinking that provide representations and plans for enacting behaviours
functional invariants
processes that do not change during development, such as accommodation and assimilation in Piaget’s theory
sensorimotor stage
first stage of cognitive development, whereby thought is based primarily on perception and thinking, internalised thinking is largely absent; this stage is characteristic of infants from birth to about 2 years (Piaget’s theory)
preoperational stage
stage of development in which under the age of approximately 7 years are unable to coordinate aspects of problems in order to solve them (Piaget’s theory)
concrete operations stage
third stage of development in which reasoning is said to become more logical, systematic and rational in its application to concrete objects (Piaget’s theory)
formal operations stage
fourth stage in which the individual acquires the capacity for abstract scientific thought; this includes the ability to theories about impossible events and items
egocentric
an egocentric child is one who finds it difficult to see thing s from another person’s point of view; not to be confused with egotistical
animism
characteristic of children’s thinking in Piaget’s preoperational stage in which they tend to attribute life and life-like qualities to inanimate objects, particularly those that move and are active
centration
focusing of attention on one aspect of a situation to the exclusion of others
information processing
view that cognitive processes are explained in terms of inputs/ outputs and the human mind is a system through which information flows
strategies
knowledge use to solve particular problems
constructivism
infants are not born with knowledge about the world, but instead gradually construct knowledge and the ability to represent reality mentally (Piaget’s theory)
bottom-up
cognitive development process beginning with the ‘input’/ uptake of information by the child, and building complex systems of knowledge from simpler origins
top-down
cognitive development process in which the state of the system is specified/ presumed, and then working to discover its components and their development, a view more consistent with nativist theory
perception of causality
perception of the causal nature of interactions between objects/ between people; for instance, when one object collides with another it causes it to move
object unity
when two parts of an object are visible but its centre is hidden by another object - do infants perceive the visible parts to be connected?
connectionism
modern theoretical approach that developed from information processing accounts in which computers are programmed to stimulate the action of the brain and nerve cells/ neurons
zone of proximal development (ZPD)
distance between the actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more able peers
introspectionism
approach to psychology common in the 19th century in which observers were asked to reflect on their thoughts, feelings and perceptions
classical conditioning
method of learning first investigated by the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov in the early part of the 20th century; in this form of conditioning, certain behaviours can be elected by a neutral (normally unstimulating) stimulus because of its learned association with a more powerful stimulus
law of effect
law/ rule devised by the American psychologist Edward Lee Thorndike which states that the likelihood of an action being repeated is increased if it leads to a pleasant outcome, and decreased if it leads to an unpleasant outcome
reductionism
claim that complex behaviours such as language and problem-solving are formed from simpler processes, such as neural activity and conditioning, and can ultimately be understood in these simpler terms
operant conditioning
form of conditioning investigated by B. F. Skinner; the training/ shaping of an animal/ human by reinforcing them for producing the desired behaviour and either ignoring or punishing undesirable behaviours in order to stop them
social learning theory
associated with Albert Bandura; the application of behaviourism to social and cognitive learning that emphasises the importance of observational learning, that is, learning by observation and then copying the observed acts
observational learning
situation in which people learn by observing others and then copying the observed acts
social cognitive theory
theory that emphasises social factors in cognitive development
ethological approaches
approaches which emphasise the evolutionary origins of many behaviours that are important for survival, such as imprinting
imprinting
process soon after birth/ hatching in which the young of the precocial species of animals follow the first moving objects they see
critical period
limited period, usually early in an animal’s life, in which the young have to be exposed to a particular skill/ experience in order for it to be learned
primary drives
basic needs which include hunger, thirst and the need for warmth; Bowlby and others have argued that an infant’s need for attachment is also a primary drive
secondary drive
term used to the fact that an object can acquire reinforcing properties by being associated with the satisfaction of an individual’s primary drives
monotropy
the view that the infant has a basic need to form an attachment with one significant person usually the mother; central claim in Bowlby’s early theory of attachment formation
strange situation
measure, devised by Ainsworth, of the level of attachment a child has with their parent.
psychoanalytic theory
most prominently associated with Freud, who suggested that there are three main personality structures: ego, id, superego
id
primitive collection of urges with which an individual begins life; it is responsible for an individuals “primitive” instincts, such as eating and reproducing (Freud’s theory)
ego
it can be thought of as a rational thought that evolved to control the urges of the id in order to meet the demands of reality and maintain social approval and esteem
superego
collection of ideals, an individual’s morality; this is what we refer to as our conscience and it is often in conflict with our id (Freud’s theory)
psychosexual stages
Freud argued that there were five stages of human development: oral (0-1 year), anal (1-3 years), phallic (3-6 years), latency (6 years-adolescence), and genital (adolescence onward)
Oedipus complex
important stage of development in Freud’s psychoanalytic theory; this expression derives from the Greek myth in which Oedipus became infatuated with his mother; in the Freudian account, the young boy develops sexual feelings toward his mother but realised his father is a major competition for her (sexual affections)
castration complex
in Freud’s psychoanalytic theory there where the young boy fears castration at the hands of his father
Electra complex
in Freud’s psychoanalytic theory this is where little girls develop feelings towards their father and fear retribution at the hands of their mother
reaction formation
term used in psychoanalytic theory; the individual react, often unconsciously, to negative aspects of their personality
psychosocial stages
stages of development put forward by Erik Erikson; the child goes from the stage of “basic trust” in early infancy to the final stage in adult life of maturity with a sense of integrity and self-worth
humanistic theory
theory which emphasises that humans have free will and are motivated to fulfil their potential
self-actualisation
fulfilment of needs beyond those deemed necessary for survival
hierarchy of needs
stages of needs/ desires in Abraham Maslow’s humanistic theory which go from the basic physiological needs for food and water to the ultimate desire for self-actualisation or desire to fulfil one’s potential
gender development
developing understanding by a child that it is either a girl or a boy and that there are gender-appropriate behaviours associated with this difference
gender constancy
awereness, in early childhood, that one is either a boy or a girl, and that this is unchangeable
nature-nurture issue
ongoing debate on whether development is the result of an individual’s genes or the kinds of experiences they have throughout their life
stability vs. change
question of whether individuals are stable in the sense of maintaining their rank order across age; e.g. does the bright 2-year-old become a bright 10-year-old
continuity vs. discontinuity
whether development is continuous, and therefore an accumulation of “more of the same” or discontinuous and marked by qualitative changes. Piaget’s theory is an example of a discontinuous theory of development
behaviour genetics
study of how genetic factors influence behaviour and, more generally, differences between individuals
