Chapter 4 Flashcards
cephalocaudal trend
“head to tail”
during prenatal development, the head develops more rapidly than the lower part of the body, but by 2 years of age, the head is only 1/5 and the legs are 1/2 of body length
proximodistal trend
“near to far”
from the center of the body outward
during the prenatal period, the internal organs develop first and even through toddlerhood the arms and legs develop faster than hands and feet
what race is usually slightly above North American developmental norms?
African American
what race is usually slightly below North American developmental norms?
Asian
best estimate of a child’s physical maturity
skeletal age/measure of bone development
what sex is usually ahead of the other in development?
girls!
2 vantage points in looking at brain growth
1) microscopic level of individual brain cells
2) the larger level of the cerebral cortex
neurons
store and transmit information
synapses
tiny spaces between neurons where the fibers come close but do not touch
neurotransmitters
chemicals that are released by neurons across synapses to rely information/messages
programmed cell death
makes space for connective structures and a surprising aspect of brain growth
as synapses form, as many as 60% of the surrounding neurons die
synaptic pruning
returns neurons not needed at the moment to an uncommitted state so they can support future development
half the brain’s volume is made up of what cells?
glial
glial cells
responsible for myelination
myelination
the coating of neural fibers with an insulating fatty sheath (myelin) that improves the efficiency of message transfer
EEG
examine brain-wave patterns for stability and organization
event-related potentials (ERPs)
detect the general location of brain-wave activity
used to study:
- responses to stimuli
- impact of experiences
- atypical brain functioning
fMRI
detects changes in blood flow and oxygen metabolism throughout the brain, magnetically (do not need to inject anything into subject, brain areas being used will light up)
subject needs to sit still in machine
Position emission tomography (PET)
injection of radioactive substance into subject to detect blood flow and oxygen metabolism
subject needs to sit still in machine
Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)
using a thin cap attached to head, able to detect blood flow and oxygen metabolism
ideal for younger patients as they do not have to sit still while administering the test
cerebral cortex
largest brain structure
last part of the brain to stop growing, most susceptible to environmental influences
prefrontal cortex
responsible for:
complex thought
memory
reasoning
planning
problem-solving
each hemisphere of the brain receives sensory information from…
the side of the body it is opposite to it and controls only that side
ex. the left hemisphere controls the right side of the body and vice versa
lateralization and why is occurs
specialization of the two hemispheres
allows humans to cope more successfully with changing environmental demands, permitting a wider array of functioning
left hemisphere of brain
piece-by-piece processing
language and emotions
right hemisphere of brain
holistic approach
spatial information
regulating negative emotion
brain plasticity
highly plastic cerebral cortex (where many areas are not committed to specific functions) has a high capacity for learning
if part of the cortex is damaged, other parts can take over
more plastic in the first few years of life
too much stimulation in babies can lead to…
same withdrawal/responses as seen in stimulus deprivation!
experience-expectant brain growth
depends on ordinary experiences (interaction with people, hearing language and other sounds)
experience-dependent brain growth
occurs throughout lives (additional growth that varies across people and cultures, like: reading, writing, computer games, playing an instrument)
breastfeeding helps increase _____ in children
spacing; crucial in reducing infant and child deaths in nations with widespread poverty
3 ways to prevent childhood obesity
exclusively breastfeed for first 6 months
reduce sugary foods given to children
reduce time with electronics
marasmus
wasted condition of the body caused by diet low in all essential nutrients
kwashiorkor
caused by unbalanced diet very low in protein
makes body break down protein reserves, causing swelling in body
children who have kwashiorkor or marasmus later show problems in …
behavior and learning
classical conditioning
neural stimulus is paired with a stimulus that leads to a reflexive response
classical conditioning example with breastfeeding and the stroking of baby’s forehead
UCS - breast milk
UCR - sucking
CS - forehead stroking (neural stimulus introduced)
CR - sucking
operant conditioning
stimuli that follow behavior will change probability of them repeating stimuli
reinforcer
a stimulus that increases the occurrence of the response
punishment
removing desirable stimulus or presenting an unpleasant one to decrease occurrence of response
habituation and recovery
gradual reduction of strength of a response due to repetitive stimulation; new stimulus causes responsiveness to rise
mirror neurons
thought to be intertwined with imitation
fire identically when a primate hears or sees an action and then carries out that action on its own
each new skill learned in development is a joint product of 4 factors:
- central nervous system development
- body’s movement capacities
- the goals the child has in mind
- environmental supports for the skill
why do babies reach “feet first”?
the hip joint constraints the legs to move less freely than the shoulder constraints the arms, allowing it to be easier to control their leg movements
what action may play the greatest role in infant cognitive development?
reaching!
reaching and grasping milestones
prereaching
ulnar grasping
transferring object from hand to hand
pincer grasp
statistical learning capacity
babies will be able to differentiate between speech structures which they will later learn the meanings to
contrast sensitivity
babies prefer patterns with more contrast (bold checkerboard over complex)
intermodal perception
make sense of light, sound, taste, odor, touch and perceive them as integrated wholes (ex. dropping an object will make a bang)
differentiation theory
infants look for features of their environment that stay stable rather than the ones that constantly change
According to your text, what result occurred after kittens were deprived of sunlight for 3-4 days after birth?
visual centers in the brain degenerated
T/F: babies in kenya can hold their own head up, sit, and walk before american infants
true
Animal evidence reveals that a deficient diet results in….
altering production of neurotransmitters
reduced brain weight
poor fine-motor coordination, poor attention, low IQ
AAP recommends exclusive breastfeeding for ___ and then overall feeding for _____
6 months; one year
natural age of weaning
2-6 years
advantages of breastfeeding for the baby
best nutritionally
IQ differences favor breastfed babies
what is found in breastmilk that isn’t found in regular milk
fatty acid chains needed for brain and human development
babies who nurse for at least 6 months have:
fewer:
- gastrointestinal infections
- doctor visits
- allergies
- respiratory infections
lower incidence of:
- adult obesity
- child obesity
- SIDS
breastfeeding is _____
learned!
advantages of breastfeeding for the mother
reduces chances of hemorrhage right after birth
lower incidence of breast cancer
cheaper
ecological
convenient
promotes bonding
why is nursing convenient?
always right temp and available
what is released when nursing right after birth and what does it help?
oxytocin; birthing the placenta
things that increase _______ (unlike nursing) tend to increase _____
ovulation; female cancers
baby sleeping through the night (increase/decreases) ovulation
increases!
breastfeeding issues in the US
sexualization of breast
is it really convenient? (working moms)
sleeping issues
when to wean?
difficult getting started
when do children naturally start to sleep through the night?
1-2 years of age
advantages of co-sleeping
SIDS protection
ease of breastfeeding
in early infancy babies sleep “better”
sleep lighter
when co-sleeping, parents exhale have low ____ that incentivizes baby to breath
CO2 levels
parents sleeping with baby ______ times getting up
underestimate
disadvantages of co-sleeping
may disrupt parents sleep
may disrupt sexual/marital relationship
hard to get them out
sleep lighter
advantages of babies sleeping alone
parents sleep better
learn to go to sleep alone/self-soothe
sleep more deeply/through the night
disadvantages of babies sleeping alone
SIDS risk higher
harder to breastfeed
sleep more deeply
under what circumstances is it NOT safe to sleep with baby?
when under the influence of drugs or alcohol
sleeping on a couch or soft bedding
places where baby can get stuck
collectivism vs. individualism
c - thought children are independent when born so co-sleeping and nursing would bring baby closer to parents
i - think it is important for baby to develop independence, co-sleeping and nursing make baby too dependent on parents
what issues have come about because of infant solitary sleep?
comfort objects
nightmares/night terrors
bedtime rituals
peak incidence of SIDS
- around 3 months of age
- most likely to occur at night
- cold weather months (more likely to get sick)
infants at high risk for SIDS
formula fed
sleeping on stomach
mothers who smoked while pregnant
environment w/ smokers
mothers who received poor prenatal care
male infants
premature infants
infants who sleep alone
colostrum
clear fluid, full of antibodies + clears out digestive system
