Chapter 4 Key Terms Flashcards
branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan
developmental psychology
fertilized egg; enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo
zygote
developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the 2nd month
embryo
the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth
fetus
agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm
teratogens
physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman’s heavy drinking; in severe cases, symptoms include noticeable facial misproportions
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
a baby’s tendency, when touched on the cheek, to turn toward the touch, open the mouth, and search for the nipple
rooting reflex
decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation; as infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to a visual stimulus, their interest wanes and they look away sooner
habituation
biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience
maturation
Earliest memories seldom predate 3rd birthday
infantile amnesia
a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information
schema
interpreting one’s new experience in terms of one’s existing schemas
assimilation
adapting one’s current understanding (schemas) to incorporate new information
accomodation
all mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
cognition
the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities
sensorimotor stage
the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived
object permanence
the stage (from about 2 to 6-7 years old) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic
preoperational stage
the principle that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects
conservation
the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view
egocentrism
people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states – about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts and the behavior these might predict
theory of mind
disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and understanding of others’ states of mind
autism