Chapter 5 developing through the life span recogniton Flashcards
a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span.
developmental psychology
the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of a rapid cell division and develops into an embryo.
zygote
the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month.
embryo
the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth.
fetus
(lit monster maker) 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 disproportions.
fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
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
all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.
cognition
a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information.
schema
interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas.
assimilation
adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information.
accommodation
in Piaget’s theory, 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
in Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view.
egocentrism
in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic.
preoperational stage
the principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remains the same despite changes in the forms of objects.
conservation
people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental state – about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict.
theory of mind
in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 6 or 7 to 11 years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events.
concrete operation stage
in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts.
formal operation stage
the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age.
stranger anxiety
an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation.
attachment
an optimal period early in the life of an organism when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces normal development.
critical period
the process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life.
imprinting
according to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers.
basic trust
our understanding and evaluation of who we are.
Self-concept
the transition from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence.
adolescence
the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing.
puberty
the body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible.
primary sex characteristics
Non-reproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair.
secondary sex characteristics
the first menstrual period.
menarche
our sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent’s task is to solidity a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles.
identity
the “we” aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to “Who am I?” that comes from our group membership.
social identity
in Erikson’s theory, the ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood.
intimacy
for some people in modern cultures, a period from late teens to mid-twenties, bridging the gap between adolescent dependence and full independence.
emerging adulthood
the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines.
menopause
a study in which people of different ages are compared to one another
Cross-sectional study
research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period.
longitudinal study
the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement.
social clock
