Chapter 9- Infancy And Childhood Flashcards
Maturation
Biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience
Schema
A mental mold in which we pour our experiences; a concept of something
Assimilation
Interpreting ones new experience in terms of one’s existing schemas
Accommodation
Adapting ones current understanding (schemas) to include new information
Cognition
All mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering an communicating
Sensorimotor stage
Piaget’s theory; the stage (birth to 2 years) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities
Object permanence
The awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived
Preoperational stage
In Piaget’s theory; the stage ( 2-6) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic
Conservation
The principle that quantity remains the same despite changes in shape (Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning)
Egocentrism (in children)
In Piaget’s theory; the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view
Theory of mind
People’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states— about their feelings, perceptions, thoughts and the behavior these might predict
Autism
A disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and understandings of others’ states of mind
Concrete operational stage
In Piaget’s theory; the state of cognitive development (from about 6-7 to 11) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events
Formal operational stage
In Piaget’s theory– the stage of cognitive development (around age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts
Stranger anxiety
The fear of strangers that infants commonly display; beginning by 8 months of age
Attachment— and how it’s shown in young children
An emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress in situations
Critical period
An optimal period shortly after birth when an organism’s exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produce proper development
Imprinting
The process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life
Basic trust
According to Erik Erickson; a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy– said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers
Self-concept
A sense of one’s identity and personal worth
