Chapter 9 - Lifespan Development Flashcards
Lifespan Development
The study of how people grow, change, and adapt throughout their entire lives, from conception to death.
Developmental Psychology
a field dedicated to examining how and why people change throughout the course of their lives.
Three domains of developmental psychology
Physical - biological changes
Cognitive - thinking, problem solving
Psychosocial - social relationships impacting psychology
Continuous vs Discontinuous
Continuous: A cumulative process, gradually improving on existing skills.
Discontinuous: Occurs in unique stages, such as specific times and ages.
Is there one course of development or many?
whether all kids from all culture develop the same or are there differences (universal)
How do nature and nurture influence development?
biology & genetics or environment and culture
Psychosexual development
Personality develops through a series of stages during childhood where each stage is focused on a different erogenous zone (area of body that is sensitive to stimulation that can cause pleasure and sexual arousal) and is characterized by certain conflicts that need to be resolved or they will cause issues in the future.
Founder of Psychosexual development
Sigmund Freud
Psychosexual development Continuous or Discontinuous?
Discontinuous
Psychosexual deveopment one course or many?
One course
Psychosexual development nature or nurture?
Both. Nature because it involves biological drive (leans more). Nurture because the conflicts need to be resolved.
Psychosocial development
Focuses on the social nature of our development
argues we experience 8 stages that we must master in order to feel a sense of mastery.
Can all manifest into adulthood characteristics
Founder of Psychosocial development
Erik Erikson
Psychosocial development continuous or discontinuous
Discontinuous
Psychosocial development on course or many
one course but does acknowledge that it can be affected by cultural factors
Psychosocial development nature or nurture
both but leans towards nurture. Depends on people around you (psychosocial)
Cognitive development
Our cognitive abilities develop through 4 specific stages – with each stage marking a shift in how we think and reason.
Stages of Cognitive development
- Sensorimotor: Learn through sensory input and physical actions
- Preoperational: Use symbols and language but struggle with others’ perspectives
- Cognitive Operational: Understand concrete events and analogies logically
- Formal Operational: Develop abstract and hypothetical reasoning skills
As you move through the stages of cognitive development…
Assimilating: Integrating new information into existing mental frameworks.
Accommodating: Modifying existing mental frameworks to incorporate new information.
Founder of Cognitive development
Jean Piaget
Cognitive development continuous or discontinuous?
Discontinuous
Cognitive development one course of many?
One course
Cognitive development nature or nurture?
Both equally. Cognitive development during biological maturation but interacts with environmental situations.
Object permanence
Understanding that even if something’s out of sight, it still exists
Snesorimotor
Egocentrism
Unable to take the perspective of others
Preoperational
Reversibility
Objects can be changed and returned back to their original form or condition
Concrete Operational
Moral development
An individuals’ moral reasoning evolves through a series of stages based on social interactions and experiences ; 3 levels, each with 2 stages:
Pre-conventional Morality
Moral reasoning is based on individual interests and the consequences of actions
Obedience and Punishment
Individual Interest
Conventional Morality
Individuals adhere to societal norms and laws
Interpersonal - relationship with people
Authority
Post-conventional Morality
Higher-order thinking about moral principles and values
Social Contract
Universal Ethics
Kohlberg argues that not many people achieve this. The stages aren’t linear
Founder of Moral development
Lawrence Kohlberg
Moral development continuous or discontinuous
discontinuous
Moral development one course or many
one course (can switch stages but is bound to the levels)
Moral development Nature or Nurture?
nurture because it’s based on social interactions of experiences
Trust vs Mistrust
- Trust that basic needs, such as nourishment and affection, will be met
Dependent on parents
0-1
Autonomy vs Shame/Doubt
- Develop a sense of independence in many tasks
Kids being more picky with food and clothes
1-3
Initiative vs Guilt
- Take initiative on some activities - may develop guilt when unsuccessful or boundaries overstepped
Talking to people outside of family
Shame for ideas will mess with future abilities to lead
3-6
Industry vs Inferority
- Develop self-confidence in abilities when competent or a sense of inferiority when not
confident in abilities. Need to fit in.
Self esteem age. Compared to others
7-11
Identity vs Confusion
- Experiment with and develop identity and roles
who am i? sense of self
7-11
Intimacy vs Confusion
- Establish intimacy and relationships with others
wanting to share your life with others
depends on last two stages being fulfilled
meaningful connections
19-29
Generativity vs Stagnation
- Contribute to society and be part of a family
contributing to society
feel envy or lack of purpose
30-64
Integrity vs Despair
- Assess and make sense of life and the meaning of contributions
look back at life if they feel satisfied with where they are in life
despair and wasted time
65+
Sensorimotor
Learn through sensory input and physical actions
* Object permanence: Understanding that even if something’s out of sight, it still exists
* Stranger anxiety
* 0-2
Preoperational
Use symbols and language but struggle with others’ perspectives
* Understand there’s a difference but don’t get the logic why
* EX: kid video
* Pretend play
* Language development
* Egocentrism: Unable to take the perspective of others
* 2-6
Concrete Operational
Understand concrete events and analogies logically
* Mathematical transformations
* Reversibility: Objects can be changed and returned back to their original form or condition
* 7-11
Formal Operational
Develop abstract and hypothetical reasoning skills
* Abstract logic
* Moral reasoning
* (Adolescence) Renewed egocentrism
* 12+
Newborn reflexes
inborn automatic responses to particular forms of stimulation
* Rooting reflex - turning checks
* Suckling
* Grasping
* Moro - limbs out if they feel like they’re falling. Head below the body
Newborn senses
Vision - preference for faces
Hearing - prefer human voices & mother’s voices over a stranger’s
* Test with sucking of pacifiers
Smell - can distinguish the smell of their mother from that of others
Childhood: Physical Development
Rapid physical development
* Weight doubles in six months, triples in one year, quadruples in two: 5/10 → 20/40
Growth is NOT steady
* Slows between 4-6 years
* Around 8-9, girls outpace boys: By 10, girls weigh ~88 and boys ~85
Childhood: Neural Development
Blooming: The rapid formation of new connections between neurons
Pruning: The reduction of neural connections to increase efficiency
Childhood: Motor Development
Motor skills: Movements that involve muscles and coordination.
Fine motor skills: Small, precise movements, like writing.
Gross motor skills: Large movements, like walking or jumping.
Childhood: Attachment
A long-standing connection or bond with others.
How do parent and infant attachment bonds form?
How does neglect affect these bonds?
What accounts for children’s attachment differences?
John Bowlby Perspective
Believed attachment was an all-or-nothing process
Secure base: A parental presence that gives the child a sense of safety as he explores his surroundings
* Caregiver must be responsive to the child’s physical, social, and emotional needs
* The caregiver must engage in mutually enjoyable interactions
Mary Ainsworth Perspective
Believed there were differences in attachment (because of the monkey experiment)
Strange Situation: Research method used to observe how infants react to being briefly left with a stranger and then reunited with their caregiver.
* Identified three types of parent-child attachments
* Now used to assess the child’s attachment style
Secure attachment
A strong, healthy bond where the child uses the caregiver as a secure base for exploration and comfort.
* The child may become upset when the caregiver leaves but is easily comforted when they return.
* Caregiver is good
Avoidant attachment
A pattern where the child avoids closeness or emotional connection with the caregiver, suppressing their need for comfort.
* The child shows little distress when the caregiver leaves and avoids them upon return, often ignoring them.
* The child has learned to be emotionally dependent because the caregiver may be emotionally unavailable
Resistant (Ambivalent) attachment
An anxious attachment style where the child is overly dependent on the caregiver but also resists their attempts to comfort.
* The child becomes very distressed when the caregiver leaves and is difficult to comfort when they return, showing both clinginess and anger
* The child is unsure if the caregiver will respond to needs to they’re upset
Disorganized attachment
A disoriented and unpredictable attachment style where the child lacks a clear strategy for seeking comfort, often due to trauma or neglect.
* The child shows confused or contradictory behavior, such as approaching the caregiver but then freezing or running away.
* Child experience inconsistent or frightening caregiving. They don’t know how to respond
Childhood: Self-concept
The understanding and perception a person has of themselves, including their beliefs, feelings, and thoughts about their own identity, abilities, and characteristics
Mirror test
red dot on baby’s nose and place in front of the mirror. If they wipe it off they have a sense of self.
Parenting style
The overall approach and strategies that parents use to raise and guide their children
* Can be affected by culture
Authoritative style
combines firm rules with warmth and responsiveness, encouraging independence while maintaining clear expectations.
* Best way to parent
Authoritarian style
A strict, controlling approach focused on obedience and discipline, with little warmth or flexibility.
* Restrained and submissive children
Permissive style
A lenient approach where parents are nurturing but set few boundaries, allowing children considerable freedom.
* Grow up to lack a lot of self-discipline
Uninvolved style
A detached or indifferent approach where parents provide little guidance, attention, or emotional support.
* Neglect situations
* Children will be emotionally withdrawn, fearful, anxious, perform poorly in school
Temperament
an individual’s innate personality traits, including emotional reactivity, activity level, and mood, which influence how they interact with the world.
* Parenting styles will affect how parents interact with children.
* If a child has a worse temperament, then the parents will be more strict
Adolescence
The period of development that begins at puberty and ends at emerging
adulthood. ~12 – 18 years
Primary sexual characteristics
The physical features directly involved in reproduction that are present at birth which develop and mature during puberty
* Ovaries and testes
Secondary sexual characteristics
The physical traits that emerge during puberty that are not directly involved in reproduction.
* Breast development
* Changes in body shape
* Facial hair and hair distribution
* Voice
Adolescence physical development
Primary and Secondary sexual characteristics develop and mature:
Rapid Increase in height
Brain still under development – growth spurt in frontal cortex
Adolescence Cognitive and Psychosocial Development
Complex thinking abilities:
* Concrete thinking
* Abstract thought (formal operational)
* Consider multiple points of view
* Imagine hypothetical situations
* Debate ideas and opinions
* Form new ideas
* Question authority and/or challenge established societal norms
Adolescence Cognitive empathy
The ability to understand and recognize another person’s thoughts, feelings, and perspective. ~13 girls, ~15 boys
* Supportive fathers led to increased cognitive empathy
Adolescence Erik Erickson’s Psychosocial Theory of Development
Identity vs Confusion
Who am I? Who do I want to be?
Important to form an identity so you can form emotional bonds later
Adolescent storm
The period of intense emotional and psychological upheaval that many adolescents experience during their teenage years
* Portrayed stronger in media
* Relationship with parents typically stay pretty strong
Adulthood: Physical Development
Early: 20 to early 40s
* Physical maturation complete
* Physical abilities at their peak: muscle strength, reaction time, cardiac functioning, sensory abilities
Middle: 40s to the mid-60s
* Physical decline is gradual
* Skin loses elasticity
* Gradual decline in fertility
* Weight gain in abdominal area (men) and thighs (women)
* Hair thins and grays
Late: Mid-60s to the end of life
* Skin continues to lose elasticity
* Physical abilities decrease: muscle strength and reaction time
* Senses (smell, taste, hearing, vision) have a sharp decline
* Brain no longer functioning at optimal levels (memory loss, dementia)
Ikigai
”A reason for being”
* A Japanese concept that describes having a sense of purpose
* Suggested to contribute to the increased life expectancy for the people of Okinawa
Adult Cognitive and Psychosocial Development
Passion: What you love & what you’re good at
Mission: What you love & what the world needs
Vocation: What the world needs & what you can be paid for
Profession: What you’re good at & what you can be paid for
Ikigai: All of the above
Adult Crystalized intelligence
The ability to use learned knowledge and experience to solve problems and make decisions – IMPROVES
Cognitive abilities remain steady throughout early and middle adulthood
Adult Fluid intelligence
The capacity to think logically and solve problems in novel situations, independent of acquired knowledge
* Mental and physical activity can slow the process
Cognitive abilities decline in late adulthood
Social and emotional aspects of aging
Activities, social connectedness, culture
Work satisfaction is more closely tied to work that involves other people
* More satisfaction with social affect
Raising children is difficult but rewarding
* Adult children have a positive effect on parental wellbeing
Socioemotional selectivity theory
As individuals age, their perspective on time changes, leading them to prioritize emotional well-being and meaningful relationships
What influences how we view death
Culture and individual backgrounds
Death: Cultural Beliefs and Practices
Some celebrate death as a continuation of life: Día de los Muertos
Some view death as a somber event that requires mourning and rituals
Death Religious Perspectives
Religions provide frameworks for understanding the afterlife
Death: Personal Experiences
People who’ve experiences loss have a profound understanding of grief
Death: Social Norms and Values
Individualism (personal journey) vs Collectivism (shared mourning)
Death: Communication Styles
Some cultures encourage open conversations
Some view discussions of death as taboo
