Development Flashcards
human development
the scientific study of the changes that occur in people as they age from conception until death
longitudinal design
research design in which one participant or group of participants is studied over a long period of time (see table 7.1 pg 231)
cross-sectional design
research design in which several different age groups of participants are studied at one particular point in time (see table 7.1 pg 231)
cross-sequential design
research design in which participants are first studied by means of a cross-sectional design but are also followed and assessed for a period of no more than six years (see table 7.1 pg 231)
nature
the influence of our inherited characteristics on our personality, physical growth, intellectual growth, and social interactions
nurture
the influence of the environment on personality, physical growth, intellectual growth, and social interactions
dominant
referring to a gene that actively controls the expression of a trait
recessive
referring to a gene that influences the expression of a trait only when paired with an identical gene
the building blocks of life
DNA molecules
chromosomes
rod-shaped structures found in the nucleus of each cell, are nothing more than tightly wound strands of genes
In the analogy of the twisted ladder, the sequence of amines would be represented by the _________ of the ladder.
rungs
cognitive development
the development of thinking, problem solving, and memory
scheme
in this case, a mental concept formed through experiences with objects and events
sesorimotor stage
Piaget’s first stage of cognitive development in which the infant uses its senses and motor abilities to interact with objects in the environment
object permanence
the knowledge that an object exists even when it is not in sight
preoperational stage
Piaget’s second stage of cognitive development in which the preschool child learns to use language as a means of exploring the world
egocentrism
the inability to see the world through anyone else’s eyes
centration
in Piaget’s theory, the tendency of a young child to focus only on one feature of an object while ignoring other relevant features
conservation
in Piaget’s theory, the ability to understand that simply changing the appearance of an object does not change the object’s nature
irreversibility
in Piaget’s theory, the inability of the young child to mentally reverse an action
concrete operations stage
Piaget’s third stage of cognitive development in which the school-age child becomes capable of logical thought processes but is not yet capable of abstract thinking
formal operations stage
Piaget’s last stage of cognitive development, in which the adolescent becomes capable of abstract thinking
scaffolding
process in which a more skilled learner gives help to a less skilled learner, reducing the amount of help as the less skilled learner becomes more capable
zone of proximal development (ZPD)
Vygotsky’s concept of the difference between what a child can do alone versus what that child can do with the help of a teacher
In developmental psychology, there are two different approaches that have been taken over the years. What are they?
- The traditional approach: focuses on children and their changes until they hit puberty (Piaget’s theory)
- The lifespan approach: focuses on people throughout their entire lifespan (Erikson’s theory)
What are some of the basic questions of developmental psychology?
- Nature vs Nurture
- Stability vs Change: as we develop, how stable are our characteristics vs. how much do we change (ex. personality)
- Continuous vs Discontinuous: continuous is when you stay in the same state except for improvements but there are no set “stages” and discontinuous is when you actually moe from one stage into another stage
What developments do scientists study?
biological, cognitive, social, emotional, personality
What is Jean Piaget’s background?
from Switzerland, he originally got his PhD in zoology, he became interested in the development of children after giving intelligence tests to children, he became interested in the questions that they were getting wrong, he eventually developed one of the first theories on childhood development, he discovered that children aren’t just small adults who know less things but they don’t have the abilities for certain kinds of reasoning or abstract thought like adults so the way they make sense of the world is different from adults, Piaget also believed that children are active learners