Developmental psychology Flashcards
Why do we give birth to helpless babies?
Give 3 hypotheses
- Brains are underdeveloped. Need a 18-21 month gestation period.
- Pelvis hypothesis
- Metabolism hypothesis
- Intelligence
Give 3 hypotheses for stages of development
- Cognitive development in childhood (Piaget). (Make sense of world, understand other’s intentions)
- Moral development in childhood (Kohlberg)
- Psychosocial development across lifespan (Erikson)
Childhood in History
Roman parents could kill unwanted children
Until 1500 kids from 6 yo would be treated like adults
Need for nurturing and schooling emphasized in the 17th/18th centuries in Western world
Jean Piaget’s Cognitive development in Childhood
Children are NOT mini adults
Children must learn to think abstractly
What’s Assimilation?
Interpreting new experiences in terms of existing mental structures (Cat = doggie??)
What’s accommodation?
Changing mental structures in response to new experiences (Cat vs dog)
Cognitive development stages in childhood (According to Piaget)
- Sensorimotor stage
- Preoperational stage
- Concrete operational stage
- Formal operational stage
Sensorimotor stage
0-2 years. Differentiation of self from objects. Recognition in mirror. Object permanence at 18 months
Preoperational stage
2-7. Use of symbols/symbolic play. Lack of conservation (idea that amount remains the same despite change in its appearance) Egocentric (theory of mind- you see it how i see it)
What’s the false belief task?
Children below 4 don’t pass this (typically). Recognition that others can have different beliefs from us
Concrete operational stage
7-11. Inductive reasoning, generalizations from observations, but not deductive reasoning (all birds have feathers. Robins are birds. All robins have feathers)
Conservation task (of quantity and number)
Things that look less must be less (water in differently shaped glass)
Formal operational stage
11+ Abstract reasoning, hypothetical thinking, scientific problem solving.
Critique of Piaget’s theory
Based on observing his own 3 children. Underestimated children’s abilities. (Vygotsky’s socio-cultural approach). Stages are too strict, some children are different.
Moral development in childhood
Lawrence Kohlberg. Studies why rather than behaviour. 3 main levels of moral reasoning (Pre-conventional, conventional, post-conventional)
Heinz’s dilemma
Dying wife, druggist charges 10x the price, man breaks into store
Describe Kohlberg’s 3 stages in detail
Pre-conventional (-10 years):
- Punishment orientation (don’t steal because prison)
- Naive reward orientation (yes, because he will have his wife after)
Conventional level (-13 years):
- Good boy orientation (others will think you’re a coward if you don’t steal)
- Social order orientation (don’t because there are rules to maintain order)
Post-conventional level (not all of us get there):
- Social contract (government should pay for medication)
- Individual principles (according to my own set of ethical beliefs..
Critique of Kohlberg’s theory
- Western culture bias
- Male bias
- Is abstract reasoning equal to real life moral conduct?
Psychological development across our lifespan
Theory by Erik Erikson. 8 stages of psychosocial development. Dealing with social crises. Outcome of crises determines personality. Development goes on whole life (against freud, who said development ends at Puberty)
Erikson’s personality + social development theory
0-1: Trust/mistrust. Is my world supportive?
1-3: Autonomy/shame and doubt. Can I trust myself?
3-6: Initiative/guilt. Am I good or bad?
6-11: Industry/inferiority. Am I worthless?
Adolescence: Identity/confusion. Who am I?
Young adulthood: Intimacy/ isolation. Am I going to live alone?
Adulthood: Generative/self-absorption. Will I do something of real value?
Late adulthood: Integrity/despair. Have I lived a full life?
Critique of Erikson’s theory
More attention paid to childhood that adult life. Very vague, not testable, cultural bias.
Other theories
Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and bandura’s cognitive social learning theory
What’s imprinting?
Innate form of recognition and attachment to a caregiver (Konrad Lorenz’s geese studies)
What’s attachment?
Enduring emotional bond that develops between infants and primary caregivers. (Harlow’s monkey studies)
Give 2 theories on attachment
- Feud: Cupboard theory- importance of drive reduction (hunger). Mother provides food- attachment
- Harlow: Comfort, not cupboards. Evidence from rhesus monkeys. Denying infants contact and comfort can have a detrimental impact on their development.
Bowlby’s theory
Attachment theory: Children come into the world pre-programmed to form bonds with others. Attachment in infancy results from the need to have a secure base from which to explore and learn. Return to protection when frightened.
Strange situation paradigm
Experiment by Ainsworth and colleagues.
Attachment styles
Securely attached
Anxious avoidant
Anxious resistant
Disorganized
(Last three fall under insecurely attached)
Secure attachment
React positively to stranger. Distressed when mom leaves, happy when she returns
Anxious resistant attachment
Fearful when mom is present. Demands her attention. Distressed when she leaves, not soothed when she returns. May angrily resist attempts of contact.
Disorganized attachment
Contradictory patterns of anxious attachment. May cry for mom at door but run away when door opens. Appears confused, may later adopt parental role towards parent.
Anxious avoidant attachment
Few signs of attachment. Rarely cries when mom leaves. Does not seek contact when mom returns.
Social development and attachment
Across cultures, 50-75% securely attached. Infancy is a sensitive, but NOT CRITICAL period for attachment.
