Exam #1 5/1/23 Module 1 Flashcards
nature and nurture: Socrates
knowledge is already present
- got an illiterate slave to tell him a math proof by asking him questions
nature and nurture: Aristotle
we are a product of our experiences
nature and nurture: Locke
tabula rasa - blank slate, need discipline and experiences
nature and nurture: Rousseau
noble savage - fundamentally positive nature that is corrupted by the society they live in
nature and nurture: schizophrenia studies
a twin has 40-50% chance of developing schizophrenia if their twin has it (nature)
children who grow up in troubled homes are more likely to become schizophrenic than stable ones (nurture)
genome
set of hereditary information
influences behaviors and experiences
proteins in the genome change in response to experiences, altering DNA - epigenetics
nature and nurture: conclusion
not a dichotomy - nature, and nurture
predispositions and environmental factors
- plants have biological differences but the way they are cared for changes their outcomes
- ducks imprint with the first adult quacking sound they hear but a self-produced sound during the egg stage is necessary
- behavior is determined 100% by heredity and 100% by environment (Hebb)
continuity and discontinuity: main questions
- how continuous are later abilities with earlier ones
- are there fundamental changing differences
- importance of early experiences
- quantitive vs qualitative
continuity and discontinuity: continuous
ex. muscle strength - have the same muscles all your life but you can increase the size of them gradually through continuous development
continuity and discontinuity: discontinuous
ex. first steps - first steps are not better than crawling just a more efficient way of moving, go from not being about to walk to begin able to walk unsupported
continuity and discontinuity: depends on analysis
not always clear-cut
ex. first steps - when you hold a newborn against a flat surface they show a stepping reflex even though they are being held up then they lose it and then it comes back at 1 year (U-shaped graph)
- is it the same stepping reflex? fundamental behavior is still there
stages
prenatal development
infant and toddler (birth to age 2)
early childhood (2-7)
middle childhood (7-11)
adolescent (11-20)
adulthood
child’s role in their development
how active is the child in their development
in what ways do they influence their development
- playing, “crib talk” and make believe
mechanisms of change: biological
clear box with ‘hidden’ object - younger babies will hit the edge of the box and grasp it but older babes will reach in and grab the object
mechanisms of change: variability
trying different ways until one works best
mechanisms of change: input specific
if you are never exposed to something you are probably not going to be able to do it
mechanisms of change: domain specific vs general
specific - small area of psychological function ex. reasoning about math
general - larger area ex. working memory
socio-cultural context: WEIRD countries
Western Educated Industrialized Rich Democratic
most research has been done in countries that fall under this umbrella so can we really apply what we’ve learned to other cultures
socio-cultural context: pattern shape recognition
most western children do these easily
but in Zambia the same shapes like triangles and squares were not easily identified by children because they were not previously exposed to them, but when using 3D shapes they recognized they could do it
individual differences: main factors
risk factors for negative developmental outcomes
resiliency factors that lead to more positive outcomes - having 1 really invested adult in your childhood is a huge resiliency factor
normative development issues - what is average and where do we see differences
behavioralism - john watson
parenting through limited physical interaction
data collection
interviews and questionnaires: clinical - deviates from a script or structure - pre-determined questions
reliability
degree to which independent measures of behavior under a study are consistent
reliability: interrater
how much agreement there is in the observations of different raters who witness the same behavior
