Exam #4 Flashcards
developmental psychology
- study of changes across the lifespan
- physical, cognitive, moral, social
- as a result of biological & environmental influences
cross-sectional design
different age groups are studied at one time
longitudinal design
group of participants is studied over time
nature
human development is governed by automatic, genetically predetermined signals
nurture
development occurs by learning through experience
examples of nature vs. nurture
- intelligence
- language
- aging
intelligence
- nature: genes/biology determines IQ
- nurture: environment & learning from early on
language
- nature: Language Acquisition Device (innate “program” that contains a schema for human language)
- nurture: operant and observational learning
aging
- nature: cellular clock theory (limits on # of times cells can reproduce)
- nurture: wear-and-tear theory (repeated use and abuse of body’s tissues)
interactionist perspective
development results from combination of genes and experiences in the environment
continuity of stages
- cognitive development/skills develop in stages (qualitative)
- physical development/motor skills continuous (quantitative)
Jean Piaget
- children are driven by an innate need to know, as part of our overall need for survival
- in order to survive, we need to adapt to out environment
- cognitive development
3 concepts of cognitive development
- schemas
- assimilation
- accommodation
schemas
files of knowledge that act like a set of blueprints for figuring out our environment
assimilation
process of taking in new info that fits into schema
ex. 5 year old thinks all cats are furry bc she has a cat
accommodation
occurs when new info cannot be assimilated and the schema must be changed
Piaget’s 4 stages
- sensorimotor
- pre-operational
- concrete operational
- formal operational
sensorimotor stage
- birth to 2
- cannot think about their environment using language, symbols, images
- object permanence > awareness that objects and people continue to exist even if they are out of sight
pre operational stage
- 2 to 7
- can represent things w/ words (language) & pictures but lack logical reasoning (operations)
- egocentrism > view of the world entirely form own perspective
- animism > belief that all things are living
- understanding of conservation > awareness that physical quantities remain constant despite changes in shape of appearance
concrete operational stage
- 7 to 12
- develop ability to think logically but not abstractly or hypothetically
- master principle of conservation & reversibility
formal operational stage
- 12 to adulthood
- adds abstract, reasoning, & conceptualization
- hypothetical thinking (What if…?)
- deductive reasoning (If… then)
- only 40-60% reach this stage
- Important bc values and beliefs, can reason from the “real” to the “possible”, & thinking about what “could be” to “should be” (right vs wrong)
Kohlberg’s Levels
-pre conventional
-conventional
-post conventional
(moral development)
(based on white men)
pre conventional level
- birth to adolescence
- self-centered
conventional level
- adolescence and young adulthood
- other-cenetered (think about other people)
post conventional level
- adulthood
- personal standards for right/wrong, or on universal principles of justice, equality, respect for human life
- decisions don’t matter, but reasons for decision do
- most adults don’t reach this level
Gilligan (moral development in women)
- for women, morality is more an issue of relationships and compassion
- stage 1 = individual survival (transition from selfishness to responsibility of others
- stage 2= self-sacrifice (to be good & approved of, one must sacrifice own needs to meet the needs of others; transition from self-sacrifice to acceptance of individual needs)
- stage 3= equality (belief that sacrifices should be shared equally; principle of nonviolence)
attachment
- an emotional tie w/ another person
- secure attachment shown in young children by seeking closeness to the caregiver & showing distress on separation
- ex. Harlow’s monkeys
basic trust
- a sense that the world is predictable & trustworthy
- said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences w/ responsive caregivers
identity
- one’s sense of self
- the adolescent’s task is to solidify a sense of a self by testing & integrating various roles
intimacy
- the ability to form close, loving relationships
- a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood
personality
- unique way an individual thinks, feels, and acts throughout the lifespan
- often represented in behaviors or traits
self report measures
- asking people about themselves
- large measures assess many aspects of personality
- small measures assess one aspect of personality
projective tests
- shown an ambiguous stimulus & asked to describe it or tell a story about it
- ex. inkblots
- Thematic Appreciation Test
Thematic Appreciation Test
- show a picture and ask a respondent to tell a story about it
- client projects unconscious and fears onto ambiguous visual stimuli
behavioral assessment
-direct measures of an individual’s behavior
3 qualities of measurement
- standardized (same procedure for everyone)
- reliable (produces consistent results)
- valid (actually measures what it is supposed to measure)
behavioral dispositions
- the likelihood of an infant behaving in a certain, general way, compared to the population at large
- will develop into traits, based on interaction w/ the environment
temperament
- behavioral characteristics that are fairly well established at birth
- activity level
- approach/withdrawal
- adaptability
behavioral characteristics (temperament)
- easy > 40% > regular, adaptable, happy
- difficult > 10% > irregularity in schedule, unhappy w/ change, loud
- slow-to-warm-up > 15% > quieter, need to adjust gradually to change
activity level (temperament)
-general level of activity
approach/withdrawal (temperament)
-initial responses to new situations or experiences
adaptability (temperament)
-ability to respond to new situations
psychoanalytic analytic approach (Freud)
- problems lead to fixation, in which we exhibit personality traits characteristic of an earlier stage of development
- clear lack of scientific data to support theory
- built on observable, abstract conceptions
- derived based on limited population
social-cognitive/social-learning approach
- important parts of our personalities are learned through conditioning
- classical & operant conditioning, role models, observational learning
- social cognitive: reciprocal determinism
stress
-process by which we appraise (decide how we view the stressor) and bodily respond to certain events
threat vs. challenge
threat=more stressful
challenge=less stressful
primary appraisal
- estimate severity of stressor
- evaluate potential as threat or challenge
secondary appraisal
-estimate resources available to the person for coping w/ the stressor
general adaptation syndrome
- phase 1=alarm
- phase 2=resistance
- phase 3=exhaustion
- want to be above the dashed line on graph
major life event
- involves a great deal of change
- most are single and short term
- can be positive too
chronic stressors
- long term events
- ex. unhappy marriage, roommate troubles, hate job
daily hassles
- little, insignificant issues
- can be most stressful due to frequency
- ex. stuck in traffic, wait in line
stressors
- major life events
- chronic stressors
- daily hassles
intervening factors (stress)
- appraisal
- perceived control
- social support
- coping behaviors
- personality
outcomes (stress)
- physiologic
- emotional
- behavioral
coping strategies
-actions that master, tolerate, or minimize the effects of stressors
problem-focused coping
- strategies to eliminate stress source
- reduce impact through direct actions
- ex. roommate problems > talk to them to work it out
emotion-focused coping
- strategies to change the impact of a stressor
- change personal emotional reaction to stress
- must eventually transfer to problem-focused
- ex. make ourselves feel better
type A personality
- ambitious, time conscious, hard working, easily annoyed, high levels of hostility & anger (leads to heart disease)
- coronary-prone personality
type B personality
- relaxed, laid back, less driven & competitive
- slow to anger
hardy personality
- challenges aren’t overwhelming to them
- committed to values, feel in control of lives
- lack anger and hostility of type A’s
immunity
-long term bodily process that gets compromised w/ sympathetic during times of stress
humanistic approach (personality)
- humans posses an innate drive to grow and reach their full potential
- self concept > our subjective perception of who we are
- ideal self vs real self (match=harmony; mismatch=anxiety)
biological approach (personality)
- existence of temperaments indicates some biological predisposition to respond
- extraversion and emotional stability can be traced to inherited differences in NS, which create differences in typical levels of physiological arousal and sensitivity to stress
personality (lab)
- the enduring characteristics or ways or responding that make each of us unique
- series of traits (global traits = fewer)
Eysenck (lab)
-two basic dimensions of personality: extraversion & neuroticism
extraversion (lab)
extent to which someone is outgoing and sociable versus shy and socially anxious
neuroticism (lab)
how emotionally stable a person is
Big Five Personality Inventory (lab)
- extraversion
- emotional stability
- openness
- agreeableness
- conscientiousness
openness (lab)
the extent to which a person likes new and different experiences, is independent, and is more imaginative than practical
agreeableness (lab)
the extent to which one is soft-hearted, trusting, and helpful
conscientiousness (lab)
the extent to which someone is organized, careful, and disciplined
Health Belief Model (lab)
- perceived susceptibility
- perceived severity
- perceived benefits
- perceived barriers
self-efficacy > Bandura (lab)
an individual’s belief that she or he is capable of carrying out or succeeding at a given task
Consideration of Future Consequences scale (lab)
- assesses individuals’ tendencies to weigh distant outcomes when making decisions about current behavior
- high CFC = not to smoke bc potential negative distant consequences
- low CFC = more likely to smoke bc focused on relatively positive immediate consequences
