First Three Years Flashcards
Central Nervous System
brain and spinal cord
Lateralization
tendency of each of the brain’s hemispheres to have specialized functions
Neurons
nerve cells
Integration
process by which neurons coordinate the activities of muscle groups
Differentiation
process by which cells acquire specialized structure and function
Cell Death
in brain development, normal elimination of excess cells to achieve more efficient functioning
Myelination
process of coating neurons with myelin, a fatty substance that enables faster communication between cells
Reflex Behavior
automatic, involuntary, innate response to stimulation
Systems of Action
increasingly complex combinations of motor skills that permit a wider or more precise range of movement and more control of the environment
Denver Developmental Screening Test
screening test given to children age 1 month to 6 years to determine whether they are developing normally
Gross Motor Skills
physical skills that involve the large muscles
Fine Motor Skills
physical skills that involve the small muscles and eye-hand coordination
Visual Gudiance
use of the eyes to guide movements of the hands or other parts of the body
Depth Perception
ability to perceive objects and surfaces in three dimensions
Haptic Perception
ability to acquire information about properties of objects, such as size, weight, and texture, by handling them
Visual Cliff
apparatus designed to give an allusion of depth and used to assess depth perception of infants
Ecological Theory of Perception
theory developed by Elanor and James Gibson that describes developing motor and perceptual as interdependent parts of a functional system that guides behavior in varying context
Dynamic Systems Theory
Thelen’s theory that holds that motor development is a dynamic process of active coordination of multiple systems within the infant in relation to the environment
Infant Mortality Rate
proportion of babies born alive who die within the 1st year
SIDS
sudden and unexplained death of an apparently healthy infant
Nonorganic Failure to Thrive
in infancy, a lack of appropriate growth for no known medical cause, accompanied by poor developmental and emotional functioning
Shaken Baby Syndrome
form of maltreatment in which shaking an infant or toddler can cause brain damage, paralysis, or death
Behaviorist Approach
approach to the study of cognitive development that is concerned with the basic mechanics of learning
Psychometric Approach
approach to the study of cognitive development that seeks to measure the quantity of intelligence a person possesses
Piagetian Approach
approach to the study of cognitive development that describes qualitative stages in cognitive functioning
Information-Processing Approach
approach to the study of cognitive development by observing and analyzing processes involved in perceiving and handling information
Cognitive Neuroscience Approach
approach to the study of cognitive development that links brain processes with cognitive ones
Social-Contextual Approach
approach to the study of cognitive development that focuses on environmental influences, particularly parents and other caregivers
Intelligent Behavior
behavior that is goal oriented and adaptive to circumstances and conditions of life
IQ Tests
psychometric tests that seek to measure intelligence by comparing a test-taker’s performance with standardized norms
Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddle Development
standardized test of infant’s and toddler’s mental and motor development
Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment
instrument designed to measure the influence of the home environment on children’s cognitive growth
Early Intervention
systematic process of providing services to help families meet young children’s developmental needs
Sensorimotor Stage
in Piaget’s Theory, first stage in cognitive development, during which infants learn through senses and motor activity
Circular Reactions
Piaget’s term for processes by which an infant learns to reproduce desired occurrences originally discovered by accident
Representational Ability
Piaget’s term for capacity to store mental images or symbols of objects and events
Visible Imitation
imitation with parts of one’s body that one can see
Invisible Imitation
imitation with parts of one’s body that one cannot see
Deferred Imitation
Piaget’s term for reproduction of an observed behavior after the passage of time by calling up a stored symbol of it
Elicited Imitation
research method in which infants or toddlers are induced to imitate a specific series of actions they have seen but not necessarily done before
Object Permanence
Piaget’s term for the understanding that a person or object still exists when out of sight
A-Not-B Error
tendency for 8 to 12-month-old infants to search for a hidden object in a place where they previously found it rather than in the place where they most recently saw it being hidden
Dual Representation Hypothesis
proposal that children under age 3 have difficulty grasping spatial relationships because of the need to keep more than one mental representation in mind at the same time
Habituation
type of learning in which familiarity with a stimulus reduces, slows, or stops a response
Dishabituation
increase in responsiveness after presentation of a new stimulus
Visual Preference
tendency of infants to spend more time looking at one sight than another
Visual Recognition Memory
ability to distinguish a familiar visual stimulus from an unfamiliar stimulus when shown both at the same time
Cross-Modal Transfer
ability to use information gained by one sense to guide another
Violation-of-Expectations
research method in which dishabituation to a stimulus that conflicts with experience is taken as evidence that an infant recognizes the new stimulus as surprising
Implicit Memory
unconscious recall, generally of habits and skills
Explicit Memory
intentional and conscious memory, generally of facts, names, and events
Working Memory
short-term storage of information being actively processed
Guided Participation
participation of an adult in a child’s activity in a manner that helps to structure the activity and to bring the child;s understanding of it closer to that of the adult
Language
communication system based on words and grammar
Prelinguistic Speech
forerunner of linguistic speech; utterance of sounds that are not words. Includes crying, cooing, babbling, and accidental and deliberate imitation of sounds without understanding their meaning
Linguistic Speech
verbal expression designed to convey meaning
Holophrase
single word that conveys a complete thought
Telegraphic Speech
early form of sentence use consisting of only a few essential words
Syntax
rules for forming sentences in a particular language
Nativism
theory that human beings have an inborn capacity for language acquisition
Language Acquisition Device
in Chomsky’s terminology, an inborn mechanism that enables children infer linguistic rules from the language they hear
Code Mixing
use of elements of two languages, sometimes in the same utterance, by young children in households where both languages are spoken
Code Switching
changing one’s speech to match the situation, as in people who are bilingual
Child-Directed Speech
form of speech often used in talking to babies or toddlers; includes slow, simplified speech, a high-pitched tone, exaggerated vowel sounds, short words and sentences, and much repetition
Literacy
ability to read and write
Personality
the relatively consistent blend of emotions, temperament, thought, and behavior that makes each person unique
Emotions
subjective reactions to experiences that are associated with physiological and behavioral changes
Self-Conscious Emotions
emotions such as embarrassment, empathy, and envy that depend on self-awareness
Self-Awareness
realization that one’s existence and functioning are separate from those of other people and things
Self-Evaluative Emotions
emotions such as pride, shame, and guilt, that depend on both self-awareness and knowledge of socially accepted standards of behavior
Altruistic Behavior
activity intended to help another person with no expectation of reward
Empathy
ability to put oneself in another person’s place and feel what the other person feels
Mirror Neurons
neurons that fire when a person does something or observes someone else doing the same thing
Social Cognition
ability to understand that other people have mental states and to gauge their feelings and intentions
Egocentrism
Piaget’s term for inability to consider another person’s point of view; a characteristic of young children’s thought
Shared Intentionality
joint attention to a mutual goal
Easy Children
children with a generally happy temperament, regular biological rhythms, and a readiness to accept new experiences
Difficult Children
children with irritable temperament irregular biological rhythms, and intense emotional responses
Slow-to-Warm-Up Children
children whose temperament generally mild but who are hesitant about accepting new experiences
Goodness of Fit
appropriateness of environmental demands and constraints to a child’s temperament
Basic Sense of Trust Versus Mistrust
Erikson’s first stage in psychosocial development, in which infants develop a sense of the reliability of people and objects
Attachment
reciprocal, enduring, tie between two people- especially between infant and caregiver - each of whom contributes the quality of the relationship
Strange Situation
laboratory technique used to study infant attachment
Secure Attachment
pattern in which an infant is quickly and effectively able to find comfort from a caregiver when faced with a stressful situation
Avoidant Attachment
pattern in which an infant rarely cries when separated from the primary caregiver and avoids contact on his or her return
Ambivalent Attachment
pattern in which an infant becomes anxious before the primary caregiver leaves, is extremely upset during his or her absence, and both seeks and resists contact on his or her return
Disorganize-Disoriented Attachment
pattern in which an infant, after separation from the primary caregiver, shows contradictory behaviors on his or her return
Stranger Anxiety
wariness of strange people and places, shown by some infants from age 6 to 12 months
Separation Anxiety
distress shown by someone, typically an infant, when a familiar caregiver leaves
Mutual Regulation
process by which infant and caregiver communicate emotional states to each other and respond appropriately
Still-Face Paradigm
research procedure used to measure mutual regulation in infants 2 to 9 months old
Social Referencing
understanding an ambiguous situation by seeking out another person’s perception of it
Self-Concept
sense of self; descriptive and evaluative mental picture of one’s abilities and traits
Autonomy Versus Shame and Doubt
Erikson’s second stage in psychosocial development, in which children achieve a balance between self-determination and control by others
Socialization
development of habits skills, values, and motives shared by responsible, productive members of society
Internalization
during socialization, process by which children accept societal standards of conduct as their own
Self-Regulation
a person’s independent control of behavior to conform to understood social expectations
Conscience
internal standards of behavior, which usually control one’s conduct and produce emotional discomfort when violated
Situational Compliance
Kochanska’s term for obedience of a parent’s orders only in the presence of signs of ongoing parental control
Committed Compliance
Kochanska’s term for wholehearted obedience of a parent’s orders without reminders or lapses
Receptive Compliance
Kochanska’s term for eager and willingness to cooperate harmoniously with a parent in daily interactions, including routines, chores, hygiene, and play
Gender
significance of being male or female
Gender-Typing
Socialization process by which children, at an early age, learn appropriate gender roles
