Lifespan Developement - General overview & Research methods

Question 1

Definition of lifespan development

Answer 1

Lifespan or developmental psychology is concerned with understanding and explaining changes that occur between conception and death.

Question 2

The 2 views of Livespan Development are

Answer 2

• -Restricted/Traditional View

- -Contemporary/Lifespan Veiw

Question 3

Restricted/Traditional view is

Answer 3

All important developmental changes occur between conception and adolescence; derives from the Freudian era

Question 4

Contemporary/Lifespan view is

Answer 4

Important changes can occur at all ages throughout the lifespan

Question 5

The Biopsychosocial Model

Answer 5

• -Basic forces in human development are
• -Biological: Genetic and health related factors
• -Psychological: Perceptual, cognitive, emotional and personality
• -Sociocultural: Interpersonal, societal, cultural and ethnic
• -Lifecycle: how the same event may affect people differently at different ages

Question 6

Divisions of Lifespan

Answer 6

• -Birth and infancy
• -Early Childhood
• -Middle childhood
• -Adolescence
• -Emerging Adulthood
• -Early Adulthood
• -Middle Adulthood
• -Late Adulthood

Question 7

Birth and infancy years

Answer 7

Newborn: birth to one month
Infant: one month to 1 year
Toddler: 1 year to 2 year

Question 8

Early childhood

Answer 8

Preschooler, 3-8 years

Question 9

Middle childhood

Answer 9

School-aged child, 9-12 years

Question 10

Adolesence

Answer 10

13-18 years

Question 11

Emerging adulthood

Answer 11

Late teens - mid to late twenties

Question 12

Early adulthood

Answer 12

mid twenties to mid forties

Question 13

Middle adulthood

Answer 13

Mid forties to mid sixties

Question 14

Late adulthood

Answer 14

mid sixties and up, broken in to 2 stages

• -Young old: 65 - 80
• -Old-old: 80+

Question 15

Gail Sheehy’s “New Passages”

Answer 15

Says that age norms are shifting:

• -Children are leaving childhood sooner
• -Adolescents are taking longer to grow up
• -Adulthood is expanding (people living longer)

Question 16

Sheey’s “New Passges” adult stages

Answer 16

Provisional adulthood: 18-30
1st Adulthood: 30-45
2nd Adulthood: 45-85+
Age of Mastery: 45-65
Age of Integrity: 65-85+

Question 17

Controversies in developmental psychology?

Answer 17

How are we to view the newborn child? 2 views:

• -John Locke: the child is a blank slate
• -Rousseau: child is innately good

Question 18

Predominate view today

Answer 18

Is to see the child as:

• -Active and exploring
• -While recognizing the importance of rewards/punishment on the child

Question 19

Nature vs. Nurture

Answer 19

Is the environment (nurture) solely responsible for whatever we become?
Does genetic background (nature) determine the outcome of development?
Or–nature and nurture are mutually interactive influences

Question 20

Definitions in psychology: growth

Answer 20

Refers to physical changes that are quantitative in nature

Question 21

Definitions in psychology: maturation

Answer 21

Naturally unfolding changes that are relatively independent of environment

Question 22

Definitions in psychology: Learning

Answer 22

Relatively permanent changes in behavior that results from practice or experience

Question 23

Measurement in Human Development Research–Systematic Observation

Answer 23

Involves watching people and carefully recording what they do and say. Two types:

• -Naturalistic Observation: Subjects are observed in their natural settings and the observer is as detached as possible
• -Structured Observation: Since some behaviors are difficult to observe naturally, it may be necessary to artificially create a setting that is likely to elicit the behavior of interest.

Question 24

Measurement in Human Development Research–Self Reports

Answer 24

Gathering information through the use of clinical interviews, surveys or questionnaires.

• -Gather a lot of data in a short period of time
• -Convenient
• -Problem: answers are sometimes inaccurate

Question 25

Measurement in Human Development–Formal experiment

Answer 25

Method of study requires a deliberate and systematic manipulation of some aspect of situation to detect possible change. you start with a hypothesis, the purpose of the experiment is to test the hypothesis. Requires 2 groups:

• -Experimental Group: group on which the independent variable is manipulated
• -Control Group: group on which the independent variable is not manipulated. (A drug study is an example of a formal experiment)

Question 26

Measurement in Human Development–Formal experiment: other variables

Answer 26

• -Dependent variable: the variable you predict will change as a result of the manipulation of the independent variable
• -Relevant (extraneous) variables: other variables having an effect on results that you can’t control

in a drug study, the independent variable is the drug. The dependent variable is the outcome. Relevant variables may relate to the health of the subjects, etc.

Question 27

Measurement in Human Development Research–Correlational Method

Answer 27

This is where the relationship of two or more variables that exists naturally in the world are examined.
–A correlation exists when changes in one variable are accompanied by changes in the other variable
Problem: Cause and effect relationships cannot be determined based on the correlational method

Question 28

Designs for studying human development

Answer 28

Longitudinal studies–observes same subjects over a period of time
Cross-sectional–compares different subjects of different developmental levels at the same time

Question 29

Longitudinal studies Advantages and Disadvantages

Answer 29

Disadvantages:
--May be costly
--Time consuming
--Subjects die or move
--Experimenter dies
--Methods and instruments may become obsolete
Advantages:
--Sensitive to intra-individual changes: how individuals change over time

Question 30

Cross-sectional Studies Advantages and Disadvantages

Answer 30

Advantages:
–Less costly
–Can complete in less time
–Don’t lose subjects
–Methods and instruments don’t become obsolete
Disadvantages:
–Looks at each individual only once; not sensitive to intraindividual changes