Lifespan Developmental Psychology Flashcards
What is developmental psychology?
the study of changes and transitions that accompany physical growth or maturation
Describe fertilization
a sperm unites with an egg in the fallopian tube and travels to the uterus, resulting in a zygote
What are the 3 stages of gestation/prenatal development?
- germinal: 2 weeks - zygote implants into uterine wall and grows into 64 cells
- embryonic: until end of 2nd month - organ formation
- fetal: 3rd month-birth - quantitative growth, movement (quickening)
What causes a fetus to develop into a male or female?
at 6 weeks, the H-Y antigen causes the testes to form, while its absence causes the ovaries to form. at 3 months, the testes produce testosterone which leads to the rest of the reproductive system forming, while the lack of testosterone in women does the same
Describe the behavior of neonates
reflexive e.g. sucking reflex, head turning reflex (stroke baby’s cheek), Moro reflex (throwing limbs out after loud noises), Babinski reflex (fanning toes after foot is touched), Palmar reflex (hand grasping after object is placed in hand)
What happens during adolescence?
at the onset of puberty, the adrenal and pituitary glands secrete androgen for boys and estrogen for girls, causing a growth spurt and secondary sex characteristics
How do we study nature and nurture combinations?
twin studies
- the influence of genetics can be examined by comparing and contrasting monozygotic twins and dizygotic twins
- the influence of environment can be examined by comparing and contrasting monozygotic twins separated at birth
What does Piaget assert about cognitive development?
humans experience an interaction between internal maturation and external experience that creates qualitative change. this adaptation happens through assimilation and accommodation
What is assimilation?
fitting new information into existing ideas
What is accommodation?
modification of cognitive schemata to incorporate new information
What are the 4 states of cognitive development according to Piaget in order?
- sensorimotor, 0-2 years
- preoperational, 2-7 years
- concrete operational, 7-12 years
- formal operational, 12+ years
Describe the sensorimotor stage
- reflexive behavior
- circular reactions (repeated behavior intended to manipulate environment)
- object permanence
- representation (visualizing/putting words to objects)
Describe the preoperational stage
Egocentric understanding
Rapidly acquiring words as symbols for things
Inability to perform mental operations such as causality or true understanding of quantity
Describe the concrete operational stage
Understanding concrete relationships e.g. math/quantity
Conservation (changes in shape are not changes in volume)
Describe the formal operational stage
Understanding abstract relationships e.g. logic, ratios and values
Who showed that Piaget may have underestimated preschoolers?
Rochel Gelman - she said they can deal with ideas such as quantity in small sets of objects
What were Piaget’s 3 stages of moral development?
- 4-7 years: imitates rule-following behavior
- 7-11 years: understands rules and follows them
- 12+ years: applies abstract thinking to rules, can change rules if all parties agree
For Freud, what is the driving force behind humans and their development?
sexual (including sensual gratification)
What are fixation and regression and what causes them?
parental over- or underindulgence might result in fixation, inability to move onto the next stage
life stressors might cause regression (return to an earlier stage)
What are the 5 stages of development according to Freud?
- Oral (birth - 18mos): sucking, eating, biting
- Anal (18mos - 3 years): control & release of feces
- Phallic (3-6 years): self-stimulation of genitals
- Latency (adolescence): repressed sexuality, identification with same-sex friends, focus on school and growing up
- Genital (adolescence-adulthood): hormones reawaken sexual instincts; love object is now nonfamilial
Describe the phallic phase of development
receives pleasure from self stimulation of genitals.
- oedipus complex
- electra complex (penis envy)
conflict resolved by identifying with same-sex parent
boys are motivated to suppress their lust by castration anxiety
What is Lawrence Kohlberg known for?
creating the best-known theory of moral development by analyzing children’s responses to 9 moral dilemmas, e.g. should a husband steal medicine to help his wife live?
What are the 3 stages?
preconventional/premoral (if I steal the medicine, I’ll get in trouble)
1) avoid punishment
2) gain rewards
Conventional/morality of conformity (stealing is against the law)
3) gain approval
4) follow law & authority
postconventional/morality of self-accepted principles (it is unjust that money is an obstacle to life. it is ethical that i save my wife)
5) beyond black and white, attentive to rights and social welfare
6) makes decisions based on abstract ethical principles
What did Carol Gilligan assert?
Kohlberg’s moral development theory is biased towards males because it is rule-dominated, whereas women focus more on compassion
What is Erik Erikson known for?
He is known for a development scheme that addresses the entire life span. each stage has a unique psychosocial conflict to resolve
What are Erikson’s stages, crises and resolutions?
Birth-18mos: trust vs. mistrust: trust
18mos-3yrs: autonomy vs. shame & doubt: independence
3-6yrs: initiative vs. guilt: purpose
6-puberty: industry vs. inferiority: competency
teens: identity vs. role confusion: sense of self
young adult: intimacy vs. isolation: love
middle age: productivity vs. stagnation: productivity and caring
old age: ego integrity vs. despair: wisdom and integrity
What did John Bowlby suggest?
infants are motivated to attach to their mothers for positive reasons (wanting closeness) and for negative reasons (avoiding fear). he emphasized importance of mother-infant attachment to prevent character and stability problems.
Mary Ainsworth
studied attachment through ‘strange situation.’
- infants cry when a stranger enters (stranger anxiety) and when mother leaves (separation anxiety)
- upon mother returning: securely attached infants ran and clung to mothers, avoidant infants ignored or avoided, ambivalent infants squirmed or kicked if mothers tried to comfort them
- securely attached infants are more comfortable exploring
- work continued by Mary Main
Diana Baumrind
relationship between parenting style and personality development
- authoritarian parents -> withdrawn and unhappy
- permissive parents -> happy but lacking in self-control/reliance
- authoritative parents -> self-reliant, confident, assertive, friendly, happy, high-functioning
John Watson
Behavioristic approach to development: children are passively molded by environment and behavior emerges through imitation of parents
Arnold Gessell
nature provides a blueprint - environment/nurture fills in details
What happens to children identified as aggressive at an early age?
moderate tendency to remain aggressive
when is sex-typed behavior high and low?
low during prepubescence, highest in young adulthood, low again in later life.
What happens to boys who reach puberty sooner rather than later?
psychologically and socially advantaged
how are adolescents similar to their parents?
career aspirations
how does a hermaphrodite/intersex individual come about?
female fetus exposed to higher than normal level of testosterone
how can play be used to study child development?
symbolic play: 1-2 years old - pretend roles (one object can stand for another)
parallel play: 2-3 years old - 2 children playing by themselves and not interacting
