PSYC 500 - Human Growth and Development (revised)

Question 1

Accommodation

Answer 1

Part of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, accommodation is a cognitive process by which children learn by adjusting their schemas to adapt to new information or experiences. It is an important process for reaching what Piaget calls equilibrium, and moving from one developmental stage to another.

Example: A young child has a schema for things that fly - he believes all things that fly are birds. When he encounters a plane, he accommodates this new type of flying thing and changes his schema.

Example: A child grows up in a house in which people from Mexico are stereotyped as lazy and incompetent. This information helps the child form a schema for Mexicans until he gets his first job. The child works with several people from Mexico and finds them to be hard-working and smart. He accommodates his schema for Mexicans to include this new information.

Question 2

Androgyny

Answer 2

Part of human growth and development, androgyny refers to individuals who have both positive traditionally male and traditionally female characteristics. A term coined in the 1970s as nonnormative presentations of gender became more common and socially accepted. It is an important concept for understanding how gender influences identity development, communication styles, and relationships, especially in early adulthood.

Example: Erin is a cis-gendered, heterosexual female. She identifies as female but has androgynous characteristics. For example, she is nurturing (traditionally feminine) and athletic and competitive (traditionally masculine).

Question 3

Assimilation

Answer 3

A type of cognitive development coined by Piaget, assimilation is a cognitive process by which people process information or experiences by using existing schemas. Assimilation is one of the ways in which children can reach equilibrium and move from one developmental stage to another.

Example: A little boy encounters a coyote at a zoo. He has an existing schema for dogs which includes information like “has 4 legs” and “is furry.” The boy uses this existing schema, points to the coyote, and says, “DOG.”

Question 4

Attachment

Answer 4

Attachment refers to the close, emotional bond between two people, especially between caregivers and children. Early theorists who influenced the work on attachment include Harry Harlow, Erik Erikson, but John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth furthered the study and importance of the attachment construct in critical ways for the study of socio-emotional growth and development. Their work demonstrated that how we attach to caregivers leads to individual differences in personality and socio-emotional processing.

Example: A one-year-old child is playing with their mother at a park when one of the mother’s friends approaches. The child has never met this friend. The mom asks that her friend watch the child while she visits the restroom. The child shows distress when the mother leaves and when the mother returns. But, after receiving and some encouraging words the child calms down quickly and resumes happily playing near the mother. According to Attachment Theory, this child is securely attached.

Question 5

Child abuse

Answer 5

Child abuse is a type of maltreatment that refers to both active abuse which can be physical, sexual and/or emotional as well as the neglect of children. Child abuse has many negative impacts on development in childhood and adolescence including poor emotion regulation, trouble with peers, trouble at school. Children who experience abuse are at higher risk for problems in adulthood including substance abuse, mood disorders, relational difficulties, and employment issues.

Example: Robby is a little boy who was a victim of child maltreatment/abuse by his parents who both had substance abuse issues. He was often left alone at a young age, left to fend for himself. There was not always food in the house. Sometimes when his parents came home inebriated, they’d hit Robby. Robby had trouble maintaining friendships at school, missed a lot of days of school because he did not have anyone to bring him, and often physically lashed out at other children when they teased him about his appearance.

Question 6

Classical conditioning

Answer 6

A type of learning coined by Ivan Pavlov after his seminal experiments with dogs, classical conditioning is a type of learning via association. A previously neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with an unconditioned stimulus resulting in a conditioned response. Understanding this process has led to a deeper understanding of how environmental conditions can elicit specific responses and have advanced how we treat certain psychological disorders such as substance-use disorders.

Example: Jim is seeking help quitting smoking. His therapist reviews the conditions under which Jim is likely to smoke. Jim says he starts every day with a cup of coffee and a cigarette. Jim has learned via classical conditioning to associate coffee with the pleasant impacts of nicotine. It will likely require many cups of coffee not paired with a cigarette to break this association and lessen Jim’s morning cravings.

Question 7

Cohort

Answer 7

A cohort is a group of people born at a similar point in history who share similar experiences. Sometimes cohorts are studied to understand the differences in life-span development amongst different cohorts.

Example: Individuals born during the Great Depression had a lot fewer opportunities for formal education and often did not have enough to eat. This cohort often performs significantly worse on intelligence tests than cohorts born after WWII who were more likely to be food secure and have opportunities for formal and even free education.

Question 8

Continuity vs. Non-continuity

Answer 8

Continuity vs. Non-continuity is an ongoing debate amongst developmental researchers regarding how humans grow and develop. The debate surrounds the extent to which development is continuous and gradual or occurs in distinct stages. Understading the debate is critical for understanding how different theorists study and conceptualize human development.

Example: Cognitive theories of development like Piaget’s stages explain purport that individual’s move through distinct, qualitatively unique stages of development, an example of a theorist who has landed closer to discontinuity in the debate. He theorizes that humans move through stages as they gain new cognitive abilities. Behavioral theorists, on the other hand, stress that development is happening constantly and continuously. We learn new information or behaviors via reinforcement.

Question 9

Control Group

Answer 9

In experimental research, a control group is a randomly assigned group of participants that receive a placebo or no treatment. This allows researchers to measure the effect of the particular treatment of study and to determine causal relationships between variables.

Example: A social scientist is interested in whether or not a new style of therapy is effective for treating anxiety. She recruits participants that score high on anxiety measures and randomly assigns each to either a control group that will receive a placebo or no treatment or the experimental group which will receive the novel treatment. Both groups are tested again following treatment on anxiety measures to assess significant group differences and, thus, the effectiveness of the treatment.

Question 10

Correlational Research

Answer 10

Correlational research is used to explore and describe the relationships between two or more variables. Correlations look at whether or not variables vary together, not whether one causes the other. Correlations are expressed using a correlational coefficient (f) which is a number between -1 and 1. The higher the correlational coefficient (whether positive or negative), the stronger the relationship between the variables.

Example: A researcher is interested in exploring the relationship between socio-economic status and marital satisfaction. They collect survey data to see if the two variables very together and find a moderate positive correlation of r=.41. Their research can’t determine if lower SES causes lower levels of marital satisfaction or if low levels of marital satisfaction somehow lead to lower levels of SES or if some other variable moderates or mediates the relationship.

Question 11

Critical Period

Answer 11

Critical or sensitive periods are specific time frames during early development in which the presence or absence of certain experiences has long-lasting effects on individual growth and development. If during a critical period, an individual does not receive the appropriate stimuli required to develop a given function, it may be difficult or even impossible to develop that function later in life. Most commonly associated with language development and attachment.

Example: An embryo is exposed to a teratogen in week three of in-utero development. This is the critical period for the growth of the central nervous system and causes a structural defect in the brain of the embryo.

Example: A parent brings their adopted child to therapy because the parent is worried about the child’s development. The child is struggling in kindergarten to engage and learn things the other children are learning. After speaking to the parent, the therapist finds out that the child was born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. The therapist explains to the parent that the child may be struggling to engage and learn things because the child’s birth mother drank alcohol during a critical period of fetal development.

Question 12

Cross-sectional Design

Answer 12

A quasi-experimental research method in which researchers look at a cross-section of individuals of different ages in order to determine if any group differences in a dependent variable are the result of age. This type of design is advantageous in the study of human growth and development because it is cost-effective and efficient. However, this design can obscure trends in development and can’t determine causality as it does not trace variables over time, but takes a snapshot.

Example: A researcher is interested in how stress levels of individuals change over the course of a lifetime. They have a short timeframe and a small budget to conduct their research and opt for a cross-sectional design which will allow them to capture and compare stress levels of individuals of many ages in a relatively short period of time.

Question 13

Defense Mechanism

Answer 13

Part of psychoanalytic theories and coined by Freud and his daughter, Ana, defense mechanisms are unconscious strategies that reduce the unpleasant feelings that arise from conflicts between parts of our psyche (id, ego, superego). They allow people to navigate painful experiences and/or channel energy, but can become problematic used to frequently or throughout an individual’s development.

Example: Mike hates his gym teacher. The experience of hatred and the thoughts and feelings that accompany it are abnormal for Mike and produce a lot of discomfort. His ego unconsciously protects him from this experience by projecting his feelings of hatred onto the gym teacher. Mike believes that his gym teacher hates him.

Question 14

Developmental Level

Answer 14

Part of developmental psychology; a stage in human development or span of time when changes occur. Understanding developmental levels gives clinicians a guideline of what should be happening & when
can may indicate a lack in cognitive development or potential neurological problems.

Example: A client brings his 4-year-old daughter to therapy because she is not yet talking. After a physical examination, her family practitioner was unable to find a physical reason for this. The therapist concluded that speech should have typically occurred at this developmental level and the lack of speech may reflect a developmental delay

Question 15

Egocentrism

Answer 15

Part of Piaget’s theory of development, egocentrism is the inability to distinguish between one’s own perspective and another person’s. This quality is presenting children in the preoperational stage (2-7) and is an important cognitive limitation to understand the development of children.

Example: Sam is taking part in a study on egocentrism in preschool-aged children. He is 4 years old. He is seated at a table and shown a model of a town with a small child doll in it. The researcher moves the doll around the model and asks Sam to select from a set of pictures of the model which picture best represents the doll’s perspective or view of the town. He selects his own view of the town. He is unable to put himself in the place of the doll.

Question 16

Extinction

Answer 16

Part of behavioral psychology, extinction is a process or term used in both operant and respondent conditioning.
As defined by B.F. Skinner in operant conditioning, extinction is the process of withdrawing or withholding reinforcers that maintain a behavior. This process can be an effective treatment for decreasing an unwanted behavior but is generally more effective when combined with other therapies. In classical conditioning, extinction is a stage of learning when a conditioned stimulus does not elicit a conditioned response any longer after repeated presentations of the CS without the US.

Example: You’re seeing a child for behavioral problems. One of the parent’s complaints is that the child is always throwing tantrums at the store. He always asks the parent to buy candy. At first, the parent refuses and when the child starts crying the parent gives him and buys him candy. You explain to the parent that she is unknowingly reinforcing the tantrums. You ask her to engage in extinction by saying no and sticking to it (removing reinforcement for tantrum).

Question 17

Genotype

Answer 17

Part of the biological determinants of human development, genotypes include information in the form of DNA encoded in the genes that we inherit from our parents. Our genotype is our genetic makeup or profile. Genotypes can be expressed in different ways depending on epigenetic and environmental differences. Understanding genotypes is critical to understanding individual differences in growth and development.

Example: An individual inherits an allele for blue eyes from one parent and an allele for brown eyes from the other parent. Those two alleles form a gene and are part of an individual’s genotype.

Question 18

Genotype- environment Relationship

Answer 18

The environment an individual grows in, both in utero and extra utero, influences how an individual’s genotype, or genetic make-up, is expressed. Understanding this relationship is critical for understanding how our biological and environmental environments influence growth and development.

Example: An individual inherits a gene that gives them the genetic potential for being tall. However, that person grows up in an environment without access to healthy food and, thus, that genetic potential for height is not realized.

Question 19

Habituation

Answer 19

Habituation is the name given to a decreased responsiveness to a stimulus (sight, sound, smell) after repeated presentations of the stimulus. This is an important concept for researchers interested in studying infant perceptions and preferences because infants are incapable of self-report. Robert Fantz pioneered some of these studies in the 60s and demonstrated that certain behaviors are associated with novel stimuli. For example, infants will look longer at newer visual presentations, stop sucking when presented with a novel sound. As they become habituated to these stimuli, their behavior changes (they look for less time or keep sucking).

Example: A mother gives her infant a new mobile above his crib. At first, the infant stares at it for long stretches of time (8-10 minutes), which allows the mother to fold his clothes and put them away. After a few days, the mobile no longer holds the infant’s attention - the infant has become habituated to the visual stimuli. Therefore, the mother twirls it a few times before beginning her laundry and this new stimulus keeps the infant’s attention. For a few days, that is.

Question 20

Heterozygous

Answer 20

Part of biological human growth and development, heterozygous refers to having inherited different forms of a particular gene or allele from each parent. Heterozygous is a part of your genotype and is important for understanding both normal and potential abnormal growth and development.

Example: An individual inherits a gene or allele for brown hair from their biological mother and an allele for red hair from their biological father. The result is the individuals has a heterozygous genotype for hair color.

Question 21

Homozygous

Answer 21

Homozygous refers to having inherited the same form of a particular gene or allele from each parent. Homozygous is a part of your genotype and is important for understanding both normal and potential abnormal growth and development.

Example: An individual inherits a gene or allele for red hair from their biological mother and an allele for red hair from their biological father. The result is the individuals has a homozygous genotype for hair color.

Question 22

Identity Achievement

Answer 22

Identity achievement is an identity status of adolescents described by James Marcia, a student of Erikson, in his work on identity development of adolescents. Marcia delineated fours phases of identity development, one of which is identity achievement. For an individual to be considered in this phase, they must have gone through an identity crisis and made a commitment about their identity. This concept sheds light on the main tension adolescents manage according to Erikson, identity vs identity confusion.

Example: Jake is sixteen years old and just starting his junior year of high school. During his freshman and sophomore years, he was confused about his identity and which clique he belonged in at school. He experimented with some different looks and attitudes: sporty, disaffected, and even antisocial. Near the end of his sophomore year, he found a group of friends with similar interests: sports, live music, and cars. His crisis resolved, he entered the phase of identity achievement and felt committed to his new social identity.

Question 23

Invincibility Fable

Answer 23

The invincibility fable is the faulty belief held by adolescents that they are invulnerable to danger and negative consequences. It is a part of Elkind’s theory of adolescent egocentrism. It is critical to enhancing our understanding of adolescent development, especially when thinking about risky behaviors adolescents often engage in like drug and alcohol use, unprotected sex, and fast driving.

Example: A sixteen-year-old girl is driving with friends at night. She increases her speed to 80 mph, blasts her music loud, and weaves in and out of cars in her way. Elkind would explain this behavior by referencing the girl’s invincibility fable. She does not believe her behavior could result in a serious car accident.

Question 24

Lateralization

Answer 24

Lateralization refers to the specialized functions in each (right & left) hemisphere of the cerebral cortex. For example, speech and grammar depend on activity in the left hemisphere while the use of metaphors depends on activity in the right hemisphere. Understanding lateralization is key to understanding how our brain grows and develops. It is also useful for understanding the aging brain and how to compensate for the loss of functioning (via delateralizaton).

Example: Research shows that when given the task of recognizing words they have previously seen, younger adults process information primarily in the right hemisphere of their brain. In contrast, older adults are more likely to utilize both hemispheres, indicating a decrease in lateralization that likely compensates for the aging brain.

Question 25

Longitudinal Design

Answer 25

A type of research approach that measures the characteristics of the same individuals or participants on at least two, but ideally more, occasions over time. It’s purpose is to directly study how individuals change as they age or develop. This method, while providing the most accurate results (compared to cross-sectional designs) of how individuals change over time, is lengthy and expensive.

Example: A psychologist is interested in studying the stability of certain personality traits over time. She decides in order to truly track potential changes in the variables she is interested in tracking, she will need to employ a longitudinal design. She recruits hundreds of children, administers her personality tests, and plans to test them again at five separate times during their lives: during adolescence, early adulthood, middle adulthood and late adulthood.

Question 26

Metacognition

Answer 26

Put simply, metacognition is the cognitive ability to think about thinking. Most developmental theorists believe metacognition develops in late childhood (7-11). Metacognition consists of several dimensions of executive functioning including planning, self-regulation, memory, and strategy development. The development of this ability is important for understanding how children learn and process information.

Example: Cally is working on a math problem. As she looks at the problem, she considers several different approaches for solving it. She remembers that one approach, counting, takes a long time to complete. She remembers her teaching giving her a shorter way and her parents telling her a third strategy for solving the problem. She decides to use the strategy her teacher gave her to solve the problem. Cally is demonstrating metacognition.

Question 27

Mid-life Crisis

Answer 27

Part of the human lifespan; a supposed period of unusual anxiety, radical self-examination, and sudden transformation that was once widely associated with middle age represents a time of crisis for individuals - struggle to reconcile what they hoped life would be vs. what their lives currently are. Research indicates this is an exaggeration and many adults complete the transition into middle and later adulthood quite happily sensationalized by the media. Research suggests only a minority of adults experience a midlife crisis. In ⅓ of cases where individuals report experiencing a midlife crisis, the crisis was triggered by life events such as job loss, financial problems, or illness

Example: Jim recently celebrated his 45th birthday. He has reached a stable point in his accounting career, his children are healthy and independent, and his marriage is solid. However, since his birthday he has had pervasive thoughts about his time on Earth being short. He wonders if he shouldn’t living life differently, enjoying it more. He decides to leave his career and try to join a rock band as he did in his 20s. He starts hanging out with younger men, spends more time at the bar trying to land gigs, and neglecting his responsibilities at home. All these changes do not produce the emotional changes Jim expected they would. He still feels restless and uncertain. Jim may be experiencing a midlife crisis.

Question 28

Modeling

Answer 28

Part of Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, modeling is a type of learning when an individual learns a behavior by observing others performing it. The concept of modeling expanded on learning theories that purported humans learned via classical and/or operant conditioning. Bandura demonstrated through his research that observational learning or modeling plays a central role in how humans acquire behaviors and in life-span development.

Example: A child, Ana, goes to a friend’s house to play. The child’s friend, May, has a pogo stick. May jumps up and down on the pogo stick and says, “come on” to Ana and points to another pogo stick. Ana watches May for a few minutes, then grabs the other pogo stick and tries to bounce on it.

Question 29

Myelination

Answer 29

Part of neurological development, myelination is a process in which axons are encased with fat cells. The process starts prenatally and continues into emerging adulthood. Myelination increases the speed and efficiency of information traveling through the nervous system. It is an important physical change that aids in the growth and development of the human brain. Lack of myelination around the axon could contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders.

Example: Shannon is 9 years old and recently learned cursive. At first, her letters are large and messy. By the time she is 10 years old, her cursive becomes more precise and the size of her letters decreases. One reason for this improvement is the increased myelination of her nervous system has improved her fine motor skills and made her hands steadier.

EXAMPLE: MAYA, age 3 is brought to a developmental psychologist by her mother because she is worried about her daughter’s poor hand-eye coordination. The therapist comforts the mother by explaining that all kids don’t develop at the same pace and that research has shown that myelination in the area of the brain that controls hand-eye coordination isn’t complete until around 4 years of age

Question 30

Negative Reinforcement

Answer 30

Negative reinforcement is a term described by B. F. Skinner in his theory of operant conditioning. In negative reinforcement, a response or behavior is strengthened by stopping, removing, or avoiding a negative outcome or aversive stimulus. It is an important concept that explains human learning and behavior.

Example: Luca was bitten by a dog when he was five years old. Since then, he has been terrified of dogs. When he encounters one on the road, he crosses the street. If he makes a friend who has a dog, he never plays at their house. He invites them to his house instead. Luca’s avoidance of dogs is negatively reinforced by his avoidance. By not putting himself in situations in which he has to engage with a dog, he avoids the aversive stimulus of feeling afraid, thus strengthening his fear of dogs.

Question 31

Observational Learning

Answer 31

Observational learning is a method of learning that consists of observing and modeling another individual’s behavior, attitudes, or emotional expressions. It is a central component of Bandura’s social learning theory. Social cognitive theorists stress that people acquire a wide range of behaviors, thoughts, and feelings via observational learning and that these play a central role in lifespan development.

Example: A young boy observes his father yelling in anger and treating his family with hostility. The boy later acts aggressive with his peers, often yelling at them or intimidating them when he doesn’t get his way, a type of behavior he learned from watching his father.

Question 32

Operant Conditioning

Answer 32

Part of behavioral psychology, operant conditioning is a type of learning pioneered by B.F. Skinner in which behaviors are strengthened or weakened through processes of reinforcement. A behavior followed by a rewarding stimulus is more likely to occur, while a behavior followed by a punishing stimulus is less likely to occur.

Example: When a parent reinforces a child positively for a particular behavior, perhaps by smiling at them, the child is more likely to repeat the behavior vs. when a parent gives a disapproving look, the child is less likely to repeat the behavior.

Question 33

Phenotype

Answer 33

Part of human growth and development, phenotypes are how an individual’s genotype is expressed in observable and measurable physical and psychological characteristics. It is part of the biological understanding of human growth and development. Phenotypes provide clues to a person’s genetic makeup and these expressions are impacted by epigenetic and environmental influences.

Example: An individual has blue eyes and brown skin. Both of these qualities are part of the person’s phenotype or an expression of their genes.

Example: Fred has come to therapy because he is convinced his wife is cheating on him, even though she vehemently denies it. He says he has suspected her ever since their child was born. Fred explains that he and his wife both have brown hair, but their child is now 5 years old and he has blonde hair. The therapist explains that both parents may have the recessive gene for light hair which is not expressed in the phenotype of either parent but was passed down to their child.

Question 34

Proximodistal Development

Answer 34

Proximodistal development describes the general direction of human development. It describes the tendency for the development to start at the center of an organism and radiate outwards from there. The middle is the first to develop and movement extends outwards from there. It is critical for understanding how infants develop in utero and how their motor skills develop after birth.

Example: Infants will first learn to move their torso, (roll, sit up) and then their arms and legs (batting, kicking). Once the motor skills for their limbs are developed then finger manipulation and other fine-tuned movements will develop (pinching, grasping).

Question 35

Psychodynamic Theory

Answer 35

The theoretical orientation rooted in Freud’s work, psychodynamic theory roots much of psychological health or dysfunction in unconscious impulses, childhood experiences, and unresolved conflicts between what Freud calls the id, ego, and superego. In this framework, the therapist is the expert and interpretation of the patient’s behavior provides insights into treatment. The goal is to bring the unconscious impulses causing problems in the individual’s life to the surface.

Example: Sue is seeing a psychodynamic therapist for relationship problems. The therapist begins the session by asking Sue to speak freely about whatever is on her mind. The therapist hones in on a mention of a distant and cold relationship with her father as the potential source for her current problems. The therapist then starts to take on some of those qualities, acting slightly cold, to encourage transference and help Sue work through the issues.

Question 36

Punishment

Answer 36

Part of operant conditioning and behavioral psychology, punishment is a type of reinforcement that decreases the likelihood of a target behavior. Positive punishment is when an averse stimulus is added, and negative punishment is when a pleasant consequence is removed.

Example: Positive punishment: spanking
Negative punishment: phone privileges revoked for a teenager

Question 37

Quasi-experimental Research

Answer 37

A type of research design that seeks to establish a causal relationship between variables fails to include key elements of a “pure” experiment (i.e. random assignment and control groups). Quasi-experimental designs are useful in situations where true experiments can’t be used because of ethical or pragmatic reasons.

Example: Researchers want to conduct a study examining how opioid addiction affects depression. Because they cannot ethically assign the condition of opioid addiction to their participants, they must compare a sample of addicts to a sample of non-addicts which does not meet the standards of random assignment.

Question 38

Rationalization

Answer 38

Part of psychodynamic theory and Sigmund Freud’s work, rationalization is a defense mechanism used to dispel unpleasant feelings or sensations caused by conflicts between the id, ego, and superego. It involves making an excuse or dealing with conflict by concealing the true motivations for thoughts, actions, or feelings and clinging to self-serving but incorrect explanations. “Explaining away” used to defend against feelings of guilt, to maintain self-respect, and to protect from criticisms.
In psychotherapy, rationalizations are considered to be counter-productive to deep exploration and confrontation of the client’s thoughts and feelings and how those thoughts and feelings affect behavior

EXAMPLE: Shane is in therapy because he has been abusing cocaine. When confronted with his drug use, Shane replies, “Well at least I am not using heroin or something like that.” The therapist recognizes that Shane is rationalizing his cocaine use in order to make it not seem as bad as it is.

Question 39

Reliability

Answer 39

Part of research design and psychometric soundness, reliability is the extent to which a test or measure yields consistent results across administrations; extent to which scores are free from measurement error.

Example: A researcher wants to test the reliability of a new intelligence test, to determine if it consistently measures intelligence. She uses a test-retest method but giving the same test to the same group within a few months. Students should score about the same the second time if the test is reliable.

Question 40

Separation Anxiety

Answer 40

Part of human growth and development; also known as separation protest; separation anxiety is a behavioral response to being separated from a caregiver. Typically characterized by crying when the caregiver leaves, separation anxiety can reflect attachment style. It is most common in infants (Piaget’s sensorimotor stage) and small children, typically between the ages of 8-14 months.
Peaks at 15 mos for US infants - cultural variations
Generally a natural part of the developmental process.

Example: Harriet is a new mother and fears she is far too inexperienced to handle the task. She feels she cannot leave her 7 month old daughter with anyone, because as soon as she leaves, the infant cries. The therapist explains that this level of separation anxiety is normal after about 6 months and should peak around 15 months.

Question 41

Sex-linked Traits

Answer 41

Part of human growth and development, sex-linked traits are enduring features of a human-caused by a gene that is located on a sex chromosome. Therefore, the implications of sex-linked traits may be different for males than for females. Diseases caused by mutations on an X-chromosome are called x-linked diseases and affect men more often because men only have one x chromosome (and no “backup” like women.) Since women have two x chromosomes, they become carriers if they have a sex-linked gene mutation, but do not usually show any signs of the disease. Sex-linked conditions include Klinefelter syndrome, Turner syndrome, fragile x syndrome, and XYY syndrome.

Example: Henry is diagnosed with Fragile-X syndrome, a genetic disorder caused by abnormalities in the X chromosome. This condition is a sex-linked trait because it’s caused by a gene on the x sex chromosome.

Question 42

Social Referencing

Answer 42

Part of human growth and development, social referencing is a social cognitive accomplishment typically learned in infancy in which humans develop the ability to “read” emotional cues and use those cues to guide their behavior. By the end of the first year, social referencing will affect whether the baby will explore an unfamiliar environment based on mother’s facial expression

Example: 6-month-old Jill is at Storytime at the library with her caregiver. She looks frequently at the caregiver as she encounters new people and toys. When the caregiver smiles and encourages her, she engages.

EXAMPLE: Ursula has a one-year-old son named Freddy. She asks her therapist why Freddy always seems to know what she is feeling and wants him to do. The therapist explains that as babies develop they use social referencing to decide what to do in particular situations. By reading his mother’s face, Freddy seems to know what she wants.

Question 43

Stranger Anxiety

Answer 43

Part of human growth and development, stranger anxiety is when an infant shows fear and wariness of unfamiliar people. It is the most frequent expression of an infant’s fear. It first appears at about 6 months of age in the form of wary reactions. At 9 months, the fear of strangers is more intense, and it usually peaks toward the end of the first year of life and decreases from there. Infants show less stranger anxiety in familiar settings, which indicates that when infants feel secure, they are less likely to show stranger anxiety.

Example: Lyla is 9 months old. Her father takes her to a restaurant where is meeting friends for a birthday celebration. Lyla’s dad exuberantly hands her to an old friend who Lyla has never met while he goes to the bathroom. Lyla wails and reaches towards the direction her dad walked. She cries until he comes back.

Question 44

Temperament

Answer 44

Part of human growth and development, temperament is an individual’s behavioral style and characteristic emotional responses. There are some links between childhood temperament and adult personality (easy and difficult temperaments, inhibition, and ability to control one’s emotions tend to be enduring). There are also general changes in temperament over the life span. (Adults experience fewer mood swings than they did in adolescence, for example.)

Example: At the playground, 3-year-old Mary watches the other kids and is slow to engage. She has an inhibited temperament. As an adult, she is less likely to be assertive than other adults.

Example: Fiona has come to therapy complaining of depression and anxiety. The therapist learns that Fiona has an infant who cries a lot, will not sleep at night, and does not seem to be bonding with his mother. The therapist suspects that Fiona’s depression may be directly linked with her new infant’s difficult temperament.

Question 45

Zone of Proximal Development

Answer 45

Part of Vygotsky’s developmental theory, ZPD is the range of tasks that are too difficult for a child to master alone, but can be learned with guidance and assistance from an adult. The lower limit of ZPD is the level of skill reached by the child independently, and the upper limit of the ZPD is the level of additional responsibility the child can accept with adult assistance.

Example: Maya cannot tie her shoes by herself, but when an adult coaches her through the steps, she can. Shoe tying is currently in Maya’s Zone of Proximal Development.

Example: Dean enters therapy with thoughts about how no one cares about him. The therapist, having a knowledge base in CBT, teaches Dean to use Socratic questioning to disprove his maladaptive thoughts. Dean eventually terminates therapy because he is able to use Socratic questioning on his own. The progress that Dean has made, shows that he is now at a higher zone of proximal development because he no longer needs the therapist’s help with the Socratic questioning.