SLS20 Chapter 11: Development Flashcards
developmental psychology
The study of continuity and change across the life span
zygote
A fertilized egg that contains chromosomes from both a sperm and an egg
germinal stage
The 2-week period of prenatal development that begins at conception
embryonic stage
The period of prenatal development that lasts from the second week until about the eighth week
fetal stage
The period of prenatal development that lasts from the ninth week until birth
myelination
The formation of a fatty sheath around the axons of a neuron
teratogens
Agents that damage the process of development, such as drugs and viruses
fetal alcohol syndrome
A developmental disorder that stems from heavy alcohol use by the mother during pregnancy
infancy
The stage of development that begins at birth and lasts between 18 and 24 months
motor development
The emergence of the ability to execute physical action
reflexes
Specific patterns of motor response that are triggered by specific patterns of sensory stimulation
cephalocaudal rule
The “top-to-bottom” rule that describes the tendency for motor skills to emerge in sequence from the head to the feet
proximodistal rule
The “inside-to-outside rule that describes the tendency for motor skills to emerge in sequence from the center to the periphery
cognitive development
The emergence of the ability to think and understand
sensorimotor stage
A stage of development that begins at birth and lasts through infancy in which infants acquire information about the world by sensing it and moving around within it
schemas
Theories about or models of the way the world works
assimilation
The process by which infants apply their schemas in novel situations
accomodation
The process by which infants revise their schemas in light of new information
object permanence
The idea that objects continue to exist even when they are not visible
childhood
The stage of development that begins at about 18 to 24 months and lasts until adolescence
preoperational stage
The stage of development that begins at about 2 years and ends at about 6 years, in which children have a preliminary understanding of the physical world
concrete operational stage
The stage of development that begins at about 6 years and ends at about 11 years in which children learn how various actions or “operations” can affect or transform “concrete” objects
conservation
The notion that the quantitative properties of an object are invariant despite changes in the object’s appearance
formal operational stage
The stage of development that begins around the age of 11 and lasts through adulthood, in which people can solve nonphysical problems
egocentrism
The failure to understand that the world appears differently to different observers
theory of mind
The idea that human behavior is guided by mental representations
attachment
The emotional bond that forms between newborns and their primary caregivers
strange situation
A behavioral test developed by Mary Ainsworth that is used to determine a child’s attachment style (see infant’s reaction when caregiver leaves, and when caregiver returns)
internal working model of relationships
A set of beliefs about the self, the primary caregiver, and the relationship between them
temperaments
Characteristic patterns of emotional reactivity
preconventional stage
A stage of moral development in which the morality of an action is primarily determined by its consequeces for the actor
conventional stage
A stage of moral development at which the morality of an action is determined by a set of general principles that reflect core values
postconventional stage
A stage of moral development at which the morality of an action is determined by a set of general principles that reflect core values
adolescence
The period of development that begins with the onset of sexual maturity (about 11 to 14 years of age) and lasts until the beginning of adulthood (about 18 to 21 years of age)
puberty
The bodily changes associated with sexual maturity
primary sex characteristics
Bodily structures that are directly involved in reproduction
secondary sex characteristics
Bodily structures that change dramatically with sexual maturity but that are not directly involved in reproduction
adulthood
The stage of development that begins around 18 to 21 years and ends at death
