Theories of Development Flashcards
What are biology and evolutionary theories?
human development is rooted in biological processes that have evolved to promote adaptation and survival
Ethology
emphasizes genetically determined survival behaviours presumed to have evolved through natural selection
Behaviour genetics
the study of the role of heredity in individual differences
Evolutionary psychology
the view that genetically inherited cognitive and social traits have evolved through natural selection
What are psychoanalytic theories?
focusing primarily on the role that the psyche (soul, spirit, or mind) plays in development
Libido
instinctual drive or energy of sexual natures and desires
Id
primitive instincts and desires in personality
Ego
thinking element in personality (mediator)
Superego
moral judgment in personality
Freud’s psychosexual stages
-stages of personality development and maturation in children
-libido is centered on a different part of the body
What are learning theories?
focusing on how experiences in the environment shape individual development
Classical conditioning
learning that results from the association of stimuli
Operant conditioning
learning to repeat or stop behaviours because of their consequences
Reinforcement
any immediate consequence that follows a behaviour
-increases the likelihood that the behaviour will be repeated
Positive reinforcement
adding a consequence (something pleasant) to increase the likelihood of the behaviour
Negative reinforcement
taking away a condition (something unpleasant) to increase the likelihood of the behaviour
Punishment
any immediate consequence that follows a behaviour
-decreases the likelihood that the behaviour will be repeated
Positive punishment
taking away a condition (something pleasant) to decrease the likelihood of the behaviour
Negative punishment
adding a consequence (something unpleasant) to decrease the likelihood of the behaviour
What are cognitive theories
focusing on how changes in the ways people think brings about changes in their behaviours, personality, and their basic interactions with others
Sensorimotor
understanding the world through senses and motor actions
-object permanence
Preoperational
thinking symbolically using words and pictures
-logic/problem solving
Concrete operational
thinking more logically and organized (still concrete)
-conservation of mass
Formal operational
thinking more abstractly and hypothetically
-scientific reasoning
Scheme
internal cognitive structure that provides a person with a procedure to follow in a specific circumstance
Example of a scheme
picking up a ball and throwing it to someone
Piaget’s scheme processes
assimilation, accommodation, equilibration
Assimilation
using schemes to make sense of events or experiences
Accommodation
changing a scheme as a result of some new information
Equilibration
balancing assimilation and accommodation to create schemes that fit the environment
What are system theories
development is the result of the interaction of the individual and environmental contexts
Holism
idea that the whole is often greater than the sum of its parts (the bigger picture)
Ecological systems theory
development is influenced by relationships between individual and environment
Macrosystem
socio-cultural ideologies, customs, laws, and governing policies in which a person grows up in
-child abuse laws
Exosystem
settings that affect a person’s development indirectly
-educational systems, social services, healthcare services
Microsystem
immediate settings where a person interacts with and is exposed to directly
-family, school, peers, workplace
