Theory and Research Methods Flashcards
What is the main goal of the Theories of Development?
Attempt to explain and predict development
What are the 5 main perspectives or theories of development?
- Biological Perspective
- Psychodynamic Perspective
- Learning Perspectives
- Cognitive-Developmental Perspective
- Contextual Perspectives
How does the biological perspective define human development?
Determined predominantly by our biology
True or false: According to the biological perspective of development, environment and nurture plays no part in child development.
False
What are 3 things that biology could drive, according to the biological perspective of development?
- Intelligence
- Personality
- Physical/Motor development
As evolution plays a role in development, how does this manifest in development?
We develop skills and behaviours that help our chances of survival, e.g., crying to receive care from caretakers
What is a critical period?
A specific time that a child needs to learn certain skills
What happens if a child fails to learn a skill within a critical period?
It would be very difficult, if not impossible to learn this skill
How does the psychodynamic perspective define human development?
How well people resolve conflicts as they age
Who are 2 primary psychologists that supported the psychodynamic perspective of development, and what were their focuses?
- Sigmund Freud - biological and sexual conflicts
- Erik Erikson - social and psychological conflicts
What are the 8 stages of psychosocial development and what are their binaries?
- Infancy - trust vs. mistrust
- Early Childhood - autonomy vs. shame and doubt
- Preschool - initiative vs. guilt
- School Age - industry vs. inferiority
- Adolescence - identity vs. role confusion
- Young Adulthood - intimacy vs. isolation
- Middle Adulthood - generativity vs. stagnation
- Maturity - ego integrity vs. despair
What does systematic observation involve when observing children?
Carefully recording their actions and dialogue
What is a nominal scale?
A measurement of discrete categories (e.g. makes/does not make eye contact)
In observational research, what is the purpose of a checklist?
To note a list of behaviours and characteristics (e.g. sharing is checked or not checked)
What is the difference between naturalistic and structured observation?
Naturalistic - observation in a real-life environment
Structured - observation in a researcher-created environment
What phenomenon describes participants becoming unresponsive to repeated stimuli?
Habituation
What are self-reports done by children?
Children’s own responses about the topic of interest, whether in a questionnaire or interview
How might self-reports be invalid?
Response bias - participants look for the most socially acceptable answer rather than being honest
What is the difference between a population and a sample?
Population - a broad group who are the usual focus of research
Sample - a smaller group drawn from a population
What is a null hypothesis?
A hypothesis against the original hypothesis; states that nothing the experimenter did had any effect
What are baby biographies?
Detailed, systematic observations of individual children
In maturational theory, what does development consist of?
The unfolding of specific plans within a body - like puberty
What are the two components of learning and conditioning that make up the social cognitive theory?
Operant conditioning and observational learning
