Unit 2 - chapter 5 (development) Flashcards
prenatal development
egg + sprem = zygote
zygote + 2 weeks, cells rapidly divide = embryo
9 weeks after conception the embryo is now a human-like organism called a fetus (age of viability but will require a lot of medical care)
teratogens
means “monster maker”
-chemicals, viruses, drugs/alcohol, etc. that can reach the fetus during development and cause harm
prevalent example: FAS/FASD
infancy and childhood
most brain cells at time of birth
need to strengthen your neural networks. “use it or lose it”
“pruning” brain does to neural networks with what is important and what is not
motor control that is delayed: walking, bowel control development, etc.
schemas
frameworks or concept that help organize and interpret information
-kid knows of the dog as dog
assimilation
keeps the new information or experience and adds to what already exists in our minds
-kid sees cat and calls it dog (because it is also fluffy and walks on four legs)
accommodation
process by which people alter their existing schemas or create new schemas as a result of new learning
-learns difference between dog and cat
Piaget’s Theory Cognitive Development
sensorimotor
- birth-2 yrs old
- looking touching, hearing, grasping, mouthing
- key milestone: objects still exist when they are out of sight; begin to think through mental action
preoperational
- 2-6/7 yrs old
- using words and images
- key milestones: imagination flourishes, pretend play develops, egocentrism
concrete operational
- 7-11 yrs. old
- logical thinking about concrete events
- key milestones: math, conservation
formal operational
- 12-adulthood
- reasoning and abstract thought
- key milestone: abstract logic and thinking, potential for moral thinking
alternate theory: Vygotsky
Piaget was interested in the way a child’s mind developed as a result of physical environment whereas Vygotsky was interested in how the social environment influenced development
attachment styles
see figure
attachment deprivation
Harlow’s monkey experiment:
infant monkeys prefer the comfort of one “mother” over the “mother” that provides nourishment
parenting styles
authoritarian:
- coercive
- word is law
- children tend to be guilty or depressed, internalize frustrations and blame themselves when things don’t go right, tend to rebel and leave home by 20
permissive:
- indulgent
- lax discipline and low expectations
- nurturing and accepting
- children tend to be: lack self-control in give-and-take relationships, unhappy due to being deemed as immature and unable to regulate emotions, depending on their parents well into adulthood, and live at home
negligent:
- oblivious
- indifferent toward their children
- children tend to be: immature, sad, and often lonely, at high risk of injury and abuse, and partake in high-risk lifelong behaviors
authoritative:
- flexible
- set limits but listen, forgive and encourage
- guides not authorities
- children ten to be: liked by many people, successful and happy, generous with themselves and others
adolescence cognitive development
Lawrence Kohlberg (in agreement with Piaget) developed Levels of Moral Thinking
Considering right and wrong:
- pre-conventional morality (before age 9)
- conventional morality (early adolescence)
- post-conventional morality (late adolescence and beyond)
adolescence social development
see figure
most commonly used: Erik Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development
adulthood ages and stages
physical changes:
- decrease in stamina
- impaired sensory abilities
- menopause
social changes:
- midlife crisis
- work changes
- love and commitment
- overall well-being changes
cognitive changes:
- slower processing
- impaired memory (can be result fo Alzheimer’s or dementia)
- we study these changes over time through:
1. longitudinal studies
2. cross-sectional studies
