Unit 2 Test Flashcards
Holophrastic Stage
The infant can say single, simple words to identify their basic needs.
Babbling Stage
When babies make sounds but not words
Who created the nature argument and what did it include?
Noam Chomsky; Universal Grammar(all languages have nouns, verbs, and adjectives). Also, he advanced the concept of critical periods of language development.
Nurture argument creator and what did it include?
BF Skinner; Associative learning(sights of things with sounds of words), imitation(imitating words or syntax of others(dialect) , and reinforcement(praising a child for saying a new word) .
Visual Preference
Infants gaze longer at things they want or things they are interested in. They tend to prefer images close to the human face and physically attractive things.
Compare the neurons / neural networks of rats raised in an impoverished environment to one raised in an enriched environment. How might these differences play out in terms of behavior and abilities (social, intelligence, hunting, etc.)?
The neurons in an enriched environment are more developed, they have an increased brain weight and leads to a more intelligent rat and impoverished rats are the exact opposite. As a result, impoverished rats are more sensitive to stress, trouble with relationships and abnormal emotional development.
In the nature vs nurture debate, if you are looking at two identical twins split at birth what does nurture influence?
Attitudes, values, faith, manners, politics
Imaginary Audience
Adolescents often anticipate the reactions of other people to them in actual or impending social situations. This kind of anticipation could be explained by the adolescent’s preoccupation that others are as admiring or as critical of them as they are of themself.
Gross Motor Movement
- Give 2 examples
Larger muscle groups in the arms, legs, and torso are being used
- A baby pulling its body up to stand
- A baby being able to roll over
Telegraphic Stage
The child can speak longer phrases, however, the grammar will probably be incorrect
Fine Motor Movement
- Give 2 examples
Use of the fingers and hands(dexterity)
- A baby holding its own bottle
- A baby grasping a spoon to feed itself
Linguistic Determinism
When your spoken language influences your thinking and views of the world and your place in it.
For example, English has more self-focused emotions and perspectives which is reflective in our language(I, me, mine)
Fetus
- Timeframe
- What can the fetus do?
9 weeks after conception to birth
- Can hear and process sounds around 6 months and prefer mother’s voice and tone to all others
Genetic predisposition to a mental illness or disease
This means that you have a heightened probability of having that mental illness or disease
Continuous Development/ Continuity
- Example
Sees our mental, physical, and social abilities as a cumulative process over time. These changes are slower, steady and gradual.
Ex: Traits like height, personality traits like introversion
Natural Selection
Traits leading to increased reproduction, territorial gains, social dominance, food access and survival in general will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations
Syntax
Focuses on word order for grammatical elements like subjects, verbs, direct and indirect objects, etc.
Semantics
The meaning of words and word combinations. Think of understand slang and common sayings
Using the example of learning Spanish vs. learning Chinese for a native English speaker, differentiate between accommodation and assimilation as applied to schemas.
Learning Spanish uses assimilation because we can use existing schemas to interpret this new information. Learning Chinese uses accomodation because it’s different than anything we would experience on a day to day. So, we have to adapt our current info to understand new info.
Disorganized Attachment
Inconsistent, confused, and hard to predict behavior, paranoid, feels unworthy to be loved
Eugenics
A discredited pseudoscientific theory that seeks to explain social ills (low IQ, birth defects, and disabilities) and improve (or evolve) human populations by way of selective breeding and genetic engineering. This theory has many anti-immigrant, colonial, ableist (vs. disabled) and racist intentions seeking to purify the genome for smarter, happier and generally better human population
Habituation
After repeated exposure an infant’s attention or response decreases
Anxious Attachment
Clingy, very jealous and obsessive with fears of being alone; Not single for long and serious trust issues
How does early life trauma and constant activation of the HPA axis (fight-flight stress system) lead to “bottom-heavy brains” (frontal lobe vs. the emotion-oriented limbic system neural connectivity)?
The brain over-connects in lower brain areas leading to issues in the frontal lobe region(like self-control) and under-connects in upper brain areas due to trauma and frequent activation of the HPA axis.
Underextension
When a child uses a general word to label specific things.
Ex: child calls only your dog “doggie” and refuses to call other animals that
Cross-sectional study
Study of groups of people who differ in the variable of interest (i.e., age) but share other characteristics, such as socioeconomic status, educational background, and ethnicity at a specific point in time (control for all demographics besides age). Often done via survey.
Ex: how do 20 vs. 50-year-olds differ in their experiences and attitudes around social media use?
In the nature vs nurture debate, if you are looking at two identical twins split at birth what does nature influence?
Personality and social behaviors
Adolescent egocentrism
Inability to distinguish between their perception of what others think about them and what people actually think in reality, leading to excessive self-consciousness and social anxiety, paranoia, etc.
Critical Periods
Example?
Points in development when there exists a heightened sensitivity to certain stimuli and develops a certain way due to experience during this time. If these periods are not activated then they are pruned to make room for other things.
Genie Wiley missed her critical period for language development which means she may never be able to speak or at least fully speak.
Morphemes
Smallest unit of a word that provides a specific meaning to a small string of letters
How did humans reach the top of the global ecosystem? Identify the four reasons and describe each one.
Eusociality- Humans were cooperative and developed empathy and language.
Tool Use and Tech Development- Dexterous hands and large brains led to humans being the tool creators in the animal world
Slow Maturation into Adulthood- Energy goes into massive brain development rather than rapid physical development which leads to gaining lots of new knowledge and skills
Engaged Fatherhood- We are among the only 5% of mammals who have engaged fathers. An invested father leads humans to have more children and more provided food for our developing brains.
Example of Eugenics
Doctors would use forced or unknown sterilization techniques to prevent certain groups, like immigrants, from ever having birth again because they feel that something like this would solve things like birth defects and mental illness.
Heritability
The extent of variation among individuals that can be attributed to their differing genes
Secure Attachment
When infants play comfortably and happily in a new environment in mother’s presence and becaomes distressed when she leaves but joyful upon her return
Four ACES examples
Parental divorce, Neglect, Physical or sexual abuse, alcoholic family member
What are a few long-term medical consequences of multiple ACES in childhood – identify TWO psychological and TWO physical effects of untreated child trauma?
Psychological- Suicidal thoughts, learning disorders
Physical- Stroke, cancer
Timeframe for embryos
2 to 9 weeks after conception
Timeframe for zygotes
2 weeks after conception
Longitudinal Study
Research in which the same person, group, family or institution are studied over a long period of time, as in a case study. Looking for trends and patterns; usually expensive and time consuming.
Ex: impact of severe COVID infections on the brains of those who contracted the virus 5 years later, 10 years later and 20 years later
Layout Piaget’s stages of cognitive development, being sure to define or discuss at least TWO important qualities, terms or characteristics for each stage – focus on key terms here like object permanence, theory of mind, animism, centration, conservation task, abstract / hypothetical reasoning, reversibility, etc.
Sensorimotor Stage (birth- 2 years):
- Infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities.
- Object Permanence- developed at 8 months; they have awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived.
- Stranger anxiety- Fear around strangers/ STRANGER DANGER feeling
Pre-operational Stage (2-6 years old):
- Kids ask lots of questions to learn language and to learn about the world
- Egocentrism- Trouble understanding that the world doesn’t revolve around them
- Centration- Focusing all attention on one characteristic of a situation while disregarding all others
Concrete operational (6-11 years old):
- Children are thinking more logically
- Hierarchial Classification- Can sort things into general and specific groups
- Reversibility- Understanding that the order of things can be reversed and still have the same meaning
Formal operational (12 years and up):
- People are able to logically think about abstract concepts like God and death.
- Theory of mind- One starts to understand that others’ feelings, beliefs, etc. can be different from their own.
- They can ponder hypothetical things like “If this, then that….”
Teratogens
Agents like chemicals(pesticides, cleaning solutions) and viruses or bacteria that interact with the developing child and cause lasting physiological damage
Developmental Psychology
A branch of study focused on physical, cognitive, and social change of our development throughout life
Examples of Teratogens
Alcohol, Tobacco, Ibuprofen
Authoritarian Parenting Style
Parents impose rules and expect obedience: “Your room better be clean.” “Do it now or you’re grounded!” “Why? Because I said so.”
Risk making children too obedient and rule-following, or may get opposite reaction of rebellion during teen years
Explain the core procedures (wire mother w/ milk vs. cloth mother, etc.) and findings within Harry Harlow’s Monkey Study on attachment. What role does skin-to-skin contact or touch (“contact comfort”) play in the critical period of brain development and attachment style, and how does this impact secure vs. insecure attachment styles into adulthood? Also be sure to convey your understanding of critical periods of development.
Harlow’s study had infant monkeys separated from mothers at birth, then he offered a choice between two artificial mothers. One has a cold wire cage with milk and the other one was a cage wrapped in warm cloth. He found that the monkey’s preferred the contact with the warm cloth over food. Skin-to-skin contact helps children have a more mature brain and healthy body. This contact leads to more secure attachment styles which helps them with future relationships. It’s important that the monkeys get this attachment early during their critical periods because without a caretaker they will not survive in the world because they cannot take care of themselves. If this critical period is missed, then the monkeys will struggle when released into the world due to an insecure attachment style that includes clinginess and fears of being alone.
Phonemes
Smallest unit of sound that can change meaning within a language but the word itself doesn’t mean anything
Separation Anxiety Disorder
- Three symptoms
DSM diagnosis for those suffering from deep insecure attachment issues.
- Panic attacks
- Anxiety interferes with day to day activities
- Anxiety is longer and is more intense than other kids
Cognition
catch-all term for the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering and communicating
James Marcia’s four stages of identity development
Identity Diffusion- Adolescent does not have many choices made or the desire to make them
Identity Foreclosure- The adolescent is willing to commit to things but to conform to the expectations of others and have not explored their own options
Identity Moratorium- The adolescent is in a crisis exploring various options and is ready to make a commitment but has not yet done so.
Identity Achievement- The adolescent has gone through the identity crisis and made a commitment to an identity
Why are identical twins(monozygotic) who are separated at birth so intriguing to the field of psychology, especially regarding the nature-nurture debate?
They are useful for study because their genetics are as controlled as possible as identical twins. Also, they allow psychologists to see the influence of both nature and nurture because similarities between twins are studied as genetic influences and differences are seen as possible environmental influences.
Personal Fable
Adolescents have a complex set of beliefs that their own feelings are unique and they are special and immortal
Assimilation
Interpreting new experiences in terms of existing schemas/information
Authoritative Parenting Style
Parents are both demanding and responsive. They exert control by setting clear rules and enforcing them consistently, but also explain the reasons for rules.
Encourage open discussion with older children and allow certain exceptions where necessary.
This style creates more secure attachments and healthier relationships, as well as happier and more successful adults
Permissive Parenting Style
Parents submit to their children’s desires. They make few demands and use little punishment.
Risk the spoiled child issues of entitlement and an inability to cope with risks, stresses and/or failures; little respect for others, little gratitude for money, food, etc.
Linguistics
- Definition
- Three areas of language
Study of written and spoken language
- Grammar, Syntax, Semantics
Discontinuity/ Discontinuous Development
Development takes place in clear stages or phases with rapid growth in abilities. Changes are more sudden.
Ex: Birth to toddler- Language and motor skills
Insecure Attachment and Different Types
Anxiety or avoidance of trusting relationships. Clingy; Overly emotional outbursts when mother leaves
- Anxious
- Avoidant
- Disorganized
What are common issues within the adolescent experience?
Raging hormones, need for social approval, feelings of isolation
Overextension
When a child uses a specific word, like spoon, to label general things.
Ex: they use spoon for all utensils
Vygotzky’s Cognitive Development Focuses
Scaffolding- Breaking down information or parts of a new skill into pieces that are digestible for the learner.
Sociocultural Context of Learning- Emphasizes the role of social interaction in the development of mental abilities (for example, speech and reasoning in children)
Zone of Proximal Development- The difference between what a learner can do without help and what they can do with guidance and encouragement from a skilled partner or teacher. Thus, “proximal” refers to skills the learner is “close” to mastering.
Behavioral geneticists
Scientists that study the interaction of genetics and environment on human behavior
Schemas
Concepts or frameworks made by experience to help us organize (or categorize) and interpret information – one function of neural networking in the brain to make thinking more efficient
Ex: what qualities of a dog help us to realize that it is a dog?
Grammar
Set of rules governing how symbols in a given language are used to form meaningful expressions(comma, question mark)
Overgeneralization
When children use “-ed” to make everything past tense, ex: I “holded” the bottle
Accomodation
Adapting current understanding to incorporate new information
Gene complexes
Groups of genes making up a function unit that relate to a given trait or behavior
Avoidant Attachment
Distant, selfish, fears of intimacy and deep emotional connections(one night stands, hookups)
