Vocabulary Terms 1-27 Flashcards
4 months
the fetus weighs 3 ounces
developmental psychology
studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span
40 days
the spine is visible and the arms and legs are beginning to grow
zygote
fertilized egg
embryo
developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization
fetus
developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth
teratogens
agents that can reach the embryo or fetus
fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
physical and cognitive abnormalities caused by drinking during pregnancy
rooting reflex
baby’s tendency to turn toward the touch, open mouth, search for nipple
habituation
decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation
maturation
biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior
schema
concept or framework that organizes and interprets information
assimilation
interpreting one’s experience in terms of one’s existing schemas
accommodation
adapting one’s current understandings to incorporate new information
Piaget
Swiss cognitive developmental psychologist and philosopher; importance on the education of children
cognition
all mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
sensorimotor stage
stage which infants know the world mostly by sensory impressions and motor activities (birth to 2 years)
object permanence
things continue to exist even when not perceived
preoperational stage
stage which a child learns to use language but not able to comprehend logically (2 to 6 or 7 years)
conservation
mass, volume, and number remain the same
egocentrism
pre-operational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view
theory of mind
people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states
autism
disorder; deficient communication, social interaction, and understanding of others’ states of mind
concrete operational stage
stage which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events (6 or 7 to 11 years)
