Studied by 10 people
Looks like no one added any tags here yet for you.
Developmental Psychology
The study of how people change and grow through their lives
Cross-Sectional Study
A study in which people of different ages are compared at one time.
Longitudinal Study
A study in which the same people are followed and assessed over a long period.
Teratogens
Substances that can harm a developing fetus.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
Physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by prenatal alcohol exposure.
Habituation
Decreasing responsiveness to a repeated stimulus.
Maturation
Biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior.
Critical Period
A specific time in development when certain skills or abilities are most easily learned.
Adolescence
The transition period from childhood to adulthood.
Puberty
The period of sexual maturation when a person becomes capable of reproduction.
Menopause
The end of menstruation and reproductive capability in women.
Sex
The biological distinction between male and female.
Gender
The social and cultural roles
Intersex
A condition in which an individual is born with ambiguous sexual anatomy.
Aggression
Physical or verbal behavior intended to harm.
Relational Aggression
Behavior aimed at damaging relationships or social standing.
X Chromosome
A sex chromosome found in both males and females.
Y Chromosome
A sex chromosome found only in males.
Testosterone
A male sex hormone that promotes male secondary sexual characteristics.
Estrogens
Female sex hormones that promote female secondary sexual characteristics.
Primary Sex Characteristics
Body structures directly involved in reproduction.
Secondary Sex Characteristics
Non-reproductive traits such as breasts and facial hair.
Spermarche
The first ejaculation in males.
Menarche
The first menstrual period in females.
Role
A set of expectations about a social position.
Gender Role
Expected behaviors for males and females.
Sexual Aggression
Unwanted sexual activity inflicted on someone.
Gender Identity
A person’s sense of being male
Social Learning Theory
Theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating.
Gender Typing
The process by which children learn their gender role.
Androgyny
Displaying both traditional masculine and feminine traits.
Sexuality
How people experience and express themselves sexually.
Asexual
Having no sexual attraction to others.
Social Script
Culturally modeled guide for how to act in various situations.
Sexual Orientation
A person’s pattern of romantic or sexual attraction.
Cognition
The mental activities associated with thinking
Schema
A framework that organizes and interprets information.
Assimilation
Fitting new information into existing schemas.
Accommodation
Adjusting schemas to incorporate new information.
Sensorimotor Stage
The stage (birth to 2 years) when infants learn through sensory and motor interactions.
Object Permanence
Awareness that objects exist even when not seen.
Preoperational Stage
The stage (2 to 7 years) when children represent things with words and images but lack logical reasoning.
Conservation
Understanding that properties like mass and volume remain the same despite changes in form.
Egocentrism
Difficulty seeing things from another’s perspective.
Concrete Operational Stage
The stage (7 to 11 years) when children gain logical thinking about concrete events.
Formal Operational Stage
The stage (12+ years) when abstract and hypothetical thinking develops.
Scaffold
A framework to support learning and development.
Theory of Mind
Understanding others' mental states
Language
A system of symbols and rules used for communication.
Phoneme
The smallest distinctive sound unit in language.
Morpheme
The smallest unit of meaning in language.
Grammar
Rules for combining words into meaningful sentences.
Universal Grammar (UG)
The theory that all languages share a common structural basis.
Babbling Stage
The stage when infants produce speech-like sounds.
One-Word Stage
The stage when children speak in single words.
Two-Word Stage
The stage when children speak in two-word phrases.
Telegraphic Speech
Early speech using mostly nouns and verbs
Aphasia
Impairment in language due to brain damage.
Linguistic Determinism
The idea that language determines the way we think.
Linguistic Relativism
The idea that language influences thought but doesn’t determine it.
Ecological Systems Theory
A theory emphasizing the role of environmental systems in development.
Stranger Anxiety
Fear of strangers
Attachment
Emotional bond with a caregiver.
Imprinting
The process by which certain animals form attachments early in life.
Strange Situation
A test to measure the security of attachment in children.
Secure Attachment
A strong emotional bond with a caregiver
Insecure Attachment
An anxious or avoidant relationship with a caregiver.
Temperament
A person’s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity.
Basic Trust
A sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy.
Self-Concept
An understanding of who we are as individuals.
Identity
One’s sense of self
Social Identity
The part of self-concept derived from group memberships.
Intimacy
The ability to form close and loving relationships.
Emerging Adulthood
The transitional period from adolescence to adulthood.
Social Clock
Culturally preferred timing for life events.
Learning
A relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience.
Associative Learning
Learning that certain events occur together.
Stimulus
Any event or situation that provokes a response.
Respondent Behavior
Automatic responses to a stimulus.
Operant Behavior
Behavior influenced by consequences.
Cognitive Learning
Acquiring information through observation or communication.
Classical Conditioning
Learning where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a response.
Behaviorism
The study of behavior without reference to mental processes.
Neutral Stimulus (NS)
A stimulus that initially produces no response.
Unconditioned Response (UCR)
An automatic response to an unconditioned stimulus.
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
A stimulus that naturally triggers a response.
Conditioned Response (CR)
A learned response to a conditioned stimulus.
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
A previously neutral stimulus that triggers a conditioned response.
Acquisition
The initial stage of learning when a response is established.
Higher-Order Conditioning
A conditioned stimulus is paired with a new neutral stimulus.
Extinction
The diminishing of a conditioned response.
Spontaneous Recovery
The reappearance of a conditioned response after extinction.
Generalization
Responding similarly to similar stimuli.
Discrimination
The ability to distinguish between similar stimuli.
Preparedness
Biological predisposition to learn certain associations.
Operant Conditioning
Learning where behavior is influenced by consequences.
Law of Effect
Behaviors with favorable outcomes are more likely to occur.
Operant Chamber
A device to study operant conditioning.
Reinforcement
Any event that strengthens a behavior.
Shaping
Gradually guiding behavior toward a desired goal.
Note 
Flashcard (38)