intro to psych - ch 3

why study human development?

development does not stop with adulthood, continues thru life cycle

germinal stage

first 2 weeks and zygote/blastocyst goes thru conception, implantation, and formation of placenta

embryonic stage

2 weeks to 2 months when the embryo goes thru the formation of vital organs and systems

fetal stage 

2 months to birth when the fetus experiences continued bodily growth, beginnings of movement capability, and brain cell multiplication

age of viability 

in fetal stage during weeks 22-26 

conception

a single sperm penetrates the outer coating of the egg and fuses to form one fertilized cell

zygote

fertilized cell that becomes of a blastocyst

end of the 2nd week…

the blastocyst is attached to the uterus and the umbilical cord is functioning 

after 9 weeks…

embryo turns into a fetus

zygote/blastocyst

a fertilized egg that undergoes a 2 week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo

teratogen 

any factor, drug, chemical, or infective agent that can disrupt the growth trajectory of the embryo and induce a miscarriage/birth defects 

types of teratogens

poor nutrition, viral/bacterial infections, x-ray exposure, lead, mercury, cigarettes, alcohol, or illicit/prescribed drug

how many twins are born for every 1000 births?

32

most common type of twin?

dizygotic or fraternal 

dizygotic twins

have independent placenta and chorionic/amniotic fluids

monozygotic twins

either monochorionic or dichorionic

monochorionic 

share one placenta and the chorionic/amniotic sacs 

diochorionic

if twinning occurs before 4 days, each blastocyst develops its own placenta and chorionic/amniotic sacs

what about the prenatal environment regarding dichorionic twins?

it’s not identical, meaning one twin may be exposed to a teratogen and another may not

twin findings show?

the interaction between hereditary and prenatal environment can have profound influence on the expression of some traits, like Schizophrenia

habituation in infants

paying more attention to new objects than habituated ones which shows they are learning

visual preferences of toddlers 

prefer patterns more than solids, and a drawing of a human face

when showed a blank shape, shape with scrambled facial features, and an actual face…

infants preferred the actual face, despite the face and scrambled face having the same complexity

cephalocaudal trend 

development from the head to the toes 

proximodistal trend

development from the center, or torso, out to the extremities

maturation 

gradual unfolding of genetic blueprint

developmental norms 

benchmarks for typical age-related skills 

median age

age at which a majority of people reach a certain developmental milestone

what is someone’s median age an indicator of?

if people are meeting certain developmental norms

cultural variations indicate what?

there is some role of environment in development 

Jean Piaget

proposed that children’s thinking exhibits abrupt transitions with 4 stages

4 stages of language acquisition

sensorimotor, pre-operational, concrete operational, formal operational

assimilation 

fitting new info into already existing schemas 

accommodation

changing already existing schemas to adapt to new info which creates new schemas to store experiences of the world

sensorimotor stage

first stage, birth to 2 years,

what happens during sensorimotor stage?

motor actions like touching, looking, grasping, and development of object permanence 

object permanence

objects continue to exist even when they can’t be seen

pre-operational stage

stage 2, 2 to 7 years

what occurs during pre-operational stage 

development of symbolic thought, irreversibility, contrition, egocentrism, language, pretend play 

irreversibility

trouble mentally reversing steps of sequence of events

centration 

focus on only one aspect of a situation or problem

egocentrism

trouble seeing things from another person’s perspective

concrete operational stage

stage 3, 7-11 years

what occurs during concrete operational stage 

mental operations applied to concrete events, master conservation, hierarchical classification, and logical thinking 

conservation

understand an object’s properties remain the same even if its appearance changes

hierarchical classification

grouping objects based on similarities 

formal operational stage

stage 4, 11 through adulthood

what occurs during formal operational period

abstract, logical, hypothetical, and systematic thinking

systematic thinking 

ability to think through all possible solutions to a problem 

theory of mind

develops during pre-operational stage and allows preschoolers to understand another’s mental state

vygotsky

zone of proximal development

zone of proximal development 

the range in which tasks are too difficult to complete alone but attainable with support and scaffolding 

scaffolding

guiding children to perform the target behavior before they have actually learned it

what does scaffolding look like?

breaking down a task, building on prior knowledge, and gradually removing assistance

Kholberg 

1976 studied moral reasoning and the justification for a choice

moral dilemmas

measured nature and progression of moral reasoning

3 levels of moral reasoning 

pre-conventional, conventional, post-conventional 

pre-conventional

decisions are made with self-interest in mind to either avoid punishment or gain a reward

conventional

decisions are made with laws and social rules in mind to gain approval/avoid disapproval or obeying the law/social order

post-conventional 

decisions made with abstract principles in mind to affirm agreed upon rights or ethical principles like justice and equality 

attachment

emotional bond with another person

attachments influence…

our sense of self and understanding/ability to relate to others

attachment requires 

extended and consistent contact because it takes time to develop 

sensitive period for attachment

when 6-24 month old infants are particularly receptive to forming a bond with their caregiver

separation anxiety

when child experiences distress in absence of caregiver

clinging 

amplified following major separation 

fostering attachment promotes…

early independence because normal exploratory behavior is dependent on the establishment of a secure attachment

Ainsworth

studied separation anxiety and the “strange situation” and came up with the patterns of attachment

patterns of attachment 

secure, anxious-ambivalent, avoidant, and disorganized 

secure

mother is a secure base

anxious-ambivalent 

doesn’t seek comfort from mother and mother does not give comfort 

avoidant

clingy and unwilling to explore

disorganized

lacks coherent strategy and is frightened by mother’s behavior

post-partum depression

thought of mothering is burdensome, the experience will pass