PY 325 exam #1

Ancient Greek/ Roman view

the disabled were a burden-scorned, abandoned, or put to death

before 18th century

children were subjected to harsh treatment and largely ignored

by the end of the 18th century

interest in abnormal child behavior surfaced

John Locke(17th century)

believed children should be raised with thought and care, not indifference and harsh treatment

Jean-Marc Itard(19th century)

focused on the care, treatment, and training of “mental defectives”

Leta Hollingworth

distinguished individuals with mental retardation(“imbeciles”) from those with psychiatric disorders(“lunatics”)

Benjamin Rush

claimed that children were incapable of adult-like insanity

• children with normal cognitive abilities but disturbing behavior suffer from “moral insanity”

late 19th century

mental illnesses were viewed as biological problems

• this was thwarted by prevailing bias that the individual was at fault for deviant or abnormal intervention

early 20th century

society reverted to a belief that disorders could not be influenced by treatment or learning

• return to custodial care and punishment of behavior

eugenics and sterilization

mental disorders viewed as “diseases” led to fear of contamination

• eugenics(sterilization) and segregation(institutionalization) were implemented

psychoanalytic theory

-linked mental disorder to childhood experiences and surroundings

• focused on the interaction of development and situation processes

-purported that mental disorders can be helped with proper environment or therapy

-retains a role as model for abnormal child psychology

behaviorism

-laid the foundation for evidence-based treatments

• Pavlov’s research on classical conditioning

• Weston’s studies on the elimination of children’s fear and the theory of emotions

psychodynamic approaches (1930-1950)

psychodynamic approaches prevailed

• most children with intellectual or mental disorders were institutionalized

psychodynamic approaches (late 1940s)

spitz studies pointed out the harmful impact of institutional life

psychodynamic approaches(1945-1965)

institutionalization decreased

• placement in foster care and group homes increased

behavioral approaches (1950s and early 1960s)

behavior therapy emerged as a systematic approach to treatment of child and family disorders

• behavior therapy is currently a prominent form of therapy

individuals with disabilities education act (IDEA)

-free and appropriate public education for children with special needs in the least restrictive environment

-each child must be assessed with culturally appropriate tests

-an individualized education program (IEP) for each child

defining psychological disorders

patterns of behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or physical symptoms linked with one or more of the following:

-distress

-disability

-increased risk for further suffering of harm

competence

the ability to successfully adapt in the environment

• successful adaptation is influenced by culture and ethnicity

determine abnormality

abnormal child psychology considers:

-the degree of maladaptive behavior

-the extent to which normal developmental milestones are met

developmental pathways

the sequence and timing of particular behaviors as well as the relationships between behaviors over time

multifinality

various outcomes may stem from similar beginnings

equifinality

similar outcomes stem from different early experiences and developmental pathways

risk factors

a variable that precede a negative outcome of interest

protective factors

a personal or situational variables that mitigates a child developing a disorder

resilience

the ability to fight off or recover from misfortune

• associated with strong self-confidence, coping skills avoiding risk situations

• connected to a “protective triad” of resources

mental health problems are more likely to occur in children…

-from disadvantaged families

-from abusive or neglectful families

-receiving inadequate child care

-born with very low birth weight

-parents have a mental illness or substance abuse problems

environmental stressors may:

-act as nonspecific stressors which bring about poor adaptation or the onset of a disorder

-affect the extent to which a child’s problems are attenuated or exacerbated

poverty is associated with..

-impairments in learning ability and school achievement

-less education and low-paying jobs

-inadequate health care

-single-parent status

-poor nutrition and exposure to violence

who’s is at greatest risk for poverty?

native Americans/First Nations and African American children

poverty’s impact on children..

more conduct problems, chronic illness, school problems, emotional disorders, and cognitive/learning problems

Aggression is expressed more _ by boys and expressed more _ by girls

directly, indirectly

externalizing problems

-higher in boys than girls in preschool and early elementary years

• exhibited as acting-out behaviors, e.g. aggression and delinquency

internalizing problems

-higher rates among girls

-associated with:

• anxiety, depression, or withdrawn behavior

• somatic complaints

• eating disorders

• emotional disorders with peak age of onset in adolescence

types of childrearing environments that predict resilience

for boys:

-a male role model

-structure and rules

-encouragement and emotional expressive

for girls:

-households that combine risk taking and independence with support from female caregiver

social and cultural beliefs and values influence:

-the meaning given to behaviors

-the way in which behaviors and responded to

-the forms of expression and their outcomes

issues during adolescence:

-substance use

-risky sexual behavior

-violence

-accidental injuries

-mental health problems

financial consequences of abuse and trauma

$124 billion per year in the U.S.

Who is more likely to be victimized by their peers and family members?

LGBT youths

-81% of LGBT youths experience verbal abuse'

-38% threatened by physical attacks

-15% have been physically assaulted

-16% have been sexually assaulted

what is causing Jorge’s problem?

-children’s problems must be considered in relation to multiple levels of influence (individual, family, community, and culture)

-possible causes of a child’s behavior

• biological influences

• emotional influences

• behavioral and cognitive influences

• family, cultural, and ethnic influences

defining child abnormality involves

the context of children ongoing adaptation and development

abnormal behavior studies requires

an understanding of development and individual events that can impact a child’s life

theory

a language of science that allows us to assemble and communicate existing knowledge effectively

• allows us to make educated guesses and predictions about behavior based on samples knowledge

etiology

the study of the causes of childhood disorders

• considers how biological, psychological, and environmental processes interact to produce outcomes observed over time

continuity

developmental changes are gradual and quantitative; predictive of future behavior patterns

discontinuity

developmental changes are abrupt and qualitative; not predictive of future behavior patterns

integrative approach

no single theoretical orientation explains various behaviors or disorders

• models considering more than one primary cause are still limited by the boundaries of their discipline or orientation

adaptational failure

unsuccessful progress in developmental milestones

• children with psychological disorders differ from their peers in some aspect of normal development

• several causes are involved operating in dynamic and interactive ways

sensitive periods

times during which environmental influences on development are enhanced

development

a process of increasing differentiation and integration

neurobiological perspective

-the brain is seen as the underlying cause of psychological disorders

-the fetal brain develops from all-purpose cells into a complex organ

-neurons with axons develop

-synapses (axonal connections) form

neural plasticity

the brains anatomical differentiation is use-dependent

• nature and nurture both contribute

• experience plays a critical role in brain development

maturation of the brain

-areas governing basic sensory and motor skills mature during the first 3 years of life

-perceptual and instinctive centers are strongly affected by early childhood experiences

-prefrontal cortex and cerebellum are not rewired until 5 to 7 years old

-major restructuring occurs from ages 9 to 11 due to pubertal development and again in adolescence

the nature of genes

-it is a stretch of DNA

• produces a protein

-proteins produce tendencies to respond to the environment in certain ways

• gene-environment interaction(GxE)

molecular genetics

-used to identify specific genes for childhood disorders

-long-term goal is to determine how genetic mutations alter how genes function

brain stem

handles most of the autonomic functions necessary to stay alive

hindbrain(medulla, pons, and cerebellum)

provides regulation of autonomic activities

midbrain

coordinates movement with sensory input; contains reticular activating system (RAS)

diencephalon(thalamus and hypothalamus)

-regulates behavior and emotion

-functions primarily as a relay between the forebrain and the lower areas of brain stem

limbic system

-regulates emotional experiences and expressions; plays a significant role in learning and impulse control

-regulates basic drives of sex, aggression, hunger, and thirst

basal ganglia

-regulates, organizes, and filters information related to cognition, emotions, mood and motor function

-associated with ADHD, motor behaviors and OCD

cerebral cortex

-forebrains largest part

• allows us to plan, reason, and create

• divided into left hemisphere(cognitive process) and right hemisphere(social perception)

frontal lobes

self-control, judgement, emotional regulation; restructured in teen years

parietal lobes

integrate auditory, visual, and tactile signals; immature until age 16

corpus callosum

intelligence, consciousness, and self-awareness; reaches full maturity in 20s

temporal lobes

emotional maturity; still developing after age 16

the endocrine system is linked to?

anxiety and mood disorder

endocrine glands produce

hormones

adrenal glands produce

epinephrine and cortisol

thyroid gland produce

thyroxine

pituitary gland produces

regulatory hormones e.g. estrogen and testosterone

hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal(HPA) axis

linked in several disorders, especially anxiety and mood disorder

emotions and affective expression..

-are core elements of human psychological experience

-are a central feature of infant activity and regulation

-tell us what to pay attention to/what to ignore

-affect quality of social interactions and relationships

-are important for internal monitoring and guidance

emotion reactivity

individuals difference in the threshold and intensity of emotional experience

emotion regulation

involves enhancing, maintaining, or inhibiting emotional arousal

temperament

an organized style of behavior that appears early in development

• shapes an individuals approach to his or her environment and vice versa

three primary dimensions

-positive affect and approach

-fearful or inhibited

-negative affect or irritability

self-regulation

a balance between emotional reactivity and self-control

• the best formula for healthy, normal adjustment

applied behavior analysis(ABA)

explains behavior as a function of its antecedents and consequences

four primary operant learning

positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, extinction, and punishment

classical conditioning

involves paired associations between previously neutral stimuli and unconditioned stimuli

social learning

explanations consider overt behaviors and the role of possible cognitive medications

social cognition

relates to how children think about themselves and others

proximal

close by events

distal

further removed events

shared environment

environmental factors that produce similarities in developmental outcomes among siblings in the same family

non-shared environment

environmental factors that produce behavioral differences among siblings in the same family

bronfenbrenner’s ecological model

the child’s environment is a series of nested and interconnected structures with the child at the center

attachment

the process of establishing and maintaining an emotional bond with parents or other significant individuals

• an ongoing process beginning between 6-12 months of age

four patterns of attachment

-secure

-insecure(anxious-avoidant)

-insecure(anxious-resistant)

-disorganized, disoriented(not an organized strategy)

child psychopathology research has increasingly focus on the role of:

-the family system

-the complex relationships within families

-the reciprocal influences among various subsystems

scientific approach

requires that a claim be based on theories backed up by empirical evidence from well-designed studies before conclusions are drawn

reasons for skepticism about research in abnormal child psychology:

-experts frequently disagree

-studies appearing in mainstream media are oversimplified

-findings often conflict with one another

-research has led to different treatments-some have been helpful; some have had no effect; and some have been harmful

the research process

1) developing a hypothesis on the bass of observation, theory, and previous findings

2) identifying the sample to be studied, selecting measurement methods, and developing research design and procedures

3) gathering and analyzing the data and interpreting the results

epidemiological research

the study of incidence prevalence, and co-occurrence of disorders

incidence rates

the extent to which new cases of a disorder appear over a specified time period

prevalence rates

all cases(new and existing) observed during a specified time period

correlates

variables associated at a particular point in time

• no clear proof the one precedes th other

risk factors

variables that precede an outcome of interest

• increase the chance of a negative outcome

protective factors

variable that precede an outcome of interest

• decrease the chance of a negative outcome