Developmental Psychology Vocabulary Flashcards

Continuous development

A perspective that views development as gradual and ongoing rather than stage-like.

Developmental Psych

The scientific study of how and why humans change over the course of their lives.

Discontinuous development

A perspective that sees development occurring in distinct stages with different behaviors occurring in each stage.

Lifespan development

The study of how individuals change and grow from birth to death.

Nature and nurture

The debate concerning the relative importance of inheritance (biological factors) and environment (learned factors) in development.

Stability and change

The debate over whether personality traits present during infancy endure throughout the lifespan or change over time.

Cross-sectional

A research design that compares people of different ages at the same point in time.

Longitudinal

A research design that follows and retests the same people over time.

Adolescence

The transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence.

Critical periods

Specific times during development when certain skills or abilities are most easily acquired.

Developmental milestone

A key skill or behavior that is typically achieved at a specific age.

Fine motor coordination

The ability to use smaller muscle groups for tasks such as writing or buttoning a shirt.

Gross motor coordination

The ability to use large muscle groups for movement.

Growth spurt

A rapid increase in height and weight that occurs during adolescence.

Imprinting

A process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period shortly after birth.

Maturation

The process of growth and development that is guided by genetics.

Menarche

The first menstrual period.

Menopause

The time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes an older woman experiences.

Prenatal influence

Factors that affect development during the prenatal stage.

Primary sex characteristics

The body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible.

Puberty

The period during which adolescents reach sexual maturity and become capable of reproduction.

Reflexes

Involuntary and nearly instantaneous movements in response to a stimulus (e.g., sucking or grasping).

Rooting reflex

A baby's tendency, when touched on the cheek, to turn toward the touch, open the mouth, and search for the nipple.

Secondary sex characteristics

Non-reproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, and male voice quality and body hair.

Sensitive periods

Specific windows of time in development where an individual is more responsive to certain types of environmental stimuli.

Spermarche

A boy's first ejaculation of sperm.

Teratogens

Agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm.

Visual cliff

A laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals.

Gender

The socially constructed roles and characteristics by which a culture defines male and female.

Sex

The biological category (male or female) defined by physical differences in genetic composition and reproductive anatomy.

Sexual orientation

An enduring sexual attraction toward members of either one's own sex, the opposite sex, or both.

Abstract thinking

The ability to think about concepts and ideas that are not physically present.

Accommodation

The process of changing existing schemas in light of new information.

Animism

The belief that inanimate objects have lifelike qualities, such as thoughts and feelings.

Assimilation

The process of taking in new information into existing schemas.

Concrete operational

Stage from ages 7 to 11, where logical thinking about concrete events develops.

Conservation

The principle that quantity remains the same despite changes in shape or volume.

Crystallized intelligence

The ability to use skills, knowledge, and experience, which increases with age.

Dementia

A progressive mental erosion characterized by memory loss and cognitive decline.

Egocentrism

The inability to see a situation from another person's point of view, common in young children.

Fluid intelligence

The ability to think logically and solve problems in new situations, independent of acquired knowledge.

Formal operational

Stage from age 12 and up, where abstract reasoning and logic are used.

Hypothetical thinking

The ability to reason about 'what if' situations and potential scenarios.

Mental symbols

Representations of objects and events in the mind.

Object permanence

The understanding that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be observed.

Preoperational stage

Stage from ages 2 to 7, where children use symbols but lack logical reasoning.

Pretend play

Play that involves using objects, actions, or ideas to represent other objects, actions, or ideas.

Reversibility

The cognitive ability to understand that actions can be reversed or undone.

Scaffolding

Support provided by a mentor to help a learner reach a higher level of performance.

Schema

A cognitive framework that helps organize and interpret information.

Sensorimotor stage

The first stage in Piaget's theory, from birth to 2 years, where infants learn through senses.

Theory of mind

People's ideas about their own and others' mental states—about leurs feelings, perceptions, and thoughts.

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

The gap between what a learner can do independently and what they can do with assistance.

Babbling

Stage of language development at about 4 months when an infant spontaneously utters various sounds.

Cooing

Early vowel-like sounds that babies produce, usually starting at 2 months.

Grammar

A system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others.

Language

Our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning.

Morphemes

The smallest unit that carries meaning in a language; it may be a word or a part of a word.

One-word stage

The stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words.

Overgeneralization

Applying grammar rules in areas they don't apply ('I comed' instead of 'I came').

Phonemes

The smallest distinctive sound unit in a language.

Semantics

The set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds.

Syntax

The set of rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences.

Telegraphic speech

Early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram using mostly nouns and verbs.

Attachment

An emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver.

Anxious attachment

An insecure attachment style where one is clingy and frightened of rejection.

Attachment styles

The way in which individuals form emotional bonds and connect with others.

Authoritarian parenting

A style of parenting that is demanding, expectant of obedience, and lacking in responsiveness.

Authoritative parenting

A parenting style characterized by warmth and responsiveness, combined with appropriate levels of control.

Avoidant attachment

An insecure attachment style characterized by keeping emotional distance from others.

Chronosystem

In ecological systems theory, the temporal dimension including life transitions and environmental events.

Disorganized attachment

A type of insecure attachment where infants show inconsistent, contradictory behaviors when reunited with caregivers.

Ecological systems theory

Bronfenbrenner's view that development is influenced by several environmental systems (Micro, Meso, Exo, Macro).

Exosystem

Social settings that a person may not experience firsthand but that still influence development.

Imaginary audience

Adolescents' belief that they are the focus of everyone else's attention and evaluation.

Insecure attachment

An attachment style evidenced by anxiety or avoidance in relationships.

Macrosystem

The larger cultural and social context within which all other systems are embedded.

Mesosystem

The network of different relationships and settings that the individual encounters (e.g., home and school).

Microsystem

The immediate environment in which an individual lives and interacts.

Parallel play

Activity in which children play side by side without interacting.

Peer influence

The social influence a peer group exerts on its members.

Permissive parenting

A style of parenting that is warm but involves few rules or demands.

Personal fable

Type of thought common to adolescents in which young people believe themselves to be unique and invincible.

Secure attachment

A relationship in which an infant obtains both comfort and confidence from the presence of his or her caregiver.

Separation anxiety

Emotional distress seen in many infants when they are separated from people with whom they have formed an attachment.

Social clock

The culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement.

Temperament

A person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)

Traumatic events occurring before age 18 that have long-term effects on health.

Autonomy vs. shame and doubt

Erikson's second stage (1 to 3 years) where children strive to gain a sense of self-control.

Emerging adulthood

A period from the late teens to mid-twenties, bridging the gap between adolescent dependence and full independence.

Ethnic identity

An enduring aspect of the self that includes a sense of membership in an ethnic group.

Familial identity

The feeling of belonging and commitment to some or all family members.

Generativity vs. stagnation

Erikson's stage in middle age where people discover a sense of contributing to the world or feel a lack of purpose.

Identity

Our sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles.

Identity vs. role confusion

Erikson's adolescent stage where individuals develop a sense of self and personal identity.

Identity achievement status

Marcia's term for the status of individuals who have undergone a crisis and made a commitment.

Identity diffusion

The status of individuals who have not yet experienced a crisis or made any commitments.

Identity foreclosure

The status of individuals who have made a commitment but have not experienced a crisis.

Identity moratorium

The status of individuals who are in the midst of a crisis but whose commitments are either absent or vaguely defined.

Identity status model

James Marcia's model for exploring and committing to an identity.