Developmental Psychology Concepts

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts from developmental psychology as discussed in the lecture notes.

Association areas

Areas linked with memory, thinking, and language; these areas are the last to develop.

Maturation

Biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience.

Childhood amnesia

The inability to remember anything before age three.

Cognition

All mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.

Schemas

Concepts or frameworks that organize and interpret information.

Assimilation

Interpreting new experiences in terms of existing schemas.

Accommodation

Adapting schemas to incorporate new information.

Sensorimotor stage

Piaget's theory describing the stage from 0-2 years, where infants know the world mostly through sensory impressions and motor activities.

Object permanence

The awareness that things continue to exist even when out of sight; develops around 8 months.

Preoperational stage

Piaget's stage from 2-6/7 where a child learns to use language but lacks an understanding of concrete logic.

Conservation

The principle that properties like mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in shape.

Egocentric

A child's difficulty in taking another person's point of view into account.

Theory of mind

People’s understanding of their own and others' mental states.

Concrete operational stage

Piaget's stage from 6/7-11, where children can think logically about concrete events.

Formal operational stage

Piaget's stage beginning at age 12, where individuals think logically about abstract concepts.

Autism

A childhood disorder marked by deficits in communication, social interaction, and understanding others' mental states.

Stranger anxiety

The fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning around 8 months.

Attachment

An emotional tie with another person.

Critical period

An optimal period shortly after birth when an organism's exposure to certain stimuli leads to proper development.

Imprinting

The process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical early life period.

Insecure attachments

Attachments characterized by a reluctance to explore the environment.

Basic trust

A sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy, formed during infancy through responsive caregiving.

Authoritarian parenting

Parenting style where rules are imposed and obedience is expected.

Authoritative parenting

Parenting style characterized by demanding responsiveness, rules, explanations, and open discussion.

Permissive parenting

Parenting style wherein parents submit to children's desires with few demands or punishments.

Result of permissive parenting

Children exhibit aggression and immaturity.

Result of authoritarian parenting

Children show less social skills and self-esteem.

Developmental psychology

The branch of psychology studying physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan.

Zygote

A fertilized egg that enters a rapid cell division phase over two weeks.

Embryo

Developing human organism from about 2 weeks through the 2nd month.

Fetus

Developing human organism from 9 weeks to birth.

Placenta

The organ that transfers nutrients and oxygen from mother to fetus and blocks pathogens.

Teratogens

Chemicals and viruses that can reach the embryo or fetus and cause harm during prenatal development.

Fetal alcohol syndrome

Cognitive and physical abnormalities in children due to a pregnant woman's alcohol consumption.

Life-span perspective

Development view emphasizing lifelong changes.

Adolescents

Individuals in a transition period between childhood and adulthood.

Puberty

The period of sexual maturation during which one becomes capable of reproduction.

Primary sex characteristics

Body structures that make sexual reproduction possible.

Secondary sex characteristics

Non-reproductive sexual features, such as breasts and body hair.

Menarche

The first menstrual period marking the beginning of puberty for girls.

Moral reasoning

Kohlberg's concept of the cognitive processes involved in determining right from wrong.

Preconventional morality

Morality focused on self-interest, typical before age 9.

Conventional morality

Morality focused on caring for others and maintaining social rules, common in early adolescence.

Postconventional morality

Morality judged by the flow from people's rights or ethics.

Identity

One's sense of self, developed through testing and integrating various roles.

Social identity

The “we” aspect of self-concept derived from group membership.

Identification

The process by which adolescents derive identity from their parents.

Intimacy

Erikson's idea of the ability to form close, loving relationships.

Emerging adulthood

Period from late teens to mid-twenties bridging dependence and independence.

Early adulthood

The stage of life from the 20s to 30s.

Middle adulthood

The stage of life from 30s to 65.

Late adulthood

The stage of life from age 65 until death.

Menopause

The natural cessation of menstruation and decline in reproductive ability.

Crystalized intelligence

Accumulated knowledge and verbal skills that increase with age.

Fluid intelligence

The ability to reason quickly and abstractly, which tends to decline in late adulthood.

Terminal decline

The significant drop in cognitive abilities shortly before death.

Midlife transition

Period when most of life is behind an individual.

Social clock

The culturally preferred timing of social events.

Generativity

Erikson's idea of being productive and supporting future generations.

Integrity

Erikson's theory that reflects the feeling one's life was meaningful.