Child Development Chapter 1

Development

The pattern of movement or change that begins at conception and continues through the life span

original sin view

Advocated during the Middle Ages, the belief that children were born into the world as evil beings and were basically bad.

Development

The pattern of movement or change that begins at conception and continues through the life span

original sin view

Advocated during the Middle Ages, the belief that children were born into the world as evil beings and were basically bad.

tabula rasa view

The idea, proposed by John Locke, that children are like a "blank tablet."

innate goodness view

The idea, presented by Swiss-born French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, that children are inherently good.

biological processes

Changes in an individual's body.

cognitive processes

Changes in an individual's thinking, intelligence, and language.

socioemotional processes

Changes in an individual's relationships with other people, emotions, and personality.

prenatal period

The time from conception to birth.

infancy

The developmental period that extends from birth to about 18 to 24 months.

early childhood

The developmental period that extends from the end of infancy to about 5 or 6 years of age, sometimes called the preschool years.

middle and late childhood

The developmental period that extends from about 6 to 11 years of age, sometimes called the elementary school years.

adolescence

The developmental period of transition from childhood to early adulthood, entered at approximately 10 to 12 years of age and ending at 18 or 19 years of age.

nature-nurture issue

Debate about whether development is primarily influenced by nature or nurture. The "nature" proponents claim biological inheritance is the most important influence on development; the "nurture" proponents claim that environmental experiences are the most important.

continuity-discontinuity issue

Question about whether development involves gradual, cumulative change (continuity) or distinct stages (discontinuity).

early-later experience issue

Controversy regarding the degree to which early experiences (especially during infancy) or later experiences are the key determinants of children's development.

scientific method

An approach that can be used to obtain accurate information by carrying out four steps: (1) conceptualize the problem, (2) collect data, (3) draw conclusions, and (4) revise research conclusions and theory.

theory

An interrelated, coherent set of ideas that helps to explain and make predictions.

hypotheses

Specific assumptions and predictions that can be tested to determine their accuracy.

eclectic theoretical orientation

An orientation that does not follow any one theoretical approach but rather selects from each theory whatever is considered its best aspects.

laboratory

A controlled setting from which many of the complex factors of the "real world" have been removed.

naturalistic observation

Behavioral observation that takes place in real-world settings.

standardized test

A test with uniform procedures for administration and scoring. Many standardized tests allow a person's performance to be compared with the performance of other individuals.

case study

An in-depth look at a single individual.

descriptive research

Research that involves observing and recording behavior.

correlational research

Research in which the goal is to describe the strength of the relationship between two or more events or characteristics.

correlation coefficient

A number based on statistical analysis that is used to describe the degree of association between two variables.

experiment

A carefully regulated procedure in which one or more of the factors believed to influence the behavior being studied are manipulated while all other factors are held constant.

cross-sectional approach

A research strategy in which individuals of different ages are compared at the same point in time

longitudinal approach

A research strategy in which the same individuals are studied over a period of time, usually several years.

ethnic gloss

Use of an ethnic label such as African American or Latino in a superficial way that portrays an ethnic group as being more homogeneous than it really is.