Developmental Psychology — Lecture Notes

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and concepts from the lecture notes on human development across the lifespan.

Developmental Psychology

The study of human development across the life span in physical, social, cognitive, emotional, and moral domains.

Development

The progressive series of changes that are orderly and coherent toward maturity.

Development refers to the progressive series of changes of an orderly and coherent type toward the goal of maturity. means the changes are directional.

Progressive

Continuity and Discontinuity

The concept that development may be a smooth progression (continuous) or a series of abrupt shifts (discontinuous).

Nature and Nurture

The degree to which genetic (nature) and experiential/environmental (nurture) influences determine the person.

Universal and Context-specific Development

Whether there is one universal path of development or several context-specific paths.

Biological forces

Genetic and health-related factors that affect development.

Sociocultural factors

Interpersonal, societal, cultural, and ethnic factors that affect development.

Psychological forces

Internal perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and personality factors that affect development.

Life cycle forces

Differences in how the same events affect people of different ages.

Maturation

The development or unfolding of traits potentially present in the individual as a result of hereditary endowment.

Learning

The result of activities or day-to-day experiences.

Life span is the development from to death.

Conception

Change in size

A type of developmental change involving growth in physical dimensions.

Change in proportion

A type of developmental change involving changes in the relative sizes of body parts.

Disappearance of old features

A type of developmental change in which old traits fade away.

Appearance of new features

A type of developmental change in which new traits emerge.

Prenatal

Fertilization to birth.

Infancy

Birth to 2 weeks of life.

Babyhood

2 weeks of life to 2nd year.

Early Childhood

2 to 6.

Late Childhood

6 to 10 or 12.

Puberty

10 or 12 to 14.

Adolescence

14 to 18.

Early Adulthood

18 to 40.

Middle Adulthood

40 to 60.

Late Adulthood or senescence

60 to death.

Independent variable

The variable that is deliberately manipulated in an experiment.

Dependent variable

The behavior or outcome measured in an experiment.

Correlational study

Studies the relations between variables; uses correlation coefficients that range from -1.0 to 1.0; Pearson’s correlation is commonly used.

Experimental studies

A systematic way of manipulating the factor believed to cause a behavior; involves experimental and control groups.

Qualitative research

Non-numerical data (text, video, or audio) analyzed to understand behavior; patterns/themes.

Informed consent

Participants provide written consent before participating in research.

Confidentiality

Protecting participants' data; codes may be used to guard anonymity.

Debriefing

Explaining to participants why the research is conducted and its importance.