Final - Developmental Pyschology

what factors influence patterns of growth in middle childhood?

Nutrition and health.

What was Michelle Obama’s role in addressing childhood obesity?

Promoting healthier foods, increasing physical activity, and improving access to healthy foods.

How do motor skills improve in middle childhood?

Through increased strenght, agility, balance & practice

What are the effects of participating in school sports?

Enhances physical skills, social development, and self-esteem.

What brain changes occur in middle childhood?

Growth of neurons, synaptic pruning, and development of the frontal lobe and limbic system.

What is Piaget’s stage for this age?

Concrete operational stage (6/7 to 11/12 years).

What are key abilities in the concrete operational stage?

Conservation, classification, logical thinking about concrete objects.

What is metacognition?

Thinking about one’s own thinking; improves goal tracking and strategy use.

What causes cognitive development according to information-processing theories?

Better memory, attention, mental operations, and strategies.

What is Erikson’s stage during middle childhood?

Industry vs. Inferiority.

What is a sense of competence?

Feeling capable and successful in activities and tasks.

What is self-esteem?

General feelings of self-worth.

What is self-efficacy?

Belief in your ability to succeed at specific tasks.

How do school practices affect children's sense of self?

Grades and comparisons can cause feelings of inferiority.

What is integrated identity?

Maintaining your culture while adopting aspects of a new one.

What is assimilation?

Preferring a new culture over your original culture.

What is separation?

Rejecting the dominant culture (can be voluntary or forced).

What is marginalization?

Rejecting both your own and the new culture.

What changes occur in peer relationships?

Better understanding of emotions, motives, and deeper friendships.

Who are popular children?

Receive the most positive nominations from peers.

Who are rejected children?

Receive the most negative nominations.

Who are neglected children?

Receive few nominations, neither positive nor negative.

Who are controversial children?

Receive both positive and negative nominations.

How do friendships change in middle childhood?

Become more intimate and emotionally supportive.

What is Piaget’s view of moral development?

Shift from heteronomous (rules = unchangeable) to autonomous morality (rules = flexible).

What are Kohlberg’s stages of moral reasoning?

Preconventional, Conventional, Postconventional.

What was a feminist critique of Kohlberg?

Focused too much on justice over care, ignoring female perspectives.

What are Gilligan’s stages for girls’ moral development?

Selfish → Self-sacrifice → Non-violence.

What is altruism?

Kind actions like sharing or comforting others.

What is empathy?

Feeling another person’s pain.

What kind of theory is Vygotsky’s?

Sociocultural theory.

What is private speech?

Talking to oneself to guide behavior.

What is scaffolding?

Support given to help a child learn a task.

What is cooperative learning?

Group-based student-centered learning.

What are cognitive tools?

Tools like language and strategies that help learning.

What is Erikson’s stage during adolescence?

Identity vs. Role Confusion.

What is Hall’s view of adolescence?

A period of “storm and stress.”

What are the effects of early/late maturation?

Early maturing girls face more challenges; early maturing boys often benefit. Late maturing youth may feel out of place but can develop resilience.

What brain systems change in adolescence?

Prefrontal cortex (reasoning, decision-making) and limbic system (emotions, reward).

What is formal operational thinking?

Hypothetical, abstract, and systematic problem-solving.

What improves in adolescence?

Working memory, attention, problem-solving, and metacognition.

What are examples of risky behaviors?

Substance use, unsafe sex, reckless driving.

What are risk factors?

Things that increase the chance of negative outcomes (e.g., poverty, trauma).

What are protective factors?

Things that reduce the impact of risks (e.g., supportive adults, school success).

Why might teens avoid seeking help?

Fear of judgment, lack of trust, or not knowing where to go.

How does learning in school differ from other contexts?

Motivation, social structure, organization, and use of language differ.

What are the 5 major motivation theories?

Trait, Behaviorist, Social Learning, Humanistic, Cognitive.

What is mastery goal?

Wanting to learn and master a skill.

What is performance-approach goal?

Wanting to look good in front of others.

What is performance-avoidance goal?

Avoiding looking bad.

What is attribution theory?

Explains how people interpret their success or failure (e.g., internal/external, stable/unstable).

What are the five systems in Bronfenbrenner’s theory?

Microsystem, Mesosystem, Exosystem, Macrosystem, Chronosystem.

Name the 6 family types.

Nuclear, Extended, Single-parent, Gay/Lesbian, Foster, Adoptive.

What should you know about these families?

Understand obstacles, advantages, disadvantages, and outcomes.