AP psych unit 3 vocab quiz

Embryo

Developing organism from about 2 weeks to 8 weeks after fertilization

Fetus

Developing baby from about 9 weeks after fertilization until birth

Teratogen

And enviormental agent that can harm prenatal development

Ex. Drugs or infections

Fetal alcohol syndrome

Physical, brain, and behavioral problems caused by alcohol exposure before birth

Babinski reflex

A baby’s toes spread when the bottom of the foot is stroked

Moro reflex

A baby’s startle reflex often causing the arms to spread out

Habituation

Decreased response after repeated exposure to the same stimulus

Maturation

Biological growth that enables new abilities to develop

Pruning

The brain eliminates unused neural connections to work more efficiently

Fine motor skills

Small movements, such as picking up a pencil or buttoning a shirt

Infantile amnesia

Inability to remember most experiences from early childhood before age 3.5

Productive language

Words and language a person can speak or communicate

• expressive language

Receptive language

Words or language a person can understand

Cooing

Babies making vowel-like sounds such as “ooo” or “aa”

Babbling

Repeating sounds such as “bababa” or dadada”

One-word stage

A child uses one word to communicate a complete idea, usually around age 1

Two word stage

A child combines two words

• more milk

Telegraphic speech

Short sentences using mostly important words

• mommy go work

Overgeneralization

Applying a language rule too broadly, such as saying “goed” instead of went

Critical period

A limited time when certain experiences are especially necessary for normal development

Sensitive period

A time when learning something is especially easy, but can still happen later

Universal grammar

Noam Chomsky’s idea that humans are born with an innate ability to learn language structure

Jean Piaget

Psychologist who studies how children’s thinking develops in stages

Schema

A mental framework used to organize information

Assimilation

Fitting new information into an existing schema

Accomadation

Changing a schema to fit new information

Sensorimotor stage

Birth to about age 2

Infants learn through their senses and actions

Object permanence

Understanding that objects still exist even when they cannot be seen

Preoperational stage

About ages 2-7; children use language and symbols but struggle with logical thinking

Reversibility

Understanding that an action can be mentally reversed

Conservation

It can stay the same even if something’s appearance or amount has changed

Egocentrism

Difficulty seeing a situation from another persons perspective

Theory of mind

Understanding that others have their own thoughts, feelings, and beliefs

Concrete operational stage

About age 7-11 children develop logical thinking ab concrete situations

Formal operational stage

Around age 12 and onward

Ability to think abstractly and hypothetically

Lev vygotsky

Psychologist who emphasized the role of social interaction and culture in learning

Zone of proximal development

Tasks a learner cannot do alone yet but can do with help

Autism spectrum disorder

A developmental condition involving differences in social communication and patterns of behavior or interests