Unit 3 - Developmental (copy)

Developmental psych

branch of psych that study about the development from birth to death

Cross-sectional study

study of many ages of people 

Longitudinal study

A study that follows the same group of people over a long period of time.

Teratogens

Harmful substances that can affect a developing fetus.

Fetal alcohol syndrome

When a mother drinks alcohol during pregnancy, which can cause physical, cognitive, and mental issues in the baby.

Habituation

When an infant becomes used to a stimulus and stops responding to it as much.

Critical period

A time during early development when certain experiences are needed for normal development.

Adolescence

The period of life when a person is a teenager.

Puberty

The stage in life when a person becomes able to reproduce.

Menopause

The time when a woman stops having her period.

Sex

A person’s biological classification as male or female.

Gender

The social and behavioral traits that society considers typical for males and females.

Intersex

A condition where a person’s physical traits or chromosomes don’t fit typical male or female categories.

Aggression

Behavior that is meant to harm someone physically or verbally.

Relational aggression

Behavior aimed at damaging someone’s relationships or reputation.

Carol Gilligan

A psychologist who suggested that males are more independent, while females are more social.

X chromosome

The sex chromosome that is typically found in females (XX).

Y chromosome

The sex chromosome that is typically found in males (XY).

Testosterone

A hormone primarily found in males.

Estrogen

A hormone primarily found in females.

Primary sex characteristics

Traits directly related to reproduction (e.g., organs involved in reproduction).

Secondary sex characteristics

Traits not directly related to reproduction, like body hair or voice pitch.

Spermarche

A male’s first ejaculation.

Menarche

 A female’s first period.

Role

A person’s position or function in a group or society.

Gender role

The behaviors and responsibilities society expects from each gender.

Sexual aggression

Unwanted sexual behavior or harassment.

Gender identity

A person’s personal sense of being male, female, or another gender.

Social learning theory

The idea that we learn by watching others and copying their behavior, especially when rewarded or punished.

Gender typing

The process of adopting traditional masculine or feminine roles.

Androgyny

Displaying both masculine and feminine traits

Sexuality

A person’s feelings, actions, and thoughts related to attraction.

Asexual

 Not feeling attracted to anyone.

Alfred Kinsey

 A researcher who studied the physiological and psychological influences on behavior and feelings

Social script

Cultural guidelines on how to behave in certain situations

Alice Eagly

A psychologist who believed social learning theory helps explain gender differences.

Sexual orientation

A person’s behavior or social connections based on whom they are attracted to.

Cognition

The mental abilities to think, remember, and understand.

Schema

A mental category or framework that helps us organize information.

Assimilation

The process of adding new information into an existing schema.

Accommodation

The process of changing an existing schema to include new information.

Sensorimotor stage  (0-2 years)

The stage where babies learn through their senses and movements.

Object permanence

The understanding that objects continue to exist even when they’re out of sight.

Preoperational stage (2-7 years)

Children develop symbolic thinking and begin using language and pretend play.

Conservation

Understanding that the amount of something doesn’t change just because its appearance changes.

Egocentrism

Difficulty in understanding the world from someone else’s perspective.

Concrete operational stage (7-11 years)

 Children develop logical thinking and can perform mental operations.

Formal operational stage

The stage when people can think abstractly, use advanced logic, and consider hypothetical situations.

Lev Vygotsky

A psychologist who developed the sociocultural theory, which suggests that children develop through social interactions

Scaffold

 In Vygotsky’s theory, a temporary support provided to children as they learn new skills.

Theory of mind

The ability to understand that other people have different thoughts, beliefs, and perspectives.

Language

The system of communication that allows humans to share thoughts and ideas.

Attachment

formed during child infancy, this is formed by parents and child relationship

Harry Harlow

Psychologist who studied attachment in monkeys through experiments.

Margaret Harlow

Helped Harry Harlow with the monkey attachment experiments.

Imprinting

When some animals form strong attachments during early life.

Konrad Lorenz

A scientist who studied imprinting in babies.

Mary Ainsworth

Psychologist who studied different attachment styles in babies.

Strange situation

An experiment where a baby is placed in an unfamiliar setting, the caregiver leaves and returns, and the baby’s reaction is observed

Secure attachment

When a child feels safe and confident to explore while their caregiver is present

Insecure attachment

When a child feels anxious or uncertain about their caregiver's support.

Avoidant attachment

When a child avoids their caregiver and does not seek comfort from them.

Disorganized attachment

When a child has mixed and unpredictable reactions toward their caregiver.

Anxious attachment

When a child is overly clingy and afraid of being left by their caregiver

Temperament

A child’s natural personality traits, like being easygoing or difficult.

Erik Erikson

Psychologist who created a theory about life stages and development.

Basic trust

 A baby’s belief that the world is safe and reliable, based on how caregivers respond.

Self-concept

How we think and feel about ourselves; answers the question, “Who am I?”

Diana Baumrind

Psychologist who studied parenting styles

Identity

A person’s sense of who they are.

Social identity

The part of our identity that comes from belonging to groups.

Intimacy

Deep, close, loving relationships.

Emerging adulthood

The transition period between being a teenager and a full adult (ages 18-mid 20s).

Social clock

Society’s idea of when major life events (marriage, career, kids) should happen.

Learning

Gaining new knowledge or skills through experiences.

Habituation

When we stop reacting to something because we’ve seen or heard it too much.

Associative learning

Learning that two events happen together

Stimulus

Anything that causes a reaction.

Respondent behavior

Automatic reactions to a stimulus (like blinking when something is thrown at you).

Operant behavior

Actions that produce consequences (like studying to get good grades).

Cognitive learning

Learning by thinking, observing, or watching others.

Classical conditioning

 Learning by associating two things together.

John B. Watson

Founder of behaviorism; believed behaviors are learned.

Behaviorism

The idea that psychology should study only observable behaviors, not thoughts.

Neutral stimulus

Something that does not cause a reaction at first.

Unconditioned stimulus

Something that naturally triggers a response (like food making you salivate).

Unconditioned response

 An automatic reaction to an unconditioned stimulus (like salivating when seeing food).

Conditioned stimulus

 A previously neutral thing that now causes a learned response.

Conditioned response

 A learned reaction to a conditioned stimulus.

Acquisition

The process of learning an association between two things.

Higher-order conditioning

When a conditioned stimulus is paired with a new stimulus to create another response.

Extinction

When a learned response fades because the conditioned stimulus is no longer paired with the unconditioned stimulus.

Spontaneous recovery

When a learned response suddenly returns after disappearing.

Generalization

When a similar stimulus triggers the same response.

Discrimination

 Learning to respond differently to similar but distinct stimuli.

Preparedness

survival techniques — form association certain stimulus and response

Operant conditioning

 Learning through rewards and punishments.

B.F. Skinner

Psychologist who studied operant conditioning using rewards and punishments

Edward Thorndike

Psychologist who created the law of effect

Law of effect

The idea that behaviors followed by rewards are more likely to happen again.