Development and Learning Theories: Chapters 4-6

What are growth norms in children?

Expectations for typical gains and variations in height and weight based on chronological age and ethnic background.

What is cephalocaudal development?

A growth pattern where the head grows before other body parts.

What is proximodistal development?

A growth pattern where internal organs develop before the outer parts of the body.

What factors have influenced increases in children's growth over the past century?

Contextual changes such as improved sanitation, nutrition, and access to medical care.

What is the first nutritional experience for an infant?

Breastmilk.

How does maternal age, education, and socioeconomic status affect breastfeeding?

Breastfeeding practices vary based on these factors.

What are the long-term effects of malnutrition in infants?

Cognitive deficits and impairments that can last into adulthood.

What is growth faltering?

Also known as failure to thrive, it refers to developmental difficulties despite access to nutrition.

What is sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)?

The unexpected death of an infant less than 1 year of age during sleep.

What is the role of neurons in the brain?

Neurons are the brain's cells that communicate with each other through structures like axons and synapses.

What is neurogenesis?

The process of developing neurons, which begins in the embryo's neural tube.

What is synaptogenesis?

The growth and branching of dendrites, increasing synapses with other neurons.

What is synaptic pruning?

The loss of unused neural connections in the brain.

What is myelination?

The process where glial cells coat the axons of neurons with myelin, enhancing neural transmission.

What is the cerebral cortex?

The outermost layer of the brain, responsible for higher thought processes.

What is experience-expectant brain development?

Brain development that depends on experiencing certain basic events and stimuli at key times.

What is experience-dependent brain development?

Growth that occurs in response to learning experiences.

How much sleep do neonates typically get?

About 16-18 hours each day.

What is habituation in infants?

The gradual decline in response to a repeated stimulus.

What is classical conditioning?

The process of making an association between a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus that triggers an innate reaction.

What is operant conditioning?

A learning process where behaviors increase with reinforcement and decrease with punishment.

What is the mirror neuron system?

A system that allows infants to learn through imitation by mirroring the actions of others.

What is the difference between sensation and perception?

Sensation is the detection of stimuli, while perception is the interpretation and awareness of those stimuli.

What methods are used to study infant perception?

Preferential looking tasks, visual acuity tests, capacity for habituation, and operant conditioning.

At what gestational age can a fetus respond to bright light?

As early as 28 weeks.

When do infants reach adult levels of visual acuity?

Between 6 months and 1 year of age.

What is face perception in newborns?

Newborns have preferences for particular visual stimuli, especially human faces.

What is depth perception?

The ability to perceive the distance of objects from each other and from ourselves.

Which sense is the most well-developed at birth?

Hearing

What indicates that newborns can discriminate speech patterns?

Brain activity in the cortex in response to auditory stimuli.

What do newborns prefer to hear?

Their native language.

How do infants use touch as a learning tool?

Using the mouth; massages can reduce stress response.

What effect does skin-to-skin contact with a caregiver have?

It has an analgesic effect.

When does the capacity to feel pain develop?

Even before birth.

How do familiar scents affect infants?

They are reinforcing and can reduce stress responses.

What do newborns prefer in terms of taste?

Sugar over other substances.

What is intermodal perception?

The process of combining information from more than one sensory system.

Why is sensitivity to intermodal relations among stimuli important?

It is critical to perceptual development and learning.

How do infants recognize their mother?

By coordinating auditory and visual stimuli.

What does perception provide for infants?

The information needed to traverse their environment.

What influences an infant's perception of affordances?

Development, genetics, and motivation.

What is gross motor development?

The ability to control large movements of the body.

What does independent walking contribute to?

Cognitive, social, and emotional development.

What is fine motor development?

The ability to control small movements of the fingers, such as reaching and grasping.

What role does maturation play in motor development?

It plays a very strong role.

What is cognitive equilibrium?

The balance between the processes of accommodation and assimilation.

What leads to cognitive growth according to Piaget?

Cognitive disequilibrium due to a mismatch between schemas and reality.

What characterizes the sensorimotor period of reasoning?

Cognition develops from reflexes to intentional action to symbolic representation.

What occurs in Substage 1 of Piaget's sensorimotor substages?

Newborns use reflexes, such as sucking, to react to stimuli.

What happens in Substage 4 of Piaget's sensorimotor substages?

Represents true means-end behavior and signifies the beginning of intentional behavior.

What does the A-Not-B task measure?

An error where infants search for an object at its old location even after it has been moved.

What is deferred imitation?

The ability to repeat an act performed some time ago.

What is Piaget's belief regarding mental abilities in infants?

Piaget believed that all mental abilities arise from sensorimotor activity, but this is now disputed by researchers.

What does Core Knowledge Theory suggest about infants?

Infants are born with core domains of thought that promote early rapid learning and adaptation.

What are the three mental stores in the Information Processing System?

Sensory memory, working memory, and long-term memory.

What is the role of the Central Executive in cognitive processing?

It regulates the flow of information and cognitive activities.

How does attention develop in infants?

Infants show more attentiveness to dynamic and complex stimuli, related to neurological development.

What is working memory and how does it change as infants develop?

Working memory improves with the development of the prefrontal cortex.

What is the significance of long-term memory in infants?

It includes recognition memory, which is the ability to recognize previously encountered stimuli.

What is categorization in infants' thinking?

It is the grouping of different stimuli into a common class, influencing language development.

How do social and cultural contexts affect cognitive development in infants?

They influence how infants think and view their world, impacting social learning opportunities.

What are the two approaches to studying intelligence in infancy?

The testing approach, which emphasizes standardized tests, and the information processing approach, which examines specific processing skills.

What are the five scales of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development III?

Motor Scale, Cognitive Scale, Language Scale, Social-Emotional Scale, and Adaptive Behavior Scale.

How do information processing abilities relate to intelligence?

They underlie performance in cognitive tasks and are important indicators of intellectual ability from birth.

What impact does nonparental care have on infants?

High-quality care does not predispose infants to insecure attachments and can enhance cognitive, emotional, and social competence.

How do infants develop preferences for speech sounds?

They become attuned to the sounds of their native language through exposure and social interaction.

What is prelinguistic communication in infants?

It includes cooing, crying, and babbling, influenced by the intonations of their native tongues.

What are holophrases in early language development?

One-word expressions used by infants to convey various meanings.

What is fast mapping in language learning?

It is a process where infants learn words related to those they already know and those that label interesting objects and actions.

What are the learning and nativist approaches to language development?

Learning approaches suggest language is learned via operant conditioning, while nativist approaches propose infants are born with a language acquisition device.

What does the interactionist approach to language development emphasize?

It highlights the complex process of language development influenced by both biological and social factors.

How do interactions with caregivers influence language development?

Parental responsiveness to infant vocalizations is crucial for language acquisition.

What psychosocial stages do infants progress through according to Erik Erikson?

Trust versus Mistrust and Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt.

What is the outcome of successfully resolving the Trust versus Mistrust stage?

Infants view the world as a safe place where their needs are met, developing trust in caregivers.

What happens if caregivers are neglectful during the Trust versus Mistrust stage?

Infants may develop a sense of mistrust.

What is the significance of the Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt stage?

Toddlers develop independence; supportive parenting fosters autonomy, while overprotectiveness can lead to shame.

What may result from overprotective parenting in toddlers?

A toddler may feel ashamed of their desire for autonomy.

What are the primary emotions experienced by newborns?

Interest, distress, disgust, and happiness or contentment.

What are primary emotions?

Basic emotions that serve a biological purpose and are crucial to survival.

What are self-conscious emotions?

Secondary emotions that include empathy, pride, embarrassment, shame, and guilt.

What is emotion regulation?

The ability to control emotions through strategies like gaze aversion, self-soothing, and distraction.

How does responsive parenting influence infants?

It helps infants learn to manage their emotions and self-regulate.

What is social referencing in infants?

The ability of newborns to discriminate facial displays of emotion.

What are emotional display rules?

Cultural guidelines that shape emotional expressions in parent-infant interactions.

What is stranger wariness?

A fear of unfamiliar people, also known as stranger anxiety.

What is temperament in infants?

The way an individual approaches and reacts to people and situations.

What are the three dimensions of temperament according to Mary Rothbart?

Extraversion/surgency, negative affectivity, and effortful control.

What influences the goodness of fit in a child's development?

The compatibility between the child's temperament and their environment.

How do cultural views influence temperament?

Cultural perspectives on arousal and emotional regulation affect parenting behaviors and infants' stress responses.

What is attachment?

A lasting emotional tie between two people that promotes closeness and relationship maintenance.

What did John Bowlby theorize about attachment?

Humans are biologically driven to form attachment bonds, with caregiving responses inherited and triggered by infants.

What are the phases of attachment according to Bowlby?

Preattachment, early attachments, attachments, and reciprocal relationships.

What is separation anxiety?

A reaction characterized by distress and crying when separated from an attachment figure.

What is the Strange Situation?

A procedure developed by Ainsworth to classify infants' attachment types.

What are the types of attachment identified in Ainsworth's research?

Secure attachment, insecure-avoidant attachment, insecure-resistant attachment, and insecure-disorganized attachment.

What outcomes are associated with insecure attachments?

They correlate with difficult life circumstances and poor socioemotional outcomes.

What factors influence the stability of attachment?

Continuity of care, contextual factors, and availability of support.

How do cultural variations affect attachment classifications?

Western cultures emphasize individuality, while Eastern cultures focus on relationships and connections.

What is self-awareness in infants?

The capacity to distinguish the self from the surrounding environment.

What is self-recognition?

The ability to recognize or identify the self, leading to more complex social interactions.