AP Psychology Unit 3 | Development and Learning

Genie Wiley Case Study

A victim of extreme abuse and social isolation that lead to a study on Critical Period Hypothesis, demonstrating that missing early language acquisition windows severely limits linguistic and social development

Critical Period Hypothesis

Suggests there is an optimal, biologically determined window (early infancy to puberty) during which language acquisition occurs easily, naturally, and completely due to high brain plasticity

Longitudinal Study

Follow the same subjects over an extended period, allowing researchers to detect changes, trends, and cause-and-effect relationships

Cross-Sectional Study

Analyze data from multiple different people at one specific point in time, making them fast and cost-effective for identifying prevalence and associations

Continuous vs. Discontinuous

Explores whether human development is a gradual continuous process or if it happens in distinct, defined stages

Stage Theory

Model that people go through distinct phases of growth and follow a specific order from one stage to the next

Stability vs. Change

Do personalities and behaviors stay consistent through an individual’s life or do they change over time

Developmental Psychology

The branch of psychology that focuses on how people grow and change throughout their lives

Chronological Order vs. Thematic Issues

How researchers approach human development, either in a sequence of how one ages or specific themes and topics that occur during one’s life

Cohort Effect

Occurs when there is difference among a group of people that are caused by circumstances that are unique to their generation rather than by age, impacting cross-sectional research

Prenatal Development

A stage where the body and brain undergo rapid growth and formation, happening in 3 main stages (germinal, embryonic, and fetal)

Folic Acid

Crucial for the healthy formation of the brain and spinal cord during neurological development before birth

Spina Bifada

Insufficient levels of folic acid, a defect occurring in early pregnancy where the spine fails to close fully, causing potential spinal cord damage

Teratogens

Agents, such as viruses and drugs, that can cause birth defects or developmental abnormalities in an embryo or fetus when exposed to it during pregnancy (such as tobacco, alcohol, pollutants, parasites, and disease)

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

An irreversible medical condition that occurs in individuals whose mothers consumed alcohol during pregnancy, characterized by a wide range of physical, behavioral, and cognitive abnormalities in the child

Maternal Illness

Any disease or infection that a mother experiences during pregnancy that can affect the developing fetus

Imprint

When a newborn animals forms an attachment to the first moving object they see, generally its mother

Genetic Mutations

Can occur spontaneously or be inherited from parents, leading to various genetic disorders that affect physical and cognitive development

Critical Periods

A specific time during development when an organism is most sensitive to environmental influences or stimuli and a particular skill or behavior must be acquired or else it will be hindered

Sensitive Period

A time period where the brain is able to more quickly learn certain skills

Correlation

A statistical measure that describes the extent to which two variables change together, indicating the strength and direction of their relationship

Positive Correlation

Exists when an increase in one value is associated with an increase in another value

Negative Correlation

Occurs when an increase in one variable is associated with a decrease in another variable

Maturation

Orderly sequence of biological growth

Motor Development

Refers to changes in children’s ability to control their body movements, including simple reflexes and complex skills

Reflexes

Involuntary movements in response to stimulation

Reflexes Unique to Infancy

Sucking, Rooting, Palmar Grasp, Plantar Grasp, Babinski Relfex, Moro Reflex, Tonic Neck Reflex, Stepping

Sucking Reflex

Crucial for feeding, automatic action to suck an object when given it

Rooting Reflex

When the baby’s head is touched, it will open its mouth toward the touch, seeking to nurse

Palmar Grasp Reflex

When an object is placed in the palm, the infant will automatically close their fingers around it

Plantar Grasp Reflex

When the sole of an infant’s foot is touched, they will curl their toes in

Babinski Reflex

When the sole of a baby’s foot is stroked, their big toe will move upward and their other toes will fan out

Moro Reflex

A startle reflex that occurs when there is a loud noise or sudden movement, the baby will spread out their body before curling up

Tonic Neck Reflex

When a baby turns their head to the side, the arm of that side sticks out while the other arm bends in

Stepping Reflex

Holding a baby upright while their feet touch the ground will cause them to make stepping movements

Fine Motor Skills

Coordination of small actions, such as a holding a spoon

Gross Motor Skills

Coordination of larger movements, such as crawling and walking, allowing one to navigate the environment

Visual Cliff Experiment (Gibson and Walk, 1960)

Indicated ability of infants to perceive depth and biological readiness to perceive spatial relationships by placing an infant on a glass surface with the appearance of a drop-off (depth perception)

Adolescence

A period that begins with puberty and ends with transition into adulthood

Puberty

Period of rapid growth and sexual maturation, marked by growth spurts and changes and development primary and secondary sex characteristics (girls around age 10, boys around 12)

Primary Sex Characteristics

Refer to physical and biological features directly involved in reproduction, changes in the reproductive organs

Secondary Sex Characteristics

Physical traits that develop during puberty but are not directly involved in the reproductive process but signal sexual maturity

Neural Pruning

The process of synaptic pruning where the brain eliminates unnecessary synaptic connections and strengthens essential ones

Prefrontal Cortex Development

Responsible decision-making and impulse control and continues to develop throughout adolescence

Amygdala Changes during Puberty

Experiences increased sensitivity causing teenagers to have heightened emotional responses

Muscle Mass Changes in Adulthood

A loss of muscle mass and strength due to decline in hormones such as testosterone and decreased physiological activity

Vision and Hearing Changes in Adulthood

Loss of elasticity in eye lens and difficulty to hear higher-frequency sounds

Menopause

Usually occurs in middle adulthood and marks the end of a woman’s menstrual cycle and ability to conceive

First trimester, majority of internal organs begin to develop

At which point in the pregnancy is the developing fetus most vulnerable to birth defects?

Depth perception in infants

In the classic visual cliff experiment conducted by Gibson and Walk, what did the researchers investigate?

Homogeneous Grouping

Groups that are determined by some shared characteristic

Variable of Interest

Variable that researchers study the effect of

Non-Experimental Research

Describes behavior and identifies relationships between variables without manipulating independent variables or randomly assigning participants (ex: cannot randomly assign a person to any biological, such as gender, or identity characteristic)

Experimental Hypothesis

Random assignment is possible (a diet high in fiber decreases blood pressure, anxiety causes reduced performance on cognitive tasks)

Non-Experimental Hypothesis

Cannot randomly assign (children raised in bilingual homes develop better cognitive skills, ale students benefit from guidance of same-sex mentors more than female students)

Identities

A sense of who we are informed by biological and social factors (hobbies, personality traits, position in family, etc.)

Sex

Refers to the biological difference between males and females

Gender

The social, physical, and behavioral traits that a society considers normal for men or women, learned aspects of a sex

Gender Schema Theory

The ability for children to create mental categories for masculinity and femininity, leading to gender roles and even stereotypes

Sexual Orientation

Refers to an individual’s sexual attraction toward members of the same or different sex

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development Stages

Sensorimotor, Preoperational, Concrete Operational, and Formal Operational

Sensorimotor Stage (Birth ~ 2 Years)

Piaget’s first stage where cognitive development occurs as children explore the world using their senses and actions, building schemas through interactions (object permanence and separation anxiety)

Object Permanence

Occurs in the Sensorimotor Stage, the understanding that items continue to exist even when not sensed directly

Separation Anxiety

Occurs in Sensorimotor Stage, the normal distress that a young child experiences when away from the caregiver to whom they are attached

Preoperational Stage (2 ~ 7 Years)

Piaget’s second stage where children are described by what they can do cognitively, such as developing language, symbolic thinking, and engaging in pretend play, and characteristic errors in their thinking (animism, egocentrism)

Animism

Occurs in Preoperational Stage, an error in thinking when children assign lifelike traits to nonliving objects

Egocentrism

Occurs in Preoperational Stage, an error in thinking where children automatically assume everyone shares their perspective

Theory of Mind

The ability to understand that others have different beliefs, wishes, emotions, and perceptions

Concrete Operational Stage (7 ~ 12 Years)

Piaget’s third stage where children develop intense logical thinking abilities, understand tangible events, and demonstrate improved problem-solving (conservation, classification, seriation, and reversibility)

Conservation

Occurs in Concrete Operational Stage, ability to understand that the mass or volume of something remains the same despite superficial changes in appearance

Classification

Occurs in Concrete Operational Stage, ability to organize objects based on multiple attributes, such as sorting by color and shape

Seriation

Occurs in Concrete Operational Stage, ability to arrange items in quantitative order, such as shortest to longest

Reversibility

Occurs in Concrete Operational Stage, ability to undo a sequence of events back to original starting point

Formal Operational Stage (12 Years and Older)

Piaget’s fourth stage, a stage in development involving abstract thinking, hypothetical reasoning, and metacognition

Metacognition

Examining one’s mental processes, such as assessing thoughts and adjusting problem-solving strategies

Sally-Ann False-Belief Test

Tests for theory of mind where children are shown a scenario with two characters, Sally and Ann, to determine whether or not they can correctly identify where Sally will look for a marble after it is moved once she leaves

Vygotsky’s Social Cognitive Theory

A sociocultural theory that emphasizes the impact of social interaction and cultural context on cognitive development (includes Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding)

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

Part of Vygotsky’s Social Cogntiive Theory that refers to what the learners can do with help from a more knowledgeable other (teacher, mentor) and emphasizes the gap between what can be accomplished alone versus with help

Scaffolding

Part of Vygotsky’s Social Cognitive Theory, the process in which more knowledgeable other provides support or mentorship to a learner to help them achieve a new skill

Neurocognitive Disorders

A category of disorders that involve problems with mental functioning due to a variety of causes, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Lewy body disease, stroke, and traumatic brain injury

Dementia

An umbrella term for conditions marked by cognitive decline, memory loss, and behavior changes due to various factors affecting brain function and structure

Decreased acetylcholine levels in the hippocampus

Alzheimer’s disease is most closely associated with…

Language

A creative, shared system of symbols, including phonemes and morphemes, governed by grammar, such as semantics and syntax rules, across cultures

Phonemes

The smallest individual sounds in any language needed to pronounce the words (dog has 3 of these with /d/ /o/ /g/)

Morphemes

The smallest units of meaning in a language (root words, prefixes, suffixes) that can be combined to form larger words (pre, ed, s)

Syntax

The aspect of grammar that refers to the rules used to put words in the correct order in a sentence (adjectives before nouns)

Semantics

The component of language that provides both the meaning of words and how words combine to form meaning

Surface Structure Semantics

Literal meaning of word

Deep Structure Semantics

Underlying meaning of a sentence

Overgeneralization

A characteristic error when learning a language in which individuals apply grammatical rules too broadly, most common in children

Cooing Stage

First step toward language acquisition by infants, involves the soft, vowel-like sounds produced by babies when they appear to be happy or content at around 2 months old

Babbling Stage

The next pre-speech phase characterized by consonant-like sounds and begins around 6 months old, important for introducing and practicing phonemes

One-Word Stage

Third stage of language acquisition where children communicate by using single words that often convey complex ideas around 10-18 months old (also known as holophrases)

Holophrases

When one word refers to different objects, people, or needs

Telegraphic Stage

The fourth stage of language acquisition that expands language to include first multi-word speech consisting of two or three-word expressions from 18-30 months, emphasizing central words like nouns and verbs

Pretest

Which of the following words contains two morphemes?

Ecological Systems Theory

Proposed by Urie Bronfenbreener as a method of considering social contexts through a system to explain different environments that we operate in as individuals divided into 6 different levels, each broadening in influence

The Individual

The first system of Ecological Systems Theory, the person themselves which includes things such as name, sex, age, and biological components

Microsystem

The second stage of Ecological Systems Theory, the closest surroundings and people which includes immediate family, friends, teachers, and the people that are interacted with regularly

Mesosystem

The third stage of Ecological Systems Theory, the interactions between different people in the microsystem with one another, such as Parent-Teacher Conferences (influence is less direct but apparent)