AP Psychology Unit 3: Developmental Psychology & Learning

Prenatal Development

the process of growth and development within the womb, starting from conception and continuing until birth

Teratogens

Substances from the environment or viruses that can damage the developing baby. Can cause developmental abnormalities or birth defects. (alcohol, drugs, hormones, etc)

Reflexes

a set of innate (existing from birth) unlearned behavior patterns to help the infant to survive, allow infants to receive food or to cling to a caregiver in early days of their lives (disappear in first 6 months of life) 

Apgar Test

a quick physical test given to every newborn a birth

A) Appearance: Skin color 

(P) Pulse: Heart rate

(G) Grimace: Reflex irritability (crying, coughing, sneezing)

(A) Activity: Muscle tone

(R) Respiration: Breathing effort

Babinski Reflex

Action: stroking a baby’s foot causes toes to spread out

Purpose: unknown; disappears as nervous system matures

Blink Reflex

Action: eye closes in response to strong stimuli

Purpose: protects eyes

Moro Reflex

Action: if the baby’s head falls backward, the arms first spread out and then “hug”

Purpose: a possible evolutionary remnant allowing primates to cling to an adult

Palmar Reflex

Action: placing an object in the hand causes reflexive grasping

Purpose: sa possible evolutionary remnant allowing primates to cling to an adult’s fur

Rooting Reflex

Action: stroking a baby’s cheek results in the baby turning toward the touch and opening the mouth

Purpose: helps baby nurse

Stepping Reflex

Action: placing the baby’s feet on a flat surface initiates stepping

Purpose: precursor to walking

Sucking Reflex

Action: baby sucks anything that touches the roof of the mouth

Purpose: helps baby nurse

Visual Cliff

experimental setup used to study depth perception in infants, featuring a clear glass surface that creates the illusion of a drop-off to test whether infants can perceive and avoid the "cliff" (Eleanor J. Gibson and Richard D. Walk hypothesized that depth perception is inherent/innate as opposed to a learned process)

Adolescent Growth Spurt

a rapid increase in height and weight that typically occurs during puberty, driven by hormonal changes and marking the transition from childhood to adulthood

Cognitive Development

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

Preoperational Stage

Age: 2-7

Characteristics: stage of cognitive development, where children develop language, symbolic thinking, and imagination but struggle with logical reasoning and understanding others' perspectives

Sensorimotor Stage

Age: Birth to 2 Years

Characteristics: the first of Piaget's stages of cognitive development (birth to age 2) when infants learn about the world through sensory experiences and motor actions

Concrete Operational Stage

Age: 7-11

Characteristics: Piaget's third stage of cognitive development, where children develop logical thinking about concrete objects and understand concepts like conservation and reversibility. 

Formal Operational Stage

Age: 12+

Characteristics: Abstract and hypothetical thinking, problem-solving, and logic.

Object Permanence

A child's ability to understand that objects still exist after they are no longer in sight

Separation Anxiety

A distress response experienced by infants or young children when separated from their primary caregiver. 

• This phase typically emerges around 8 to 14 months of age and demonstrates the child's growing attachment and dependency on their caregiver for safety and comfort.

Egocentrism

a characteristic of the preoperational stage where children struggle to see things from another person's point of view, believing others share their perspective.

Conservation

the understanding that certain properties of objects, such as volume or mass, remain consistent despite changes in form or appearance.

Reversibility

the ability to mentally reverse an action or operation, understanding that objects can be returned to their original state, typically developing in Piaget's concrete operational stage.

Lev Vygotsky

theory suggests that children learn best through social interactions

Scaffolding

teaching method where a knowledgeable person provides tailored support to help a learner achieve new skills, gradually reducing assistance as the learner becomes more proficient

Zone of Proximal Development

the range between what a learner can do independently and what they can achieve with guidance, emphasizing the importance of social interaction in learning.

Authoritarian Parenting

Restrictive parenting style that emphasizes respect for work. Frequently degrades the child (yells, criticizes, punishes) and is highly demanding. Favors strict rules. Parent makes most decisions for the child and rarely listens to child’s viewpoint.

Authoritative Parenting

• Child-centered, in that parents are attentive to child’s need and interest. Maintains high expectations for behavior and performance. 

• Parent permits child to make decisions in accord with developmental readiness

Permissive Parenting

• Parent is warm but may spoil the child; makes few or no demands (no firm guidelines, rules). Parent permits child to make decisions before the child is ready; allows child to do what he/she pleases.

• No clear boundaries

Uninvolved/Neglectful Parenting

Parent is emotionally detached, withdrawn, inattentive; neglectful and makes few or no demands - often lacking in interest. Parent is indifferent to child’s decisions and point of view.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 1: Trust and Mistrust

 

Age Range	Birth to 1 year
Key Focus	Development of trust
Developmental Task:	Infants learn whether or not they can trust their caregiver and the world to meet their basic needs.
Achieved Through:	Consistent and reliable care and affection from caregivers.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Development of trust, security, and optimism.		Explains how early interactions influence an individual's view of the world and form the foundation for future social and emotional development.
Significance:	Sets the foundation for future relationships and emotional health.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 2: Autonomy and Shame & Doubt Stage

 

Age Range	1 year to 3 years
Key Focus	Development of personal control and some degree of choice
Developmental Task:	Toddlers seek to do things on their own.
Achieved Through:	Encouragement and freedom to explore.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Self-sufficiency and confidence.		Feelings of shame and doubt.
Significance:	Crucial for developing personal control and self-esteem.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 3: Initiative and Guilt Stage

 

Age Range	3 to 6 years
Key Focus	Development of initiative
Developmental Task:	Children begin to initiate actions and make decisions.
Achieved Through:	Encouragement of independent activity.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Sense of leadership and ambition. Courage to pursue goals		Burden of guilt when failing or overstepping.
Significance:	Fosters early decision-making and leadership skills.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 4: Industry and Inferiority Stage

 

Age Range	6 to puberty
Key Focus	Building Skills (Competence), Cognitive abilities for task completion
Developmental Task:	Children strive to demonstrate skills and abilities.
Achieved Through:	Reinforcement in school and play.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Mastery and self-confidence.		Feelings of failure and inadequacy.
Significance:	Essential for confidence in abilities and social comparison.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 5: Identity and Role Confusion Stage

 

Age Range	Teens to 20 years
Key Focus	Forming Identity and self Image
Developmental Task:	Teenagers explore and solidify their sense of self.
Achieved Through:	Experimentation with roles and identities.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Well-defined personal identity.		Confusion about personal identity and future roles.
Significance:	Vital for establishing a clear and stable sense of self.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 6: Intimacy and Isolation Stage

 

Age Range	20’s to 40 years
Key Focus	Establishing Connections
Developmental Task:	Adults seek to form close, committed relationships.
Achieved Through:	Deepening relationships beyond oneself.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Meaningful relationships and commitments.		Loneliness and emotional isolation.
Significance:	Critical for emotional depth and personal growth.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 7: Generativity and Stagnation Stage

 

Age Range	40 to 60 years
Key Focus	Nurturing the Next Generation
Developmental Task:	Adults aim to contribute to the well-being of the next generation.
Achieved Through:	Parenting, mentoring, and productivity.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Sense of care and achievement.		Sense of stagnation and disconnection.
Significance:	Ensures a lasting impact on others and personal fulfillment.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stage 8: Integrity & Despair Stage

 

Age Range	Late 60’s and older
Key Focus	Reflecting on Life
Developmental Task:	Elders look back on life achievements and regrets.
Achieved Through:	Life review and acceptance.
Positive (+)		Negative (-)
Wisdom and satisfaction.		Regret and despair.
Significance:	Important for achieving a sense of completeness and peace at life’s end.

Psychosocial Development

theory that individuals progress through a series of stages, each characterized by a specific conflict that contributes to a major aspect of personality

James Marcia

four Identity Statuses of psychological identity development. The main idea is that one’s sense of identity is determined largely by the choices and commitments made.

Identity Diffusion

a state where individuals have not yet explored or committed to life choices regarding beliefs, goals, or values, often leading to uncertainty about their sense of self.

Identity Foreclosure

stage where individuals commit to goals, beliefs, or values without exploring alternatives, often adopting the expectations of parents or society.

Identity Moratorium

a stage in which individuals actively explore different life paths, beliefs, and values but have not yet made a final commitment, often leading to a period of uncertainty and experimentation.

Identity Achievement

the stage where individuals have explored various life paths and made firm decisions about their beliefs, values, and goals, resulting in a clear and stable sense of self.

Ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner)

an individual’s development is influenced by a series of interconnected environmental systems.

Bronfenbrenner suggested that the child’s environment is a nested arrangement of structures, each contained within the next. He organized them in order of how much of an impact they have on a child.

Microsystem

Immediate Environment (family, friends, school, etc)

Mesosystem

Connections (parents connection to school, family connection with friends, etc)

Exosystem

Indirect Environment (Mass Media, Local govt, Extended Family, Parents jobs/friends)

Macrosystem

Social and Cultural Values

Chronosystem

Changes over time (new city, global pandemic, etc)

Ecological Systems Theory (order)

1. Individual

2. Microsystem

3. Mesosystem

4. Exosystem

5. Macrosystem

6. Chronosystem

Adolescent Egocentrism

stage in teenage development marked by an increased self-focus, leading to beliefs that one's experiences are unique and that others are always observing them

Imaginary Audience

phenomenon in adolescence where individuals believe others are constantly watching and judging their behavior (strangers included), making them highly self-conscious

Personal Fable

adolescent belief that one's experiences are unique and special, often leading to feelings of invulnerability and an underestimation of potential risks

Ivan Pavlov

Russian physiologist who won the 1904 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. His studies on digestion accidentally discovered the learning process now known as classical conditioning

Neutral Stimulus

Produces no effect until paired with an unconditioned stimulus

Unconditioned Stimulus (US or UCS)

A stimulus that unconditionally, naturally, and automatically triggers an unconditioned response or reflex

• Usually a biologically significant stimulus such as food or pain

• You don’t have to learn to respond to the unconditioned stimulus

Unconditioned Response (UCR or UR)

An unlearned response that occurs naturally in reaction to the unconditioned stimulus

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

The conditioned stimulus is a previously neutral stimulus that, after becoming associated with the unconditioned stimulus, eventually comes to trigger a conditioned response

Conditioned Response (CR)

The conditioned response is the learned response to the previously

neutral stimulus

• Learned reflexive response

• The conditioned response will only occur after an association has been made between an

unconditioned stimulus and a conditioned stimulus

Acquisition

the initial learning of an association

Contiguity

The CS needs to come half a second before the US for acquisition to occur

Higher-Order Conditioning “Second Order Conditioning”

A procedure in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second (often weaker) conditioned stimulus

Extinction

is a decrease in the strength or frequency of a learned response because of no longer pairing the US and CS

Spontaneous Recovery

reappearance of an extinguished response after the passage of time, without further conditioning

Pavlov

Acquisition, Generalization, Discrimination (stimulated responses) — Classical Conditioning

Generalization

the transfer of a learned response to a different but similar stimulus

Discrimination

learning to respond to only one stimulus and to inhibit the response to all other stimuli

Taste Aversion

A learned association between the taste of a particular food and feeling sick, often occurring after only one pairing

John Garcia (Garcia Effect)

studied radiation effects in rats, initial exposure to flavored water followed by a toxic reaction to radiation made rats averse to the water. Radiation made the rats feel sick and the sickness was paired with the taste of the flavored water. The animals were then conditioned to avoid foods paired with a previously aversive taste

Edward Thorndike’s Law of Effect

Behaviors followed by favorable outcomes are more likely to be repeated, while behaviors followed by unfavorable outcomes are less likely to be repeated.

B.F. Skinner

• Skinner designed an operant chamber, popularly known as a Skinner Box 

• The chamber was essentially a box that could hold a small animal such as a rat or pigeon

The box also contained a bar or key that the animal could press in order to receive a reward

• Founder of modern behavioral perspective, research on operant conditioning & schedules of reinforcement 

  • How the consequences of people's actions influenced their behavior.

(Operant conditioning)

Operant Conditioning

A type of learning in which behavior is strengthened or weakened by consequences, such as reinforcement or punishment

Shaping

Procedure in which reinforcers gradually guide an animal’s actions toward a desired complex behavior

Chaining

Breaks a task down into small steps and then teaches each step within the sequence by itself

Positive (+) Reinforcement

Presenting a desirable stimulus after a behavior to increase the likelihood of that behavior happening again in the future.

• Praise or a direct reward. For example, if you do a good job at work and your manager gives you a bonus

Negative (-) Reinforcement

Removing an aversive stimulus after a behavior to increase the likelihood of that behavior happening again in the future.

• You clean up your room so your mom will stop nagging you about it

Positive (+) Punishment

Adding an aversive stimulus after a behavior to decrease the likelihood of that behavior happening again in the future.

• Receiving a ticket for speeding in your car

Negative (-) Punishment

Removing a desirable stimulus after a behavior to decrease the likelihood of that behavior happening again in the future.

• Teenager loses their cell phone for talking back to mom

Extrinsic motivation

Motivation to perform a task to receive an award or avoid a punishment

Intrinsic motivation

Motivation to perform a task for own sake and personal reward

Schedules of Reinforcement

A pattern that defines how often a desired response will be reinforced

Continuous Reinforcement

Desired behavior is reinforced every time it occurs

Partial (Intermittent) Reinforcement

The response is reinforced only part of the time

Fixed-Ratio

Response is reinforced only after a specific number of responses

Variable-Ratio Schedules

Response is reinforced after an unpredictable number of responses

Fixed-Interval Schedules

The first response is rewarded only after a specified amount of time has elapsed

Variable-Interval Schedules

Occur when a response is rewarded after an unpredictable amount of time has passed

Albert Bandura

Bobo Doll Experiment: Bandura demonstrated that young children would imitate the violent and aggressive actions of an adult mode

Latent Learning

(Edward Tolman) One can learn something but not show the behavior right away

• Showed learning can take place in an organism without the presence of a reinforcer. 

Edward Tolman

research attempted to teach rats to run a maze during a series of one-day trials, the rats didn’t needed reinforcement/motivation to demonstrate learned behavior 

Insight Learning

(Wolfgang Kohler): A sudden realization of the problem’s solution that “just came to you” “Light Bulb moment”

Kohler found that once the chimpanzees discovered they could not reach the fruit, they stopped and thought about how they might solve the problem.

Learned Helplessness

(Seligmen): A belief that one has no control over their circumstances, learned through repeated exposure to uncontrollable events, leading to feelings of passivity and lack of effort to change the situation.