Child Development Overview

This set of flashcards covers key concepts and terminology related to child development, derived from the lecture notes.

Child Development

The study of how children grow and change physically, cognitively, and emotionally.

Marshmallow Test

A psychological experiment that examines delayed gratification in children.

Effective Alternatives

Research-based methods for parental guidance, such as offering sympathy and facilitating time-outs instead of spanking.

Social Policies

Decisions that affect children’s welfare, influenced by child development research.

Humane Nature

Insights into human behavior and needs provided by child development studies.

Developmentalists

Philosophers and theorists who contributed to understanding child development, such as Aristotle and Rousseau.

Qualitative Changes

Changes that involve a new structure or form, as opposed to just a numerical increase.

Cross-sectional Design

A research method that compares children of different ages at one point in time.

Longitudinal Design

A research method that studies the same children over an extended period to observe changes.

Correlational Designs

Research methods that explore relationships between variables without implying causation.

Independent Variable

The factor that is manipulated in an experiment, such as the presence of parent-child interactions.

Dependent Variable

The outcome that is measured in an experiment, like children’s language proficiency.

Ethical Principles in Research

Guidelines ensuring the responsible treatment of participants in psychological studies.