Human Development

What is development?

Periods of growth and decline that start at conception and continue throughout life.

What is the life span perspective?

A view that states that development is a lifelong, multifaceted, and flexible process that isn’t defined by one period alone.

The life span is characterized by what 3 processes?

Growth, maintenance, and regulation of loss.

What are the 3 contextual influences?

1) Normative Age-Graded 2) Normative History-Graded. 3) Non-normative events

What are the 3 developmental processes?

1) Biological 2) Cognitive 3) Socioemotional

What are the 3 patterns of aging?

1) Normal aging 2) Pathological aging 3) Successful aging

Adults tend to be … as they age

Happier!

What is the stability-change issue?

The debate over the degree to which early traits and characteristics persist or change throughout life

What is the continuity-discontinuity issue?

The debate over the degree to which development involves gradual or distinct stages

What is nature vs. nurture?

The debate over whether we’re primarily influenced by our biology or environment.

What are the 5 theories of development?

Psychoanalytical, cognitive, behavioral + social cognitive, ethological, ecological

What is the psychoanalytical theory?

Suggests that development is unconcious and heavily based on emotions.

What did Freud say about development and personality?

We go through psychosexual stages and our personalities are determined by whether or not we overcome conflicts between sources of pleasure.

What did Erikson say about behavior?

The primary motivation for development is social relations.

What is the cognitive theory?

Development is influenced by conscious processing of our environment.

What did Piaget say about development?

There are 4 stages; sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete, and formal operational

What did Vygotsky say about development?

Development is influenced by cultural and social factors.

What is the information processing theory?

The human mind is like a computer in the way we are able to take in information, encode it, store it, and retrieve it.

What is the Behavioral & Social Cognitive theory?

Development doesn’t occur in distinct stages, but is instead dependent on social cues.

What is operant conditioning?

A type of learning where voluntary behavior is shaped by rewards and punishments.

What did Bandura say about cognitive processes?

Cognitive processes are influenced by behavior and the environment.

What is the ethological theory?

Behavior is influenced by biology and evolutionary events during critical events.

What was Lorenz’s findings?

Animals imprint on their mothers during a critical period during their early life.

What did Bowlby say?

Positive and negative attachments in childhood determine behavior.

What is the ecological theory?

Your environment impacts how you develop.

Draw the periods of development (including months & ages), as well as the 4 ages

What are the 3 research designs?

1) Descriptive 2) Correlational 3) Experiment

What is a cross-sectional approach to research?

research that compares people of different ages at the same time

What is a longitudinal approach to research?

a research strategy where the same people are studied over a period of time.

What are cohort effects?

characteristics determined by a person’s time of birth, era, or generation, rather than age

What is “ethnic gloss”?

portraying an ethnic group as being more homogenous than it really is

What are the 3 period of prenatal development?

Germinal, Embryonic, and Fetal

What happens during the germinal period?

1. Sperm fertilizes egg, creating a zygote.

2. Zygote divides rapidly, becoming a blastocyst

3. Blastocyst attaches to uterine wall

4. Outer cell layer, trophoblast, provides nutrients

What happens during the embryonic period?

1. Cluster of cells becomes embyro

2. Gastrulation: formation of germ layers; endoderm, mesoderm, ectoderm; that give rise to major organs

3. Embyro life-support organs form: placenta, ambiotic sac, umbilical cord

What happens during the fetal period?

Rapid growth of bodily structures

What are the 4 important phases of the brain’s development during the prenatal period?

1. Neural tube

2. Neurogenesis

3. Neuronal Migration

4. Neural Connectivity

What is the neural tube?

a hollow structure that gives rise to the central nervous system

What occurs during neurogenesis?

Proliferation of immature neurons

What is neuronal migration?

The process of cells moving to their appropriate locations

What is neural connectivity?

When connections between neurons occur

What is a teratogen?

any agent that can cause birth defect or negatively alter cognition or development

During what period is the embyro most sensitive to teratogens?

embryonic period

What are three categories of teratogens?

1. drugs (prescription and non-prescription)

2. Environmental toxins

3. Maternal diseases

What are 3 maternal hazards to prenatal development?

1) Stress 2) Improper nutrition & diet 3) age

What are 2 paternal hazards to prenatal development?

1) Sperm abnormalities 2) Smoking around expectant mother

What happens during the 1st stage of the birthing process?

uterine contractions

What happens during the 2nd stage of the birthing process?

baby moves through cervix and birth canal

What happens during the 3rd stage of the birthing process?

Afterbirth; placenta, umbilical cords, and other structures are expelled

In the US, 98.5% of births take place in …

hospitals

What are 3 methods of childhood

1) Medicated vaginal delivery 2) Natural vaginal delivery 3) Cesarean delivery

What is breech position?

When the baby is positioned buttocks first

What is the main method for assessing newborn health after birth?

Apgar scale

What 5 factors does the Apgar scale measure?

A: appearance P: pulse G: grimace/reflex irritability A: activity/muscle tone R: respiration

What is considered a low birth weight?

An infant born less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces

What is considered a preterm infant?

Infants born at 35 weeks and fewer

What is a “small for date” infant?

Infants at birth weights lower than the norm given the stage of pregnancy

Consequences of preterm and LBW infants?

increased health problems and developmental delays

What is kangaroo care?

Skin to skin contact and massage

What are three main post-partum symptoms

1) Fatigue 2) Hormonal changes (low progesterone and estrogen levels) 3) Postpartum depression/blues