sensation & development

describe vision in the womb

poorly developed & negligible

describe hearing in the womb & evidence surrounding this

ability to hear sounds

heartbeat & movement slows to sound; recognition of mother’s voice & breathing after birth

describe touch in the womb & evidence surrounding this

sensitive to touch

ultrasound pictures of grasping, sucking, etc; bumping uterus walls; increased heart rate/blood pressure and decreased oxygen after birth with pain

describe taste in the womb & evidence surrounding this

present in the womb

facial expressions; swallows amniotic fluid; preference for sweets; can detect their amniotic fluid after birth; carrot juice experiment

describe smell in the womb & evidence surrounding this

present in the womb

amniotic fluid odor of mother’s diet; amniotic fluid comes in contact with olfactory receptors; fetal breathing

habituation procedures

measures decreased responsiveness to a stimulus after repeated presentation

what findings were discovered in habituation procedures done on fetus’

32 wks - change of heartbeats measured

37 wks - signs of long term memory & learning

what findings were discovered during habituation procedures done on infants

response to mom’s voice

prefers own amniotic fluid

carrot juice experiment

“da” vs “ma” stimulus reaction with sucking

infantile amnesia

the inability to recall memories from the first few years of life

what hypotheses surround infantile amnesia?

1. due to immaturity of the brain

2. lack of linguistic skills limit ability to mentally represent events

3. lack an understanding of “self"

what evidence supports that infants do have memory

kicking their feet to move mobile above bed

deferred imitation

the imitation of actions after a time delay

at what age can infant begin to retain more information in their memory

6 months

at what age does deferred imitation begin to occur

-6 months if infants are allowed to practice behavior shown

-12 months without practice of behavior shown

at what age do children begin to develop a sense of self

second year of life

self awareness

realization that you are separate from others