Developmental Psychology, Career Theories, and Intelligence

A comprehensive vocabulary review set containing 150 practice flashcards covering developmental psychology, career theories, personality models, moral reasoning, and intelligence testing.

Ginzberg Career Choice Theory (1972)

A developmental theory of career choice stating that individuals pass through three distinct stages: the fantasy period, tentative period, and realistic period.

Fantasy Period (Ginzberg)

The career choice period occurring up to the age of $11$, during which vocational choices are not based on personal ability or skill.

Tentative Period (Ginzberg)

The career choice period occurring during adolescence, where individuals start to think more rationally, recognize what their skills are, and understand what skills are needed for specific jobs.

Realistic Period (Ginzberg)

The career choice period occurring in early adulthood (E.A.), characterized by narrowing down vocational options and making a definitive career commitment.

Ginzberg Theory Criticism: Immediate Employment

A criticism pointing out that the theory does not take into account individuals who enter the workforce immediately out of high school.

Ginzberg Theory Criticism: Career Indecision

A criticism highlighting that it is often genuinely difficult for individuals to know what they want to do for a career.

Ginzberg Theory Criticism: Career Changes

A criticism noting that individuals frequently make career changes over their lifetime rather than settling permanently into a single path.

Holland's Personality Type Theory

A vocational model proposing that people choose careers matching their personality across six types: Realistic, Intellectual, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional.

Realistic Personality Type (Holland)

Individuals who are practical, problem solvers, and down to earth; they possess physical strength but can lack social skills.

Realistic Type Occupations (Holland)

Occupations that involve working with animals and machines, such as laborers, farmers, and truck drivers.

Intellectual Personality Type (Holland)

Theoretical, abstract thinkers who study and solve problems, especially in math and science, but are generally not as good with people.

Artistic Personality Type (Holland)

Individuals who express themselves through a creative medium, such as chefs, sculptors, entertainers, and therapists.

Social Personality Type (Holland)

Individuals with strong communication and interpersonal relationship skills who work well with others and enjoy helping people (e.g., teachers, counselors, sales).

Enterprising Personality Type (Holland)

Risk takers who take action, are able to persuade others, and act as leaders, typically working in management positions or politics.

Conventional Personality Type (Holland)

Individuals who like routine, prefer to follow established procedures, and excel at completing tasks and working with numbers (e.g., librarians, bank tellers).

Communal Professions

Occupations centered on maintaining and fostering relationships with other people, such as nurses and counselors.

Agentic Professions

Occupations focused on accomplishing a task or goal (historically thought that males would do very well in), such as construction and mechanics.

Agentic vs. Communal Earnings Disparity

The observed economic trend where agentic professions may make more money than communal professions.

Extrinsic Motivation (Work)

Going to work primarily for external rewards, such as receiving a paycheck, seeking praise, or gaining a positive reputation.

Intrinsic Motivation (Work)

Working for internal rewards, where an individual feels good and finds personal, meaningful fulfillment about their job.

Occupational Status

A society's evaluation of the prestige or standing of particular professions, which can differ depending on geographic location.

Burnout

A workplace challenge characterized by being frustrated, unhappy, and losing the passion one once had for their job.

Unemployment

The state of being fired, laid off, or having one's job eliminated or replaced by artificial intelligence (AI).

Psychosocial Distress (Unemployment)

The psychological and physical hardships linked to job loss, which can create significant anxiety and depression.

AI Job Replacement

A contemporary cause of unemployment where human workers are displaced because their jobs are replaced by artificial intelligence.

Middle-Aged Unemployment Disadvantage

The phenomenon where individuals who become unemployed in middle age are more likely to stay unemployed longer than people younger than them.

Age Discrimination in Employment

Workplace inequity where older adults may have to work in later adulthood due to no mandatory retirement legislation, yet face companies that refuse to hire based on age.

"Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks" Mentality

A biased hiring mindset held by some companies leading them to reject older job applicants under the assumption that they cannot learn new skills.

Self-Awareness (Infancy)

An infant's knowledge of themselves as a distinct entity, which typically starts around $12\text{ months}$ of age.

Theory of Mind

The developmental ability of young children to understand their own mental processes and recognize that other people have their own mental processes.

Intention and Causality Milestone

A theory of mind development occurring between $10\text{--}13\text{ months}$, where infants begin to understand intention and causality in behavior.

Meaningful Behavior Milestone

A theory of mind milestone reached at $18\text{ months}$, when infants come to understand that human behavior has meaning.

Self-Concept (Early Childhood)

A young child's evolving sense of who they are, primarily defined by their traits and abilities.

Self-Concept Evaluation (Early Childhood)

An evaluation of the self based primarily on observable, concrete details, such as physical appearance (how they look) and personal possessions.

Collectivism (Self-Concept)

A cultural orientation where individuals describe and define themselves based on their membership in a group.

Individualistic Culture (Self-Concept)

A cultural orientation where individuals describe and define themselves based on their own personal, individual traits.

Racial Difference Awareness

The perceptual process of noticing differences in racial characteristics, which begins as early as infancy.

Tatum's Book

A published work addressing how parents and caregivers should respond when children ask awkward or difficult questions regarding differences.

Racial Dissonance

A phenomenon where minority children demonstrate a preference for majority group views and majority group people over their own.

Doll Preference in Racial Dissonance

An experimental demonstration of racial dissonance where Black children prefer playing with white dolls rather than black dolls.

Impact of Racial Dissonance on Self-Esteem

Racial dissonance does not negatively impact a child's self-esteem; children simply adopt what is presented as popular in the surrounding culture.

Dominant Culture

The cultural group within a society that holds more societal power and access to resources compared to other groups.

Dominant Culture: Race and Sex

The demographic characteristics belonging to the dominant societal group: White for race and Male for sex.

Dominant Culture: Sexual Orientation and Religion

The demographic categories of the dominant culture: Heterosexual for sexual orientation and Christianity for religion.

Dominant Culture: Ability and SES

The dominant cultural expectations of ability (Able-bodied, neurotypical) and socioeconomic status (Middle to upper social economic status).

Shift in Self-Concept (Middle Childhood)

A developmental shift away from concrete physical traits toward psychological, abstract traits (e.g., athletic, smart, helpful), including both strengths and weaknesses.

Psychosocial Moratorium (Erikson)

A period during the identity vs. identity confusion crisis where adolescents take a break or take time off before committing to adult priorities (e.g., traveling before going to college).

Identity vs. Identity Confusion

Erik Erikson's adolescent psychosocial stage wherein youth seek to define their identity and personal roles before transitioning into adulthood.

Marcia's Identity Development Theory

A framework stating that individuals form an identity by navigating two key processes: crisis/exploration and commitment.

Crisis / Exploration (Marcia)

The active process of looking into different identity options, investigating alternatives, and deciding what one wants.

Commitment (Marcia)

Making a definitive personal investment, choice, and dedicated allegiance to a chosen identity or path.

Identity Achievement (Marcia)

The identity status reached when an individual has undergone crisis/exploration ($\text{yes}$) and has made a firm commitment ($\text{yes}$).

Identity Foreclosure (Marcia)

The identity status where an individual has not explored alternatives ($\text{no}$) but has made an unquestioned commitment ($\text{yes}$).

Identity Moratorium (Marcia)

The identity status where an individual is actively exploring options ($\text{yes}$) but has not yet settled on a commitment ($\text{no}$).

Identity Diffusion (Marcia)

The identity status characterized by neither exploring choices ($\text{no}$) nor making any commitment ($\text{no}$).

Social Clock (Adulthood)

An internalized social timetable or inner idea specifying when certain major life events "should" happen (e.g., when an individual "should" get married).

Integrity vs. Despair (Late Adulthood)

Erikson's final stage where older adults reflect upon their lives knowing death is approaching, experiencing either fulfillment or deep regret.

Integrity (Erikson)

The positive outcome in late adulthood when an individual looks back and feels they fulfilled their goals and did what they needed to do in life.

Despair (Erikson)

The negative outcome in late adulthood marked by regret over unfulfilled potential, such as failing to settle down or dropping out of school.

Personality

The enduring characteristics and qualities that make up an individual's psychological traits.

Temperament (Infancy)

An infant's characteristic emotional state, based on sleep-wake and feeding patterns, which is very stable but can be influenced by parenting.

Easy Temperament

An infant temperament marked by regular sleep-wake patterns, an easy ability to adapt to new situations, and generally positive moods.

Difficult Temperament

An infant temperament marked by poor sleep-wake patterns, frequent negative moods, and a hard time adapting to novel situations.

Slow to Warm Up Temperament

An infant temperament characterized by initial hesitation toward new situations followed by gradual openness, with less negative mood overall.

Robert Peck's Theory of Late Adulthood

A developmental framework proposing three major psychological tasks for late adulthood to achieve successful aging.

Redefinition of Self vs. Preoccupation with Work Role (Robert Peck)

The developmental task of adjusting to retirement by finding new ways to spend time and redefining identity outside of a former career rather than brooding over missed work.

Body Transcendence vs. Body Preoccupation (Robert Peck)

The late adulthood task of coping with physical aging by looking past physical limitations rather than becoming completely focused on bodily ailments.

Body Transcendence

Aging successfully by overcoming physical decline and finding psychological and social fulfillment beyond one's physical body.

Body Preoccupation

An unhealthy fixation in late adulthood where an individual focuses completely on their declining health status and bodily aches.

Ego Transcendence vs. Ego Preoccupation (Robert Peck)

The developmental task of coming to terms with death by recognizing that one's life had meaning and contributed to the future, rather than obsessing over mortality.

Ego Transcendence

Coming to terms with death with peace, feeling good about one's life upon reflection, and knowing that one's life had genuine meaning.

Ego Preoccupation

A state of anxiety where an aging adult is constantly preoccupied with the impending reality of their own death.

Big Five Personality Theory (McCrae and Costa)

A comprehensive trait theory identifying five fundamental personality dimensions: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism.

Openness (Big Five)

A personality trait characterized by curiosity, a desire to try new things, and a willingness to explore different perspectives.

Conscientiousness (Big Five)

A personality trait characterized by being organized, responsible, dependable, and having high attention to detail.

Extraversion (Big Five)

A personality trait characterized by being outgoing, adventurous, highly sociable, and enthusiastic.

Agreeableness (Big Five)

A personality trait characterized by being kind, helpful, easygoing, considerate, and cooperative.

Neuroticism (Big Five)

A personality dimension assessing emotional stability versus moodiness and emotional volatility.

High Neuroticism vs. Low Neuroticism

High neuroticism involves high emotional instability and intense mood swings, whereas low neuroticism entails emotional stability without severe mood swings.

OCEAN and CANOE

Two common mnemonics used to recall the Big Five personality traits: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism.

Academic Achievement and Personality

Research findings indicating that academic achievement is significantly higher in individuals who score higher in Openness and Conscientiousness.

Externalizing Behaviors

Outward-directed problem behaviors, such as delinquency, rule-breaking, and aggression.

Externalizing Behaviors and Personality

Research showing that externalizing behaviors like delinquency are associated with low Agreeableness and high Extraversion.

Internalizing Behaviors

Inward-directed psychological struggles, including low self-image, negative self-evaluation, and low self-esteem.

Internalizing Behaviors and Personality

Research showing that internalizing problems (like low self-image) are linked to high Neuroticism and lower Conscientiousness.

Moral Development

The progressive development of moral judgment and the cognitive ability to distinguish right from wrong.

Prosocial Behavior

Positive, voluntary actions intended to help, support, or benefit other individuals.

Social Learning Theory (Moral Development)

A theory proposing that moral behaviors are learned by watching, observing, and imitating modeled actions in the environment.

Reinforcement and Punishment (Social Learning Theory)

The principle that behaviors rewarded or reinforced are mostly repeated, while behaviors that are punished are less likely to occur.

Abstract Modeling

The cognitive process where imitating observed behaviors leads individuals to deduce generalized principles that subsequently guide their own conduct.

Empathy

The capacity to understand others and perceive how they feel, serving as the foundational base for moral development.

Moral Dilemmas (Kohlberg)

Hypothetical conflict scenarios designed to evaluate moral reasoning by prompting people to explain what should be done.

Heinz Moral Dilemma

A classic moral dilemma scenario prompting individuals to reason through why or why shouldn't a man steal an unaffordable drug to save his dying wife.

Preconventional Morality (Kohlberg)

The lowest level of moral reasoning, where ethical decisions are strictly governed by external rewards or punishments.

Stage 1: Punishment Avoidance (Kohlberg)

The initial preconventional stage where moral decisions are made solely to avoid receiving punishment.

Stage 2: Reward Seeking (Kohlberg)

The second preconventional stage where an individual makes moral decisions motivated primarily by obtaining a reward.

Conventional Morality (Kohlberg)

The intermediate level of moral thought focused on following established rules, standards, and laws set by parents or society.

Stage 3: Good Person Orientation (Kohlberg)

The conventional stage where an individual's moral choices are driven by wanting to be seen and evaluated as a good person.

Stage 4: Obeying Standards and Rules (Kohlberg)

The conventional stage centered on maintaining social order by strictly obeying societal rules, laws, and standards.

Postconventional Morality (Kohlberg)

The highest level of moral thought, characterized by an internalized, autonomous personal moral code.