unit 2

These flashcards cover key concepts and theories in child development to aid in studying for the exam.

Psychodynamic Theory

A perspective that analyzes the influences of the unconscious mind, early childhood experiences, and interpersonal relationships on behavior.

Behaviorism

A theory that focuses on the relationship between behaviors and their consequences, emphasizing learning through reinforcement and punishment.

Socio-Cultural Theory

A framework that emphasizes the role of social interactions and cultural context in cognitive development.

Unconscious Mind

Part of the mind that contains desires, motives, and memories not accessible to conscious awareness.

Psychosexual Stages of Development

Freud's theory that personality develops through a series of stages centered on erogenous zones: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital.

Defense Mechanisms

Psychological strategies used to cope with reality and maintain self-image, including repression, denial, and projection.

ID

The part of the psychic apparatus that operates on the pleasure principle, seeking immediate gratification of instinctual drives.

Ego

The component of the psyche that mediates between the ID and Superego; operates on the reality principle.

Superego

The part of the psyche representing moral standards and ideals; it strives for perfection and judges actions.

Erikson's Psychosocial Stages

Eight stages of development emphasizing social conflicts and their resolutions throughout the lifespan.

Classical Conditioning

A learning process that links neutral stimuli to a response, as demonstrated in Pavlov’s experiments with dogs.

Operant Conditioning

A learning process that associates behaviors with consequences, reinforcing desired behaviors and punishing undesired ones.

Cognitive Development

The study of how individuals understand, learn, and respond to the world; includes theories of Piaget and Vygotsky.

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

Vygotsky's concept of the difference between what a learner can do without help and what they can achieve with guidance.

Bronfenbrenner’s Ecosystemic Theory

A model of development that emphasizes the multiple layered environmental contexts influencing a child's growth.