psy Human growth and development

Lifespan Development is the field of study that examines patterns of growth, change, and stability in

behavior that occur throughout the entire lifespan.

Physical Development involves the body’s physical makeup, including the brain, nervous system, muscles,

and senses, and the need for food, drink, and sleep as a determinant of behavior.

Cognitive Development involves the ways that growth and change in learning, memory, problem solving,

and intelligence influence a person’s behavior.

Social Development is the way in which individuals’ interactions with others and their social relationships

grow, change, and remain stable over the course of life.

Personality Development involves the ways that the enduring characteristics at differentiate one person

from another change over the life span.

Independent variable and dependent variable

A variable is anything that changes a value. Independent variables is the variable that researchers

manipulate. Dependent variables is the variable that researchers measure in an experiment and expect to

change as a result of the manipulation.

Scientific method is the process of posing and answering questions using careful, controlled techniques

that include systematic, orderly observation and the collection of data.

Theories are explanations and predictions concerning phenomena of interest, providing a framework for

understanding the relationships among an organized set of facts or principles.

Hypothesis is a prediction stated in a way that permits it to be tested.

Types of Research and Designs

• Naturalistic Observation observe/study in natural context or habitat. Does not allow for control over

factors of interest.

• Experimental research is used to establish cause-and-effect relationships by manipulating

independent variables and observing their effects on dependent variables under controlled

conditions. Experiments are designed to test a

hypotheses in a controlled setting in efforts to explain certain factors or events.

• Survey is a method of gathering information using relevant questions from a sample of people with

the aim of understanding the population.

• Case study is an in-depth examination of a specific subject, such as a person, group, event, or

organization, within its real-world context to gain detailed insights and understanding. It is used with

individual or small groups to derive broader principles or tentative conclusions.

• Longitudinal research designs involve beginning with a group of people who may be of the same age

and background and measuring them repeatedly over a long period of time.

• Cross sectional research designs are used to examine behavior in participants of different ages who

are tested at the same point in time.

• Sequential research designs include elements of both longitudinal and cross-sectional research

designs.

• Correlational studies seek to identify whether an association or relation between two factors exists.

o Correlational Coefficient measures the strength and direction of the relationship between variables.

▪ Positive correlation indicates that as the value of one factor increases, it can be predicted that the

value of the other will also increase.

▪ Negative correlation informs us that as the value of one factor increases, the value of the other factor

declines Sequential and longitudinal research.

PSY 2533 Midterm Study Guide

This is only to serve as a guide. The required reading material explains each item in more detail.

Classical conditioning involves associating neutral stimuli with unconditioned stimuli to evoke involuntary

responses. For example, if a bell is repeatedly rung before food is presented, the bell eventually becomes a

conditioned stimulus that can trigger salivation, even without food. (Pavlov)

Operant conditioning involves associating behaviors with positive or negative consequences to modify

voluntary behaviors. For example, if a child is praised for doing their homework, they may be more likely to

continue doing it in the future. (Skinner)

Positive and Negative Reinforcement

Reinforcement can be positive or negative. Positive reinforcement increases the likelihood of behavior,

while negative reinforcement decreases it.

Cohort is a group of people who are born at roughly the same period in a particular society. Cohort effect is

a change in characteristics over time that occurs among groups of people who share a common experience.

• History grade influences are biological and environmental influences associated with historical moments.

• Age grade influences are biological and environmental influences that are similar for individuals in particular age

groups.

• Sociocultural grade influences are social and cultural factors present at time for a particular individual, depending on

such variables as ethnicity, social class, and subcultural membership.

• Non-normative life events are atypical events that occur in a particular person’s life at a time when such events do not

happen to most people.

Bronfenbrenner Ecological Approach

Bronfenbrenner believed that a person's development was affected by everything in their surrounding

environment. He suggests that different levels of the environment

simultaneously influences individuals. He divided the person's environment into five different levels: the

microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem. (Ecological System Theory)

Erikson Psychosocial Stages

• Trust vs Mistrust, in this stage infants develop a sense of trust when caregivers meet their basic needs. Successful

resolution leads to a sense of security and trust in the world, while failure results in fear and suspicion.

• Autonomy vs shame and doubt, in this stage toddlers begin to assert their independence. Encouragement leads to

autonomy, while overprotection or criticism can result in feelings of shame and doubt about their abilities.

• Initiative vs guilt, in this stage children start to initiate activities and assert control over their environment. Successful

resolution fosters a sense of initiative, while failure may lead to feelings of guilt over their needs and desires.

• Industry vs inferiority, fourth psychosocial stage of development, describing the way children construct their sense of

success and accomplishment in work tasks, such as school.

Identify vs role confusion

Intimacy vs isolation

Generativity vs stagnation

Integrity vs despair

Freuds Elements of Personality (id, ego and superego)

Id operates on basic impulses seeking immediate gratification; irrational and impulsive. The id does not

consider reality or social norms, acting impulsively to satisfy its urges. Operates at unconscious level.

Superego represents internalized moral standards, values, and ideals learned from parents and society. The

superego strives for perfection and often conflicts with the id’s desire for immediate gratification, creating

tension that the ego must resolve. Operates mostly at the preconscious level.

Ego executive mediating between id impulses and superego inhibitions. It operates on the reality principle,

mediating between the id’s impulses, the superego’s moral demands, and real-world constraints. Operates

mainly at the conscious level but also at preconscious level.

PSY 2533 Midterm Study Guide

This is only to serve as a guide. The required reading material explains each item in more detail.

Piaget’s theory of cognitive development outlines four stages: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete

operational, and formal operational—through which children progressively develop cognitive abilities from

birth to adulthood.

• Sensorimotor Stage (Birth to ~2 years), in this stage, infants learn about the world primarily through sensory experiences

and motor actions, such as touching, grasping, and observing.

• Preoperational Stage (2 to 7 years), children begin to use symbols, language, and imagination, but their thinking is still

egocentric and lacks logical reasoning.

• Concrete Operational Stage (7 to 11 years), children develop logical thinking about concrete objects and events