Adolescent Psych Fabian Exam 1

storm-and-stress-view

G. Stanley Hall's concept that adolescence is a turbulent time charged with conflict and mood swings

inventionist view

the view that adolescence is a sociohistorical creation, laws created in the beginning of the 20th century that required youth to attend school, excluded from employment

cohort

a group of people who were born in the same time period

adolescent development influenced by sociocultural factors (not primarily biology)

margaret mead's sociocultural view

cohort effects

effects due to a person's date of birth, era, or generation, but not chronological age

millenials

generation born after 1980, increasing ethnic diversity, more tolerant and open minded, increase of media/technology use

stereotype

generalization that reflects our impressions and beliefs about a broad group of people

adolescent generalization gap

generalizations that are based on information about a limited, often highly visible group of adolescents

positive youth development (PYD)

reflects the positive psychology approach, emphasizes the strengths of youth and the positive qualities and developmental trajectories that are desired for youth (5 C's)

context

the settings in which development occurs. these settings are influenced by historical, economic, social, and cultural factors

social policy

a national government's course of action designed to influence the welfare of its citizens

development

the pattern of change that begins at conception and continues through the lifespan

biological processes

physical changes in an individuals body

cognitive processes

changes in an individual's thinking and intelligence

socioemotional processes

changes in an individual's personality, emotions, relationships with other people, social contexts

prenatal period

time from conception to birth

infancy

developmental period from 0-2 years old

early childhood

developmental period from 2-5/6

middle and late childhood

developmental period from 5/6-10/11

adolescence

developmental period of transition from childhood to adulthood

early adolescence

developmental period that corresponds roughly to the middle school years and includes most pubertal change

late adolescence

developmental period that corresponds approximately to the latter half of the second decade of life

early adulthood

developmental period beginning late teens/early twenties and lasting through thirties

middle adulthood

developmental period that is entered at about 35-45 years and exited at about 55-65 years

late adulthood

developmental period that lasts from about 60-70 until death

emerging adulthood

developmental period occurring from approx. 18-25 years, transitional period between adolescence and adulthood, characterized by experimentation and exploration

resilience

adapting positively and achieving successful outcomes in the face of significant risks and adverse circumstances

nature vs. nurture

issue involving debate about whether development is influenced biological inheritance or environmental experiences

continuity vs. discontinuity

issue regarding whether development involves gradual, cumulative change or distant stages

early vs. later experience

issue focusing on the degree to which early experiences or later experiences are key determinants of development

theory

an interrelated, coherent set of ideas that helps explain phenomena and make predictions

hypothesis

specific assertions and predictions that can be tested

psychoanalytic theories

theories that describe development as primarily unconscious and heavily colored by emotion. behavior is merely a surface characteristic, and the symbolic workings of the mind have to be analyzed to understand behavior

Freud

psychosexual stages, development is primarily unconscious and heavily colored by emotion, early experiences

defense mechanisms

conflicting demands of id and superego cause ego to unconsciously distort reality in order to protect us from anxiety

erikson

his theory that includes psychosocial stages and says that the primary motivation for human behavior is social in nature

piaget

his theory that states children actively construct their understanding of the world and go through four stages of cognitive development

vygotsky

his sociocultural cognitive theory that emphasizes how culture and social interaction guide cognitive development

information processing theory

theory emphasizing that individuals manipulate information, monitor it, and strategize about it

social cognitive theory

the view that behavior, environment, and cognition are the key factors in development

bronfenbrenner's ecological theory

theory that development reflects the influence of five environmental systems

eclectic theoretical orientation

selects from each theory whatever is considered best features

laboratory

controlled setting in which many of the complex factors of the real world are removed

naturalistic observation

observation of behavior in real-world settings

standardized test

a test with uniform procedures for administration and scoring

experience sampling method

research method that involves providing participants with electronic pagers and then beeping them at random times, at which point they are asked to report on various aspects of their lives

case study

in-depth look at a single individual

descriptive research

research that aims to observe and record behavior

correlational research

research whose goal is to describe the strength of the relationship between two or more events or characteristics

correlation coefficient

a number based on statistical analysis that is used to indicate strength of relationship

experimental research

research that involves an experiment, can reveal cause and effect because variables are manipulated in a controlled way

independent variable

the factor that is manipulated (the cause)

dependent variable

the factor that is measured in an experiment

cross-sectional research

a research strategy that involves studying people all at one time

longitudinal research

a research strategy which involves studying the same individuals over a period of time

puberty

the period of rapid physical maturation involving hormonal and bodily change that takes place primarily in early adolescence

hormones

powerful chemicals secreted by the endocrine glands and carried through the body by the bloodstream

androgens

the main class of male sex hormones

estrogens

the main class of female sex hormones

hypothalamus

regulation of hormones, eating, drinking sex, release of FSH and LH

pituitary gland

master gland, secretes growth hormone at night, produces hormones that stimulate other glands

gonads

testes/ovaries, secrete sex hormones

adrenarche

hormonal changes in the adrenal glands, which secrete adrenal androgens. occur about 6-9 years in girls and one year later in boys (before beginning of puberty) -- oiliness of skin, body odor

gonadarche

puberty phase, maturation of primary sexual characteristics (ovaries and testes) and secondary sexual characteristics (pubic hair, breast development)

menarche

a girl's first menstrual period

spermarche

a boy's first ejaculation of semen

leptin

associated with onset of puberty

sensation seeking

a trait defined by the seeking of varied, novel, complex, and intense sensations and experiences

amygdala

part of the brain associated with emotion

prefrontal cortex

part of the brain associated with reasoning, decision making, self control

melatonin

sleep inducing hormone

adaptive behavior

a modification of behavior that promotes an organism's survival in the natural habitat

evolutionary psychology

process of evolution can help explain human development and behavior

chromosomes

threadlike structures that contain DNA

DNA

a complex molecule that contains genetic information

genes

molecules that have the ability to direct the assembly of proteins that build the body

genotype

a person's genetic heritage; the actual genetic material

phenotype

the observed and measurable characteristics expressed by the genotype

behavior genetics

the field that seeks to discover the influence of heredity and environment on human traits and development

twin study

study in which the behavioral similarity is compared between identical and fraternal twins

adoption study

study in which the behavior and psychological characteristics of adopted children are studied in order to find out if they are more like biological parents (genes) or adoptive parents (environment)

heredity-environment correlations

an individual's genes influence the types of environments to which they are exposed

passive genotype-environment correlations

inherit genetic tendencies, parents provide environment that matches their own genes

evocative genotype-environment correlations

you evoke a certain response, you are shy because of your genes so your social environment is awkward (your genes made your environment)

active genotype-environment correlations

you seek out certain environments because of your genes

shared environmental experiences

siblings all share these (parents, intelligence, socioeconomic status)

non-shared environmental experiences

siblings own unique experiences (peer groups, parenting techniques)

epigenetic view

development is the result of an ongoing, bidirectional interchange between heredity and the environment

gene x environment interaction

interaction of a specific measured variation in the DNA and a specific measured aspect of the environment

neurons

nerve cells, which are the nervous system's basic units

myelination

the process by which the axon portion of the neuron becomes covered and insulated with a layer of fat cells, which increases the speed and efficiency of information processing in the nervous system

synapses

gap between neurons, where connections between the axon and dendrites occur

corpus callosum

a large bundle of axon fibers that connect the brain's left and right hemispheres

prefrontal cortex

the highest level of the brain's frontal loves that is involved in reasoning, decision making, and self-control

amygdala

a portion of the brain's limbic system that is the seat of emotions

schema

a mental concept or framework that is useful in organizing and interpreting information

assimilation

the incorporation of new information into existing knowledge

accommodation

an adjustment of a schema to new information

equilibration

a mechanisms in piaget's theory that explains how individuals shift from one state of thought to the next

sensorimotor stage

piaget's first stage of development, lasting from birth to about 2 years of age. in this stage, infants construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences with physical, motoric actions