Untitled Flashcards Set

Developmental psychology

The study of how and why human beings change over their life span in physiology, cognition, emotion, and social behavior.

Zygote

A fertilized egg that contains all genetic information for a new individual, a single cell, from 0 to 2 weeks.

Embryo

The early initial developmental stage from 2 weeks to 2 months.

Fetus

The development stage from 2 months to birth when all organs are formed and the heart begins to beat.

Dynamic systems theory

The self-organizing process of development where new forms of behavior emerge through interactions between a person and their cultural and environmental context.

Infantile amnesia

The inability to remember events before the age of 3 or 4.

Object permanence

The understanding that an object continues to exist even when it cannot be seen, typically developed around 9 months.

Teratogens

Substances that can harm the embryo or fetus, including drugs, alcohol, bacteria, viruses, and chemicals.

Puberty

The onset of sexual maturity marking the beginning of adolescence, characterized by increased hormone levels.

Empathy

The ability to understand another's emotional state and share feelings.

Moral development

The process in which children develop a sense of morality, including three levels: preconventional, conventional, and postconventional.

Gender identity

One's sense of being male, female, or nonbinary.

Synaptic pruning

A process where the synaptic connections in the brain that are used are preserved, and those that are not used are lost.

Attachment

A strong emotional connection that can motivate care, protection, and social support.

Sensorimotor stage

Piaget's first cognitive development stage from birth to 2 years, where infants learn through their senses and motor skills.

Assimilation

The process of placing new information into an existing schema.

Accommodation

The process of creating new schemas or drastically altering existing schemas to include new information.

Theory of mind

The ability to understand that other people have mental states that influence behavior.

Psychopathology

Sickness or disorder of the mind.

Maladaptive

Behavior that interferes with a person's ability to function appropriately in key life domains.

Comorbidity

The occurrence of two or more disorders or illnesses in the same individual.

Dimensional approach

An approach which suggests that psychopathology exists on a continuum of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors from normal to severe.

Family systems model

A psychological approach viewing the family as an interconnected emotional unit.

Internalizing disorders

Disorders characterized by distress directed inward, towards oneself.

Externalizing disorders

Disorders characterized by distress directed outward, towards the environment.

Panic attack symptoms

Rapid heartbeat, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, dizziness, fear, sense of dread.

Psychotropic medications

Drugs that affect mental processes and are used to treat various psychological disorders.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)

A therapy that aims to change negative thought patterns and behaviors associated with psychological disorders.

Diathesis-stress model

A diagnostic model proposing that a disorder may develop when an underlying vulnerability is coupled with a precipitating event.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

A disorder characterized by frequent thoughts (obsessions) and compulsive behaviors.

Autism spectrum disorder

A range of neurodevelopmental conditions characterized by difficulties in social interaction and communication.

Lithium

A mood stabilizer that is effective in treating bipolar disorder.

Placebo effect

The improvement of a person's health after taking treatment that has no active ingredients.

What are biological evolution and its key processes?

Biological evolution is the process through which populations of organisms change over time through mechanisms such as natural selection, mutation, gene flow, and genetic drift.

What is natural selection?

Natural selection is a process in which individuals with favorable traits are more likely to reproduce, leading to a gradual change in the population.

What is genetic drift?

Genetic drift is a mechanism of evolution that results in random changes in allele frequencies in a population, particularly in small populations.

What is gene flow?

Gene flow is the transfer of genetic information between populations, which can introduce new alleles and affect diversity.

What role do mutations play in evolution?

Mutations are random changes in DNA that can create new alleles, providing the raw material for evolution if they confer a survival advantage.

What is a common misconception about evolution?

A common misconception is that evolution is a linear process leading to 'better' organisms; in reality, it is a branching process with no specific direction.

How does speciation occur?

Speciation occurs when barriers to gene flow lead to populations diverging until they can no longer interbreed, forming new species.

What is the evolutionary significance of fossil records?

Fossil records provide evidence of past life forms and help scientists understand the history of evolution and the changes in species over time.

What evidence supports the theory of evolution?

Evidence for evolution includes fossil records, comparative anatomy, molecular biology, and biogeography.

What is adaptation in an evolutionary context?

Adaptation refers to traits that enhance survival and reproduction in a specific environment, shaped by evolutionary processes.