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Sex

The biological status of being male or female

Gender

The socially and culturally constructed roles

Aggression

Behavior—physical or verbal—intended to harm another person emotionally or physically.

Relational Aggression

Nonphysical aggression aimed at damaging someone’s social relationships

Gender Roles

The expected patterns of behavior

Gender Identity

An individual’s personal sense of their own gender

Social Learning Theory

The idea that gender behavior is learned through observing others

Androgyny

Possessing both traditionally masculine and feminine psychological traits

Transgender

Describes people whose gender identity or expression differs from the sex they were assigned at birth.

Plasticity

The brain’s ability to reorganize neural connections in response to experience

Rosenzweig Rat Study

An experiment showing that rats raised in enriched environments developed heavier

Touch and Stimulation

Regular physical contact that promotes faster neurological and physical development in infants and young animals.

Parental Influence

Parents shape values and opportunities but account for less than 10% of personality differences between siblings.

Peer Influence

Peers strongly affect speech

Frontal Lobe Maturation

The growth of myelin and pruning of unused connections in adolescence that improves impulse control and planning.

Formal Operational Stage

Piaget’s final cognitive stage when individuals begin to think logically about abstract concepts and hypothetical situations.

Kohlberg’s Levels of Morality

The three-stage theory of moral reasoning: preconventional (self-interest)

Moral Intuition

Haidt’s theory that moral judgments arise quickly from gut emotions rather than from deliberate reasoning.

Identity vs. Role Confusion

Erikson’s adolescent stage in which individuals explore and integrate various roles to form a stable sense of self.

Social Identity

The portion of one’s self-concept derived from group memberships such as ethnicity

Intimacy vs. Isolation

Erikson’s early-adulthood stage focused on forming deep

Emerging Adulthood

A developmental phase (ages 18–25) when people are no longer adolescents but not yet fully independent adults.

Testosterone

The main male sex hormone that drives development of male sex organs and secondary sexual characteristics.

Menarche

The first menstrual period

Spermarche

The first ejaculation

Intersex

A condition in which an individual is born with a combination of male and female biological characteristics.

Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI)

An illness spread through sexual contact

AIDS

The immune-system disease caused by HIV that leaves the body vulnerable to life-threatening infections.

Teen Sexual Behavior

Teen sexual activity is influenced by communication about contraception

Sexual Restraint

Linked to high intelligence

Sexual Orientation

An enduring pattern of sexual attraction toward the same sex

Older Brother Effect

The finding that each additional biological older brother slightly increases the likelihood of a male being homosexual.

Prenatal Hormone Influence

Prenatal exposure to atypical hormone levels can alter brain structures related to later sexual orientation.

Adulthood Physical Changes

From mid-20s onward

Menopause

The natural end of menstruation and fertility in women

Telomeres

Protective caps on chromosome ends that shorten with age

Terminal Decline

The rapid drop in cognitive ability that occurs in the years immediately preceding death.

Neurocognitive Disorders

Acquired brain disorders (such as Alzheimer’s or stroke damage) that cause memory and reasoning deterioration.

Alzheimer’s Disease

A progressive neurocognitive disorder characterized by memory loss

Social Clock

A culture’s expected timeline for major life events like leaving home

Midlife Crisis

A supposed period of emotional turmoil in the 40s—research shows it’s largely a myth.

Generativity vs. Stagnation

Erikson’s middle-adulthood stage involving contributing to society and guiding the next generation versus feeling unproductive.

Integrity vs. Despair

Erikson’s late-adulthood stage in which people reflect on life with satisfaction or regret.

Love and Work

Freud’s idea that healthy adults can maintain close relationships (love) and productive careers (work).

Well-Being and Aging

Older adults tend to have greater emotional stability

Grief

Emotional response to loss that varies widely; people do not follow fixed stages

Sensorimotor Stage

Piaget’s first stage (birth–2 yrs) when infants learn through sensory experiences and motor actions and develop object permanence.

Preoperational Stage

Piaget’s second stage (2–6 yrs) when children use language and symbols but lack logical reasoning and show egocentrism.

Concrete Operational Stage

Piaget’s third stage (7–11 yrs) when children think logically about concrete events and understand conservation.

Formal Operational Stage

Piaget’s fourth stage (12+ yrs) when individuals think abstractly and hypothetically about ideas and problems.

Trust vs. Mistrust

Erikson’s infancy stage where consistent care builds trust and inconsistency causes mistrust.

Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

Erikson’s toddler stage where children develop independence or feel shame when restricted.

Initiative vs. Guilt

Erikson’s preschool stage where children begin asserting control through planning and play or feel guilty about efforts to act independently.

Competence vs. Inferiority

Erikson’s elementary stage where children gain pride from competence or feel inferior compared to peers.

Identity vs. Role Confusion

Erikson’s adolescence stage focused on developing a personal sense of self or confusion about one’s role.

Intimacy vs. Isolation

Erikson’s young adult stage focused on forming loving relationships or feeling socially isolated.

Generativity vs. Stagnation

Erikson’s middle-adulthood stage involving contributing to society or feeling purposeless.

Integrity vs. Despair

Erikson’s late-adulthood stage reflecting on life with fulfillment or regret.

Preconventional Morality

Kohlberg’s first level (before age 9) where moral reasoning is based on self-interest and avoiding punishment.

Conventional Morality

Kohlberg’s second level (early adolescence) where moral reasoning is based on obeying laws and seeking social approval.

Postconventional Morality

Kohlberg’s third level (adulthood in some) where actions are judged by universal ethical principles and personal conscience.