Developmental-Psychology

Development

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan

Zygote

the fertilized egg; enters 2 week period of rapid cell division

Embryo

the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month

Fetus

the developing human organisms from 9 weeks after conception to birth

Teratogens

viruses, bacteria, heavy metals, smoking, alcohol, opioids, malnutrition. (Monster makers)

Fetal alcohol syndrome

includes physical and cognitive disabilities from drinking while pregnant

Habituation

decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation

Maturation

the biological growth that causes changes in behaviors

Scale errors

babies fail to consider the size of objects

Object permanence

the knowledge that an item exists even when you dont see it

Infantile amnesia

the inability to form/recall early memories

Schemas

a concept we use to organize info. Babies tend to misapply information

Assimilation

interpreting new experiences using the concepts we know

Accommodation

adapting current concepts to incorprate new information

Zone of proximal development

range between what the child can do alone with difficulty and what they can do with help

Attachment

a bond that keeps a child close to a caregiver

Harlows experiment

He presented a wire mother with food and a cloth mother and saw that the baby monkey will pick comfort over food

Mary ainsworths experiment

They put a mom and baby in a room and made the mom leave to show the babies attachment

Secure attachment

babies with responsive mother tend to explore their environment, miss mom, and greet her upon return

Insecure attachment

babies with unresponsive mothers may cling, are less adventurous, and may remain upset when she returns

Temperament

emotional reactivity and intensity

authoritarian

strict, rigid, strong rules and enforcement

Permissive

no guidelines, minimal routines, usually affectionate

Authoritative

democratic, expectations with exceptions when reasonable

Uninvolved

few demands, not responsive/communicative

basic trust

a sense that the world is predictable and reliable

Self concept

understanding and evaluation of who we are

Gender

biological and social characteristics that define male and female

Aggression

boys choose physical violence; girls relational

Role

norms regarding a social position, which defines behavior

Gender role

expected behaviors for specific genders

Gender schema

mental categories of behavior, recognization of their own role and reflecting activities to match the role

Gender identity

the sense of being male or female

Social learning theory

children learn gender linked behavior through observation

Primary sex characteristics

required for reproduction

Secondary sex characteristics

not required for reproduction (facial hair)

Carol Gilligan

applied kohlbergs scale to women and argued that women prioritize compassion over justice

Identity

sense of self

Social identity

sense of self that comes from group membership

Intimacy

the development of close loving relationships is the primary focus of late

Physical development

physical abilities peak in our mid 20’s in mid life sex hormones drop in women but not men, sensory abilities dont deteriote until midlife, in old age neurons die

Cognitive development

cross sectional research shows intelligence tends to decrease with age, longitudal research shows that intelligence remains stable and can increase later in life, steep decline typically after 85

Social development

commitments change: work, marriage, child rearing, less attention to negative info.

Social clock

general idea of when adult milestones should be hit

Nature v. Nurture

is development dependent on biology or the environment

Continuity v. Discontinuity

is development continous and cumulative or broken into stages

Stability vs. Change

do personality traits that exist at birth last the whole life or do things change

Retrospective

researcher interviews a subject about their past. Pro-can be very detailed. Con- memory is not always accurate, data may not generalize

Longitudinal

observe the same group of people anywhere from several months to their entire life. Pro- accurate and detailed. Con- expensive, may lose participants, takes a long time to get results and they may not generalize

Cross sectional

assess and compare the variables in a young group and an old group. Pro-quick results and no participant lose. Con- group may be subject to a cohort effect, no assessment over time

Cohort-Sequential

cross-sectional groups are assessed twice. Pro- a happy medium, helps control a cohort effect. Con- expensive, may lose participants

Stranger anxiety

fear of unfamiliar people

Egocentrism

can only view the world through their view

Theory of mind

the ability to infer anothers perspective

Conservation errors

fail to see that quantity of something stays the same even if it changes shape