Lifespan Exam #2

Based on the textbook "Life-Span Development" by John W. Santrock

What are the size differences between a child’s brain and an adult’s?

• By age 2, the brain is ¾ of the adult size 

• By age 5, the brain is 90% of the adult size 

What is the corpus callosum and what is its purpose?

Nerves that connect the left and right hemispheres 

Describe what “brain plasticity” means

The ability of neural networks in the brain to change through growth and reorganization

What is “rough and tumble” play and who is more likely to engage in it?

• Aggressive playing, like wrestling

• Boys are most likely to engage

What is the ideal caloric intake for a child during early childhood?

1.4k-1.8 calories a day 

What are some of the leading causes of childhood deaths?

• Drowning

• Accidents

• Motor vehicle

• Homicide

Describe “symbolic play” and why it is important in development

• The child mentally represents an object that is not present

  • Pretending an object is something else

• Contributes to development

What is “egocentrism” in early childhood?

Inability to distinguish one's perspective and someone else's perspective 

What are the different types of parenting styles and what are their characteristics?

• Authoritarian parenting  

  • Restrictive, punitive, controlling 

• Authoritative parenting  

  • Parents are warm and nurturing 

• Neglectful parenting 

  • Neglectful in the child's life 

• Indulgent parenting 

  • Let children do whatever 

Describe “power-assertive” parents

The use of a parent's power over their child to control their behavior

Describe sibling relationships and factors that can lead to conflict between siblings

• Siblings can conflict, help, share, teach, and play

• Emotional quality, intimacy, and variation are all aspects of conflict

How is dramatic play beneficial for children?

• Advances in:

  • Cognitive development

  • Symbolic understanding

Explain the different ways aggression is used in childhood

• Screen time increases aggression

• Aggression affects peer relations

Explain Erikson’s stage of initiative vs. guilt

• Self-conscious emotions 

  • Pride, shame, embarrassment, guilt 

What are the nutritional requirements for school-aged children?

2k calories a day

Describe the problem with obesity in school-aged children

• 18.4% of children aged 6-11 are overweight 

  • Children are getting heavier 

• Increase in overweight/obese children & those at risk for it 

• Less physical activity and outdoor time, more screen time

What are the factors that contribute to childhood obesity?

• Quality of food 

• Lack of exercise 

• Family genes/eating habits 

• Increased media exposure (branding) 

What are common disabilities that may become evident in middle childhood?

• Learning disabilities

  • ADHD, dyslexia

• Behavioral disabilities

• Autism

• Educational disabilities

What is the goal of “mainstreaming”?

Inclusion

What is a child able to do in Piaget’s stage of concrete operational thought?

• Children can: 

  • Perform concrete operations 

  • Reason logically (as long as it can be applied to specific/concrete examples) 

• Concrete operations – operations that are applied to real, concrete objects 

Explain what “selective attention” is and when it becomes evident in childhood

• The ability to focus on one subject or idea and ignore distractions 

• Mid-late childhood

Describe Gardner’s different types of intelligence (8)

• Verbal-linguistic - ability to think in words/use language that express meaning 

• Logical-mathematical – ability to carry out mathematical operations 

• Spatial – ability to think three dimensional 

• Bodily-kinesthetic – ability to manipulate objects and be physically adept 

• Musical – sensitive to pitch, melody, rhythm, and tone 

• Interpersonal – ability to understand and interact effectively with others 

• Intrapersonal – ability to understand oneself 

• Naturalists – ability to obverse patterns in nature and understand natural and human-made systems 

What are Freud’s and Erikson’s stages for middle childhood?

• Freud 

  • Latency stage 

• Erikson 

  • Industry vs inferiority 

What factors influence self-esteem in children? (5)

• Parental warmth 

• Monitoring 

• Low maternal depression 

• Economic well being 

• Father presence 

How does self-esteem influence a child’s academic achievement?

High self-esteem improves academic achievement

What is “co-regulation” and why is it important?

• Some control is transferred from parent to child

• Beneficial in relationships and development

Describe a child’s relationship with parents during middle childhood

• Parental management

• Secure attachment

• Parents spend less time with kids

• Developmental changes in relationships

Describe a child’s relationship with peers during middle childhood

• More peer interactions

• Peer statuses

• Bullying

What is the importance of the peer group to children? (6)

• Companionship 

• Stimulation 

• Physical support 

• Ego support 

• Social comparison 

• Affection & intimacy 

What are the factors that influence the onset of puberty, especially for girls?

• Body hair

• Weight increases & distribution

• Height increase

• Breast enlargement & menstruation (girls)

• Voice change and penis development (boys)

Explain the process of the HPA axis in puberty

Responsible for stimulating other supporting (secondary) sexual characteristics

What are the differences between girls and boys when it comes to weight and height gain in adolescence?

• Boys:

  • More height

  • More muscular growth

• Girls:

  • Stop growing sooner

  • More fat growth in hips and breasts

What is the “secular trend” and who does it influence?

The tendency of puberty to begin at an earlier age than in the past

Explain the challenges of not maturing on time for both girls and boys

• Positive for boys

• Less positive for girls

What are the nutritional needs of adolescent children?

• Girls need 1.8-2.4k calories 

• Boys need 2.2-3.3k calories 

What are “anorexia” and “bulimia”? Who is most vulnerable to each?

• Anorexia – an eating disorder that involves the relentless pursuit of thinness through starvation 

• Bulimia – an eating disorder in which the individual consistently follows a binge-purge pattern 

  • Girls are most vulnerable to both

Explain Piaget’s formal operational thought

• More abstract thought 

• Thinking about thought 

• Thinking more logically 

Describe the “personal fable”

• Sense of uniqueness and invincibility or invulnerability 

• Belief that nobody understands how they really feel 

What are the different types of identity formation? (9)

• Vocational/career 

• Political identity 

• Religious identity 

• Achievement & intellectual identity 

• Sexual identity 

• Cultural/ethnic identity 

• Interests 

• Personality 

• Physical identity 

Describe self-esteem in adolescence and who is most likely to influence that self-esteem

• Declines during adolescence 

  • More so in girls 

• Parental and peer influence

Explain the relationship between teens and their parents, especially as it relates to control and conflict

• Conflict increases in early adolescence and decreases in late adolescence

• Secure attachment

• Autonomy controlling vs supporting

What is “parental monitoring”?

• Monitoring includes supervising: 

  • Choice of social settings 

  • Activities 

  • Friends 

  • Academic efforts 

Describe the influence of different parenting styles on adolescents

• Autonomy controlling & low parental monitoring: negative

• Autonomy supportive & high parental monitoring: positive