Psychology Unit 1 Sac 2

(Chapter 2: What Influences psychological development) (Chapter 3: Defining and Supporting psychological development)

Development

Refers to change in an organism (human or animal) overtime.

Developmental Change

Change must be relatively permanent to be considered development.

Types of Development

• Emotional

• Cognitive

• Social

Emotional Development

Changes in how an individual expriences and expresses different feelings.

Cognitive Development

Changes in an individual’s mental ability/thought processes.

Social Development

Changes in an individual’s relationships with others and how they interact with others.

Heredity

Involves the transmission of characteristics from biological parents to their offspring.

Environment

Refers to all the experiences, objects + events to which we are exposed to throughout our entire lifetime.

The Biopsychosocial Model

Desrcibes how biological, psychological and social factors combine and interact to influence a person’s development and mental wellbeing.

Biological factors

Genetic and/or physiological based factors.

Psychological factors

Factors relating to a person’s mind, thoughts or feelings.

Social factors

Factors relating to a person’s relationships or external environment.

Biological factors (examples):

• Genetic predispositions

• Medications or other substances (e.g: drugs, alcohol)

• Nutrition

• Sleep

• Exercise

• Hormones

• Diseases

Psychological factors (example):

• Attitudes or beliefs

• Emotions

• Personality

• Memories

• Thoughts

• Self-esteem

Social factors (examples):

• Relationships

• Culture

• Socioeconomic status (wealth)

• Physical environment

• Social suppot

Relationship between mental wellbeing and development

Mental health problems during childhood or adolesence are associated with detrimental development outcomes in young adulthood.

Two-hit-hypothesis

Proposing that two events, initially a genetic vulnerability and environmental stress-cause the development of schizophrenia. Both events are necessary and must occur in that order.

Mental Wellbeing

An individual’s current psychological state, involving their ability to think process information, and regulate emotions.

Emotional development across lifespan

Involves changes in how a person interprets and expresses the full range of emotions and their ability to cope with them appropriately.

Attachment

Individual differences in emotional development between people have been linked to the type of attachment they form with their primary caregiver as a child.

Types of attachment

• Secure attachment

• Insecure avoidant attachment

• Insecure Resistance

Secure Attachment

Infants show a balance between dependence and exploration + some distress when the giver departs + enthusiasm upon their return.

Insecure Avoidant Attachment

The infant rarely cries when the caregiver leaves the room, and ignores them upon return.

Insecure Resistant Attachment

The infant appears anxious even when their caregiver is near, becomes very upset when separated from their caregiver.

Cognitive Development (with reference to an example)

Cognitive development refers to the age-related and relatively permanent changes in a person’s mental abilities as they mature. (e.g: conversation, concept of time)

Define schema

A mental idea idea of what something is an how to act on it.

Assimiliation

The process of taking on new information and fitting it into and making it part of pre-existing mental idea (schema).

Assimiliation (example)

A child may see a truck and call it a car, simply because a car is the only type of vehicle for which the child has a pre-existing mental idea.

Accommodation

Involves changing a pre-existing mental idea (schema) in order to fit new information.

Accommodation (example)

Child may learn that the moon is not a ball (learning that not all circular objects are balls), this recognition being accommodation.

Stages in paiget’s theory

• Sensorimotor (0-2yrs)

• Pre-operational (2-7yrs)

• Concrete operational (7-12yrs)

• Formal operatiional (12+yrs)

Sensorimotor (cognitive accomplishments)

• Object permanence

• Goal-directed behaviour

Object permanence

The understanding that objects still exist even if they cannot be seen, heard or touched.

Goal-directed behaviour

Successfuly completing a sequence of actions with a purpose in mind.

Pre-operational (cognitive accomplishments)

• Symbolic Thinking

• Transformation

• Reversibility

Pre-operational (cognitive developments not accomplishments)

• Egocentrism

• Animism

Symbolic Thinking

The ability to use symbols such as words, and pictures to represent object that aren’t physically present.

Transformation

Understanding that something can change from one state to another. (e.g: ice is made if same substance as water)

Reversibility

Ability to mentally follow a sequence of events back to its starting point.

Egocentrism

Perceive the world soley from one’s own point of view.

Animism

Belief everything has some kind of consciousness.

Concrete Operational

• Conservation

Conservation

Understanding that certain properties of an object can remain the same even if the appearance changes.

Formal operational

• Abstract Thinking

• Idealistic Thinking

Abstract Thinking

Thinking that does not rely on being a ble to visualize or manipulate in order to understand something.

Idealistic Thinking

Comparing oneself and others to a perfect standard and striving towards being like that ideal.

Social development (with reference to an example)

The continuous , lifelong development of skills, attitudes and behaviours that enable an individual to interact with others and to function as a member of society as well as the changes in relationships that occur across the lifespan.

Critical Periods

A specific period in development in which a specific function or skill must be learnt. (one must be exposed to the appropriate environmental experience to achieve this). If missed it can permanently + irreversibly affect development.

Sensitive Periods

A period of time during development when an individual is more responsive to environmental experiences or learning. (if missed, skill still attainable, just harder + slower).

Typical Development

When behaviours, skills or abilities fall within the expected range of development or progress at at a similar pace compared to peers of the same age).

Atypical Development

Development that is not typical. It noticeably differs in a significant way from what is unusual or appropriate.

Typical Behaviour

When a person acts as they usually would as long as it is appropriate and expected for the given situation. (atypical behaviour for one person may be typical for another)

Atypical Behaviour

When a person is behaving out of character and is not typical and is markedly different from what is expected or appropriate.

When determine if a behaviour is typical or not, consider:

• Cultural perspectives

• Social norms

• Statistical rarity

• Personal distress

• Maladaptive behaviour

Social norms

Widely held standards that govern the way we should behave in different situations or in society in general.

Social norms (examples)

• Smiling when your happy, crying at a funeral

• Thanking someone for a gift

Cultural Perspectives

Each culture has its own set of norms so what is acceptable in one culture may not be in another.

Cultural Perspectives (example):

Thumbs up may be a greeting in some cultures, but an insult un others.

Statistical Rarity

Behaviour is considered typical if the large majority of people (the statistic average) behave that way.

Statistical Rarity (example)

Laughing at a funny joke is what most people do whilst most people do whilst most people don’t laugh at a funeral.

Personal distress

If distress is so intense, disruptive and persistent that it interferes with daily functioning adequately it is likely considered atypical and possibly maladaptive.

Personal distress (examples)

Crying excessively every morning so they can’t physically go to school.

Maladaptive behaviour

A behaviour/action that involves being unable to meet the changing demands of their everyday life and adapt appropriately to their environment and function.

Adaptive behaviour

Is a behaviour that enables one to carry out everyday tasks appropriately and function effectively.

Neurotypicality

A term used to describe people whose neurological development and cognitive functioning are typical or what is expected.

Neurodiversity

Refers to variations in neurological development and cognitive functioning such as those experienced by people with autism.

Psychologists (role):

Is professionally trained to work with people expriencing Trauma, diagnosed mental health disorder, + provide talk + non-medicinal therapies.

Psychologists (Qualifications):

Formal up to 7 years.

Psychologists (Who they work with):

Anybody, primarily those expriencing: relationship problems, trauma, parenting issues, loss or grief, substance abuse.

Psychologists (Where they work):

Hospital, community health services, courts, prisons, the defence forces, private practice.

Psychiatrist (role):

Diagnosis, treatment (including prescribing medication), may study mental health disorders.

Psychiatrist (Qualifications):

10-12 years of training.

Psychiatrist (Who they can work with):

Patients with mental health problems, as well as their families and carers, other health professionals, general practioners.

Psychiatrist (Where they work):

Private, public, or acedemic practices; hospitals; clinics; community settings.

Mental Health Workers (Role):

Provide a wide range of services and care for their patients.

Mental Health Workers (Qaulifications):

Nursing or social work degree (3 + years)

Mental Health Workers (Who they can work with):

Children with autism, young adults with ADHD, elederly people with denentia, mostly with postpartum depression.

Mental Health Workers (Where they work):

Client’s home, community or mental health support centres, aged-care homes, rehabilitation centers, clinics, community based non-gov organisations.

Mental Health organisations

a company or group that works to address or advocate for mental health, such as through providing support or specialized services.