AP Psych Unit 6

developmental psychology

branch of psych that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout life span

zygote

fertilized egg; enters 2-wk period of rapid cell division and develops into embryo

embryo

developing human organism from ab 2 wks after fertilization through 2nd month

teratogens

agents like chemicals and viruses that can reach embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by pregnant woman’s heavy drinking. In severe cases, symptoms include noticeable facial misproportions

rooting reflex

baby’s tendency when touched on the cheek to turn towards the touch, open mouth, and search for nipple

habituation

decreasing responsiveness w/ repeated stimulation. As infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to visual stimulus, their interest wanes and they look away sooner

maturation

biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience

adolescence

transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence

puberty

period of sexual maturation, during which person becomes capable of reproducing

primary sexual characteristics

body structures (ovaries, testes, external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible

secondary sexual characteristics

nonreproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair

menarche

first menstrual period

menopause

time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines

Alzheimer’s Disease

progressive and irreversible brain disorder characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and physical functioning (loss of brain cells and neurons that produce acetylcholine)

stranger anxiety

fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age

attachment

emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation

Harry & Margaret Harlow

conducted studies on attachment using infant monkeys; investigated importance of contact comfort in development of social bonds

critical period

optimal period shortly after birth when organism’s exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development

Konrad Lorenz

studied imprinting through ducklings; animals imprint best to their own species but can imprint to other moving objects too

imprinting

process by which certain animals (not humans) form attachments during critical period very early in life

Mary Ainsworth

studied attachment differences by observing mother-infant pairs at home during 1st 6 months; parenting style/responsiveness determined child’s attachment style

basic trust

according to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsible caregivers

self-concept

sense of one’s identity and personal worth

authoritarian parenting

demand obedience to parental authority. leads to unhappy, low self-esteem, children who keep to themselves

permissive parenting

don’t impose rules/standards, prefer to let kids regulate themselves. leads to impulsive children who disregard rules and may perform poorly in school

authoritative parenting

set high standards, nurturing, responsive, respect child’s autonomy. leads to capable, self-assured, socially popular children

Erik Erikson

theorized that proposed psychosocial development as series of 8 stages in which major challenges must be confronted

identity

one’s sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent’s task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating

emerging adulthood

intimacy vs isolation stage; young adults struggle to form close relationships and gain capacity for intimate love or feel socially isolated while not completely taking on adult-level responsibilities or independence

social clock

culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement

intimacy/love

the ability to form close, loving relationships; primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood

generativity/work

contributing to the world through creativity in family/work

schemas

concept or framework that organizes and interprets info

assimilate

interpreting one’s new experience in terms of one’s existing schemas

accommodate

adapting one’s current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new info

conservation

principle (Piaget believed to be part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in forms of objects

egocentrism

in Piaget’s theory, preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s POV

theory of mind

people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states – about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts and the behavior these might predict

crystallized intelligence

one’s accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase w/ age

fluid intelligence

one’s ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood

Jean Piaget

theorized that one can only reach full human intelligence after going through all 4 stages of cognitive development (ages vary)

sensorimotor stage

age 0-2, develop through experience and movement our 5 senses, realization of object permanence, egocentric

object permanence

understanding that objects continue to exist even when not seen

preoperational stage

age 2-7, thinking is categorized for symbolic functions and intuitive thoughts; can’t perform specific cognitive functions but ask lots of questions and play pretend to learn new experiences

concrete operational stage

age 7-11, discover logic and concrete cognitive operations such as sorting, math, inductive reasoning, and concept of conservation; less egocentric and learn empathy

formal operational stage

age 12+, have ability to think more rationally about abstract concepts and hypothetical events, deeper understanding of own identity and morality, learn deductive reasoning

Lev Vygotsky

disagreed w/ Piaget’s stages, argued that community and language play central part in learning, inner speech develops from external speech (conversation)

socialcultural theory

Vygotsky’s theory that children develop independently of stages as result of social interactions in zone of proximal development

Lawrence Kohlberg

6 stages of moral development from personal gain to universal ethical principles; structured in 3 levels (pre-conventional, conventional, post-conventional)

preconventional stage

morality judged by direct consequences expected for yourself and not by social norms

conventional morality

centered around what society regards as right/wrong

postconventional morality

know rules inconsistent w/ ppl’s own moralities may be disobeyed, commitment to universal ethical ideas regardless of what society says

Carol Gilligan

proposed that females tend to emphasize caring, relationships, and empathy in their moral reasoning, while men lean towards principles of justice and individual rights. Disagreed w/ Kohlberg’s male-centric perspective