Human Development: Tools for Exploring the World

A series of vocabulary flashcards designed to help students review key terms and concepts from the chapter on physical, perceptual, and motor development in infants.

Apgar score

A quick assessment of the newborn's status based on five criteria: breathing, heartbeat, muscle tone, reflexes, and skin tone.

Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS)

A scale that includes 28 behavioral and 18 reflex items to assess a newborn's status across four systems: autonomic, motor, state, and social.

Reflexes

Unlearned responses triggered by specific stimuli that are present at birth and have survival value.

Crying Types

Different types of cries produced by infants: basic cry (soft to loud when hungry), mad cry (intense and loud), and pain cry (loud wail followed by gasping).

Co-sleeping

A practice where parents and infants sleep in close proximity, prevalent in cultures valuing interdependence; it poses risks when parents smoke or drink.

Malnutrition

A condition in which a lack of proper nutrition causes children to be below the expected growth standards and can lead to irreversible brain damage.

Fine Motor Skills

Skills associated with smaller movements, particularly those involving the synchronization of hands and fingers.

Theory of Mind

A naïve understanding of the relationship between mind and behavior, developing through five phases from understanding desires to emotional awareness.

Dynamic systems theory

A theory suggesting that motor development involves the coordination of different skills over time rather than simple maturation.

Developmental precursors

Behaviors or skills that indicate the beginning of a more complex ability; for example, stepping reflex as a precursor to walking.

Self-Awareness

The realization of oneself as a distinct entity, often assessed through the mirror test where children recognize a mark on their own nose.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

The sudden, unexplained death of a seemingly healthy infant, often associated with risk factors like parental smoking or stomach sleeping.

Development of senses

The progression of sensory capabilities in infants, including improvements in smell, taste, hearing, and sight.

Cultural Practices in Motor Development

Variations in developmental milestones, such as swaddling in some cultures, which can impact the timeline of motor skill acquisition.

Neurons

The basic building blocks of the nervous system, responsible for transmitting information throughout the body.

Visual Cliff Experiment

A research method used to test depth perception in infants by observing their reactions to a perceived drop-off.