Unit 6 - Developmental Psychology

nature vs. nurture debate

does biology or environment determine behavior?

Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution

advantageous traits that promote survival and reproduction proliferate, disadvantageous traits die out

identical twins

result of a single fertilized egg splitting in two, giving each twin identical DNA

fraternal twins

result of two separately fertilized eggs developing ay the same time in a mother’s womb; no more similar than regular siblings

() studies and () studies make use of these individuals’ traits and circumstances to study the relative influence of biology and environment on behavior

twin; adoption

PERSONALITY is largely (), and growing up in the same house has (little/a lot) of influence on many traits

genetic; little

behaviors and traits influenced by environment

well-being, achievement, alienation, aggression, politics, religion, values

adopted kids are (more/less) similar to their biological parents than their adopted parents

more

environmental influences

school, peers, family, drugs and alcohol, pre-natal conditions (ANYTHING THAT ISN’T GENETIC)

social learning theory and gender

we learn gender roles from observing and imitating those around us; certain behaviors are either awarded or punished for each sex

gender roles

expected behavior for our sex

how do evolutionary psychologists explain gender differences?

gender differences in behavior are biological adaptations meant to promote reproduction

stability vs. change debate

do personality, behavior, and intelligence remain consistent/constant over lifespan or do they change?

longitudinal study

researchers measure individuals over a longer period of time with the goal of measuring change over time (could be months or years)

drawbacks of longitudinal studies

participants may drop out of the study and cause researchers to lose data

continuous vs. discontinuous debate

does development happen in discrete stages or is it messier than that?

stage-theorists argue that development is (), meaning that…

discontinuous; it happens in discrete, clean-cut stages

anti-stage-theorists argue that development is (), meaning that…

continuous; stages can blur and blend as an individual develops, there are no clear cut-offs in development

cross-sectional study

compares different people in different stages of life at the same single moment in time

longitudinal studies can be compared to ()

movies

cross-sectional studies can be compared to ()

snapshots

teratogens

environmental agents that can adversely affect fetal development or cause birth defects (ex. alcohol → fetal alcohol syndrome)

grasping reflex

babies will grasp anything that touches their hand; this trait is a hangover from when early humans had to cling to their mothers’ coats for survival

rooting reflex

baby turns its head and opens its mouth when touched on the cheek; this helps the baby find a source of food

sucking reflex

allows baby to nurse

moro reflex

spreading arms when falling backwards

maturation

biologically programmed and sequential growth of a child; automatic, pre-set sequence

examples of maturation

development of fine and gross motor skills, meeting developmental norms

gross motor skills

involve larger muscles; ex. walking and standing

fine motor skills

involve smaller muscles; ex. handwriting

developmental norms

typical skills associated with particular stages in development

infants can respond to most () stimuli, distinguish between foreign and familiar (), distinguish between () and n() things

sensory; languages; living and non-living

without () and () s(), children’s brains do not fully develop to process complex information

sensory, social stimulation

Soon after birth, an infant’s brain begins creating new neural connections. In puberty, many of these connections are () to create more () ()

pruned; efficient pathways

jean piaget was a (stage theorist/anti-stage-theorist)

piaget was a stage theorist

piaget believed that children moved from () to () as they matured and were exposed to relevant types of ()

stage to stage; experience

assimilation

fitting new objects into pre-existing, general schemas

assimilation example

a baby sees a crow and calls it a bird

accomodation

fitting a new object into a category by adapting and changing a schema

accomodation example

a baby sees a bat and learns that it is not a bird; starts calling it a bat

sensorimotor stage ages

0-2

sensorimotor stage characteristics

infants’ mental activity is confined to sensory functions AKA “the here and now”, no object permanence, kids learn by interacting with the world

when do children develop object permanence?

6 months

pre-operational stage ages

2-7

pre-operational stage characteristics

kids can’t use logical reasoning yet (learn via intuition and guesses), symbolic thinking, pretend play, animism, egocentrism, kids don’t understand the law of conservation

symbolic thinking

children begin to think in symbols (ex. language and writing)

pretend play

objects symbolize other objects (ex. a broom is a horse)

animism

kids sincerely believe inanimate objects are alive and have feelings and consciousness

egocentrism

inability to see things from another’s point of view; kids assume that everybody knows, sees, and thinks the same things that they do (ex. believing teachers lived at school, closing your eyes in hide-and-seek thinking that you were hidden)

law of conservation

the quantity of substances remains the same despite changes in shape or arrangement—KIDS IN THE PRE-OPERATIONAL STAGE DON’T UNDERSTAND THIS (ex. quarter and cups experiments)

reversibility

processes can be reversed and you can put things back to how they were—KIDS IN THE PRE-OPERATIONAL STAGE DON’T UNDERSTAND THIS

concrete operational stage ages

7-11

concrete operational stage characteristics

children begin showing signs of adult thinking: can use logic rather than just guessing, can do elementary arithmetic, understand the law of conservation (however, logic only applies to concrete objects and not abstract ideas)

theory of mind

awareness that other people have their own thoughts, perspectives, etc.

formal operational stage ages

12 to adult

formal operational stage characteristcs

children begin to think abstractly and hypothetically: can work problems out with no direct connection to the real world, understand algebra and geometry, use multiple approaches to solve problems, plan for the future, formulate personal ideas and values, test hypotheses

revisions to piaget’s theory of cognitive development

development is more continuous and does not happen in discrete stages; kids’ cognitive abilities are underestimated less; takes into account the role of culture in learning

Lev Vygotsky’s theory of development

children learn via social interaction with mentors; zone of proximity and scaffolding (continuous)

scaffolding

mentors support children as they learn new skills and then gradually remove supports as the child becomes more proficient

zone of proximal development

not to hard, not too easy; sweet spot in which children learn most readily and can do new things with scaffolding and support

attachment

positive social bond that develops between a child and a particular individual, usually a parent

at (age) a child develops specific attachment to a caregiver

4 months

separation anxiety

when in the presence of a stranger, children go to the caregiver for comfort and become distressed if the caregiver leaves

when does separation anxiety develop in infants?

at around 8 months, they have object permanence!

harry harlow attachment study

harlow deprived baby rhesus monkeys of their mothers and provided them with fake mothers, one made of wire for feeding and one made of cloth for comfort, to see which one they would form attachment to

harlow’s theory of attachment

attachment grows via the responsiveness of an infant’s caregivers to the signals the babies provide. the more responsive a caregiver, the more secure attachment a child has

critical period

shortly after birth, animals form attachments based on familiarity

imprinting

animals become attached to the first moving object they see, usually their mother

mary ainsworth’s strange situation study

children and caregivers were put in unfamiliar situations, often with a stranger present. shortly after, the caregiver leaves the room and returns after a few minutes of absence. ainsworth studied babies’ reactions to caregivers returning to determine their attachment style

when caregivers returned after a period of absence, SECURELY ATTACHED babies were () and () with the caregivers and () of new situations. They immediately () () when a caregiver r()

relaxed, comfortable; tolerant; calm down; returns

anxious attachment

children cling to caregivers in novel situations and prove difficult to console, even after caretaker returns

avoidant attachment

child is not interested in contact with the caregiver, shows no distress when left alone and no particular happiness when reunited

disorganized attachment

children show inconsistent and contradictory reactions when the caregiver returns (ex. approaching but then refusing comfort)

temperament

a person’s natural, inborn emotional disposition

t() plays a role in determining attachment style

temperament

authoritarian parenting characteristics

parents demand unquestioning obedience and are rigid and punitive

authoritative parenting characteristics

parents set firm limits but explain their reasoning and allow kids to have some say in decisions

permissive parenting characteristics

parents give relaxed or inconsistent direction; nice, but undemanding

authoritarian parenting effects

strict standards, disagreement is discouraged, kids are often anxious and withdrawn

authoritative parenting effects

independence is encouraged; kids are likeable, self-reliant, and cooperative

permissive parenting effects

children tend to be immature, moody, dependent, and have no self-control

According to socio-cultural psychologists, there is no one, perfect () style as the one that is most encouraged is typically determined by cultural expectations and traditons

parenting style

parallel play

ages 2 or 3 - kids don’t directly interact with one another but will sit near each other and engage in similar activities

LITTLE KIDS DON’T () WITH EACH OTHER

SOCIALIZE

age at which kids start interacting with each other

age 3 or 4

microsystem

groups that have direct contact with a child

microsystem example

family, teachers, friends, etc

mesosystem

interactions between microsystems

mesosystem example

the friend group; teachers and parents interacting

exosystem

societal structures that indirectly influence the child

exosystem examples

the media, the government, the legal system

macrosystem

social and cultural values and traditions

macrosystem examples

US cultural values, Polish cultural traditions

chronosystems

an individual’s current stage in life, time of transition or change

chronosystem example

in school, married, divorced, puberty, etc

social clock

culturally specific timeline of milestones to reach as one progresses through life

emerging adulthood

new stage in the social clock that falls between adolescence and adulthood, as adult children are dependents in their family for longer stretches of time before developing full autonomy

puberty

development of sexual maturity; starts with a growth spurt & later development of primary and secondary sex characteristics

adolescence

stage of life between childhood and adulthood; begins with the onset of puberty and ends with physiological maturity at around age 19

primary sexual characteristics

reproductive organs and external genitalia