Psych 2000- Chapter 9 Lifespan Development Terms

Developmental Psychology

The study of age-related changes in physical, cognitive, and social development from conception to death.

Physical Development

Developmental domain covering bodily and brain growth, senses, motor skills, and health/wellness.

Cognitive Development

Developmental domain covering learning, attention, memory, language, thinking, and reasoning.

Psychosocial Development

Developmental domain covering emotions, personality traits, and social relationships.

Normative Approach

Studying development by comparing individual progress to group age averages.

Developmental Milestones

Specific normative age-related events (e.g., walking, talking).

Continuous Development

View that development involves gradual, cumulative, ongoing changes throughout life.

Discontinuous Development

View that development progresses through distinct, unique, qualitative stages.

Nature

Genetic and biological influences present from birth.

Nurture

Environmental, cultural, and experiential factors that shape development.

Psychosexual Theory

Freud's theory that personality forms through 5 stages focused on bodily erogenous zones.

Fixation

Remaining psychologically stuck at an unresolved earlier developmental stage.

Psychosocial Theory

Erikson’s 8-stage lifespan theory emphasizing social conflicts and identity across life.

Trust vs. Mistrust

Erikson Stage 1 (Birth–1 yr): Learning to trust world based on caregiver reliability.

Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt

Erikson Stage 2 (1–3 yrs): Developing independence in basic choices and actions.

Initiative vs. Guilt

Erikson Stage 3 (3–6 yrs): Taking initiative in social play and planning tasks.

Industry vs. Inferiority

Erikson Stage 4 (6–12 yrs): Developing competence and pride through skills and schoolwork.

Identity vs. Role Confusion

Erikson Stage 5 (12–18 yrs): Developing a coherent personal identity and self-direction.

Intimacy vs. Isolation

Erikson Stage 6 (18–early 40s): Establishing deep, committed romantic and social relationships.

Generativity vs. Stagnation

Erikson Stage 7 (mid-40s–mid-60s): Contributing to family and society to outlast oneself.

Integrity vs. Despair

Erikson Stage 8 (mid-60s–death): Reflecting on life with fulfillment rather than regret.

Schemata (Schemas)

Mental categories and frameworks used to organize and interpret information.

Assimilation

Fitting new information into existing schemas without changing the schema.

Accommodation

Modifying or creating new schemas because new information doesn't fit existing ones.

Sensorimotor Stage

Piaget Stage 1 (Birth–2 yrs): Exploring world via sensory perceptions and motor actions.

Object Permanence

Understanding that objects exist even when unseen or unheard.

Animism

Believing inanimate objects are alive and have feelings.

Preoperational Stage

Piaget Stage 2 (2–7 yrs): Symbolic play and language without concrete logic.

Conservation

Realizing mass, volume, and quantity remain equal despite changes in physical appearance.

Egocentrism

Inability to take another person’s visual or mental perspective.

Concrete Operational Stage

Piaget Stage 3 (7–11 yrs): Logical thinking applied to concrete, tangible events.

Reversibility

Realizing operations and relationships can be reversed back to original states.

Formal Operational Stage

Piaget Stage 4 (12 yrs–adulthood): Abstract thinking, hypothetical reasoning, deductive logic.

Postformal Stage

Adult cognitive stage integrating context, emotion, and situational logic.

Scaffolding

Providing temporary guidance and support to help a learner master a task independently.

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

The gap between what a child can do alone versus with skilled assistance.

Preconventional Morality

Kohlberg Level 1: Moral decisions based on external punishment and adult obedience.

Conventional Morality

Kohlberg Level 2: Moral decisions based on societal norms, law, and social approval.

Post-Conventional Morality

Kohlberg Level 3: Moral decisions based on universal human rights and ethical principles.

Gametes

Male (sperm) and female (egg/ovum) reproductive cells.

Conception

Union of sperm and egg in the fallopian tube.

Zygote

Single-celled organism created by fertilization.

Germinal Stage

Prenatal period from fertilization to 2 weeks, ending with uterine implantation.

Placenta

Organ delivering oxygen and nutrients from mother to fetus via umbilical cord.

Embryo

Developing organism from 2 to 8 weeks after conception.

Embryonic Stage

Critical prenatal period (2–8 wks) forming body layers, neural tube, and organs.

Ectoderm

Outer embryonic layer forming skin and nervous system.

Endoderm

Inner embryonic layer forming internal viscera and organs.

Mesoderm

Middle embryonic layer forming muscles, skeleton, and circulatory system.

Neural Tube

Embryonic structure (forming at day 22) that becomes brain and spinal cord.

Fetus

Developing human organism from 8/9 weeks post-conception until birth.

Fetal Stage

Prenatal period (8/9 wks–birth) of rapid physical growth, neurons, and sex differentiation.

Prenatal Care

Medical monitoring during pregnancy to prevent complications and support health.

Teratogens

Harmful environmental elements, chemicals, or diseases affecting the fetus.

Thalidomide

Morning sickness drug that caused severe limb malformations (phocomelia).

Phocomelia

Stunted or missing long bones of the limbs caused by thalidomide.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Cluster of birth defects, cognitive delays, and physical malformations from alcohol.

Rooting Reflex

Infant reflex to turn head and open mouth when the cheek is touched.

Moro Reflex

Startle reflex where infant arches back, throws arms out, then pulls them in.

Attachment

Emotional bond between child and caregiver seeking proximity and comfort.

Secure Base

Caregiver's presence giving the child comfort to explore surroundings.

Strange Situation

Ainsworth's observational test evaluating infant-caregiver attachment styles.

Secure Attachment

Healthy attachment; child is distressed at parting, easily comforted at reunion.

Avoidant Attachment

Insecure attachment; child ignores caregiver departure and reunion.

Ambivalent (Resistant) Attachment

Insecure attachment; extreme separation distress with mixed/angry reunion response.

Disorganized Attachment

Insecure attachment; confused, contradictory, or fearful responses to caregiver.

Self-Concept

An individual's sense of self as a distinct, separate person with unique traits.

Mirror Test (Rouge Test)

Self-awareness test where babies touch their own rouge-marked nose at 15–18 months.

Demandingness

The degree to which parents set rules, expectations, and discipline.

Responsiveness

The degree to which parents provide warmth, affection, and emotional availability.

Authoritative Parenting

High demandingness, high responsiveness; yields independent, happy, high-achieving youth.

Authoritarian Parenting

High demandingness, low responsiveness; yields obedient but lower self-esteem youth.

Permissive Parenting

Low demandingness, high responsiveness; yields low self-regulation and school difficulties.

Uninvolved Parenting

Low demandingness, low responsiveness; yields lowest self-esteem and peer difficulties.

Adolescence

Transitional period between childhood and adulthood (approx. ages 12–18).

Puberty

Period of rapid physical and sexual maturation enabling reproduction.

Adrenarche

Early pubertal phase involving increased adrenal androgen production.

Gonadarche

Pubertal maturation of the ovaries or testes.

Primary Sexual Characteristics

Body structures directly required for sexual reproduction (e.g., ovaries, testes).

Secondary Sexual Characteristics

Non-reproductive physical traits of sexual maturity (e.g., breasts, deep voice).

Menarche

A female's first menstrual period.

Spermarche

A male's first ejaculation.

Frontal Lobe Development

Ongoing maturation of prefrontal brain regions for judgment, lasting into mid-20s.

Emerging Adulthood

Transitional life stage from age 18 to mid-20s focused on identity and career exploration.