Nurs Sci 116 MT1

Steps of the Scientific Method

observation, hypothesis, experiment, conclusion, report results

Nature vs Nurture

Traits, capacities, and limitations each individual inherits genetically from parents

(Before Birth)

vs

All environmental influences that affect the development

(After Birth)

Multidirectional

Human characteristics change in every direction to reflect the development

Life-Span Perspective

Study of human development that takes into account all phases of life

Critical Period

a specific time in development when certain skills or abilities are most easily learned

Sensitive Period

When a specific type of development is most likely to occur, although it may still happen later

Ecological-systems approach

The view that in the study of human development, the person should be considered in all the contexts and interactions that constitute a life

This theory argues that the environment you grow up in affects every facet of your life

Microsystem

each person's immediate social contexts, such as family and peer group

Exosystem

local institutions such as schools and church

Macrosystem

the larger setting, including cultural values, economic policies, and political processes

Mesosystem

the interactions and the connections among the other systems

Chronosystem

("time system") the historical context

Bioecological Systems

the internal biology of the person

Dynamic-systems approach

A view of human development as an ongoing, ever-changing interaction between the person and every aspect of his or her environment, including the family and society

Epigenetics

the study of stable phenotypic changes that do not involve alterations in the DNA sequence

Psychoanalytic Theory

A theory developed by Erikson and Freud that attempts to explain personality, motivation, and mental disorders by focusing on unconscious determinants of behavior

Oral Stage

(Birth-1 year)

The lips, tongue, and gums are the focus of pleasurable sensations in the baby's body, and sucking and feeding are the most stimulating activities.

Anal Stage

(1-3 years)

pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder elimination; coping with demands for control

Phallic Stage

(3-6 years)

pleasure zone is the genitals; coping with incestuous sexual feelings

Latency

(6 to 11)

a phase of dormant sexual feelings

Genital Stage

(adolescence to adulthood)

maturation of sexual interests

Basic Trust vs Mistrust

(0-18 months)

Babies trust they will be taken care of, if not mistrust develops

Autonomy vs Shame/Doubt

(18 months - 3 years)

Children become self-sufficient or they doubt their own abilities

Initiative vs Guilt

(3 to 6 years)

To develop the ability to try new things and to handle failure

Industry vs Inferiority

(6-11 years)

Children learn to be productive and learn new skills or they begin to feel inferior

Identity vs Role Confusion

(12-19 years)

teenagers and young adults search for and become their true selves

Intimacy vs Isolation

(20-25 years)

relationships or they die alone!

Generavity vs Stagnation

(26-64 years)

caring for others, empathy, and concern

Integrity vs Despair

(65-death)

Existential Identity, dissatisfaction with life or feelings of wisdom

Behavioral Theory

Watson, Skinner, Pavlov, and Bandura

Study of observable behavior; describes the laws and processes by which behavior is learned

Classical Conditioning

The learning process by which a natural (unconditioned) response (e.g. fear when seeing a lion out of a cage) becomes triggered by a formerly neutral stimulus by repeatedly pairing it with the stimulus that naturally triggers that response.

Operant Conditioning

The learning process by which a particular action is followed by something desired (which makes the person or animal more likely to repeat the action) or by something unwanted (which makes the action less likely to be repeated.)

Social Learning Theory

emphasizes the influence that other people have over a person's behavior

the theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded or punished

Cognitive Theory

Founded by Jean Piaget

Focuses on changes in how people think over time. According to this theory, our thoughts shape our attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.

Sensorimotor Stage

(0-2 years)

infants use senses and motor abilities to understand the world

learning is active; there is no conceptual or reflective thought

object permenance

Preoperational Stage

(2-6 years)

a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic

egocentric

Concrete Operational Stage

(6-11 years)

children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events

understands conservation

Formal Operational Stage

(12-adulthood)

people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

Scientific Observation

A method of testing a hypothesis by unobtrusively watching and recording participants' behavior in a systematic and objective manner - in a natural setting, in a laboratory, or in searches of archival data.

Survey

A research method in which information is collected from a large number of people by interviews, written questions, or some other means

Systematic Desensitization

treatment for phobias in which the patient is exposed to progressively more anxiety-provoking stimuli and taught relaxation techniques

Cross-Sectional Research

a research design that compares groups of people who differ in age but are similar in other important characteristics

Longitudinal Research

A research design in which the same individuals are followed over time and their development is repeatedly assessed.

Cross-Sequential Research

a hybrid research design in which researchers first study several groups of people of different ages and then follow those groups over the years

Germinal Period

The first two weeks of prenatal development after conception, characterized by rapid cell division and the beginning of cell differentiation.

Embryonic Period

the period from three to eight weeks after fertilization, during which the major organs and structures of the organism develop

Fetal Period

9 weeks until birth

the sex is determined

teeth and hair grows

the neurological, respiratory, and cardiovascular systems all develop

sound and sight become coordinated

Genotype

An organism's genetic makeup, or allele combinations.

Phenotype

An organism's physical appearance, or visible traits.

Terotogens

agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm

Low Birthweight

A newborn weight of less than 5.5 pounds.

caused by malnutrition, drug use, and multiple births

-smaller brain volume, lower IQ, and behavioral difficulties

-diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and depression in adulthood

Birth

around 38 weeks

the hormone oxytocin gets released

Apgar Scale

A rating system used to assess a newborn baby's physical condition immediately after birth on the basis of five characteristics

heart rate, respiratory effort, reflex irritability, muscle tone, and color

Infant Brain Development

the brain grows about 25% of adult weight to about 75% at age 2

Head-Sparing

A biological mechanism that protects the brain when malnutrition disrupts body growth. The brain is the last part of the body to be damaged by malnutrition.

Transient Exuberance

The great but temporary increase in the number of dendrites that develop in an infant's brain during the first two years of life.

Pruning

the degradation of synapses and dying off of neurons that are not strengthened by experience

Experience-Expectant Growth

ordinary experiences "expected" by brain to grow normally

Experience-Dependent Growth

process by which an individual's unique experiences over a lifetime affect brain structures and organization

Human brains also have built-in plasticity

Neurological connections await experiences that vary by culture

Fine Motor Skills

physical abilities involving small body movements, especially of the hands and fingers, such as drawing and picking up a coin

Gross Motor Skills

motor skills that involve large-muscle activities, such as walking

Primary Emotions

happiness, sadness, surprise, anger, disgust, fear, contempt

Secondary Emotions

blends of primary emotions; they include pride, jealousy, embarrassment, and guilt

Effortful Control

regulating attention and emotion, self-soothing

temperament

Negative Mood

fearful, angry, unhappy

Exuberant

active, social, and not shy

Implicit Memory

not verbal

memory for movement, emotions, or thoughts that are not put into words

Explicit Memory

depends on language

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare"

Primary Circular Reactions

Stages 1 & 2

reflexes and adaptations

sucking and swallowing

Secondary Circular Reactions

Stages 3 & 4

increased awareness of and response to people and objects in the environment,

ability to initiate activities

fascination with effects of actions

beginning of object permanace

secondary circular reactions (repetitive actions focused on the qualities of objects, such as their shapes, sizes, colors and noises

object permanence

Tertiary Circular Reactions

Stages 5 & 6

active exploration and experimentation. Infants explore a range of new activities, varying their responses as a way of learning about the world.

imagination

Home Births

less likely for surgery

less drugs

less intervention

can be less stressful

Midwives

have lower rates of various complications and interventions than physician births, in part because midwives emphasize breathing, massage, and social support

provides medical care

Doula

A caregiver who provides continuous physical, emotional, and educational support for the mother before, during, and after childbirth.

Cesarian Section

When a baby is delivered by cutting open its mother's abdomen.

10% of births

breast feeding is harder

medical complications are more likely

babies are more likely to have asthma or become obese (vaginal deliveries provide a good microbiome)

Holophase

a single word that is used to express a complete, meaningful thought

Naming Explosion

A sudden increase in an infant's vocabulary, especially in the number of nouns, that begins at about 18 months of age.

Theory: Infant's Need to be Taught Language

learning is acquired, step by step, through association and reinforcement

behaviorists believe that repetition and reinforcement strengthen the association between object and word

Theory: Social Impulses Foster Infant Language

infants communicate because humans are social beings, dependent on one another for survival and joy

Theory: Infants Teach Language Themselves

language learning is genetically programmed

human genes allow experience-dependent language learning in infancy

Language Acquisition Device (LAD)

Noah Chomsky's term for a hypothesized mental structure that enables humans to learn language, including the basic aspects of grammar, vocabulary, and intonation.

Synchrony

a coordinated, rapid, and smooth exchange of responses between a caregiver and an infant

Caregiver responsiveness to infant actions aids psychosocial and biological development

Social Referencing

Infants use caregiver displays/behaviors to learn about their world

Infant's rely on the caregiver for information and knowledge to know what to do

Attachment Type A: Insecure-Avoidant Attachment

an infant avoids connection with the caregiver

the infant seems not to care about the caregiver's presence, departure, or return

Attachment Type B: Secure Attachment

Infants feel comfy and confident

Concerned but not overwhelmed

The caregiver is a base for exploration

providing assurance and enabling discovery

Their presence gives the child courage to explore

Attachment Type C: Insecure-Resistant / Ambivalent Attachment

an infant's anxiety and uncertainty are evident

the infant becomes very upset at separation from the caregiver and both resists and seeks contact on reunion

Attachment Type D: Disorganized Attachment

an infant's inconsistent reactions to the caregiver's departure and return

may suddenly switch from hitting to kissing their mothers, from staring blankly to crying hysterically, from pinching themselves to freezing in place

Proximal Parenting

caregiving practices that involve being physically close to the baby, with frequent holding and touching

the child is more obedient but less self aware

Distal Parenting

caregiving practices that involve remaining distant from the baby, providing toys, food, and face-to-face communication with minimal holding and touching

the child is more independent

Working Model

set of assumptions that the individual uses to organize perceptions and experiences

an infant's early experiences are less influential than the interpretation of those experiences

Allocare

the care of children by people other than their biological parents

Cons: the quality can be lower, expensive

United States and Caring for Babies

20% of infants are cared soley by the mother

60% of mothers of infants under 1 worked in the labor force

US doesn't mandate maternity/paternity care

Myelination

the process by which axons become coated with myelin, a fatty substance that speeds the transmission of nerve impulses from neuron to neuron

Corpus Callosum

the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them

left-handed people have a thicker corpus callosum

Lateralization

specialization of the two cerebral hemispheres for particular operations

Prefrontal Cortex

part of frontal lobe responsible for thinking, planning, and language

Animism

Belief that objects, such as plants and stones, or natural events, like thunderstorms and earthquakes, have a discrete spirit and conscious life.

Centration

The tendency to focus on just one feature of a problem, neglecting other important aspects.

Static Reasoning

A young child thinks that nothing changes. Whatever is now has always been and always will be

Many children cannot imagine that their own parents were once children

Irreversibility

the inability of the young child to mentally reverse an action

fail to recognize that reversing a process might restore whatever existed before