Psych Unit 3 pt 2

Developmental Psychology

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span

Continuous development

view that development is a cumulative process: gradually improving on existing skills

Discontinuous development

view that development takes place in unique stages, which happen at specific times or ages

Lifespan development

the field of study that examines patterns of growth, change, and stability in behavior that occur throughout the entire life span

Nature and nurture

the longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors

Stability and change

Do our early personality traits persist through life, or do we become different persons as we age?

cross sectional

type of study that measures a variable across several age groups at the same time

longitudinal

describes research that measures a trait in a particular group of subjects over a long period of time

Adolescence

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

Critical periods

times during which certain environmental influences can have an impact on the development of the infant

Developmental milestone

approximate ages at which children reach specific normative events

Fine motor coordination

• involves small muscle groups

• usually includes finger dexterity and/or skilled manipulation of objects with the hands

Gross motor coordination

using large muscle groups for controlled, goal-directed movements

Growth spurt

The relatively sudden and rapid physical growth that occurs during puberty. Each body part increases in size on a schedule: Weight usually precedes height, and growth of the limbs precedes growth of the torso.

Imprinting

the process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life

Maturation

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

Menarche

the first menstrual period

Menopause

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

Prenatal influence

the mother's health, behavior, and the prenatal medical care she does, or does not, receive before delivery

Primary sex characteristics

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

Puberty

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

Reflexes

specific patterns of motor response that are triggered by specific patterns of sensory stimulation

Rooting reflex

a baby's tendency, when touched on the cheek, to turn toward the touch, open the mouth, and search for the nipple

Secondary sex characteristics

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

Sensitive periods

time periods when specific skills develop most easily

Spermarche

first ejaculation

Teratogens

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

Visual cliff

a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals

Gender

in psychology, the biologically and socially influenced characteristics by which people define male and female

Sex

the biological distinction between females and males

Sexual orientation

an enduring sexual attraction toward members of either one's own sex (homosexual orientation) or the other sex (heterosexual orientation)

Abstract thinking

an enduring sexual attraction toward members of either one's own sex (homosexual orientation) or the other sex (heterosexual orientation)

Accommodation

the process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina

Animism

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

Assimilation

interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas

Concrete operational

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 6 or 7 to 11 years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events

Conservation

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

Crystallized intelligence

our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age

Dementia

a slowly progressive decline in mental abilities, including memory, thinking, and judgment, that is often accompanied by personality changes

Egocentrism

in Piaget's theory, the preoperational child's difficulty taking another's point of view

Fluid intelligence

our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood

Formal operational

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

Hypothetical thinking

Thinking that is based on what is possible, and not just what is real; sometimes referred to as "if-then" thinking.

Jean Piaget

Known for his theory of cognitive development in children

Mental symbols

represent objects in the real world

Object permanence

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

Preoperational stage

in Piaget's theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic

Pretend play

make-believe activities in which children create new symbolic relations, acting as if they were in a situation different from their actual one

Puberty

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

Reversibility

the capacity to think through a series of steps and then mentally reverse direction, returning to the starting point

Scaffolding

the capacity to think through a series of steps and then mentally reverse direction, returning to the starting point

Schema

Adjusting the support offered during a teaching session to fit the child's current level of performance

Sensorimotor stage

in Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities

Theory of mind

people's ideas about their own and others' mental states—about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict.

Zone of proximal development

phase of learning during which children can benefit from instruction

Babbling

stage of language development at about 4 months when an infant spontaneously utters nonsense sounds

Cooing

early vowel-like sounds that babies produce

Grammar

in a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others

Language

our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning

Lev Vygotsky

child development; investigated how culture & interpersonal communication guide development; zone of proximal development; play research

Morphemes

The smallest units of meaning in a language.

Non-verbal manual gestures

Symbolic gestures include head nod or thumbs up to say "yes" or holding a hand up to say "wait."

One-word stage

the stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words

Overgeneralization

the tendency to interpret a single negative event as a never-ending pattern of defeat and failure

Phonemes

in language, the smallest distinctive sound unit

Semantics

the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language; also, the study of meaning

Syntax

Sentence structure

Telegraphic speech

early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram—"go car"—using mostly nouns and verbs.