IB Psych HL Development Unit content

Developmental studies

study of how people chnage biologically, cognitively and socially throughout their lives

Maturation

Unfolding of one’s genetic program

The structure/function relationship

Explains how brian structure changes which in turn impacts abstract thinking and interaction with others

Neurogenesis (1/4 stages of development)

the process of generating new neurons from neural stem cells, crucial for brain development and learning.

Migration (1/4 stages of development)

The process by which newly formed neurons move to their designated locations in the brain, playing a vital role in brain structure and function.

Diffrentiation (1/4 stages of development)

The process by which newly formed neurons develop distinct identities and functions, essential for the establishment of various neural circuits in the brain.

Pruning (1/4 stages of development)

The process of eliminating excess neurons and synapses to enhance the efficiency of neural connections, critical for normal brain maturation.

Critical periods

An interval during which certain kinds of growth must occur if development is to proceed normally

sprouting

The process where newly formed axons and dendrites extend to establish new synaptic connections, contributing to neural network formation.

Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development

That intellectual development is a form of adaptation with 2 processes of assimilation and accommodation.

Assimilation

Child reacts to new object or idea consistent with existing mental representations

Accomodation

After encounter, the child alters existing mental representations to incorporate new information.

Pre-operational stage

2-7 years old, engaging in symbolic play and using language (transductive reasoning) , but lacking logical reasoning. Characterised by centration, egocentrism and irreversability.

Sensorimotor stage

0-2 years old. Children’s reasoning is subordinate to movement and sensation. Their understanding of the world is through interactions with their environment. They develop object permanence and begin to understand causality.

Concrete operational stage

7-11 years old. Children are no longer egocentric and understand conservation and reversibility. Children develop inductive reasoning.

Formal operational stage

11-16 years old, children develop abstract thinking and hypothetical reasoning. They can systematically plan and think about possibilities, including scientific reasoning.

Limitations regarding Piaget

Clear cut stages, lack of individual differences, did not account for sociocultural differences, Piaget’s methods, limited generalisability bc he used his own children.

Piaget’s strengths

Criticisms do not challenge his core ideas, drew attention to differences between children and adults.

Lee Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory

Development oif a child can’t be viewed seperately from their culture. Social interactions play a fundamental role in cognitive development, emphasizing the importance of language and collaboration between children and their environment.

Vygotsky’s “higher order” functions

Include voluntary attention, semantic memory, and conceptual thinking related to language and social context.

Vygotsky’s theory that every function appears twice

First on a social level and then on an individual level, indicating that social interactions shape cognitive functions before they are internalised by the child.

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

The range of tasks that a child can perform with guidance from a more knowledgeable person, representing the potential for cognitive development.

Current understanding is what a child is capable of without assistance, while the ZPD includes what they can achieve with support. Out of reach refers to the zone that a child cannot complete even with adult assistance.