Human Development: A Life-Span View - Chapter 1 Vocabulary

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering basic developmental forces, major theoretical perspectives, cognitive stages, and research methodologies from Chapter 1 of Human Development: A Life-Span View.

Nature vs. Nurture

The developmental issue concerning the degree to which hereditary influences (nature) or environmental influences (nurture) determine human development.

Continuity vs. Discontinuity

The developmental issue concerning whether development represents a smooth, gradual progression or a series of abrupt, discrete shifts.

Universal vs. Context-Specific Development

The developmental issue concerning whether there is just one path of development or multiple distinct paths dependent on context.

Biopsychosocial Framework

An integrated approach to human development combining biological, psychological, sociocultural, and life-cycle forces.

Biological Forces

Genetic and health-related factors that influence human development.

Psychological Forces

Internal cognitive, perceptual, emotional, and personality factors that shape human development.

Sociocultural Forces

Interpersonal, societal, cultural, and ethnic factors that affect development.

Life-Cycle Forces

Factors reflecting how identical events affect individuals in different age groups differently.

Neuroscience

The study of the brain and nervous system, particularly focusing on brain–behavior relationships.

Theory

An organized set of ideas designed to explain human development and formulate predictions about behavior.

Psychodynamic Theory

Theoretical perspective originating with Sigmund Freud holding that development is determined by how well individuals resolve age-based conflicts.

Erikson's Psychosocial Theory

A comprehensive life-span theory proposing eight discrete psychosocial stages of personality development.

Operant Conditioning

A learning theory mechanism where the consequences of a behavior determine whether that behavior will be repeated.

Reinforcement

A positive or negative consequence that increases the likelihood of a behavior being repeated.

Punishment

A consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behavior being repeated.

Social Learning Theory

A learning perspective postulating that individuals learn by observing and imitating others.

Self-Efficacy

An individual's beliefs about their own abilities and talents.

Cognitive-Developmental Theory

A theoretical perspective focused on the development of thought processes over time.

Sensorimotor Stage

The cognitive stage from birth to 2 years where knowledge is grounded in senses and motor skills, culminating in mental representation.

Preoperational Thought

The cognitive stage from 2 to 6 years where children use symbols such as words and numbers but view the world solely through their own perspective.

Concrete Operational Thought

The cognitive stage from 7 years to early adolescence where children apply logical operations to present experiences.

Formal Operational Thought

The cognitive stage from adolescence onward where individuals think abstractly, tackle hypothetical situations, and speculate on possibilities.

Information-Processing Theory

A cognitive model postulating that thought progresses through efficiency gains in processing information, similar to a computer.

Vygotsky's Theory

A cognitive theory proposing that sociocultural expectations and apprenticeships with skilled others shape individual development.

Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Theory

An ecological approach proposing that a developing person is embedded in interactive systems: microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem.

Competence–Environmental Press Theory

Lawton and Nahemow's theory stating that development and adaptation depend on the balance between personal competencies and environmental demands.

Life-Span Perspective

A view of human aging as a lifelong process from conception to death characterized by multidirectionality, plasticity, historical context, and multiple causation.

Selective Optimization with Compensation (SOC)

A framework stating that choices shape development through goal selection (elective or loss-based), optimization, and compensation.

Life-Course Perspective

A perspective examining how different generations adjust to biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces within historical contexts.

Naturalistic Observation

A systematic observation technique involving spontaneous observation of subjects in real-life settings.

Structured Observation

A systematic observation technique where researchers construct a setting designed to elicit a specific behavior of interest.

Self-Reports

A measurement technique in which research participants answer questions directly about themselves, such as on a questionnaire.

Reliability

The consistency with which a scientific measurement method yields identical results across repeated administrations.

Validity

The accuracy with which a research technique measures the specific variable it claims to measure.

Population

A broad group of individuals of interest to researchers from which conclusions are drawn.

Sample

A subset of individuals selected from a population to accurately represent that population in a study.

Correlational Study

A research design measuring relations between variables using a correlation coefficient ($r$) without inferring direct causation.

Correlation Coefficient ($r$)

A statistic ranging from $-1.00$ to $+1.00$ that indicates the direction and strength of the relation between two variables.

Independent Variable (IV)

The factor systematically manipulated by an experimenter in order to evaluate its causal impact.

Dependent Variable (DV)

The target behavior or outcome measured after exposure to the independent variable in an experiment.

Qualitative Study

Research focused on gaining an in-depth understanding of behaviors through smaller samples, extended observation, and pattern categorization.

Longitudinal Study

A developmental research design where one cohort of subjects is observed or tested repeatedly across several time periods.

Cross-Sectional Study

A developmental research design in which groups of individuals of different ages are tested simultaneously at one time point.

Cohort Effects

Differences between age groups in cross-sectional studies caused by environmental or historical experiences unique to specific generations.

Sequential Study

A developmental research design combining cross-sectional and longitudinal elements to control for cohort effects.

Meta-Analysis

A statistical technique used to synthesize and integrate findings from multiple independent research studies on the same topic.

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

A committee tasked with reviewing research proposals to protect participant rights, ensure ethical compliance, and guarantee informed consent.