Psychology 1101 Domains of Lifespan Development

physical development

growth and changes in the body and brain, senses, motor skills, and health and wellness

cognitive development

learning, attention, memory, thinking, reasoning, and creativity

psychosocial development

emotions, personality, and social relationships

nature and nurture: how does genetic inheritance interact with experiences to influence development?

development is shaped by both genetics (nature) and environment (nurture). genes provide the blueprint (e.g., potential for height, temperament), but life experiences—like parenting, culture, and education—shape how traits are expressed. the interaction is dynamic; for example, a child may be genetically inclined toward language ability, but nurturing through conversation and reading enhances it.

community and stages: which parts of development are gradual and continuous? which parts change abruptly in separate stages?

some aspects of development (like vocabulary growth or motor skills) tend to be continuous, happening gradually. others (like cognitive or moral reasoning) seem to follow stages with distinct steps, as suggested by theorists like piaget (cognitive development) and kohlberg (moral development). whether development is continuous or staged often depends on the domain being studied.

stability and change: which traits persist through life? how do we change as we age?

some traits, like temperament or emotional reactivity, show stability over time. However, many aspects of personality, beliefs, and behaviors can change with age, experience, and maturity. for example, impulsivity often decreases while emotional regulation improves. both stability and change are essential for understanding personal growth across the lifespan.

What did Sigmund Freud believe about childhood experiences?

Childhood experiences shape our personalities and behavior as adults.

How did Sigmund Freud view development?

He viewed development as discontinuous.

What did Sigmund Freud develop related to childhood development?

He developed stages of psychosexual development.

What did Freud believe could happen if a child lacks proper nurturance during a stage?

A child could become stuck or fixated in that stage.

What are the five stages of psychosexual development according to Freud?

1. Oral 2. Anal 3. Phallic 4. Latency 5. Genital

What did Freud claim about children's pleasure-seeking urges?

They are focused on different erogenous zones at each of the 5 stages of development.

jean piaget

believed children are active thinkers - construct their understanding of the world while interacting with it

schemas

concepts or frameworks that organize and interpret information

assimilation

interpreting new experiences in terms of existing understandings (schemas)

accommodation

adapting current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information

piaget's theory: sensorimotor (0-2 yrs)

- world experienced through senses and actions

- object permanence - understanding that even if something's out of sight, it still exists

- stranger anxiety

piaget's theory: preoperational (2-6 yrs)

- use words and images to represent things but lack logical reasoning

- pretend play

- egocentrism - unable to take the perspective of others

- language development

piaget's theory: concrete operational (7-11 yrs)

- understand concrete events and analogies logically; perform arithmetical operations

- conversation

- mathematical tranformations

piaget's theory: formal operational (12+ yrs)

- formal operations, utilize abstract reasoning

- abstract logic

- moral reasoning

egocentrism

unable to take the perspective of others

zygote

the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo

embryo

developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month

fetus

developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth

amniotic sac

surrounds and protects baby; filled with fluid

placenta

waste elimination, gas exchange, nutrient uptake

umbilical cord

connects growing human to the placenta

teratogens

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

fetal alcohol syndrome

physical and cognitive abnormalities present in babies born to women that drink heavily during pregnancy

organogenesis

the formation and differentiation of organ tissues

habituation

the decrease in response when a stimulus is repeated again and again over time

universal motor development sequence

sit, crawl, walk, run

What was the main finding of the Rovee-Collier experiment?

Babies learned to associate kicking of their feet with the movements of the mobile/bell that they would hear.

What type of memory is demonstrated in the Rovee-Collier experiment?

Implicit memory

What is the term used for the type of recall involved in the Rovee-Collier experiment?

Cued recall

How long could 2-month-old babies remember how the mobile works?

2 days

How long could 3-month-old babies remember how the mobile works?

7 days

How long could 6-month-old babies remember how the mobile works?

14 days

How long could 18-month-old babies remember how the mobile works?

90 days

critical period

optimal period early in life when exposure to stimuli or experiences produces normal development.

- language

- vision

- use it or lose it

harlow's monkey mothers

Harry Harlow and Margaret Harlow pitted the wire mother against the cloth mother, with and without nourishment, and the cloth mother won hands down

Study demonstrated the importance of maternal attachment and contact comfort

konrad lorenz

founder of modern ethology (study of animal behavior)

imprinting (lorenz)

the process by which some animals form strong attachments early in life

strange situation experiment (ainsworth)

In this experiment Ainsworth observed mother-infant pairs during the first 6 months in a strange situation, like a lab playroom. This led to her description of attachment styles.

secure attachment

happily explore in their mother's presence; distressed when she leaves; easily comforted when she returns.

insecure attachment

less likely to explore; may cling to their mother; remain upset when she returns or may seem indifferent to her return

temperament

a person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

infant temperament

irritable infants received less physical contact, more soothing, more noninvolvement, than non-irritable infants

parenting styles: authoritarian

impose rules and expect obedience

parenting styles: permissive

make few demands and use little punishment

parenting styles: neglectful

uninvolved; neither demanding nor responsive; careless and inattentive; do not seek a close relationship with their children

parenting styles: authoritative

both demanding AND responsive; control by setting rules, but encourage open discussion and allow exceptions

- children with highest self esteem, self reliance, and social competence usually have authoritative parents