Psych Unit 3a

nature vs nurture

name for a controversy in which it is debated whether genetics or environment is responsible for driving behavior

continuous vs discontinuous stages

Do we develop in well-defined stages or continuously on a spectrum?

Stability vs change

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

Cross-sectional

research that compares people of different ages at the same point in time

Longitudinal Study

research that follows and retests the same people over time

Tetratogens

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

fetal alchohol syndrome

physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman's heavy drinking

Maturation

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

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

physical abilities involving large body movements, such as walking and jumping

Rooting reflex

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

Visual Cliff study

tested if depth perception is innate or learned using an apparatus with a "cliff" (a drop-off covered by clear glass with a checkered pattern below) to see if infants and animals would avoid it

Critical Period

an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism's exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development

Sensitive Period

A limited phase in an animal's development that is the only time when certain behaviors can be learned.

Imprinting

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

adolescence

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

Puberty

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

Primary Sex Characteristic

a physical feature such as the reproductive organs and genitals that distinguish the sexes

Secondary Sex Characteristics

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

Menarche

the first menstrual period

Spermache

first ejaculation

Menopause

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

Adulthood sensory acuity

the sharpness and sensitivity of the senses (vision, hearing, taste, smell, and touch)

Gender (vs sex)

sex is biologically determined(genetically determined) and gender is socially constructed.

Gender Similarities

men and women are alike on most psychological traits (e.g., intelligence, personality, emotions)

Gender differences

45/46 chromosomes unisex

Differences in body fat, muscle, height, onset of pubert, life expectancy

Males tend to be more physically aggressive (testosterone)

Females tend to form more connections with people (more socially aggressive)

Gender roles

sets of behavioral norms assumed to accompany one's status as male or female

Gender Identity

personal sense of being male or female, regardless of whether this identity matches our sex assigned at birth and the social affiliation that may come with it

Social Learning Theory

We learn social behavior by observing and initiating and being rewarded and punished

Gender Schema

a mental framework or cognitive structure that organizes information about sex, gender, and culturally appropriate roles, behaviors, and traits, helping individuals categorize themselves and others as masculine or feminine, guiding their perceptions, attitudes, and actions based on cultural gender stereotypes

Androgyny

Blending traditional male and female psychological characteristics

Transgender

Gender identity differs from what is typical for sex assigned at birth

Schemas

Concept or framework that organizes and interprets information

Assimilation

Interpreting our new experiences in terms of existing schemas

Accomodation

adapting our current schemas (understandings) to incorporate new information

Sensorimotor Stage

In Piaget's theory (birth to about 2 years) at which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities

Preoperational Stage

In Piaget's theory the stage (from 2 to 6-7 years of age) at which a child learns to use language but doesn't yet comprehend mental operations of concrete logic

Pretend Play

when children use imagination to create scenarios, assign roles (like doctor, parent), and use objects symbolically (a block as a phone) to act out real or fantasy situations, crucial for developing cognitive skills, language, emotional regulation, problem-solving, and social understanding by experimenting with different perspectives in a safe, non-literal way

(Lack) conservation

a child can't grasp that an object's core properties (like volume, mass, or number) stay the same despite changes in its appearance or shape, often focusing only on one striking feature (like height or spread) and misjudging the quantity, a skill typically developed between ages 7-11.

(Lack) reversibility

an inability to mentally reverse an action or operation. For example, a child failing this concept won't grasp that pouring water from a tall glass back into a short one restores the original amount, showing they can't mentally undo the pouring.

Animism

a cognitive trait, especially in Piaget's preoperational stage (ages 2-7), where children believe inanimate objects, places, and creatures have feelings, consciousness, or human-like qualities, seeing spirits or life in everything from toys to the sun, a developmental phase showing their emerging understanding of the world

Egocentrism

a cognitive limitation, especially in young children (Piaget's Preoperational Stage), where an individual struggles to see situations from perspectives other than their own, viewing the world primarily through their own viewpoint

Theory Of Mind

the cognitive ability to understand that other people have their own unique beliefs, desires, intentions, and perspectives that might differ from your own or from reality, forming the foundation for social understanding, communication, and empathy

Concrete Operation Stage

Stage of cognitive development (7 to 11 years of age) at which children can perform the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete (actual, physical) events

Conservation

Principle (Piaget believed to be part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties like mass, volume, and numbers remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects

Formal Operational Stage

stage of cognitive development (starting around 12 years) at which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

Abstract Thought

the ability to think beyond concrete, literal ideas to understand general concepts, hypothetical situations, symbols, and complex relationships

Hypothetical Thought

the cognitive ability to imagine possibilities, explore "what if" scenarios, and reason about things not currently real

Scaffold

In Vygotsky's theory, a framework that offers children temporary support as they develop higher levels of thinking

Zone of Proximal Development

Range of skills that a child can perform with assistance, not independently or fully aided

Crystalized Intelligence

one's accumulated knowledge and verbal skills, reflecting the learning and experiences gained throughout a lifetime tends to increase with age

Fluid Intelligence

Our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease with age

Dementia

a syndrome involving a significant, progressive decline in memory, thinking, and behavior (cognition) severe enough to interfere with daily life, caused by various underlying brain diseases

Phonemes

In a language, the smallest distinctive sound unit

Morphemes

In a language, the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word or part of one (like a prefix)

Grammar

In a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others, semantics is the language's set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds, and syntax is its set of rules for combing words into grammatically sensible sentences

Syntax

rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences

Semantics

the language's set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds

Nonverbal gestures

bodily movements (hands, arms, head) used to communicate meaning, emotions, or intent without words (like sign language)

Cooing

the first stage of prelinguistic vocalization (around 2 months), where infants make soft, vowel-like sounds (like "ooo" or "aah"), exploring their vocal apparatus and engaging socially before progressing to babbling (consonant-vowel sounds)

Babbling stage

beginning around 4 months during which an infant spontaneously utters various sounds that aren't all related to the household language (resembles household language around 10 months)

One-word Stage

From about 1 to 2 years of age during which a child speaks mostly in single words (holographic speech)

Telegraphic Speech

Early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram (ie: "go car") using mostly nouns and verbs

Overgeneralize

applying a learned rule, pattern, or conclusion too broadly, often incorrectly, to situations or items where it doesn't apply

Linguistic Determinism

the idea that the structure and vocabulary of a language determines how its speakers think, perceive, and understand the world, essentially limiting their cognitive abilities to what their language allows, creating distinct worldviews for different language speakers

Microsystem

the people and objects in an individual's immediate environment - direct contact that is most influential (family, friends, etc.)

Mesosystem

provides connections across microsystems (family experiences and school relationships)

Exosystem

social settings that a person may not experience firsthand but that still influence development (extended family, mass media)

Macrosystem

consists of cultural values, laws, customs, and resources

Chronosystem

current stage of life, tied to time (divorce, COVID-19 shutdown)

Authoritarian

impose strict rules and obedience

Permissive

submit to child's demands

Authoritative

demanding but responsive to children's needs

Attachment

emotional tie with another person

Temperament

a person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

Separation Anxiety

emotional distress seen in many infants when they are separated from people with whom they have formed an attachment

Contact Comfort

Stimulation and reassurance derived from the physical touch of a caregiver

Parallel Play

activity in which children play side by side without interacting

Adolescent Egocentrism

A characteristic of adolescent thinking that leads young people (ages 10 to 13) to focus on themselves to the exclusion of others.

Imaginary Audience

adolescents' belief that they are the focus of everyone else's attention and concern - belief that they are constantly being watched/judged

Personal Fable

type of thought common to adolescents in which young people believe themselves to be unique and protected from harm

Social Clock

the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement

Emerging Adulthood

for some people in modern cultures, a period from the late teens to mid-twenties, bridging the gap between adolescent dependence and full independence and responsible adulthood

ACEs

Adverse Childhood Experiences - traumatic events that could alter their personalities, relationships, and possibly develop anxiety

Identity

our sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles

Social Identity

the "we" aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to "Who am I?" that comes from our group memberships

Identity vs role confusion

stage in adolescence where the person must overcome the challenge to have a comfortable sense of self as a person, both unique and socially accepted or fail and have a fragmented sense of self, shifting and an unclear sense of self

Intimacy vs Isolation

Challenge in early adulthood where to overcome you must have a capacity of closeness and a commitment to another or fail and have a feeling of aloneness, loneliness, separation; denial of intimacy needs

Generativity vs stagnation

Challenge in Middle adulthood where one has a focus of concern beyond oneself, to family, society, and future generations, or fail and have self-indulgent concerns; lack of future orientation

Ego-integrity vs despair

Challenge in late adulthood where one has a sense of wholeness; basic satisfaction of life, or fail and have feelings of futility and disapointment

Trust v mistrust

challenge from 0 to 1.5 years where one must have a basic sense of security; ability to rely on others and forces outside yourself, or fail and have feelings of insecurity and anxiety

Autonomy vs self-doubt

Challenge from 1.5 to 3 years where to succeed, one must have perception of being capable of controlling one’s own body and making things happen or fail and have feelings of inadequacy about self-control, and control of events

Initiative vs guilt

challenge from 3 to 6 years where, to succeed one must have confidence in oneself as being able to create, and initiate or fail and have lack feelings of self-worth

Competence vs inferiority

challenge from 6 years to puberty where, to succeed, one must have adequacy in basic social and intellectual skills; acceptance by peers, or fail and have a lack of self-confidence and feelings of failure