PSY 1000 Study Guide: Chapter 9

PSY 1000 – Introductiond to Psychology Study Guide: Chapter 9

Lifespan Development

  • Definition of Lifespan Development: Involves the study of human growth and change from conception to death, covering all age periods from infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, to old age.

Normative Development

  • Definition of Normative Development: Refers to the typical patterns and milestones of development exhibited by most individuals, providing a framework for comparisons of individual differences.

Developmental Milestones

  • Definition of Developmental Milestones: Key abilities or behaviors that are expected to be achieved at specific age ranges, providing benchmarks for assessing normal development.

  • Universality: While many milestones are universal, the timing may vary due to cultural and individual differences.

Experimental Designs in Developmental Psychology

  • Types of Experimental Design:

    • Cross-sectional: Studies different age groups at the same time to understand differences based on age.

    • Longitudinal: Follows the same group of individuals over time to observe how they change.

    • Sequential: Combines cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches, observing different cohorts over time.

Prenatal Development Stages

  • Prenatal Development Stages:

    • Germinal Stage: Begins at conception and lasts approximately two weeks; includes fertilization and cell division, implantation into the uterine lining.

    • Embryonic Stage: Lasts from the second to the eighth week; major organ systems develop, and the embryo begins to form structures such as limbs and the circulatory system.

    • Fetal Stage: From the ninth week until birth; characterized by rapid growth and further development of all systems and structures.

  • Milestones: Include the first movements felt by the mother, formation of recognizable facial features, and viability outside the womb.

Teratogens

  • Definition of Teratogens: Environmental agents that can cause harm during prenatal development.

  • Greatest Impact: Teratogens have their greatest impact during critical periods of organ development, particularly in the first trimester.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)

  • Definition of FAS: A spectrum disorder caused by maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

  • Characteristics: Includes physical deformities, growth deficiencies, and neurological impairments. Children may display cognitive deficits and behavioral challenges.

  • FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder): Encompasses a range of effects that can occur due to alcohol exposure in utero.

  • Brain Appearance: Brain may show reduced size and structural abnormalities compared to typically developing peers.

Maternal Factors Influencing Development

  • Besides alcohol, other maternal factors that impact fetal development include:

    • Nutritional deficiencies

    • Exposure to drugs or medications

    • Infections and diseases (e.g., rubella, syphilis)

    • Maternal stress and mental health conditions

Newborn Sensory Functioning

  • Vision: Newborns can see light and movement but have limited visual acuity. By about 6 months, vision improves significantly.

  • Audition: Newborns can hear sounds; their ability to localize sounds develops over the first months.

  • Taste and Smell: Newborns show preferences for sweet flavors and can recognize their mother’s scent, influencing feeding behaviors.

  • Touch: Touch is highly developed at birth; it plays a key role in bonding and comfort.

  • Variability in Functioning: Not all senses develop uniformly; for example, preemies may have underdeveloped sensory function.

Prenatal Brain Development

  • Speed of Development: The fetal brain develops rapidly, with billions of neurons forming in utero.

  • Size and Complexity at Birth: The newborn brain is about 25% of adult size; it contains a significant number of synapses that continue to form in early childhood.

Newborn Reflexes

  • Definition of Newborn Reflexes: Automatic responses to specific stimuli, crucial for survival and future motor development.

  • Lifelong Presence: Some reflexes persist into adulthood (e.g., blinking), while others fade as voluntary control develops.

Infant Growth Rate

  • Growth Measurement: By 12 months of age, an infant typically grows to three times their birth weight and shows notable increases in height.

Fine and Gross Motor Skills

  • Fine Motor Skills: Involve small muscle movements, such as grasping and manipulating objects; develop significantly during infancy.

  • Gross Motor Skills: Involves larger muscle groups for actions like crawling and walking, showing a distinct progression throughout the first year.

Blooming and Pruning

  • Definition of Blooming: Refers to the rapid growth of neuronal connections in the brain during infancy.

  • Definition of Pruning: The process of reducing the number of synapses to enhance efficiency by eliminating unused connections.

  • Myelination Status: Myelination continues beyond infancy and is not fully complete until later childhood or adolescence.

Visual Capacity of Newborns

  • Vision Capabilities: Newborns can see shapes and contrast but have limited focus on distant objects.

  • Development Timeline: Complete visual acuity similar to adults develops by about 3-6 years of age.

Visual Cliff Study

  • Study Overview: Investigated depth perception in infants by observing their willingness to cross a visual cliff that appears to drop off.

Auditory Perception of Newborns

  • Hearing Development: Newborns can hear but have limitations; adult-like auditory processing develops around 6 months.

Preferential Looking Method

  • Definition of Preferential Looking: A research method to determine an infant's preferences by observing their gaze patterns towards different stimuli.

Temperament

  • Definition of Temperament: The innate personality characteristics and emotional reactivity of an individual, observable from infancy.

  • Outgrowing Temperament: Some aspects may remain stable, while others can be shaped by environmental influences.

Attachment

  • Definition of Attachment: A deep emotional bond between an infant and their caregiver, critical for socio-emotional development.

  • Necessity for Development: Secure attachment is posited as essential for healthy emotional and social development.

Harlow’s Studies

  • Study Observations: Harlow's research with rhesus monkeys demonstrated the importance of comfort and security over basic needs in forming attachments and social bonds.

Strange Situation Test

  • Purpose of the Test: To observe attachment behaviors in children by introducing stressors in a controlled setting to gauge attachment styles.

  • Criticism: The test has been criticized for its artificial environment and may not capture the full complexity of a child’s attachment and behavior.

Attachment Types

  • Secure Attachment: Characterized by a strong bond; children are comfortable exploring but seek comfort from caregivers when distressed.

  • Avoidant Attachment: Indifference towards caregivers and avoidance of emotional closeness; may inhibit social relationships later in life.

  • Resistant Attachment: Inconsolable upon separation, showing significant distress; may lead to clinginess and anxiety.

  • Disorganized/Disoriented Attachment: Lack of clear attachment behavior; often results from inconsistent caregiver interactions.

Growth During Childhood

  • Comparison of Growth Rates: Growth in childhood is slower compared to rapid growth in infancy, characterized by increased height and weight but not as drastic as in early life.

Consequences of Frontal Lobe Growth

  • Frontal Lobe Development: As the frontal lobes grow, executive functions like problem-solving, impulse control, and emotional regulation begin to emerge, influencing behavior and decision-making.

Self-Concept

  • Definition of Self-Concept: An individual’s perception of themselves and their identity, forming during early childhood.

  • Mirror Test: Indicates self-recognition; typically passed by children around 18-24 months, showing emerging self-concept.

Milestones in Social Development

  • Social Development Between Pre-K and Kindergarten: Involves increased sociability and more complex social interactions, including sharing and cooperation.

Gender Role vs. Gender Identity

  • Gender Role: Societal expectations for behavior based on one’s assigned sex.

  • Gender Identity: Personal sense of one's gender, which may or may not align with their biological sex; typically developing in early childhood.

Theory of Mind

  • Definition of Theory of Mind: The understanding that others have thoughts, feelings, and perspectives different from one’s own.

  • Development Timeline: Children begin to recognize different viewpoints around age 4 or 5.

Parenting Styles

  • Authoritative: Characterized by high responsiveness and high demands; children tend to be more socially competent and self-reliant.

  • Authoritarian: Low responsiveness and high demands; children may exhibit lower self-esteem and social skills.

  • Permissive: High responsiveness and low demands; children may struggle with self-regulation and authority.

  • Uninvolved: Low responsiveness and low demands; often leads to issues in emotional and behavioral regulation.

Critical Periods in Language Development

  • Definition of Critical Periods: Specific windows in which language development must occur or risk underdevelopment.

Adolescence as a Concept

  • Universality of Adolescence: While the concept of adolescence exists in many cultures, its characteristics may vary; it is not a historically consistent phase.

  • Periods of Change: Adolescence is marked by significant physical, emotional, and social changes, including identity formation and peer relationships.

Sexual Characteristics During Adolescence

  • Primary Sexual Characteristics: Changes directly related to reproduction, such as puberty onset.

  • Secondary Sexual Characteristics: External physical changes (e.g., breast development, facial hair) occurring during puberty.

  • Menarche and Spermarche: Terms describing the onset of menstruation in females and the onset of sperm production in males, respectively.

Brain Development and Thinking Areas

  • Consequences of Disparity in Development: When areas responsible for thinking develop before the frontal lobes, it can lead to risk-taking behaviors and impulsivity in adolescents.

Egocentrism in Adolescence

  • Definition of Egocentrism: A heightened self-focus characteristic of adolescents; they may believe their experiences are unique.

  • Personal Fable: The belief that one's thoughts and feelings are special and not understood by others; can lead to feelings of invulnerability.

  • Imaginary Audience: The belief that others are constantly watching and judging one’s behavior, amplifying self-consciousness.

Parent-Adolescent Conflict

  • Conflict Occurrence: Not universal; conflict may arise due to independence seeking, communication issues, and differing values.

Emerging Adulthood

  • Definition of Emerging Adulthood: A transitional period from late teens through the twenties, characterized by exploration in identity, career, and relationships.

Developmental Tasks Across Adult Life Stages

  • Early Adulthood Characteristics: Focus on intimacy, relationships, and career establishment.

  • Mid Adulthood Characteristics: Concern for generativity, contributions to society, and life reflection.

  • Late Adulthood Characteristics: Reflection on life, acceptance of mortality, and potential challenges related to cognitive decline.

Cognitive Challenges in Elderly

  • Challenges Faced: Cognitive decline, memory loss, and difficulties in information processing often seen in aging individuals.

Hospice Care

  • Definition of Hospice Care: Specialized care for individuals with terminal illnesses focused on providing comfort and support.

  • Benefits: Enhances quality of life for patients and offers emotional and psychological support for families.

Stages of Grief

  • Five Stages of Grief: Denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance; developed by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross to describe emotional responses to loss.

Erikson’s Stages of Development

  • Developmental Tasks and Age Ranges:

    • Trust vs. Mistrust: Birth to 18 months; the conflict involves infants learning to trust caregivers.

    • Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt: 2-3 years; children learn independence but may feel shame if they fail.

    • Initiative vs. Guilt: 3-6 years; involves taking initiative while managing guilt from failure.

    • Industry vs. Inferiority: 6-12 years; children compare themselves to peers and develop a sense of competence.

    • Identity vs. Role Confusion: Adolescence; involves exploration of identity and personal values.

    • Intimacy vs. Isolation: Young adulthood; focusing on forming intimate relationships.

    • Generativity vs. Stagnation: Middle adulthood; assessing contributions to the next generation.

    • Integrity vs. Despair: Late adulthood; reflecting on life and deriving meaning from experiences.

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

  • Definition of Assimilation: The process of integrating new experiences into existing schemas.

  • Definition of Accommodation: Adjusting or forming new schemas to incorporate new information.

Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development

  • Stages Overview:

    • Sensorimotor: Birth to 2 years; focuses on sensory and motor exploration.

    • Preoperational: 2-7 years; characterized by symbolic thinking and egocentrism.

    • Concrete Operational: 7-11 years; logical thinking applied to concrete objects.

    • Formal Operational: 12 years and up; abstract and hypothetical reasoning begins.

Concepts of Object Permanence and Conservation

  • Object Permanence: Understanding that objects continue to exist even when not seen; develops around 8-12 months.

  • Conservation: The understanding that quantity remains the same despite changes in shape or appearance; develops during the concrete operational stage.

Formal Operational Stage Reaching

  • Adulthood Achievement: Not all adults reach the formal operational stage; some may develop postformal thinking, which includes practical and flexible thinking in complex situations.

Definition of Morality

  • Definition: Principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong behavior, influenced by societal norms and personal beliefs.

Types of Moral Thinking

  • Preconventional: Morality is based on the consequences of actions (punishment vs. reward).

  • Conventional: Morality is based on social rules and laws; maintaining relationships and societal order is emphasized.

  • Postconventional: Morality is guided by internal principles and ethical considerations that transcend societal rules.