Developmental Psychology
Continuous Development: Smooth and stable uniform change which is often done through quantitative methods
Discontinuous Development: An abrupt, dramatic change, and hitting major milestones
Often qualitative studies
Considerations/challenges in Developmental Psychology
Post Hoc Fallacy: A false assumption that an event causes another because it came before an event
Bidirectional Influences
Human development is almost aways a two way street
Children’s experiences and relationships play a big factor on their development overtime
Children play an active role in development because they have more control over selecting/altering their environments with age.
Research Designs in Developmental Psychology
Cross-Sectional Design
Examines people of different ages at a single point in time
Limits
Cohort Effect: Effect observed in a sample of participants that result from people in a sample that grew up in the same time
We cannot see how beliefs, behaviours, and thoughts evolve overtime
Longitudinal Design
Examines development in the same group of people on multiple occasions over time. Longitudinal design is more beneficial for finding true development overtime.
It is more sensitive because it is prone to many influences/factors of an individuals life
Limits:
Costly and time-consuming
Attrition
Nature vs Nurture
They both interact with each other
Gene-Environment Interaction: The impact of genes depends on the environment in which the behaviour develops
Warrior Gene: MAOA
Breaks down serotonin and if the MAOA gene breaks down, it can lead to impulsions. Thus leading to violence.
Nature via Nurture: Genetic predispositions can drive us to select and create particular environments
E.g. An introvert will select a quiet environment
Gene Expression: Some genes turn on only in response to specific environmental events
E.g. A death of a family member can activate the genetic predisposition of anxiety