PSYC 260 Final Practice

Chapter 14 - Context of Development

Bronfenbrenner ’s Bioecological Theory of Development (SEE CHAPTER 1)



Bioecological = Environment in which people develop



  • Bioecological Systems Theory

    • Uri Bronfenbrenner (1917-2005)

      • Connected research, theory, and policy

      • Founder of Head Start Program

    • Theory

      • Individual

        • Temperament, cognitive abilities, gender, and even physical characteristics rcan shape the way individuals interact with their environments.

      • Microsystem

        • Activities and relationship interaction patterns in the child’s immediate surroundings

          • Immediate family, childcare center/school, neighborhood play area

      •  Mesosystem

        • Connections between microsystems

          • Between family, school, etc.

      • Exosystem

        • Social settings that do not contain children, but nevertheless affect their development

          •  Extended family, community health services, friends/neighbors, parents’ workplace

      • Macrosystem

        • Cultural values, laws, or customs

          •  AMERICA!!!!

      • Chronosystem

        • How the environments change over time

















  • Bioecologial Systems Theory Strengths and weaknesses

    • Strengths

      • Complex

      • Dynamix

      • Contextual

        • Takes into account the context of development

    • Weaknesses

      • Biological Influences

      • Cognitive Influences

      • Complex

        • Both a strength and a weakness




Chapter 14: Parenting and the Family



  • Baumrind’s (1959) Parenting Styles

    • Parental Warmth/Responsiveness

    • Parental Demandingness/Control

      • High standards/expectations



  • Authoritative

    • Parents are child-centered

    • Tend to do well in school

    • Children:

      • Tend to socialize well with peers

      • Higher self esteem

      • Independent

  • Authoritarian

    • Don’t take into account the 

child’s perspective

  • Obedience oriented

  • “My way or the highway”

  • Children:

    • Feel trapped or angry

    • Trouble with peers

    • Less independent

  • Permissive/Indulgent

    • High in parental warmth, 

low in demandingness

  • More of a friend than a parent

  • Not a lot of rules

  • Indulgent → actively encourage misbehavior (alcohol, parties, etc.)

  • (usually) Don’t require children don’t act in a responsible manner

  • Children

    • More impulsive

    • Tend to do less well in school

    • Less confident and independent (compared to authoritative parents)

  • Neglecting/Rejecting

    • Rejecting → actively rejecting their kids (abusive, overly harsh, etc.)

    • Children:

      • Don’t get parental attention

      • Higher rate of delinquency

      • High alcohol & drug use

      • Tend not to do well in school

  • Strengths

    • Simple and elegant

  • Weaknesses

    • Parenting styles can differ between kids

      • Could be personality of child

    • Correlational

    • Parents can be strict if environment is not safe

    • Stress can influence parenting styles

  • Spanking/Punishment

    • In Texas, 93% of people said they got spanked as a kid

    • Common in 1900s

    • Corporal Punishment v. Abuse

      • Corporal Punishment: The use of physical force with the intention of causing the child pain but not injury for the purposes of correction or control of the child’s behavior

      • Physical abuse: characterized by infliciton of physical injury as a result of punching, beating, kicking, burning, shaking, or otherwise harming the child. The parent or caretaker may not have intended to hurt the child, rather the injury may have resulted from over discipline or physical punishment

    • Pros and Cons

      • Pros: 

        • Immediate Compliance

      • Cons:

        • Less likely to have Moral Internalization

        • Aggression

        • Antisocial Behvaior

        • Decline in Quality of Relationship

        • Decline in Mental Health

        • Victim and instigator of abuse




  • Child Care

    • Pros

      • Kids get sick (building immune system)

      • Trained & educated caregivers

        • More patient

      • Parents can work

    • Cons

      • Kids get sick

      • Not all child care is quality child care

      • Expensive!!!!!!

    • NICHD Study of Early Child Care

      • Goal: To examine the effects of childcare arrangements on children’s physical, cognitive, social development

      • Secondary Goal: To examine the interaction between home and childcare variables

      • Results: Quality of Care Matters

        • High Quality care includes

          • Smaller groups of children

          • Trained caregivers

          • Higher levels of education

          • Low adult to child ratio

          • Care provided is warm, attentive, and intellectually stimulating

        • Kids who receive high quality care are:

          • More sensitive

          • More compliant

          • Less aggressive

          • Higher cognitive and language skills

        • Children with experience in child care centers are: 

          • More cooperative (age 2)

          • More positive mother-child interactions (age 2)

          • Better cognitive and language development (age 3)

          • Better preacademic skills (age 4.5)

          • Fewer behavior problems at age 2; worse behavior problems at age 4.5; effect disappears in elementary











Chapter 15: Peers



  • Peer Relationships

    • What are peers?

      • People in the approximate age and approximate location

    • What do they provide?

      • Comparison point

        • “What are my peers doing?”

      • Opportunity for friendships

      • Opportunity for development of social skills

    • How are peer relationships studied?

      • The Peer Preference Technique

  • Peer Acceptance

    • Children who are accepted by their peers have better psychological adjustment and self-esteem than those that are not

  • Friendship

    • Intimate, reciprocated positive relationships between two people

  • Benefits of Friendship

    • Close friendships provide opportunities to explore the self and develop understanding of another

    • Close friendships provide a foundation for future intimate relationships

    • Close friendships provide support in dealing with the stresses of everyday life

    • Close friends can improve attitudes toward and involvement in school

  • Stage Theory (William Coie)

    • Level One: Friendship as a playmate (Ages 4-7)

      • Friends are people who share toys and activities

      • Do not take account personal traits and qualities

      • Friends may drift apart if interests do

      • Gender Segregation

      • Relational Aggression (threatening the relationship, i don’t want to be friends with you, if i can’t ____, then I’m not going to play)

    • Level Two: Mutual Trust (Ages 8-10)

      • Children like each other because of personal qualities

      • Friendships are based on mutual trust

      • Trust is broken, friendship may end

    • Level Three: Intimacy and Loyalty (Ages 11-15)

      • Friends are important in relieving psychological distress 

      • Psychological closeness

      • Forgiveness can mend these relationships

      • Emotional intimacy

        • Not basing the friendship off of “niceness”, but “this person is a good listener”




  • Popularity and Bullying

    • Popularity

      • What makes boys popular?

        • Sports/Athleticism

        • Stature

        • Charisma

      • What makes girls popular?

        • Charisma

        • Looks

        • Athleticism/Sports

        • Style

  • Popular Children

    • Popular-Prosocial

      • Well-liked

      • Good social skills

      • Does well academically

      • Flexible/go with the flow

      • Generally nice

    • Popular-Antisocial

      • Popular because of bullying

      • Regina George

      • Showing off to friends

      • Friends because of fear

      • Picking on people

  • Rejected Children

    • Rejected-Aggressive

      • Kids who lash out

      • Struggle with emotional regulation

      • Misreading social cues

    • Rejected-Withdrawn

      • Shy kids

      • Don’t have many friends

  • Neglected Children

    • Nobody knows them

  • Average Children

    • “Yeah, they’re okay”

    • Nobody dislikes them, but not popular

    • Decent social skills

    • Has some friends

  • Controversial

    • Some positive / Some negative votes

    • Small group of friends




Chapter 17 - Death and Dying



  • Grief 

    • Emotion that is felt after the death of a loved one

    • Suitcase approach

      • As a person experiencing grief, it feels like the world is “pulling a suitcase full of rocks”

      • Struggling to get through daily tasks

      • Grief is still with you but the suitcase gets lighter over time

    • Ball & Box 

  • Bereavement

    • Mental state of being bereaved (experiencing losing a loved one)

  • Mourning

    • Time period which one experiences grief

  • Stages of Grief (Kübler-Ross)

    • Denial

    • Anger

    • Bargaining

    • Depression

    • Acceptance

    • Not every person goes through these stages in this exact order

    • Not actually stages, just simply emotions people feel when experiencing grief

  • Making decisions about your death

    • Afvanced Directive

      • Document that outlines one’s wishes in future medical situations in which one is unable to make decisions for oneself

        • Living WIll

        • Power of Attorney

          • Person you name that can make medical decisions for you if you can’t yourself

        • DNR (Do not resuscitate)

  • Hospice: Caring for the dying

    • Helping people die with dignity

    • In home, in hospital, in hospice center

    • Hospice team: doctors, nurses, CNAs, social workers, psychologists, Chaplin, volunteers