d e v e l o p m e n t

INTRO TO DEVELOPMENT

• …

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

• prenatal development

  • genetics

    • major cause of genetic defects is faulty genes or chromosomes

    • usually 23 chromosomes from both mom & dad

  • environment

    • teratogens

      • environmental agents such as drugs, chemicals, viruses, or other factors that can produce birth defects

    • maternal illness

      • during pregnancy

      • rubella (german measles) can cause blindness, deafness, heart abnormalities, & stillbirth

      • aids can be passed on to child prior to birth

    • mother’s use of drugs

      • illegal drugs like cocaine can result in baby being born addicted to the drug

    • alcohol & nicotine use

      • fetal alcohol syndrome results in intellectual & growth disabilities

  • prenatal influences

    • hormonal factors

      • hormonal imbalances in the mother can lead to excessive or insufficient levels of certain hormones that can lead to abnormalities

    • environmental factors

      • exposure to harmful environmental factors can cause …

• infant physical development

  • the connection btwn physical & cognitive development

  • exploration & learning

    • physical development enables children to explore surroundings & interact w/ objects

    • stimulates cognitive development as they learn about the properties of objects, cause-&-effect relationships, & spatial awareness

  • independence

    • becoming more independent as physical skills develop

    • foster self-esteem & confidence

  • social interaction

    • …

  • cognitive development

    • the ability to grasp objects is essential for developing object permanence

    • the ability to walk & run allows children to explore environment

  • maturation

    • biological growth process uninfluenced by experience

  • fine motor skills

    • involves the coordination of small muscle groups

    • hands, fingers, etc

    • as infants develop these skills, they learn to grasp objects, manipulate toys, & eventually write & draw

  • gross motor skills

    • …

  • newborn reflexes

    • all babies are born w/ a number of reflexes

    • unlearned & involuntary responses that occur automatically in the presence of certain stimuli

    • rooting reflex

      • automatic turn of head when cheek is touched

    • sucking reflex

      • suck anything that touches lips

    • startle reflex

      • infant flings arms, fans fingers, & arches back in response to sudden noise

    • babinski reflex

      • toes fan out & curl when the bottom of the foot is stroked

  • critical period

    • specific times during development when certain experiences are vital for normal development

    • can lead to permanent changes in brain function & behavior

  • sensitive period

    • times when experiences have a strong impact on the brain

    • missing timeframe doesn’t make it impossible to acquire skills later

  • imprinting

    • more relevant for animals vs humans

    • forming an irreversible bond w/ the first moving object an animal encounters after birth

    • crucial for (animal) survival bc ensures that the young follow & learn to protect from predators

    • considered a critical period bc the first few minutes after birth

• adolescence

  • physical development

    • growth spurt

  • adolescence

    • technically begins w/ puberty (starts around age 11-14)

    • primary sex characteristics

      • body structures that make sexual reproduction possible

      • ovaries (females)

      • testes (males)

      • external genitalia

    • secondary sex characteristics

      • nonreproductive sexual characteristics

      • chest & hips (females)

      • voice quality & body hair (males)

    • menarche

      • first menstrual period

    • spermarche

      • …

  • early maturation

    • boys

      • often excel in athletics, are more popular, & have a positive self-image

      • may struggle in school, engage in delinquent behavior, & experiment w/ substances (likely due to associating w/ older peers)

      • tend to become more responsible & cooperative in the long run bc more mature for longer

    • girls

      • more sought after for dates

      • have better self-esteem than later-maturing girls

      • may be more embarrassing for girls

  • late maturation

    • boys

      • often smaller & less coordinated

      • potentially ridiculed & have a lower self-esteem

    • girls

      • may have lower social status & be overlooked in early adolescence

      • report greater body satisfaction later

• adult physical development

  • physical changes in middle adulthood

    • muscular strength, reaction time, sensory abilities & cardiac output begin to decline after the mid-twenties

    • defining adulthood into stages is more difficult than defining stages during childhood or adolescence

    • menopause

      • occurs in women around age 50

      • the time of natural cessation & menstruation & marks the end of their reproductive years

  • cognitive decline in late adulthood

    • recall begins to decline as years pass (especially for meaningless information)

    • recognition memory remains strong

    • crystallized intelligence increases w/ age

    • fluid intelligence peaks in our 20s & then starts to decline

    • terminal decline is when everything starts to decline at a faster rate during the later years of life

    • alzheimer’s disease causes the deterioration of memory & reasoning due to buildup w/i the body

  • other elements of aging

    • life expectancy keeps increasing

    • women outlive men by about 4 years & outnumbers them at most ages

    • older people take a bit more time to react, to solve perceptual puzzles, & to remember names

    • brain regions important to memory begin to atrophy during aging

  • successful aging factors

    • biological influences

      • no genetic predisposition to early cognitive or physical decline

      • appropriate nutrition

    • psychological influences

      • optimistic outlook

      • physically & mentally active lifestyle

    • social-cultural influences

      • support from family & friends

      • meaningful activities

      • …

• gender vs sex

  • sex

    • biological status defined by chromosomes & anatomy

  • gender

    • the socially influenced characteristics by which people define boy, girl, man, & woman

COMMUNICATION & LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

• language

  • our spoken, written, or gestured word

  • the way we communicate meaning to ourselves & others

• theories of language development

  • chomsky

    • nativist theory

    • believed we are naturally equipped w/ a “language acquisition device” that helps us acquire language easily & rapidly

    • if language acquisition does not occur by a certain time, it may be impossible

  • skinner

    • behaviorist theory

    • believed we learned language through imitation & reinforcement (operant conditioning)

  • vygotsky

    • sociocultural theory

    • believed we learned language through social interactions

• elements of language

  • phonemes

    • the smallest units of speech / the smallest distinctive sound unit in a spoken language

    • basic sounds through which all words are understood & generated

  • morphemes

    • the smallest units of meaning in a language

    • includes root words, prefixes, & suffixes

  • grammar

    • a system of rules defining the structure of a language

    • syntax

      • a system of rules that specify how words can be arranged into sentences

      • in english, nouns come after adjectives

    • semantics

      • set of ruled by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, & sentences

      • ex- hit: hit on, hit the baseball, musical hit, hit someone over the head, etc

      • ex- a semantic rule tells us that adding suffix -ed to verbs means that it happened in the past

• when do we learn language?

  • children learn their native languages much before learning to add 2+2

  • in language development across all cultures, people use nonverbal manual gestures (pointing) to communicate & develop formal language through specific stages (cooing, babbling, one-word stage, & telegraphic speech).

  • people learning a language often make errors such as overgeneralization of language rules as they learn

  • babbling stage

    • beginning at 4 months

    • the infant spontaneously utters various sounds

    • babbling is not imitation of adult speech until about 9-10 months old

    • cannot differentiate native language of baby’s household

  • one-word stage

    • at around 1 yr old

    • children start to speak one word & make family/adults understand

    • ex- the word doggy may mean “look at the dog out there”

    • usually begin w/ short words that begin w/ consonants like b, d, m, p, or t

  • two-word stage (telegraphic speech)

    • before the 2 yrs old

    • children start to speak in two-word sentences

    • called telegraphic speech bc children speak like a telegram

    • ex- “go car” means “i would like to go for a ride in the car”

  • longer phrases

    • longer phrases as children progress through age

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT ACROSS THE LIFESPAN

• ecological systems theory

  • views child development as influenced by multiple environmental systems

  • consists of five interconnected systems - microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, & chronosystem

• the microsystem

  • the first level of bronfenbrenner’s theory

  • the things that have direct contact w/ the child in their immediate environment

  • ex- our immediate environment (family, school, peers, etc)

• the mesosystem

  • involves interactions btwn diff microsystems in the child’s life

  • these interactions can have significant impacts on the child’s development

  • ex- a child whose parents are actively involved in their school life

• the exosystem

  • incorporates other formal & informal social structures such as local govs, friends of the family, & mass media

  • ex- a parent’s workplace policies can significantly affect a child’s development (flexible working hours, work-from-home options, etc)

• the macrosystem

  • focuses on how cultural elements affect a child’s development

  • consists of cultural ideologies, attitudes, & social conditions that children are immersed in

  • beliefs about gender roles, individualism, family structures, & social issues establish norms & values that permeate a child’s microsystems

  • differs from the previous ecosystems as it does not refer to the specific environments of one developing child but the already established society & culture in which the child is developing

  • ex- in a society that highly values individ achievement, children might be encouraged to be more competitive & self-reliant. this could influence parenting styles in the microsystem, w/ parents focusing more on personal accomplishments & independence

• the chronosystem

  • relates to shifts & transitions over the child’s lifetime

  • these environmental changes can be predicted (starting school) or unpredicted (parental divorce or changing schools) when parents relocate for work, which may cause stress

  • represents changes over time in a person’s environment

  • includes major life transitions & historical events

  • ex- how has technology changed your learning environment

  • what major events in your life or in history do you think have shaped your development?

• applications & importance

  • used in education to understand student development

  • helps create supportive learning environments

  • emphasizes the importance of family-school connections

  • how can understanding these systems help you in your own development?

  • what changes could you make in your microsystem to support your goals?