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developmental psychology
- a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span
- Examines how people are continually developing,
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Three major issues associated with developmental psychology
- Nature/Nurture
- Continuity/stages
- stability/change
- *Think of climbing a tree. First big branches, to the left is a tree leaves (nature) to the right is a mother & baby (nurture); You climb up further and come to more big branches, to the left is a continuing long path (as far as the eye can see) and to the Right is a couple theatre stages; U climb to the top, to the Left you see the tree is stable n not going to fall, to the Right you are paid in change for climbing the tree.
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Nature/nurture
Questions how genetic inheritance (our nature) and experience (the nurture we receive) influence our development
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Continuity/stages
Questions whether development is a gradual, continuous process like riding an escalator, or does it proceed through a sequence of separate stages, like climbing rungs on a ladder?
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Stability/change
Questions if our early personality traits persist through life, or do we become different persons as we age?
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When a sperm reaches the egg
- it releases digestive enzymes that eat away its protective coating. As soon as one sperm is welcomed, the egg's surface blocks out the others.
- Before 1/2 a day elapses, the egg nucleus and the sperm nucleus fuse
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Stages in prenatal development
- zygote: conception to 2 weeks
- embryo: 2 weeks to 8 weeks
- fetus: 9 weeks to birth
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zygote
- the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo
- fewer than half survive beyond the first 2 weeks
- 10 days after conception, attaches to uterine wall
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embryo
- the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month
- over next 6 weeks, organs begin to form and function, heart begins to beat
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fetus
- the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth
- during 6th month, organs such as stomach have developed enough to allow a prematurely born fetus a chance of survival
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teratogens
agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development (can slip through placenta) and cause harm
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fetal alcohol syndrome
FAS ~ physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman's heavy drinking. In severe cases, symptoms include noticeable facial misproportions
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placenta
- formed as the zygote's outer cells attached to uterine wall
- transfers nutrients and oxygen from mother to fetus
- also screens out many potentially harmful substances
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brain development progress...
- In womb, cells are formed nearly one-quarter million per minute
- After birth, neural networks had wild growth spurt
- Ages 3 - 6 yrs: most rapid growth was in frontal lobes, enabling rational planning
- The association areas - those linked with thinking, memory, and language - are the last cortical areas to develop. As they do, mental abilities surge.
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maturation
- biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience
- Sets the basic course of development; experience adjusts it
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recommended infant back-to-sleep position
- putting babies to sleep on their back to reduce the risk of a smothering crib death
- associated with somewhat later crawling but not with later walking
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What role does genes play in motor development?
a major role! Identical twins typically begin sitting up and walking on nearly the same day
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Our earliest memories seldom predate...
- our 3rd bday
- the average age of earliest conscious memory is 3.5
- by 4 -5 yrs, childhood amnesia gives way to remember experiences
- But even into adolescence, the brain areas underlying memory continue to mature
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cognition
all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
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schema
- a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information
- a mental structure of preconceived ideas, a framework representing some aspect of the world, or a system of organizing and perceiving new information.
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assimilation
interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas
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accommodation
adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information
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Jean Piaget
- developmental psychologist; intrigued by kids wrong answers
- believes a child's mind develops through a series of stages
- His core idea is that driving force behind our intellectual progression is an unceasing struggle to make sense of our experiences
- To explain how we use and adjust our schemas, proposed that we first assimilate and then accommodate
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Piagets four stages of cognitive development
- Sensorimotor ~ birth to nearly 2 years
- Preoperational ~ 2 to about 6 or 7 yrs
- Concrete operational ~ about 7 to 11 yrs
- Formal operational ~ about 12 through adult
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Sensorimotor
- in Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities
- Developmental Phenomena: object permanence, stranger anxiety
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Preoperational
- stage in Piaget's theory, the stage from about 2 yrs to 6 or 7 years of age
- during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic
- Developmental Phenomena: pretend play, egocentrism
- Egocentrism is characterized by preoccupation with one's own internal world.
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concrete operational
- stage in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development from about 6 or 7 yrs to 11 yrs
- during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events
- he also believe during this stage kids fully gain the mental ability to comprehend mathematical transformations
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formal operational
- thinking
- systematic reasoning
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formal operational stage
- stage in Piagets theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12 to adult)
- during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts
- reasoning expands from purely concrete (involving actual experience) to encompas abstract thinking (involving imagined realities and symbols)
- If this, than that
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object permanence
- the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived
- By 8 months, infants begin exhibiting memory for things no longer seen
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conservation
- the principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same, despite changes in the forms of objects
- *think of example of milk poured into two separate glasses: one skinny n tall, one short and wide
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egocentrism
in Piaget's theory, the preoperational child's difficulty taking another's point of view
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theory of mind
people's ideas about their own and others' mental states- about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict
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autism
- a disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communications, social interaction, and understanding of others' states of mind
- affects 4 boys for every girl
- ~ said to have an impaired theory of mind
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autism spectrum disorder
Todays researchers use this term to encompass the variations in autism
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Asperger syndrom
- a "high-functioning" for of autism
- marked by normal intelligence, often accompanied by exceptional skill or talent in specific area, but deficient in social and communication skills (and thus an inability for form normal peer relationships)
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assortative mating
people's tendency to seek spouses who share their interests
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according to Lev Vygotsky, language
provides the building blocks for thinking
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Maturation, the orderly sequence of biological growth, explains why...
most children have begun walking by about 12 months
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The brain, mind, and social-emotional behavior...
develop together
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stranger anxiety
the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age
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attachment
- an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separtation
- powerful survival impulse that keeps infants close to caregivers
- Contact is one key to attachment, another is familiarity
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critical period
an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism's exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development
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imprinting
the process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life
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secure attachment
- when a child is placed in a strange situation, say a lab playroom for example, the play comfortably in mothers presence, happily exploring.
- When she leaves, they are distressed; when she returns, they seek contact with her.
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insecure attachment
- when a child is placed in a strange situation, say a lab playroom for example, they are less likely to explore their surroundings; they may even cling to their mother.
- When she leaves, the either cry loudly or remain upset or seem indifferent to her departure and return
- Mary ainsworth designed the strange situation experiment
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When does anxiety over separation seem to peak and then decline?
It seems to peak at around 13 months, then gradually declines
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basic trust
- a sense that the world is predictable and reliable
- Erik Erikson theorized securely attached kids approached life w this sense
- attributed not to environment or inborn temperament, but to early parenting
- He also theorized that infants blessed w sensitive caregivers for lifelong attitude of trust rather than fear
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the brains serotonin system
a neurotransmitter that calms aggressive impulses
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behavior and emotion arise from
a particular environment interacting with particular genes
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Three parenting styles
- 1- Authoritarian
- 2- permissive
- 3- Authoritative
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Authoritarian parenting
- The 'too hard' kind of parenting
- parents impose rules and expect obedience
- Ex: "Don't interrupt", "Keep your room clean", "Don't stay out late or you'll be grounded", "Why? Because I said so."
- Research indicates kids tend to have less social skills and self-esteem
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Permissive parenting
- The 'too soft' kind of parenting
- Parents submit to their children's desires. They make few demands and use little punishment
- research indicates kids tend to be more aggressive and immature
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Authoritative parenting
- The 'just right' kind of parenting
- Parents are both demanding and responsive.
- They exert control by setting rules and enforcing them, but the also explain the reasons for rules.
- Especially with older children, they encourage open discussion and allow some exceptions to the rules
- research indicates kids w high self-esteem, self-reliance, and social competence
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From the very first weeks of life infants differ as some are intense and anxious, while others are easygoing and relaxed. These differences are usually explained as differences in
temperament
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temperament
a person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity
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adolescence
- years spent morphing from child to adult
- starts with physical beginnings of sexual maturity and ends with the social achievement of independent adult status
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puberty
- the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing
- adolescence begins here
- follows a surge of hormones, may intensify moods and trigger a 2 yr rapid growing spurt
- usually begins about age 11 for girls and 13 for boys
- About a yr or 2 before, boys and girls often feel first stirrings of attraction toward other sex
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primary sex characteristics
the body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible
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secondary sex characteristics
nonreproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair
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menarche
the first menstrual period
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puberty for girls
- starts with breast development, now often begins by age 10
- landmarks are first menstrual period in girls
- , usually with in year of age 12 1/2
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puberty for boys
- landmarks are first ejaculation in boys, usually about age 14
- usually occurs as nocturnal emission
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myelin
the fatty tissue that forms around axons and speeds neurotransmission, enables better communication with other brain regions
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adolescents brains....
- also a work in progress. As teens mature, their frontal lobs continue to develop.
- bring improved judgement, impulse control, and the ability to plan for the long term
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Frontal lobe maturation lags emotional limbic system
- ... meaning younger teens whose unfinished frontal lobs aren't yet fully equipped for making long-term plans and curbing impulses
- Unless Junior slows his brain development with heavy drinking - leaving him prone to impulsivity and addiction - his frontal lobes will continue maturing until about age 25
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moral reasoning
- the thinking that occurs as we consider right and wrong
- Lawrence Kohlberg sought to describe it's development; found 3 basic levels: Preconventional, Conventional, and Postconventional morality
- He claimed these levels form a moral ladder
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Preconventional morality
- A level of moral thinking by Lawrence Kohlberg
- Before age 9, most kids morality focuses on self-interest: They obey rules either to avoid punishment or to gain concrete rewards
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Conventional morality
- A level of moral thinking by Lawrence Kohlberg
- By early adolescence, morality focuses on caring for others and on upholding laws and social rules, simply because they are the laws and rules
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Postconventional morality
- A level of moral thinking by Lawrence Kohlberg
- With the abstract reasoning of formal operational thought, people may reach this third moral level.
- Actions are judged "right" because they flow from people's rights or from self-defined, basic ethical principles
- Appears most in European and North American educated middle class which prizes individualism
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identity
- Our sense of self
- According to Eric Erikson, the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles
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social identity
the "we" aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to "Who am I?" that comes from our group memberships
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Infancy
- Infancy to 1 yr: Trust vs. mistrust
- If needs are dependably met, infants develop a sense of basic trust
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Toddlerhood
- 1 - 3 years: Autonomy (independence) vs. shame and doubt
- Toddler learn to exercise their will and do things for themselves, or they doubt their abilities
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Preschool
- 3 to 6 yrs: Initiative vs. guilt
- Preschoolers learn to initiate tasks and carry out plans, or they feel guilty about the efforts to be independent
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Elementary school
- 6 yrs to puberty: industry vs. inferiority
- Children learn the pleasure of applying themselves to tasks, or they feel inferior
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Adolescence
- teen yrs into 20's: Identity vs. role confusion
- Teenagers work at refining a sense of self by testing roles and then integrating them to form a single identity, or they become confused about who they are
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Young adulthood
- 20's to early 40's: Intimacy vs. isolation
- young adults struggle to form close relationships and to gain the capacity for intimate love, or they feel socially isolated
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Middle adulthood
- 40's to 60's: Generativity vs. stagnation
- In middle age, people discover a sense of contributing to the world, usually through family and work, or they may feel a lack of purpose
- *to remember "stagnation", think of the fact that I will probably be in middle adulthood before I can hunt a stag
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Erikson's stages of psychosocial development:
Late adulthood
- late 60's and up: integrity vs. despair
- Reflecting on his or her life, an older adult may feel a sense of satisfaction or failure
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intimacy
- in Erikson's theory, the ability to form close, loving relationships
- a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood
- Erikson contended that adolescent identity stage is followed in young adulthood by developing capacity for intimacy
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According to William Damon, the key task of adolescent development it to
achieve a purpose - a desire to accomplish something personally meaningful that makes a difference to the world beyond oneself
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emerging adulthood
for some people in modern cultures, a period from the late teens to mid twenties, bringing the gap btwn adolescent dependence and full independence and responsible adulthood
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Today's earlier sexual maturity is related to..
both the increased body fat (which can support pregnancy and nursing) and to weakened parent-child bonds, including absent fathers.
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crystallized intelligence
our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age
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fluid intessigence
our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood
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social clock
the culturally perferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement
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terminal decline
in the last 3 or 4 years of life, the cognitive decline which accelerates
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Two basic aspects of our lives which dominate adulthood
- Erik Erikson call them intimacy (forming close relationships) and generativity (being productive and supporting future generations)
- Researchers have chosen various terms - affiliation and achievement, attachment and productivity, commitment, and competence
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The amygdala in later live...
a neural processing center for emotions, shows diminishing activity in older adults in response to negative events, but it maintains it's responsiveness to positive events
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sense of integrity
Erik Erikson... a feeling that one's life has been meaningful and worthwhile
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Life requires both...
- Stability: enables us to depend on others, provides our identity, and motivates our concern for healthy development of kids.
- Change: motivates our concern about present influences, sustains our hope for brighter future, and lets us adapt and grow with experience
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