Developmental psychology

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan

Nature/nurture

Nature: Innate biological factors that influence development and personality. Nurture: External and environmental factors, including learning, that influence development and personality

Continuity/stages

There are two major theories about how people develop. On one hand, the continuity theory says that development is a gradual, continuous process. On the other hand, the discontinuity theory says that development occurs in a series of distinct stages

Stability/change

Stability and change looks at which traits persist throughout a lifespan versus those that change (e.g.. temperament and personality has been observed to become more stable as one gets older as opposed to social attitudes, which do not)

Zygote

The fertilized egg, it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into a embryo

Embryo

the developing human organism from about 2-weeks after fertilization throughout the 2nd month

Fetus

the developing human organism from about 9- weeks after conception to birth

Teratogen

(literally "monster makers") agents such as chemicals and viruses that can reach the embryo or fetus during the prenatal development and cause harm

Fetal alcohol syndrome

physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant women who drinks heavily while she is pregnant

Habituation

decreased responsiveness with repeated stimulation as infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to a visual stimulus, their interest wanes and they look away sooner

Reflexes: Rooting, Moro, Babinski

Rooting-when touched on the cheek, a baby will turn its head and seek a nipple

Moro- when startled, baby flings limbs out and slowly retract them

Babinski- when a baby's foot is stroked, he/she will spread their toes

Maturation

biological growth process that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by behavior

Motor development

The emergence of the ability to execute physical actions such as walking, crawling, reaching, and rolling

Brain development

in humans at birth, the brain is immature, but as the child matures, neural networks grow increasingly more complex, as they do, the infant's capabilities surge

Pruning

the process of removing neurons that are no longer used (happens around puberty)

Jean Piaget

Believed that children construct their understanding of the world while interacting with it, the experience spurts of change and move onto the next stage

Cognition

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

Schema

a concept of framework that organizes and interprets information

Assimilation

interpreting our new experiences in terms of existing schemas

Accommodation

adapting our current schemas to incorporate new information

Sensorimotor stage

in piaget's theory, the stage from birth to 2 years old during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities

Object permanence

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

Animism

belief that objects that are inanimate (not living) have feelings, thoughts, and have the mental characteristics and qualities of living things

Preoperational stage

in piaget's theory, the stage from 2 to 7 years during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic

Conservation

the principal (which piaget to be apart of concrete operational stage) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain display the changes in forms of objects

Pretend play

Imaginary playmates

Egocentrisism

in piaget's theory, the preoperational child's difficulty taking another's point of view

Centration

a preoperational thought pattern involving the inability to take into account more than one factor at a time

Irreversibility

the inability, in the preoperational child, to think through a series of events or mental operations and then mentally reverse the steps

Theory of mind

peoples ideas about their own and others mental stages- about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts these behaviors might predict

ASD

autism spectrum disorder, a disorder that appears in childhood and is marker by significant difficulties in communication and social interaction and by rigidly fixated interests and repeated behaviors

Concrete operational stage

in piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development from 7 to 11 years old during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events

Formal operational stage

in piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development at 12 years old during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

Abstract thinking

the ability to think about objects, principles, and ideas that are not physically present

Lev Vygotsky

believed the child's mind grows through interactions with the physical environment

Zone of prozimal development

the zone between what a child can and cant do

scaffolding

children steping up to higher levels of thinking

Attactchment

an emotional tie with another person, shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation

Stranger anxiety

the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning at 8 months of age

Harry Harlow

conducted the monkey experiment that concluded that humans need more than food in a caregiver, they also need comfort

Critical period

an optimal period early in the life of an organism when exposure to certain stimulus ot experience produce normal development

Imprinting

the process by which certain animal form strong attachments during an early life critical period

Sensitive period

the development of this process is easiest within that time, but it can still be acquired or even mastered.

Konrad Lorenz

Temperament

Mary Ainsworth

Strange situation experiment

Secure attatchment

Insecure attachment

Secure attachment

Avoidant attachment

Self- concept

all our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in our answering to the question, who am i?

Authoritarian

Authoritative

Permissive

Erik Erikson: basic trust

according to erikson, a sense that the world is a predictable and trustworthy place

Gender

the socially constructed role and characteristics by which a culture defines male or female

Aggression

any physical or verbal behaviors intended to hurt or destroy

Social connectedness

Gender role

a set of expected behaviors for males and females

Role

a set of expectations or norms about a social position, defining how those in that positron ought to behave

Gender idenity

the acquisition of a typical masculine or feminine role

Social learning theory

the theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and being rewarded or punished

Gender typing

our sense of being male or female

Transgender

a umbrella term describing people whose gender identity or expression differs from that associated with their birth sex

Experience and brain development

Parent and peer influence

Adolescence

the transition period from childhood to adulthood extending from puberty to independence

Moral resoning

Lawrence Kohlberg

Preconventional morality

Conventional morality

Postconventional morality

Carol Gilligan

Moral intuiton

Moral action

Identity

our sense of self, according to erikson, the adolescents task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles

Social identity

the "we" aspect of our self- concept the part of our answer to "who am I?" that comes from our group membership

Erik Erikson

Stages of psychosocial development

Trust vs mistrust

Autonomy vs shame and doubt

Initiative vs guilt

Competence vs inferiority

Identity vs role confusion

Intimacy vs isolation

Generativity vs stagnation

Integrity vs despair

Emerging adulthood

for some people, in modern cultures, a period from late teens to mid twenties bridging the gap between adolescences dependence and full independence and responsible adulthood

X chromosone

the sex chromosome found in both men and women, females have 2 and men have 1

Y chromosone

the sex chromosome found only in males

Testosterone

the most important of the male sex hormones, both males and females have it but the additional amount in males stimulates male sex organs

Puberty

the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing

Primary sex characteristics

the body structures like ovaries, testies, and external genitalia that make sexual reproduction possible

Secondary sex characteristics

non reproductive sexual traits such as female breast and hips, and male voice quality and body hair

Menarche

the first menstrual period

Variations on sexual development

Sexually transmitted infections

AIDS- a life threatening sexually transmitted infection caused by the human immunodeficiency virus

Teen pregnancy

Sexual orientation

and enduring sexual attraction towards members of ether one's own sex, the opposite sex, or both sexes

Environment and sexual orientation

Biology and sexual orientation

Genetic influences and prenatal influences

Physical changes of adulthood

Menopause

the time of natural cessations of menstration also refers to the biologically change a woman experiences as her fertility declines

Strength and stamina

Sensory abilities

Health

The aging brain

Cognitive development changes

Cross sectional studies

a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another

Longitudinal studies

research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period of time

Social development

Social clock

the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement

Adulthood commitments: love, work, family

Death and dying

Elizabeth Kublar- Ross stages of grief