Developmental Psychology: Key Concepts

• Reflexes are innate abilities
• Rooting reflex: A baby turns their head when their cheek is touched
• Moro reflex: A baby extends arms and throws their head back
• Babinski reflex: Toes spread out when the bottom of the foot is stroked

Habituation

• Decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation is called habituation

Assimilation

• Assimilation means organizing new information into existing schemas

Accommodation

• Accommodation means adding new schemas to differentiate between similar ideas

Object Permanence (Piaget)

• Object Permanence occurs when a child realizes that an object or person still exists even when out of sight
• Object Permanence leads to separation and stranger anxiety

Egocentrism

• Egocentrism is a young child's difficulty seeing things from another person's perspective

Animism

• Animism is a tendency to believe that all things are living

Stranger Anxiety

• Stranger Anxiety begins at about 8 months of age

Conservation

• Conservation explains that properties such as quality, volume, and mass remain the same even when the shape, arrangement, or form changes

Sensorimotor Stage

• The sensorimotor stage occurs from birth to about 2 years old
• During this stage, the world is experienced through senses and actions (looking, touching, mouthing, grasping)
• Object permanence, stranger, and separation anxiety occur during the sensorimotor stage
• Separation anxiety peaks at 13 months of age, regardless of whether the children are home or in daycare

Preoperational Stage

• The preoperational stage occurs between ages 2-6
• During this stage, children learn about words and numbers, make connections between things, and become more independent
• Egocentrism and animism are dominant at the beginning of the preoperational stage, but lessen during this stage

Concrete Operational Stage

• Multi-stepped thinking begins during the concrete operational stage
• Logical thinking forms and children use simple math, but thinking is still very concrete

Formal Operational Stage

• During the formal operational stage, thinking becomes more hypothetical
• Formal operational stage is the highest level of thinking and involves more mature thinking

Zone of Proximal Development

• Zone of Proximal Development is the zone between what a child can and can't do

Microsystem (ecological systems theory)

• Microsystem is the direct relationship with the child, family, peers, school, neighborhood

Mesosystem (Ecological Systems Theory)

• Mesosystem describes relations between microsystems
• It includes connections between parents and teachers, family and coach, or parents and child's friends

Exosystem (Ecological Systems Theory)

• Exosystem includes experiences in a social setting in which an individual does not have an active role but which influences the child
• It is social media, local government, school curriculums, family's financial situation, and parent's friends

Macrosystem (Ecological Systems Theory)

• Macrosystem is the larger socio-cultural context in which a child grows up
• It includes nationality, religion, and political influences, culture

Chronosystem (Ecological Systems Theory)

• Chronosystem has to do with time and life transitions
• It includes traditional, expected, normative transitions: graduating from school, marriage, birth of a child, as well as non-normative, less expected life transitions like an accident, winning a lottery, or a parental divorce, and how these events can affect the child

Diffusion of Identity (James Marcia)

• Diffusion of identity presents as low exploration and low commitment
• Someone with identity diffusion has not yet established goals or direction and is not seeking out either

Foreclosure of Identity (James Marcia)

• Foreclosure of identity presents as low exploration and high commitment
• Someone with identity foreclosure has made a commitment to an identity without much exploration, often based on the expectations of others, like parents or peers

Moratorium of Identity (James Marcia)

• Moratorium of identity presents as high exploration and low commitment
• Someone with identity moratorium is actively looking at multiple possibilities and pathways but has not committed to one pathway

Achievement of Identity

• Identity achievement presents as high exploration and high commitment
• Someone with identity achievement has tried different things, explored multiple pathways, done some research, and figured out who they want to be and what they want to do

Trust vs. Mistrust (Erikson stages)

• Trust vs. mistrust stage occurs from birth to 1 year old
• Infants are completely dependent on others and are trying to make sense of the world
• At this stage the question is posed: Were you well taken care of as a baby?

Autonomy vs. Shame

• Autonomy vs. shame stage occurs from 1-3 years old
• Toddlers develop a sense of control and begin to be independent
• At this stage, the question is posed: Were you encouraged to try new things even if you made mistakes or not?

Initiative vs. Guilt

• Initiative vs. guilt stage occurs from 3-6 years old
• Children start to assert control and personal power, often during play and school
• At this stage, the question is posed: Were you encouraged to meet new people and try new things outside of the home

Industry vs. Inferiority

• Industry vs. inferiority stage occurs from 6-11 years old
• Children choose to do well and take pride in accomplishments and abilities

Identity vs. Confusion

• Identity vs. confusion stage occurs from 12-20 years old
• Adolescents explore independence, test boundaries, and develop a sense of self
• At this stage, the question is posed: Are you encouraged to try to find yourself, or forced to be who your family wants you to be?

Intimacy vs. Isolation

• Intimacy vs. isolation stage occurs from 20-40 years old
• Young adults explore personal relationships
• At this stage, the question is posed: Do you have a good support system or not?

Generativity vs. Stagnation

• Generativity vs. stagnation stage occurs from 40-65 years old
• Middle aged adults look outside of self, care for others, and need to create a living legacy
• At this stage, the question is posed: Are you a good mentor? Or are you more selfish?

Integrity vs. Despair

• Integrity vs. despair stage occurs starting at 65 years old until death
• Older adults reflect back on life
• At this stage, the question is posed: Do you look at our life with happiness or regrets?

Secure Attachment

• With secure attachment, the caregiver is a safe base
• Babies are upset when the caregiver leaves and are happy/comforted when they return
• Secure attachment leads to a well-adjusted, trusting adult

Insecure Avoidant

• With insecure avoidant attachment, the child does not seem to care if the caregiver leaves, or upon return

Insecure Ambivalent or Anxious

• With insecure ambivalent or anxious attachment, babies are devastated when the caregiver leaves and are NOT comforted upon return
• Insecure ambivalent or anxious attachment exhibits rejection of caregiver upon return

Easy Temperament

• Easy temperament occurs in babies that readily adapt to new experiences
• They generally display positive moods and emotions and have regular sleeping and eating patterns

Difficult Temperament

• Difficult temperament occurs in babies that are intensely emotional, irritable and fussy, and cry a lot
• They also typically have irregular sleeping and eating patterns

Slow to Warm Temperament

• Slow to warm temperament describes babies that are cautious and nervous with new experiences, people, or situations
• Individuals with this temperament typically require time to adjust to changes

Authoritarian Parents

• Authoritarian parents are very judgmental and controlling
• They set strict standards for behavior and apply harsh punishments for violations of rules; punishment is used more often than enforcement

Permissive Parents

• Permissive parents give their children relaxed or inconsistent direction
• Permissive parents are warm but require little of their children

Authoritative Parents

• Authoritative parents have consistent, reasonable, and explained standards
• They often leads to the most well-adjusted adults
• This parenting style encourages children's independence, but not violating rules

Crystallized Intelligence

• Crystallized intelligence describes accumulated knowledge and verbal skills and tends to increase with age

Fluid Intelligence

• Fluid intelligence describes the ability to reason speedily and abstractly, and tends to decrease during late adulthood

Social Clock

• Social clock describes the culturally preferred timing of social events, for example, marriage, parenthood, and retirement

Harlow's Study and Results

• Harlow asserted that the need for tactile or contact comfort explains how attachment develops
• Harlow demonstrated this fact by giving monkeys two surrogate mothers: a wire mother, who provided nourishment; and a cloth mother, who provided contact comfort
• The monkeys always preferred the cloth mother

The notes discuss reflexes like rooting, Moro, and Babinski. It furthers explains the significance of habituation, assimilation, and accommodation in cognitive development. Key milestones include object permanence, egocentrism, animism, stranger anxiety and conservation.