Psychology Life-Span Perspective Quiz

Life-Span Perspective

• Examines growth, development, and decline throughout a person's life.
• Utilizes multiple frameworks for comprehensive understanding.

Characteristics of Development

• Development is lifelong, starting at conception and concluding at death.
• Multidimensional, encompassing biological, cognitive, and socioemotional aspects.
• Multidirectional, involving both increases and decreases in abilities over time.
• Plasticity refers to the ability for change or stability in characteristics.
• Multidisciplinary, integrating insights from psychology, education, sociology, and more.
• Multicontextual, influenced by varying settings like families, schools, and communities.

Biological Dimensions

• Include physical changes such as height, weight, and hormonal shifts during puberty.

Cognitive Dimensions

• Concern changes in thought processes, intelligence, and language acquisition.

Socioemotional Dimensions

• Encompass alterations in relationships, emotional responses, and personality development.

Socioeconomic Status (SES)

• Measures an individual's or family's economic and social position based on income, education, and occupation.

Culture

• Describes behavior patterns, beliefs, and traditions that are transmitted across generations.

Nature vs. Nurture

• Nature involves biological inheritance while nurture focuses on environmental experiences.

Psychoanalytic Theories

• Highlight the unconscious mind's influence on development, emphasizing emotional factors.

Developmental Stages

• Erogenous zones are crucial for pleasure and include areas like the mouth and genitals.
• Fixation results when an individual becomes stuck at a certain developmental phase.

Freud's Stages of Psychosexual Development

• Oral Stage: Focus on oral pleasure (birth to 18 months).
• Anal Stage: Pleasure derived from controlling bowel movements (1.5 to 3 years).
• Phallic Stage: Focus on genital stimulation (3 to 6 years).
• Latency Stage: Repression of sexual interests; development of social skills (6 to 11 years).
• Genital Stage: Sexual reawakening with external partners (adolescence and adulthood).

Erikson's Psychosocial Theory

• Trust vs. Mistrust: Reliance on caregivers for trust (birth to 1 year).
• Autonomy vs. Shame: Developing independence and control (1 to 3 years).
• Initiative vs. Guilt: Assertiveness in controlling the environment (3 to 6 years).
• Industry vs. Inferiority: Coping with academic and social demands (6 to 11 years).
• Identity vs. Role Confusion: Establishing personal identity (12 to 18 years).
• Intimacy vs. Isolation: Forming intimate relationships (19 to 40 years).
• Generativity vs. Stagnation: Contributing to society (40 to 65 years).
• Ego Integrity vs. Despair: Reflecting on life fulfillment (65 years to death).

Cognitive Development Theories

• Piaget’s Stages:
  • Sensorimotor Stage: Understanding through sensory experiences (birth to 2 years).
  • Preoperational Stage: Development of symbolic thinking (2 to 7 years).
  • Concrete Operational Stage: Logical reasoning about tangible events (7 to 11 years).
  • Formal Operational Stage: Abstract and idealistic reasoning (11 years and up).

Research Methods

• Surveys: Gather descriptive data; may lack depth due to biases.
• Naturalistic Observation: Observations in natural settings; may be time-consuming and subjective.
• Case Studies: Detailed analysis over time; difficult to generalize.
• Archival Research: Utilizes existing data; speed of data collection may compromise accuracy.
• Experimental Research: Manipulates variables for control; can lead to artificial results.
• Longitudinal Studies: Follows subjects over time; resource-intensive.
• Cross-Sectional Studies: Studies different age groups at one time; quick but limited depth.
• Cross-Sequential Studies: Combines longitudinal and cross-sectional methods for a comprehensive view.