Developmental Psychology Chapters 1-6 Study Guide PDF

Chapter 1: The Study of Human Development Human Development is the scientific study of the processes of change and stability throughout the human life span. Life-Span development is concept of human development, from conception to death. Social construction is a concept or practice that may appear n...

Chapter 1: The Study of Human Development Human Development is the scientific study of the processes of change and stability throughout the human life span. Life-Span development is concept of human development, from conception to death. Social construction is a concept or practice that may appear natural and obvious to those who accept it, but that in reality is an invention of a particular culture or society − For example: gender roles, race, marriage, or culture. 3 Domains of Development: Physical - Development of the body and brain, including patterns of change in sensory capacities, motor skills, and health. Cognitive - Pattern of change in mental abilities, such as learning, attention, memory, language, thinking, reasoning, and creativity. Psychosocial - Pattern of change in emotions, personality, and social relationships. Heredity is inborn traits or characteristics inherited from biological parents. Individual differences are differences in characteristics, influences, or developmental outcomes. Nuclear vs Extended Families: Nuclear includes a household with a mother, father, siblings, or stepsiblings. Extended includes a household with grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, or distant relatives. Socioeconomic status (SES) is a combination of economic and social factors describing an individual or family (income, education, and occupation.) An ethnic group is a group united by ancestry, race, religion, language, or national origins, which contribute to a sense of shared identity. Risk factors are conditions that increase the likelihood of a negative developmental outcome. First Three Key principles of the Life-Span Development: Development is lifelong Development is multidimensional Development is multidirectional Normative Influences are characteristic of an event that occurs in a similar way for most people in a group. − For example: Getting married, graduating high school, learning how to drive Non-normative Influences are a group of people strongly influenced by a major historical event during their formative period. − For example: Losing a family member, winning the lottery, natural disasters like encountering a earthquake Chapter 2: Theory and Research Theory is a coherent set of logically related concepts that seeks to organize, explain, and predict data. Hypothesis is possible explanations for phenomena, used to predict the outcome of research. Difference between Continuous and Discontinuous development Continuous is occurring in small step-by-step stages Discontinuous is occurring in distinct stages with sudden changes Qualitative vs. Quantitative Qualitative change is discontinuous changes in kind, structure, or organization. Quantitative change is continuous changes in number or amount, such as in height, weight, size of vocabulary, or frequency of communication. Psychology is WEIRD Acronym (Western, educated, industrialized, rich and democratic) for the type of societies from which research samples are typically drawn. 5 major Theoretical Perspective and theories/theorists associated with these Perseptive Psychoanalytic perspective - Sigmund Freud assumed humans are reactive and progress through developmental stages. - Unconscious forces motivate human behavior. (Drives such as hunger, sex, and aggression) Learning perspective - Human development views changes in behavior resulting from experience and adaptation to the environment. - Behaviorism explains learning through associations (like Watson’s "Little Albert" experiment), rewards and punishments (Skinner’s operant conditioning), and learning by watching others (Bandura’s social learning theory), which helps build confidence in handling challenges. Cognitive perspective  - The cognitive perspective explains how people organize knowledge into categories, adjust their thinking through assimilation and accommodation, and learn through social interaction (Leo Vygotsky’s theory) with support like scaffolding. - The information-processing approach sees people as active thinkers who develop continuously by using attention, memory, planning, and decision-making skills. Contextual - Urie Bronfenbrenner proposed bioecological theory, which identifies five levels of environmental influence ranging from narrow to broad. (Microsystem, Mesosystem, Ecosystem, Macrosystem) Evolutionary/Sociobiological perspective - The view of human development is founded on Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, including the process of “survival of the fittest” and natural selection. - The strongest traits help people survive and get passed down to future generations. Traits that are not helpful slowly disappear over time. Albert Bandura’s social learning theory assumes reciprocal determinism: A person acts on the world as the world acts on the person. Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is Vygotsky’s term for the difference between what a child can do alone and what the child can do with help. Scaffolding is supporting that parents and teachers give until the child can do it alone. Erikson’s first three Psychosocial Stages Basic trust versus mistrust: Babies develop sense of whether the world is a good and safe place Autonomy versus shame and doubt: Child develops a balance of independence and self-sufficiency over shame and doubt Initiative versus guilt: Child develops initiative when trying new activities and is not overwhelmed by guilt Observational learning is an active process of learning appropriate behavior through watching and imitating people. Operant vs. Classical conditioning Classical: involves associating a stimulus that does not ordinarily elicit a response with another stimulus that does elicit the response. Operant: learning that associates a behavior with its consequences such as rewards and punishments Ethics are important in research because they protect participants from harm, ensure honesty and fairness, and maintain trust in scientific findings. Following ethical guidelines helps researchers respect people’s rights, get informed consent, and avoid misleading or harmful practices. Chapter 3: Forming a New Life Epigenetics is a mechanism that turns genes on or off and determines functions of body cells. Cultural Beliefs about Prenatal Development is that people from all cultures share the understanding that the prenatal environment can profoundly shape the developing human. Cephalocaudal principle is the development proceeds “head to tail” the upper parts of the body develop before the lower parts. Proximal principle are the parts of the body near the center develop before the extremities. Ultrasound is a prenatal medical procedure using high-frequency sound waves to detect the outline of a fetus and its movements, so as to determine whether a pregnancy is progressing normally. Teratogen is a environmental agent, such as a virus, a drug, or radiation, that can interfere with normal prenatal development and cause developmental abnormalities. Maternal Stress and Depression During pregnancy, some tension and being worried is normal, however, stress and depression have negative effects on developmental. Chapter 4: Birth and Physical Development during the First Three Years Neonate is a newborn baby, up to 4 weeks old. APGAR Rate is the standard measurement of a newborn’s condition; it assesses appearance, pulse, grimace, activity, and respiration. Low-birth weight babies are when they weight of less than 5½ pounds (2,500 grams) at birth because of prematurity or being small for date. Preterm (premature) vs. Postmature babies Premature Infants are born before completing the 37th week of gestation. Postmature are fetus not yet born as of 2 weeks after the due date or 42 weeks after the mother’s last menstrual period. LBW is correlated with demographic and socioeconomic factors such as being a young or older mother, BIOPIC. Stillbirth is the death of a fetus at or after the 20th week of gestation. Causes of neonatal death includes birth defects, prematurity, birth complications, and infections. Infant mortality rate is the proportion of babies born alive who die within the first year. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is sudden and unexplained death of an apparently healthy infant. Eary Sensory Capacities includes the ability to hear, touch, smell, taste, and hear. Gross vs. Fine Motor Skills Gross: Physical skills that involve large muscles such as catching a ball or rolling over. Fine: Physical skills that involve small muscles and eye-hand coordination such as grasping a rattle or copying a circle. Chapter 5: Cognitive Development during the First Three Years Six Cognitive Approach Behaviorist approach - Focuses on how learning happens through rewards, punishments, and associations (like in classical and operant conditioning). Psychometric approach - Studies intelligence and cognitive abilities by measuring skills like memory, problem-solving, and reasoning through tests. Piagetian approach - Based on Jean Piaget’s theory that cognitive development occurs in stages, where children gradually develop more complex thinking. Information-processing approach - Compares the human mind to a computer, explaining how people take in, store, and retrieve information. Cognitive neuroscience approach - Examines how brain structures and functions influence thinking, learning, and memory. Social-contextual approach - Highlights how social interactions, culture, and environment shape cognitive development (influenced by Vygotsky’s theory). Early Intervention is the systematic process of providing services to help families meet young children’s developmental needs. First Stage of Piaget’s cognitive development is sensorimotor stage, which infants learn through senses and motor activity. Habituation vs. Dishabituation: Habituation: Type of learning in which familiarity with a stimulus reduces, slows, or stops a response. (Decrease) Dishabituation: Increase in responsiveness after presentation of a new stimulus. Language based on the film Genie – Genie Wiley Language Nutrition Language refers to a communication system based on words and grammar. Once children know words, they can use them to represent objects and actions. This is determined by the interaction of the parents with the child. Still face Experiment is a procedure that examines how infants respond to a lack of emotional connection from a caregiver. Social Interaction Language develops through social interaction, and children without normal social contact struggle to learn it. Caregivers help by repeating and correcting words, but research shows that language development differs between lower and higher socioeconomic groups. Chapter 6: Psychosocial Development during the First Three Years Emotions (Self-conscious, Self-awareness, and Self-evaluative) are subjective reactions to experience that are associated with physiological and behavioral changes. Emotions, such as embarrassment, empathy, and envy, that depend on self-awareness. Realization that one’s existence and functioning are separate from those of other people and things. Emotions, such as pride, shame, and guilt, that depend on both self-awareness and knowledge of socially accepted standards of behavior. Personality is the relatively consistent blend of emotions, temperament, thought, and behavior that makes a person unique. Temperament Patterns (3 types of children): 40% are “easy children”: generally happy, rhythmic in biological functioning, and accepting of new experiences 10% are “difficult children”: more irritable, harder to please, irregular in biological functions and more intense in expressing emotions. 15% are “slow-to-warm up children”: mild, but slow to adapt to new people and situations Altruistic behavior is an activity intended to help another person with no expectation of reward. Empathy is the ability to put oneself in another person’s place and feel what the other person feels. Cultural Influences on Temperament via caregiving practices that reinforce important values within a cultural group. Gender vs Gender-typing: Significance of being male or female Socialization process by which children, at an early age, learn appropriate gender roles. Erikson’s first stage in psychosocial development, trust versus mistrust, in which infants develop a sense of the reliability of people and objects. Attachment (4 types identified) Securely Attached (Type B) Insecure-Avoidant (Type A) Insecure-Resistant/Ambivalent (type C) Disorganized (Type D) Positive attributes of Secure children: High self-esteem Social skills Emotional stability Independence Social referencing is understanding an ambiguous situation by seeking another person’s perception of it. Self-concept is the Sense of self; descriptive and evaluative mental picture of one’s abilities and traits. Erikson's second stage in psychological development, autonomy versus shame and doubt, in which children achieve a balance between self-determination and control by others. Self-regulation and the cultural influences which affect the development: A child’s independent control of behavior to conform to understood social expectations Parenting Styles, Social Norms, Expectations, Educational Practices, and Religious Beliefs influences self-regulation 4 Types of Maltreatment in Children: Neglect Sexual abuse  Emotional maltreatment Physical abuse Shaken baby Syndrome is the norm of maltreatment in which shaking an infant or toddler can cause brain damage, paralysis, or death. Failure to Thrive is slowed or arrested physical growth with no known medical cause, accompanied by poor developmental and emotional functioning. Stranger Anxiety is wariness of strange people and places, shown by some infants during the second half of the first year. Separation Anxiety is distress shown by someone, typically an infant, when a familiar caregiver leaves. Long Term Effects of Maltreatment (text and video): Likely to engage in risky sexual activity Juvenile delinquency Alcohol and drug use