Topic 4 - Development PDF

FPSH1014 Understanding Self and Others Topic 4 Development Prepared by: Tony Ooi Presented by: Kelvin Wee  Introduction ✔ You bought a robot. ✔ When you get home, you discover that it does nothing useful. ✔...

FPSH1014 Understanding Self and Others Topic 4 Development Prepared by: Tony Ooi Presented by: Kelvin Wee  Introduction ✔ You bought a robot. ✔ When you get home, you discover that it does nothing useful. ✔ It can’t even maintain its balance. It makes irritating, high-pitched noises, moves its limbs haphazardly & leaks. ✔ The store you bought it from refuses to take it back. ✔ And you’re not allowed to turn it off… You’re stuck with this useless machine. Few Years Later  Introduction ✔ Your robot can now walk & talk, read & write, draw pictures, & do math. ✔ Your robot follows your directions (usually) & sometimes does useful things without being told. ✔ It beats you at memory games. ✔ How did all this happen? You knew nothing about how to program a robot. Did your robot have some sort of built-in programming that simply took a long time to phase in? Or was it programmed to learn all these skills? ✔ Children are like that robot. ✔ Parents wonder, “How did my children get to be the way they are? And why did my 2 children turn out so different?”  Introduction ❑ Developmental psychology seeks to understand how nature & nurture combine to produce human behaviour – “from womb to tomb.” ❑ As we grow older, our behaviour changes in many ways. ❑ Developmental psychologists seek to describe & understand these changes. The Fetus & the Newborn ❑ At the beginning, during prenatal development, everyone starts as a fertilized egg cell/zygote. ❑ Zygote develops through its first few stages until it becomes a fetus. ❑ Fetus = organism more developed than an embryo, but not yet born (from about 8 weeks after conception until birth). ❑ As soon as 6 weeks after conception, the nervous system is mature enough to produce a few movements. ❑ The brain begins to mature long before birth. Continued… The Fetus & the Newborn ❑ A serious risk arises if a fetus is exposed to alcohol; if the mother drinks alcohol during pregnancy infant may develop fetal alcohol syndrome. ❑ Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) = condition marked by physical deformities/mental impairments caused by alcohol consumed by a mother during pregnancy. ❑ Reason: ▪ Developing neurons require persistent excitation to survive. ▪ Without it, they activate a self-destruct program. ▪ Alcohol interferes with the brain’s main excitatory neurotransmitter by facilitating the main inhibitory neurotransmitter (GABA) decreases neurons’ arousal + makes many of them self-destruct. Continued…  Infant’s ❑ Vision Infants don’t have the same concept of “face” that adults do. ❑ To a newborn, the concept of face is just an oval with most of its content toward the top. ❑ The ability to recognize faces continues developing for years. ❑ The gradual improvement of face recognition depends on experience. ❑ Like us, infants become best at recognizing the kinds of faces they frequently see.  Infant’s Hearing ❑ Infants suck more vigorously when certain kinds of sounds arouse them. ❑ Experimenters played a brief sound to study infants’ sucking rate: ▪ On the first few occasions, sound increases sucking rate. ▪ Repeated sound infant became habituated to the sound produced less & less effect. ▪ Habituation = decreased response to a repeated stimulus (in this case, it’s the repeated sound). ▪ When substituted with new sound sucking rate increased. ▪ Conclusion: infant was aroused by unfamiliar sound; dishabituation occurred. ❑ Dishabituation = when a change in a stimulus (sound) increases a previously habituated response (in this case, the infant’s sucking rate). Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development ❑ Jean Piaget (1896 – 1980) was a Swiss psychologist who first made a systematic study of the acquisition of understanding in children. ❑ Piaget's theory of cognitive development explains how a child constructs a mental model of the world. ❑ Piaget’s beliefs: ▪ As children develop intellectually, they do more than accumulate facts. ▪ Children begin constructing new mental processes. Continued…  Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development ❑ Piaget proposed 3 terms: i. Schema ii. Assimilation iii. Accommodation Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development Schema ❑ Organized way of interacting with objects. ❑ Example: grasping schema – action of grasping objects. Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development Assimilation ❑ Applying a schema to new objects/problems. ❑ Example: infant learning that the grasping schema works well on blocks, toy cars, other small objects etc. Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development Accommodation ❑ Modifying an old schema to fit a new object/problem. ❑ Example: infant learns that some objects can only be lifted with 2 hands modify grasping scheme so that it works for new objects. Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development ❑ Piaget contended that children progress through 4 major stages of cognitive development. ❑ 4 stages of cognitive development: i. Sensorimotor Stage (Birth – age 2) ii. Preoperational Stage (Age 2 – 7) iii. Concrete-Operational Stage (Age 7 – 11) iv. Formal-Operational Stage (Age 11 onward) ❑ The ages listed are only approximate. ❑ Some youngsters move through the periods more rapidly than other children do. ❑ However, all people progress through the stages in the same order. Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 1. Sensorimotor Stage (Birth – 2 years) ❑ Piaget’s 1st stage of cognitive development. ❑ Infants react to sensory stimuli through reflexes & other responses ❑ According to Piaget, infants respond only to what they see & hear at the moment. ❑ Children during this period fail to respond to objects they remember seeing even a few seconds ago. ❑ Object permanence = idea that objects continue to exist even when we don’t see/hear them. Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 1. Sensorimotor Stage (Birth – age 2) ❑ Infants in the first few months of life lack the concept of object permanence; “Out of sight, out of existence”. ❑ Piaget’s observation on Object Permanence: ▪ Place a toy in front infant reaches out for it. ▪ Place a toy in front hide toy behind barrier infant doesn’t move barrier away to reach for the toy. ❑ Piaget – infant doesn’t know that the hidden toy continues to exist. ❑ For infants, objects exist when in sight & no longer exist when out of sight. Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 2. Preoperational Stage (Age 2 – 7) ❑ Piaget’s 2nd stage of cognitive development. ❑ At this stage, a child lacks the reversible mental processes. ❑ 3 typical aspects of preoperational stage: ▪ Egocentrism ▪ Appearance as reality ▪ Lack of the concept of conservation Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 2. Preoperational Stage (Age 2 – 7) ❑ Egocentrism = seeing the world as centered around oneself, with difficulty taking another person’s perspective. ❑ Preoperational stage children don’t understand that other people differ in their ideas, convictions & emotions. ❑ Piaget’s famous experiments: 3-mountains problem ▪ Children sat at a table with 3 mountain models. ▪ Asked to choose a photo that matches the adult’s view of the mountains. ▪ Typically picked the photo that showed their own view, not the adult’s view. ▪ Conclusion: child sees everything from his/her own point of view; believes all the world think like him/her. Continued…  Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 2. Preoperational Stage (Age 2 – 7) ❑ A child at this stage have difficulty distinguishing appearance from erational stage *when a preop reality. il d s e e s li te ra lly anything ch ❑ A child believe that an object’s appearance tells what the object is really like. ❑ Child assumes that an object really is what it appears to be. ❑ Examples: ▪ If you put a white ball behind a blue filter, a child will tell you the ball is blue. ▪ When a child sees a person cosplaying as Iron Man, he will believe that the cosplayer is actually Iron Man. Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 2. Preoperational Stage (Age 2 – 7) ❑ Conservation = concept that objects conserve such properties as number, length, volume, area & mass after changes in the shape/arrangement of the objects. ❑ Properties of an object doesn't change if it's been altered. ❑ Children lack the understanding on conservation; can’t perform the mental operations necessary to understand the transformations. ❑ Example: ▪ Show children 2 equal glasses with the same amount of water pour the contents of 1 glass into a taller & thinner glass, preoperational children will say the taller & thinner glass has more water. Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development Conservation of number ▪ Preoperational child says that these 2 rows contain the same number of coins. ▪ When the spaces between the 2nd row of coins are enlarged, a child will say that the 2nd row has more coins. Conservation of mass ▪ Preoperational child says that the 2 same-size balls of clay have the same amount of clay. ▪ When one clay is flattened, a child will say that the flattened clay has more clay (because it looks bigger). Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 3. Concrete-Operational Stage (Age 7 – 11) ❑ A child at this stage begin to understands conservation of mass, number & volume; can reason logically with regard to concrete objects that can be seen/touched. ❑ However, a child still has trouble reasoning about abstract concepts & hypothetical situations. ❑ A child may resist reaching conclusions that are contrary to known facts. ❑ Example: ▪ If you hypothetically tells a child you can break a glass with a feather, the child will insist you couldn’t (can’t understand it’s just an abstract idea). Continued… Jean Piaget’s View of Cognitive Development 4. Formal Operational Stage (Age 11 onward) ❑ At this stage, a child can now: ▪ Reason logically about abstract & hypothetical concepts; ▪ Develops strategies; ▪ Plans actions systematically; ▪ Perform deductive reasonings; ▪ Do mathematical calculations; ▪ Imagine the outcome of particular actions. ❑ Ability to think about things which has not actually been experienced & draw conclusions from its thinking. ❑ Example: ▪ At this stage, if you ask “If Sarah is taller than John and John is taller than Ashley, who is the tallest?”, a child has no problem giving you a correct answer. Differing Views: Piaget & Vygotsky ❑ Piaget’s view: ▪ Children must discover certain concepts (i.e. concept of conservation) mainly on their own. ▪ Teaching a concept means directing children’s attention to key aspects + letting them discover the concept. ❑ Lev Vygotsky’s view: ▪ Young children can often accomplish far more with some adult guidance than they can accomplish alone; referred to this difference as the zone of proximal development. ▪ An adult can help a child at the right age. ❑ Zone of proximal development = difference between what a child can do with assistance & what he/she can do alone. Continued… Differing Views: Piaget & Vygotsky ❑ Example: ▪ It’s difficult to teach a 4-year-old the concept of conservation. However, a 6-year-old who doesn’t yet understand this concept might learn it with help & guidance from adults. ❑ Scaffolding = a style in which teachers gauge the amount of assistance they offer to match the learner’s needs. ❑ Early in learning a new task, children know little; teachers give much direct instruction about how to perform the task. ❑ As children catch on, teachers will provide less direct instruction. Erikson’s Description of Human Development ❑ Erik Erikson divided the human life span into 8 stages (from infancy through old age). ❑ At each stage, people have specific tasks to master; each stage generates its own social & emotional conflicts. ❑ Erikson describes development in terms of the entire life span, divided by specific crises to be resolved. ❑ Crisis is like a turning point in life when we have the potential to move forward/regress we can either resolve our conflicts OR fail to master the developmental task. ❑ Failure to master the task of any stage unfortunate consequences that carry over to later stages. Continue…  Erikson’s 8 Psychosocial Stages i. Trust Vs. Mistrust ii. Autonomy Vs. Shame & Doubt iii. Initiative Vs. Guilt iv. Industry Vs. Inferiority v. Identity Vs. Role Confusion vi. Intimacy Vs. Isolation vii. Generativity Vs. Stagnation viii. Integrity Vs. Despair Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 1. Trust Vs. Mistrust (Infancy) ❑ Involves developing a sense that the world is safe, a “good place”. ❑ This stage is dependent upon the care provided to infants by caregivers. ❑ Responsive caregivers: ▪ Provide warmth, touching, love & care. ▪ Meet infants’ physical & emotional needs. ▪ Infant will develop sense of trust grow up seeing the world as a safe, predictable place. ❑ Unresponsive caregivers: ▪ Provide inadequate, unpredictable care, cold, indifferent, rejecting. ▪ Doesn’t meet infants’ need. ▪ Infant will see the world as unpredictable likely to grow up with attitude of mistrust toward the world, especially toward interpersonal relationships. Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 2. Autonomy Vs. Shame & Doubt (Ages 1 – 3) ❑ Involves realizing that one is independent in making decisions. ❑ At this stage, toddlers begin exploring their world & learn that they can control their actions. ❑ Basic struggle here is between a sense of self-reliance and a sense of self-doubt. ❑ Child needs to explore & experiment, to make mistakes & to test limits. ❑ If toddlers are encouraged to expressed growing self-control by climbing, touching, exploring develop a sense of autonomy. ❑ If toddlers are ridiculed & overprotected by parents begin to doubt own abilities low self-esteem & feeling of shame. Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 3. Initiative Vs. Guilt (Ages 3 – 6) ❑ Involves developing the ability to try new things & to handle failure; basic task is to achieve a sense of competence & initiative. ❑ Children are capable of initiating activities & control their world through social interactions & play. ❑ Give freedom to play, explore, ask questions, use imagination, choose activities, interact with others mastery of initiative, develop self-confidence & feel a sense of purpose. ❑ Not allowed to make own decisions, criticized severely, discouraged from asking questions, restrain by over-controlling parents feelings of guilt for taking initiative; refrain from taking active stance & allow others to choose for them. Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 4. Industry Vs. Inferiority (Ages 6 – 12) ❑ Involves learning basic skills & to work with others; children also begin to compare themselves with their peers. ❑ Child needs to expand understanding of world, continue to develop appropriate gender-role identity & learn skills needed for school success. ❑ If adults praised child for productive activities child experiences sense of industry, sense of pride & accomplishment. ❑ If adults regard child’s things as messy, childish & inadequate child experiences sense of inferiority. ❑ If children don’t get along with others/have negative experiences at home/with peers inferiority complex might develop into adolescence & adulthood. Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 5. Identity Vs. Role Confusion (Early teens) ❑ A time of transition between childhood & adulthood; involves seeking clarification of self-identity, life goals & meaning; ❑ Basic task: ▪ To develop a lasting, integrated sense of self; ▪ “Who am I?”, “What do I want to do with my life?”; ▪ Adolescents may try different selves to see which one fits (explore roles, ideas, goals) in an attempt to discover their “adult” selves. ❑ Success at this stage sense of identity (building up one’s identity through talents, values, life history & relationship). ❑ If adolescents don’t make conscious search for identity/persuaded to conform to what others expect out of them weak sense of self & experience role confusion (failure to develop sense of identity). Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 6. Intimacy Vs. Isolation (Late teens & early 20s) ❑ Involves committing to another in a loving relationship & share life with others. ❑ Basic task: to form intimate relationships. ❑ Ability to care & to share experience with others sense of intimacy. ❑ If other stages haven’t been successfully resolved, young adults may have trouble developing & maintaining successful relationships with others sense of isolation & alienation (feeling alone, uncared for in life). Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 7. Generativity Vs. Stagnation (Middle age) ❑ Involves contributing to younger people through child rearing, child care/other productive work. ❑ There’s a need to go beyond the self & be involved in helping the next generation. ❑ If adults can contribute to the next generation by engaging in meaningful & productive work generativity; develop a sense of being a part of the bigger picture, feeling of usefulness & accomplishment. ❑ If adults don’t master this task stagnation; feel unproductive, disconnected or uninvolved with community & society as a whole. Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages 8. Integrity Vs. Despair (Later life) ❑ Involves viewing one’s life as satisfactory & worth living. ❑ Older adults who feel proud of their accomplishment: ▪ Sense of integrity; ▪ Viewing life with acceptance & satisfaction; ▪ Very few regrets when look back on their lives. ❑ Older adults unsuccessful at this stage: ▪ Sense of despair; ▪ Feeling regret, a sense of failure, hopelessness, guilt, resentment; ▪ Felt as if their lives have been wasted. Topic 4 Development Part 2  Infancy & Childhood Strange Situation Test ❑ Strange Situation = standardized procedure to observe attachment security in children within the context of caregiver relationships. ❑ Procedure: i. A mother & her infant (typically 12 – 18 months old) come into a room with many toys. ii. Stranger enters the room mother leaves mother returns. iii. Few minutes later: both stranger & mother leave stranger returns mother returns. iv. Psychologists monitor child’s behaviour as mother & a stranger at various times enter & leave the room. v. Through a one-way mirror, psychologist observes infant’s reactions to each coming & going. Continued…  Infancy & Childhood – Strange Situation ❑ Observers classify infants’ responses into 4 categories: Categories Infants’ Responses ▪ Uses mother as base of exploration; coo at her, show her toys & make eye contact with her. Securely ▪ Shows some distress when mother leaves, but cries only briefly. Attached ▪ When mother returns goes to her with apparent delight, cuddles shortly returns to toys. ▪ Responses toward mother fluctuate between happy & angry. ▪ Clings to mother & cries profusely when she leaves (as if worried she won’t return). Anxious ▪ When mother return, infant clings to her again but doesn’t use her as a base to explore the (or resistant) toys. ▪ Typically shows many fears (including a strong fear of strangers).  Infancy & Childhood – Strange Situation ❑ Observers classify infants’ responses into 4 categories: Categories Infants’ Responses ▪ While mother is present, infant doesn’t stay near her & seldom interacts with her. Avoidant ▪ Infant may/may not cry when mother leaves + doesn’t go to her when she returns. ▪ Seems not even to notice mother/looks away while approaching her, covers his/her face, lies on the floor. Disorganized ▪ Alternates between approach & avoidance; shows more fear than affection. Infancy & Childhood ❑ Why do some children develop more secure attachments than others? ❑ One reason is that children differ genetically in their temperament. ❑ Temperament = tendency to be active/inactive & to respond vigorously/quietly to new stimuli. ❑ Temperament is fairly consistent throughout life for most people. ❑ Those with “difficult” temperament frightened more easily > others from infancy through adulthood. Continued… Infancy & Childhood ❑ Attachment style also relates strongly to how responsive parents are to infants’ needs; e.g. holding, touching, facial expressions etc. ❑ Gentle touch can be very reassuring; developing a secure attachment takes time & effort. ❑ Study to examine children raised in orphanage: ▪ Orphans raised in Africa, Asia, eastern Europe, Latin America for 1 – 3 years before adoption by a U.S. family. ▪ By 3 months after adoption about half of children showed attachment to their adopting parents. ▪ By 9 months about 2/3 of children showed secure attachment. Social Development in Childhood & Adolescence ❑ Relationships with age-mates become increasingly important during childhood & adolescence. ❑ Around puberty, the onset of sexual maturity, sexual interest begins to enter into peer relationships. ❑ Adolescence – often described as a time of “storm & stress.” ❑ Early adolescence – occasional periods of moodiness & conflict with parents. ❑ Later adolescence – conflicts with parents decrease. ❑ Adolescents who receive sympathetic support & understanding experience less conflict with parents. Continued… Social Development in Childhood & Adolescence ❑ Adolescence is also a time of risk-taking behaviours; they’re aware of the dangers (e.g. drunk driving, unprotected sex etc.). ❑ Despite that, they make impulsive, risky decisions; why don’t they behave like adults? ❑ Reasons: ▪ Impulsive behaviour in adolescents – decide quickly, especially under peer pressure. ▪ Prefrontal cortex of brain is important for inhibiting inappropriate behaviours. ▪ This part of the brain is slow to mature, not reaching full maturity until late teens/early 20s. ▪ Greater urge for excitement. Identity Development ❑ Erikson – adolescence is a time of “finding yourself,” determining “who am I?” or “who will I be?” ❑ It’s the time when most people first construct a coherent/clear “life story” of how they got to be the way they are. ❑ Identity crisis = concerns with decisions about future & quest for self-understanding. ❑ Identity development has 2 major elements: i. Whether one is actively exploring the issue; ii. Whether one has made any decisions. Continued…  Has explored or is Has not explored exploring the issue the issue Identity Achievement Identity Foreclosure Decision ▪ Outcome of having explored various possible ▪ State of reaching firm decisions without much already made identities & then making one’s own decisions. thought. ▪ Status is typically determined by adults rather than by his/her own personal exploration. Identity Moratorium Identity Diffusion ▪ Considering the issues, but not yet making ▪ Have not yet given any serious thought to decisions. making decisions + no clear sense of identity. Decision not ▪ Experiment with various possibilities & imagine ▪ Not actively concerned with own identity. yet made themselves in different roles, but postpone any ▪ Common among people with low self-esteem & choices. a hopeless, pessimistic attitude toward life.  Examples – Identity Development i. Identity Achievement (explored + decided) – Throughout secondary school, Tim has thought about becoming a physicist. During Form 3 and 4, he thought it would be cool to become a doctor. During Form 5, Tim attended a short talk on human behaviour and human mind and everything finally sets into place where he has discovered his calling. He knew that he wanted to study psychology and one day become a clinical psychologist. ii. Identity Foreclosure (not explored + decided) – Gordon’s parents told him that he should study to become an accountant and join his family accounting firm, as such he enrolled himself into a business school without giving much thought on the matter related to his own education. Continued…  Examples – Identity Development Examples: iii. Identity Moratorium (explored + not decided) – During secondary school, Lily enjoys most of the subjects that are being taught. Occasionally, she thought about becoming a biologist. Sometimes, she aspires to become a writer. On other days, she is interested in becoming a mathematician. Lily thinks changing her mind from time to time can be a little unusual, however she also enjoys thinking about different jobs. iv. Identity Diffusion (not explored + not decided) – Jason dislikes the idea of deciding and planning for his future. Hence, he spends most of his free time watching TikTok videos/playing video games. The “Personal Fable” of Teenagers ❑ 1 reason for risky behaviour is the “personal fable,” which includes the secret belief that “nothing bad can happen to me”. ❑ Teenagers are particularly likely to hold such beliefs. ❑ It’s the belief that “I am special—what is true for everyone else isn’t true for me.” ❑ Though this fable supports an optimistic outlook on life, it becomes dangerous if it leads people to take foolish risks.  Adulthood ❑ From early adulthood until retirement, the main concern of most adults is: ▪ “What will I achieve and contribute to society and my family?” ▪ “Will I be successful?” ❑ Early adulthood (age 20 – 40): ▪ Make big decisions about career & marriage; ▪ Have children; ▪ Devote great energy to pursuing goals; ▪ Buy house, raise family; a young person’s earning can be difficult & stressful. Continued…  Adulthood ❑ Middle adulthood (age 40 – 65), ▪ Physical strength begins to decline; ▪ May have already achieved success at work/come to accept whatever status they have; ▪ More accepting of themselves & others at this time; ▪ Feel less tyrannized by the stress of job. ▪ Also face less day-to-day stress of caring for small children. ▪ Goes through midlife transition. ❑ Midlife transition = period of reassessing goals, setting new ones, & preparing for the rest of life. ❑ Transition may occur in dealing with a divorce, illness, death in family, career change/some event that causes one to question past decisions & current goals. Continued…  Adulthood ❑ People deal with their midlife transitions in many ways. ❑ Most people abandon unrealistic goals & set new goals consistent with the direction their lives have taken. ❑ Some decided that they’ve been ignoring their dreams; e.g. ▪ Go back to school; ▪ Start-up a new business; ▪ Try something else they’ve always wanted to do. ❑ To increase your chances of feeling good in middle age & beyond, make good decisions when you’re young. ❑ If you care about some goal, don’t wait for a midlife transition.  Old Age ❑ Late adulthood (age 65 onwards) ▪ If satisfied with lives experience ego integrity. ▪ If unsatisfied with live experience despair. ❑ People age in different ways; how you feel in old age depends on what happened long before. ❑ Satisfaction in old age depends largely on how one live while younger; some old people: ▪ Deteriorate in intellect, coordination, & ability to care for self; ▪ Remain alert & active. ❑ One way to improve older people’s memory & cognition is daily physical exercise. The Psychology of Facing Death ❑ Just thinking about the fact of eventual death evokes distress. ❑ To go on with life effectively, we try to shield ourselves from thinking too much about dying. ❑ Terror-Management Theory = we cope with our fear of death by avoiding thoughts about death + by affirming a worldview that provides self-esteem, hope, & value in life. ❑ When something reminds you of your mortality, you do whatever you can to reduce your anxiety. Continued… The Psychology of Facing Death ❑ Examples of managing the fear of death: ▪ Reassure yourself that you still have many years to live. ▪ “My health is good, I don’t smoke, I don’t drink too much, and I’m not overweight.” ▪ If your lifestyle is unhealthy, tell yourself that you plan to change (e.g. quit smoking, cut down on drinking, start losing weight). ▪ Think about the good job you have (or hope to have), ▪ High salary you earn (or expect to earn) ▪ Any exciting things you will do during the rest of your life etc. Continued… The Psychology of Facing Death ❑ Despite excellent health, we’re merely postponing death. ❑ Death serves as a reminder to redouble your efforts to defend a belief that life is important; e.g. ▪ Reaffirming one’s religious beliefs, patriotism, or other views that help one find meaning in life; ▪ Vow to repair damaged relationships with relatives/friends; ▪ For a parent, one think more about his/her children; ▪ Do whatever one can to increase one’s feeling of control over the future; ▪ Take pride in how one has contributed to one’s profession or something else that will continue after leaving this world. Continued… The Psychology of Facing Death ❑ Advances in modern medicine raise new ethical issues with regard to dying. ❑ Medical advancement can now keep people alive after their physical & mental capacities have badly deteriorated. ❑ The question is: “Should we?” ❑ Many people have to face these difficult decisions for themselves & family members. ❑ Example: ▪ If someone is bedridden, in pain, & mentally deteriorated, with little hope of recovery, is it acceptable to help the person hasten death (euthanasia)?  Gender Influences ❑ Males & females differ biologically in ways that influence behaviour: ▪ Difference in brain areas between men & women. ▪ Difference in genes activity between male & female brains. ❑ Examples of some behavioural differences (on average): ▪ Boys = more active; girls = better self-control. ▪ Females = better at recognizing faces & detecting emotional signals. ▪ Men = less accurate at recognizing emotional expressions. ▪ Giving directions: men = more likely to use directions & distances (e.g. “go four blocks east…”); women = more likely to use landmarks (e.g. “go until you see the library…”). ▪ Women apologize more > men do*. *men often shrug something off as unimportant; when women expect to hear, “I’m sorry.” source of friction between men & women. Continued…  Gender Influences ❑ Males & females don’t differ in intellectual abilities. ❑ Common belief: men are better in mathematics. ❑ Males outperform females in math in countries where men have greater economic & political status > women. ❑ But in countries where men & women have nearly equal status difference in average math performance disappears. ❑ United States, Asian countries (e.g. China, Japan, Taiwan) – on average, females do as well as/better than males on standardized math test scores & grades in nearly all math courses from elementary school through college. Continued…  Gender Influences ❑ Males & females show differences in interests (from childhood through adulthood). ❑ Males = more likely to devote almost all their energies to a single interest; females = more likely to develop a variety of interests. ❑ Studies have found that: ▪ Girls – exposed to higher than average levels of male hormone testosterone during prenatal development tend to play with boys’ toys more than an average girl. ▪ When pregnant women are exposed to chemicals that interfere with testosterone sons show less than average interest in boys’ toys at ages 3 to 6.  Gender Roles ❑ Gender roles (known as sex role) = pattern of behaviour that a person is expected to follow because of being male/female. ❑ Many gender roles are customs set by our society. ❑ Gender roles sometimes constrain people’s choices; e.g.: ▪ Traditional gender roles discourage some women from pursuing interests/career opportunities considered to be too masculine. ▪ Can also be a problem for men – young men need to withstand great pain to prove their manhood; in the U.S, some men feel a need to get into fights/engage in other risky behaviours to prove their manhood. Continued…  Gender Roles ❑ Cultures also determine the relative status of men & women. ▪ If a culture lives in conditions that require hunting, fighting men have greater status. ▪ If food is abundant & enemies are few, men & women more equal status. ❑ Over the last few decades, gender roles have changed in many ways in many countries: ▪ Women in politics/other positions of leadership, once a rarity, are now more common. ❑ However, dating customs have been more resistant to change. ▪ Although exceptions occur, most people still expect that a man asks a woman for a date, picks her up, pays for most expenses, drives her home etc. Effects of Parenting Styles ❑ Psychologists have done a great deal of research comparing parenting styles to the behaviour & personality of the children. ❑ 4 parenting styles: i. Authoritative parents ii. Authoritarian parents iii. Permissive parents iv. Indifferent/uninvolved parents Continued…  Effects of Parenting Styles High Low Warmth Warmth Authoritative Parents Authoritarian Parents ▪ Set high standards & impose controls. ▪ Set firm controls, but tend to be ▪ Also warm & responsive to child’s emotionally more distant from the child. High communications. ▪ Set rules without explaining the reasons Parental ▪ Set limits but adjust them when behind them. Control appropriate. ▪ Encourage their children to strive toward their own goals. Permissive Parents Indifferent/Uninvolved Parents Low ▪ Warm & loving but undemanding. ▪ Spend little time with children. Parental ▪ Do little more than provide them with Control food & shelter. Non-traditional Families ❑ In most societies, a traditional family generally includes the mother + father + children. ❑ A non-traditional family is anything else. ❑ In general, 2 parents are better than one, partly for financial reasons. ❑ Children reared by gay/lesbian parents develop about the same as those reared by heterosexuals in terms of social & emotional development, mental health, romantic relationships & sexual orientation. ❑ Children’s main difficulties: ▪ Prejudices that their classmates may have against single-sex couples. Parental Conflict & Divorce ❑ Attitude towards divorce is varied across cultures. ❑ Some countries (e.g. U.S) are much more open to it than others (e.g. South Korea); societies worldwide consider divorce shameful. ❑ Effects of divorce on children are highly variable; e.g. ▪ Temporary setbacks in academic performance & social relationships. ▪ Pout & seek extra attention, especially in 1st year after a divorce. ▪ Long term – children reared by divorced mothers difficulties due to emotional trauma of divorce + partly due to financial difficulties. Continued… Parental Conflict & Divorce ❑ Study across 14 countries on divorce: ▪ Decreased child’s probability of graduating from college by 7%. ▪ Some children remain distressed for years, whereas others recover quickly. ▪ Few seem to do well at first, but become more distressed later. ▪ Others are resilient throughout their parents’ divorce & afterward (able to keep their friends, do all right in school & maintain good relationships with both parents). Continued… Parental Conflict & Divorce ❑ No research implies that parents must stay together for their children’s benefit. ❑ Children don’t fare well if parents are constantly fighting. ❑ Children who observe much conflict between their parents tend to be nervous + unable to sleep well + prone to violent & disruptive behaviours.