Chapter 11

Question 1

What is developmental psychology?

Answer 1

It is the study of continuity and change across life spans. It includes the study of infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. We are always changing and in recent years scientists have begun to understand the importance of understanding the biology behind these processes.

Question 2

What is prenatal development?

Answer 2

It is the development that occurs before the baby is born. It is broken into three stages.

Question 3

What is the first stage of prenatal development?

Answer 3

The Germinal Stage. This is the period from conception to two weeks after. The egg is referred to as a Zygote.

Question 4

What is the second stage in prenatal development?

Answer 4

The Embryonic stage. This period starts at the 2nd week and lasts to the 8th week. During this time, the zygote travels down the Fallopian tubes and is implanted in the uterine lining.

Question 5

What is the third stage in prenatal development?

Answer 5

The fetal stage. This period lasts from the 9th week until birth. This is when myelination (the formation of a fatty sheath around the axons of a neuron) is formed and it allows the nervous system to work much better. It increases neurotransmission.

Question 6

What is the significance of the prenatal environment?

Answer 6

A lot of important development occurs in the womb and the fetus is quite vulnerable at this time. If the mother consumes or is exposed to harmful substances, these can pass through the placenta and impact the baby’s development.

Question 7

What is the placenta?

Answer 7

The placenta is an organ that links the bloodstreams of the mother to the fetus and permits exchange of substances.

Question 8

What is a teratogen?

Answer 8

It is any substance that passes from mother to unborn child and impairs development.

Question 9

What are some factors that influence the severity of teratogens’ influences?

Answer 9

• The timing of the exposure will impact what is specifically forming at that time. For example, at 6 weeks the arms and the ears are developing. These would be impacted if the baby was exposed to a teratogen at this time.
• The amount of exposure: Sometimes a little bit won’t impact too much. (Individual dependent)
• Metabolism: The mother’s ability to process and get rid of harmful toxins also influences how much harms the baby.
• Genetics: Some people may be more susceptible to harmful effects. For example, males are more likely to experience damage as Y chromosomes have fewer genes than X.

Question 10

What is FASD?

Answer 10

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder is a developmental disorder that occurs from alcohol use while pregnant. There is a high risk if mother binge drinks. (More than 7 drinks a week.) Baby will experience physical, cognitive, behavioural, and neurological changes.

Question 11

Infancy

Answer 11

This stage begins at birth and lasts between 18-24 months. At this time, newborns have poor sight but habituate to visual stim. There has been an increase in the study of newborns and they’ve discovered that newborns can mimic faces in the first hour.

Question 12

What is habituation?

Answer 12

The tendency for an organism to respond less intensely to a stimulus each time it is presented.

Question 13

What are motor reflexes?

Answer 13

Motor responses that are triggered by specific patterns of sensory stimulation. Infants are born with a small set of these. For example, they are born with the rooting and sucking reflex. (Helps with nursing.)

Question 14

What is motor development?

Answer 14

The emergence of the ability to execute physical actions.

Question 15

What is the Cephalocaudal principle?

Answer 15

It is the “top-to-bottom” principle that describes the tendency for motor skills to emerge in sequence from the head to the feet.

Question 15

What is the Proximodistal principle?

Answer 15

The “inside to outside” principle that describes the tendency for motor skills to emerge in sequence from the centre to the periphery.

Question 16

What is cognitive development? And what did Piaget suggest about it?

Answer 16

The process by which infants and children gain the ability to think and understand. Piaget suggested that infants learn how the physical world works, how their minds represent it, and how other peoples’ minds represent it.

Question 17

What is a schema?

Answer 17

Theories about the way the world works.

Question 18

Sensorimotor stage and its characteristics.

Answer 18

Infants experience the world by sensing it and moving in it. They develop schemas and begin to act intentionally and shows evidence of understanding “object permanence”.

Question 19

What is assimilation?

Answer 19

The process by which infants apply schema in novel situations.

Question 20

What is accommodation?

Answer 20

The process of revising schema in light of new information.

Question 21

What is object permanence?

Answer 21

The idea that objects continue to exist, even when they are not visible. When infants form this, it is a sign that they have formed mental visualisation. This is evidence for logical thought occurring. When it occurs, child makes mental representations to make predictions and sense of the world.

Question 22

Preoperational stage and its characteristics.

Answer 22

This stage includes children aged 2-6 years old. They acquire motor skills but do not understand “conservation.” The child begins this stage with thinking egocentrically but ends with a basic understanding of others’ minds.

Question 23

Concrete operational stage and its characteristics.

Answer 23

This stage includes children 6-11. They can now think logically about physical objects and events and understand “conservation.”

Question 24

Formal operational stage and its characteristics.

Answer 24

The child can think logically about abstract propositions and hypotheticals.

Question 25

Impossible event experiment

Answer 25

Explain...

Question 26

What is conservation?

Answer 26

The understanding that many of the physical properties of an object are conserved/unchanged by changes in the object's appearance.

Question 27

What is egocentrism?

Answer 27

The failure to understand that the world appears different to different people. This is common in children in the preoperational stage and because of it, they find it hard to understand different emotions in others.

Question 28

What is the theory of mind?

Answer 28

The understanding that the mind produces representations of the world and that these representations guide behaviour. Language is very important for the development of this.

Question 29

How has our understanding of Piaget's stages of development changed?

Answer 29

Modern psychologists have realised that Piaget's stages are much more fluid and continuous than he thought. (It's like the gradual change of the seasons.) As well, children may experience these transitions a lot younger than Piaget initially thought.

Question 30

What did Lev Vygotsky think?

Answer 30

He believed that children develop through interactions with members of their own culture.

Question 31

What did Vygotsky believe our ability to learn from others depended on?

Answer 31

Joint attention: The ability to focus on what another focuses on Social referencing: The ability to use peoples’ reactions as information about the world. Imitation: The ability to do what another person does. Sometimes to be able to do this, one must have more advanced motor skills.

Question 32

What is the Zone of Proximal development?

Answer 32

Refers to the range of things children cannot do by themselves but can do with guidance and instruction. For example, most infants cannot open a jar on their own, but they can learn to open a jar if an adult shows them how.

Question 33

What is an attachment?

Answer 33

The emotional bond with a primary caregiver. John Bowlby did significant studies into the different types of attatchment that we form.

Question 34

What does secure attachment look like?

Answer 34

Infants with this attatchment type may or may not be distressed when caregiver leaves the room. When the caregive returns, they respond positively.

Question 35

What does ambivalent attachment look like?

Answer 35

Infants are distressed when caregiver leaves the room, but when their caregiver returns they respond negatively.

Question 36

What does avoidant attachment look like?

Answer 36

Infants are not distressed when caregiver leaves the room and respond neither positively or negatively when their caregiver returns.

Question 37

What does disorganised attachment look like?

Answer 37

There is no pattern to infant's response of the caregiver's coming and goings.

Question 38

What is temperament?

Answer 38

A biologically based pattern of attentional and emotional reactivity.

Question 39

What factors influence the attachment styles that infants form?

Answer 39

Studies have shown that both nature and nurture play a role. Babies are born with a temperament but the way their primary caregiver (usually the mother) cares for them when they are young also influences a lot.

Question 40

How does our moral reasoning shift as we age, according to Piaget?

Answer 40

1. It shifts from realism to relativism. They first see rules in the world as hard facts about how the world is but as they age they realise that some of these rules are just human invention and they don't have to abide by them. 2. It shifts from prescriptions to principles. When children are young, they see the rules almost as if it is specific for that situation. But as they age, they begin to understand the idea behind the rule. 3. It shifts from outcomes to intentions. They don't initially understand that some actions are accidents and judge the morality of something based on what happens. Later, they judge based on why the person did what they did.

Question 41

What was Kohlberg's theory of moral reasoning?

Answer 41

Preconventional stage: Most children are in this stage. The morality of an action is primarily determined by its consequences for the actor. Conventional stage: Most adolescents are in this stage. The morality of an action is primarily determined by the extent to which it conforms to social rules. Postconventional stage: Most adults are at this stage. The morality of an action is determined by a set of general principles that reflect core values.

Question 42

What are some flaws to Kohlberg's study?

Answer 42

He only studied boys, a person's reasoning may differ based on the situation they are placed in, and moral reasoning may be something that is innate. (Studies on babies.)

Question 43

What are primary sex characteristics?

Answer 43

Bodily structures that change at puberty and are directly involved in reproduction.

Question 44

What are secondary sex characteristics?

Answer 44

Bodily structures that change at puberty but are not directly involved in reproduction.

Question 45

Brain changes?

Question 46

What is the protraction of adolescence?

Answer 46

There is considerable variation in the onset of puberty between sexes, cultures, and time period. Puberty is happening earlier now because of improved diet and health and chemicals. (Especially those that mimic estrogen in females.) But, as the age of puberty has decreased, the age of adult responsibility has increased. Just because the body has matured, does not mean the brain has.

Question 47

How does early maturation impact boys and girls differently?

Answer 47

Boys get stronger and taller and they typically are in good standing among peers for this. But, girls who mature earlier are more likely to experience sexual abuse.

Question 48

What contributes to sexual orientation?

Answer 48

Biology and environment both play a factor in someone's sexual orientation. (Maybe add more info for this later.)

Question 49

How do adolescents' identities shift?

Answer 49

They have an expanded focus on their peers. They are able to choose their peers and this helps them with the creation of their identity. With this, adolescents struggle for autonomy from their parents as they typically begin to have different opinions on what adult activities are okay for them to engage in.

Question 50

Birth stage of psycho social development.

Answer 50

This was the oral-sensory stage, and a big event was feeding. This would result in either the development of trust or mistrust.

Question 51

18 months to 3 years of psycho social development.

Answer 51

This was the muscular-anal stage, and the key event was toilet training. He thought that this would result in autonomy or shame/doubt.

Question 52

3-6 of psycho social development.

Answer 52

This stage was locomotor. The key event was the child's learning independence. The child would either learn to take initiative or be guilty.

Question 53

6-12 of psycho social development.

Answer 53

This was the latency stage. He thought the key event was school. Industry vs. inferiority.

Question 54

12-18 of psycho social development.

Answer 54

Adolescence was the stage. The key event is peer relationships. This would result in either identity or role confusion.

Question 55

19-40 years of psycho social development.

Answer 55

Young adulthood is the stage. Love relationships are the key event. Were you going to find a partner? It would result in intimacy or isolation.

Question 56

40-65 of psycho social development.

Answer 56

This stage was middle adulthood. The main event during this stage is parenting. It really fundamentally changes your focus. This also changes behaviour. The crisis is generativity versus stagnation.