what is development
growth and change overtime including changes that are progressive (learning how to walk) and regressive (declines in cognitive functioning with age)
what are teratogens?
(substances that have a negative effect on devo organisms usually during the period of the embryo
what do developmental scientists focus on?
they focus on understanding cognitive development after infants are born or how infants come to think and learn about the world they live in
what are the three major stages of prenatal development?
- pregnancy
- ovulation
- fertilization
when does fertilization occur?
during the time of ovulation
what are the three major periods in prenatal development
period of zygote, embryo, and fetus
What are the major points in the period of the zygote?
- begins when egg is fertilized
- period of rapid cell division
- blastocyst is created by rapid cell division
What is ectopic pregnancy and which period can it occur in?
- This is the result of implantation of the blastocyst into one of the fallopian tubes instead of the uterine wall. (ends 2 weeks later)
- it is fatal because if prenancy does not stop then it could result in a ruptured fallopian tube which can result in death
- a ruptured fallopian tube can can a large amount of blood loss, resulting in a dangerous drop in blood pressure.
What are the main points of the period of the embryo?
- Begins after the blastocyst (fertilized egg) implants into the uterus (around 2nd week of gestation)
- ends at 8th week
- period of major devo advances
- all major organs and systems of the body are formed by the end of this period
What are cephalocaudal and proximodistal principles of devo?
- Cephalocaudal: idea that significant changes occur in the brain and head b4 anywhere else
- Proximodistal: idea that significant devo occurs at centrally located features like the heart and lungs before peripheral places like hands and feet.
What are the main points during the period of the fetus?
- begins during the ninth week of pregnancy
- ends a birth
- growth and refine ment period and shows significant growth
- fetus gains weight and moves into a head down position
- fetus goes through major brain devo
- fetus learns stuff from outside world like its mothers voice
- defining features like solci and gyri form
why don’t teratogens have much influence during the period of the zygote?
bc its has rapid cell division so it also has many safety factors
What does alcohol cause during prenatal devo
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD)
can cause damage to the internal organs, resulting in heart or kidney problems and can cause altered facial characteristics
When does significant development happen in children?
first three years
- language speaking (1 year)
- cognitive devo (20 months)
what is Piaget’s theory?
- the growth of cognitive structures occur when individuals encounter conflicting information that alters their existing perspectives on the world
what is assimilation?
○ Basically when similar information is encountered and recognized it is grouped together with that existing information that confirms what is being observed
what is accommodation?
A new cognitive structure is made to account for info that does not fit anywhere else
What is equilibration
cognitive structure that agree with external info
what is disequilibration
when outside info does not agree with cognitive structures
what are the three stages of cognitive development?
sensorimotor period (0-2 years)
preoperational period (2-7 years)
concrete operations period (7-11)
what are the main points of the sensorimotor period?
there are 6 substages in which information is learned
□ 1: birth - 1month: relate to the world using reflexes
□ 2: 1-4months: infants engage in primary circular reactions or repeated actions on objects outside of their own bodies
® Sucking on different parts of their hand to learn those parts. These are called primary actions bc they are focused on the infants body and they are called circular bc the infants engage in these behaviors repetitively
□ 3: 4-8months: infants engage in secondary circular reactions or repeated actions on objects outside of their own bodies
® Infants engage in Secondary circular reactions: repeated actions on objects outside of their own body
® Infants do not have object permanence, meaning they do not realize that objects exist when they cannot be seen
□ 4: 8-12months: object permanence is achieved; infants combine secondary circular reactions so that they can make a sequence of events come to pass
□ 5: 12-18months: children engage in tertiary circular reactions as they experiment with different items in various context earning themselves the title of little scientists
® Children engage in tertiary circular reactions: learning about the world through different items/combinations of items to see how these changes affect their observed outcomes
□ 6: 18-24 months: children engage in mental representations such that they can remember and act on past experiences
Mental representation beings: infants remember and re-enact situations and events that happened previously without any ongoing perceptual supports
what are the main points of the preoperational period?
- from 2-7
- divided into two groups, preconceptual thinking (2-4) and intuitive thinking (4-7)
- significant cognitive devo
- symbolic thinking
- animism occurs: belief that inanimate objects have feelings
- egocentrism occurs: difficulty of adopting the perspective of others
what are the main points of the concrete period
limited to present tense thinking
- identity formation can occur
- compensation: when children realize that imposed changes cancel each other out?
- inversion: each of the processes imposed in conversations tasks are reversible
what is a vygotskiian perspective?
Known as a zone of proximal development which refers to the displacement of what a child can accomplish on their own vs with assistance
