1
Q
Developmental psychology
A
A branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social-emotional development throughout the lifespan
2
Q
Teratogens
A
Agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm
3
Q
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
A
Physical and cognitive function deficits in children caused by their birth mother’s heavy drinking during pregnancy. In severe cases, symptoms include a small, out-of-proportion head and distinct facial features
4
Q
Habituation
A
Decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation
5
Q
Maturation
A
Biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience
6
Q
Critical period
A
An optimal period early in the life of an organism when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces normal development
7
Q
Language
A
Our agreed-upon systems of spoken, written, or signed words, and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning
8
Q
Phoneme
A
In a language, the smallest distinctive sound unit
9
Q
Morpheme
A
In a language, the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word or part of a word (eg a prefix)
10
Q
Grammar
A
In a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others
11
Q
Semantics
A
The language’s set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds
12
Q
Syntax
A
The language’s set of rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences
13
Q
Universal grammar (UG)
A
Humans’ innate predisposition to understand the principles and rules that govern grammar in all languages
14
Q
Babbling stage
A
The stage in speech development from, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words
15
Q
Two-word stage
A
The stage in speech development, beginning about age 2, during which a child speaks mostly in two-word sentences
16
Q
Telegraphic speech
A
The early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram using mostly nouns and verbs
17
Q
Linguistic determinism
A
Whorf’s hypothesis that language determines the way we think
18
Q
Linguistic relativism
A
The idea that language influences the way we think
19
Q
Stability
A
The degree to which a person maintains the same ran order with respect to a particular characteristic over time in comparison with peers
20
Q
Cooing
A
Vowel-like sounds produced by young infants when they are seemingly happy and contented
21
Q
Overgeneralization
A
A cognitive distortion in which an individual views a single event as an invariable rule, so that, for example, failure at accomplishing one task will predict an endless pattern of defeat in all tasks
22
Q
Continuous development
A
A process of gradually augmenting the same types of skills that were there to begin with
23
Q
Ecological systems theory
A
A theory of the social environment’s influence on human development, using five nested systems ranging from direct to indirect influences
24
Q
What are the five systems in the ecological systems theory?
A
Microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, chronosystem
25
Microsystem
Relations in the home
26
Mesosystem
Groups/institutions outside the home
27
Exosystem
Societal structures that function mostly independently from the individual but affect the immediate context in which they develop
28
Macrosystem
Level of environmental influence that is most distal to the developing individual and that affects all other systems
29
Chronosystem
Changes and continuities occurring over time that influence development
30
Stranger anxiety
The fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age
31
Attachment
An emotional tie with others; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to caregivers and showing distress on separation
32
Imprinting
The process by which certain animals form strong attachments during early life
33
Strange situation
A procedure for studying child-caregiver attachment; child is placed in an unfamiliar environment while their caregiver leaves and then returns, and the child's reactions are observed
34
Secure attachment
Demonstrated by infants who comfortably explore environments in the presence of their caregiver, show only temporary distress when the caregiver leaves, and find comfort in the caregiver's return
35
Insecure attachment
Demonstrated by infants who display a clinging, anxious attachment; am avoidant attachment, or a disorganized attachment
36
Avoidant attachment
Resists closeness
37
Disorganized attachment
No consistent behavior when separated from or reunited with caregivers
38
Temperament
A person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity
39
Basic trust
According to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers
40
Self-concept
All our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question "Who am I?"
41
Authoritarian parenting
In which the parent stresses obedience, deemphasizes collaboration and dialogue, and employs strong forms of punishment
42
Authoritative parenting
Parent encourages a child's autonomy yet still places certain limitations on behavior
43
Permissive parenting
Parent is accepting and affirmative, makes few demands, and avoids exercising control
44
Rejecting-neglecting parent
Parent is unsupportive, fails to monitor or limit behavior, and is more attentive to their needs than those of the child
45
Sensorimotor stage
In Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to nearly 2 years of age) at which infants know the world primarily in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities
46
Object permanence
The awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived
47
Preoperational stage
In Piaget's theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6-7 years of age) at which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic
48
Conservation
The principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects
49
Egocentrism
In Piaget's theory, the preoperational child's difficulty in taking another's point of view
50
Concrete operational stage
In Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 7-11 years old) at which children can perform the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events
51
Formal operational stage
In Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning around age 12) at which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts
52
Scaffold
In Vygotsky's theory, a framework that offers children temporary support as they develop higher levels of thinking
53
Theory of mind
People's ideas about their own and others' mental states
54
Reversibility
In Piaget's theory, a mental operations that reverses a sequence of events, or restores a changed state of affairs to the original condition
55
Zone of proximal development
In Vygotsky's sociocultural theory, the difference between a child's actual level of ability and the level of ability that they can achieve when assisted by, or working in cooperation with, old/more experienced partners
56
True or false: Vygotsky suggested that what children can do with assistance is less indicative of their development status than what they can do alone
False
57
Adolescence
The transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence
58
Puberty
The period of sexual maturation during which a person usually becomes capable of reproducing
59
Aggression
Any physical or verbal behavior intended to harm someone physically or emotionally
60
Relational aggression
An act of aggression intended to harm a person's relationship or social standing
61
Primary sex characteristics
The body structures that make sexual reproduction possible
62
Secondary sex characteristics
No reproductive sexual traits
63
Supermarche
The first ejaculation
64
Menarche
The first menstrual period
65
Social learning theory
The theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded or punished
66
Emerging adulthood
A period from about age 18 to the mid 20s, when many persons in prosperous Western cultures are no longer adolescents but have not yet achieved full independence as adults
67
Social identity
The "we" aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to "who am I?" that comes from our group memberships
68
Social clock
The culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage/parenthood/retirement
69
Imaginary audience
The belief of an adolescent that others are constantly focusing attention on them, scrutinizing behaviors, appearance, and the like
70
Personal fable/invincibility fable
A belief in one's uniqueness and invulnerability, which is an expression of adolescent egocentrism and may extend further into the lifespan
71
Psychosocial development
According to Erik Erikson, personality development as a process influenced by social and cultural factors throughout the lifespan
72
Trust vs mistrust
Infant either comes to view other people and themselves as trustworthy or comes to develop a fundamental mistrust of their environment
73
Autonomy vs shame + doubt
Children acquire a degree of self-reliance and self-confidence if allowed to develop at their own pace but may begin to doubt their ability to control themselves and their world if parents are over critical, overprotective, or inconsistent
74
Initiative vs guilt
In planning, launching, and initiating fantasy, play, and other activities, the child learns to believe in their ability to successfully pursue goals. If they fail/are criticized, the child may instead develop a feeling of self-doubt and guilt
75
Industry vs inferiority
Child learns to be productive and to accept evaluation of their efforts or becomes discouraged and feels inferior or incompetent
76
Identity vs role confusion
Individual tries different roles/social groups before forming a cohesive, positive identity that allows them to contribute to society
77
Intimacy vs isolation
Individuals must learn to share and care without losing themselves; if they fail, they will feel alone and isolated
78
Generativity vs stagnation
Generativity is the positive goal of middle adulthood, interpreted in terms not only of procreation but also of creativity and fulfilling one's full parental and social responsibilities towards the next generation, in contrast to a narrow interest in the self, or self-absorption
79
Integrity vs despair
Individual reflects on the life they've lived and may develop either integrity-a sense of satisfaction in having lived a good life and the ability to approach death with equanimity-or despair-a feeling of bitterness about opportunities missed and time wasted, and a dread of approaching death
80
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)
Potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood (0-17 years)
81
Identity status model
Expansion of identity vs role confusion; posits four possible identity statuses that an individual might assume, each characterized by a different level of exploration of and commitment to a specific identity
82
Identity achievement status
Status characterized by evidence of both identity exploration and commitment; related to stable self esteem and healthy psychological function
83
Moratorium status
Characterized by evidence of identity exploration but a lack of commitment
84
Foreclosure status
Depicted by commitment to an identity that adults have set forth for an individual but by failure to explore different options before that commitment is made
85
Diffusion status
Characterized by the lack of both identity exploration and commitment
86
Associative learning
Learning that certain events occur together
87
Respondent behavior
Behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus
88
Operant behavior
Behavior that operates on the environment, producing a consequence
89
Cognitive learning
The acquisition of mental information, whether by observing events, by watching others, or language
90
Classical conditioning
A type of learning in which we link two or more stimuli; as a result, the first stimulus comes to elicit behavior in anticipation of the second stimulus
91
Behaviorism
The view that psychology 1) should be an objective science that 2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes
92
Do research psychologists agree with behaviorism?
Most agree that psychology should be an objective science but not that it should study behavior without reference to mental processes
93
Neutral stimulus (MS)
In classical conditioning, a stimulus that elicits no response before conditioning
94
Unconditioned response (UCR)
In classical conditioning, an unlearned, naturally occurring response to an unconditioned stimulus
95
Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
In classical conditioning, a stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers an unconditioned response
96
Conditioned response (CR)
In classical conditioning, a learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus
97
Conditioned stimulus (CS)
In classical conditioning, the initial stage-when one links a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus begins triggering the conditioned response. In operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response
98
Higher-order conditioning
A procedure in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second (often weaker) conditioned stimulus
99
Extinction
In classical conditioning, the diminishing of a conditioned response when an unconditioned stimulus does not follow a conditioned stimulus. In operant conditioning, when a response is no longer reinforced)
100
Spontaneous recovery
The reappearance, after a pause, of a weakened conditioned response
101
Generalization
In classical conditioning, the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses. In operant conditioning, when responses learned in one situation occur in other, similar situtations
102
Discrimination
In classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and other stimuli that have not been associated with a conditioned stimulus. In operant conditioning, the ability to distinguish responses that are reinforced from similar responses that are not reinforced
103
Counterconditioning
An experimental procedure in which a nonhuman animal, already conditioned to respond to a stimulus in a particular way, is trained to produce a different response to the same stimulus that is incompatible with the original response
104
One-trial learning theory
Learning takes place in a single pairing of a response and stimulus and is not strengthened over time by repeated exposure to a stimulus
105
Operant conditioning
A type of learning in which a behavior becomes more likely to recur is followed by a reinforcer or less likely to recur if followed by a punisher
106
Law of effect
Thorndike's principle that behaviors followed by favorable (reinforcing) consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable (punishing) consequences become less likely
107
Operant chamber
A chamber containing a bar or key that an animal can manipulate to obtain a food or water reinforcer; attached devices record the animal's rate of bar pressing/key pecking
108
Reinforcement
Any event that strengthens the behavior it follows
109
Shaping
An operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior
110
Primary reinforcer
An innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need
111
Conditioned/secondary reinforcer
A stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer
112
Reinforcement schedule
A pattern that defines how often a desired response will be reinforced
113
Continuous reinforcement schedule
Reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs
114
Partial/intermittent reinforcement schedule
Reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower acquisition of a response but much greater resistance to extinction than continuous reinforcement does
115
Fixed-ratio schedule
A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses
116
Variable-ratio schedule
A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable amount of responses
117
Fixed-interval schedule
A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed
118
Variable-interval schedule
A reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable intervals
119
Punishment
An event that tends to decrease the behavior that it follows
120
Instinctive drift
The tendency of learned behavior to gradually revert to biologically predisposed patterns
121
Learned helplessness
A phenomenon in which repeated exposure to uncontrollable stressors results in individuals failing to use any control options that may later become available
122
Cognitive map
A mental representation of the layout of one's environment
123
Latent learning
Learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it
124
Insight learning
Solving problems through sudden insight
125
Modeling
The process of observing and imitating a specific behavior
AP Psych
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