3 Major Issues of Developmental Psych
Nature vs. Nurture
Nature: Genes impact
Nurture: Experiences, experimental and developmental AFTER birth
-How do the two interact?
-At every prenatal stage, both genes and environment play a role
-Teratogens
Continuity vs. Stages
Stability vs. Change
Prenatal Development
Milestones
Newborn Reflexes
Rooting Reflex
Startle (Moro) Reflex
-Moves limbs out and then in when they feel like they are falling
Grasping Reflex
Stepping Reflex
-Exaggerated stepping motion in the air
Imitation
- Ex: stick tongue out at baby–> baby will stick tongue out
Infant Experiments
Novelty Preference
Physical Development of Brain
-We grow new neural connections as adult, not new neurons (have a lifetime supply from birth)
-Newborns:
1 month: neural networks are forming rapidly
9 months to 2years: most rapid growth in frontal lobes (3-6 years)
-FL Gives ability to control impulses starting around this age
2 years to adult:
-Neural pruning process post-puberty
-Association areas start to form
Sense of Self and Scale Error
Ex of Assimilate vs Accomodate
Piaget’s Stages of Development
Social Development
-Looks at relationships and how they are formed
Contact Comfort
Familiarity
- Imprinting
Secure Attachment
Insecure Attachment
Parenting Styles