Lecture: 13 zHuman Development

Question 1

Altrical Species

Answer 1

Species whose have undeveloped features

Completely dependent

Question 2

Precocial Species

Answer 2

Species who mature on their own and are independent

Question 3

Humans: Altrial vs Precocial?

Answer 3

Secondarily Altrical
-Mainly because of the large heads and the females small pelvic size
Long Childhood- Adaptation to a cognitively demanding lifestyle

Question 4

Piaget

Answer 4

Children act as scientists: observe effects of manipulation of objects and formulate theories to explain manipulation

Question 5

3 Mechanisms of Developmental Change

Answer 5

1. Assimilation- Experience conforms to scheme
2. Accommodation- Experience does not conform to scheme –> change scheme
3. Reflective Abstraction- Scheme goes from concrete(motor) to abstract(conceptual)

Question 6

Development Stages

Answer 6

0-2 –> Experience the world through 5 senses- object performance, stranger anxiety
2-6–> Represent thing with words and images, but lack logical analyses- egocentrism, Make pretend

Question 7

Egocentrism

Answer 7

Inability to separate between self and other

Question 8

Formal Operation

Answer 8

Ability to deal with things in a more abstract manner without seeing concrete objects
Forms at 11 years old

Question 9

Concrete Operation

Answer 9

Can only apply logic to physicals things

Question 10

Critiques to Piaget Theory

Answer 10

• Formal operations could be a product of Western education
• Children often have knowledge that they can’t act on- behavioral studies can be misleading
• Some questions asked could be thought to be trick questions
• Set stages don’t apply to everyone at the specific times set

Question 11

Domain Specificity

Answer 11

• Developmental processes don’t apply across all children
• intuitive theories and ways of knowing
• Each theory has: Core principles( innate or acquired very early) + lots of acquired knowledge

Question 12

Domains and Core Principles

Answer 12

Intuitive Physics
- World contains objects which obey certain laws
Intuitive Psychology
- Other people have minds with beliefs and desires
Intuitive Biology
-Living things have an internal essence which determines their form and behavior
Intuitive Design
-Tools and artifacts have a function

Question 13

Infant Study

Answer 13

1. Present partially hidden even until baby is habituated
2. Remove screen showing one of two events
3. Measure whether event A baby continues to be bored while event B baby is surprised
   Conclusion: Event A follows baby logic

Question 14

Baby Skills

Answer 14

Cohesion- Parts of objects move together
Continuity- Object follows spatiotemporal trajectories (object doesn’t disappear and reappear, objects aren’t transparent)

Question 15

Theory of False Belief

Answer 15

Others don’t have false beliefs
Children of 3 years lack this ability
even forget that they have false beliefs
Children of 4 years old have this belief

Question 16

Autism

Answer 16

socially unresponsive, detached
attend to objects, not people
Fail all theory of the mind tests
Do not pretend

Question 17

Mechanisms of Developmental Change

Answer 17

1. Learning- Through conditioning
2. Maturation-Puberty (physical transformation)
   -neurons form in utero
   - synapses peak in infancy and childhood
   - Myelination through childhood and adolescence
   - new neurons in hippocampus throughout life
3. Critical Period in Maturation
   Early language learners better than later language learners
   Phonology Development- 2
   Possible Critical stage for syntax and morphology