1. Psychological Development
Chapter 5
Psychological Development

2. Developmental Psychology
Developmental psychology – The study of how organisms change over time as the result of biological and environmental influences
Development is a process of growth and change brought about by an interaction of heredity and the environment

3. The Nature-Nurture Interaction
Nature-nurture issue – Long-standing discussion over relative importance of nature (heredity) and nurture (environment) in their influence on behavior and mental processes
Twin studies – Developmental investigations in which twins, especially identical twins, are compared in the search for genetic and environmental effects
When separated at birth they often display similarities in habit, lifestyle, intelligence, and personality

4. The Nature-Nurture Interaction
Identical twins– A pair who started life as a single fertilized egg which later split into two distinct individuals
Fraternal twins– A pair who started life as two separate fertilized eggs that happened to share the same womb
Adoption studies – Studies in which the adopted child’s characteristics are compared to those of the biological family and the adoptive family

5. Gradual versus Abrupt Change
Developmental stages – Periods of life initiated by significant transitions or changes in physical or psychological functioning
Gradual vs. stage-like
Age
Performance
Discontinuity view
Continuity view

6. Psychological Traits in Your Genes
While psychological traits are formed by interaction of heredity and the environment, many traits have a strong genetic influence
Newborns have innate abilities for finding nourishment, interacting with others, and avoiding harmful situations; the developing abilities of infants and children rely on learning

7. Periods of Pregnancy
Germinal period - first two weeks after fertilization, during which the zygote moves down to the uterus and begins to implant in the lining embryo name for the developing organism from two weeks to eight weeks after fertilization.
Embryonic period - the period from two to eight weeks after fertilization, during which the major organs and structures of the organism develop.

8. Periods of Pregnancy
Placenta –An organ that develops between the embryo/fetus and the mother
Fetal period- time from about 8 weeks after conception until birth (development of fetus)
Critical periods - times during which certain environmental influences can have an impact on the development of the infant.
Teratogen - any factor that can cause a birth defect.
Fetal alcohol syndrome
Smoking
X-rays
Lead
Disease

9. Periods of Pregnancy

10. Neonatal Period (from birth to one month)
Sensory abilities- all senses are functioning, vision is limited for first 4-6 weeks
Infants use these abilities to learn
Motor abilities
Rooting reflex- food source
Sucking reflex
Grasping reflex
Stepping Reflex
Moro reflex (startle reflex)- pulling arms and legs into the body then extending them out

11. Maturation
Maturation refers to development that largely unfolds on it’s own. All humans (especially infants) develop in the same orderly way. (we stand before we walk, babble before we talk, use nouns before adjectives…)
The time can vary depending on the person
Maturation sets the course of development, experience adjusts it.

12. Motor Development
The sequence of motor development is nearly the same in all parts of the world.
90% of all babies will begin walking by 15 months.
Roll over, sit up unsupported, crawl, walk etc.
Identical twins typically begin sitting up and walking on nearly the same day.
EX.- t-ball; hitting and throwing pretty equal among players

13. Toilet Training
NO MATTER WHAT, THE BABY NEEDS THE PHYSICAL MATURATION TO HOLD HIS OR HER BLADDER OR BOWEL MOVEMENTS BEFORE TOILET TRAINING.
NO TRAINING WILL WORK IF THE CHILD IS NOT PHYSICALLY READY.

14. Cognitive Development
Cognitive development – the development of thinking, problem solving, and memory scheme (plural schemas) a mental concept formed through experiences with objects and events
This field is Dominated by a man named Jean Piaget.
He was developing IQ tests and noticed that many children got the same answers wrong.
Thought to himself, “maybe these kids are not stupid, but instead think differently than adults.”

15. Piaget’s Important Concepts
Children are active thinkers, always trying to make sense of the world.
To make sense of the world, they develop schemas.
Schema- a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information

16. Piaget’s Important Concepts
Assimilation – Mental process that modifies new information to fit it into existing schema
Ex. Child sees a cougar for the first time and points and says “doggie” because they have a dog at home
Accommodation – Mental process that restructures existing schemes so that new information is better understood
Ex. Child now knows that cougars are bigger and have different features- accommodating their original schema (four legs, furry, inside a house, etc.)

17. Piaget’s Stage Theory
Sensorimotor stage - Piaget’s first stage of cognitive development in which the infant uses its senses and motor abilities to interact with objects in the environment.
Birth to 2 years
At 4 to 8 months of age, your child will learn that she can make things move by banging them and shaking them
Object Permanence - the knowledge that an object exists even when it is not in sight.

18. Piaget’s Stage Theory
Preoperational stage - Piaget’s second stage of cognitive development in which the preschool child learns to use language as a means of exploring the world. (Approx. ages 2 to 6 or 7)
Think Symbolically- one thing can represent something else
Egocentrism - the inability to see the world through anyone else’s eyes.
Centration - in Piaget’s theory, the tendency of a young child to focus only on one feature of an object while ignoring other relevant features.
Conservation - in Piaget’s theory, the ability to understand that simply changing the appearance of an object does not change the object’s nature.
Irreversibility - in Piaget’s theory, the inability of the young child to mentally reverse an action.

20. Piaget’s Stage Theory
Concrete operations stage - third stage of cognitive development in which the school-age child becomes capable of logical thought processes but is not yet capable of abstract thinking. (about 7 to 11 years old)
marked by logical thinking, mental representations, mathematical transformations, and mastery of conservation

21. Piaget’s Stage Theory
Formal operations - Piaget’s last stage of cognitive development in which the adolescent becomes capable of abstract thinking. (11 and beyond)
abstract thinking, moral reasoning and hypothetical situations
Consider future possibilities and imaginary scenarios
God is love. Love is Blind. Stevie Wonder is Blind. Stevie Wonder is god.

22. Lev Vygotsky’s Theory
Impact of the social context on a child’s cognitive growth
Scaffolding - process in which a more skilled learner gives help to a less skilled learner, reducing the amount of help as the less skilled learner becomes more capable.
Zone of proximal development (ZPD) The difference between what a child can do with help and what the child can do without any help or guidance

23. Social and Emotional Development
Socialization –The lifelong process of shaping an individual’s behavior patterns, values, standards, skills, attitudes and motives to conform to those regarded as desirable in a particular society
(Commonly referred to as manners, beliefs or customs)
Temperament - the behavioral characteristics that are fairly well established at birth.
Easy - regular, adaptable, and happy
Difficult - irregular, nonadaptable, and irritable
Slow to warm up - need to adjust gradually to change.

24. Attachment
Attachment - the emotional bond between an infant and the primary caregiver. Measured with Mary Ainsworth’s Strange Situation. Humans have an inborn need for attachment
Secure - willing to explore, upset when mother departs but easily soothed upon her return.
Avoidant – unattached; explore without “touching base.”
Ambivalent - insecurely attached; upset when mother leaves and then angry with mother upon her return.
Disorganized-disoriented – insecurely attached and sometimes abused or neglected; seemed fearful, dazed, and depressed.

25. Deprivation of Attachment
Early attachments form the basis for our adult relationships
Critical periods exist for attachment and bonding just like language development. If those critical periods pass without adequate attachment, it can rewire a child’s brain with lifelong consequences.

26. Harry Harlow’s Contact Comfort
Contact Comfort- human newborns need physical touch and nurturance
Transitional Object- blanket

27. Social and Emotional Development
Imprinting- rigid attachment process during an organisms critical period- usually immediately after birth.
Parenting styles-Most approaches to child rearing fall into one of the following four styles:
Authoritarian parents-establish rules and expectations
Authoritative parents- establish rules but also listen
Permissive parents- give children more freedom
Neglectful or Uninvolved parents

28. The Transitions of Adolescence
Adolescence – Developmental period beginning at puberty and ending at adulthood
the period of life from about age 13 to the early twenties, during which a young person is no longer physically a child but is not yet an independent, self-supporting adult.
Puberty - the physical changes that occur in the body as sexual development reaches its peak.
Period of about four years when we become sexually mature
Primary and Secondary Sex Characteristics
Rites of passage – Social rituals that mark the transition between developmental stages, especially between childhood and adulthood

29. Cognitive Development in Adolescence
Formal operational stage – Piaget’s final stage of cognitive growth (abstract and complex thought)
Hormones rise to high levels
The frontal lobes undergo a “remodel”
This leads to sensation seeking and risk taking, and preoccupation with body image and sex

30. Egocentric Thinking(Cognitive-Piaget)
Personal fable - type of thought common to adolescents in which young people believe themselves to be unique and protected from harm.
Imaginary audience - type of thought common to adolescents in which young people believe that other people are just as concerned about the adolescent’s thoughts and characteristics as they themselves are.

31. Developing Morality- Lawrenece Kohlberg
“The Heinz Dilemma”- would you steal a drug in order to save a life?

32. Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages
Age/Period
Principal Challenge
0 to 1 1/2 years
Trust vs. mistrust
1 1/2 to 3 years
Autonomy vs. self doubt
3 to 6 years
Initiative vs. guilt
6 years to puberty
Confidence vs. inferiority
Adolescence
Identity vs. role confusion
Early adulthood
Intimacy vs. isolation
Middle adulthood
Generativity vs. stagnation
Late adulthood
Ego-integrity vs. despair 33

33. Social Identity in Adolescence
Identity crisis- sense of self changes and is shaped by the question “who am I ?” which is often answered by the group memberships we hold.
The increasing influence of peers- diminishing parent influence