Chapter 4 Developmental Psychology

 People of different ages have diverse thoughts, needs, and wants that are important to them at that time.  For example, none of you are worried about paying the mortgage and your parents are not worried about what to wear to impress that cute boy/girl

Some psychologists devote their lives to studying the changes people go through throughout their lifetime This branch of psychology is called… Developmental Psychology – The study of how our behavior and thoughts change over time –Think of it this way … WOMB to TOMBthe study of humans WOMB to TOMB

Before we get into developmental psychology we need to discuss one thing Chicken or the Egg?? Nature vs. Nurture argumentWe will try to answer one of the major themes in psychology called the Nature vs. Nurture argument –Basically asking which is more powerful in determining behavior and traits??Nature – the idea that your behaviors, thoughts and traits come from our genetics (we are born with them) (Biology is Destiny)Nurture – the idea that our behaviors come from our environment (we learn from our surroundings )

So which one is it??

The Nature Argument (is sometimes compelling) Why does Brad Pitt look the way he does? This guy!!! This guy will never be… Probably genes (and I don’t mean his Levi's)

Genes: Our Biological Blueprint More on these guys later… Another way psychologists try to answer Nature vs. Nurture is through a field called Evolutionary Psychology

Evolutionary Psychology: Explaining Universal Behaviors According to EP the motivator of all behavior is the passing of one's genes to the next generation for survival –(natural selection and survival of fittest)

There are of course real biological differences How and why do men and women differ sexually?

Of course, there are other differences too….

What do men and women want? (According to Evolutionary Psychology) Men want: Healthy Young Waist 1/3 narrower than hips. Women want: Wealth Security Power

Behavior Genetics The study of the power and limitations of genes on who we are.

If it were possible, would you want to take a genetic test telling you which diseases you are likely to suffer from later in life? If you or your spouse were pregnant, would you want the unborn child tested for genetic defects? Do you think it should be legal for employers to use genetic tests in deciding whom to hire? The Genetic Revolution

Temperament  The aspects of a persons personality that we are born with whether someone is shy, aggressive, easily scared whether someone is shy, aggressive, easily scared They remain relatively stable over time. They remain relatively stable over time. Tends to lend evidence that nature is very powerful Tends to lend evidence that nature is very powerful What is your temperament??

Heritability  The degree to which genetic factors (heredity) can explain the differences of a given trait among a population  For example A heritability estimate of 50% for intelligence would mean what? A heritability estimate of 50% for intelligence would mean what? That genetics explains 50% of the differences among people in IQ scores That genetics explains 50% of the differences among people in IQ scores The remaining 50% of the differences would be explained by non-genetic factors, such as environment influences The remaining 50% of the differences would be explained by non-genetic factors, such as environment influences

Environmental Influences on Behavior Now On to Nurture

Specific Types of Environmental Influences ParentsPrenatalExperience Peer InfluenceCultureGender

How Much Credit (or Blame ) Do Parents Deserve? Are children clay to be molded by their parents? It depends… probably not when it comes to to personality Take a look at your siblings… are you alike?? Parents effect your belief systems and values much more than your personality.

Peer Influence peersPerhaps the biggest environmental influence, at least by your age may be…. peers “Selection effect”“Selection effect” –we seek out people with similar interests –that may explain why we seem to conform to our peers.

What can happen when there is no one around to influence children?? Feral Children Children who have been deprived of social contact or upbringing –Literally means wild or untamed –Suggests the important role nurture can play in normal human development

Cultural Influences on Children Lev Vygotsky –Said that one’s thinking is influenced by one’s culture –This interaction produces a culturally specific way of thinking –Zone of Proximal Development Vygotsky thought that if a child had an older influence, they would develop faster

Nature v. Nurture What do you think so far? Does Nature and Nurture interact and grow off of each other? First, how do psychologists study this question?

How do Psychologists Study Development?? Cross sectionalCross sectional different agesuses people of different ages to compare how certain characteristics may change over the course of life Can be hard when the groups have grown up in different times (math tests – computers vs. calculators) LongitudinalLongitudinal examines one group of participants over a long period of time Costly, takes a long time, and typically lose participants over time Biographical or retrospective studiesBiographical or retrospective studies Looks at one person at a time through individuals memory Good for detail, but memory may not be accurate and the information may not be generalizable

 Lets say I wanted to see at what age people are the best at playing Halo  I could go about doing this in two ways. cross-sectional  If I wanted to do a cross-sectional study I could take ten 5 year olds, ten 10 year olds, ten 15 year olds, and ten 20 year olds, have them all play Halo and see which group lasted the longest.  This would be a fast and easy way to do the study and MOST studies are done just like this

longitudinal studyBut, if I wanted to do a longitudinal study I would take ten 5 year olds, have them play halo, wait five years and test them again, wait five more years and test them again, then test them again at twenty and I would have my study. This type of research is much more rare simply because it takes so long!!!! So you can see that both types of research have advantages and disadvantages.

But lets get down to Business I am going to break developmental psychology down into Five sections or types of development PhysicalPhysical –the ways our body changes from womb to tomb SocialSocial –the ways our social needs change from womb to tomb CognitiveCognitive –the ways our thinking and learning changes from womb to tomb MoralMoral –the ways we think about right and wrong changes from womb to tomb GenderGender –the ways we think about what our gender means from womb to tomb