Life Span Development Modules 4-6

Physical Changes

Smoking and Birth Weight

Neural Development

Motor Development

Language: Acquisition & Critical Periods

Noam Chomsky  nature argument - children have a predisposition to learn language  a person’s brain is hard- wired to learn vocabulary and the rules of grammar

B.F. Skinner  nurture argument - believed language was the result of learning through: 1. association: linking certain sounds with certain people or objects 2. imitation 3. rewards

Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis  proposed by Benjamin Whorf  one’s language determines what we can be aware of or think about (language governs thinking)  example: shades of white (snow) “I speak, therefore I think.”

Critical Period & Language  critical period – limited time when an event can occur; may be difficult, less successful, or impossible to develop it later  language critical period: around age 10  example: Genie case (video clip)

Cognitive Development Piaget’s Cognitive Stages pages 63-68

Cognition  all mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, & remembering  children think differently than adults

Jean Piaget  developmental psychologist  proposed first theory of the development of thinking & reasoning (four stages)  the way children think & solve problems depends on their stage of development

Schemas  Concepts or mental frameworks that help people organize & interpret information & experiences  Examples: dog, school, dating

How do you create schemas? 1. Assimilation 2. Accommodation

Assimilation  interpret a new experience within the context of existing schemas  Example: inviting someone out for a date

Accommodation  adapt (change) one’s current schemas to incorporate new information

Assimilation/Accommodation

Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development StageAgeRangeDescription Key Developmental Events Sensorimotor Preoperational Concrete Operations Formal Operations

1) Sensorimotor Stage  birth – 2 years  child gathers information about world through senses & motor functions (grasping, touching)  key developmental event: object permanence

Object Permanence  awareness that things continue to exist even when they cannot be sensed  Develops between 8 – 10 months & is evidence of a working memory

2) Preoperational Stage  age 2 to 6 – 7  can understand language but does not think logically, egocentric in thought, doesn’t fully understand cause-and-effect connections  key developmental events: lack conservation, develop language, pretend play

Egocentrism  inability to take another’s point of view & understand their perspective

Conservation Task 1

Conservation  understanding that properties (mass, volume, numbers) remain the same even if you change an object’s form

Conservation

Types of Conservation Tasks

3) Concrete Operational Stage  age 7 – 11  learn to think logically, can perform simple math operations & trial-and-error problem-solving strategies, difficulty with hypothetical scenarios  key developmental events: conservation

4) Formal Operational Stage  age 12 – adulthood  can think logically and in the abstract, can solve hypothetical problems (what if…. problems), can handle moral & ethical dilemmas  key developmental events: abstract logic, mature moral reasoning

Examples of Formal Operational Thought  Whenever Emily goes to school, Meredith also goes to school. Emily went to school. What can you say about Meredith?  “What would happen if there was no sun?”

Social Development in Infancy & Childhood: Attachment pages

Attachment  emotional tie with another person; demonstrated by seeking closeness to caregiver  3 Elements of Attachment: 1. body contact 2. familiarity 3. responsiveness

Body Contact - Harry Harlow Study  researched attachment in infant monkeys  monkeys had to choose between: cloth mother with no food wire mother that provided food Which do you think they choose?

Harry Harlow  Result: monkeys spent most of their time by the cloth mother

Familiarity  Sense of contentment with what/who you already know  Infants are familiar w/ parents and caregivers  Stranger anxiety – develops by around 8 month s

Social Development in Adolescence page

Erik Erikson  constructed an 8-stage theory of psychosocial development  each stage of life presents a unique set of social demands and conflicts  the way each demand/conflict is handled leads to a more or less desirable outcome

Psychosocial Peg Word Mnemonic

Moral Development: Lawrence Kohlberg pages

Lawrence Kohlberg  three-stage theory on how moral reasoning develops  moral reasoning – sense of right and wrong  note to self: read 1 st paragraph on page 86

1. Preconventional Moral Reasoning  characterized by the desire to avoid punishment or gain reward  typically children under the age of 9

2. Conventional Moral Reasoning  primary concern is to fit in and play the role of a good citizen  strong desire to follow the rules and laws  typical of most adults

3. Postconventional Moral Reasoning  characterized by universal ethical principles that represent the rights or obligations of all people  follow laws unless they violate ethical principles  most adults do not reach this level  not well supported – sample group: white, male, western cultures