chapter 2 (2.1-2.4)
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
a technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images that distinguish among different types of soft tissue; allows us to see structures within the brain.
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)
an imaging technique used to examine changes in the activity of the working human brain by measuring changes in the blood's oxygen levels when specific neurons are activated.
Position Emission Tomography ( PET )
an imaging technique used to see which brain areas are being activated while performing tasks.
SENSORIMOTOR (birth to 2 years) Infants use senses and motor abilities to understand the world. Learning is active, without reflection.
MAJOR GAINS DURING THE PERIOD Infants learn that objects still exist when out of sight (object permanence) and begin to think through mental actions.
What did Piaget discover that earlier psychologists did not realize ?
He discovered that infants were capable of thought and curiosity, and that how children think changes over time.
How do mentors and mentees interact within the zone of proximal development?
- Mentors find the area in which the learners have skills, knowledge, and concepts within their grasp but have not yet mastered them. - Mentors engage with the mentees in that zone so that learning is mutually exciting which facilitates success.
What 3 things do theories do?
1. Produce hypothesis. 2. Generate discoveries. 3. Offer practical guidance.
What are the criticisms of each of the five theories?
1. Psychoanalytic: too subjective. 2. Behaviorism: too mechanistic. 3. Cognitive: undervalues emotions. 4. Sociocultural: neglects individual choice. 5. Evolutionary: ignores the power of religion, laws, and social norms.
Developmental theory
A systematic statement of general principles that provides a framework for understanding how and why people change as they grow older.
Diffusion tensor imaging ( DTI )
A technique, based on detection of how water diffuses along the length of nerve fibers, for tracing nerve pathways and determining connections.
ANAL STAGE ( 1-3 years ) The anus is the focus of pleasurable sensations in the baby's body, and toilet training is the most important activity.
AUTONOMY vs. SHAME and DOUBT Children either become self-sufficient in many activities, including toileting, feeding, walking, exploring, and talking, or doubt their own abilities.
Dr. Lilja is an evolutionary psychologist. She believes that the reason very few people in Sweden are lactose-intolerant is because of selective _____
Adaptation.
How does the central focus of behaviorism differ from psychoanalytic theory?
Behaviorism arose in direct opposition to the psychoanalytic emphasis on unconscious, hidden urges. Behaviorists emphasize nurture (observable responses from other people and the environment to whatever a developing person does.
White Coat Syndrome occurs when a patient sees a doctor and exhibits a rise in blood pressure. According to behaviorism, this BEST demonstrates:
Classical Conditioning
When is social learning most powerful ?
Early adolescence, when children want to be similar to their peers.
event-related potential (ERP)
Electrical changes in the brain that correspond to the brain's response to a specific event; measured with EEG. First the ERP establishes the usual patterns, and then researchers present a stimulus (such as a sound, an image, a word) that causes a blip in electrical activity. ERP indicates how quickly and extensively people react—although this method requires many repetitions to.
Several of the neuroscientific methods described in the textbook measure blood flow in the brain. Which blood-flow method is BEST suited for use with children?
Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)
GENITAL STAGE ( adolescence ) The genitals are the focus of pleasurable sensations, and the young person seeks sexual stimulation and satisfaction in heterosexual relationships.
INDENTITY vs INFERIORITY Adolescents ask themselves "Who am I?" They establish sexual, political, religious, and vocational identities or are confused about their roles.
LATENCY ( 6-11 years ) Not really a stage, latency is an interlude. Sexual needs are quiet; psychic energy flows into sports, schoolwork, and friendship.
INDUSTRY vs. INFERIORITY Children busily practice and then master new skills or feel inferior, unable to do anything well.
PHALLIC STAGE ( 3-6 years ) The phallus, or penis, is the most important body part, and pleasure is derived from genital stimulation. Boys are proud of their penises; girls wonder why they don't have them.
INITIATIVE vs GUILT Children either try to undertake many adultlike activities or internalize the limits and prohibitions set by parents. They feel either adventurous or guilty.
GENITAL STAGE pt. 2 ( adulthood ) Freud believed that the genital stage lasts throughout adulthood. He also said that the goal of a healthy life is "to love and to work."
INTIMACY vs ISOLATION Young adults seek companionship and love or become isolated from others, fearing rejection. GENERATIVITY vs STAGNATION Middle-aged adults contribute to future generations through work, creative activities, and parenthood or they stagnate. INTEGRITY vs DESPAIR Older adults try to make sense of their lives, either seeing life as a meaningful whole or despairing at goals never reached.
PREOPERATIONAL ( 2-6 years ) Children think symbolically, with language, yet children are egocentric, perceiving from their own perspective.
MAJOR GAINS DURING THE PERIOD The imagination flourishes, and language becomes a significant means of self-expression and social influence
What does neuroscience make possible that was impossible for Freud, Skinner, or Piaget?
It enables discoveries within the brain that can support or contradict various theories. Ex: infant's brains are more active when they hear the language their mother spoke in the womb.
CONCRETE OPERATIONAL ( 6-11 years ) Children understand and apply logic. Thinking is limited by direct experience.
MAJOR GAINS DURING PERIOD By applying logic, children grasp concepts of conservation, number, classification, and many other scientific ideas.
FORMAL OPERATIONAL ( 12 years through adulthood ) Adolescents and adults use abstract and hypothetical concepts. They can use analysis, not only emotion.
MAJOR GAINS DURING PERIOD Ethics, politics, and social and moral issues become fascinating as adolescents and adults use abstract, theoretical reasoning.
Functional near infrared spectroscopy ( fNIRS )
Noninvasive technique that gathers light transmitted through cortical tissue to image blood-oxygen consumption; form of optical tomography.
How is a NORM different from a THEORY?
Norm - fact or event that can be calculated. Theory - broader, and deeper. Group of ideas, assumptions, and generalizations that provide a framework for understanding the patterns and problems of development.
Why are most developmentalists eclectic in regard to theories?
Not being tied to any one particular theory helps reduce bias.
When an infant learns that an object still exists even though it is out of sight, the infant has developed a sense of:
Object Permanence
Skinner found that if the consequences of a particular behavior are pleasurable, then the animal may repeat the behavior. This type of conditioning is called:
Operant Conditioning
What is the basic emphasis of psychoanalytic theory?
Our conscious drives and motives influence every aspect of our thinking and behavior.
What similarities and differences are found between Freud's and Erikson's theories of adulthood?
Similarities - acknowledged the importance of the unconscious and of early-childhood experience Differences - Erikson emphasized family and culture, not sexual urges.
What are the similarities and differences between folk theories and scientific theories?
Similarities - both try to explain facts, concepts, observations, and sensations that people encounter. Differences - scientific theories lead to new insight and elicit alternate interpretations.
Why is it useful to know more than one theory to explain human behavior?
Since no single theory provides all the answers about development, developmentalists need to understand the content, methods, and concepts of all of them.
Why would behaviors and emotions that benefited ancient humans be apparent today?
Some of the best human qualities, such as cooperation, spirituality, and self-sacrifice, may have originated thousands of years ago, when groups of people survived because they took care of one another.
ORAL STAGE ( birth to 1 year ) The lips, tongue, and gums are the focus of pleasurable sensations in the baby's body, and sucking and feeding are the most stimulating activities.
TRUST vs. MISTRUST Babies either trust that others will satisfy their basic needs, including nourishment, warmth, cleanliness, and physical contact, or develop mistrust about the care of others.
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
The EEG measures electrical activity in the cortex. This can differentiate active brains (beta brain waves—very rapid, 12 to 30 per second) from sleeping brains (delta waves—1 to 3 per second) and brain states that are half-awake, or dreaming. Complete lack of brain waves, called flat-line, indicates brain death.
Eclectic Perspective
The approach taken by most developmentalists, in which they apply aspects of each of the various theories of development rather than adhering exclusively to one theory.
How does information processing contribute to the cognitive revolution ?
Unlike Piaget's stage theory, information processing provides a detailed description of the steps of cognition, with attention to perceptual and neurological processes.
Apprenticeship thinking
Vygotsky's term for how cognition is stimulated and developed in people by more skilled members of society.
Dr. Lin, who is a developmental psychologist, believes that human development results from the dynamic interaction between developing persons and their surrounding society. Dr. Lin believes that culture is not something external that impinges on developing persons but is integral to their development every day via the social context. Dr. Lin is MOST likely working within the _____ perspective.
sociocultural
