Developmental Psych Chapter 9

Conservation

An understanding/knowing that some property is maintained/conserved in spite of superficial/outward changes in appearance. Beakers, for example. In concrete operations the child begins to be able to conserve (for some factors). So they may be able to solve concentration for liquid but not for area or weight.

Inattention

Difficulty staying focused, difficulty regulating attention, being forgetful, being disorganized.

Hyperactivity

Restlessness, fidgety, not able to sit still, getting up and running around, climbing on furniture, etc.

Pragmatics

Practical aspect of language. In middle childhood, children can use language to communicate more effectively, they are less egocentric, and they can adjust speech for the person and their knowledge and the situation better. They are also better at understanding figurative language.

Children with ADHD are likely to struggle with its symptoms throughout their childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.

What is the developmental outlook for children with ADHD?

Postconventional Morality

Postconventional morality it the last level of morality theorized by Kohlberg and is the broadest perspective. Moral decisions in this stage revolve around and/or reflect everyone, not just a particular group (every human being). It focuses on abstract moral principles like justice, fairness, equality, etc. It allows breaking of the laws if one is still following their conscience.

Indirect Request

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Impulsivity

Acting impulsively, doing things without thinking them through first.

ADHD

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is most likely diagnosed in school and could be life long. 11% of U.S. kids 4-17 years old diagnosed with ADHD. 80-90% are boys. Diagnosed through use of DSM by professionals, who get information from as many sources as possible. Primary symptoms: Hyperactivity, inattention, impulsivity. Important to look at severity, frequency, and persistence. How big of a problem are these issues, how frequently do they happen, and how long has the person been showing those problems? To be ADHD, symptoms have to cause impairment in everyday tasks in 2+ settings, persist for at least 6 months, and be present before age 7. Secondary problems: Academic problems, noncompliance, temper tantrums, poor peer relationships, low self-esteem, comorbidity (dealing with ADHD AND another psychological problem), injuries, and accidents. Causes: Genetics, environment (neurological damage/immaturity, prefrontal brain injury/immaturity, prenatal alcohol and tobacco, lead exposure). Could be linked with diet, internet usage, parenting. Treatments: drug therapy (use of stimulants: ritalin/concerta, adderall, cylert; use of nonstimulants: strattera). Drug therapy can have side effects (insomnia, lowered appetite). Behavior therapy: reward/punishment and providing structure and consistency. Developing self-esteem and providing a lot of love, support, affection, and patience.

During the concrete operations period (7-12 years of age) logical thinking is present. In this stage children can solve conservation problems (they can use operations and reversible mental processes now). They can use decentration, reversible thinking, and conservation. They become less egocentric, but master conservation tasks at different rates/times (horizontal decalage). Ex: May be able to solve conservation of liquid but not conservation of area or weight. Their logic is also limited to concrete (real/observable) problems.

Describe intelligence during Piaget's concrete operations period.

There is still growth in weight and height. For most of these years boys and girls add similar numbers of weight and inches to their bodies, at around the age of 10 adolescence starts to change that. In middle child, the average child's body weight doubles. At about age 11, boys develop relatively more muscle, and girls develop relatively more fat.

Describe trends in body development between 6 and 12 years of age.

DSM-V

Diagnostic and statistical manual. Professionals use this to diagnose ADHD by reviewing the primary symptoms and comparing those to what parents, teachers, and family say about the child's behavior.

They tend to not do as well in school because of their inability to focus and pay attention. They also may have low self-esteem and poor peer relationships. Poor peer relationships may be due to rejection by other kids (because they find them off and/or find their behavior off-putting and inappropriate). They also may be teased more and are more likely to get into fights with peers. Children with ADHD may also have difficulties obeying parents and teachers and have difficulty controlling their emotional state.

Discuss how ADHD can affect a child's cognitive and social development.

Vocabulary growth continues in middle childhood and children learn more words and gain a better understanding of the meaning behind those words. Their grammar also becomes more complex and they stop having problems with passive sentences. Children in this stage are developing the ability to communicate more effectively (pragmatics) and becoming less egocentric with their speech. They are now better able to adjust their speech for the person, the person's knowledge, and the situation. They may also be better at understanding figurative language than they previously were.

Discuss language development during middle childhood.

Twin studies tend to indicate there is a higher concordance rate for ADHD among identical twins than among fraternal twins, so ADHD may be caused by genetics. It may also be caused by neurological damage/immaturity, prefrontal brain injury/immturity, prenatal alcohol and tobacco, low birthweight, and lead exposure. Some argue that ADHD could be linked with diet, use of internet and video games, and quality of parenting.

How is ADHD caused?

Using the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual) criteria by professionals. The professional should get information from as many sources as possible. They must also look at severity, frequency, and persistence. How big of a problem are these issues, how frequently do they happen, and how long has the person been showing those problems? These issues have to be severe enough that they are causing actual impairment in everyday tasks. Also have to show impairment in 2+ settings (like school AND home). Symptoms must persist for at least 6 months and be present before age 7.

How is ADHD typically diagnosed?

ADHD is normally treated through drug therapy, which is not a cure, and only momentarily provides relief in symptoms. The most common drugs used areamphetamine-like stimulants (Ritalin/Concerta; Adderall; Cylert). There are some newer, non-stimulant drugs (Strattera). The drugs also can have side effects, such as insomnia and lowered appetite, so it is important to have the proper dosage. Another, less common, treatment is behavior therapy, which used behavior modification (reward/punishment). Behavior therapy provides structure and consistency, develops the child's strengths, and provides a lot of love, support, affection, and patience.

How is ADHD typically treated?

Intelligence in the concrete operations is much more advanced than intelligence in the preoperational period. In concrete operations the child is now able to solve more problems, think more openly and from different viewpoints than their own, and use mental processed such as reversible thinking, decentration, and conservation.

How is intelligence in concrete operations different from intelligence in the preoperational period?

Hyperactivity (restlessness, fidgety, not able to sit still, getting up and running around, climbing on furniture, etc). Inattention (difficulty staying focused, difficulty regulating attention, being forgetful, being disorganized). Impulsivity (acting impulsively, doing things without thinking them through first).

Identify and describe the primary symptoms of ADHD.

Kohlberg

Kohlberg's theory of moral development was influenced by Piaget and focused on moral reasoning. He interviewed groups of boys ages 10, 13, and 16 and did a cross-sectional study. He investigated how the boys would reason about moral issues. Used situations such as the Heinz story and was particularly interested in the explanation behind what the boys said. His theory was that moral development involves going through 6 stages (2 stages per each level of moral reasoning) that reflect what people think is right, fair, and just. The 3 levels represent expanding moral perspectives.

Figurative Language

Language not meant to be taken literally (indirect requests, hyperbole, idioms, and sarcasm. In middle childhood, children are better at understanding figurative language than they were in the preschool years.

Concrete Operations

Piaget's third stage of cognitive development. Concrete operations occurs between 7-12 years of age. At this stage, logical thinking is present and children can solve conservation problems (they can use operations and reversible mental processes now). Important terms: decentration, reversible thinking, conservation, horizontal decalage. In this stage the child also becomes less egocentric, but is still limited to concrete (real and observable) problems.

Reversibility

Reversible thinking begins in the concrete operations stage. The child is now able to perform reversible mental actions, so they can mentally reverse something they have seen.

Horizontal Decalage

The idea that conservation for some factors occurs before others. Mastery of related tasks may occur at different rates/times.

Decentration

The opposite of centration, children are now able to consider more than just one part of a problem or situation.

Preconventional Morality

This is the first level of Kohlberg's theory of moral development. This occurred before the person utlizes standards of behavior for a particular group and is characterized by egocentrism and immaturity. The individual is focused on consequences of the behavior, not what the behavior is.

Conventional Morality

This is the second level of morality for Kohlberg, where the individual begins to take into account standards of behavior, morals, and even opinions of the society they belong to. This level includes stages 3 and 4. It involves conformity to rules and expectations of others and is often the highest level reached for most people. Stage 3 involves mostly other people's opinion, while stage 4 refers to the laws of that society or group.

Ritalin

Used to treat ADHD and is a stimulant. Promotes the activity of dopamine and noradrenaline, which stimulate the "executive center" of the brain to control more primitive areas of the brain. Stimulants can increase children's attention spans and improve their academic problems.

Horizontal decalage is the idea that children may master related tasks at different rates/times. In conservation, that means that they may be able to solve conservation of liquid problems, but not conservation of weight or area.

What is horizontal decalage?