Developmental Psychology Lifespan

Becoming a mother in high school, having my second by age 21, being in an abusive relationship with my children's father, being a single mother, with no help from my children's father and a full time college student, makes me wonder about the whole nature vs nurture thing for my own children.

How will growing up with no father impact them, or no male role models? Will growing up most their lives in "poverty" affect them?

The debate between nature and nurture has been ongoing for centuries. How did Steve Jobs build Apple? Was he born with a natural knack for computers, visionary thinking, and futuristic dreams? Were his parents the reason for his success (he was adopted)?

I think the question of nature versus nurture permeates society in a multifaceted manner. The dichotomy is not only situated in a world with success, but also thought about with discussions of poverty, crime, mental illness and even sexual orientation. This debate is, in one word: deep.

proximodistal patten

The sequence in which growth starts at the center of the body and moves towards the extremities.; infants control the muscles of their trunk and arms before they control their hands

cephalocaudal pattern

The sequence in which the earliest growth always occurs at the top -- the head -- with physical growth in size, weight, and feature differentiation gradually working from top to bottom.

attachment

a close emotional bond between two people; Frued theorized that infants become attached to the person or object that provide oral satisfaction....Jerome Kagan sees infants as highly resilient and adaptive- they are equipped to stay on a positive developmental course. Attachment theory ignores the diversity of socializing agents and contents in a..... FINISH (120)

correlational research

a type of research that focuses on describing the strength of the relation between two or more events or characteristics

infantile or childhood amnesia

few memories before age 3

evolutionary perspective

natural selection and adaptive behavior; natural selection-the evolutionary process by which those individuals of a species that are best adapted are the ones that survive and reproduce; survivors are better adapted to their world than are non-survivors.

nurture-only view-we are all essentially the same at birth, and we are the product of our experiences.; Nurture is- Environment, Experience, Upbringing *Family *Culture

nature through nurture-the environment- the womb or the world outside- interacts continuously with biology to shape who we are and what we do; What makes someone great? What makes one of us stand out? How are visionaries created?

Discuss the idea of nature and nurture and how each contribute to development.

nature-only view-who we are comes from inborn tendencies and genetically based traits.; nature is Genetics, Heredity, Inherited tendencies;

perception

the interpretation of what is sensed; perception brings us into contact with the environment in order to interact with and adapt to it;

context

the setting in which development occurs, which is influenced by historical, economical, social, and cultural factors

objective permanence

the understanding that objects continue to exist when out of sight

habituation

Decreased responsiveness to a stimulus after repeated presentations of the stimulus

concept; development

Each of us develops partly like all other individuals, partly like some other individuals, and partly like no other individuals.

attention

The focusing of mental resources on select information and improves cognitive processing on many tasks

development is a co-construction of biology, culture and the individual

these factors influence each other. For example, the brain shapes culture, but it is also shaped by culture and experiences that individuals have or pursue. individuals factors, We can create a unique developmental path by actively choosing from the environment the things that optimize our lives.

chromosomes

threadlike structures made up of deoxyribonucleic acid of DNA; nucleus of each human cell contains chromosomes;

orienting response

to determine if an infant can see or hear a stimulus

genotype

A person's genetic heritage; the actual genetic material; all of a persons genetic material

ethnicity

A range of characteristics rooted in cultural heritage, including nationality, race, religion, and language.

Apgar Scale

A widely used assessment of the newborn's health at one and five minutes after birth; a score, or reading, of 0, 1, or 2, on each of these five health signs; heart rate, respiratory effort, muscle tone, body color, and reflex irritability

temperament

An individual's behavioral style and characteristic way of responding emotionally. Chess and thomas' classification identified three basic types or clusters of temperament;

separation protest

An infant's distressed crying when the caregiver leaves. (116)

stranger anxiety

An infant's fear and wariness of strangers that typically appears in the second half of the first year of life (116)

hypothesis

Assertions or predictions, often derided from theories, that can be tested; are specific assertions and predictions that can be tested

development is Multidimensional

Development consists of cognitive; mental, and biological; physical changes and; socioemotional intra/inter personal dimensions

definition; life-span perspective

Development is lifelong, multidimensional, multidirectional, plastic, multidisciplinary, and contextual; involves growth, maintenance, and regulation; and is constructed through biological, sociocultural, and individual factors working together.

Define development and discuss the lifespan perspective.

Development is the pattern of movement or change that starts at conception and continues through the lifespan. -The life-span perspective includes these basic conceptions:

2. difficult child: this child reacts negatively and cries frequently, engages in irregular daily routines, and is slow to accept change.

3. slow to warm up child- this child has a low activity level and is somewhat negative, and displays a low intensity of mood

DNA

A complex molecule with a double helix shape that contains genetic information

equilibration

A mechanism that Piaget proposed to explain how children shift from one stage of thought to the next

defense mechanism

get for abnormal psych i think?

depth perception-visual cliff

infants develop the ability to use binocular; like two eyed; cues to depth by about 3 or 4 months of age

non-normative life events

not everyone experiences, such as cancer, death of a parent when a child is young, winning the lottery.

naturalistic observation

observation that occurs in a real world setting without any attempt to manipulate the situation; a coherent set of ideas that helps to explain data and to make predictions

sensation

occurs when information interacts with sensory receptors; the eyes, ears, tongue, nostrils, and skin;

phenotypes include

physical characteristics such as height, wight and hair color; psychological characteristics such as personality and intelligence

scaffolding

process in which parents time interactions so that infants experience turn-taking with their parents. (130)

dishabituation

recovery of a habituated response after a change in stimulation (90)

explicit memory

refers to conscious memory of facts and experiences

SIDS

sudden infant death syndrome- a condition that occurs when an infant stops breathing, usually during the night, and suddenly dies without an apparent cause.; SIDS is the highest cause of infant death in the US; risk of SIDS is highest at 2-4 months of age.

proteins

the building blocks of a cell; the regulators that direct the bod's processes

sensorimotor stage

the first of Piaget's stages, which lasts from birth to about 2 years of age; during this stage; infants construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences with motor actions (97)

genes

units of hereditary information composed of DNA. Genes direct cells to reproduce themselves and manufacture the proteins that maintain life.

development concept continued; But as humans, we have all traveled some common paths. We all walked around age one, engaged in fantasy play as a young child and became more independent as a youth.

Each of us, if we live long enough, will experience hearing problems and the death of family members and friends, this is the general course of our development.

assimilation

Piagatian concept of using existing schemes to deal with new information or experiences

goodness of fit

Refers to the match between a child temperament and the environmental demands with which the child must cope... (something about attachment) (provide a secure base).; Children differ from each other very early in life; differences have important implications for parent child interaction..; 1. attention to and respect for individuality 2. structure the child's environment 3.avoid applying negative labels to the child

risk factors for sids

SIDS decreases when infants sleep on their backs; more common in low birth weight infants; infants who are passively exposed to cigarette smoke are at higher risk more frequent in infants who sleep in soft bedding; less likely in infants who use a pacifier when they go to sleep

development is multidirectional

Some things in development improve somethings get worse

temperament continued

1. easy child; this child is generally in a positive mood, quickly establishes regular routines in infancy, and adapts daily to new experiences;

life span perspective

learning about ourselves and others; development involves growth, but also includes decline;

An important issue regarding attachment is whether infancy is a critical or sensitive period for development. The studies show continuity, with secure attachment in infancy predicting subsequent positive development in childhood and adolescence.

For some children though there is little continuity. Not All research reveals the power of infant attachment to predict subsequent development. (127)

Development involves growth, maintenance and regulation of loss

Baltes and his colleagues assert that the mastery of life often involved conflicts and competition among three goals of human development: growth, maintain and regulation of loss.

culture

The behavior patterns, beliefs, and all other products of a group that are passed on from generation to generation

definition; nature-nurture

The debate about the extent to which development is influenced by nature and by nature. Nature refers to an organism's biological inheritance, nurture to its environmental experiences.

memory

involves the retention of retention of information over time ; some infants as young as 2 to 6 moths can remember some experiences through 1.5 to 2 years of age;

theory

is an interrelated, coherent set of ideas that helps to explain phenomena and make predictions

LAD

language acquisition device-chomsky's term that describes a biological endowment enabling the child to detect the features and rules of language, including phonology, syntax, and semantics. (107)

Traditional approach; emphasizes extensive change from birth to adolescence, little or no change in adulthood, and decline in old age;

life-span approach emphasizes developmental change throughout adulthood as well as childhood

experiment

a carefully regulated procedure in which one or more of the factors believed to influence the behavior being studied is manipulated and all other factors are held constant. Experimental research permits the determination of cause

FASD

fetal alcohol spectrum disorder- a cluster of abnormalities that appear in the offspring of mothers who drink alcohol heavily during pregnancy

normative history-graded influences

happens to everyone of a certain generation; example... 9/11, civil war, women's right movement.

social referencing

"reading" emotional cues in others to help determine how to act in a particular situation (116)

securely attached babies

Babies that use the caregiver as a secure base from which to explore their environment

development is plastic

Ability to change, how much plasticity do we have in various dimensions.

longitudinal approach

A research strategy in which the same individuals are studied over a period of time usually several years or more

social smile

A smile in response to an external stimulus, which, early in development, typically is a face

strange situation

An observational measure of infant attachment that requires the infant to move through a series of introductions, separations, and reunions with the caregiver and an adult stranger in a prescribed order; Mary Ainsworth created the strange situation.. the degree to which the caregivers presence provides the infant with security and confidence. Securely attached babies use the caregiver as a secure base; insecure ....(125)

Define attachment and discuss its importance to development in childhood and throughout the lifespan.

Attachment is a close emotional bond between two people. Freud theorized that infants become attached to the person or objects that provides them with oral satisfaction.

evolutionary psychology

Emphasizes the importance of adaptation, reproduction and "survival of the fittest: in shaping behavior. Fit is the ability to bear offspring that survive long enough to bear offspring of their own.

Define attachment and discuss its importance to development in childhood and throughout the lifespan.

Erikson's proposal that during the first year of life infants are in the stage of trust vs mistrust and physical comfort and sensitive care are key to establishing a basic level of trust during infancy.

Development is contextual

Isnt just a personal experience b/c you exist in a context that changes you and you change it. 3 types, Normative age graded influences, history graded influences, non normative.

I find it sad that in an educational setting, the dreamers are discounted as "quacks" and the brilliant are termed "nerds" or "losers." Thus, who wants to stand out? Why be a leader when you will be called a "bitch," or in the elementary school lingo "bossy pants?"

Let us consider the failure of nurture with the famous example of Ted Kaczynski, or the Unabomber. Kaczynski entered Harvard at age 16 from a supportive family. After receiving his Ph.D. from Berkley at the age of 21 (not too shabby), he ultimately would flee into the solitude of the wilderness and began sending, what would total, 16 homemade bombs.

accommodation

Piagetian concept of adjusting schemes to take new information and experiences into account

definition; development

The pattern of movement or change that starts at conception and continues through the life span; development is lifelong

-Three important sources of contextual influences are (1) normative age-graded influences, (2) normative history-graded influences, and (3) nonnormative life events.

The perspective that development is lifelong, multidimensional, multidirectional, plastic, multidisciplinary, and contextual; involves growth, maintenance, and regulation; and is constructed through biological, sociocultural, and individual factors working together

phenotype

The way an individual's genotype is expressed in observed and measurable characteristics.; observable characteristics;

Furthermore, it seems illogical for anyone to be able to adequately conclude which condition led to which outcome due to the simplistic rebuttal of "sample of one!"

Thus, I will conclude with my belief in the debate of nature versus nurture: it is probably a bit of both sprinkled with a bunch of randomness.

normative age-graded influences

Typical age related influences, happens to everyone at a certain age; example; puberty, menopause, starting school around age 6.

Was it nature that made Kaczynski into a murderer and, one could say, a domestic terrorist? Upon his arrest and subsequent trial, he discredited being mentally ill and refused to use illness as a defense. What made a brilliant boy into a killer?

Ultimately, I think the nature versus nurture argument is one that will never be fully answered. Psychologists and sociologists will continue to discuss these topics for eternity.

correlational coefficient

a number based on statistical analysis that is used to describe the degree of association between two variables

teratogen

any agent that c an potentially cause a birth defect or negatively alter cognitive behavioral outcomes

Insecure resistant babies

babies that often cling to th caregiver, then resist her by fighting against the closeness perhaps by kicking or pushing away.

insecure avoidant babies

babies that show insecurities by avoiding their mothers

Insecure disorganized babies

babies that show insecurity by being disorganized and disoriented

secure attachment

babies that use the caregiver as a secure base which to explore their environment (125) check this one **

mary ainsworth created the Strange situation, an observational measure of infant attachment that requires the infant to move through a series of introductions, separations, and reunions, with the caregiver and an adult stranger in a prescribed order.

based on how the babies respond in the strange situation, they are described as being securely attached or insecurely attached.. in one of three way to the caregiver.

emotion

feeling, or affect, that occurs when a person is in a state or interaction that is important to them. Emotion is characterized by behavior that reflects or expresses the pleasantness or unpleasantness of the state a person is in or the transactions being experienced. (113)

visual preference method

infants look at different things for different lengths of time

perception of pattern and depth

infants prefer to look at a normal human face rather than one with scrambled features; they prefer to look at a bull's eye target or black and white stripes rather than a plain circle

neurons

nerve cells that handle information processing at the cellular level in the brain

implicit memory

refers to memory without conscious recollection