3011PSY Week 1 – Flashcards
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What is development?
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growth, change - entire lifespan -dynamic system, multifaceted, growth and loss
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What is developmental science?
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a field of study devoted to understanding constancy and change throughout the lifespan.
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Describe continuous development
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a process of gradually augmenting the same types of skills that were there to begin with.
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Describe discontinuous development
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a process in which new ways of understanding and responding to the world emerge at specific times.
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In discontinuous development there are stages, what is meant by this term?
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qualitative changes in thinking, feeling and behaving that characterise specific periods of development
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What are the characteristics of the lifespan perspective on development?
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1. Lifelong -Starts at conception and doesn't finish until time of death. 2. Multidimensional - physical/biological, cognitive, social-emotional -interwoven influences 3. Multidirectional - involves growth, maintenance ; regulation, decline - conception to adolescence - growth focus -adulthood - maintenance and regulation 4. Plastic - Case study: Micheal Rehbein - Spiralling epilepsy 300-400 a day, left hemisphere removed which is the language function and was taken over by the right side. - individual differences in plasticity - similar differences seen in resilience - declines with age (older people have less plasticity than children. 5. Multiply influenced - biological, historical, cultural, societal, familial
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What is the Social Clock by (Neugarten, 1968; Petersen, 1996)?
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society and culture dictates things that we should be doing at times of our development. - age appropriate behaviour - lil' john video of old people drinking and having promiscuous sex whereas this is not expected of that age but more expected of adolescence
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Describe the major period of human development, Prenatal?
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Prenatal (Conception to birth) - the one-celled organism transforms into a human baby with remarkable capacities to adjust to life outside the womb.
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Describe the major period of human development, Infancy and toddlerhood?
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(birth-2 years) - dramatic changes in the body and brain support the emergence of a wide array of motor, perceptual, and intellectual capacities and first intimate ties to others.
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Describe the major period of human development, Early childhood?
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(2-6 years) - during the "play years", motor skills refined, thought and language expand at an astounding pace, a sense of morality is evident, and children establish ties with peers.
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Describe the major period of human development, Middle childhood?
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(6-11 years) - The school years are marked by improved athletic abilities; more logical thought processes; mastery of basic literacy skills; advances in self-understanding, morality, and friendship; and the beginnings of peer-group membership.
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Describe the major period of human development, Adolescence?
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(11-18 years) - puberty leads to an adult-sized body and sexual maturity. Thought becomes abstract and idealistic and school achievement more serious. Adolescents begin to establish autonomy from the family and to define personal values and goals.
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Describe the major period of human development, Early adulthood?
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(18-40 years) - Most young people leave home, complete their education, and begin full-time work. Major concerns are developing a career, forming an intimate partnership, and marrying, rearing children, or establishing other lifestyles.
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Describe the major period of human development, Middle adulthood?
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(40-65 years) - Many people are at the height of their careers and attain leadership positions. They must also help their children begin independent lives and their parents adapt to ageing. They become more aware of their own morality.
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Describe the major period of human development, Late adulthood?
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(65 years - death) - People adjust to retirement, to decreased physical strength and health and often to the death of a spouse. They reflect on the meaning of their lives.
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What are some of the historical views on Development?
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Medieval Europe - child as miniature adult - allowed all the same things as adults such as alcohol and expected to work 19th Century - adolescence as a new term - compulsory schooling mid 1800s - separate juvenile courts / prisons Australia 1889 - noticing that children and adolescents are developing different from adults Emerging Adulthood - a 21st century phenomenon -18-25/29 year olds (Arnett, 2001) <-Driving force - semi independence (still living at home but working and studying or having rent paid by parents) - increasing tertiary education - very western, middle class phenomenon Late Adulthood - ancient Greece: Hippocrates - 50 for women; 55 for men - currently 65+ -increasing retirement (pension) age - increasing life expectancy
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What is the meaning of resilience?
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the ability to adapt effectively in the face of threats to development.
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What are the 3 contextual influences?
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1. (Normative) age-graded influences -similar for individuals at the same age - eg puberty, walking, talking. -what we recognise as development 2. (Normative) history-graded influences - Similar for a particular historical cohort -eg baby boomers, schoolies, emerging adulthood, technology revolution, rise in divorce, birth control. 3. Non-normative life events - individual, unpredictable - eg school shootings, substance abuse, addiction. - more powerful than age-grade on adult development
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Who was the forefather of scientific child study?
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Charles Darwin - understood that early prenatal growth is strikingly similar in many species. Out of these ideas the first attempts to document an idea about development, scientific child study was born. however G. Stanley Hall is regarded as the founder of the child study movement and is remembered for the normative approach in which measure of behaviour are taken on large numbers of individuals, and age-related averages are computed to represent typical development.
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What are the major developmental theories?
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Psychoanalytic - Freud, Erikson Learning (behaviourist) theories - Pavlov, Skinner, Bandura Cognitive developmental theories - Piaget, Vygotsky & Information - processing perspective Ethological & Evolutionary theories -Lorenz, Bowlby Ecological theories - Bronfenbrenner
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Explain Psychoanalytic perspective
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people move through a series of stages in which they confront conflicts between biological drives and social expectations. How these conflicts are resolved determines the person's ability to learn, get along with others, and to cope with anxiety.
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What was Freud's theory?
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Freud - psychosexual theory - how parents manage their child's sexual and aggressive drives in the first few years is crucial for healthy personality development.
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What is meant by the term id in psychosexual theory?
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largest portion of the mind, source of basic biological needs and desires
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What is meant by the term ego in psychosexual theory?
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the conscious, rational part of personality, emerges in early infancy to redirect the id's impulses so they are discharged in acceptable ways.
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What is meant by the term super ego in psychosexual theory?
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super ego or conscious emerges at ages 3-6 as parents insist that children conform to the values of society. - the ego faces the increasingly complex task of reconciling the demands of the id, the external world and conscience.
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In the 5 stages of Freuds psychosexual theory, what happens in the oral stage?
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1. Oral - birth to 1 year - sucking activities, breast or bottle. not met - habit such as smoking, thumb sucking, overeating or nail biting.
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In the 5 stages of Freuds psychosexual theory, what happens in the anal stage?
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2. Anal - 1-3 years - holding and releasing urine and faeces. toilet training before ready or not early enough can result in extreme orderliness or disorder
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In the 5 stages of Freuds psychosexual theory, what happens in the phallic stage?
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3. Phallic - 3-6 years - Oedipus conflict, sexual desire for opposite sex parent, to avoid punishment give up desire and take up same sex parents characteristics and values. Superego formed and children feel guilty if they violate its standards.
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In the 5 stages of Freuds psychosexual theory, what happens in the latency stage?
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4. Latency - 6-11 years - sexual instincts die down, superego strengthens as the child acquires new social values from adults and same sex peers.
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In the 5 stages of Freuds psychosexual theory, what happens in the genital stage?
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5. Genital - Adolescence - with puberty, sexual impulses reappear. Successful development during earlier stages leads to marriage, mature sexuality and child rearing.
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What was Erikson's theory?
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Psychosocial theory - Erikson emphasised that in addition to mediating between id impulses and superego demand, the ego makes a positive contribution to development, acquiring attitudes and skills that make the individual an active, contributing member of society. - Ericksons first 5 stages are parallel to Freuds but he added 3 adult stages - unlike Freud, Erikson pointed out that normal development must be understood in relation to each culture's life situation. eg feeding schedules of Yurok Indians deprived babies of breastfeeding for the first 10 days after birth and at age 6 months because salmon only fills the river once a year so self-restraint is essential for survival.
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What is happens in the Basic Trust versus Mistrust stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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birth - 1 year From warm, responsive care, infants gain a sense of trust, or confidence, that the world is good. Mistrust occurs if infants are neglected or handled harshly
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What is happens in the Autonomy versus shame and doubt stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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1-3 year Using new mental and motor skills, children want to decide for themselves. Parents can foster autonomy by permitting reasonable free choice and not forcing or shaming the child.
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What is happens in the Initiative versus guilt stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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3-6 years Through make-believe play, children gain insight into the person they can become. Initiative - a sense of ambition and responsibility - develops when parents support their child's sense of purpose. But if parents demand too much self-control, children experience excessive guilt.
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What is happens in the Industry versus inferiority stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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6-11 years At school, children learn to work and cooperate with others. Inferiority develops when negative experiences at home, at school, or with peers lead to feelings of incompetence.
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What is happens in the Identity versus role confusion stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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Adolescence By exploring values and vocational goals, the young person forms a personal identity. The negative outcome is confusion about future adult roles.
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What is happens in the Intimacy versus isolation stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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Early adulthood Young adults establish intimate relationships. Because of earlier disappointments, some individuals cannot form close bonds and remain isolated.
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What is happens in the Generatively versus stagnation stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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Middle adulthood Generatively means giving to the next generation through child rearing, caring for others, or productive work. The person who fails in these ways feels an absence of meaningful accomplishment.
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What is happens in the Integrity versus despair stage of Erikson's Psychosocial theory?
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Old age Integrity results from feeling that like was worth living as it happened. Older people who are dissatisfied with their lives fear death .
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What are the strengths and limitations of the psychoanalytic perspective?
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Strengths - emphasis on individuals unique life history as worthy of study and understanding. - use of information from a variety of sources (clinical, case study) - inspired a wealth of research on many aspects of emotional an social development, including infant-caregiver attachment, aggression, sibling relationships, child-rearing practices, morality, gender roles, and adolescent identity. Limitations - strongly committed to in-depth study of individuals ignored other methods -many of their ideas are so vague that they are difficult to test empirically.
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Explain Learning (behaviourist) theory: Pavlov ; Watson - Classical Conditioning
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Pavlov association of a neutral stimulus (the trainer/bell) with another stimulus (food) that produces a reflexive response (salvation). because of this association, the neutral stimulus alone could bring about a response resembling the reflex. - successfully taught the dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell by pairing it with the presentation of food. Watson -took classical conditioning and applied to children -"little albert" study - paired white rat with sharp, loud noise causing the child to fear the rat - concluded that environment is the supreme force in development and that adults can mold children's behaviour by carefully controlling stimulus response associations.
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Explain Learning (behaviourist) theory: Skinner - Operant Conditioning
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- frequency of behaviour can be increased by reinforcers (food, praise) or decreased with punishment (disapproval or withdrawal of privileges)
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Explain Learning (behaviourist) theory: Bandura - Social learning theory
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- emphasises modelling, also known as imitation or observational learning, as a powerful source of development. - diverse factors affect children's motivation to imitate: their own history of reinforcement or punishment for the behaviour; the promise of future reinforcement or punishment, and even vicarious reinforcement or punishment (watching someone else) - today his theory stresses the importance of cognition, how we think about ourselves and other people now calls it a social-cognitive approach - revised view - children gradually become more selective in what they imitate - from watching other engage in self-praise and self-blame children develop personal standards for behaviour and a sense of self-efficacy (belief that their own abilities and characteristics will help them succeed)
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Strengths and Limitations of Behaviourism and Social Learning Theory
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Strengths - helpful in treating a wide range of adjustment problems -behaviour modification consists of procedures that combine conditioning and modelling to eliminate undesirable behaviours and increase desirable responses. - treating wide range of difficulties in children and adults such as time management issues, unwanted habits, language delays, persistent, aggression and extreme fears. Limitations - too narrow view of important environmental influences which extend beyond immediate reinforcement, punishment and modelled behaviour. - underestimating peoples contributions to their own development (banduras emphasis on cognition is rare)
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Explain Piaget's Cognitive developmental theory
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- children actively construct knowledge as they manipulate and explore their world. - central to his theory is the biological concept of adaption. - adaption - just as structures of the body are adapted to fit with the environment, so structures of the mind develop to better fit with, or represent, the external world. - children's understanding is different from adults - don't understand that object hidden from view still exists. - faulty logic - younger than 7 say that amount of liquid changes when poured into a different shaped container. - as the brain develops and children's experiences expand, they move through four broad stages, each characterised by qualitatively distinct ways of thinking.
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Explain the stage "Sensorimotor" of Piaget's Cognitive developmental theory
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(Birth - 2 years) - infants "think" by acting on the world with their eyes, ears, hands and mouth. As a result, they invent ways of solving sensorimotor problems, such as pulling on a lever to hear the sound of a music box, finding hidden toys, and putting objects into and taking them out of containers.
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Explain the stage "Preoperational" of Piaget's Cognitive developmental theory
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(2-7 years) - Preschool children use symbols to represent their earlier sensorimotor discoveries. Development of language and make-believe play takes place. However, thinking lacks the logic of the two remaining stages.
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Explain the stage "Concrete operational" of Piaget's Cognitive developmental theory
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(7-11 years) - Children's reasoning becomes logical. School-aged children understand that a certain amount of lemonade or play dough remains the same even after its appearance changes. They also organise objects into hierarchies of classes and subclasses. However, children think in a logical, organised fashion only when dealing with concrete information they can perceive directly.
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Explain the stage "Formal Operational" of Piaget's Cognitive developmental theory
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(11 years on) - The capacity for abstract, systematic thinking enables adolescents, when faced with a problem, to start with a hypothesis, deduce testable inferences, and isolate and combine variables to see which inferences are confirmed. Adolescents can also evaluate the logic of verbal statements without referring to real-world circumstances.
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Piaget's Cognitive developmental theory Strengths and Limitations
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Strengths - Convinced field that children are active learners who's minds consist of rich structures of knowledge. - focussed on not only children's understanding of the physical world but also their reasoning of the social world. - sparked research into children's conceptions of themselves, other people and human relationships. - Piaget's theory encouraged the development of educational philosophies and programs that emphasise discovery learning and direct contact with the environment. Limitations - underestimated the competencies of infants and preschoolers. - when tasks were scaled down - adolescents generally reach their full intellectual potential only in areas of endeavour in which they have extensive education and experience. - cognitive maturity depends heavily on the complexity of knowledge sampled and the individual's familiarity with the task.
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Explain Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory
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- Focus on complex system of environments surrounding developing person -later conceptualisations emphasised biological factors as well (bioecological model) Macro-;Exo-;Meso-;Micro Macro- customs, values, beliefs, laws. Exo- broader neighbourhood, services available, extended family, social support, community support systems in pkace Meso- connections between different elements in the micro system, connection between family and school. Micro- Individual biological and environment development. Chronosystem: recognises the ever-changing nature of the environmental systems. -time changes within these environments
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What are the two types of Observational methods and their strengths and weaknesses?
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Naturalistic Observation - no active role by the participant -watched by trained observers advantages - real life, ecological validity limitations - some variables unobservable - need to guard against experimenter subjectivity with clear definitions and inter observer consistency. - subject bias (unobtrusive observation) - cannot identify cause of observed behaviour -all participants might not have the same opportunity to display behaviour (textbook - empathy some children may not have been naturally exposed as often to a crying peer) Structured Observation -observation under laboratory conditions -all participants experience same conditions -also used clinically Advantages - controlled variables Limitations -the act of being observed changes behaviour -can't be generalised.
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What are Self-report Methods and their strengths and limitations?
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Clinical Interviews eg Piaget and children's moral development Advantages -Flexible, individualised -Useful for unobservable phenomenon Limitations -potential for self-report bias -certain level of communication and insight needed (age requirements) -forgetfulness a problem -flexible questioning may produce differences between participants (extraneous variable) Structured Interviews includes questionnaires and standardised tests Advantages -fast, efficient -standardised questioning Limitations - bias, cognitive demands, forgetfulness
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What are the strengths and weaknesses of Clinical or Case studies?
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Advantages - rich detail limitations - lacks generalisability (particular person, may not be useful) - extensively used by Freud -often used to study exceptionality -rich range of data collection methods used.
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What are Ethnographic methods?
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uses descriptive, qualitative methods to understand a cultural or distinct social group -similar to case studies -participant observation going and living with the group, become part of it.
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What are Developmental Designs?
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Longitudinal designs Same participants tested over time Pro -truly developmental Con -Time consuming, expensive, selective attrition, practice effects, results may only apply to that cohort. Cross Sectional Designs select groups of people who are remarkably similar in most areas, but differ only in age. By doing this, any differences between groups can presumably be attributed to age differences rather than to other variables. Pro -quick and cheap -attrition and practice effects not a problem Con -not truly developmental -cohort effects mimic age effects Sequential Designs both cross and long and checks for cohort effects Pro -Differentiates age effects from cohort effects Con -expensive, time consuming
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What are the Ethics in Developmental Research?
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1. Research merit and integrity - methodology appropriate for child's age - researchers need to identify how they will judge the child's vulnerability and capacity to give informed consent - if in schools, must also have mechanisms for discussion with the school community. 2. Justice -if child is too young to consent then only ethical is research advances knowledge or inclusion of children is indispensable 3. Beneficence -provision for child's wellbeing, safety, security (no harm) 4. Respect - research explained in age-appropriate terms -gain child's consent if mature enough plus one parent/guardian
