Developmental Psychology

1. Developmental Psychology • Defined • the study of the systematic changes that occur throughout the lifespan of the organism • Nature/Nurture Controversy

3. Erikson’s Psychosocial stages • Trained as a Freudian Psychoanalyst • One of the first theorists that looked at development through the lifespan • Came up with stages relating to the social conflict • Did feel early experiences leave a permanent mark, but did not focus on unconscious.

4. Psychosocial stages • Trust vs Mistrust (birth to one) • Autonomy vs Shame and doubt (1-3) • Initiative vs Guilt (4-5) • Industry vs Inferiority (6 – 12) • Identity vs role confusion (adolescence) • Intimacy vs Isolation (young adulthood) • Generativity vs Stagnation (middle adulthood) • Integrity vs Despair (late adulthood)

5. Kohlberg’s Moral Development • In Europe a woman was near death from cancer. One drug might save her, a form of radium that a druggist in the same town recently discovered. The druggist was charging $2000, ten times what the drug cost to make. The husband went to everyone to borrow money, but he could only get half together. He asked the druggist to sell it cheaper or let him pay later, and was told “no.” the husband broke into the man’s store and stole the drug. Was this morally right? Why?

7. Study Methods Specific to Developmental Psychology • Cross Sectional Studies • observing subjects of varying ages at one moment in time • Longitudinal • observing subjects of the same age at varying times across their lifespan

8. Genetics • 23 pairs chromosomes • Dominant vs. Recessive • Male XY, Female XX • Down syndrome- extra chromosome • There are abnormalities (XXY, XYY, XXX, XO)- studies on behavioral differences

9. Prenatal Development • Zygote-conception to two weeks of gestation - placenta, teratogens • Embryo-from two to nine weeks of gestation- vulnerable, miscarriages • Fetus-from nine weeks to birth • Age of Viability-the age at which a fetus can survive outside the womb (about 24 weeks)

10. Infant senses • Hearing, smell, taste, sight • Memory- age 3, but... • Blink, Moro, palmer, rooting • Motor development • Maturation- genetically programmed biological plan • Proximodistal- Torso out • Cephalocaudal- Head down

12. Childhood-Physical Development • Perception • Visual Acuity • Depth Perception-visual cliff • Motor-Large Muscle Development • Milestone development • head support • rolls over • sits up • standing • walking

13. Childhood-Emotional Development • Attachment • Studies done by Harlow • Found infant monkeys would seek comfort from terry cloth mothers even if they were not fed by them

14. Attachment • Separation anxiety (peaks at 13 months) • Mary Ainsworth study on attachment • Secure attachment • Anxious-Ambivalent • Avoidant • Effects of poor attachment

15. Temperament • Easy (40%) Adaptable • Difficult (10%) • Slow-to-warm-up infants (15%) • Average (35%) • 70% of difficult infants dev beh problems • 18% of the easy infants dev beh problems

16. Parenting style • Authoritarian- rules and obedience • Permissive- few demands, little punishment • Authoritative- demanding but responsive • Authoritative seems to be best approach, but research is correlational.

17. Adolescence • Pubesence- two years before puberty • Secondary sex characteristics • Puberty- • Males- sperm production 14, maturation 18 • Females- menarche 12.5, maturation 16 • Early puberty affects on gender

18. Adolescence • Physical beginnings of adulthood to independence • Physiological Changes • Puberty-stage when sexual functions reach maturity, generally considered to be the mark of the beginning of adolescence • Growth Spurt- earlier in girls, maturation • Maturation of secondary sex characteristics

19. Adolescence • Emotional Development • Erikson-search for identity • Physiological Changes • Puberty-stage when sexual functions reach maturity, generally considered to be the mark of the beginning of adolescence • Growth Spurt • Maturation of secondary sex characteristics

20. Gender development • Carol Gilligan- girls moral decisions “care perspective” • Females are more “interdependent” • Most difference are attributed to gender roles in society. • Men do seem to have slightly better spatial skills, women verbal and fine motor skills

21. Issues in Adulthood • Psychosocial Development • Erikson-intimacy, generativity, and integrity • Physical Changes/Aging • appearance • hormones • sensory sensitivity • Cognitive Changes • longitudinal vs cross sectional • crystallized vs fluid • recall vs recognition

23. Stage Theorists in Development • Erikson-Psychosocial Development • Freud-Psychosexual Development • Piaget-Cognitive Development • Kohlberg-Moral Development

26. Piaget’s stages • Sensori-motor- object permanence • Preoperational- symbolize, language, imitation, egocentric, irreversibility, conservation • Concrete operations- can decenter and reverse, have trouble with hypothetical • Formal operations- abstract, logic and systematic thinking

27. Piaget’s terms for thinking • Schema- basic thought structure • Assimilation- Applying a schema to a new situation (all 4 legged animals= dog, all male adults= dad) • Accommodation- Changing schemas based on experience or understanding