PSYCHOLOGY 105 CHAPTER 11: HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

PSYCHOLOGY 105 CHAPTER 11: HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

1. STAGES OF PRENATAL DEVELOPMENT

   • Prenatal Period: extends from conception to birth, usually encompassing nine months of pregnancy.
   • Conception
     • - occurs when fertilization creates a zygote - zygote: a one- celled organism formed by the union of a sperm and an egg
   • Germinal Stage
     • - the first phase of prenatal development - encompasses the first two weeks  after conception
     • - begins when a zygote is created through fertilization - rapid cell division begins within 36 hours and the zygote becomes a mass of multiplying cells - the mass of cells travels along the falopian tube to the uterine cavity
     • - implantation begins around the seventh day and takes about a week. The placenta is formed during this process.  - placenta: a structure that allows oxygen and nutrients to pass into the fetus from the mother's bloodstream, and bodily wastes to pass out to the mother. Thin membranes keep the fetal and maternal bloodstreams separate. 
     • - many zygotes are rejected at this point and one in five pregnancies end with the woman never being aware that conception has occurred.
   • Embryonic Stage
     • - second stage of prenatal development - lasts from two weeks until the end of the second month
     • - most of the vital organs and bodily systems begin to form in the  embryo - embryo is typically only 2.5 cm long at the end of this stage, but it is already beginning to look human. Arms, legs, hands, feet, fingers, toes, eyes, and ears are discernible.
     • - *most vulnerable stage* - most major structural birth defects are due to problems that occur during this stage. 
   • Fetal Stage
     • - third stage of prenatal development - lasts from two months through birth
     • - the first two months of this stage bring rapid body growth; muscles and bones begin to form - the fetus becomes capable of physical movements as skeletal structures harden - organs formed in the embryonic stage continue to grow and gradually begin to function
     • - sex organs begin to develop during the third month - brain cells multiply quickly during the last three months - a layer of fat is developed under the skin  - respiratory and digestive systems mature  - between 22 and 26 weeks is when the age of viability occurs - age of viability: age at which a baby can survive in the event of a premature birth

2. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS

   • Teratogens
     • any external agents, such as drugs or viruses, that can harm an embryo or fetus
   • Maternal Drug Use
     • Drugs
       • - all recreational drugs can be harmful, but sedatives, narcotics and cocaine are particularly dangerous
     • Alcohol
       • Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: a collection of congenital (inborn) problems associated with excessive alcohol use during pregnancy. Problems include microcephaly (a small head), heart defects, irritability, hyperactivity, and delayed mental and motor development.  
     • Tobacco
       • - increased risk for miscarriage, stillbirth, and prematurity, as well as an increased risk for sudden infant death syndrome.  - associated with slower than average cognitive development , attention deficits, hyperactivity, and  conduct problems
   • Maternal Illness and Exposure to Toxins
     • - a fetus' immune system develops late in the prenatal period  - the placenta can only screen out some harmful, infectious agents - hazardous diseases include rubella (measles), syphilis, cholera, smallpoz, mumps, and severe cases of the flu
     • - the HIV virus can be transmitted from mother to baby - this can happen through the placenta, delivery, or breastfeeding - environmental toxins can have an impact on babies in the womb as well. 
   • Maternal Nutrition and Emotions
     • Nutrition
       • - birth complications can arise from too much or too little weight gain during gestation.  - a diet high in folic acid can help reduce the probability of a variety of birth defects. 
     • Emotions
       • - maternal emotions such as anxiety and depression can increase the likelihood of behavioural problems in offspring. 
   • Fetal Origins of Disease
     • - it is possible that events during prenatal development can influence one's vulnerability to various types of illness decades later due to the programming of the fetal brain.

3. MOTOR DEVELOPMENT

   • the progression of muscular coordination required for physical activities
     • - grasping and reaching for objects, manipulating objects, sitting up, crawling, walking, and running 
   • Basic Principles
     • Cephalocaudal Trend
       • - the head- to- foot direction of motor development 
     • Proximodistal Trend
       • - the centre- outward direction of motor development
     • Maturation
       • - development that reflects the gradual unfolding of one's genetic blueprint.  - genetically programmed physical changes that come with age. 
       • - recent research suggests that experimentation of the environment and learning also play a significant role in motor development. 
   • Developmental Norms
     • - indicate the median age at which individuals display various behaviours and abilities.  - these norms are averages, thus some variation is normal. 
   • Cultural Variations
     • - rapid motor development has been observed in cultures that provide special practice in basic motor skills - slow motor development has been seen in cultures that discourage motor exploration.  - this shows that environmental factors can contribute to motor development, but the similarities across cultures outweigh the differences  - this suggests that early motor development depends a lot on maturation, whereas later motor development is greater influenced by culture as more specialized skills are developed.

4. TEMPERAMENT

   • characteristic mood, activity level, and emotional reactivity
   • Alexander Thomas and Stella Chess (longitudinal study)
     • - "temperamental individuality is well established by the time the infant is two to three months old" - three basic styles of temperament: easy, slow- to- warm-up, difficult  - about 35% of the children showed a mixture of the different temperaments
     • EASY CHILDREN (about 40%) - happy, regular in sleeping and eating, adaptable, and not readily upset 
     • SLOW-TO-WARM-UP CHILDREN (about 15%) - less cheery, less regular in sleeping and eating, and slower in adapting to change - wary of new experiences and emotional reactivity was moderate
     • DIFFICULT CHILDREN (about 10%)  - glum, erratic in sleeping and eating, resistant to change, relatively irritable - developed more emotional problems requiring counselling than other children did. 
     • - a child's temperament at three months was a fair predictor of the child's temperament at age ten. 
   • Jerome Kagan
     • - relied on direct observations - about 15% to 20% of infants display an inhibited temperament which is characterized by shyness, timidity, and wariness of unfamiliar people, objects and events.  - about 25% to 30% of infants exhibited an uninhibited temperament; these children were less restrained, approaching unfamiliar people, objects, and events with little trepidation.  - inhibited temperament seems to be a risk factor for anxiety disorders in adolescence and adulthood.  - temperament appears to be greatly influenced by heredity but it is not unchangeable.  - there are cultural differences in temperament styles, but it could be genetics, cultural factors, or both. 

5. TYPES OF STUDIES

   • Longitudinal
     • - investigators observe one group of participants repeatedly over a period of time.  - tend to be more sensitive to developmental changes - considering it takes years to complete, participants are more likely to drop out
   • Cross- Sectional
     • - investigators compare groups of participants of differing age at a single point in time - completed more quickly, easily, and cheaply  - cohort effects: occur when differences between age groups are due to the groups growing up in different time periods

6. EARLY EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT: ATTACHMENT

   • Attachment: the close, emotional bonds of affection that develop between infants and their caregivers.
   • Separation Anxiety
     • - emotional distress seen in many infants when they are separated from people with whom they have formed an attachment.
   • Theories of Attachment
     • Behaviourist
       • - attachment develops because mothers are associated with the powerful, reinforcing event of being fed. (the mother becomes a conditioned reinforcer)
       • Harry Harlow
         • - studied infant rhesus monkeys - monkeys were raised in a laboratory with fake mothers, one being made of wire and one being made of terry cloth - half were fed by wire mother and half were fed by cloth mother - if presented with a scary stimulus, the young monkeys ran for the cloth mother, regardless of if that mother had been where the source of food was located
       • challenged by
     • Evolutionary
       • John Bowlby
         • - argued that there must be a biological basis for attachment - infants are biologically programmed to emit behaviours that trigger an affectionate, protective response from adults - adults are also biologically programmed to respond with warmth, love, and protection
         • Patterns of Attachment
           • - strange situation procedure: infants are exposed to a series of eight separation and reunion episodes to assess the quality of their attachment  - three patterns: secure attachment, anxious- ambivalent attachment, avoidant attachment
           • SECURE ATTACHMENT: - are comfortable playing and exploring as long as their mother is present, they become upset when she leaves, and are calmed quickly with her return. 
           • ANXIOUS- AMBIVALENT ATTACHMENT: - anxious even with mother present, excessively upset when she leaves, not particularly comforted by her return
           • AVOIDANT ATTACHMENT: - seek little contact with mother, not distressed by her departure
           • - a fourth category was added years later called organized- disoriented attachment - children appear confused about whether to approach or avoid their mother, and are seemingly insecure
           • - there is also evidence which suggests that attachment patterns can have an impact on children's subsequent development
         • influenced Mary Salter Ainsworth
       • survival value
       • Modern Theorists
         • - parents must facilitate the development of the social maturity of their offspring which is required for mating in order to pass on their genes.  - attachment is required for this development to occur
       • reproductive fitness
   • Culture and Attachment
     • -separation anxiety begins around 6 to 8 months and peaks at around 14 to 18 months throughout cultures.  - some cultural variations have been found in the amount of infants who fall into each of Ainsworth's three categories of attachment, but the differences are minor

7. PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT

   • Stage Theories
     • - assume three things: 1) individuals must progress through specified stages in a particular order because each stage builds on the previous stage 2) progress through these stages is strongly related to age 3)development is marked by major discontinuities that usher in dramatic transitions in behaviour
     • stage: a developmental period during which characteristic patterns of behaviour are exhibited and certain capacities become established
   • Erikson's Stage Theory
     • eight stages
       • - each stage brings a psychosocial crisis 
       • Stage 3
         • - fourth through sixth years - "am I good or am I bad"
         • Initiative vs. Guilt
       • Stage 4
         • - age six through puberty - "am i competent or am I worthless?"
         • Industry vs. Inferiority
       • Stage 5
         • - adolescence - "who am I and where am I going"
         • Identity vs. Confusion
       • Stage 6
         • - early adulthood - "shall I share my life with another or live alone?"
         • Intimacy vs. Isolation
       • Stage 8
         • - late adulthood - "have I lived a full life?"
         • Integrity vs. Despair
       • Stage 1
         • - first year of life - "is my world predictable and supportive?"
         • Trust vs. Mistrust
       • Stage 2
         • - second and third years - "can I do things myself or must I always rely on others?"
         • Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
       • Stage 7
         • - middle adulthood - "will I produce something of real value?"
         • Generativity vs. Self- Absorbtion
   • influenced by Freud

8. TRANSITION OF ADOLESCENCE

   • Physiological Changes
     • - Adolescent Growth Spurt: rapid growth in height and weight  - this is brought on by hormonal changes and begins around age 11 in girls and two years later in boys
     • Pubescence
       • used to describe the two- year span preceding puberty, during which the changes leading to physical and sexual maturity take place
       • Secondary Sex Characteristics
         • physical features that distinguish one sex from the other but that are not essential for reproduction
       • development of
     • Puberty
       • - males can usually produce sperm around age 14 and further maturation continues until about age 18
       • stage during which sexual functions reach maturity, which marks the beginning of adolescence
         • development of
       • Primary Sex Characteristics
         • - in the male these include the testes, penis, and related internal structures - in the female these include the ovaries, vagina, uterus, and other internal structures
         • structures necessary for reproduction
       • Menarche
         • - this signals the onset of puberty in females (usually occurs around age 12 and a half in North American girls and further maturation usually continues until age 16)
         • the first occurrence of menstruation
   • Neural Development
     • White Matter
       • - facilitates communication - white matter seems to grow in most areas of the brain from childhood to a point after puberty at which the growth slows- an increase in white matter shows that neurons are becoming more myelinated which increases the conductivity and connectivity in the brain.  
     • Grey Matter
       • - the "thinking" part of the brain - consists of neurons and their extensions - grey matter decreases in volume, which means children undergo synaptic pruning (the elimination of less active synapses) 
     • increased myelinization and synaptic pruning are most pronounced in the prefrontal cortex of children, thus the prefrontal cortex takes the longest to mature (can take up until one's mid 20's). The prefrontal cortex is responsible for high-level cognitive functions
   • Turmoil
     • G. Stanley Hall
       • - proposed that inner turmoil and convulsive instability are vastly present during adolescent years due to the physical changes and resulting confusion about self- image that take place during these years
   • Search for Identity
     • Erik Erikson
       • - thought the premier challenge of adolescence was to form a clear sense of identity and this challenge continued on throughout one's lifetime 
     • James Marcia
       • - there are four identity statuses: identity diffusion, identity foreclosure, identity moratorium, and identity achievement. These are in order of increasing maturity - there is some debate about whether these are transitional stages people go through or static stages
       • IDENTITY DIFFUSION - a state a person is in with no commitment to an ideology
       • IDENTITY FORECLOSURE - a premature commitment to visions, values and roles - the individual is usually following their parents
       • IDENTITY MORATORIUM - delaying commitment in order to make time to explore other ideologies and careers 
       • IDENTITY ACHIEVEMENT - arriving at a sense of self and direction after some exploration - usually followed by higher self- esteem, conscientiousness, security, achievement motivation, and capacity for intimacy
   • Emerging Adulthood
     • - a new developmental stage suggested by Jeffrey Arnett - roughly between the ages of 18 and 25 - one feature of this stage is the feeling that one is in between adolescence and adulthood - another feature is that it is an age of possibilities in which individuals have lots of optimism about their futures - yet another feature is that it is a self- focused time of life  - it is also a period of identity formation

9. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

   • transitions in youngsters' patterns of thinking, including reasoning, remembering, and problem solving
   • Jean Piaget's Stage Theory
     • - assimilation: interpreting new experiences in terms of existing mental structures without changing them - accommodation: changing existing mental structures to explain new experiences
     • Stage 1
       • - birth to 2 years  - coordination of sensory input and motor responses; development of object permanence - object permanence: develops when a child recognizes that objects continue to exist even when they are no longer visible 
       • Sensorimotor Period
     • Stage 2
       • - 2 to 7 years  - development of symbolic thought marked by irreversibility, cent ration, and egocentrism 
       • DEFINITIONS - conservation: the awareness that physical quantities remain constant in spite of changes in their shape or appearance - centration: the tendency to focus on just one feature of a problem, neglecting other important aspects - irreversibility: the inability to envision reversing an action - egocentrism: a limited ability to share another person's viewpoint   --> animism: the belief that all things are living
       • Preoperational Period
     • Stage 3
       • - 7 to 11 years - mental operations applied to concrete events; mastery of conservation, hierarchical classification  - reversibility: permits a child to mentally undo an action - decentration: allows the child to focus on more than one feature of a problem simultaneously 
       • Concrete Operational Period
     • Stage 4
       • - age 11 through adulthood - mental operations applied to abstract ideas; logical, systematic thinking
       • Formal Operational Period
   • Neo- Piagetian Theories
     • - have extended some of the ideas of Piaget 
     • Juan Pascual- Leone
       • - the complexity that children could deal with varied positively across age - suggested that an increase in information- processing capacity is one of the attributes that forms the basis of cognitive development - the harder the mental task becomes, the stronger the mental demand imposed on the child and the child must have the mental power to succeed with the task at hand.
     • Robbie Case
       • - staircase model of development - there are four stages of cognitive development, but each stage is assumed to have its own distinct structure and cognitive operation - believed in the concept of progression but also took into account that children may have uneven development in the different domains. 
   • Lev Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory
     • - places a lot of emphasis on the impact of social interactions with parents, teachers, etc. - believed culture plays a big role in how cognitive development unfolds - language acquisition plays a crucial and central role in fostering cognitive development - saw cognitive development as more of an apprenticeship than a journey of individual discovery
     • Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
       • - the gap between what a learner can accomplish alone and what he or she can achieve with guidance from more skilled partners. 
     • Scaffolding
       • - occurs when the assistance provided to a child is adjusted as learning progresses. 
   • Are Some Cognitive Abilities Innate?
     • Habituation
       • - a gradual reduction in the strength of a response when a stimulus event is presented repeatedly 
     • Dishabituation
       • - occurs if a new stimulus elicits an increase in the strength of a habituated response
     • Nativists
       • - humans are prewired to readily understand certain concepts - do not focus on why this is the case - interest is in sorting out what is prewired and what isn't
     • Evolutionary Theorists
       • - agree that humans are prewired for certain cognitive abilities but they question why - this wiring is a product of natural selection and they strive to understand the adaptive significance of this wiring 
   • Critical Periods in Development
     • - the idea is that there are age ranges in which it is optimal for the development of certain abilities or characteristics
     • critical period: a limited time span in the development of an organism when it is optimal for certain capacities to emerge because the organism is especially responsive to certain experiences
     • the term sensitive period suggests that acquisition can happen at a later time if not within the optimal range

10. DEVELOPMENT OF MORAL REASONING

    • Kohlberg's Stage Theory
      • - examined the nature and progression of subjects' moral reasoning 
      • Preconventional Level
        • Stage 1
          • - right and wrong are determined by what is punished 
          • Punishment Orientation
        • Stage 2
          • - right and wrong are determined by what is rewarded
          • Naive Reward Orientation
      • Conventional Level
        • Stage 3
          • - right and wrong are determined by close others' approval or disapproval
          • Good Boy/ Good Girl Orientation
        • Stage 4
          • - right and wrong are determined by society's rules and laws, which should be obeyed rigidly
          • Authority Orientation
      • Postconventional Level
        • Stage 5
          • - right and wrong are determined by society's rules, which are viewed as fallible rather than absolute
          • Social Contract Orientation
        • Stage 6
          • - right and wrong are determined by abstract ethical principles that emphasize equity and justice
          • Individual Principles and Conscience Orientation

11. Adulthood

    • Personality Development
      • Stability
        • - personality in adulthood is characterized by both stability and change
        • - adults' mean raw scores on extraversion, neuroticism, and openness to experience tend to decline moderately with increasing age, while measures of agreeableness and conscientiousness tend to increase - self- esteem tends to increase slowly from early adulthood through middle- age, peaking about age 60, where it then gradually declines.
      • Erikson's View
        • - divided adulthood into three stages
        • EARLY ADULTHOOD: INTIMACY VS. ISOLATION - key concern is whether one can develop the capacity to share intimacy with others
        • MIDDLE ADULTHOOD: GENERATIVITY VS. SELF- ABSORPTION  - key challenge is to acquire a concern for the welfare of future generations
        • LATE ADULTHOOD: INTEGRITY VS. DESPAIR - challenge is to avoid the tendency to dwell on the mistakes made in the past and on one's imminent death
    • Transitions in Family Life
      • Family Life Cycle
        • - a sequence of stages that families tend to progress through 
        • - the transitional period in which young adults are "between families" until they form a new family is becoming prolonged by more and more individuals 
      • Adjusting to Marriage
        • - most new couples are happy, but 8-14% of newlyweds score in the distressed range on measures of marital satisfaction - problems included difficulty balancing work, marriage, and financial concerns
      • Adjusting to Parenthood
        • - research found that: 1) parents exhibit lower marital satisfaction than comparable nonparents  2) mothers of infants report the steepest decline in marital satisfaction 3) the more children couples have, the lower their marital satisfaction tends to be
    • Aging
      • Physiological Changes
        • - hair thins out and becomes grey, proportion of body fat tends to increase and the amount of muscle tissue decreases - farsightedness and difficulty seeing in low illumination become more common; sensitivity to color and contrast also decline  - hearing sensitivity begins to decline and hearing loss tends to be greater in men and also for high- frequency sounds than low- frequency sounds - changes in hormonal functioning are also seen (e.g. menopause) 
      • Neural Changes
        • - amount of brain tissue and brain weight decline (decrease in the # of active neurons and shrinkage of still- active neurons)  - dementia: an abnormal condition marked by multiple cognitive deficits that include memory impairment - dementia is seen in 15-20% of people over age 75, but is not a normal component of the aging process
        • - Alzheimers disease accounts for many cases of dementia - patients exhibit profound and widespread loss of neurons and brain tissue and the accumulation of characteristic neural abnormalities known as neuritic plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. In the early stages of the disease, the damage is mainly in the hippocampal region
      • Cognitive Changes
        • - fluid intelligence: basic information- processing skills - crystallized intelligence: the application of accumulated knowledge - fluid intelligence is more likely to decline with age while crystallized intelligence remains stable Memory: - decrements are usually seen in episodic and working memory, and less losses are observed with procedural and semantic memory
        • - studies show that speed in problem- solving and information processing tend to decline with age

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