Child Psychology Final Exam Questions And Answers

Attachment - ANS ● Close bond formed between individuals ● Support when feeling distressed ● In attachment theory, it is between an individual and their attachment figure ● Promotes the survival of the infant (adaptive) ● The first attachment bond may be formed around the same developmental period (middle of the first year of life) but may form differently depending on the caregiver-infant relationship and other contextual factors attachment styles - ANS Secure Attachment: Preoccupied Attachment: Dismissing Attachment: Fearful Attachment: Prevalence of mental health disorders, overall and by age - ANS •Children from lower-income households less likely to be diagnosed and treated for mental health disorders in this sample -Important to consider measures used, however: •Has a doctor or other health care provider EVER told you that this child has a mental health disorder? •Have they received any treatment from a mental health professional? Predictors of childhood mental health disorders - ANS •Childhood mental health disorders are typically a combination of genetic, biological, and environmental factors •For example, early life stress (ELS) and/or trauma often interact with genetic/biological factors Difficulties of diagnosing childhood depression - ANS •Part of difficulty of diagnosing childhood depression is relying on adult-like manifestations of major depressive disorder -E.g., less interest in activities you once enjoyed -Likely to look different for children vs. adults Different interventions for children and their caregivers - ANS •Effective interventions can include a variety of approaches -E.g., Parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT) •Features of PCIT are: -One-on-one -Caregivers and children attend together -Learning facilitated by guidance and reinforcement from therapist •Chicago Parent Program (CPP) differs from PCIT in that they are: -Group-based -Caregivers attend without children -Learning facilitated by watching and discussing vignettes and problem solving with other caregivers Nature vs. Nurture - ANS The name for a controversy in which it is debated whether genetics or environment is responsible for driving behavior Discontinuous vs. Continuous Change - ANS Development that occurs in distinct steps or stages, with each stage bringing about behavior that is assumed to be qualitatively different from behavior at earlier stages Development that is ongoing, evolving, and cumulative organizational change characterized by small, continuous adjustments, created simultaneously across units, that add up to substantial change One course of development or many? - ANS Stage theorists believe that people everywhere follow the same sequence of development. Others believe that people grow up in distinct contexts-- unique combinations of personal and environmental circumstances resulting in different paths of change Cross-Sectional Design - ANS Groups of people differing in age are studied at the same point in time. Longitudinal Study - ANS A research approach that follows a group of people over time to determine change or stability in behavior. Gene-Environment Interaction - ANS •Genes and environments both play a role in child psychology •Genetic predisposition to behavior may increase likelihood of phenotypic expression -But, phenotypic expression can vary greatly depending on the environment Gene-Environment Correlation - ANS •Genes have an influence on the environments to which we are exposed -Generally, this influence changes over time, with age •Three types of gene-environment correlations include passive, evocative, and active Epigenetics - ANS The study of changes in organisms caused by modification of gene expression rather than alteration of the genetic code itself. Teratogens - ANS Agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm Newborn reflexes, particularly sucking, rooting, and Moro - ANS Inborn, automatic responses to a particular form of stimulation. They include: -Sucking: Reflex that causes a newborn to make sucking motions when a finger or nipple if placed in the mouth -Rooting: An infant's response in turning toward the source of touching that occurs anywhere around his or her mouth -Moro: Infant reflex where a baby will startle in response to a loud sound or sudden movement. -Babinski -Tonic neck -Palmar grasp