CHAPTER 3 NOTES: DEVELOPMENT
3.1 development psychology’s major issues
developmental psychology: a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change
throughout the life span.
Three major issues:
o Nature and nurture: How does our genetic inheritance (our nature) interact with our experiences
(our nurture) to influence our development?
Developmental researchers who consider how biological, psychological, and social-
cultural forces interact are focusing on nature and nurture
o Continuity and stages: What parts of development are gradual and continuous, like riding an
escalator? What parts change abruptly in separate stages, like climbing rungs on a ladder?
Developmental researchers who emphasize learning and experience are supporting
continuity; those who emphasize biological maturation are supporting stages
o Stability and change: Which of our traits persist through life? How do we change as we age?
What findings in psychology support
o the stage theory of development
Stage theory is supported by the work of Piaget (cognitive development), Kohlberg
(moral development), and Erikson (psychosocial development).
o the idea of stability in personality across the life span?
Some traits, such as temperament, do exhibit remarkable stability across many years. Bu
we do change in other ways, such as in our social attitudes.
3.2 Prenatal Development and the Newborn
chromosomes: threadlike structures made of DNA molecules that contain the genes.
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid): a molecule containing the genetic information that makes up the
chromosomes.
Genes: the biochemical units of heredity that make up the chromosomes; segments of DNA
From largest to smallest: chromosome, DNA, gene
heredity: the genetic transfer of characteristics from parents to offspring.
genome: the complete instructions for making an organism, consisting of all the genetic material in th
organism’s chromosomes.
environment: every external influence, from prenatal nutrition to social support in later life.
interaction: the interplay that occurs when the effect of one factor (such as environment) depends on
another factor (such as heredity).
epigenetics: the study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without a DNA
change.
o Epigenetic marks: molecules that rigger or block genetic expression
Prenatal Development
zygote: the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo.
embryo: the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second
month.
Placenta: the life-link transferring nutrition and oxygen between embryo and mother
fetus: the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth.
teratogen: an agent, such as a chemical or virus, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal
development and cause harm.
, fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS): physical and mental abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant
woman’s heavy drinking. In severe cases, signs include a small, out-of-proportion head and abnormal
facial features.
**first 2 weeks of prenatal development is the period of zygote. Period of the fetus lasts 9 weeks after
conception until birth. The time between those two prenatal periods is the period of the embryo
Competent Newborn
reflex: a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus.
temperament: a person’s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity.
Twin and Adoption Studies
identical (monozygotic) twins: twins who develop from a single fertilized egg that splits in two,
creating two genetically identical siblings.
fraternal (dizygotic) twins: twins who develop from separate fertilized eggs. They are genetically no
closer than nontwin brothers and sisters, but they share a prenatal environment.
VIDEO: Prenatal Development & SIM6
zygote is fertilized egg
Germinal Stage—zygote divides into cells
Then travels down fallopian tubes and implants on the uterine wall
o 4 days after fertilization, the cell mass develops a hollow center and is called a blastocyst
Zygote begins embryonic stage lasting from 2nd week through 8th
o 95% of all organs all formed
9th week—fetal period, fetus increases rapidly
o Brain goes through period of development
Outer cell mass becomes placenta
Tough membrane called the amniotic sac encloses the embryo
Preparation for birth: amniotic sac ruptures and fetus’s head presses against cervix. The contractions
dilate cerix
VIDEO: Twin Studies
Twin Studies: research studies where the participants are identical and fraternal twins, who have been
raised either together or apart
Significant genetic influence on the development of our intelligence
3.3 Infancy and Childhood
maturation: biological growth processes leading to orderly changes in behavior, mostly independent of
experience.
Physical Development
critical period: a period early in life when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences is needed for
proper development.
Cognitive Development
cognition: all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and
communicating.
schema: a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information.
assimilation: interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas.
accommodation: adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information.
Between ages 3 and 6, the number of neural connections increases most dramatically in frontal lobe
, o Growth in neural networks
sensorimotor stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from birth to nearly 2 years of age) during which
infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities.
o object permanence: the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived.
o Understanding that something is not gone for good when someone plays peek-a-boo
preoperational stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) in which a child
learns to use language but cannot yet perform the mental operations of concrete logic.
o conservation: the principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational
reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite change
shapes.
o egocentrism: in Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of
view.
o theory of mind: people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states—about their feelings,
perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict.
o autism spectrum disorder (ASD): a disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by
significant deficiencies in communication and social interaction, and by rigidly fixated interests
and repetitive behaviors.
o Enjoying imaginary play (such as dress-up); having difficulty taking another’s point of view
concrete operational stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 7 to 11
years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically abou
concrete events.
o Understanding that physical properties stay the same even when objects change form
o Having the ability to reverse math operations
formal operational stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning
about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts.
o Thinking about abstract concepts, such as “freedom”
Social Development
stranger anxiety: the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of
age.
attachment: an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness
to their caregiver and showing distress on separation.
o Secure attachment: infants are comfortable and happy exploring. When mom leaves, they are
upset. When she returns, they seek contact with her
o Insecure Attachment: anxiety or avoidance of trusting relationships. Infants less like to explore
surroundings, cling to mom. When she leaves, they cry loudly or remain upset.
o Avoidantly Attached: infants seem not to notice or care about mom departure or return
basic trust: according to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be
formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers.
Parenting Styles:
o Authoritarian: coercive; set rules and expect obedience
Children have fewer social skills and low self-esteem; brain overreacts when they make
mistakes
o Permissive: unrestraining; make few demands and use little punishment, unwilling to set limits
Children are more aggressive and immature
o Negligent: uninvolved parents, neither demanding nor responsive; careless, inattentive, and do
not seek close relationship
3.1 development psychology’s major issues
developmental psychology: a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change
throughout the life span.
Three major issues:
o Nature and nurture: How does our genetic inheritance (our nature) interact with our experiences
(our nurture) to influence our development?
Developmental researchers who consider how biological, psychological, and social-
cultural forces interact are focusing on nature and nurture
o Continuity and stages: What parts of development are gradual and continuous, like riding an
escalator? What parts change abruptly in separate stages, like climbing rungs on a ladder?
Developmental researchers who emphasize learning and experience are supporting
continuity; those who emphasize biological maturation are supporting stages
o Stability and change: Which of our traits persist through life? How do we change as we age?
What findings in psychology support
o the stage theory of development
Stage theory is supported by the work of Piaget (cognitive development), Kohlberg
(moral development), and Erikson (psychosocial development).
o the idea of stability in personality across the life span?
Some traits, such as temperament, do exhibit remarkable stability across many years. Bu
we do change in other ways, such as in our social attitudes.
3.2 Prenatal Development and the Newborn
chromosomes: threadlike structures made of DNA molecules that contain the genes.
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid): a molecule containing the genetic information that makes up the
chromosomes.
Genes: the biochemical units of heredity that make up the chromosomes; segments of DNA
From largest to smallest: chromosome, DNA, gene
heredity: the genetic transfer of characteristics from parents to offspring.
genome: the complete instructions for making an organism, consisting of all the genetic material in th
organism’s chromosomes.
environment: every external influence, from prenatal nutrition to social support in later life.
interaction: the interplay that occurs when the effect of one factor (such as environment) depends on
another factor (such as heredity).
epigenetics: the study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without a DNA
change.
o Epigenetic marks: molecules that rigger or block genetic expression
Prenatal Development
zygote: the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo.
embryo: the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second
month.
Placenta: the life-link transferring nutrition and oxygen between embryo and mother
fetus: the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth.
teratogen: an agent, such as a chemical or virus, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal
development and cause harm.
, fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS): physical and mental abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant
woman’s heavy drinking. In severe cases, signs include a small, out-of-proportion head and abnormal
facial features.
**first 2 weeks of prenatal development is the period of zygote. Period of the fetus lasts 9 weeks after
conception until birth. The time between those two prenatal periods is the period of the embryo
Competent Newborn
reflex: a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus.
temperament: a person’s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity.
Twin and Adoption Studies
identical (monozygotic) twins: twins who develop from a single fertilized egg that splits in two,
creating two genetically identical siblings.
fraternal (dizygotic) twins: twins who develop from separate fertilized eggs. They are genetically no
closer than nontwin brothers and sisters, but they share a prenatal environment.
VIDEO: Prenatal Development & SIM6
zygote is fertilized egg
Germinal Stage—zygote divides into cells
Then travels down fallopian tubes and implants on the uterine wall
o 4 days after fertilization, the cell mass develops a hollow center and is called a blastocyst
Zygote begins embryonic stage lasting from 2nd week through 8th
o 95% of all organs all formed
9th week—fetal period, fetus increases rapidly
o Brain goes through period of development
Outer cell mass becomes placenta
Tough membrane called the amniotic sac encloses the embryo
Preparation for birth: amniotic sac ruptures and fetus’s head presses against cervix. The contractions
dilate cerix
VIDEO: Twin Studies
Twin Studies: research studies where the participants are identical and fraternal twins, who have been
raised either together or apart
Significant genetic influence on the development of our intelligence
3.3 Infancy and Childhood
maturation: biological growth processes leading to orderly changes in behavior, mostly independent of
experience.
Physical Development
critical period: a period early in life when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences is needed for
proper development.
Cognitive Development
cognition: all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and
communicating.
schema: a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information.
assimilation: interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas.
accommodation: adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information.
Between ages 3 and 6, the number of neural connections increases most dramatically in frontal lobe
, o Growth in neural networks
sensorimotor stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from birth to nearly 2 years of age) during which
infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities.
o object permanence: the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived.
o Understanding that something is not gone for good when someone plays peek-a-boo
preoperational stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) in which a child
learns to use language but cannot yet perform the mental operations of concrete logic.
o conservation: the principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational
reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite change
shapes.
o egocentrism: in Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of
view.
o theory of mind: people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states—about their feelings,
perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict.
o autism spectrum disorder (ASD): a disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by
significant deficiencies in communication and social interaction, and by rigidly fixated interests
and repetitive behaviors.
o Enjoying imaginary play (such as dress-up); having difficulty taking another’s point of view
concrete operational stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 7 to 11
years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically abou
concrete events.
o Understanding that physical properties stay the same even when objects change form
o Having the ability to reverse math operations
formal operational stage: in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning
about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts.
o Thinking about abstract concepts, such as “freedom”
Social Development
stranger anxiety: the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of
age.
attachment: an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness
to their caregiver and showing distress on separation.
o Secure attachment: infants are comfortable and happy exploring. When mom leaves, they are
upset. When she returns, they seek contact with her
o Insecure Attachment: anxiety or avoidance of trusting relationships. Infants less like to explore
surroundings, cling to mom. When she leaves, they cry loudly or remain upset.
o Avoidantly Attached: infants seem not to notice or care about mom departure or return
basic trust: according to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be
formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers.
Parenting Styles:
o Authoritarian: coercive; set rules and expect obedience
Children have fewer social skills and low self-esteem; brain overreacts when they make
mistakes
o Permissive: unrestraining; make few demands and use little punishment, unwilling to set limits
Children are more aggressive and immature
o Negligent: uninvolved parents, neither demanding nor responsive; careless, inattentive, and do
not seek close relationship
