Chapter 3 Human Development Topics of Human Development

Chapter 3: Human Development

Topics of Human Development • • • Heredity and Environment—The Nurture of Nature Parental Influences—Life with Mom and Dad Language Development—Fast-Talking Babies Cognitive Development—How Do Children Learn to Think? Moral Development—Growing a Conscience The Story of a Lifetime: Rocky Road or Garden Path? Midlife and Old Age Aging and Ageism Psychology in Action Effective Parenting—Raising Healthy Children

Developmental Psychology • The study of progressive changes in behavior and abilities – Heredity – Environment

Heredity • Transmission of physical and psychological characteristics from parents to their children through genes • DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid): Molecular structure, shaped like a double helix that contains coded genetic information

Genes • Specific areas on a strand of DNA that carry hereditary information – Dominant: The gene’s feature will appear each time the gene is present – Recessive: The gene’s feature will appear only if it is paired with another recessive gene

Temperament Categories (Chess & Thomas, 1986) • The physical “core” of personality – Easy Children: 40 %; relaxed and agreeable – Difficult Children: 10 %; moody, intense, easily angered – Slow-to-Warm-Up Children: 15 %; restrained, unexpressive, shy – Remaining Children: Do not fit into any specific category

Environment (Nurture) • Sum of all external conditions that affect development, especially the effects of learning – Sensitive Period: A period of increased sensitivity to environmental influences; also, a time when certain events must occur for normal development to take place – Congenital Problem: A problem or defect that occurs during prenatal development; “birth defect”

Environment Continued – Genetic Disorder: Problem caused by inherited characteristics or gene deficits – Toxins: Anything capable of causing birth defects (e. g. , narcotics, radiation, cigarette smoke, lead, and cocaine) – Deprivation: Lack of normal stimulation, nutrition, comfort, or love

Enrichment • When an environment is deliberately made more complex and intellectually stimulating • Enriched Environments: Environments deliberately made more novel, complex, and stimulating

Newborns (Neonates) and Their Reflexes

Grasping Reflex • If an object is placed in the infant’s palm, she’ll grasp it automatically (all reflexes are automatic responses; i. e. , they come from nature, not nurture)

Rooting Reflex • Lightly touch the infant’s cheek and he’ll turn toward the object and attempt to nurse; helps infant find bottle or breast

Sucking Reflex • Touch an object or nipple to the infant’s mouth and she’ll make rhythmic sucking movements

Moro Reflex • If a baby’s position is abruptly changed or if he is startled by a loud noise, he will make a hugging motion

Maturation • Physical growth and development of the body, brain, and nervous system • Increased muscular control occurs in patterns – Cephalocaudal: From head to toe – Proximodistal: From center of the body to the extremities

Social Smile • Smiling elicited by social stimuli such a seeing a parent’s face

Separation Anxiety • Crying and signs of fear when a child is left alone or is with a stranger; generally appears around 8 -12 months

Quality of Attachment (Ainsworth) • Secure: Stable and positive emotional bond; upset by mother’s absence • Insecure-Avoidant: Tendency to avoid reunion with parent or caregiver • Insecure-Ambivalent: Desire to be with parent or caregiver and some resistance to being reunited

Parenting Styles (Baumrind, 2005)

Authoritarian • Enforce rigid rules and demand strict obedience to authority; children are obedient and self-controlled

Overly Permissive • Give little guidance, allow too much freedom, or don’t require child to take responsibility; children tend to be dependent and immature and frequently misbehave

Authoritative • Supply firm and consistent guidance combined with love and affection; children tend to be competent, self-controlled, independent, and assertive

Optimal Caregiving • Maternal Influences: All the effects a mother has on her child • Paternal Influences: Sum of all effects a father has on his child

Language Acquisition • Cooing: Repetition of vowel sounds by infants (like “oo” and “ah”); starts at about 6 -8 weeks • Babbling: Repetition of meaningless language sounds (e. g. , baba); starts at about 7 months • Single-Word Stage: The child says one word at a time • Telegraphic Speech: Two word sentences that communicate a single idea (e. g. , Want yogurt)

Noam Chomsky and the Roots of Language • Biological Disposition: Presumed hereditary readiness of all humans to learn certain skills such as how to use language – Chomsky: Language patterns are inborn

Parentese (Motherese) • Pattern of speech used when talking to infants – Marked by raised voice, short, simple sentences, slower speech, exaggerated voice inflections, and repetition

Jean Piaget and Cognitive Development • Piaget believed that all children passed through a set series of stages during their intellectual development; like Freud, he was a Stage Theorist • Transformations: Mentally changing the shape or form of a substance and to perceive that its volume remains the same; children younger than 6 or 7 cannot do this

Assimilation • Application of existing mental patterns to new situations

Accommodation • Existing mental patterns are changed to accommodate new information or experiences

Piaget: Sensorimotor Stage (0 -2 Years) • All sensory input and motor responses are coordinated; most intellectual development here is nonverbal – Object Permanence: Concept that objects still exist when they are out of sight

Piaget: Preoperational Stage (2 -7 years) • Children begin to use language and think symbolically, but their thinking is still intuitive and egocentric – Intuitive Thought: Makes little use of reasoning and logic – Egocentric Thought: Thought that is unable to accommodate viewpoints of others and is self-centered

Piaget: Concrete Operational Stage (711 Years) • Children become able to use concepts of time, space, volume, and number but in ways that remain simplified and concrete, not abstract – Conservation: Mass, weight, and volume remain unchanged when the shape or appearance of objects changes – Reversibility of Thought: Relationships involving equality or identity can be reversed

Piaget: Formal Operations (11 Years and Up) • Thinking now includes abstract, theoretical, and hypothetical ideas – Abstract Ideas: Concepts and examples removed from specific examples and concrete situations – Hypothetical Possibilities: Suppositions, guesses, or projections

Lev Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory • Children’s cognitive development is heavily influenced by social and cultural factors. • A child’s thinking develops through dialogues with more capable persons

Zone of Proximal Development • Range of tasks a child cannot master alone even though they are close to having the necessary mental skills; they need guidance from a more capable partner in order to complete the task

Scaffolding • Adjusting instruction so it is responsive to a beginner’s behavior and so it supports the beginners efforts to understand a problem or gain a mental skill

Moral Development • When we acquire values, beliefs, and thinking abilities that guide responsible behavior

Lawrence Kohlberg’s Three Stages of Moral Development • Preconventional: Moral thinking guided by consequences of actions (punishment, reward, exchange of favors) • Conventional: Reasoning based on a desire to please others or to follow accepted rules, authority, and values • Postconventional: Follows carefully examined and self-accepted moral principles

Erikson’s Eight Stages of Psychosocial Dilemmas

Stage One: Trust versus Mistrust (Birth -1) • Children are completely dependent on others – Trust: Established when babies given adequate warmth, touching, love, and physical care – Mistrust: Caused by inadequate or unpredictable care and by cold, indifferent, and rejecting parents

Stage Two: Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt (1 -3) • Autonomy: Doing things for themselves • Overprotective or ridiculing parents may cause children to doubt abilities and feel shameful about their actions

Stage Three: Initiative versus Guilt (35) • Initiative: Parents reinforce initiative by giving children freedom to play, use imagination, and ask questions • Guilt: May occur if parents criticize, prevent play, or discourage a child’s questions

Stage Four: Industry versus Inferiority (6 -12) • Industry: Occurs when child is praised for productive activities such as painting, reading, and studying • Inferiority: Occurs if child’s efforts are regarded as messy, inadequate, or childish

Stage Five (Adolescence): Identity versus Role Confusion • Identity: For adolescents; problems answering, “Who am I? ” • Role Confusion: Occurs when adolescents are unsure of where they are going and who they are

Stage Six (Young Adulthood): Intimacy versus Isolation • Intimacy: Ability to care about others and to share experiences with them • Isolation: Feeling alone and uncared for in life

Stage Seven (Middle Adulthood): Generativity versus Stagnation • Generativity: Interest in guiding the next generation • Stagnation: When one is only concerned with one’s own needs and comforts

Stage Eight (Late adulthood): Integrity versus Despair • Integrity: Self-respect; developed when people have lived richly and responsibly • Despair: Occurs when previous life events are viewed with regret; experiences heartache and remorse

Types of Child Discipline • Power Assertion: Using physical punishment or a show of force to enforce child discipline • Withdrawal of Love: Withholding affection; refusing to speak to a child or threatening to leave to enforce child discipline • Management Techniques: Combine praise, recognition, approval, rules, and reasoning to encourage desirable behavior and to enforce child discipline

Effective Parenting • Have stable rules of conduct (consistency) • Show mutual respect, love, encouragement, and shared enjoyment

Effective Communication • I-Message: Tells children the effect their behavior had on you (Use this) • You-Message: Threats, name-calling, accusing, bossing, criticizing, or lecturing; tells a child what is “wrong” with them (Avoid this)

Consequences • Natural Consequences: Effects that naturally follow a particular behavior; intrinsic effects • Logical Consequences: Rational and reasonable effects