Developmental psychology Flashcards
What three aspects of change does developmental psychology look at ?
change in abilities, change in structure, change in understanding
Why do things typically change as adolescence begins?
teenagers have a drive for autonomy
What is miller’s magic number?
adults can rehearse and maintain between 5 and 9 chunks of information in their STM at one time. The magic number is 7 plus or minus 2
What are the two conflicting theories to explain the change in capacity of STM as children grow older?
cortical development vs functional changes. Cortical development being the ease of other mastered operations making space available. Functional changes being children get better at using the space that is already there.
how will it affect my child to start school at 4 years old rather than 5?
there may be difference in school readiness in factors such as intellectual development, social development, emotional development and behavioural development
what do I need for my child to do well at school?
Genes play an influence on factors such as IQ. The treatment from caregivers and peers can have an impact for example a parent with a positive attitude to school can improve the performance of the child. Individual children can experience differing effects of similar experiences. For example, a motivated child can be more persistent.
Explain continuity vs discontinuity:
Continuity describes development as continuous, smooth growth. Discontinuity theorises that children learn in stages and new changes can be sudden for example Piaget’s stages of development. These stages are described as plant growth and butterfly development.
The Bobo doll experiment provides evidence for what side of the nature vs nurture debate?
Nurture: Through the Bobo doll experiment children developed aggression through social learning where they copied the behaviour demonstrated to them.
How are aggressive tendencies explained according to the ‘nature’ side of the debate:
A weak positive correlation was found between testosterone levels and aggression (Book et al 2010). It was suggested that 56% of variance in levels of aggression could be explained through genetics. This is known as innate disposition
What was the procedure of the Gene X environment experiment (Caspi et al 2002)?
This was a longitudinal study of aggressive behaviour where 953 individuals were tested in two year intervals from the ages of 3 to 25.
What were the factors tested for in the Gene X Environment experiment?
1- environmental influence such as maltreatment
2- Genetic influence which tracked the activity of MAO-A (monoamine oxidase) which is responsible for breaking down Monoamines in the brain such as serotonin, dopamine and epinephrine
What factors resulted in an increased chance of violent behaviour in the Gene X Environment experiment?
Both maltreatment and low MAO-A increased the chances of behaviour being violent. Those who were both maltreated and had low MOA-A activity were responsible for 17% of the group and were responsible for 44% of the groups violent crime.
Briefly describe Freud’s theory of development:
Freud explained the mechanisms of development through sex drive leading the development of the ID, Ego and Superego which then lead to psychodramas
What are individual differences which explain how children become so different?
genetic influence, treatment from parents and peers, differing effects from similar experiences, and the child’s choice of environment
Describe the mirror test (American 1972):
infants has lipstick placed on head and are put in front of a mirror. If the infant can recognise that they are looking at themself in the mirror they will attempt to erase the lipstick from their forehead. Younger children will reach into the mirror to grab the lipstick.
What is an issue with the mirror test and the solution for this ?
there could be a methodological flaw where the infants don’t understand mirrors as opposed to lack of self awareness. A pre test doll cleaning was added into the test (Asendorpf et al 1996). After a demonstration of wiping the lipstick off the doll’s head, the child becomes more likely to look into the mirror and wipe their own head too.
At what age is a baby likely to grasp a hat lowered onto their head?
around 10 months (Berthenal and Fischer 1987)
What is the nature of brain activity of the temporal cortex in five months olds (Fillipetti et al 2014)?
five month olds have similar brain activation of the temporal cortex as those in adulthood
In Tronick’s Still Face Paradigm, how would a baby be expected to react when their mother stops responding?
The baby will try to get a response from their mum often becoming vocal, before eventually beginning to cry when the mum still doesn’t respond
What does Piaget mean by object permanence during the sensorimotor stage of development?
When an object isn’t seen it drops out of existence to the baby. This is why babies enjoy games such as playing peek a boo.
What are errors that an infant might make when understanding awareness of others?
some babies make similar errors with people as they do object permanence. Infants below 8 months show no search for their mother.
What is A not B errors?
this involves the idea of object permanence for babies up to 1.5 years. The child will repeatedly go back to the same place for an object, and when the object is moved it is likely to drop out of their existence.
How soon is a newborn expected to recognise their mothers face and how do they show this (Bushnell et al 1989)?
Babies supposedly begin to recognise their mother’s face at 5 days old. This has been indicated by having a stranger and the mum of the baby in the same room, there is a tendency for the baby to stare at the mother for longer. This is likely to do with lack of visual development
What is the evidence for developing intermodal recognition at 3 months old (Spelke and Owsley 1979)?
when played tapes of the mother and father’s voice, the baby looked longer at each when their voice was playing
How quickly can a newborn perceive faces?
babies can learn their mothers face within their first few hours (Bushnell, 1998). There is evidence that new born infants have a preference for face like patterns
What is the twin mechanism of face processing in babies (Johnson and Morton 1991)?
newborns posses a sub cortical mechanism-CONSPEC- which allows them to percieve the mechanisms of a face. They also have a second cortical mechanism- CONLEARN- that allows them to learn specific face recognition.
Explain the concept of imprinting (Konrad Lorenz)?
this is where baby animals for an attachment to the first thing they see when born. Imprinting is automatic, irreversible and a critical period.
What is the Kewpie doll effect?
The Kewpie doll effect is when their is a tendency for youngsters to have a disproportionated head and big eyes making them appear cute. This makes babies more appealing to look after. The act of crying and smiling elicit care taking behaviours and interactions.
How did the Rhesus monkeys experiment provide evidence against Freud’s theory of attachment?
During the monkey experiment, infants preferred the cloth (comforting) mother to the feeding mother and went to the cloth mother when feeling frightened. This disproved Freud’s theory that argues that food was the drive from an attachment bond.
What are Freud’s insights as to how early attachment relationships impact future relationships?
Freud theorised that early attachment relationships are a prototype of later love relationships.
According to Bowlby’s theory of attachment, what does a baby seek in the bond with their care giver?
the baby seeks organic affection in the form of contact and food. This promotes the goal of comfort and security.
Explain Bowlby’s thoery regarding the proximity seeking behaviour of a baby:
In early attachment a baby seeks proximity to their key figure. This allows the baby to develop a secure base. The baby can then begin exploring their internal working model and explore more knowing they have the framework of a secure base.
How does Waters et al (1991) explain the attachment control system?
the infant has a define goal of proximity to caregiver. The baby compares information they have about their environment to set goal of caregiver being in the same room. Behaviour patterns are activated in order to correct the gap between the environment and the goal.
Describe the reciprocal relationship?
beyond two years the relationship between a child and their primary caregiver is a goal corrected partnership as the beginning of a mutual understanding. the young child can be expected to decline in fear of strangers.
Describe the progression from phase 1 to the secure base phase of early development:
-Phase 1 (0-6 weeks): there is a beginning to interaction and there is some presentation of attachment behaviour
-Phase 2 (6 weeks to 6 months): infants begin to discriminate their caregiver, the attachment bond begins
-Secure base (7-9 months): the baby begins to experience separation anxiety and show a wariness of strangers. They have an attachment focused on their caregiver
According to internal models of relationship’s how can the relationship of a young child with their caregiver impact their social relationships?
the quality of the attachment built up over infancy guides future behaviour in close relationships and how a child allows themself to be treated
What does a child’s internalised working model of relationships include and in what wat can this impact their later behaviour?
representation of self, others, and the relationships they have. this can impact their behaviour in relationships, expectations, and attachment related goals
What does validity measure?
does the test actually measure what it’s supposed to measure. This could be concurrent (correlation with established measure of same concept), predictive (accurate prediction of performance on concepts and abilities), and discriminant (correlation with concepts it is not supposed to relate with)
What does reliability measure?
does a test reproduce the same results across different conditions. This can be test-retest (produce consistent results at different times) and inter-rater (different tests producing same results)
what are the eight episodes of strange situation procedure (Ainsworth)?
mother and child on their own, child in room with mother and stranger, child and stranger in room, child on their own, mother and child reunited
What are the four identifiable categories of behaviour in Strange situation procedure?
proximity and contact seeking behaviour, contact maintaining behaviour, resistant behaviour, avoidant behaviour
Assess the validity of the strange situation procedure:
concurrent validity= seems to be related to home based measures of attachment. predictive validity= strong continuity with measures of sociability. discriminant validity= seems to be relatively unaffected by temperament
Assess the reliability of strange situation procedure:
inappropriate to measure test-retest reliability. long term test reliability where kids tested at 18 months and then again at 6 years; 100% accuracy for those classified as secure, 75% accuracy for avoidant classified (Main, Kaplan, and Cassidy 1985). inter-rater reliability with high correlation.
How would a baby with secure attachment react in strange situation procedure?
the infant wants proximity and contact with PC especially after the reunion. infant seeks to maintain contact and has little to no desire to resist or avoid contact
How would a baby with insecure avoidant attachment react in strange situation procedures?
clear avoidance of proximity or interaction with PC in reunion episodes, with little or no tendency to maintain proximity or contact. tendency to also treat the stranger similarly to the PC.
How would a baby with insecure resistant attachment react in strange situation procedures?
infant displays conspicuous contact and interaction resisting. infant shows moderate to strong proximity and contact in order to give the impression of being ambivalent to PC. shows little or no tendency to ignore PC in reunion episodes or move away.
How would a baby with insecure disorganised attachment react in strange situation procedures?
clear avoidance in the first reunion followed by clear resistance in the second reunion, or a mix of avoidance and resistant behaviour across episodes
What is the method called when a parent/observer is given 90 statements about a child’s attachment behaviour and sorts them into 9 piles from typical to not typical?
the Q-sort, used with 12-48 month old children
Evaluate the validity and reliability of the Q sort:
Validity: SSP and Q sort moderately correlated, strong relationship with maternal sensitivity however weak relationship present with temperament.
Reliability: inter rate reliability is high, also high test-retest reliability
What happens in Adult Attachment Interviews?
a series of questions are aimed at assessing an adult’s working model. There is a semi structured interview concerning childhood attachments and meanings placed on them. Adults are scored on description of childhood, language used in the interview, coherence and believability of response
Describe the AAI classifications:
-secure/autonomous: balanced view of early relationships and attachment experiences valuable
-insecure/dismissive: dismiss early experiences and lacks coherence
-insecure/preoccupied: confused about the past, current anger towards parent
-insecure/disorganised: attachment related to trauma or abuse that have not been reconciled
Is there a link between adult attachments and their offspring’s?
there is a relation of offspring classification to parent’s classification
How do secure children relate with peers?
secure children are better likes and more likely to form close friendships (Schneider et al 2001). secure children are also less controlling in best friend dyads (park and waters 1989)
What classification of children have a tendency to show less externalising aggressive behaviour? (Schneider et al 2001)
secure children
What is the nature of empathy in non secure children?
non secure children show less empathy to distressed children (Kestenbaum et al 1989). they also have a reduced understanding of emotions compared to secure children (Steele et al 2008). Insecure children are more likely to interpret gestures as hostile
In the longitudinal attachment study (Bohlin, Hagekull and Rydell 2000) what was the relationship between attachment style and anxiety?
secure children in infancy reported less social anxiety and more social activity at school age.
