Developmental Psychology I: infancy and childhood part 3.2 Flashcards

Question

Neonatal conditions and capacities

Answer 1

Newborns (neonates) are in a fragile state and entirely dependent on adults to survive. They're transitioning from the safe, controlled prenatal environment to an external world full of stimuli — so their first tasks are about basic survival

Answer 2

means the baby is mostly tuned into its own internal bodily sensations — like hunger, tiredness, pain — rather than focusing on the outside world. Newborns must quickly master several states essential for life: Breathe immediately: Oxygen is needed for neurons to survive. Without it, neural damage (and death) can begin rapidly. Temperature control: Babies lose heat faster than adults due to high surface area and immature regulation. After a few days, thermoregulation stabilizes. Sleep: Newborns sleep 16–20 hours/day, cycling through 3–4 hour periods of sleep and 20-minute feeds. Differentiated states: Babies show evolving states like: Deep sleep Light sleep Drowsiness Alert inactivity Alert activity Crying These states reflect growing neurological differentiation.

Answer 3

Even though helpless, newborns aren’t entirely passive — they come equipped with basic survival tools (capacities). 🤝 Classification of Capacities: 1. Systems for Transmitting Information 😭 Crying A reflex response to discomfort — it’s not intentional, but it gets adult attention. Types of crying: Basic: Low intensity, rhythmic (e.g., hunger) Anger: More intense Pain: Sudden onset, long vocalization Attention/frustration: Variable Acts like a natural alarm system. 😊 Emotions Subjective responses linked to internal states and reactions to the environment. Emotions are subjective reactions, associated with physiological and behavioural changes. Basic emotions appear in the first months: Early emotions include: Joy Sadness Anger Fear Surprise Disgust Dislike Interest These basic emotions have protective value — e.g., fear protects from danger.

Answer 4

First are Non self-concious emotions"!!!! Age: Birth Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Pleasure, interest, discomfort, early surprise _________________________________ Age: 2 months Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Social smile — first social emotional response _________________________________ Age: 3 - 4 moths Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Sadness and annoyance _________________________________ Age: 4 - 6 moths Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Anger, surprise, joy _________________________________ Age: 7 moths Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Fear (requires attachment development; stranger anxiety emerges) _________________________________ Second are Self-conscious emotions!!!! Age: 11 - 12 moths Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Shyness and embarrassment _________________________________ Age: 24 months Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Pride _________________________________ Age: 3 - 4 years Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Guilt and envy _________________________________ Age: 5–6 years Emotional/Expressive Capacity: Insecurity, humility, confidence _________________________________

Answer 5

🔺 Self-conscious emotions (shame, pride, guilt, etc.) require social interaction — they won’t develop without a social environment.

Answer 6

⚡ Inborn Reflexes Automatic, involuntary actions in response to stimuli. Present from birth — e.g., eye-blink to puff of air. Help caregivers bond (e.g., rooting/sucking reflex makes breastfeeding easier). ✅ Some are survival reflexes — like breathing and sucking — they’re crucial.

Answer 7

👶 Primitive reflexes are leftover from evolution — not directly useful but still part of the early neural system. Examples: Babinski reflex: Toes fan out when sole is stroked. No obvious benefit. Developmental Role: Normally disappear after a few months as: Cerebral cortex matures Voluntary motor control develops Their disappearance is a positive sign of healthy brain development. ⚠️ If primitive reflexes remain active in adults, it may indicate neurological damage.

Answer 8

🔹 Breathing Reflex Repetitive inhalation and exhalation begins before the umbilical cord is cut – it’s as if the body says: “Don’t wait! Oxygen is needed now.” Related Reflexes: Sneeze: like a janitor, clearing out irritants in the nasal passages. Hiccups: possibly a "training module" for learning to control the diaphragm, the muscle under your lungs that drives breathing (Whitehead et al., 2019). 🔹 Sucking Reflex Triggered when an object (like a nipple or finger) touches the mouth – enables feeding. Related Reflexes: Swallowing Reflex: allows liquid to move safely to the stomach. Spitting up Reflex: regurgitates food if there's too much (a safety overflow mechanism). Rooting Reflex: when the cheek is touched, the baby turns its head toward the stimulus, helping find the breast/bottle. This fades after a few weeks. 🔹 Eyeblink Reflex The eyes automatically shut when bright light or a foreign object approaches. Related Reflex: Pupillary Reflex: pupils constrict in bright light and dilate in dim light, helping the baby adapt to different environments. Protects vision and improves sight in varying lighting.

Answer 9

These are “evolutionary leftovers” – automatic movements seen in newborns that usually fade as the brain matures. 🔹 Babinski Reflex When the foot is stroked, toes fan out (instead of curling). Involves the pyramidal tract – a nerve highway between the brain and spine that develops later. Persistence of this reflex beyond 12 months may suggest neurological issues. 🔹 Stepping Reflex Holding a baby upright with feet on a surface leads to walking-like steps. Disappears by 8 weeks, unless reinforced. Early presence + eventual disappearance = normal development. 🔹 Swimming Reflex Baby stretches arms and legs when held horizontally – like a doggy paddle. Also shows up in water, including breath-holding. Fades around 4-6 months. 🔹 Palmar Grasping Reflex Touching the palm causes baby to grip tightly – sometimes strong enough to lift their own body! Disappears by 3–4 months, replaced by voluntary grasping. 🔹 Moro Reflex Sudden change (like loud noise or shifting position) causes the baby to fling out arms, arch back, then retract. Think of it like a “Whoa!” reflex. Disappears by 4–6 months. Persistence or absence can suggest atypical neurological development. Swaddling mimics the womb and helps calm this reflex. 🔹 Asymmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (ATNR or Magnus Tonic Reflex) When the head turns to one side, limbs on that side extend, and limbs on the other side flex – kind of like a fencing pose. Disappears by 3–6 months; important for hand-eye coordination development. 🔹 Glabellar Reflex Tapping between eyebrows causes blinking. Repeated tapping usually leads to habituation (less blinking). If it persists into adulthood, it may signal conditions like Parkinson’s or dementia.

Answer 10

🖐 Touch Earliest developing sense, already active in the womb. Touch sensitivity increases right after birth – similar to how a phone’s fingerprint sensor gets more accurate after setup. By the end of year one, babies can recognize familiar objects using touch alone – even with just one hand. That’s tactile memory at work. 👃 Smell Acute at birth, and gets stronger fast. Neonates prefer pleasant smells (e.g., vanilla > rotten eggs). They can distinguish their mother’s scent from that of other women – like recognizing a “brand” by its unique fragrance. 👅 Taste Fetuses respond to flavors in the amniotic fluid – especially if the mother consumes garlic or sweet substances. Newborns prefer sweet (they suck harder for it) and can already distinguish sweet, sour, bitter, and salty within 2 hours of birth. Their taste system is like a basic flavor profile detector already tuned to survival: sweet = calories, bitter = potential toxins. 👂 Hearing Functional even before birth – fetuses can hear sounds a few months before delivery.!!!!! Neonates are less sensitive than adults but can still tell apart: Volume (loud vs soft), Direction (where sound is coming from), Frequency (pitch). They are especially tuned to speech, and even more to their mother’s voice, which they recognize immediately. Like being programmed to find the “home frequency” on a radio. 👁 Sight Least developed sense at birth – like a low-res webcam that slowly gets upgraded.!!!!!!! Limited visual acuity and accommodation (focusing ability). Can see brightness and some color discrimination starts at 2 months, once cones (color-detecting cells) are fully functioning. Newborns are able to track moving objects to some degree. 🎢 Vestibular Sensitivity (Balance + Motion Perception) Babies respond to position and movement (you'll see this in how they settle when rocked). When vestibular (balance) and visual information conflict, they trust vision more. This tells us visual input is becoming dominant early in sensory integration.

Developmental Psychology I: infancy and childhood part 3.2 Flashcards

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