human growth development

Question 1

what is human development?

Answer 1

1. multidisciplinary study of how people change and how they remain the same over time.
2. reflects the complexity and uniqueness of each person and each person’s experiences as well as commonalities and patterns across people.
3. firmly grounded in theory and seeks to understand human behavior.

Question 2

recurring issues in human development?

Answer 2

1. nature vs. nurture
2. continuity vs. discontinuity
3. universal vs. context-specific development

Question 3

nature vs nurture

Answer 3

degree to which genetic influences (nature) or experiential influences (environment) determine the kind of person you are.

—> despite the ongoing debate as to which influence is greater, theorists and researchers recognize that virtually no features of life-span development are due exclusively to either heredity or environment. development is always shaped by both-nature and nature are mutually interactive influences.

Question 4

continuity vs discontinuity

Answer 4

focuses on whether a particular developmental phenomenon represents a smooth progression throughout the life span (continuity) or a series of abrupt shift (discontinuity). continuity approaches emphasize quantitative change; discontinuity approaches emphasize qualitative change.

Question 5

universal vs context-specific development

Answer 5

focuses on whether there is just one path of development or several. in other words, does development follow the same general path in all people, or is it fundamentally different, depending on the sociocultural context?

Question 6

basic forces in human development?

Answer 6

1. biological forces
2. psychological forces
3. social cultural forces
4. life-cycle forces
5. biopsychosocial framework

Question 7

biological forces

Answer 7

include genetic and health related factors that affect development

• > puberty and menopause = universal and affect people people across generations
• > diet and disease = affect people in specific generations or occur in a small number of people.

Question 8

psychological forces

Answer 8

include all internal perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and personality factors that affect development.

-> may affect all individuals, specifics generations, or only a few individuals.

Question 9

sociocultural forces

Answer 9

include interpersonal, societal, cultural, and ethnic factors that affect development.

-> culture refers to knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors associated with a group of people.

provide the context or backdrop for development.

Question 10

life-cycle forces

Answer 10

reflect differences i how the same event affects people of different ages.

reflect the influences of biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces at different points in the life span

provide a context for understanding how people perceive their current situation and it’s effect on them.

Question 11

biopsychsocial framework

Answer 11

emphasizes that biological/psychological/sociocultural/life-cycle forces are mutually interactive and that development can not be understood by examining them in isolation.

-> combining the four developmental forces, view in human development that encompasses the life span, yet appreciates the unique aspects of each phase of life.

Question 12

what is a theory?

Answer 12

organized set of ideas that is designed to explain development

essential for developing predictions about behavior

predictions result in research that helps to support or clarify the theory

Question 13

major theoretical perspective on human development?

Answer 13

psychodynamic
- freud, erikson

learning
- watson, skinner, bandura

cognitive
- piaget, kohlberg

ecological + systems
- brofenbrenner, lawton, nahemow

lifespan
-baltes

Question 14

psychodynamic :

erikson’s psychosocial theory

Answer 14

• development is determined by how well people resolve conflicts they face at different ages.
• 8 universal stages&raquo_space; characterized by a particular struggle&raquo_space; each have own special period of particular importance

Question 15

learning theory

Answer 15

concentrates on how learning influences behavior

emphasizes the role of experience

stresses the influence of consequences on behavior

recognizes that people learn from watching others

Question 16

watson behaviorism

Answer 16

learning determines our behavior

experience is sufficient to explain the course of development

watson did little research to support his claims

Question 17

operant conditioning

: skinner

Answer 17

consequences of a behavior determine whether it will be repeated

> > reinforcement increases the chance that a behavior will be repeated

> > punishment decreases the chances that a behavior will be repeated

Question 18

social learning theory

Answer 18

observational learning or imitation
> people learn by watching others
> imitation more like&raquo_space; observed seen as smart/popular/talented
> imitation&raquo_space; more likely when observed is rewarded for the behavior

Question 19

social cognitive theory

: albert bandura

Answer 19

emphasizes the development of the thought processes as we mature

two approaches to development of cognition:
> we develop our thinking in stages (piaget,kohlberg)
> we become more efficient at processing information as we mature (like computers)

Question 20

jean piaget’s cognitive development theory

Answer 20

children gradually learn more about how the world works by little “experiments” in which they test their understanding

proposed a four stage universal sequence of cognitive development in which child constructs knowledge in a new way in each stage.

Question 21

information-processing theory

Answer 21

used the computer as a model of joe thinking develops

mental hardware: psychological structures such as memory capacity

mental software: cognitive abilities that process information and help us to interact with the world

Question 22

vygotsky’s theory

Answer 22

focuses on the ways that adults convey to children the beliefs, customs, values, sans skills of their culture.

one of first theorists to emphasize that children’s thinking does not develop in a vacuum, but influenced by the sociocultural context in which they grow up

Question 23

ecological and systems approach

Answer 23

views all aspects of human development as interconnected

no aspect of development alone can adequately explain development

understanding requires considering all factors: environmental, family, political, social… and how they interact

Question 24

uris bronfenbrenner

Answer 24

• one of best known ecological theorists

development occurs in a series of complex interconnected systems

> microsystem: people + objects in immediate environment

> mesosystem: influences of microsystems on each other

> exosystem: social/environmental/governmental forces

> macrosystem: subcultures + cultures in which other three systems are imbedded

Question 25

competence-environmental press theory | : lawton + nahemow

Answer 25

adaptation, or development, depends upon: persons abilities or “competencies” their environment + the demands it places on them emphasis is on how these factors interact

Question 26

life-span perspective

Answer 26

many factors + one does not adequately explain development. all must be considered

Question 27

baltes’ 4 key features

Answer 27

1. multidirectionality - development involves growth + decline 2. plasticity - one’s capacity is not predetermined or carved in stone 3. historical context - each develops w/in particular set of circumstances determined by the historical time period born and culture grew up in 4. multiple causation - how we develop results from biological, psychological, sociocultural, + life cycle forces

Question 28

selective optimization with compensation (soc) model

Answer 28

describes choices that determines and regulate development + aging 1. selection - making choices to reduce involvement to concentrate on another 2. loss-based - reducing involvement because of lack of resources or abilities 3. compensation - finding alternate ways of meeting goals due to loss of ability or diminished skills

Question 29

life-course perspective

Answer 29

emphasizes: how personal life events interact with historical influences how individual issues integrate with family issues how earlier life events and the period of history in which they occurred shaped subsequent events and issues

Question 30

measurement in human development

Answer 30

1. systemic observation 2. snaking behavior with tasks 3. self reports 4. physiological measures 5. reliability and validity 6. representative sampling

Question 31

systemic observation

Answer 31

natural observation “real life” observations

Question 32

sampling behavior with tasks

Answer 32

behavior can not be observed directly. task is created to sample the behavior of interest

Question 33

self reports

Answer 33

people’s answers to questions about the topic of interest

Question 34

physiological measures

Answer 34

measuring people’s physiological responses (heart rate, cortisol levels, brain activity) to focus on a particular aspect of a person’s behavior

Question 35

reliability and validity

Answer 35

the extend a measure provides a consistent index of a characteristic (reliability) and whether it really measures what we think it measures (validity)

Question 36

representative sampling

Answer 36

reflect the characteristics of the population of interest

Question 37

general designs for research?

Answer 37

1. correlational studies 2. experimental studies 3. qualitative research method

Question 38

correlational studies

Answer 38

measures relationship between variables as they are observed naturally in the world provides correlation coefficient (“r”) which indicates the strength of the relationship in between variables correlation does not prove causation

Question 39

experimental studies

Answer 39

studies the effect of one variable on another studies possible “cause and effect” relationship independent variable - variable being manipulated (cause) dependent variable - behavior being observed (effect/outcome)

Question 40

designs for studying development?

Answer 40

1. longitudinal studies 2. micro genetic study 3. cross-sectional designs 4. cohort effects 5. sequential designs 6. meta-analysis

Question 41

longitudinal studies

Answer 41

observes it tests one group of individuals ofer a long period >> expensive + requires a large time commitment

Question 42

micro genetic study

Answer 42

longitudinal design which participants tested repeatedly over a span of days or weeks > observing change directly as it occurs

Question 43

cross sectional studies

Answer 43

observed or tests groups of different ages | >> more time effective, less expensive

Question 44

cohort effects

Answer 44

problems with cross sectional designs in which differences between age groups (cohorts) may result easily from environmental events as from developmental processes

Question 45

sequential studies

Answer 45

combination of cross sectional and longitudinal designs allows for flexibility to collect information in several ways avoids cohort effects

Question 46

meta analysis

Answer 46

analysis of many studies to estimate relations between variables allows scientists to verify finding across many studies

Question 47

conducting research ethically?

Answer 47

1. minimize risks research to potential participants 2. describe the research to potential participants 3. avoid deception 4. make results anonymous

Question 48

communicating research results?

Answer 48

research results are published in scientific journals to be published in journals, research results must be useful, well done, and original

Question 49

applying research results: social policy

Answer 49

driving age stem cell research adoption policies

Question 50

piaget’s stages of cognitive development

Answer 50

1. sensorimotor 2. preoperational 3. concentrate operational thought 4. formal operational thought