Intro 2-Developmental Psychology Flashcards
(143 cards)
1
Q
What is the nativist position?
A
Emphasis on innate endowments. Idea we are ‘preprogrammed’. Descartes, Chomsky, Spelke
2
Q
What is the empiricist position?
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Emphasis on environmental influence and role of learning/observing/culture. Locke, Bandura, Gopnik
3
Q
What is the neuro-constructivist approach?
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Emphasis on relative contributions of nature/nurture, on assumption both are important and they may have a reciprocal relationship
4
Q
What are twin studies?
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Monozygotic/dizygotc. Use statistical models to examine differences in correlations between two twin types to draw conclusions about heritability
5
Q
What is an example of an influential twin study?
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The Twins Early Development Study
6
Q
What is the role of the environment?
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Karmiloff-Smith: view that there are reciprocal interactions between genes and environment. Twin studies cannot discount role of environment (similar upbringing)-look at separated MZ twins, adoption studies, training studies
7
Q
What research looks into critical periods?
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Lorenz: imprinting. Behaviour was experience-dependent. Hess: degree of imprinting depended on age when imprinted and distance travelled
8
Q
What research looks into active experience?
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Held and Hein: active and passive learning in kittens
9
Q
What methods are used in developmental psychology?
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Observations, looking tasks (preferential looking/habituation and preferential looking), neuroimaging (EEG/NIRS/fMRI)
10
Q
How much of the brain is related to visual perception?
A
Over 1/2
11
Q
What methods are used to study visual perception?
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Neuroimaging studies. Many use two electrodes rather than a whole EEG net. Visual evoked potentials
12
Q
What is orientation perception?
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Compare random change with orientation change-Braddick
13
Q
At what age is brain activity produced specifically by the orientation change?
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Cortical orientation perception develops at 3 weeks
14
Q
What is motion perception?
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Compare same direction movement with direction change-Wattam-Bell. Looming (at birth)
15
Q
At what age is brain activity produced specifically by the direction change?
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10 Weeks (low speeds) or 13 weeks (high speeds). Experience is important (kittens reared in stroboscopic illumination have no directional cells in visual cortex
16
Q
What is depth perception?
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Pictoral cues (early) eg perspective and interposition. Compare depth changes with red-green and red-red goggles. Responses emerge at 11-13 weeks, and improve depth/detail/stereoacuity within 4-5 weeks of onset (Birch, Gwizada and Held)
17
Q
What is stereopsis?
A
Perception of depth through noticing differences between images in two eyes (binocular disparity) Broddick and Atkinson.
18
Q
What are traditional views of motor control?
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Motor development seen as progression through series of milestones, phases or stages. Prominent in 1930s-40s and are still basis for ‘modern’ development scales, eg Bayley scales. Development thought to occur in rigid. strict, timed order
19
Q
What are modern views of motor control?
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Dynamic systems-motor abilities present earlier but experience is limited by other factors. Views pioneered by Thelen and held now by Adolph
20
Q
What individual differences within cultures are there?
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Continuous, not stage like changes (Piek/Adolph and Berger)
21
Q
What is evidence of variability and flexibility in motor behaviour?
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African and Caribbean practices (Adolph et al)
22
Q
What is the importance of the role of experience?
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Infants take around 9000 steps per day (Adolph). Will baby walk down slope experiment-depends on specific walking mode
23
Q
What are the results of the visual cliff experiment (Gibson and Walk)
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6-14 months-shallow or deep end to mother. Role of experience: 7-8 months. May not be as crucial for animals
24
Q
Does physical context determine motor behaviour?
A
Thelen, Fisher and Ridley-Johnson. 12 infants held over table top for minute (4 weeks old). By this age, stepping reflex is disappearing. Thought to be result of inevitable neural maturation, but can it be altered by physical context? Stepping with weights decreased stepping frequency. Stepping in water increases it as buoyancy counteracts gravity. Stepping is limited by muscle strength as well as central factors
25
What did Piaget talk about when discussing cognitive development?
Learning process. Active learning (knowledge is not innate). Construct ways of understanding the world through schemata (patterns of behaviour, mental models, mental operations). Stage like development (identifiable stages which are qualitatively dissociable)
26
What is learning the result of?
Two processes working together in equilibrium. Assimilation (apply schema to new instance) and accommodation (development of new schema)
27
What are Piaget's developmental stages?
Sensorimotor stage (0-2 years), Preoperational stage (2-7 years), Concrete operational (7-11), Formal operational period (11+ years)
28
What is the sensorimotor stage?
Limited skills that gradually allow cognitive development. Developing sensorimotor schema. Primary, secondary and tertiary circular reactions. Develop object performance (4-8 months 'out of sight out of mind, 8-12months know occluded objects exist, 12-18 months solve A not B error but do not understand invisible objects move)
29
What happens in the peroperational and concrete operational stage?
Rapid increase in language (symbolic thought) but cannot manimpulate concepts. Egocentrism and perspective taking (concrete operational pass doll POV task). Conservation-counters rearranged but same number remain (early preoperational fail). Seriation and transitive interference in concrete operational only. Class inclusion (sets and subsets) concrete operational pass
30
What are conservation tasks?
Can involve number, length, liquid, mass, area, weight, volume. These tasks develop at different times, which is problematic for Piaget's stage-like view
31
What happens in the formal operational period?
Verbal reasoning. Can reason logically about objects not present. Can conduct verbal reasoning (logical thought about totally hypothetical scenarios)
32
What are criticisms of Piaget's theories of cognitive development?
Experimenter (McGarrigle and Donaldson). Language: rephrase to deal with set/subset problem. Memory in line tasks (Bryant and Trobasso). Response mode (Kellman and Spelke). Social context and learning (Vygotsky)-learner has zone of proximal development
33
What is the post-Piagetion puzzle?
6month infants fail to search for out-of-view object. No representation of invisible object (Spelke)
34
What did Kelmman and Spelke find about cognitive development?
Babies 3-4 months dishabituated to a broken rod. Understood rod exists, though cannot see it
35
What is Spelke's core knowledge theory?
Very young infants have many cognitive capacities available. Cannot be seen in search paradigms, but are observable using looking-time measures. Innate, domain-specific systems of knowledge. Each system has own set of core principles. Learning is enrichment of core principles
36
What is object core knowledge?
Perceive unity of partly hidden object by analysing movements and configuration of its visible surfaces
37
What did Baillargeon find?
Showed that object displays to 3 1/2 moth olds. Violation of expectation paradigm. Infants dishabituated when screen appeared to pass through the place where box has been located
38
What do infants represent (object core knowledge)?
Spatial location of objects, fact that they exist continuously even if hidden, fact that solid objects cannot pass through one another
39
What are criticiss of Spelke's core knowledge theory of objects?
Individual variation (drawbridge study, only fast habituators show effects). Need for careful control (when habituated to the impossible event, babies looked longer at possible event). Just interested in novelty (Cashan and Cohen)?
40
What is number core knowledge?
Xu and Spelke: approximate number system for distinguishing larger set in 6 months. Each habituation set varies size and layout of dots but keeps number constant. Each test set keeps constant display density. 6 months olds looked longer at new number than at old number, can therefore discriminate between set of 8 and set of 16 but not between 8 and 12, so only approximate
41
What did Mix, Huttenlocher and Devine find?
Infants may have been responding not to number nut to 'counter length'
42
What did Feigenson find?
Infants computes number when objects differed in colour, pattern and texture; and continuous extent when objects where identical
43
What is space core knowledge?
Blue wall study (Hermer and Spelke) rats can use geometric info to reorient when lose sense of direction. Children search at geometrically correct corners equally often
44
What did Spelke find (core knowledge of space)?
Geometric module for reorientation-impervious to colour information
45
What are criticisms of the blue wall study?
Very small room (Chen and Newcombe). Toddlers use colour for reorientation in large room (Learmouth et al)
46
What did Gopnik find?
Very young infants think like scientists (the scientist in the crib). Observe stats/form and test hypotheses to prove theories. 8month old infants looked longer at unexpected display and use info about sample to make inferences about population. 'Blicket detector' experiment. Choose object with same causal powers on 74% trials
47
What did Bowlby 1958 say about attachment?
Infants have innate drive to form close relationship with caregiver. Infants produce social releasers which elicit care. Monotropy. Bond serves as model for other relationships. Maternal deprivation hypothesis
48
What is the maternal deprivation hypothesis?
Breaking this bond in the first 5 years can lead to profound cognitive/social/emotional consequences
49
What attachment stages does Bowlby 1969 discuss?
Preattachment phase, attachment in the making, clear cut attachment, formation of reciprocal relationships
50
What is the preattachment stage?
Birth-6weeks. Orienting and signalling to anyone
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What is the 'attachment in the making' stage?
6weeks-6/8months. Increasingly orienting to and seeking comfort from primary caregiver
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What is the 'clear cut attachment' stage?
6/8months-18/24 months. Stay close to primary caregiver. Experience separation protest and fear of strangers
53
What is the 'formation of reciprocal relationships' stage?
18-24 months+. Increasingly accommodates mothers needs/reduction in immediate proximity seeking/development of internal working model of relationships
54
What is the internal working model?
Captures child's beliefs about how trustworthy others are/their own value/their own social effectiveness
55
How did Ainsley's studies influence Bowlby?
Studies led Bowlby to change his ideas and conclude that infants can have more than one attachment figure
56
What is the strange situation?
Ainsworth and Bell. Used at 12-24 months to measure attachment
57
What are the 8 stages of the strange situation?
Mother (M), infant (I), experimenter (E) in room. M and I play. Stranger (S) enters, talks to M, plays with I. M leaves, S plays with I. M returns, S leaves, M settles I (reunion). M leaves, I alone. S returns and tries to settle I. M returns, S leaves, M settles I (reunion)
58
What is directly measured in the strange situation?
How the infant reacts on reunions with mother (1-7 point scale every 15 seconds) proximity/contact seeking, contact maintaining, avoidance of proximity/contact, resistance of contact/comfortning. Does infant use mum as base to explore from at the start. How does infant behave when mother is absent.
59
What types of attachment were developed due to the strange situation?
Type A Insecure avoidant. Type B Secure. Type C Insecure resistant/insecure ambivalent. Type D Insecure disorganised
60
What is the type A (insecure avoidant) attachment type?
Does not play with mother much. Not distressed by mothers absence/happy playing with stranger. Avoids interaction with mother, even at reunions. Comforted by mother or stranger. Operate independently of attachment figure to minimise possible negative reactions from parent
61
What is the type B (secure) attachment type?
Use mother as secure base for exploration. Play with stranger if mum is present/distressed when mum leaves/happy to see mum return and easily calmed down. Possess representational model of attachment figures as being available/responsive/helpful
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What is the type C (insecure resistant/secure ambivalent) attachment type?
Less exploration than average. Very distressed by mothers absence/afraid of stranger. When mother returns, seek comfort but also show resistance. Mother may have given inconsistent responses to child
63
What is type D (insecure disorganised) attachment type?
Introduced by Main and Soloman. No consistent/obvious strategy for gaining contact with mother. Contradictory and misdirected behaviour. Freezing or fear of parent. Related to drug abuse, maltreatment etc, but not always
64
How does the individual data (Ainsworth and Bell) compare with new meta-analysis data (Van Ijzendoorn et al)?
Secure 70-62%. Avoidant 20-15%. Resistant 10-9%. Disorganised X-15%
65
How do genes affect attachment type?
110 twin pairs assessed in strange situation and found genetics only explained 14% of variance (O'Connor and Croft)
66
How does cross-cultural variation affect attachment type?
Different cultural norms means different classifications of attachment
67
How do early experiences affect attachment type?
Maternal deprivation hypothesis (Bowlby). Important at 6 months-3years
68
What is the historical context for attachment types?
Institutions in Europe which have influenced current perspectives on childminding and attachment
69
What are the current perspectives on childminding and attachment?
Children attached normally to parent (Clarke-Stewart et al). Also attached securely to caregiver who is more sensitive than either parent (Goosens, Van Ijzendoorn)
70
What is the major NICHD study?
High quality care related to better linguistic and cognitive scores until 11 years. More childcare (regardless of quality) associated with more aggression
71
What is maternal sensitivity?
Maternal sensitivity hypothesis (Bowlby and Ainsworth). Promptness/appropriateness/completeness of responses. Correlate with attachment (r=.24) (De Wolff/Van Ijzendoorn). Interventions to improve sensitivity improve attachment (Bakermons-Kronenburg, Van Ijzendoorn and Juffer)
72
What is mind-mindedness?
Sensitivity=very broad measure/not predictive enough. Specifically related to content rather than promptness of response
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What are the measures of mind-mindedness?
Maternal responsiveness to change in infants gaze direction/maternal responsiveness to infants object-directed action/mother looks at or picks up or talks about object of infants attention
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What are the limitations of mind-mindedness?
Encouragement of autonomy. Interprets infant as intentional guest
75
What are the later effects of early attachment style?
Secure at 12 months predicts curiosity/problem solving (2years), social confidence at nursery (3years), empathy/independence (5years). Oppenheim et al
76
What is adult attachment?
Adult attachment interview classifies adults as autonomous, dismissing, preoccupied, unresolved. Significant discontinuity is present
77
What is theory of mind?
Ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others (Premack and Woodruff). Involves understanding alternative perspectives, and decentring from egocentric representations (Piaget). Theory because cannot directly see/measure mind. Also has predictive value
78
What is false belief?
Understand others can have different views to yours. Demonstration of this shows theory of mind (Wimmer/Palmer)
79
What test measures false belief?
The maxi task (Wimmer and Perner) which shows theory of mind develops at age 5+, however control tests for memory are also necessary. The Sally Anne task where 3 year olds fail but 4 year olds pass (Cohen/Leslie/Frith). Suggests false belief aspect develops at age 4
80
What do the smarties task/unexpected contents/deceptive box tasks show?
Perner, Leekham and Wimmer. Representational change ability develops at age 4. Children's performance on all tasks is correlated (Gopnik and Ashington). Development at 5 in Baka tribe of pygmies (Avis/Harris)
81
What are natural settings for theory of mind demonstration?
Deception, pretend play, jokes, prosocial behaviour, cooperation (Dunn/Chandler)
82
How does performance in looking tasks (goals of actor) change with development?
Woodward. Infants perceive relationship between human agent and goal by 6-9 months. Seem to infer intentions (mental states) of actor (Spelke's core knowledge of actions and agents)
83
How does performance in looking tasks (false belief) change with development?
Onishi and Baillargeon. Belief induction phase (true or false belief) then test phase. Suggests 15 month old infants pass theory of mind tests
84
What are dualist theories on theory of mind?
Implicit vs explicit understanding are qualitatively different with implicit developing first (Clements and Perner). Implicit develops before 4 years. Explicit verbal performance at 4 years (theory theory: Wellman. Simulation theory: Harris. Modulairity theory: Baron-Cohen). Kluke: implicit but fragile, or only one, theory of mind
85
What is continuity theory of theory of mind?
The Dulpo task. Interactive, non verbal, non-binary task. No discontinuity in development, but a perspective-tracking system present early on that is initially fragile. Argues against dualist theories
86
How does Piaget define morality?
Set of principles for actions which derives from social ideas of right and wrong
87
How does Piaget define moral reasoning?
Cognitive processes underlying consideration of moral rules, their basis, and their conflicts
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How did Piaget measure morality?
Examined children's moral reasoning using clinical interviews. Games and rules, and posing moral dilemmas. Asked to teach rules, played game, watched game, asked where rules came from and if could be changed
89
What three stages of moral development did Piaget identify?
Amoral or premoral stage, heteronomous morality or moral realism. Autonomous morality or moral relativism
90
What is the amoral stage?
0-5. Played but didn't understand there were rules
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What is the heteronomous morality stage?
5-10. Understood rules but thought that they couldn't be changed
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What is the autonomous morality stage?
10+. Understood rules were conventional and alterable by social consent
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How do children respond to moral dilemmas?
Heteronomous children focus on consequences of actions. Autonomous children focus on intentions of actions
94
What is Kohlberg's extension?
Posed more complex dilemmas allowing extension of stage-theory into adulthood. Claimed cognitive development drives moral reasoning (controversial)
95
What did Heinz and the druggist find?
Three levels of morality: pre-conventional, conventional, and post-conventional morality
96
What is pre-conventional morality?
Heteronomous morality: obedience, avoiding punishment. Individualistic, instrumental morality: self-interest orientation
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What is conventional morality?
Interpersonal normative morality: interpersonal accord, conformity. Social system morality: authority, maintaining social-order
98
What is post-conventional morality?
Human right, social welfare morality: evaluate laws, rights, values. Morality of universalisable reversible, general ethical principles: universal ethical principles (principled conscience)
99
What is the trolley problem?
Hit five people or switch track to hit one person. 'Spur' and 'fat man' cases
100
What is the doctrine of double effect?
Moral difference between intending harm (fat man) and foreseeing it will happen as a result of intentions (spur_. No set of easily explainable moral principles. Hardwired moral institutions resulting from evolutionary processes. Response to these dilemmas consistent across cultures (Mikhail)
101
What is moral care?
Young children/babies have moral care evolved to facilitate cooperation (Hamlin)
102
What is toddler morality?
Even young children implicitly aware of rules even when not explicitly told anything (Rakoczy). Enforce social norms when puppet misbehaves. In spontaneous peer conflict 3 year olds are more rigid than 5 year olds
103
Is there morality in babies?
Hamlin: a moral sense, which evolved to help collective action, should encompass three abilities: moral goodness, moral evaluation, moral retribution
104
What is moral goodness?
Feeling concern for others despite moral costs (empathy). Prosocial behaviour seen by 13-14 months (Hastings)
105
What is moral evaluation?
Infants evaluate others. Morality plays for 6-8 month olds (Hamlin, Wynn and Bloom). Display phase, then test phase: babies show moral evaluation, and some development of moral evaluation from 3-6 months
106
What is moral retribution?
At 5 months (Hamlin). Sense of fairness at 19 months: looking is longer for unequal sharing
107
What are the statistics for Autism Spectrum Disorder?
1 in 100 children born (Baird et al). More males than females. Present across lifespan at all IQ levels
108
What are the core deficits in autism?
Social relationships, language and communication and repetitive behaviours
109
What is "difficulties in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts"?
Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity. Deficits in nonverbal communicative behaviours used for social interaction. Deficits in developing, maintaining and understanding relationships
110
What is "restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviour, interests or activities, as manifested by two of following (currently/history)"?
Stereotyped or repetitive motor movements, use of objects, or speech. Insistence on sameness, inflexible adherence to routines, or ritualised patterns of verbal or nonverbal behaviour. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus. Hyper or hypo reactivity to sensory inout or unusual interests in sensory aspects of the environment
111
What is the heterogeneity of autism?
Do not know the causes and no specific genes have been identified
112
What are the suggested causes of autism?
MMR vaccine (theory disproved), theory of mind, executive function, weak central coherence, extreme male brain
113
What is theory of mind in autism?
Sally Anne task where theory of mind is needed to pass. 85% pass. 86% with down syndrome pass. 20% with autism pass. 'Mind blindness' modular deficit
114
What is evaluation for theory of mind as an explanation of autism?
Some did pass theory of mind so it cannot account for everything. Also autistic participants completed the task in verbally mediated way (Happe)
115
What is executive function and autism?
Umbrella term for high order control processes: planning, inhibition, cognitive flexibility (set-shifting), multi-tasking, working memory; attention. Lower in autism (Ozonoff and Jensen; Hill)
116
What is weak central coherence and autism?
Processing style: global (typical) vs local (autism). Local-detail focused processing style in autism (Frith and Happe). Features perceived at expense of global configuration and meaning
117
What is evaluation for weak central coherence as an explanation of autism?
Accounts for the strengths and weaknesses in autism
118
How do autistic children perform in different processing tasks?
Poor performance on tasks requiring recognition of global meaning or integration of stimuli in context (Navon figures). Good performance where attention to local information helps (embedded figures)
119
What is extreme male brain and autism?
Higher incidence of autism in males. Biological difference: increasing testosterone in womb. Female brain is better at empathising while male brain is better at systemising. Orders of performance supports this view.
120
In what tasks is the order of performance: female, male, autism?
Theory of mind, discriminating emotions from eyes, eye contact and empathy quotient
121
In what tasks is the order of performance: autism, male, female?
Special/'savant' abilities, attention to detail, structured/rule-based/factual information, collecting items, systemising quotient
122
What is evaluation for extreme male brain and autism?
ASD in females. Poor evidence for testosterone link. Poor evidence for male-female differences in typical population
123
Overall, what is the conclusive cause of ASD?
Some suggest a number of independent, co-existing deficits in ASD: weak CC, ToM, EF (Pellicano et al). Not every child has each deficit (50-70% had deficits of theory of mind/executive function)
124
What are statistics for Williams syndrome?
1:20,000 prevalence. Sporadic gene disorder. Deletion of approx. 25-28 genes on chromosome 7. Main gene affected is the elastin gene
125
What are medical problems associated with Williams'?
Feeding difficulties, failure to thrive as newborn, extreme heart and blood vessel abnormalities, hyperacusis (sensitive hearing)
126
What are physical problems associated with Williams'?
Facial dysmorphology and short height/stature
127
What are statistics for down syndrome?
1:1000 prevalence. Genetic trisomy of chromosome 21. Other mutations can occur but are rare. Trisomy occurs in 90-95% cases. DS phenotype
128
What are medical problems associated with Williams'?
Sucking/feeding problems, congenital heart defects, hearing and vision deficits
129
What are physical problems associated with Williams'?
Facial dysmorphology, and slow growth
130
What is intelligence like in WS?
Mild-moderate learning difficulty. Not much change with development. Lots of individual difference
131
What is intelligence like in DS?
IQ in moderate to severely delayed range. Small difference but magnifies with development. Developmental changes in cognitive phenotype
132
What is language like in WS and DS?
Higher ability in WS when matched for IQ. Struggle in different ways with visuospatial tasks. Prosocial compulsion with social behaviours, leading to possible higher 'stranger danger' risk
133
What is executive function?
Umbrella term for processes underlying conscious, goal-directed thought, most often in novel circumstances
134
What are examples of executive function?
Cloth pulling task: means-end behaviour (Willats). Tower of Hanoi: long term goals and subgoals (Shallice) (Klahr and Robinson)
135
What is the neural basis of executive function?
Strongly associated with prefrontal cortex (Robbins)-Phineas Gage. Prefrontal:central executive? Brain similar to computr processing information. Cognition is the flow of info through series of stores (Atkinson and Shiffrin). Baddeley and Hitch proposed central executive controlling what to attend to, how to encode it and what to prioritise
136
What is the prefrontal cortex's role in development?
Changes throughout childhood and into adolescence. Synaptic pruning, increased myelination and connectivity, increase and decrease in grey matter (Giedd et al). Hige increase in myelination observed in first year of life. Latest to develop in frontal lobes (Deani et al)
137
What is executive function and the A not B error?
Difficulties in set-shifting, inhibition and working memory. A not B generated by prefrontal cortex (animal research-Diamond). Bell and Fox: EEG differences in 7-12 month old infants who can and cannot solve A not B tasks after long delay. Individual differences related to maturation of prefrontal cortex
138
What is shifting?
Dimension card change sort (Zelazo, Frye, Rupus. 3 year olds can recall rule change but don't change behaviour. Switch successfully by 4-5 years. Direct evidence that developmental changes in prefrontal cortex function accompany changes in executive function (Moriguchi et al)
139
What is experimental design for shifting?
Card sorting task with NIRS. Nearly all 5 year olds but 775% 3 year olds successfully switch rules
140
What is a brain measure of shifting?
Change in blood oxygenation in prefrontal areas between control phase and study. Compare 3 year olds who pass vs fail (persevere)
141
What are inhibition tasks?
Day-night (Gerstadt et al), grass-snow task (Carlson and Moles). Stop-signal task (Pliszka, Lotti and Woldorff). Go/NoGo task (Jankman, Sniedt, Jenner)
142
What are results of stop-signal task?
Lack of frontal stop-signal in children with ADHD
143
What are results of go/nogo tasks?
Test 6-7/9-10/adults. % age detected targets: lower in younger ages. % age false alarms: some 6-7 and 9-10 but less in adults. All ages: medial frontal cortex more active in the task. Children only: additional posterior source, different for 6-7 and 9-10 year olds (same behaviour being achieved by different means
