Lifespan Development: Exam #1

Question 1

Periods of Development

Answer 1

prenatal development, infancy, early childhood, middle and late childhood, adolescence, early adulthood, middle adulthood, late adulthood

Question 2

Three Developmental Issues/Debates

Answer 2

nature/nurture, stability/change, continuity/discontinuity

Question 3

Nature-Nurture Issue

Answer 3

refers to the debate about whether development is primarily influenced by nature or nurture. nature refers to an organism’s biological inheritance, nurture to its environmental experiences. the “nature proponents” claim biological inheritance is the most important influence on development; the “nurture proponents” claim that environmental experiences are the most important.

Question 4

Stability-Change Issue

Answer 4

involves the degree to which we become older renditions of our early experience (stability) or whether we develop into someone different from who we were at an earlier point in development (change).

Question 5

Continuity-Discontinuity Issue

Answer 5

focuses on the extent to which development involves gradual, cumulative change (continuity) or distinct stages (discontinuity).

Question 6

Genotype vs. Phenotype

Answer 6

for each genotype a range of phenotypes can be possible

Question 7

Genotype

Answer 7

a person’s genetic heritage; the actual genetic material

Question 8

Phenotype

Answer 8

the way an individual’s genotype is expressed in observed and measurable characteristics

Question 9

Delivery Room Assessment

Answer 9

apgar scale, brazelton neonatal behavioral assessment scale, neonatal intensive care unit network neurobehavioral scale

Question 10

Apgar Scale

Answer 10

baby is assessed at one and five minutes after birth; 10 is the highest score, 3 or below is an emergency. score is rated on heart rate, body color, muscle tone, respiratory effort, and reflex irritability.

Question 11

Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS)

Answer 11

assesses newborn’s neurological development, reflexes, and reactions to people and objects

Question 12

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Network Neurobehavioral Scale (NNNS)

Answer 12

assesses newborn’s behavior, neurological and stress responses, and regulatory capacities

Question 13

Prenatal Developmental Periods

Answer 13

geminal, embryonic, fetal

Question 14

Germinal Period

Answer 14

2 weeks after conception; implantation; blastocyst develops in embryo; trophoblast which develop into plancenta, umbilical cord, and support for embryo. 22% of zygotes fail to implant

Question 15

Embryonic Period

Answer 15

2-8 weeks after conception; organogenesis (organ formation); 31% of pregnancies (confirmed) result in miscarriage

Question 16

Fetal Period

Answer 16

2 months after conception until birth; chance of stillbirth is 1 in 160

Question 17

Teratogen

Answer 17

any agent that can cause a birth defect or negatively alter cognitive and behavioral outcomes. prescription and nonprescription drugs; incompatible blood types; environmental hazards; maternal diseases; paternal factors

Question 18

Cephalocaudal Pattern of Growth

Answer 18

sequence in which the earliest growth always occurs from the top downward

Question 19

Proximodistal Pattern of Growth

Answer 19

sequence in which growth starts in the center of the body and moves toward the extremities

Question 20

SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)

Answer 20

infants stop breathing and die without apparent cause; highest cause of infant death in U.S. annually; highest risk is 2-4 months of age

Question 21

SIDS Risk Factors

Answer 21

sleeping on stomachs may impair baby’s ability to wake oneself when in need of oxygen, and may restrict the ability to swallow; low birth weight; sleep apnea; african american and eskimos; lower socioeconomic status; smokers in the home; soft bedding and too many blankets; abnormal brain stem functioning associated with low levels of serotonin

Question 22

Reflexes

Answer 22

rooting, sucking, moro, grasping

Question 23

Rooting Reflex

Answer 23

occurs when the infant’s cheek is stroked or the side of the mouth is touched; in response, the infant turns its head toward the side that was touched in an apparent effort to find something to suck

Question 24

Sucking Reflex

Answer 24

occurs when newborns automatically suck an object placed in their mouth. this reflex enables newborns to get nourishment before they have associated a nipple with food and also serves as a self-soothing or self-regulating mechanism.

Question 25

Moro Reflex

Answer 25

occurs in response to a sudden, intense noise or movement. when startled, the newborn arches its back, throws back its head, and flings out its arms and legs. then the newborn rapidly closes its arms and legs.

Question 26

Grasping Reflex

Answer 26

occurs when something touches the infant’s palms. the infant responds by grasping tightly. by the end of the third month, the grasping reflex diminishes, and the infant shows a more voluntary grasp.

Question 27

Habituation

Answer 27

decreased responsiveness to a stimulus after repeated exposures

Question 28

Dishabituation

Answer 28

the recovery of a habituated response after a change in stimulation

Question 29

Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory

Answer 29

development reflects the influence of five environmental systems: microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem

Question 30

Microsystem

Answer 30

setting in which the individual lives; these contexts include the person’s family, peers, school, and neighborhood. this is where the most direct interactions with social agents take place

Question 31

Macrosystem

Answer 31

connections between contexts; includes relation of family experiences to school experiences, school experiences to religious experiences, and family experiences to peer experiences

Question 32

Exosystem

Answer 32

consists of links between a social setting in which the individual does not have an active role and the individual’s immediate context. for example, a child’s experience at home may be influenced by a mother’s experiences at work.

Question 33

Macrosystem

Answer 33

involves the attitudes and ideologies of the culture in which individuals live

Question 34

Chronosystem

Answer 34

consists of the patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course, as well as sociohistorical circumstances; divorce is one transition.

Question 35

Piaget's Sensorimotor Stage

Answer 35

infant cognitive development lasting from birth to 2 years; infants construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences with physical, motoric actions

Question 36

Simple Reflexes

Answer 36

first substage of sensorimotor stage; coordination through sensation and action through reflexive behaviors

Question 37

First Habits and Primary Circular Reactions

Answer 37

second substage of sensorimotor stage; coordination of sensation, habits (reflex), and reactions (reproduction of an event that initially occurred by chance); main focus is still on the infant's body

Question 38

Secondary Circular Reactions

Answer 38

third substage of sensorimotor stage; infants become more object-oriented, moving beyond self-preoccupation; repeat actions that bring interesting or pleasurable results

Question 39

Coordination of Secondary Circular Reactions

Answer 39

fourth substage of sensorimotor stage; coordination of vision and touch - hand-eye coordination; coordination of schemes and intentionality

Question 40

Tertiary Circular Reactions, Novelty, and Curiosity

Answer 40

fifth substage of sensorimotor stage; infants become intrigued by the many properties of objects and by the many things they can make happen to objects; they experiment with new behavior

Question 41

Internalization of Schemes

Answer 41

sixth substage of sensorimotor stage; infants develop the ability to use primitive symbols and form enduring mental representations

Question 42

Object Permanence

Answer 42

developed by the end of the sensorimotor stage; the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be seen, heard, or touched. studied by watching an infant's reaction when an interesting object disappears

Question 43

Gross Motor Skills

Answer 43

large-muscle activities; includes the development of posture and learning to walk

Question 44

Learning to Walk

Answer 44

occurs close to the first birthday; a stepping reflex is present when the child is born; eventually learn to balance and alternate legs

Question 45

Gross Motor Skills in the First Year: Development Milestones

Answer 45

some milestones vary by as much as two to four months. there is a large “developmental window” of what is normal. some infants do not follow the standard sequence of motor development.

Question 46

Gross Motor Skill Development in the Second Year

Answer 46

toddlers become more skilled and mobile; by 13-18 months, toddlers can pull a toy or climb stairs; by 18-24 months, toddlers can walk quickly, balance on their feet, walk backward and stand and kick a ball

Question 47

Fine Motor Skills

Answer 47

finely tuned movements; using a spoon, buttoning a shirt, reaching and grasping. includes palmer grasp and pincer grip

Question 48

Palmer Grasp

Answer 48

grasping with the whole hand

Question 49

Pincer Grip

Answer 49

grasping with the thumb and forefinger

Question 50

Perceptual-Motor Grasping

Answer 50

necessary for infants to coordinate grasping; which perceptual system the infant is most likely to use in coordinating grasping varies with age

Question 51

Development of Language

Answer 51

phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics

Question 52

Phonology

Answer 52

the sound system of a language; a phoneme is the smallest sound unit in a language

Question 53

Morphology

Answer 53

the system of meaningful units involved in word formation

Question 54

Syntax

Answer 54

the system that involves the way words are combined to form acceptable phrases and sentences

Question 55

Semantics

Answer 55

the system that involves the meaning of words and sentences

Question 56

Pragmatics

Answer 56

the system of using appropriate conversation and knowledge of how to effectively use language in context

Question 57

How Language Develops

Answer 57

recognizing language sounds, babbling and other vocalizations, gestures, first words, two-word utterances

Question 58

Recognizing Language Sounds

Answer 58

infants can make fine distinctions among the sounds of any language; around 6 months they will begin to lose the ability to discriminate sounds from languages other than their own

Question 59

Babbling and Other Vocalizations

Answer 59

sequence of sounds: crying, cooing, babbling

Question 60

Gestures

Answer 60

pointing is considered an important index of the social aspect of language; infants use of gestures in high socioeconomic status families linked to larger vocabulary at age 4.5.

Question 61

First Words

Answer 61

children understand first words earlier than they speak them (receptive language precedes expressive language); a child understands about 50 words by age 13 months and 200 words by 2 years of age; includes overextension and underextension

Question 62

Overextension

Answer 62

tendency to apply a word to objects that are inappropriate for the word’s meaning (calling all dogs by the name of a family dog)

Question 63

Underextension

Answer 63

tendency to apply a word too narrowly (“look at those kids"; kids were only girls, not boys)

Question 64

Two-Word Utterances

Answer 64

child relies on gesture, tone, and context; includes telegraphic speech

Question 65

Telegraphic Speech

Answer 65

use of short and precise words without grammatical markers

Question 66

Child-Directed Speech

Answer 66

language spoken in a higher pitch than normal with simple words and sentences; captures infant's attention and maintains communication. also known as "motherese"