Unit 5 (9) Vocab

Question 1

developmental psychology

Answer 1

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan.

Question 2

zygote

Answer 2

the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo

Question 3

embryo

Answer 3

the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month.

Question 4

fetus

Answer 4

the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth

Question 5

teratogens

Answer 5

agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm.

Question 6

fetal alcohol syndrome

Answer 6

physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant women’s heavy drinking. In severe cases, symptoms include noticeable facial misproportions

Question 7

habituation

Answer 7

decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation. As infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to a visual stimulus, their interest wanes and they look away sooner.

Question 8

maturation

Answer 8

biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience.

Question 9

cognition

Answer 9

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

Question 10

schema

Answer 10

a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information

Question 11

assimilation

Answer 11

interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas

Question 12

accomodation

Answer 12

adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information

Question 13

sensorimotor stage

Answer 13

in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities.

Question 14

object permanence

Answer 14

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

Question 15

preoperational stage

Answer 15

In Piaget’s theory, the stage (from 2 to about 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic

Question 16

conservation

Answer 16

the principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects

Question 17

egocentrism

Answer 17

In Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view

Question 18

theory of mind

Answer 18

people’s ideas about their own and others’ mental states—- about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict.

Question 19

concrete operational stage

Answer 19

in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 6 or 7 to 11 tears of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events.

Question 20

formal operational stage

Answer 20

in Piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts.

Question 21

autism

Answer 21

a disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and understanding of others’ states of minds

Question 22

stranger anxiety

Answer 22

the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age

Question 23

attachment

Answer 23

the emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation.

Question 24

critical period

Answer 24

an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism’s exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development

Question 25

imprinting

Answer 25

the process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life.

Question 26

temperament

Answer 26

a person’s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

Question 27

basic trust

Answer 27

according to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers.

Question 28

self-concept

Answer 28

our understanding and evaluation of who we are.

Question 29

gender

Answer 29

in psychology, the biologically and socially influenced characteristics by which people define male and female

Question 30

aggression

Answer 30

physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt someone

Question 31

X chromosome

Answer 31

the sex chromosome found in both men and women. Females have two X chromosomes; males have one. An X chromosome from each parent produces a female child.

Question 32

Y chromosome

Answer 32

the sex chromosome found only in males. When paired with an X chromosome from the mother, it produces a male child

Question 33

testosterone

Answer 33

the most important of the male sex hormones. Both males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of the male sex characteristics during puberty.

Question 34

role

Answer 34

a set of expectations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave.

Question 35

gender role

Answer 35

a set of expected behaviors for males or for females

Question 36

gender identity

Answer 36

our sense of being male or female

Question 37

gender typing

Answer 37

the acquisition of a traditional masculine or feminine role

Question 38

social learning theory

Answer 38

the theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded or punished.

Question 39

adolescence

Answer 39

the transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence.

Question 40

puberty

Answer 40

the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing

Question 41

primary sex characteristics

Answer 41

the body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible.

Question 42

secondary sex characteristics

Answer 42

nonreproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair.

Question 43

menarche

Answer 43

the first menstrual period

Question 44

identity

Answer 44

our sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent’s task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles

Question 45

social identity

Answer 45

the “we” aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to “Who am I ?” that comes from our group memberships.

Question 46

intimacy

Answer 46

in Erikson’s theory, the ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood.

Question 47

emerging adulthood

Answer 47

for some people in modern cultures, a period from the late teens to mid-twenties, bridging the gap between adolescent dependence and full independence and responsible adulthood.

Question 48

menopause

Answer 48

the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes of a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines

Question 49

cross-sectional study

Answer 49

a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another

Question 50

longitudinal study

Answer 50

research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period

Question 51

crystallized intelligence

Answer 51

our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tend to increase with age

Question 52

fluid intelligence

Answer 52

our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood

Question 53

social clock

Answer 53

the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage; parenthood, and retirement.