Human Behavior
Chapter 10 Outline
Methods in Developmental Psychology Cross-Sectional Study- Study people of different ages at the same point in time Longitudinal Study- Study the same group of people over time
Biographical or Retrospective Study - Participant’s past is reconstructed through interviews and other research about their life
Prenatal Development-
Period of time from conception to birth
Embryo
From about two weeks after conception to three months after conception
Fetus
Three months after conception to birth
Placenta
Connects fetus to mother
Brings oxygen and nutrients
Takes away wastes
The New Born Baby -Reflexes
Rooting
Baby turns its head toward something that brushes its cheek and gropes around with mouth
Sucking
Newborn’s tendency to suck on objects placed in the mouth
Swallowing
Enables newborn babies to swallow liquids without choking
Grasping
Close fist around anything placed in their hand
Stepping
Stepping motions made by an infant when held upright
Temperament - refers to characteristic patterns of emotional reactions and emotional self-regulation
Perceptual Abilities - Vision
Clear for 8-10 inches
Good vision by 6 months
Depth perception
Visual cliff research
Other senses
Ears are functional prior to birth
Infants particularly tune in to human voices
Taste and smell are fully functional
Infancy and Childhood
-Physical Development - Children grow about 10 inches and gain about 15 pounds in first year
-Motor Development - Developmental norms
Ages by which an average child achieves various developmental milestones
Maturation
Automatic biological unfolding of development in an organism as a function of passage of time
-Cognitive Development - Sensory-Motor Stage (birth to 2 years)
Object permanence
Preoperational Stage (2-7 years)
Egocentric
Concrete Operations (7-11 years)
Principles of conservation
Formal Operations (11-15 years)
Understand abstract ideas -Moral Development
Preconventional (preadolescence)
“Good” behavior is mostly to avoid punishment or seek reward
Conventional (adolescence)
Behavior is about pleasing others and, in later adolescence, becoming a good citizen
Postconventional
Emphasis is on abstract principles such as justice, equality, and liberty -Language Development
Babbling
Make the sounds of all languages
Holophrases
One word is used to mean a whole sentence -Social Development
Permissive-indulgent
Parents are very attentive and supportive, but do not set limits on behavior
Children tend to be immature, disrespectful, impulsive, and out of control
Authoritative
Parents provide firm structure, but are not overly controlling
Parents listen to their children’s opinions and explain their decisions, bur are still clearly in charge
Children tend to become self-reliant and socially responsible -Sex-Role Development
Gender identity
Knowledge of being a boy or girl
Occurs by age 3
Gender constancy
Child realizes that gender cannot change
Occurs by age 4 or 5 -Television and Children
American children spend more time watching television than they do engaging in any other activity besides sleeping.
Adolescence
-Physical Changes
Growth spurt
Begins about age 10½ in girls and about 12½ in boys
Sexual development
Puberty
Onset of sexual maturation
Menarche
First menstrual period for girls
-Cognitive Changes
Growth spurt
Begins about age 10½ in girls and about 12½ in boys
Sexual development
Puberty
Onset of sexual maturation
Menarche
First menstrual period for girls
-Personality and Social Development
Major occurrence in adolescence is identity formation
Forming an identity
Achievement
Successfully find identity
Foreclosure
Settle for identity others wish for them
Moratorium
Explore various identities
Diffusion
Unable to “find themselves” -Some Problems of Adolescence
Declines in self-esteem
Related to appearance
Satisfaction in