PSY 341: Developmental Psychology

Fall 2014 Review Sheet for !i" #1

!i" format: $% points &1%' of yo!r (nal gra)e*+ 30 m!ltiple choice
,!estions &2 pts each*- 1 of 2 essay ,!estions &1% pts*+.o give yo!
some g!i)ance regar)ing what material / consi)er partic!larly
important- / have prepare) the following list of concepts from each
assigne) chapter or lect!re 0 these yo! )e(nitely sho!l) 1e familiar
with 1efore the ,!i"+ 2ll of the assigne) rea)ings- an) the lect!re
material- even if they )o not appear on this list- are however fair
game as material to 1e teste) on the ,!i""es+
341 /ntro)!ction- 4istory an) .heory
Jean-Jacque Rousseau: children as noble savages, should leave nature to take
its course. nativist, believing that children are born with a conscience and a sense
of fairness.
John Locke: Tabula Rasa: The mind is a blank slate written on by experience.
ocke is thus an environmentalist on the nature!nurture "uestion. #e stressed the
importance of rewards, punishments and imitation $social learning%
Nature-Nurture controversy: #ow great is the influence of genes or
environment on our behavior, personality, biology, etc&
Sensitive periods: first ' weeks are most sensitive
(ctive vs. )assive Role of child
Continuity vs. Discontinuity: is child development a matter of cumulative
continuous adding on of skills and behaviors, or does it involve "ualitative, step
or stage*like changes
o +iscontinuous: caterpillar
o ,ontinuous: pine tree
Interaction among deveopmenta domains: to what extent do development
in different domains, such as physical, cognitive and social and emotional
development, proceed to separately and to what extent do they influence each
other&
normative approach vs. individua di!!erences approach: is there one
universal course of development for all childen or are there different ones& -hich
aspects of development are universal and which aspects show universality&
sociocutura conte"t: refer to the physical, social, cultural, economic, and
historical circumstances that make up any child.s environment
o ,ontext of development differ within and between cultures
341 5etho)s
#ypothesis: a )R/+0,T012 drawn from a theory
reia$iity and vaidity
o reliability refers to the ,12303T/2,4 or R/)/(T(500T4 of measures of behavior
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o validity refers to the degree to which a test or experiment measures what it is
intended to measure
naturaistic vs. structured o$servations: observing behavior where it naturally
happens $in the field% vs. a laboratory situation designed to evoke behavior of interest
correationa design vs. e"perimenta design: investigator gather info without
altering sub6ects. experiences and examines relationships among variables vs. investigator
randomly assigns sub6ects to treatment conditions
independent variable and dependent variable
representativeness and generai%a$iity: how representative the sample is7 random
sampling allows for a higher representativeness and generali8ability. #ow much findings
from a study can be generali8ed to the natural world $ecological validity%
o$server in!uence and o$server $ias: participants may react differently or less bc
someone.s there7 observers record what they expect!want rather than what happens
correation coe!!icient: strength and direction of correlation
third-varia$e pro$em: an outside, unrecorded third variable may have influenced the
observed effect
direction o! causation pro$em: correlation between two variables does not indicate
which, if either, variables the cause of the other
ongitudina design: method of study in which the same children are studied twice or more
over a substantial period of time
cross-sectiona design: research method in which children of different ages are compared on
a given behavior or characteristic over a short period of time
micro genetic design: a method of study in which the same children are studied
repeatedly over a short period of time

3h 2 Prenatal Development an) 6irth an) 3hapter 3 6iological
Fo!n)ations
phenotype: observable expression of the genotype $body characteristics 9
behavior%
genotype: genetic material an individual inherits
+2(:
&enes: segments of dna that make proteins that determine our development
chromosomes: genetic material passed as long, threadlike molecules made up of
dna
ce division: final result is a sperm cell or gamete, leads to construction of
embryo:
cell migration:
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cell differentiation:
apoptosis: cell death $webbed fingers%
'ygote: : -//;37 fertili8ation, implantation, start of placenta
(m$ryo: < -//;37 arms, legs, face, organs, muscles develop. #eart begins
beating, most sensitive period
)etus: => -//;37 growth and finishing
Neura tu$e: u*shaped groove formed from top layer of differentiated cells in
embryo7 eventually become the $rain and spina chord
*ono%ygotic and di%ygotic t+ins: identical vs non*identical fraternal
homo%ygous and hetero%ygous: inherits two of the same alleles for a trait vs.
inherits two different alleles
poygenic inheritance: traits that are governed by more than one trait
$diseases, personality traits, physical abilities%
dominant vs. recessive: expressed if present vs. not expressed if a dominant is
present
herita$iity: proportion of observed differences on a trait due to genetic
differences
shared vs. non-shared environment: growing up together in the same family
vs. environment effects and experiences uni"ue to the individual $different
friends, activities, etc%
teratogens: potentially harmful agents $drugs, pollutants, disease%
$ehavior genetics: concerned with how variation in behavior and development
results from the combo of genetics and environment
o twin reared together: relatedness of ?.>
o twin reared apart: ?.>
o adoption design: more like their biological or adoptive relatives
norm o! reaction: phenotypic differences based on interaction with environment
$gigantism in twins%
gene-environment correations: idea that #/R/+0T4 influences the
environments to which individuals are exposed
o active: niche picking, actively choosing an environment $ma6or, sports%
o passive: parents passes genotype but also passively create an environment
where that genotype can thrive $book worm parents book worm kid%
o evocative: parents respond bc of certain phenotypes and "ualities, evoking
reactions from your environment based on what you express
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