Psychology 4 Neuroscience – the study of the

brain and the nervous system,

Chapter 1: The Study of Human
especially in terms of brain-behavior
Development
relationships.
Fundamental Characteristics of
Theory – an organized set of ideas
Human Development
that explains development.
 Nature and Nurture – the Psychodynamic Theory – hold that
degree to which genetic or development is largely determined
hereditary influences (nature) by how well people resolve conflicts
and experiential or they face at different ages.
environmental influences
(nurture) determine the kind  Erikson’s Psychosocial
of person you are. Theory – personality
 Continuity and development is determined by
Discontinuity – concerns the interaction of an internal
whether a particular maturational plan and external
developmental phenomenon societal demands.
represents a smooth - is based on the epigenetic
progression throughout the life principle (each
span (continuity) or a series of psychosocial strength has
abrupt shifts (discontinuity). its own special period of
 Universal and Context- particular importance)
Specific Development –
Psychosocial Age
concerns whether there is one
Stage
path of development or
Basic trust vs. Birth to 1 year
several. Mistrust
Basic Forces in Human Autonomy vs. 1 to 3 years
Development Shame
Initiative vs. 3 to 6 years
*Biopsychosocial framework – Guilt
useful way to organize the biological, Industry vs. 6 years to
psychological, and sociocultural Inferiority adolescence
forces on human development. Identity vs. Adolescence
Identity
 Biological forces (Genetics Confusion
and Health) – all genetic and Intimacy vs. Young adulthood
health-related factors. Isolation
 Psychological forces Generativity vs. Middle
(Known by Our Behavior) – all Stagnation adulthood
internal perceptual, cognitive, Integrity vs. Late life
emotional, and personality Despair
factors.
 Sociocultural forces (Race, Learning Theory
Ethnicity, and Culture) –
interpersonal, societal,  John Watson’s Behaviorism
cultural, and ethnic factors. – experience was about all
 Life-cycle forces (Timing is that mattered in determining
Everything) – differences in the course of development.
how the same event affects
people of different ages.
  B.F. Skinner’s Behaviorism The Ecological and Systems
Operant conditioning – Approach
technique in which the
*Ecological theory – views human
consequences of a behavior
development as inseparable from the
determine whether a behavior
environmental contexts in which a
is repeated in the future.
a. Reinforcement person develops.
(Positive/Negative) – a  Urie Bronfenbrenner’s
consequence that Theory
increases the likelihood of a. Microsystem – the people
the behavior that it follows. and objects in an
b. Punishment – a individual’s immediate
consequence that environment.
decreases the likelihood of b. Mesosystem – provides
the behavior that it follows. connections across
 Albert Bandura’s Social microsystems because
Learning Theory what happens in one
Imitation or Observational microsystem is likely to
learning – learning by simply influence others.
watching those around them. c. Exosystem – social
* Self-efficacy – people’s settings that a person may
beliefs about their own not experience firsthand
abilities and talents. but still influence
Cognitive-Developmental Theory development.
d. Macrosystem – the
 Jean Piaget’s Cognitive cultures and subcultures in
Development which the microsystem,
mesosystem, and
Stage Age
exosystem are embedded.
Sensorimotor Birth-2 years
 Lawton and Nahemow’s
Preoperational 2-6 years
Competence-Environmental
thought
Press Theory – people adapt
Concrete 7 years-early
operational adolescence most effectively when their
thought competence (people’s
Formal Adolescence abilities) match the
operational and beyond environmental press
thought (demands put on people by
the environment).

 Information-Processing Paul Baltes’ Life-Span

Theory – proposes that Perspective and Selective
human cognition consists of Optimization with Compensation
mental hardware (cognitive
 Life-span perspective –
structures) and mental
view that human development
software (cognitive processes).
is multiply determined and
 Lev Vygotsky’s Theory –
cannot be understood within
children’s thinking is
the scope of a single
influenced by the sociocultural
framework.
context in which they grow up.
a. Multidirectionality –
growth and decline
 b. Plasticity – one’s context of changing historical
capacity is not predetermined. conditions?
c. Historical context – each The synchronization of
of us develops within a individual transitions with
particular set of circumstances collective familial ones –
determined by the historical How do people balance their
time in which we are born and own lives with those of their
the culture in which we grow family?
up. The impact of earlier life
d. Multiple causation – events, as shaped by
development reflects the historical events, on
biological, psychological, subsequent ones – How
sociocultural, and life-cycle does experiencing an event
forces. earlier in life at a particular
 Selective Optimization with point in history affect one’s
Compensation (SOC) model subsequent life?
– view that selection,
Measurement in Human
optimization, and
Development Research
compensation form a system
of behavioural action that  Systematic Observation –
generates and regulates watching people and carefully
development and aging. recording what they do or say.
Elective selection – people a. Naturalistic observation
reduce their involvement to – observing people as they
fewer domains as a result of behave spontaneously in a
new demands or tasks. real-life situation.
Loss-based selection – real b. Structured observations
or anticipated loss in personal – method in which the
or environmental resources researcher creates a
cause people to reduce their setting that is likely to
involvement. bring out the behavior of
Compensation – people’s interest.
skills have decreased so they  Sampling Behavior with
no longer function well in a Tasks – to create tasks that
particular domain. are thought to sample the
Optimization – minimizing behavior of interest.
losses and maximizing gains.  Self-Reports – people’s
 Life-Course Perspective – answers to questions about
describes the ways in which the topic of interest.
various generations  Physiological Measures –
experience the biological, focus on a particular aspect of
psychological, and a person’s behavior.
sociocultural forces of  Reliability – the extent to
development in their which a measure provides a
respective historical contexts. consistent index of a
The individual timing of life
characteristic.
events in relation to
 Validity – whether a measure
external historical events –
actually measures what
How do people time and
researchers think it measures.
sequence their lives in the
  Populations – broad groups testing people of different
of people that are of interest ages.
to researchers. *Cohort effects – a problem
 Sample – a subset of the with cross-sectional designs in
population. which differences between age
groups (cohorts) may result
General Designs for Research from environmental events not
 Correlational Study – from developmental
investigation looking at processes.
relations between variables as  Sequential Studies –
they exist naturally in the developmental research
world. design based on cross-
Correlation coefficient (-1.0 sectional and longitudinal
to 1.0) – an expression of the designs.
strength (how much the Integrating Findings from
correlation differs from 0, Different Studies
either positively or negatively)
and sign (direction of the  Meta-analysis – a tool that
relation between variables) enables researchers to
between two variables. synthesize the results of many
 Experimental Studies studies to estimate relations
Experiment – a systematic between variables
way of manipulating the key
Conducting Research Ethically
factor(s) that the investigator
thinks causes a particular  Minimize risks to research
behavior. participants
Independent variable – the  Describe the research to
factor manipulated in an potential participants so
experiment. that they can determine
Dependent variable – the whether they want to
behavior being observed in an participate.
experiment, used to evaluate  Avoid deception; if
the impact of the independent participants must be
variable. deceived, provide a
 Qualitative Studies – thorough explanation of
method that involves gaining the true nature of the
in-depth understanding of experiment as soon as
human behavior and what possible.
governs it.  Results should be
Designs for Studying anonymous or confidential.
Development Chapter 2: Biological
 Longitudinal Studies – a Foundations
research design in which the Mechanisms of Heredity
same individuals are observed
or tested repeatedly at  Chromosomes – threadlike
different points in their lives. structures in the nuclei of cells
 Cross-Sectional Studies – that contain genetic material.
study in which developmental  Autosomes – first 22 pairs of
differences are identified by chromosomes.
  Sex Chromosomes – 23rd
pair of chromosomes; these
determine the sex of the child.
X and Y chromosome – boy
X and X – girl
 Deoxyribonucleic acid
(DNA) – molecule composed
of four nucleotide bases
(adenine, thymine, guanine,
and cytosine) that is the
biochemical basis of heredity.
 Gene – group of nucleotide
bases that provides a specific
set of biochemical
instructions.
 Genotype – person’s
hereditary makeup.
 Phenotype – physical,
behavioral, and psychological
features that result from the
interaction between one’s
genes and the environment.
 Alleles – variations of genes.
 Homozygous – when the
alleles in a pair of
chromosomes are the same.
 Heterozygous – when the
alleles in a pair of
chromosomes differ from each
other.
 Dominant – form of an allele
whose chemical instructions
are followed.
 Recessive – allele whose
instructions are ignored in the
presence of a dominant allele.
 Incomplete dominance –
situation in which one allele
does not dominate another
completely.
 Sickle-cell trait – disorder in
which individuals show signs
of mild anemia only when they
are seriously deprived of
oxygen; occurs in individuals
who have one dominant allele
for normal blood cells and one
recessive sickle-cell allele.
Genetic Disorders
 Inherited Disorders
Phenylketonuria (PKU) –
inherited disorder in which the
infant lacks a liver enzyme.
Huntington’s disease –
progressive and fatal type of
dementia caused by dominant
alleles.
 Abnormal Chromosomes
Down syndrome – typically
have an extra 21st
chromosome that is usually
provided by the egg.
Heredity, Environment, and
Development
 Behavioral genetics – the
branch of genetics that studies
the inheritance of behavioral
and psychological traits.
 Polygenetic inheritance –
when phenotypes are the
result of the combined activity
of many separate genes.
 Monozygotic twins – the
result of a single fertilized egg
splitting to form two new
individuals; also called
identical twins.
 Dizygotic twins – the result
of two separate eggs fertilized
by two sperm; also called
fraternal twins.
Paths from Genes to Behavior
 Heredity and environment
interact dynamically
throughout development.
Heritability coefficient – a
measure (derived from a
correlation coefficient) of the
extent to which a trait or
characteristic is inherited.
 Genes can influence the
kind of environment to
which a person is exposed.
Niche-picking – process of
deliberately seeking
 environments that are 4. Egg cell divides for the first
compatible with one’s genetic time.
makeup. 5. 36 hours after fertilization: 2
 Environmental influences cells.
typically make children 6. 48 hours after fertilization: 4
within a family different. cells.
Nonshared environmental 7. 3 days: A cluster of 16-32
influences – forces within a cells.
family that makes sibling 8. 4 days: A hollow ball of about
different from one another. 100 cells.
9. 4-5 days: Zygote enters the
Prenatal development – the many uterus.
changes that turn a fertilized egg 10. 6-7 days: Zygote
into a newborn human. begins to attach to the wall
of the uterus.
Period of the Zygote (Weeks 1-2)
11. 12-14 days: Zygote is
 Zygote – fertilized egg, implanted in the uterine
created when a sperm cell wall.
penetrates an egg. Period of the Embryo (Weeks 3-
 In vitro fertilization – 8)
process by which sperm and
an egg are mixed in a petri  Embryo – term given to the
dish to create a zygote, which zygote once it is completely
is then placed in a woman’s embedded in the uterine wall.
uterus.  Ectoderm – outer layer of the
 Preimplantation genetic embryo, which becomes the
screening (PGS) – a hair, outer layer of skin, and
procedure used to test the nervous system.
heredity of an egg fertilized  Mesoderm – middle layer of
with assisted reproductive the embryo, which becomes
technology, typically to the muscles, bones, and
determine the presence of circulatory system.
genetic disorders.  Endoderm – inner layer of the
 Eugenics – effort to improve embryo, which becomes the
the human species by letting lungs and digestive system.
only people whose  Amnion – inner sac in which
characteristics are valued by a the developing child rests.
society mate and pass along  Amniotic fluid – fluid that
their genes. surrounds the fetus.
1. Ovulation: An egg cell from  Umbilical cord – structure
the ovary enters the Fallopian containing veins and arteries
tube at 9-16 days of the that connects the developing
menstrual cycle. child to the placenta.
2. Fertilization usually takes  Cephalocaudal principal – a
place in the upper third of the principle of physical growth
tube, within 24 hours after that states that structures
ovulation. nearest the head develop first.
3. 24-30 hours after fertilization  Proximodistal principal –
male (sperm) and female principle of physical growth
(egg) chromosome material that states that structures
unite.
 nearest the center of the body
develop first.
Period of the Fetus (Weeks 9-38)
– longest period of prenatal
development, extending from the 9th
until the 38th week after conception.
 Cerebral cortex – wrinkled
surface of the brain that
regulates many functions that
are distinctly human
 Age of viability – age at
which a fetus can survive
outside the womb because
most of its bodily systems
function adequately; typically
at 7 months after conception.
1. 4 weeks after conception:
forming of brain and spinal
cord. By the start of the fetal
period: brain has distinct
structures and regulate
body functions.
2. Near the end of the embryonic
period: male embryos
develop testes and female
embryos develop ovaries.
In the third month: male has
cells to become a penis
and scrotum; female has
cells to become a vagina
and labia.
3. 4 months: fetus moves.
4. Fifth and sixth months:
eyebrows, eyelashes, and
scalp hair emerge.
5. Period of the fetus:
perceptual systems begin
to work. 14 weeks: responds
to touch. 26 weeks:
responds to light. 29 weeks:
responds to sound. 34
weeks: distinguish different
speech sounds.
6. The fetus can learn and
remember.
General Risk Factors
 Nutrition
Folic acid (found in green
leafy vegetables) – is essential
for the spinal cord to develop
properly.
Iron (found in beef, chicken,
beans, spinach, and tofu) – is
necessary to make additional
haemoglobin, which carries
oxygen to the body’s cells.
Calcium (found in milk,
yogurt, and cheese) – is
required to develop strong
teeth and bones as well as a
healthy heart, muscles, and
nerves.
Spina bifida – disorder in
which the embryo’s neural
tube does not close properly.
 Stress – physical and
psychological responses to
threatening or challenging
conditions.
 Mother’s Age
Teratogens – an agent that causes
abnormal prenatal development.
 Drugs
Fetal alcohol spectrum
disorder (FASD) – disorder
affecting babies whose
mothers consumed large
amounts of alcohol while they
were pregnant.
 Diseases
 Environmental Hazards
How Teratogens Influence
Prenatal Development
1. The impact of a teratogen
depends on the genotype
of the organism.
2. The impact of teratogens
changes over the course of
prenatal developments.
3. Each teratogen affects a
specific aspect (or aspects)
of prenatal development.
4. The impact of teratogens
depends on the dose.
 5. Damage from teratogens is irregular. Gradually, they
not always evident at birth become stronger and
but may appear later in rhythmic, enlarging the cervix
life. to approximately 10
centimeters.
Prenatal Diagnosis and 2. The baby passes through
Treatment the cervix and enters the
 Genetic Counseling vagina. The mother helps
 Prenatal Diagnosis push the baby along by
Ultrasound – prenatal contracting muscles in her
diagnostic technique that uses abdomen. Within about an
sound waves to generate an hour, the baby is delivered.
image of the fetus. 3. Lasts only minutes: the
Amniocentesis – prenatal mother pushes a few more
diagnostic technique that uses times to expel the placenta
a syringe to withdraw a (afterbirth).
sample of amniotic fluid Approaches to Childbirth
through the mother’s
abdomen.  Prepared childbirth
Chorionic villus sampling  Natural methods of dealing
(CVS) – prenatal diagnostic with pain are emphasized
technique that involves taking over medical procedures.
a sample of tissue from the  Involvement of a
placenta. supportive adult.
Non-invasive prenatal  Birth need not take place
testing (NIPT) – prenatal in a hospital.
diagnostic technique that
analyses genetic material Birth Complications
released from the placenta  Hypoxia – a birth
that circulates in a pregnant complication in which
woman’s blood stream. umbilical blood flow is
 Fetal Medicine disrupted and the infant does
Fetal therapy – field of
not receive adequate oxygen.
medicine concerned with
 Cesarean section (C-
treating prenatal problems
section) – surgical removal of
before birth.
an infant from the uterus
Fetal surgery
through an incision made in
Genetic Engineering,
the mother’s abdomen.
CRISPR – edit hereditary
 Preterm or premature –
material: genes can be
babies born before the 36 th
removed, turned off, or
week after conception.
replaced off.
 Low birth weight – newborns
Labor – childbirth who weigh less than 2,500
grams (5.5 pounds).
 Crowning – appearance of  Very low birth weight –
the top of the baby’s head newborns who weigh less than
during labor. 1,500 grams (3.3 pounds).
1. 12-24 hours: the uterus  Extremely low birth weight
starts to contract. The first – newborns who weigh less
contractions are weak and
 than 1,000 grams (2.2
pounds).
 Infant Mortality – the
number of infants out of 1,000
births who die before their first
birthday.