Developmental
Psychology
Ch 10, 11, 12
Developmental Psychology
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Developmental Psychology- branch of
psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and
social change throughout the lifetime
Maturation- automatic, orderly, sequential
process of physical and mental development
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Relatively unaffected by experience
Growth Cycles- orderly patterns of
development
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By age 8, 95% of the brain structure is complete but
only 55% of the bodily structure is complete
Infancy
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Newborns prefer human voices and faces
Newborns prefer the sound and smell of their
mother
Newborns become bored with repeated stimulus
but their attention renews with new stimulus
Preferred ->
Infancy
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Babies as young at 3
months can learn that
kicking and moving will
move a mobile
Development begins with
reflexes
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If you place your finger in
the palm of an infant they
will grasp it
Reflexes go away over time
as the brain begins to make
decisions
Infancy
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Critical Period- specific period of development that is
the only time when a particular skill can develop or a
particular association can occur
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Imprinting- biological process in which young species
follow and become attached to their mother
Attachment- emotional tie with another person
Separation Anxiety- infants and young children show
distress when removed from caregiver
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For dogs it is the first 12 weeks
Birds accept almost anything as a “mother”
http://www.videodetective.com/movie_trailer/FLY_
AWAY_HOME/trailer/P00006650.htm
Harry Harlow Monkey Experiment
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Harry Harlow made 2 “mothers”
One was made of wire, hard,
cold– but had milk
The other was made of cloth,
soft, fuzzy- but did not have milk
Monkeys preferred the soft
mother, even though “she” did
not have what was needed for
survival
http://video.google.com/videopl
ay?docid=2364883146140025008
#
Infancy
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If learning during the critical period is missed,
humans may not acquire this knowledge
throughout the rest of their lives
Humans and animals need constant amounts of
touch during this time period
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Children in orphanages in 3rd world countries
Feral Children- children reared by animals
Genie Case Study
Childhood
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Nuclear Family- parents and their children
Extended Family- nuclear family plus relatives (grandparents,
aunts, uncles, cousins)
Parenting Styles: Permissive, Authoritarian, Authoritative
Permissive- parents let children do whatever they want, few
rules made/enforced
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Authoritarian- parents rigidly set rules and demand obedience
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Creates impulsive and irresponsible children
Creates children who have low self esteem and can not make
decisions
Authoritative- parents seek input from children, parents are
consistent yet flexible
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Creates self-reliant and self-confident children
Childhood
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Parenting Styles Skit
Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive
Development
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Jean Piaget
Cognitive Development- ways in which thinking
and reasoning grow and change
Created 4 Stages of Cognitive Development
Children must progress through each stage of
development
Typical Age
Range
Description
of Stage
Developmental
Phenomena
Birth to nearly 2 years
Sensorimotor
Experiencing the world through
senses and actions (looking,
touching, mouthing)
•Object permanence
•Stranger anxiety
About 2 to 6 years
Preoperational
Representing things
with words and images
but lacking logical reasoning
•Pretend play
•Egocentrism
•Language development
About 7 to 11 years
Concrete operational
Thinking logically about concrete
events; grasping concrete analogies
and performing arithmetical operations
•Conservation
•Mathematical
transformations
About 12 through
adulthood
Formal operational
Abstract reasoning
•Abstract logic
•Potential for
moral reasoning
Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive
Development
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Object Permanence- awareness that things continue to
exist even when not perceivable (visible)
Conservation- the idea that an objects characteristics
can be changed while others remain the same
Changing shape does not change volume
 2 pieces of the same clay, roll one into a long cylinder, leave
the other in a sphere shape– they are still the same
mass/size
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4. Possible outcome:
Screen drops, revealing
one object.
1. Objects placed
in case.
2. Screen comes
up.
3. Object is removed.
4. Impossible outcome:
Screen drops, revealing
two objects.
Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Dev
Cont
 Schema- framework to organize information
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Assimilation- interpreting one’s new experience in
terms of existing schemas
Accommodation- adapting one’s schemas to
incorporate new information (make a new schema)
Ex. Dogs and Cats
All animals with 4 legs are dogs, see a cat, call it a dog
Cats are not dogs so must make a new schema for cats
Now they see a squirrel and say cat (assimilation) until
they make a new schema for squirrels
(accommodation)
Kohlberg’s Ladder of Moral
Development
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Lawrence Kohlberg
3 Levels- move from bottom to top
Preconventional Level- 1st stage, morality is
based on the power of an outside authority
Conventional Level- 2nd stage, morality is based
on the expectations of others
Postconventional Level- 3rd stage, morality is
based on personal ethics and human rights
Adolescence
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Adolescence- period of development between
childhood and adulthood
Erikson’s Theory of Social
Development
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Erik Erikson developed a theory regarding how
we develop socially (personality)
8 stage theory that goes from birth to death
Obstacles at each stage you must overcome or
you can not move on to the next stage
Battle between group identity and alienation for
adolescence
Erikson’s Stages of Social
Development
Approximate
age
Stage
Description of Task
Infancy
(1st year)
Trust vs. mistrust
If needs are dependably met, infants
develop a sense of basic trust.
Toddler
(2nd year)
Autonomy vs. shame Toddlers learn to exercise will and
and doubt
do things for themselves, or they
doubt their abilities.
Preschooler
(3-5 years)
Initiative vs. guilt
Preschoolers learn to initiate tasks
and carry out plans, or they feel
guilty about efforts to be independent.
Elementary
(6 yearspuberty)
Competence vs.
inferiority
Children learn the pleasure of applying
themselves to tasks, or they feel
inferior.
Erikson’s Stages of Social
Development
Approximate
age
Stage
Description of Task
Adolescence
(teens into
20’s)
Identity vs. role
confusion
Teenagers work at refining a sense of self by
testing roles and then integrating them to
form a single identity, or they become
confused about who they are.
Young Adult
(20’s to early
40’s)
Intimacy vs.
isolation
Young adults struggle to form close relationships and to gain the capacity for intimate
love, or they feel socially isolated.
Middle Adult
(40’s to 60’s)
Generativity vs.
stagnation
The middle-aged discover a sense of contributing to the world, usually through family
and work, or they may feel a lack of purpose.
Late Adult
(late 60’s and
up)
Integrity vs.
despair
When reflecting on his or her life, the older
adult may feel a sense of satisfaction or
failure.
Marcia’s Stages of Identity
Development
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James Marcia
4 Stages of Identity Development for
adolescents
Do not have to hit each stage or progress in a
certain way through stages
Marcia’s Stages of Identity
Development
Identity Achievement
Identity Foreclosure
-Adolescent
is not currently
searching and has developed an
identity
-Figured out on their own “who
they are”
Identity Moratorium
-Adolescent
-Adolescent
-Adolescent
is currently
searching but has not developed
an identity
-Will figure out “who they are”
after searching
is not currently
searching but has developed an
identity
-Accepting what others have told
them as “who they are”
Identity Diffusion
is not currently
searching and has not developed
an identity
-Does not care to figure out
“who they are”
Adulthood
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Early Adulthood (20-39)
Main things:
Marriage (and possibly divorce)
 Starting a family and having kids
 Maintaining a career
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Middle Adulthood (40-59)
Main things:
Midlife transition
 Physical decline
 Menopause
 Empty Nest Syndrome
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Adulthood
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Late Adulthood (60 and up)
Main things:
Physical decline (heart problems, stroke, cancer)
 Reaction time and mental sharpness decline
(dementia and Alzheimer's)
 Retirement and isolation (perhaps institutionalized)
 Bereavement and grief
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Death and Dying
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Thanatology- study of death
Grief Cycle- 5 step process developed by Elisabeth
Kubler-Ross
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Must move through all stages to properly grieve
DABDA
Denial- do not believe, in shock
 Anger- mad at self, others, God
 Bargaining- usually with God
 Depression- sadness, unable to talk about it or deal with it
 Acceptance- able to accept death and talk about it or deal
with it
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