Psikologi Anak
Pertemuan 2
Biological beginnigs, physical
development, and health
Prenatal Development
• The Course of Prenatal Development
– The Germinal Period
– The Embryonic Period
– The Fetal Period
Prenatal Development
– Teratology and Hazards to Prenatal Development
• Teratogen
– From the Greek word Tera, meaning “monster.” Any
agent that causes a birth defect. The field of study that
investigates the causes of birth defects is called
teratology.
– The severity of damage and type of defect from any
particular teratogen depends on dose, genetic
susceptibility, and time of exposure.
Prenatal Development
Teratogens and the Timing of Their Effects on Prenatal Development
Prenatal Development
Teratology and Hazards to Prenatal Development
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Prescription and Nonprescription Drugs
Psychoactive drugs
Alcohol
Incompatible blood types
Maternal diseases: Rubella, syphilis, genital herpes, AIDS
Maternal diet and nutrition
Emotional states and stress
Maternal age
Paternal factors
Environmental hazards
Birth
• The Birth Process
– Childbirth Setting and Attendants
– Methods of Childbirth
– The Transition from Fetus to Newborn
• Assessing the Newborn
– The Apgar Scale
– Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS)
– Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Network Neurobehavioral
Scale (NNNS)
• Low Birth Weight and Preterm Infants
The Postpartum Period
• What Is the Postpartum Period?
– The period after childbirth when the mother adjusts,
both physically and psychologically, to the process of
childbirth. This period lasts for about 6 weeks or until
her body has completed its adjustments and returned
to a nearly prepregnant state.
• Physical Adjustments
• Emotional and Psychological Adjustments
• Bonding
Physical Development
• Body growth and change
Changes in Proportions of the Human Body During Growth
Body Growth and Change
• Infancy and Childhood
– Early Childhood
• Physical problems, growth hormone deficiency, or
emotional difficulties may retard growth.
• Growth hormone deficiency: The absence or deficiency
of growth hormone produced by the pituitary gland.
– Can be treated with injections of growth hormone
for several years.
The Brain
Four lobes of the cortex:
• Frontal lobes: Govern
voluntary movement,
thinking, personality, and
intentionality or purpose.
• Occipital lobes: Control
vision.
• Temporal lobes: Govern
hearing, language processing,
and memory.
• Parietal lobes: Govern spatial
location, attention, and motor
control.
The Brain: Infancy
• Changing Structures
– The frontal lobe is immature at birth, but increased
myelination and neural connections during the first year
enhance the ability to regulate physiological states and
gain more control over reflexes.
– 2 months: development of motor control centers allow
reaching and grabbing.
– 4 months: neural connections for depth perception begin
to form.
– 12 months: speech centers ready to produce language.
The Brain: Childhood
– Brain growth is slower than in infancy, but the brain and
the head grow faster than other parts of the body.
• Increase, due to myelination (which is not complete
until the end of middle or late childhood), in number
and size of dendrites.
• Most rapid growth from age 3 to 6 is in frontal lobe
areas (planning and organizing new actions and
maintaining attention to tasks).
• Most rapid growth from age 6 through puberty is in
temporal and parietal lobes, especially for language
and spatial relations.
Sleep
• Sleep restores, replenishes, and rebuilds the brain
and body.
• allows neurons that have been used during
waking to shut down and repair themselves.
Infancy
– Newborns sleep 16 to 17 hours
a day, although some sleep
more and others sleep less.
– By age 1 month most infants
sleep longer at night.
– By age 4 months their patterns
are closer to adult sleep
patterns.
– Shared Sleeping
– Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Childhood
– Most young children sleep through the
night and have one daytime nap
– Sixth-graders go to bed an hour later
than second-graders and report more
daytime sleepiness.
– Sleep problems: Nightmares
(frightening dreams that awaken the
sleeper) and night terrors (sudden
arousal from sleep with intense fear
and physiological reactions) are
common sleep problems.
Health
Illnesses and Injuries among Children and Adolescents
Early Childhood:
Middle and Late Childhood:
• Vaccines have nearly eradicated • Mostly a time of excellent
many diseases.
health.
• Birth defects, cancer, and heart
• Motor vehicle accidents are the
disease are the disorders that are
most common cause of severe
most likely to be fatal to children
injury and death; this can be
under age 5 today.
reduced by use of seat belts.
• Accidents are the leading cause
• Cancer is the second leading
of death in young children.
cause of death for this age
• Parental smoking puts children at
group.
risk for respiratory problems and
vitamin C deficiency.
Health
• Nutrition and Eating Behavior: Infancy
– The importance of adequate energy and nutrient intake
consumed in a loving and supportive environment during
the infant years cannot be overstated (Samour, Helm, &
Lang, 2000).
– Breast-feeding versus bottle-feeding: Benefits include
appropriate weight gain, fewer allergies, prevention and
reduction of diseases, denser bones in childhood and
adulthood, reduced childhood cancer, lower incidence of
SIDS, and better visual acuity.
Health
• Nutrition and Eating Behavior: Infancy
– Breast-feeding versus Bottle-feeding
• Avoid breast-feeding when the mother has AIDS,
tuberculosis, or is taking a drug that might not be safe
for the infant.
Health
• Nutrition and Eating Behavior: Infancy
– Malnutrition in Infancy
• Marasmus: A wasting away of body tissues in the
infant’s first year, caused by severe protein-calorie
deficiency.
• Kwashiorkor: A condition caused by a deficiency in
protein in which the child’s abdomen and feet become
swollen with water.
• The effects of nutrition in infancy extend at least into
early childhood
Health
• Nutrition and Eating Behavior: Childhood
• Children in many developing countries face
malnutrition and starvation daily.
• In the U.S. 11 million preschool children are
malnourished, putting their health at risk; malnutrition
is associated with problem behaviors as they get older.
• Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women,
Infants, and Children (WIC) provides nutrition and
counseling on nutrition to low-income participants.
Health
Nutrition and Eating Behavior: Childhood
• Health and Unhealthy Eating
– Eating habits have shifted from healthy foods to
salty snacks, soft drinks, pizza, and high-fat
• Obesity
– Energy requirements depend on physical activity
and basal metabolism rate (BMR).
– Obesity increases the risk of developing medical
and psychological problems.
– Combining proper diet with exercise and behavior
modification.