DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY
Day 1: Physical Development & Parenting
Developmental Psych:
Physical Development & Parenting

The Developmental Psych Approach

Continuous vs. Discontinuous

Stability vs. Change

Stage Theory

(same order for everybody / not necessarily the same age)
PRENATAL
DEVELOPMENT
Zygote
conception – 2 weeks
period of rapid cell division
Embryo
2 weeks – 3 months
cells attach to mother’s uterine
wall & organs develop
Fetus
3 months - birth
developing human organism
Prenatal Development - TERATOGENS

TERATOGENS: Agents that can reach the
developing embryo or fetus and cause harm
 Alcohol
 Nicotine
 Drugs
(both prescription drugs & “street” drugs)
 Viruses (the flu)
 Toxoplasmosis (contact with cat feces)
 Food poisoning

Teratogens and Prenatal Development
INFANT REFLEXES

Rooting

Grasping

Startle
Baby’s abilities http://www.learner.org/resources/series150.html?pop=yes&pid=161
9#
Primary Reflexes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyVLD0hl0XY
(Moro Reflex)
INFANT VISION

A baby’s vision improves dramatically during the first 6
months as children become able to accommodate (focus)
NEWBORN
1 MONTH
2 MONTHS
3 MONTHS
6 MONTHS
ADULT
Babies’ vision is 40x less
accurate than adults at
seeing fine details
Most of the cells in the
visual cortex are not
yet coated in myelin.
Poor contrast sensitivity
& color recognition.
A newborns rods are
fairly mature but their
cones are not, making it
difficult to decipher fine
lines and color.
Dramatic change
occurs as the visual
cotex begins to control
vision better. Vision
has caught up to other
senses. Depth
perception is still not
accurate.
A baby can focus at
different distances as
well as an adult can.
Their ability to see fine
details is only 8xworse
than ours, 5x better
than it was at birth.
Between age 6-7 years,
a child’s vision reaches
adult values
Babies like to look at complex shapes & faces
IMPRINTING:
the process by which animals form attachments during a limited critical period early in life

Owen the baby hippo & Mzee, the 130-year-old
tortise
IMPRINTING
Tink the dachsand & her piglet “puppy”, Pink.
Newborn Capacities

Habituation: describes
infants’ decreasing
responsiveness to
repeated stimuli.
Researchers infer that
newborns have
cognitive ability to
differentiate between
different visual stimuli.
What’s your earliest memory?
Our earliest memories rarely predate our 3rd birthday.
This is called “INFANTILE AMNESIA”.
Why don’t we remember earlier events?
Our brains are still developing
Limited language before age 3 – we remember in words
EARLY MEMORY FORMATION
MATURATION:



Biological growth processes that enable orderly
changes in behavior that are relatively unaffected
by experience
In terms of brain development, natural maturation causes neural
interconnection to multiply rapidly after birth.
However, severe deprivation and abuse will retard development.
Furthermore, increased stimulation will cause early neural connections.
Maturation sets the basic course of development; experience adjusts it.
Normal Maturation
1632-1704
key name
John LOCKE
Proposed that when children
are born they are “Tabula
Rasa”

“Tabula Rasa” = blank slate
1896-1980
key name
Jean PIAGET
Constructed a stage theory of
Cognitive Development

Observed that children think
differently than adults

Piaget & Cognitive Development
SCHEMA
A concept or framework that organizes and interprets information
Assimilation
Make new
information fit into
existing schemas
Accommodation
Adjust your
schema to fit new
information
SCHEMA
“Heart” =
Assimilation Make new information fit into existing schemas
Accomodation
Adjusting your schema to fit new information
ASSIMILATION vs. ACCOMMODATION
Assimilation
When a student downloads music by an artist
that is already on the iPod, this can be
compared to assimilation (adding a new bit of
info to an existing schema).
Accommodation
When a student downloads music by a new
artist, this can be compared to
accommodation (creating a new 'folder' is
like building a new schema)
SCHEMA
Examples?
Work with a partner to write down two real life
examples of assimilation, and two examples of
accomodation.
Assimilation
Make new information fit into existing schemas
Accommodation
Adjusting your schema to fit new information
GENDER SCHEMA
A concept or framework that organizes and
interprets information about what it means to
be a boy or a girl
How do we develop our gender schemas?
Exit Ticket




On a half-sheet of paper, answer the following
questions:
1. What are teratogens? Give one example
and define the term in your own words.
2. Describe two of the primary infant reflexes
we discussed today.
3. What is infantile amnesia?
Piaget’s 4 Stages of Cognitive Development
Sensorimotor Birth – 2 years
stage
Lack object permanence (until about age 8-10 months)
Develop separation anxiety at about 12 months.
Stanger anxiety also occurs in this stage.
1
Piaget’s 4 Stages of Cognitive Development
Preoperational
2 – 6 years
stage
2
Egocentric (which does not (in Piagetian thought) mean selfishness, but rather the inability to take
another's perspective or even to recognize that others have different perspectives and points of view. )
Use of symbols (especially language; difficulty using more than one
category)
Representational thought
Role Playing
Animism, or the tendency to attribute psychological properties to inanimate
objects.
Piaget’s 4 Stages of Cognitive Development
Concrete 6 – 12 years
By age 7, develop law of conservation
Can sort objects into multiple categories
(color & size, for example)
stage
3
Piaget’s 4 Stages of Cognitive Development
Formal 12 years - adult
Abstract thinking
Can think hypothetically
stage
4
PARENTING STYLES
“Because I
said so.”
AUTHORITARIAN
rhymes with “Totalitarian”
Authoritarian parents impose rules and expect obedience.
PERMISSIVE
Permissive parents submit to their child’s desires, make few
demands and use little punishment.
“Whatever.”
“Let’s talk AUTHORITATIVE
about it.” Authoritative parents encourage open discussion and allow for exceptions
when enforcing rules.
PARENTING STYLES - consequences
AUTHORITARIAN
rhymes with “Totalitarian”
– anxious, withdrawn, and unhappy disposition
– poor reactions to frustration
– (girls are particularly likely to give up & boys become especially
hostile)
– do well in school
– (studies may show authoritative parenting is comparable)
– not likely to engage in antisocial activities
PARENTING STYLES - consequences
PERMISSIVE
-poor emotion regulation (under regulated)
-rebellious and defiant when desires are
challenged.
-low persistence to challenging tasks
-antisocial behaviors
PARENTING STYLES - consequences
AUTHORITATIVE
-lively and happy disposition
-self-confident about ability to master tasks.
-well developed emotion regulation
-developed social skills
Dum Dums and Gloquex Activity