AP PSYCHOLOGY
UNIT 9:
DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGY
IDENTIFYING DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGY
• An area of psychology that examines how humans develop
physically, cognitively, and socially throughout the life span.
• 3 areas of research:
• Nature vs. Nurture
• Continuity and stages
• Stability and change
PRENATAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE
NEWBORN
(VIDEO)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WH9ZJu4wRUE
PRENATAL DEVELOPMENT
• Conception: the penetration of 1 sperm cell into the human egg; the egg immediately
forms a barrier and begins to replicate its unique DNA into cells.
• Zygotes: fertilized human egg up until two weeks after conception
• Embryo: developing human from 2 – 8 weeks after conception
• Fetus: developing human from 9 weeks after conception until birth
• Teratogens  any substance that the expectant mother may be exposed to or consume that
may cause harm to the developing fetus (i.e. chemical, drugs/medication, fumes, foods to
be avoided, etc.)
• Alcohol is advised to be avoided during pregnancy due to the risk of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
(FAS) which can result in learning disabilities, developmental delays, and/or severe cognitive
disabilities.
NEWBORN ABILITIES:
1. Automatic responses:
a) Withdrawal of arms/legs to escape pain
b) Turning head when covered with cloth (in order to breathe freely)
c) Rooting: turn head toward a touch around the mouth to suck/feed
2. Simple form of learning  Habituation (decrease in response to
repeated stimulation)
Example: after being shown a new toy in peek-a-boo fashion repeatedly,
the newborn tend to lose interest over time.
3. Turn head toward human voices
4. Recognize human faces vs. inanimate objects
INFANCY AND CHILDHOOD
Physical Development
Cognitive Development
Social Development
Brain: neural networks develop, allow
the baby to walk, talk, and grow
Cognition – all mental activities
Attachment: a bond that is a powerful
survival impulse between parent-child.
Ability to control attention and behavior
Jean Piaget developed theory of
childhood cognitive development. (See
table 9.1 on page 420)
Sensorimotor
Preoperational
Concrete operational
Formal operational
Critical period (usually deals with
animals): time when basic survival
skills…Imprinting
Maturation: physical growth process
over time
Piaget  children develop a schema
(web of information) through personal
experiences
Temperament: a person’s characteristic
emotional reactivity and intensity; tend
to derive from genetics
Physical coordination increases
Assimilation: comprehension of
information based on existing
knowledge base
Basic trust: a sense that world is
predictable and reliable; developed
from a loving/trusting bond with
parents/family
Majority of babies (~75%) are walking
by their 1st birthday
Accommodation: expanding one’s
knowledge base in order to
comprehend a totally new concept
Deprivation of Attachment:
Harlow’s Monkey Experiment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlb
I6jhqk5I
CLASSWORK QUESTIONS:
1. During infancy and childhood, how do the brain and motor
skills develop?
2. From the perspective of Piaget and of today’s researchers,
how does a child’s mind develop?
3. How do parent-infant attachment bonds form?
Parenting Styles
Authoritarian
“No nonsense”; Strict;
Parent-centered
Authoritative
More democratic with
parent having final
decision making power
Permissive
Laissez-faire; more
concerned with being
friends with child and
being liked, rather
than being firm
CLASS DISCUSSION
Think about the evolution of your parents’ parenting style.
1. What are some pros and cons of each of the 3 parenting
styles?
2. How and why has it changed over the years?
3. How and why is their approach different with you and
your siblings?
4. What factors contribute to parenting styles?
GENDER SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES
PAIR-PARTNER DISCUSSION QUESTION:
What are some ways in which males and
females tend to be alike and to differ?
THE NATURE OF GENDER
• What determines gender physically?
• X chromosome – received from your mother
• X or Y chromosome – received from your father
• XX = female (girl)
• XY = male (boy)
• Hormones
• Testosterone: male hormone (determines level of aggression and
sex drive)
• Estrogen: female hormone (determines level of nurturing abilities)
THE NURTURE OF GENDER
• Role  refers to a category of prescribed behaviors expected of a certain group
• Gender role  culturally prescribed behaviors expected by society for males and females
• Ex: Some Native Americans viewed farming (planting/harvesting) as women’s work.
• Ex: In the United States, firefighters are still considered, in general, as men’s work.
• Ex: In Israel, all men and women are required to serve 2 years in the military.
• Gender identity: the sense of being male or female
• Gender typed: the taking on of a particularly traditionally masculine (by males) or feminine role
(by females)
• Ex: A 19 year old male becomes employed by a long distance trucking company.
• Ex: A 19 year old female becomes employed as an assistant at a child care center.
SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY
States that there is a likelihood for an individual to be influenced
to learn and behave according to modeled/taught behavior in
his/her environment.
• Example: “Big boys don’t cry.”
• Example: “Girls are made of sugar and spice and everything
nice.”
• Example: “Boys will be boys.”
• Example: “Young ladies should sit properly, without
slouching.”
SO, WHO HAS THE MOST
INFLUENCE…PARENTS OR PEERS?
IN GENERAL…
During adolescence………………………………PEERS DO!
After adolescence………………..……………PARENTS DO!
ADOLESCENCE
The morphing years between childhood and adulthood
WHAT PHYSICAL CHANGES MARK
ADOLESCENCE?
• Puberty  time span of maturing sexually
• PRIMARY SEX CHARACTERISTICS  body parts directly involved
in reproduction (i.e. reproductive organs and external genitalia)
• SECONDARY SEX CHARACTERISTICS  body parts that are
Indirectly in reproduction (i.e. Breasts, hips, facial hair, deepened
voice, pubic and underarm hair)
FEMALE’S PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
• First menstrual cycle – MENARCHE (ages 11-17).
• Increased cases of menarche at ages as young as 5 or 6 in the last 15 years…WHY???
• Mixed emotions associated with this experience for many females (i.e. fear, pride, excitement,
embarrassment, and apprehension)
• Able to reproduce, but does not physically mature to carry a fetus safely for at least 2-3 years.
• Develop pubic and underarm hair
• Breasts enlarge
• Hips widen
• Growth spurt between ages 10-13
• Strength lies mostly in lower body
MALES’ PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
• First ejaculation (SPERMARCHE) occurs, usually as a nocturnal emission
(“wet dreams”) (ages 11-13)
• Broaden shoulder
• Deepened voice
• Narrow trunk
• Pubic and underarm hair
• Enlarged genitals
• Protruding “Adam’s apple”
• Strength lies mostly in upper body
COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
Adolescents become able to reason abstractly during Piaget’s formal
operations.
• Begin to question parents judgments, religious beliefs, and
authority (in general).
• May lead to heated debates or discussions with parents and/or
authority figures.
• Helps to solidify his/her beliefs, values, and perception of the
world.
KOHLBERG’S
MORAL DEVELOPMENT THEORY
• Pre-conventional morality – (toddler to 9 years old) obey rules to avoid punishment or to
gain rewards
• Conventional morality – (10 years old –teen years) caring for others and understanding
the benefits of laws and rules; may choose on occasion to violate laws/rules if able to get
away
• Post-conventional morality – (teen years – adulthood) golden rule based on a person’s
rights or basic ethical principles
• This portion of Kohlberg’s theory is controversial, due to its lean to individualistic societies of
the Western world.
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
*****See Erik Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development (See Table 9.2 on page 451)******
• Form an identity (social identity)
Crash Course Video: Adolescent Identity Development
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzyXGUCngoU
• Develop appreciation and need for intimacy (close relationships with best
friends and romantic interests)
• Emerging Adulthood
• Parents loosen ties  give more freedoms and responsibilities
• Transition from adolescence to adulthood is taking longer in modern times
in the Western World.
What might be some factors that is elongating this transition process in the
Western World?
EMERGING ADULTHOOD
• Time span from 18 years old until mid-twenties
• Leaving home for college
• Learning time management
• Organizing priorities
• May remain financially depended on parents during this time
• Learn self-efficacy
• Adjust to adult responsibilities
• Decide upon and begin career
ADULTHOOD
Time of realizing one’s life dreams, goals, and purpose.
ADULTHOOD: PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
• Healthy adult females and males reach their physical peak at ~25 years old
• Changes in Middle Adulthood
• Females experience:
•
PERIMENOPAUSE
• Symptoms include irritability, headaches, shorter attention span, moodiness, hot flashes, sweating/night sweats, insomnia
• May last several seconds, minutes, or hours at a time
• MENOPAUSE (12 consecutive months without a menstrual cycle).
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVm4WSaKGqs
• Unable to be impregnated
• Typically occurs between the ages of 45 and 55 for most women
• Change in hormone levels  her general outlook on life determines whether she is carefree or depressed
• Males experience lower sperm counts, lower testosterone levels, loss in speed of erection and
ejaculation
• May experience depression or insecurity as a result
PHYSICAL CHANGES IN LATER LIFE
1. More susceptibility to short-term illness in older adults.
2. Many of the brain’s neurons die as a result of aging process.
3. Adults 90 years or older may eventually become senile.
4. The ability to readily identify previous experiences decreases.
5. Satisfaction with quality of life typically increases in the 50s and gradually
declines in late 60s.
*What might be some factors that influence the decline in satisfaction with the
quality of life?
LIFE EXPECTANCY
Global average
Females : ~ 73 years old
Males: ~68 years old
United States average
Females: ~ 81 years old
Males: ~ 76 years old
DEMENTIA & ALZHEIMERS
Dementia
• Mental erosion caused primarily by
lifestyle factors
• Strokes
• Brain tumors
Alzheimer’s Disease
• Mental erosion caused by genetic
mutation that deteriorates the brain
activities in stages.
• Alcoholism
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwiOBly
Wpko
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZu
51MnqfF4
COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
Aging and Memory
• Phase I: Intelligence Declines (Cross-Sectional Study)
• Phase II: Intellect Remains Stable or Increases
(Longitudinal Study)
• Phase III: Various Factors Determines Intellectual
Decline or Incline
Crystallized vs. Fluid Intelligence
ADULT COMMITMENTS
• Love/Relationships
• Compatibility
• Share Values, Goals, and Morals
• Marriage/Commitment
• Children
• Work
• Form identity based on work status/position
• Community Involvement
• Religious affiliation, community concerns
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
• Social clock: the right time in life to experience certain milestones
• To leave home
• Get a job
• Get marry
• Have children
• Retire from a job
DEATH AND DYING
• Most difficult separation is that of a spouse or of one’s child.
• Women experience this loss 5 times more often than men.
• Grief is more severe when it is sudden or unexpected.
• Stages of Grief (no predictable order of occurrence)
• Denial
• Anger
• Bargaining with God/Nature
• Depression
• Hopelessness
• Acceptance of Death
• There is no rhyme or reasoning for “properly grieving” (i.e. crying early on does not lessen
or shorten the span of grief.
• Bereavement therapy and self-help groups help, but the best help comes in the form of
sympathetic/empathetic family and friends.