Lecture 1

• Link important development to certain age =

  normative development
• Young-old


  60/65-80 years. Still relatively healthy, active.
• Old-old

  80 years, increased risk for physical and cognitive problems
• Changes are NOT explained by

  biological age
• Variability


  short-term changes that are more or ;less reversible
• change

  more or less enduring
• variability can predict...

  change
• age in continuous way

  age x ability correlation
• age compared specific age groups

  mean age difference in ability X
• cross-sectional designs


  individuals of different ages at one point in time
• longitudinal designs


  the same individuals across different points in time
• cross-sectional measures..

  differences
• longitudinal measures..

  change
• cohort

  any group that shares having experienced the same cultural environment and historical events (e.g., same year of birth)
• Cohort effect

  differences in developmentally relevant variables that arise from (non-age-related) factors to which each birth cohort is exposed
• Cross-sectional advantages

  -economic in time (short duration between assessment and results) -rather cheap -shows similarities and differences between age groups
• Cross-sectional disadvantages


  -no info on individual trajectories(interindividual differences instead of intraindividual change) -age effects confounded with cohort effects -limited genealizability to other times of measurement
• Longitudinal advantages


  -true assassment of intraindividual change -assessment of stability and change of developmental characteristics
• Longitudinal disadvantages


  ▪ Age effects confounded with time-of-measurement effects / retest effects / attrition effects ▪ Limited generalizability to other cohorts ▪ Long duration ▪ High costs
• Sequence models


  both cross-sectional and longitudinal
• Assessment methods

  ▪ Self-report vs. report by proxy (e.g., parent, spouse, caregiver) - Interview - Questionnaires - Diaries ▪ Behavioral observation [naturalistic versus structured] ▪ Standardized Tests/Test batteries [comparison to norms] ▪ Experiments [Comparison of age groups or experimental conditions with behavioral or neuro-biological data as outcome]
• Research challenges

  ▪ Speech reception and production ▪ Sensumotoric abilities ▪ Suggestibility ▪ Attention span/Fatigue ▪ Subjective meaning of concepts ▪ Proportion of undiagnosed clinical impairment
• Principles of lifespan psychology

  1. Lifelong 2. Multidimensional and multidisciplinary 3. Multidirectional 4. Gains and losses 5. Plastic 6. Embedded in history 7. Contextualized