Dev Psych (ITP)

• Developmental psychology


  A scientific approach which aims to explain growth, change and consistency though the lifespan. Developmental psychology looks at how thinking, feeling, and behavior change throughout a person's life
• Theoretical areas studied by developmental psychologists

  • Biological
  • Social
  • Emotion
  • Cognitive processes
• Historical origins of developmental psychology


  Discipline did not exist until after the industrial revolution when the need for an educated workforce led to the social construction of childhood as a distinct stage in a person's life. Early research derived from the Western world and focused on studying the mind of the child to improve education and learning
• Wilhelm Preyer published a book entitled The Mind of the Child, marking the emergence of developmental psychology as a specific discipline


  1882
• Developmental psychology


  The branch of psychology that studies the patterns of growth and change occurring throughout life. It studies the interaction between the unfolding of biologically determined patterns of behavior and a constantly changing dynamic environment
• Nature (Hereditary Influence)


  We are a product of our genetic inheritance, the characteristics and physical features of our ancestors
• Nurture (Environmental Influence)


  We are also shaped by our unique experiences and opportunities, especially by what we have learned
• Nativism


  The theory that genetic factors play the largest role in development
• Empiricism


  Stresses the role of the environment in development. According to empiricists, people are shaped by their families, societies and the physical environments. Heredity simply gives us the raw materials to work with
• The idea of Charles Darwin's Natural Selection clearly explains how nature controls/defines its desired characteristics/traits
• Modern humans originated in Africa within the past 200,000 years and evolved from their most likely recent common ancestor, Homo erectus
• Human evolution


  • Australopithecus
  • Homo Habilis
  • Homo Erectus
  • Homo Sapiens
  • Homo Sapiens Neanderthalensis
  • Homo Sapiens Sapiens
• Conception


  Development (Life) begins with conception. Biologically, life starts when a male's sperm cell penetrates a female's egg (fertilization), marking the moment of conception
• Prenatal period


  The period of development between conception and birth
• Phases of prenatal development

  • Germinal phase (weeks 1-2)
  • Embryonic phase (weeks 3-8)
  • Fetal phase (weeks 9-38)
• Zygote


  Fertilized egg cell that results from the union of a female gamete (egg, or ovum) with a male gamete (sperm)
• Embryo


  The developing human at 2 – 8 weeks following conception
• Fetus


  Developing human from about eight weeks after conception to birth
• Pregnancy lasts about 280 days or 40 weeks. There are 4 stages of the pregnancy timeline including: 1st trimester, 2nd trimester, 3rd trimester & birth
• The first organ system to develop during organogenesis is the cardiovascular system. The heart has established its four chambers by four weeks of development, whereas week six involves cardiac outflow separation and descent of the heart (and lungs) into the thorax
• As you enter into the 8th month of pregnancy, baby movements tend to increase. At 8 months pregnant, the baby's position changes and the baby moves into the pelvis, with its head facing downward
• Only 5% of babies are born on their due dates
• The brain and spinal cord continue to form and develop throughout pregnancy
• Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG)


  This hormone is only made during pregnancy. It is made almost exclusively in the placenta. HCG hormone levels found in the mother's blood and urine rise a lot during the first trimester. They may play a part in the nausea and vomiting often linked to pregnancy
• A newborn baby's brain weighs about 400 grams. (The human brain weighs approximately about 1.4 kilograms)
• The development of immune defense mechanisms begins early during fetal life but is not yet completed at birth
• Placenta


  The structure through which nutrients and oxygen are delivered to the embryo and wastes are removed
• Teratogen


  A substance that produces physical defects in the embryo
• Teratogens


  • Medications
  • Recreational drugs
  • Tobacco products
  • Chemicals
  • Alcohol
• Neonate


  An infant through the first month of life
• Pregnancy hormones

  • Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HcG)
  • Progesterone
  • Estrogen
  • Testosterone
  • Relaxin
  • Oxytocin
  • Prolactin
• Development

  The predictable sequence of physical and psychological changes that occur as we age. A progressive series of changes that occur as a result of maturation and experience
• Significant facts about development

  • Early foundations are critical
  • Maturation and Learning play important roles in development
  • Development follows a definite and predictable pattern
  • All individuals are different
  • Each phase of development has characteristic behavior
  • Each phase of development has hazards
  • Development is aided by stimulation
  • Development is affected by cultural changes
  • There are social expectations for every stage of development
  • There are traditional beliefs about people of all ages
• Growth


  The process of growing and developing; an increase, as in size and number
• Atrophy


  A wasting or shrinking of bodily organ, tissue or part
• Stage


  A period in which behavior and experience change very little
• Transition


  A period in which behavior and experience change abruptly
• Sensitive period


  A time of special sensitivity in the development of any organism in which certain events must occur or others must be avoided in order for the individual to develop normally
• Maturation


  The developmental processes that are determined by the individual's biological inheritance. The unfolding of the genetically programmed process of growth and development over time
• Trait

  Any observable physical or behavioral characteristic of an individual. The traits that children inherit from their parents are determined at the moment of conception