 | Term | Definition |
| |
developmental psychology |
a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span |
| |
zygote |
the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo |
| |
embryo |
the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month |
| |
fetus |
the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth |
| |
teratogens |
agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm |
| |
fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) |
physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman's heavy drinking. In severe cases, symptoms include noticeable facial disproportions |
| |
rooting reflex |
a baby's tendency, when touched on the cheek, to open the mouth and search for the nipple |
| |
habituation |
decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation. As infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to a visual stimulus, their interest wanes and they look away sooner |
| |
maturation |
biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience |
| |
schema |
a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information |
| |
assimilation |
interpreting one's new experiences in terms of one's existing schemas |
| |
accommodation |
adapting one's current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information |
| |
cognition |
all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating |
| |
sensorimotor stage |
in Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities |
| |
object permanence |
the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived |
| |
preoperational stage |
in Piaget's theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic |
| |
conservation |
the principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects |
| |
egocentrism |
in Piaget's theory, the inability of the preoperational child to take another's point of view |
| |
theory of mind |
people's ideas about their own and others' mental states- about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts and the behavior these might predict |
| |
autism |
a disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and understanding of other's states of mind |
| |
concrete operational stage |
in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 6 or 7 to 11 years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events |
| |
formal operational stage |
use abstract thinking, strategize (play games, chess, monopoly) (12 years of age through adulthood) |
| |
stranger anxiety |
the fear of stranger's that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age |
| |
attachment |
an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation |
| |
critical period |
an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism's exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development |
| |
imprinting |
the process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life |
| |
basic trust |
according to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy; said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers |
| |
self-concept |
a sense of one's identity and personal worth |
| |
adolescence |
the transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence |
| |
puberty |
the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing |
| |
primary sex characteristics |
the body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible |
| |
secondary sex characteristics |
non reproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair |
| |
menarche |
the first menstrual period |
| |
identity |
one's sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles |
| |
intimacy |
in Erikson's theory, the ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood |
| |
menopause |
the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines |
| |
Alzheimer's disease |
a progressive and irreversible brain disorder characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, languages, and, finally, physical functioning |
| |
cross-sectional study |
a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another |
| |
longitudinal study |
research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period |
| |
crystallized intelligence |
one's accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age |
| |
fluid intelligence |
one's ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood |
| |
social clock |
the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement |
