Chapter 1 “The Study of Human Development”:- Human development-Study of patterns of change and stability in human growth throughout life.It has the following characteristics: 1. Systematic (organized) 2. Adaptive (to internal/external) conditions (ex: kids who have stairs in their house may be more adapted to stairs in a mall than a kid in a one story house)3. Lifespan development (It is a lifelong process. Long ago it was assumed that development ended at age 18, we now know we mature our entire life)- The goals of human development are to 1. Describe (ex: when child says first word), 2. Explain (ex: how children acquire language), 3. Predict (ex: likelihood that a child will have a serious speech problem), 4. Intervene (ex: give a child speech therapy).- Domains of Development: Physical, Cognitive, and Psychosocial. Development is a unified process and all three domains work together. -Physical development: growth of body and brain, including patterns of change in sensory capacities, motor skills, and health. -Cognitive development: patterns of change in mental abilities, such as learning, attention, memory, language, thinking, reasoning, and creativity. -Psychosocial development: patterns of change in emotions, personality, and social relationships. - Periods of Lifespan-Lifespan periods are social constructs-a concept that may appear natural and obvious to those who accept it, but in reality is an invention of a particular culture or society. (Ex 1: some parents in the pacific islands beat their 3-5 year old children if they cry) (Ex 2: childhood, adolescence, adulthood, “when are you defined as an adult”?- does smoking cigs, buying alcohol, fighting in a war, voting, getting married, etc. make one an adult?) - The Eight Periods of Human Development:1) Prenatal Period (conception-birth)-Physical developments: Conception occurs, genetic endowment interacts w/ environmentalinfluences, basic body structures and organs form, vulnerability to environment -Cognitive developments: Abilities to learn and remember and respond to stimuli develop -Psychosocial developments: Fetus responds to mother’s voice2) Infancy and Toddlerhood (birth-age 3)-Physical developments: All senses and body systems operate to varying degrees, the brain grows in complexity, and physical growth and development of motor skills are rapid -Cognitive developments: Ability to learn and remember, use of symbols and ability to solve problems develop by end of second year, comprehension and use of language develop -Psychosocial developments: attachment to parents, self-awareness, and interest in children3) Early Childhood (age 3-6)4) Middle Childhood (age 6-11)5) Adolescence (age 11-20)6) Emerging Adulthood (age 20-40)7) Middle Adulthood (age 40-65)8) Late Adulthood (age 65+)- Influences on Development:1) Heredity: inborn traits or characteristics inherited from the biological parents -NATURE-DNA, chromosomes, genes,-We share more DNA with our siblings than our parents 2) 2) Environment: totality of nonhereditary, or experiential, influences on development -NURTURE-Begins in the womb-Parents, siblings, schools, neighborhoods3) Maturation: unfolding of a natural sequence of physical and behavioral changes over time-Throughout life, maturation continues to influence certain biological processes, such as brain development - Contexts of Development: Contexts: environment, philosophies, institutions, background *1) Family: especially with a significant other when bringing two people together with different backgrounds.-Nuclear Family: two generational network of one or two parents and their biological children, adopted children, or step children -Extended Family: multigenerational network parents, children, and other relatives2) Socioeconomic Status: Combination of economic and social factors describing an individual or family, including income, education, and occupation (ex: where you live)3) Gender Roles: girls do the laundry, while boys mow the lawn4) Culture: a society’s total way of life. (ethnicity, language, religion, geographic location)-Ethnic group: consists of people united by a distinctive culture, ancestry, religion, language, or national origins, which contribute to a sense of shared identity. -Ethnic gloss: an overgeneralized idea of a culture group - Influences on Development: 1) Normative: biological or environmental events that affect many or most people in a group. This is what we expect to happen. 2) Normative Age Graded Influences: what we go through at specific ages (puberty, realization of no Santa, when we stop losing our teeth)3) Normative History Graded Influences: events that shape the behavior of the people who went through it. (ex: some young children don’t know what 9-11 is, yet they are heavily influenced by technology advances today)-Cohort: group of people born at the same time-Historical generation: group of people influenced by a major historical event 4) Non-normative Influences: characteristics of an unusual event that happens to a particular person or a typical event that happens at an unusual time of life-Affect the individual uniquely. (ex: divorced parents, illness, disease, trauma)- Imprinting: instinctive form of learning in which, during a critical period in early development, a young animal forms an attachment to the first moving object it sees, usually its mother. - Critical Period: Specific time when a given event or its absence has a specific impact on devel.- Plasticity- molding of the brain through experience. - Sensitive Periods: times in development when a person is open to certain experiences Chapter 2 “Theoretical Perspectives on Human Development”:- Children have internal drives and needs that influence development, but children are also social animals who cannot develop in isolation. - Two contrasting models: 1) Mechanistic Model 2) Organismic Model 1) Mechanistic Model-People are like machines that react to environmental input. If we know enough about how the machine is put together & the forces acting on it, we can predict what the person will do-See development as continuous and always governed by the same processes-Deal with quantitative changes- changes in the number or amount2) Organismic Model-People are active, growing organisms that set their own development in motion. They initiate events; they do not just react. The driving force is internal, not external. -See development as occurring in a series of stages like stair
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