Chapter 1 An Introduction to Child Development WHY STUDY CHILD DEVELOPMENT Raising Children Understanding Human Nature Choosing Social Policies HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONS OF THE STUDY OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT Early Philosophers Views of Children Development Plato and Aristotle earliest recorded ideas about children s development o Particularly interested in how children s development is influenced by o Both believed that long term welfare of society depended on the o Plato emphasized self control and discipline as the most important nature and nurture proper raising of children foals of education o Aristotle agreed discipline was necessary but was more concerned with fitting child rearing to the needs of the individual child Plato and Aristotle differed in their views on how children acquired knowledge o Plato children were born with innate knowledge o Aristotle all knowledge comes from experience and that the mind of an infant is like a black board on which nothing has yet been written Locke and Rousseau o Locke was similar to Aristotle viewed children as a tabula rasa or blank slate whose development largely reflects the nurture provided by the child s parents and the broader society o Rousseau believed that children learn primarily from their own spontaneous interactions with objects and other people from than through instruction of parents and teachers ENDURING THEMES IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT 1 Nature and Nurture How Do Nature and Nurture Together Shape Development 2 The Active Child How Do Children Shape Their Own Development 3 Continuity Discontinuity In What Ways is Development Continuous and in What Ways is it Discontinuous 4 Mechanisms of Developmental Change How Does Change Occur 5 The Sociocultural Context How Does the Sociocultural Context Influence 6 Development Individual Differences How Do Children Become So Different from One Another 7 Research and Children s Welfare How Can Research Promote Children s Well Being METHODS FOR STUDYING CHILD DEVELOPMENT Scientific Method Scientific method an approach to testing beliefs that involves choosing a question formulating a hypothesis testing the hypothesis and drawing a conclusion Hypotheses educated guesses Chapter 2 Prenatal Development and the Newborn Period PRENATAL DEVELOPMENT Epigenesis the emergence of new structures and functions in the course of development Conception Gametes reproductive cells eggs and sperm that contain only half the genetic material of all the other cells in the body o Each contains only half the genetic material from the mother and the father o Almost all eggs in a woman are formed during prenatal development while sperm are formed continuously in men Conception the union of an egg from the mother and a sperm from the father o As soon as one sperm head penetrates the outer membrane of the egg a chemical reaction seals the membrane preventing other sperm from entering Zygotes the fertilized egg full genetic material half from mother and half from father Developmental Processes Embryo the name given to the developing organism from the 3rd to 8th week of prenatal development Fetus the name given to the developing organism from the 9th week to birth 4 major developmental processes that underlie the transformation of a zygotes into an embryo and then a fetus o Cell division After fertilization the zygote divides into two equal parts containing full genetic material These two cells then divide into four and so on until the newborn is formed o Cell Migration o Cell differentiation Stem cells embryonic cells which can develop into any type of body cell Cells start to specialize in terms of structure and function Hormones play a crucial role o Death Apoptosis genetically programmed cell death Formation of fingers depends on the death of the cells in between the ridges in the hand plate Hormones are also important for developmental process o If testosterone is present a male sex organ develops if it is absent a female develops Early Development As the zygote travels through the fallopian tube it doubles in number of cells roughly twice a day Identical twins twins that result from the splitting in half of the zygote resulting in each of the two resulting zygotes having exactly the same set of genes Fraternal twins twins that result when two eggs happen to be released into the fallopian tube at the same time and are fertilized by two different sperm fraternal twins have only their genes in common Neural tube a groove formed in the top layer of differentiated cells in the embryo that eventually becomes the brain and spinal cord Amniotic sac a transparent fluid filled membrane that surrounds and protects the fetus Placenta a support organ for the fetus it keeps the circulatory systems of the fetus and mother separate but as a semipermeable membrane permits the exchange of some materials between them o Production of hormones including estrogen increases the flow of maternal blood to uterus and progesterone suppresses uterine contractions that could expel the fetus prematurely Umbilical cord a tube containing the blood vessels connecting the fetus and placenta An Illustrated Summary of Prenatal Development Earlier development takes place at a more rapid pace than later development Cephalocaudal development Areas closer to the head develop earlier than those farther away Fetal Behavior Movement o Important form of fetal movement is swallowing fetus drinks amniotic fluid o Swallowing amniotic fluid prepares the fetus for survival outside the o Fetus starts to move around 5 or 6 weeks o Near the end of pregnancy the fetus spends more than three fourth of its time in quiet and active sleep states like those of newborns womb Behavioral Cycles Fetal Experience Sight and Touch o Fetus does experience tactile stimulation as a result of its own activity o Fetus can detect flavors in the amniotic fluid and likes some more than others o Amniotic fluid also takes on odors from what the mother has eaten o Fetus has olfactory experience Taste Smell Hearing o External sounds that are audible to the fetus include the voices of people talking to the woman o Prenatal environment includes many maternal sounds the mother s heartbeat blood pumping through her vascular system her breathing her swallowing and various rude noises made by her digestive system o Fetus s heart rate decelerates briefly when the mother starts speaking Fetal Learning Habituation a simple form of learning that involves a decrease in response to repeated or continued