Child development
the scientific study of the patterns of growth, change and stability that occur from conception through adolescence.
-scientific study
-patterns
-growth
-change
-stability
physical development
examines: the brain, nervous system, muscles, developmental milestones, and needs for food drink and sleep.
Cognitive Development
examines: learning, memory, problem solving, intelligence.
Personality Development
includes the stability and change of enduring characteristics that differentiate one person from another.
Social Development
examines how social relationships grow, change and remain stable over the course of life.
periods of development
prenatal
infancy and toddlerhood
preschool
middle childhood
adolescence
prenatal
conception to birth
infancy and ToddlerHood
birth to age 3
Preschool
age 3 to 6
middle childhood
age 6 to 12
adolescence
age 12-20
Diverse Focuses
specific age range for all topics
specific topic for all age ranges
diverse backgrounds
psychological, genetics, medicine, educational research
Cultural factors
individualism
collectivism
race
ethnicity
Individualism
everyone can be who all he/she can be. develop yourself, to stand out. be superstars.
collectivism
not so much to stand out, but to be apart of the group.
focus on community and society, and seek to give priority to group rights over individual rights
Race
biological, genetic, color.
ethnicity
learned, religion, environment.
Cohort
a group of people born at around the same time in the same place.
NOT THE SAME AS A PEER.
Ex: Obama becoming the 1st black president.
Zeitgeist
the spirit of the time; general trend of thought or feeling characteristic of a particular period of time.
history- graded influences
biological and environmental influences associated with a particular historical moment.
(9/11, Iraqi war)
Age-graded influences
biological and environmental influences that are similiar for individuals in a particular age group, regardless of when or where they are raised
Rites of Passage, puberty
Sociocultural-graded influences
ethnicity
social class
subcultural membership
other factors
non-normative LIfe Events
specific, atypical events that occur in a particular person's life at a time when such events do not happen to most people.
losing parent at young age, accidents etc.
Pre-1600
children were simply short adults. Adults considered them to be like minni-mes. they dresses them just like them, the adults did not disclose information from the children that adults would normally disclose nowdays.
this was found from paintings, and documents.
John Locke
considered a child to be a "tabula rasa" which is latin for "blank slate". IN this view children entered the world with no specific characteristics or personalities. they were entirely shaped by their experiences as they grew up.
Rousseau
argued that children were noble savages, meaning that they were born with an innate sense of right and wrong and morality.
but we screwed them up, by making them do what we wanted, and telling them how to be.
Baby Biographies
popular in the late 1700s in Germany.
Among the first instances which children were methodically studied.
Observers/parents tried to trace the growth of a single child, recording the physical and linguistic milestones achieved by their child.
Charles Darwin
kept record of his son's first year of life.
he believed that understanding the development of individuals within a species could help identify how the species itself had developed.
Biological Sciences
made great strides in studying mechanisms behind conception, genetics and nature-nurture influences.
20th century
Binet: IQ test
Hall: study of adolescents
Women made significant contributions to child development
normative studies
Normative Studies
studies that try to set up standards to see if kids were on schedule by age with height weight, when they should be walking and talking etc.
Plasticity
the degree t which a physical structure or a behavior is modifiable.
physical structure: e.g., the brain
behavior: e.g., product of learning
Continuous Change
development is gradual. but it is always changing just at a slow pace.
Discontinuous Change
occurs in distinct steps or stages
Critical Periods
specific times during development in which a particular even has its greatest consequences with irreversible results.
Sensitive Periods
are particular times when an organism is susceptible to certain kinds of stimuli in their environment with reversible results because of plasticity.
Nature
traits, abilities, and capabilities inherited from one's parent
nature=Genetics
Nurture
environmental influences that shape behavior
religion, heritage
Nurture=environment
Specialization
new areas of study and perspectives will emerge
Genetics
the explosion in information about genes and the genetic foundations of behavior will influence all spheres of child development
Diversity
the increasing diversity of U.S. population will focus greater attention to related issues
Research applications
in child development will find uses in numerous other fields
Public Interest Issues
will increasingly be influenced by child development research.
