Development

lifespan

across

the

Introduction
Developmental psychologists are interested in

Discovery of early influences and developmental sequences (to better understand adults)
Effects of genetic factors
On traits
(e.g.
Effects of early interactions with parents and siblings
aggressivene
Effects of the school and community
ss,
Causes of developmental abnormalities
Adult development

The information the developmental psychologists acquire can help us make decisions about how
we rear our children & how we lead our own lives

1 Prenatal Development

Most dramatic gains in height and weight occur

Within 9 months, the newly conceived organism develops from a nearly microscopic scale
to a neonate (newborn) about 20 inches long; weight increases billionfold
Zygote single cell formed by the union of sperms and egg

2 Childhood

Begins with birth

Best time of life time for play and learning and endless possibilities
Exciting time of physical, cognitive and social and emotional developments

A. PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
Height and Weight
Infancy (first 2 years of childhood) dramatic gains in height and weight continue
o Babies
Weight = double their birth weight in 5 months, triple by first birthday
Height = Increase by 10 inches in the first year
o Children
Weight = gain 4-5 pounds by 2nd year
Height = grow 4-6 inches by 2 nd year, + 2-3 inches a year until they reach the
adolescent growth spurt
Reflexes
Simple, inborn responses elicited by specific stimuli
Essential to survival (newborns do not know that it is necessary to eat to survive)
Occurs automatically
Pediatricians test these reflexes to assess the babies neural functioning
o Rooting and sucking
Reflexes that cause newborns to eat
Rooting

newborns turn their head toward stimuli that prod or stroke the cheek, chin or
corner of the mouth
- the turning off an infants head toward a touch, such as by the mothers nipple
Sucking = automatically sucks objects that touch their lips
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Withdrawal Reflex
To avoid painful stimuli
Startle or Moro Reflex
In response to sudden noises, bumps or loss of support while being held
They draw up their legs and arch up their backs
Grasp or Palmar Reflex
Grasp objects that press against the palm of their hands
Babinski Reflex
Fan their toes when the soles of their feet are stimulated
Breathing
Sneezing
Coughing
Yawning
Blinking
Defecating
Urinating

Motor Development

Progression from simple acts [ex. lifting the head to running around]
Maturation and experience both play key roles in motor development
Motor development provides some of the most fascinating changes in infants, so much
seems to happen so quickly
Children go through a (invariant) sequence: rolling over, sitting up, crawling, creeping,
walking and running (only the ages at which infants engage in these activities vary)
o Maturation
Unfolding of genetic code
Role in physical development (gains in height, weight and the effects of puberty),
language and motor development
o Environmental Factors
Children will not be able to reach their certain genetic potentials for body size and
growth rates if unavailable
Includes: nutrition, relatively clean air, and so on
o Experience
Children not understand or produce an action until their genetic codes spark the
development of certain structures and processes in the brain
E.g. children learn the languages used in their homes and communities, they do not
speak foreign tongues without being exposed to them
[INSERT JASMINS PART]
B. SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Social relationships are crucial to us as children
During infancy, our very survival depends on them
Later in life, they contribute to our feelings of happiness and satisfaction
Erik Ericksons Stages of Psychosocial Development
First Stage: Trust versus Mistrust

o Dependent on our primary caretakers (usually our parents)

o Come to expect that our environment willor will notmeet our needs
Second Stage: Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt
o Toddlers through about the age of 3
o Relationships with parents and friends can encourage the development of selfdirection and initiative, or feelings of shame and guilt
o Children in this stage need to develop feelings of self-control over physical functions
such as toileting and a sense of independence
o One of the ways that many children demonstrate their growing autonomy is by
refusing to comply with parental requests or commands (i.e. rebellion)
Initiative versus Guilt
o Through about the age of 5
o Children begin to assert control over the environment and strive to master adult skills
Industry versus Inferiority
o Years of about 6-12
o Children meet the academic and social challenges in school
o Positive outcome contributes to the sense of industry
o Setbacks can lead to feelings of inferiority
Attachment
Psychologist Mary D. Salter Ainsworth (1913-1999)
Defined as an emotional tie that is formed between one animal or person and another
specific individual
Keeps organisms together
Vital to the survival of the infant
It tends to endure
Behaviors that Define Attachment
Attempts to maintain contact or nearness
Shows of anxiety when separated
[Ex. Babies and children try to maintain contact with caregivers to whom they are
attached, maintain eye contact, pull and tug at them, ask to be picked up]
o

The Strange Situation and the Patterns of Attachment

Ways in which infants behave in strange situations are connected with their bonds
of attachment with their caregivers
Strange Situation Method
Ainsworth and colleagues (1978)
To learn how infants respond to separations and reunions with a caregiver
(usually the mother) and a stranger
Identified three major types of attachment
1. Secure attachment
Mildly protests their mothers departure
Seeks interaction upon reunion, and are readily comforted by her.
Parents: more likely to be affectionate and reliable caregivers
Happier, more sociable and cooperative with parents
Children get along better with peers and are better adjusted in
school
2. Avoidant Attachment
Least distressed by their mothers departure
Play by themselves without fuss
Ignores mother when they return
3. Ambivalent/Resistant Attachment

Connected with the quality of care the infants receive

Insecure attachment in infancy predicts psychological disorders during adolescence
o

Most emotional
Shows severe signs of distress when their mother leaves
Shows ambivalence upon reunion by alternately clinging to and
pushing their mother away when she returns

Phases of Attachment
1. Initial-preattachment Phase
Lasts from birth to about 3 months
Indiscriminate attachment (prefer being held or being with someone than
being alone)
Generally willing to be held by unfamiliar people
2. Attachment-in-the-making phase
3-4 months
Preference to familiar figures
3. Clear-cut-attachment phase
6-7 months
Intensified dependence on the primary caregiver

John Bowlby (1988)

- Colleague of Ainsworth
- Attachment is also characterized by fear of strangers
Stranger Anxiety
8-10 months of age
Children may cry and cling to their parents when strangers try to befriend
them
Not all children develop fear of strangers
Not necessary to include fear of strangers as an essential part of the
process of attachment
o

Theoretical Views of Attachment

Early 20th century
- behaviorists argued that attachment behaviors are learned through
experience
- Feelings of gratification associated with the meeting of basic needs = feelings
of security when the caregiver is present
[Ex. Caregivers feed their infants and tend to their other physiological needs.
Thus, infants associate their caregivers with gratification of needs and learn to
approach them to meet their needs.]
Harry F. Harlow
- Psychologist
- Skin contact > Learning Experiences
- Rhesus monkeys Experiment: Wire mesh mom with baby bottle vs. Cloth mom
with no food
Contact Comfort
Basic as the need for food
Hypothesized primary drive to seek physical comfort through contact
with another
Gratification of the need for contact comfort rather than food, might be
why infant monkeys (and humans) cling to their mothers
Konrad Lorenz

Ethnologist (studies the characteristic behavior patterns of species of animals

For many animals, attachment is an instinctinborn
Theorized attachment occurs in the presence of stimulus and during a critical
period of life (period during which the animal is sensitive to stimulus)
Imprinting
Some animals become attached to the first moving object they
encounter
Lorenzs family of goslings was present when the goslings hatched
and during their critical period (at the younger end, by the age at which
they first walked & at the older end, by the age at which they develop
the fear of strangers) allowed them to follow him
Ainsworth & Bowlby (1991)
- Consider attachment to be instinctive in humans
- Less related to issues such as locomotion and fear of strangers (which is not
universal)
- The critical period of humans is quite extended
Parenting Styles
Relationship between parenting styles and the personality of the child
Diana Baumrind (1989; 2005)
- Connections between parental behavior and the development of childrens
instrumental competence (ability to manipulate the environment to achieve ones
goals)
- Focused on four aspects of parental behavior
1. Restrictiveness
2. Demands for the child to achieve intellectual, emotional, and social maturity
3. Communication ability
4. Warmth and involvement
- The three parenting styles + 1 (by other researchers)
1. Authoritative parents
o Parents of the most competent children
o Rates high on all 4 areas of behavior
o Strict, demands mature behavior
o They temper their strictness with a desire to reason with their children and
with love and support
o Expects a lot, but they explain why and offer help
o Children have greater self-reliance, self-esteem, social competence, and
achievement motivation than other children
2. Authoritarian parents
o Have strict guidelines about what is right and wrong
o Demand their children to follow those guidelines
o Adheres to strict standards of conduct
o Relies on force and communicates poorly with their children
o Do not respect their childrens points of view
o May be cold and rejecting
o Children are often withdrawn or aggressive
o Children do not usually do well in school
3. Permissive parents
o Generally easy going with their children
o Children do pretty much anything they want
o Warm and supportive
o Poor in communicating
o Children seem to be less mature, often impulsive, moody and aggressive
4. Uninvolved parents
o Tend to leave their children on their own

Make few demands

Show little warmth or encouragement
Children tend to obtain poorer grades than children whose parents make
demands on them
o Children tend to be more likely to hang out with the wrong crowds
Children of warm parents are more likely to be socially and emotionally will adjusted
Also more likely to internalize moral standards (develop a conscience)
Strictness pays off, provided it is tempered with reason and warmth
In adolescence, lack of parental monitoring is often linked to delinquency and poor
academic performance
Children profit when parents make reasonable demands, show warmth and
encouragement and spend time with them
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