Chapter 1:

The Science of Child

Development

Part 1:
Foundational Theories

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 Foundational Theories of
Child Development
• Theory:
• “An organized set of ideas that is designed to
explain and make predictions”

• Key Theories in Developmental Science:

• Biological Perspective
• Learning Perspective
• Cognitive-Developmental Perspective
• Contextual Perspective
• Psychodynamic Perspective (covered in text) 2
 The Biological Perspective
• Central Concept:
• Development is determined primarily by
biological forces

• Two Major Theories:

• Maturational theory
• Ethological Theory

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 The Biological Perspective
• Maturational Theory:
• Child development
reflects a specific and
prearranged scheme
or plan within the body
• Ex: Locomotor
Behavior

• Weakness
• Lacks attention to
experience 4
 The Biological Perspective
• Ethological Theory:
• Individuals develop
behaviours that are adaptive
(have survival value)

• Critical Period:
• The window of time when a
specific type of learning occurs
• Before of after this period, Konrad Lorenz
learning is difficult if not
impossible

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 The Biological Perspective

After hatching, ducklings will imprint on whichever moving

object is nearby and form an emotional bond, continuing to
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treat that object it as “mother.”
 The Learning Perspective
• Central Concept:
• Experience plays an important role in
development

• Major Theories:
• Conditioning (classical, operant)
• Social Cognitive Theory
• Imitation and Observational Learning
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 The Learning Perspective
• Classical Conditioning (Ian Pavlov)
• By pairing a stimulus (US) that elicits a response (UR) with
another stimulus that is neutral (CS), eventually the CS will
come to elicit the same response (CR)

The Little Albert Experiment Unconditioned Conditioned

(James Watson) Stimulus (US) Stimulus (CS)
Striking a bar A rabbit
with a hammer

Unconditioned Conditioned
Response (UR) Response (CR)
Fear Fear
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 The Learning Perspective
• Operant Conditioning (B.F. Skinner):
• The consequences of a behaviour determine the
likelihood of the behaviour being performed in the future
REINFORCEMENT PUNISHMENT
(Increases Behaviour) (Decreases Behaviour)

POSITIVE A child receives a Parents shout at a child

(something cookie for cleaning their for not cleaning their
is added) room. room.

NEGATIVE Parents nagging child to Television privileges are

(something clean room stops when taken away for not
is removed) child does so. cleaning room.
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 The Learning Perspective
• Social Cognitive Theory (Albert Bandura)
• Children can learn by observing others, and by
interpreting events and responding based on their
perceptions

Children are more likely to

imitate a behaviour if…
- they observe others
being rewarded for it
- perceive the person
who modeled the
behaviour as “popular”
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 Cognitive-Developmental
Perspective
• Core Concept:
• Development reflects children’s efforts to
understand the world
• Children as “little scientists”
• Develop and revise theories about the
world around them as they gain experience
• Show increasing sophistication with age

• Major Theory:
• Jean Piaget developed a four-stage
sequence that characterizes children’s
changing understanding of the world 11
 The Contextual Perspective
• Core Concept:
• Development is determined by immediate and
more distant environments, which typically
influence each other

• Major Theories:
• Vygotsky’s emphasis on the social environment
• Ecological Systems Theory

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 The Contextual Perspective
Lev Vygotsky
• Adults convey to children the
beliefs, customs, and skills
of their culture

• Cultural values and practices

influence which behaviours
are reinforced and punished,
and the manner in which
learning occurs

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 The Contextual Perspective
Ecological Systems Theory (Bronfenbrenner)

CHRONOSYSTEM 14