Chapter 1 GP 5 and 6

Psych 30
NWRC
 Guidepost 5 What are the major
aspects and periods of
development
• Physical – growth of body and brain, sensory
capacities, motorskills and health
• Cognitive – change in stability in mental abilities
such as memory, learning, language, thinking,
moral reasoning and creativity
• Psychosocial – change and stability in
personality, emotions and social relationships
 Critical Periods
• In physical development not acquiring a skill may mean a
higher skill will not be developed.
• In cognitive there is more ability for plasticity or
modifying. Later experiences can reverse the effects of
earlier experiences
• There seems to be some critical periods for some
cognitive development for example language being
acquired before age 8 -the first few years of life is the
crucial time in which an individual can acquire a first
language if presented with adequate stimuli. If language
input doesn't occur until after this time, the individual will
never achieve a full command of language — especially
grammatical systems.
Critical periods - continued
• A child's experience
after birth, particularly
in those critical first
few years of life, sets
the stage for just
about every function
of that child in
adulthood,
Critical periods - continued
• n those first 3 years of life,
experiences and
interactions with parents,
other family members and
other adults influence the
way a child's brain
develops, with as much or
greater impact than
nutrition and clean water.
• These experiences set the
stage for later success in
school and the behaviour
and personality traits of
adolescence and
adulthood.
Critical periods - continued
• Every positive interaction,
every gentle touch, every
soft word, every loving
emotion, and every gentle
movement is translated
into an explosion of
electrical and chemical
activity within the brain, as
billions of cells organize
themselves to make the
trillions of networks
 Critical periods - continued
• every harsh touch, every harsh word, every
negative emotion and rough handling or physical
abuse also set off electrical and chemical activity
and a different set of networks become
developed
• During the last decade, researchers have learnt
that the brain is receptive to different tasks at
different times, known as critical periods with
good reason. For if the brain does not receive
the appropriate stimulation during these critical
periods, then whole sections of the brain fail to
develop properly.
 Critical Periods continued
• It was also discovered that the 0-3 year period is
critical for the development of vision, control of
emotions and habitual ways of responding to
situations
• the understanding of symbols and language, the
building blocks of written and verbal expression
and mathematics also has its critical period
within these 3 years. After 3 years, the ability to
organize the networks, the ability to wire the
brain for these functions, is significantly reduced.
 Critical Periods continued
• It was also discovered that the 0-3 year period is
critical for the development of vision, control of
emotions and habitual ways of responding to
situations
• the understanding of symbols and language, the
building blocks of written and verbal expression
and mathematics also has its critical period
within these 3 years. After 3 years, the ability to
organize the networks, the ability to wire the
brain for these functions, is significantly reduced.
 Guidepost 6 What types of
influences make one person
different from another?
• Heredity -Nature versus nurture in personality traits
• Personality is a frequently cited example of a heritable
trait that has been studied in twins and adoptions.
Identical twins reared apart are far more similar in
personality than randomly selected pairs of people.
Likewise, identical twins are more similar than fraternal
twins. Also, biological siblings are more similar in
personality than adoptive siblings. Each observation
suggests that personality is heritable to a certain extent.
 Guidepost 6 What types of
influences make one person
different from another?
• Environment – all non-genetic influences
• Family size
• Family composition
• Socioeconomic status
• Culture (way of life traditions, values)
 Guidepost 6 What types of
influences make one person
different from another?
• Normative Influences: Occurs in a similar
fashion for most people around the same time –
biological events (learning to walk or puberty) or
social constructs such as entry into school.
Cohorts are people who are in the same group
for example people close in age who share
many normative influences (entry into school,
childbearing etc)
 Guidepost 6 What types of
influences make one person
different from another?
• Non-normative Influences: Are influences
which impact individual lives such as an
accident where a parent is killed or having
a teenaged pregnancy – events that are
out of the usual that change the course of
ones life.