Psychology, 4/e by Saul Kassin

CHAPTER 9:
Human Development
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Human Development

Basic Developmental Questions

Prenatal Development
The Remarkable Newborn
The Infant and Growing Child
Adolescence
Adulthood and Old Age
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Basic Developmental Questions
Developmental Psychology

The study of how people grow, mature,
and change over the life span
Two Major Ways to Conduct Research

Cross-sectional Studies
•People of different ages are tested and
compared

Longitudinal Studies
•The same people are tested at different
times to track changes related to age
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Basic Developmental Questions
Developmental Research Strategies

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Prenatal Development
The Growing Fetus
 Zygote

A fertilized egg that undergoes a two-week period
of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo
 Embryo

The developing human organism, from two weeks
to two months after fertilization
 Fetus

The developing human organism, from nine weeks
after fertilization to birth

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 Prenatal Development
The Growing Fetus

Fertilization 30 Hours

6 weeks 4 months

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Prenatal Development
The Growing Fetus
Teratogens
 Toxic substances that can harm the embryo or
fetus during prenatal development

Malnutrition

Viral Infections
• AIDS, Rubella (German measles), and others

X-rays, lead, and other environmental hazards

Drugs
• Alcohol (fetal alcohol syndrome), Cigarettes, Cocaine,
Aspirin, Marijuana, and other drugs both licit and illicit

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The Remarkable Newborn
Ways to Study the Abilities of Newborns
Habituation

The tendency for attention to a stimulus to
wane over time (often used to determine
whether an infant has “learned” a stimulus
Recovery

Following habituation to one stimulus, the
tendency for a second stimulus to arouse
new interest (often used to test whether
infants can discriminate between stimuli)
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The Remarkable Newborn
Reflexes
 Grasping Reflex

In infants, an automatic tendency to grasp
an object that stimulates the palm
 Rooting Reflex

In response to contact on the cheek, an
infant’s tendency to turn toward the
stimulus and open its mouth

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The Remarkable Newborn
Sensory Capacities
Visual Preferences in Newborns
 Infants spend more time
looking at patterns than
solids.
 Infants spend the most
time looking at a drawing
of a human face.
 Is this just preference for
complexity or an
adaptation?
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 The Remarkable Newborn
Sensory Capacities
Newborn Orientation to the Face

 Infants were shown a blank

shape, a face, or scrambled
facial features.

The face and scrambled face
have same complexity.
 Infants looked more
intensely at the actual face.

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The Remarkable Newborn
Sensory Capacities
Newborn Imitation

 Babies sometimes mimic

gestures made by others
who are within sight.

Sticking tongue out of
mouth

Moving head side to side

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The Remarkable Newborn
Sensitivity to Number
Can Infants Add and Subtract?
 Infants saw a sequence
of events that illustrated
addition or subtraction.
 Then they saw a correct
or incorrect outcome
(2-1=2, for example).
 The infant looked
longer at outcomes that
were incorrect.
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The Infant and Growing Child
Biological Development
The Developing Brain

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The Infant and Growing Child
Cognitive Development
Piaget’s Theory
 Schemas

In Piaget’s theory, mental representations of the world that
guide the processes of assimilation and accommodation

Assimilation
• The process of incorporating and, if necessary, changing new
information to fit existing schemas

Accommodation
• The process of modifying existing schemas in response to new
information

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The Infant and Growing Child
Cognitive Development
Changing Schemas of the Earth
5th grade
 From preschool
through about the 5th
grade, children
gradually assimilate
and then accommodate
their schemas to form
an accurate
representation of the
earth’s shape. Preschool

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The Infant and Growing Child
Cognitive Development
Piaget’s Stages of Development
 Stages of Development

Each stage is qualitatively different from others

Ages for stage transitions are approximate

Sensorimotor

Preoperational

Concrete Operational

Formal Operational

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The Infant and Growing Child
Cognitive Development
Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development

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 The Infant and Growing Child
Cognitive Development
 Separation anxiety is a fear Separation Anxiety
reaction in response to the
absence of the primary
caregiver.
 It is seen in all cultures.
 It corresponds with the
development of object
permanence and the
sensorimotor stage of
cognitive development.

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 The Infant and Growing Child
Cognitive Development
Tasks Used to Test Conservation
 The ability to conserve
marks the transition
from the preoperational
stage to the concrete
operational stage of
cognitive development.

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The Infant and Growing Child
Cognitive Development
Speed of Information Processing

 Response times decrease from 7 - 12 years of age


Consistent across several different types of tasks
 This may be due to the biological maturation of the brain

Increased myelination of axons which speeds up neural processing

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The Infant and Growing Child
Social Development
The Parent-Child Relationship
 Critical Period

A period of time during which an organism
must be exposed to a certain stimulus for
proper development to occur
 Attachment

A deep emotional bond that an infant
develops with its primary caretaker

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The Infant and Growing Child
Social Development
Styles of Attachment
 Strange Situation Test

A parent-infant “separation and reunion” procedure that
is staged in a laboratory to test the security of a child’s
attachment
 Secure Attachment

The baby is secure when the parent is present, distressed
by separation, and delighted by reunion.
 Insecure Attachment

The baby clings to the parent, cries at separation, and
reacts with anger or apathy to reunion.

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Adolescence
Adolescence

The period of life from puberty to
adulthood, corresponding roughly to the ages
of 13 to 20
Puberty

The onset of adolescence, as evidence by
rapid growth, rising levels of sex hormones,
and sexual maturity
Menarche

A girl’s first menstrual period
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Adolescence
Puberty
Adolescent Growth Spurt

 At about age 13 for girls, 16 for boys, there is a final

maturational growth spurt in height.
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Adolescence
Puberty
The Timing of Puberty and Body Images in Girls

 Girls who mature

earlier than their
peers are usually
less satisfied with
their size, weight,
and figure.

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Adolescence
Puberty
The Timing of Puberty and Body Images in Boys

 Boys who mature

later than their
peers have negative
body images, but
they are only
temporary.

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Adolescence
Cognitive Development
Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Reasoning
 Moral Reasoning

The way people think and try to solve moral dilemmas.
 Preconventional Level

Morality judged in terms of reward and punishment
 Conventional Level

Morality judged in terms of social order and approval
 Postconventional Level

Morality judged in terms of abstract principles, like
equality and justice

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Adolescence
Cognitive Development
Kohlberg’s Levels of Moral Reasoning
 Most 7-10 year olds are
reasoning at the
preconventional level.
 Most 13-16 year olds are
reasoning at the
conventional level.
 Few participants show
reasoning indicative of
the postconventional
level.

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Adolescence
Cognitive Development
Criticisms of Kohlberg’s Theory
 Cultural Bias

Some cultural differences are not reflected in
this theory.
 Gender Bias

Empirical support for this claim is weak.
 Connection between moral reasoning and
moral behavior is often indirect.

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 Adolescence
Social and Personal Development
Adolescent Disengagement
 The proportion of time spent
with the family decreases
almost 3% per year
 This decline was not found for
time spent alone with parents
 Identity Crisis

An adolescent’s struggle to
establish a personal
identity, or self-concept

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Adolescence
Social and Personal Development
Patterns of Adolescent
“Transformation”Within the Family
 Adolescents in the 7th and
8th grades felt worse
while with their family.
 Boys feel better after 8th
grade and feel the best in
9th and 10th grades.
 Girls continue to feel bad
until the 10th grade.

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Adolescence
Social and Personal Development
 Peer Influences

Adolescent relationships are intimate.

Adolescents begin to discover friendships with
other-sex peers.

Conformity rises steadily with age, peaks in
ninth grade, and then declines.

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Adolescence
Social and Personal Development
 Sexuality

Whether teens act on sexual impulses depends on
social factors.

Adolescents who engage in sexual behavior with
others are not necessarily informed about health
risks and contraception .

Adolescent sexual behavior may be due to
attempts to be more like an adult or as way to
rebel.
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Adolescence
Adolescence and Mental Health
 The stereotypic images of adolescents are:

Mood swings, identity crises, anxiety, rebelliousness,
depression, drug use, and suicide
 Three perceived sources of difficulty in adolescence
are:

Conflict with parents, risk-taking behavior, and mood
disruption
 Conflict with parents and risk-taking do occur, but the
idea that adolescents are in a state of distress is
exaggerated.

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Adulthood and Old Age
Physical Changes in Adulthood
 Life Span

The maximum age possible for members of a
given species.
 Life Expectancy

The number of years that an average
member of a species is expected to live.
 Menopause

The end of menstruation and fertility.

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Adulthood and Old Age
Aging and Intellectual Functions
 Memory and Forgetting

Cognitive abilities do not inevitably decline.

Some elderly may show declines on free-recall
tasks, however declines on tests of recognition
memory are less likely.

Memory declines may be due to impairments in
sensory acuity and a slowing of neuronal
processing.

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Adulthood and Old Age
Aging and Intellectual Functions
The Alzheimer’s Problem
 Alzheimer’s Disease

A progressive brain
disorder that strikes
older people, causing
memory loss and other
symptoms.
 In the U.S., the projected
number of Alzheimer’s
patients is 14 million in
2050.
 The cost is at least $100
billion per year.

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Adulthood and Old Age
Aging and Intellectual Functions
Age Trends in Measures of Intelligence
 Fluid intelligence, which
includes inductive reasoning
and spatial ability, declines
steadily throughout middle
and late adulthood.
 Crystallized intelligence,
which includes verbal
ability and numeric ability,
remains stable into the 70’s.

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Adulthood and Old Age
Aging and Intellectual Functions
Timed vs. Untimed Vocabulary Tests

 Some abilities are less affected by age than are others.

 Scores declined only in the timed test.

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Adulthood and Old Age
Social and Personal Development
Erikson’s Eight Stages of Development - I
 Trust vs. Mistrust

Infancy (0-1 year)
 Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

Toddler (1-2 years)
 Initiative vs. Guilt

Preschool (3-5 years)
 Industry vs. Inferiority

Elementary School (6-12 years)

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Adulthood and Old Age
Social and Personal Development
Erikson’s Eight Stages of Development - II
 Identity vs. Role confusion

Adolescence (13-19 years)
 Intimacy vs. Isolation

Young adulthood (20-40 years)
 Generativity vs. Stagnation

Middle adulthood (40-65 years)
 Integrity vs. Despair

Late adulthood (65 and older)

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Adulthood and Old Age
Social and Personal Development
Life Satisfaction

 In multiple
cultures, 75-80%
say they are
satisfied with life.
 Ratings of life
satisfaction do not
vary with age.

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 Adulthood and Old Age
Social and Personal Development
Self-Esteem

 Self-esteem is highest
in childhood.
 It drops sharply during
adolescence.
 It increases gradually
during adulthood,
peaks in the sixties,
and declines in old
age.

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 Adulthood and Old Age
Dying and Death
 Elisabeth Kübler-Ross proposed five stages in
approaching death:

Denial (“It must be a mistake.”)

Anger (“It isn’t fair!”)

Bargaining (“Let me live longer and I’ll be a better
person.”)

Depression (“ I’ve lost everything important to me.”)

Acceptance (“What has to be, has to be.”)
 Not everyone follows this sequence through the stages
and all people do not experience all stages.

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