Intro to psych exam notes PDF

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introduction to psychologyExplain how psychological research, theories and principles contribute to an understanding of human development, learning, memory, personality, motivation, and social behaviour.Apply concepts from human development, learning, memory, personality, motivation, and social psyc...

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introduction to psychology Explain how psychological research, theories and principles contribute to an understanding of human development, learning, memory, personality, motivation, and social behaviour.

Apply concepts from human development, learning, memory, personality, motivation, and social psychology to understand and predict behaviour in situations and experiences in everyday life.

Collaborate to explain current events using psychological concepts, principles, theories and research.

topic one: developmental psychology term

definition

Schema

mental representations that help us understand how the world works - organised patterns of thoughts and actions; we acquire new schemas and our existing schemas become more complex

Assimilation

process by which new experiences are incorporated into existing schemas

Accomodation

process by which new experiences cause existing schemas to change

Disequilibrium

imbalance between existing schemas and new experiences

Object permanence

awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

Egocentrism

the inability of the pre-operational child to take another’s point of view

Conservation

the ability to recognise that a given quantity, weight or volume remains the same despite changes in shape, length or position

Autism

disorder marked by impaired theory of mind individuals with autism have difficulty understanding other people’s emotions, motives, desires, etc.

Attachment

strong emotional bond that develops between children and their primary caregivers

Temperament

a biologically based style of reacting emotionally and behaviourally to the environment - influenced by parental expectations and interactions - cultural differences and influences - reasonable stability over childhood and into adulthood = early signs of ‘personality’

Maturation

biologically based changes that follow an orderly sequence

Circle of Security

parent education program; designed to enhance attachment security between parents and children

5 broad issues guide developmental research: 1- nature and nurture • what extent is our development due to heredity and of the environment? do they intertwine? • heredity creates predispositions; environment influences how they develop

2- sensitive and critical periods • sensitive period = optimal age range for certain experiences (if they happen at another time, normal development can still occur) • critical period = age range certain experiences must occur for normal development (if crucial experiences do not occur during the CP, the function may not develop/fully develop) • maturation may be affected

3- continuity vs discontinuity • is development continuous or discontinuous? can it be both? • continuous = gradual alteration of behaviour • discontinuous = stages of growth that are qualitatively different and that are usually ordered in a fixed sequence

4- stability vs change • change = refers to the acquisition or the loss of a behaviour or function • can occur as continuous or discontinuous

5- normative vs non-normative events • how do life events change us? • age related normative events = most people experience it at certain ages (e.g. puberty) • non-normative events = atypical/unexpected events (e.g. natural disaster)

developmental psychology research

sequential designs = examine different age groups at multiple time points (reduce cohort effects) - combination of crosssectional + longitudinal

Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory • relationships between individual and environment = bidirectional (influence each other) • way to consider how multiple influences impact an individual in their life span

1. Microsystem = immediate surroundings (family, friends, neighbourhood) 2. Mesosystem = relations between microsystems (connection between home and workplace) 3. Exosystem = social settings that affect the individual without them playing an active role (workplace policies) 4. Macrosystem = outer level of ecology (laws and cultural values)

Differences in development trajectories • quantitative differences = e.g. individuals with a developmental delay or intellectual disability usually go through some stages of development, but at a slower pace • qualitative differences = e.g. individuals with autism disorders develop social and emotional skills quite differently than normally-developing peers

Physical development • 3 points that apply across the realm of human development: - biology sets limits on environmental influences: e.g. no infant can be toilet trained before the nerve fibres that help regulate bladder control have been biologically matured - environmental influences set limits on biology: e.g. impoverished environments can stunt growth. nurturing environments foster physical and psychological growth - biological and environmental factors interact: e.g. environmental factors foster or inhibit development. this in turn enhances or impairs a child’s ability to benefit from future experience.

Cognitive development - Jean Piaget Typical Age Range

Description of Stage

Developmental Phenomena

birth-2 years

sensorimotor = experiencing the world through senses and actions - infant schemas are simple reflexes (e.g. sucking, grasping) and interactions with people and objects - tonic neck reflex, grasp reflex

- object permanence - stranger anxiety

2-7 years

pre-operational = representing things with words and images (mental representations) but lacking logical reasoning - child can employ mental symbols (e.g. symbolic/fantasy play, deferred imitation, drawing)

- pretend play - egocentrism - language development

7-11 years

concrete operational = thinking logically about concrete events; grasping concrete analogies and performing arithmetical operations

- conservation - mathematical transformations

12-adulthood

formal operational = abstract reasoning (imagined realities and images) - child can use formal problem solving - can form hypotheses and systematically test them

- abstract logic - potential for moral reasoning

• Piaget’s stage theory supports the idea that developmental change is discontinuous

Theory of mind -

refers to a person’s beliefs about the ‘mind’ and the ability to understand other people’s mental states about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts and the behaviour these might predict usually develops 4-5 years of age

Key criticisms of Piaget -

development thought to be more continuous than stage-like abilities were underestimated did not explain cultural differences in abilities neglected the role of emotion

Temperament - classifying infant temperament Easy

Difficult

Slow to warm up

regular routines for eating, sleeping, etc

does not settle easily into biological routines

just as the name suggests

mild emotional reactions, easily soothed

intense emotional reactions, not easily soothed

wary in new situations, requires time and support to settle and adapt

readily adaptable to new people and situations

less adaptable

Psychosocial development - Erik Erikson Approx. Age

Stage

Description of crisis

Infancy (birth-1)

Trust vs Mistrust

if needs are met by parent/caregiver, infant forms a sense of basic trust

Toddler (1-3)

Autonomy vs Shame and Doubt

Toddler learns to become independent, if parents discourage/ stop child from attempting this, they may experience shame or doubt their abilities

Pre-Schooler (3-6)

Initiative vs Guilt

Child becomes curious; if allowed to explore freedom, may develop a sense of initiative - if held back/punished, may feel guilt about their desires/ suppress curiosity

Primary (6-puberty)

Industry vs Inferiority

When their efforts to master new skills are praised, they develop industry (drive to achieve) - repeated failure/lack of praise may lead to sense of inferiority.

Adolescence (teen-20)

Identity vs Role Confusion

Teenagers work at refining a sense of self by testing roles and then integrating them to form a single identity, or they become confused about who they are

Young Adult (20-40’s)

Intimacy vs Isolation

Young adults struggle to form close relationships and to gain the capacity for intimate love, or they feel socially isolated

Middle Adult (40-60’s)

Generativity vs Stagnation

The middle-aged discover a sense of contributing to the world, usually through family and work, or they may feel a lack of purpose

Late Adults (60’s+)

Integrity vs Despair

When reflecting on his or her life, the older adult may feel a sense of failure/ satisfaction - not afraid to die.

- criticisms: doesn’t take cultural differences into account

Assessing Attachment - Mary Ainsworth - ‘strange situations’ used with 12-18 month old babies to assess security of attachment 1- mother and baby playing in room 2-stranger enters 3- mother leaves 4- stranger attempts to engage with baby 5- mother returns A) B) C) D)

avoidant (approx. 25% of babies) secure (approx. 60% of babies) anxious/ambivalent (approx. 10% of babies) disorganised (approx....