Psy2301language - Text: Psychology: Modules for active learning 14e Chapter: Development The root PDF

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Text: Psychology: Modules for active learning 14e
Chapter: Development
The root of learning...

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Psy2301 Topic: Development (Learning) The roots of language biological predisposition the presumed hereditary readiness of humans to learn certain skills, such as how to use language or a readiness to behave in particular ways. Early Communication: Signals In early language development, behaviors, such as touching, vocalizing, gazing, or smiling, that allow nonverbal interaction and turn-taking between parent and child. Parents: mothers (parents): A pattern of speech used when talking to infants, marked by a higher-pitched voice; short, simple sentences; repetition; slower speech; and exaggerated voice inflections. How do children learn to think? Newborns begin to learn immediately and appear to be aware of the effects of their actions. Piaget also held that children go through a fixed series of cognitive stages. The stages and their approximate age ranges are sensorimotor (0–2), preoperational (2– 7), concrete operational (7–11), and formal operational (11–adult). Lev Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory emphasizes that a child’s mental abilities are advanced by interactions with more-competent partners. Mental growth takes place in a child’s zone of proximal development, where a more skillful person may scaffold the child’s progress. Why is the transition from adolescence to adulthood especially challenging? Adolescence is the culturally defined period between childhood and adulthood. Socially, the adolescent is no longer a child, yet not quite an adult. Almost all cultures recognize this transitional status. However, the length of adolescence

varies greatly from culture to culture. For example, most 14-year-old girls in North America live at home and go to school. In contrast, many 14-year-old girls in rural villages of many less-developed countries have gotten married and may have children. In our culture, 14-year-olds are adolescents. In others, they may be adults. Adolescence: The culturally defined period between childhood and adulthood. The Search for Identity Although problems of identity occur at other ages, too, identity formation is a key challenge faced by adolescents. In a very real sense, puberty signals that it’s time to begin forming a new, more mature self-image. Many problems stem from unclear standards about the role that adolescents should play within society. Are they adults or children? Should they be autonomous or dependent? Should they work or play? Such ambiguities make it difficult for young people to form clear images of themselves and how they should act. Identity and Ethnic Diversity Ethnic heritage is an important aspect of personal identity. adolescence is more emotionally turbulent than adulthood. One important aspect of this period is the struggle with telling right from wrong—the need to develop moral values. What is involved in subjective well-being during adulthood? According to psychologist Ed Diener and his associates, subjective well-being is high when people are generally satisfied with their lives, have frequent positive emotions, and have relatively few negative emotions. subjective well-being: General life satisfaction combined with frequent positive emotions and relatively few negative emotions. where she observed five basic emotional reactions to impending death Denial and isolation. A typical first reaction is to deny death’s reality and isolate oneself from information confirming that death is really going to occur. Initially,

the person may be sure that “it’s all a mistake.” She or he thinks, “Surely the doctor made an error.” Anger. Many dying individuals feel anger and ask, “Why me?” As they face the ultimate threat of having life torn away, their anger may spill over into rage toward the living. Bargaining. In another common reaction, the terminally ill bargain with themselves or with God. The dying person thinks, “Just let me live a little longer and I’ll do anything to earn it.” Depression. As death draws near and the person begins to recognize that it cannot be prevented, feelings of futility, exhaustion, and deep depression may set in. Acceptance. If death is not sudden, many people manage to come to terms with dying and accept it calmly. The person who accepts death is neither happy nor sad, but at peace with the inevitable. What are the typical tasks and dilemmas through the lifespan? Erik Erikson identified a series of specific psychosocial dilemmas that occur as we age. These range from a need to gain trust in infancy to the need to live with integrity in late adulthood. What is involved in subjective well-being during adulthood? Subjective well-being during adulthood consists of six elements: self-acceptance, positive relations with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, having a purpose in life, and continued personal growth. How do people typically react to death? Typical emotional reactions to impending death include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance, but not necessarily in that order, nor do all of them appear in every case. Death is a natural part of life. There is value in understanding it and accepting it. How can behaving ethically help me in my personal and professional life?

We’re all aware that there can be important consequences for behaving in an unethical way. When the actions are illegal, people can be arrested or fined large sums of money. But even when unethical behavior isn’t against the law, it can still result in severe consequences. For example, relationships may come to an end, or people can be fired from their jobs or expelled from college. Perhaps more important, though, is how these behaviors can affect how you think about yourself. Research suggests that people want to behave with integrity and try to resist temptation because they place a high value on being ethical. How is ethical behavior related to the study of psychology? People are also prone to seeing themselves as moral, and are highly motivated to preserve that image because an inability to do so has negative implications for their self-concept Our core values are shaped by our ideas about harm, fairness, loyalty, power, and purity/sanctity. How can behaving ethically help me in my personal and professional life? People are motivated to see themselves as moral, so behaving in an unethical way is damaging to the self-concept. Ethically challenging situations happen frequently in everyday life. Creating conditions that will allow you to behave in line with your values requires that you anticipate ethical challenges and try to prepare for them....