Psychology 101 Chpt 4.txt

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span.

the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo.

the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month.

the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth.

agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm.

physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman's heavy drinking. In severe cases, symptoms include noticeable facial misproportions.

a baby's tendency, when touched on the cheek, to open mouth and search for the nipple.

decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation. As infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to a visual stimulus, their interest wanes and they look away sooner.

biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience.

a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information.

interpreting one's new experience in terms of one's existing schemas.

adapting one's current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information.

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communication.

in Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years old of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities.

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived.

in Piaget's theory, the stage ( from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic.

the principle ( which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remains the same despite changes in the forms of objects.

in Piaget's theory, the preoperational child's inability to take another's point of view.

People's ideas about their own and others' mental states about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts and behaviors these might predict.

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 6 or 7 to 11 years of age) during ehich children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events.

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts.

the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age.

an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation.

an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism's exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development.

an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism's exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development.

the process by which certain animals from attachments during a critical period very early in life.

according to Erik Erikson, a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy;said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers.

the transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from purity to independence.

the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing.

the body structures ( ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that makes sexual reproduction possible.

nonreproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair.

the first menstrual period.

one's sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles.

in Erikson's theory of, the ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary developmental task in late adolescence and early adulthood.

the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines.

a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another.

research in which the same people are restudy and retested over a long period.

one's accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age.

one's ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood.

the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriages, parenthood, and retirement.