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Ch. 9 Development

What is Lifespan Development

Physical development involves growth and changes in the body and brain, the senses, motor skills, and health and wellness.
Cognitive development involves learning, attention, memory, language, thinking, reasoning, and creativity.
Psychosocial development involves emotions, personality, and social relationships.
the approximate ages they should reach specific normative events called developmental milestones

Biology vs Environment (Nature vs Nurture) is a big psychology question. Whether a child changes based off of enviroment or biological factors.

The achievement gap is believed to be strongly influenced by socioeconomic status.

Lifespan theories

Jean Piaget, a stage theoist of childhood development, beleived that thinking is a central aspect of development and that children are naturally inquisitive. However, children do not think nor reason like adults. His theory of cognitive development holds that our cognitive abilities develop through specific stages, a discontinuity approach to development.

Stages of Development

  1. Conception occurs when sperm fertilizes an egg and forms a zygote
    1. A zygote begins as a one- cell structure that is created when a sperm and egg merge
  2. Embryonic Stage
    1. After the zygote divides for about 7–10 days and has 150 cells, it travels down the fallopian tubes and implants itself in the lining of the uterus. Upon implantation, this multi-cellular organism is called an embryo.
    2. Now blood vessels grow, forming the placenta
    3. The placenta is a structure connected to the uterus that provides nourishment and oxygen from the mother to the developing embryo via the umbilical cord.
  3. Fetal Stage (Weeks 9-40)
    1. When the organism is about nine weeks old, the embryo is called a fetus

All healthy babies are born with newborn reflexes: inborn automatic responses to particular forms of stimulation. Reflexes help the newborn survive until it is capable of more complex behaviors—these reflexes are crucial to survival.

Babiies develop preference for babies and for their mothers voice within the first few days and develop most neural pathways and connections in the first few years. Around 12 months, babies are expencted to say their first word for meaning.