© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Chapter One Child Development: Themes, Theories, and Methods Page 3 (right)

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Chapter One

Child Development:Child Development:

Themes, Theories, and MethodsThemes, Theories, and Methods

Page 3 (right)Page 3 (right)


What is child development and why should we study it?

• Sub-area of child psychology1. Identifies and describes changes in child from

beginning of life to adolescence• Cognitive• Emotional • Motor • Social capacities and behaviors

2. Uncover processes/strategies underlying the changes

• Use of research• Suggest practical applications based on

research


What exactly does that mean?

• Developmental psychologists are interested in what things change as children get older and how these changes come about.


Themes of Development

• Themes focus on theories and study of psychological development

• Main theoretical views guide research

• Specific processes and experiences may account for different aspects of child development



• Themes focus on theories and study of psychological development

– Origins of human behavior

– Pattern of developmental change over time

– Individual and contextual forces that define and direct child development


Page 2 (left)-Reflective Response

• Thinking about Themes in Child Psychology-Activity Sheet #1-B


Page 5 (right)-Themes of Development

• Biological versus Environmental Influences: nature vs. nurture

– Disagreement on which influences development the most

– Genetic or biological processes unfoldnaturally in maturation

– Environmental events can shape, modify

– Children are active agents



• Continuity(stability) versus Discontinuity

– Continuous process: each new event builds on earlier experiences in orderly way or gradual improvement

– Discontinuous process: development occurs in discrete steps or stages; each stage is a qualitatively new set of behaviors



• Individual Characteristics versus Contextual and Cultural Influences

– Individual and personality characteristics direct behaviors

– Environmental influences (family income, education, death, divorce, remarriage)

– Interactionist view: adopt both

– Resilience or “sleeper” effects?


Pg. 4 (left) Work it Out: What is Sroufe’s view on the characteristics of child development?


Sroufe feels that research indicates…

• That child development is characterized by continuity and change.

• While many aspects of the child’s psychological, physical, and behavioral characteristics change across development, there are many aspects of the child’s characteristics that remain stable or consistent across development.


Theoretical Perspectives on Development

• Two functions of theories

– Organize and integrate existing information into coherent, interesting, plausible accounts of how children develop

– Generate testable hypotheses or predictions about child behavior


Page 7 (right)-Theoretical Perspectives on Development

• Five general theoretical perspectives

1. Structural-Organismic Perspectives

2. Learning Perspectives

3. Dynamic Systems Perspectives

4. Contextual Perspectives

5. Ethological and Evolutionary Approaches


Page 6 (left) Graphic Organizer

• Complete the 5 perspective handouts and staple them in when finished




1. Structural-Organismic Approach focuses on structured set of stages an organism goes through over the course of psychological growth (structuralism)

– Used in Freud, Erikson, and Piaget’s theories


Freud’s Psychodynamic Theory

Age 0 - 1 Oral Stage

Age 1 - 3 Anal Stage

Age 3 - 6 Phallic Stage

Age 6 - 12 Latency Stage

Age 12+ Genital Stage

Ego

Id

Super Ego

Freud:Personality is

formed within the first 6 years


Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory

Ages 1 - 3

Ages 3 - 6

Ages 6 - 12

Ages 12 - 20

Ages 20 - 30

Ages 30 - 65

Ages 65+

Ages 0 - 1

Identity vs. Role confusion

Industry vs. Inferiority

Intimacy vs. Isolation

Trust vs. Mistrust

Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt

Initiative vs. Guilt

Integrity vs. Despair

Generativity vs. Stagnation


Piaget’s Periods of Cognitive Development

Sensorimotor

Pre-operational

Concrete Operational

Formal Operational

Age

0 - 2 7 - 12 12+2 - 7


Piaget’s Principle of Adaptation

Adapt to newinformation

AccommodationAssimilation

Reinterpret new experiences so they fit into old ideas – existing ideas don’t change, stay same

Revamp old ideas so they can adapt to new – change current ways of thinking/ideas so as to

add new knowledge




2. Learning Approach

• Behaviorism focuses on learning of behavior; not unobservable factors or motivations (Watson, Pavlov, Skinner)

• Classical Conditioning

• Operant Conditioning


Pavlov’s Classical Conditioning

Pairing of metronome with appearance of food makes each a Conditioned Stimulus

CR (salivation)CS

Play metronome (CS) and dog salivates (CR) without food being presented

Appearance of food becomes CS; dog salivation is the CR

Before conditioning: when food was placed in dish (UCS), the dog salivated (UCR)UCR (salivation)Neutral stimulus

(metronome)UCS

CSCS CR (salivation)


Watson’s Classical Conditioning

UCS (loud noise)

CR (fear)

CS (furry rat)


Skinner’s Operant Conditioning

Task: study for a quiz

If grades or parents’ urging are not a ‘reward’ (reinforcement), student will do other activities

If grades or parents’ urging are a ‘reward’ (reinforcement), student will study well

Consequences can reinforce or decrease chances of behavior occurring again

Quiz grade of A earned

Quiz grade of F

earned




2. Learning Approach(continued)

• Cognitive Social Learning Theory: children learn through behaviorism and from observation and imitation of role models (Bandura’s process of imitation)

• Information-Processing Approaches focus on flow of information through the cognitive system (brain is like computer)


Matched Behavior

ATTENTION Experience, Personality characteristics,

Relationship with model, Situational variables

RETENTIONRehearsal, Organization, Recall, Other cognitive skills

REPRODUCTIONCognitive representation, Concept matching, Use of feedback

Modeled Behavior

MOTIVATIONExternal & Vicarious incentives, Self-evaluation,

Internalized standards, Social comparison


Information is taken into brain

Information gets processed, analyzed, and stored in the brain

until use

OUTPUTINPUTInformation is used as basis of behaviors and

interactions

Information-Processing Theory

math

historyreligion

sciencegeography

literature




3. Dynamic Systems Perspective focuses on changes over time that result from interacting elements in a complex, integrated system

– Individuals and their achievements canonly be understood within thisframework




4. Contextual Perspectives

• Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory – development is product of social and cultural experiences

– Emphasizes importance of cultural variation in development – cultural tools include language, technology




– Contextual Perspectives

• Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory – experiences and relationships in layers of environmental systems impact child development

• The life-span perspective


Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Model of Development

Child

MICROSYSTEM

CHRONOSYSTEM

EXOSYSTEM

MESOSYSTEM

MACROSYSTEM

Social welfare services

Legal services

Massmedia

Neighbors

Extendedfamily

Friends of family

Attitudes & ideologies of

culture

Family

Sch

ool

Peers

Religious

institutio

nsHealthcare

services

Playground




5. Ethological and Evolutionary Approaches

• Ethological theory focuses on adaptive or survival behavior within specific contexts – observation yields detailed classifications

• Evolutionary developmental psychology focuses on critical components of human evolutionary change in the brain and cognitive functioning


Page 9 (right) - Research Methods in Child Psychology

• Selecting a sample

– Representativeness of sample – tries to mirror a larger population by using age, ethnicity, gender, social class, education, and culture

– National Survey approach uses a nationally representative group of people but it’s costly and time consuming


Research Methods in Child Psychology

• Methods of Collecting Data on Children

– Children’s Self-Reports

– Reports by Family, Teachers, and Peers

– Direct Observation

• Valuable in examining human behavior

• Specimen Record

• Event Sampling, Time Sampling

• Structured Observation



• Research Design: Establishing Patterns and Causes

– Correlational Method allows researchers to relate certain experiences or factors to each other and assess the strength of the relations


Test score gains

More than 5 times

per week

Rarely 2 to 3 times per week

4 to 5 times per week

Frequency with which children watched “Sesame Street”



• Studying Change Over Time

– Cross-Sectional Method compares different age levels at about the same point in time

– Longitudinal Method studies same subjects over time at various points in their life

• Problem: practice effects of repeated testing

– Sequential Method combines both cross-sectional and longitudinal methods

STOP


Page 8 (left)- Activity Sheet #1-C

• Glue/Staple in this handout and complete the assignment with a partner.


Year of evaluation

2002

2004

2006

2000

1996

1998

2000

2002

2004

1994

Year of birth

Cohort comparisons

Cross-sectional comparisons

Longitudinal comparisons



• The Ethics of Research with Children– Research approved by review boards (i.e.:

APA)– Informed consent– Do no harm, especially in deception studies– A Bill of Child Participants’ Rights in Child

Development Research (Table 1-6)


Page 10 (left)- Activity Sheet #1-D

• Read pages 30 and 31 in your textbook and complete this activity with a partner.


The EndThe End

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© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Chapter One Child Development: Themes, Theories, and Methods Page 3 (right)