Nature and Nurture: The Enduring Developmental Issue

• Developmental Psychology - patterns of growth and change throughout life

• Nature-nurture issue

Prenatal Development: Conception to Birth

The Basics of Genetics• chromosomes (body chromosomes and sex

chromosomes)• genes• specialized sex cells (egg and sperm cells)• fertilization• meiosis and mitosis• identical and fraternal twins• zygote (germinal period)• embryo (embryonic period)• fetus (fetal period)• age of viability• sensitive/critical periods

Genetic Influences on the Fetus

• Phenylketonuria (PKU)• Sickle-Cell Anemia• Tay-Sachs Disease• Down Syndrome

Teratogens: Prenatal Environmental Influences

• mother’s nutrition• mother’s illness• mother’s emotional state• mother’s use of drugs• alcohol use• nicotine use• age (younger than 18, older than 35)• radiation from X rays

Alternative Paths to Conception

• in vitro fertilization (IVF)• gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT)• zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT)

Parenting Style

• Authoritarian• Permissive• Authoritative• Uninvolved

Infancy

• reflexes (rooting, sucking, gag, startle, Babinski)

• limited voluntary movements• discriminate and imitate facial expressions• visual abilities grow rapidly• distinguish different sounds• recognize different tastes and smells• language development (6 months: babbling)• attachment

Childhood

• increasing growth• relationship of body parts sizes to one another

changes• attachment• less dependent on their parents and more self-

reliant• play with friends (from independent to

cooperative)• school age• more social interactions• physical and emotional control

Adolescence

• physical development and maturation brought by hormonal secretion

• sexual attraction• search for identity• seek independence• egocentrism• suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death for

adolescents in US

Adulthood

• early, middle, late adulthood• body is less efficient and more susceptible to

disease• sense organs less sensitive• menopause (40 – 50)• more profound social development• careers, marriage, families• midlife crisis (40)• fluid intelligence (memory, calculations,

analogies) declines• crystallized intelligence (skills, strategies) remain

steady