The paper meets some of the structure requirements:

monkeybusinessimages/iStock/Getty Images

Learning Objectives

After studying this chapter, you will be able to …

· 1Identify and describe the stages of prenatal development and major threats to prenatal development.

· 2Identify reflexes present at birth.

· 3Describe the infant’s sensory, perceptual, and learning abilities.

· 4Describe the development of the infant’s motor skills in the first year of life.

· 5Identify and describe three types of infant temperament and three types of infant attachment styles.

· 6Identify and describe the major parenting styles.

· 7Identify and describe Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development in childhood.

· 8Describe Piaget’s stages of cognitive development.

· 9Describe Vygotsky’s psychosocial theory of cognitive development.

· 10Describe the physiological, cognitive, and psychosocial changes that occur during adolescence, and Erikson’s beliefs about psychosocial development in adolescence.

· 11Describe Kohlberg’s stages of moral reasoning and evaluate his theory in light of Gilligan’s criticism.

· 12Describe the physical and cognitive changes that occur during adulthood and Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development in early and middle adulthood.

· 13Describe the physical and cognitive changes we can expect later in life, and Erikson’s views on psychosocial development in late adulthood.

· 14Evaluate the qualities associated with successful aging.

· 15Identify the stages of dying proposed by Kübler-Ross.

· 16Apply suggestions for living a longer and healthier life.

Keeping Peace at the Dinner Table

One of the things parents learn when they have a second child is the everyday meaning of the concept of equality. They learn that whatever they give to one child they must give to the other in equal measure. This lesson in parenting was driven home for me one day when we sat down at the dinner table to share a pizza. Everything was fine until we divided the last two slices between Daniella, then age 5, and Michael, who was then 11. I noticed Daniella’s eyes beginning to well up with tears. I asked her what was wrong. She pointed to Michael’s slice and said that his was bigger. Michael had already begun eating his slice, so it was clear that pulling a last-minute switch wouldn’t ease her concern, let alone be fair to Michael. It was then that the heavy hammer of equality came down squarely on my head.

To resolve the situation, I drew upon a principle you’ll read about in this chapter: the principle of conservation. This is the principle that the amount or size of a substance does not change merely as the result of a superficial change in its outward appearance. You don’t increase the amount of clay by merely flattening or stretching it out. Neither do you increase the amount of a liquid by pouring it from a wider container into a narrower one, even though the liquid rises to a higher level in the narrower container. Although the principle of conservation may seem self-evident to an adult or older child, the typical 5-year-old has not mastered this concept. Knowing this, I quickly took a pizza slicer and divided Daniella’s slice into two. “There,” I said, “now you have twice as many slices as Michael.” Michael gave me a quizzical look, as if he was wondering who on earth would fall for such an obvious trick. Daniella, on the other hand, looked at the two slices and quite happily started eating them, the tears receding. Peace at the Nevid dining table was restored, at least for the moment.

The pizza incident illustrates a theme that carries throughout our study of human development. It’s not about applying principles of child psychology to keep peace at the dinner table. Rather, it’s about understanding that the world of the child is very different from the world of the adolescent or adult. Children’s cognitive abilities and ways of understanding the world change dramatically during childhood. As we continue our voyage of discovery through development, we’ll find that many adolescents see themselves and the world quite differently than do their parents and other adults. Even in adulthood, people of 20-something or 30-something years see themselves and their place in the world quite differently than do those of more advanced years.

In this chapter, we trace the remarkable journey that is human development. Our story would be incomplete without first considering the important events that occur well before a child takes its first breath.

Did You Know that…

· A fertilized egg cell is not yet attached to the mother’s body during the first week or so after conception? (  Stages of Prenatal Development )

· There is no accepted safe limit for alcohol use during pregnancy? (  Threats to Prenatal Development )

· Baby geese followed a famous scientist around as if he were their mother? (  Attachment: Binding Ties )

· According to theorist Erik Erikson, the development of a sense of trust begins before the infant speaks its first word? (  Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development )

· It is normal for a 4-year-old to believe the moon has feelings? (  Cognitive Development )

· Despite what you may have heard, the percentage of teenagers who engage in sexual intercourse today is actually less than it was at the beginning of the new millennium? (  Psychosocial Development )

· A midlife crisis may be more the exception than the rule during middle adulthood? (  Psychosocial Development )

· The next best thing to a Fountain of Youth may be your neighborhood gym? (  The Last Chapter: On Death and Dying )

Alison Gopnik: What do babies think?

Source:

http://www.ted.com "Babies and young children are like the R&D division of the human species," says psychologist Alison Gopnik. Her research explores the sophisticated intelligence-gathering and decision-making that babies are really doing when they play. TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Featured speakers have included Al Gore on climate change, Philippe Starck on design, Jill Bolte Taylor on observing her own stroke, Nicholas Negroponte on One Laptop per Child, Jane Goodall on chimpanzees, Bill Gates on malaria and mosquitoes, Pattie Maes on the "Sixth Sense" wearable tech, and "Lost" producer JJ Abrams on the allure of mystery. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, development and the arts. Closed captions and translated subtitles in a variety of languages are now available on TED.com, at http://www.ted.com/translate.

Duration: 18:30 || Views: 215018 || By:

Module Introduction

Learning Objectives

· 1Identify and describe the stages of prenatal development and major threats to prenatal development.

The branch of psychology that studies the systematic changes that occur during the life span is called  developmental psychology . We can think of development progressing chronologically in terms of the stages shown in Table 9.1. We begin our story of human development by considering the important events that occur well before a child takes its first breath.

Table 9.1

Stages of Development through the Life Span

Stage	Approximate Ages
Prenatal period	Conception to birth
Infancy period	Birth to 1 year
Toddler period	1 to 3 years
Preschool period	3 to 6 years
Middle childhood	6 to 12 years
Adolescence	12 to 18 years
Young adulthood	18 to 40 years
Middle adulthood	40 to 65 years
Late adulthood	65 years and older

Prenatal development brings into focus the long-debated issue of how much of our development is due to nature (genes) and how much to nurture (the environment). Human development is best understood as a continuous interplay of heredity and experience (Leve et al., 2010; Meaney, 2010). Though some physical traits, such as hair color, are determined by only a single gene, complex behavioral traits such as intelligence and personality are influenced by multiple genes interacting with environmental factors (see, for example, Diamond, 2009; Gottesman & Hanson, 2005; Johnson et al., 2009).

Maturation , the biological unfolding of an organism according to its underlying genetic blueprint, largely determines how organisms, including ourselves, grow and develop physically. It explains why children of tall parents tend to be tall themselves and those with curly-haired parents tend to have curly hair. Yet development also depends on environmental factors, such as nutrition. The influences of nature and nurture begin to shape development even in the womb.

Stages of Prenatal Development

Scientists believe that sexual reproduction began some 240 to 320 million years ago, long before humans ever strode upon the earth (Lahn & Page, 1999). They believe it began with a single chromosome that mutated to form the X and Y sex chromosomes that determine sex in mammals, including humans. The male of the species carries a combination of X and Y sex chromosomes, whereas the female carries two X chromosomes. Each reproductive cell or germ cell—the sperm in males and the ovum (egg cell) in females—contains only one copy of the two sex chromosomes. All other body cells have two sex chromosomes. Thus, a sperm cell carries either one X or one Y sex chromosome, whereas an ovum carries only one X. When an ovum is fertilized, the resulting combination (XX or XY) determines the baby’s sex.

During  ovulation , an ovum is released from one of the ovaries and then begins a slow journey through a  fallopian tube . If fertilization occurs (the uniting of a sperm and an ovum), the resulting combination (XX or XY) of the sex chromosomes in the fertilized ovum determines the baby’s sex. The single cell, called a zygote , that forms from the uniting of sperm and ovum soon undergoes cell division. First, it divides into two cells; then each of these two cells divides, forming four cells; each of these four cells divides, resulting in eight cells; and so on. In the months that follow, organ systems form as the developing organism increasingly takes on the form and structure of a human being.

In this remarkable photograph of the dance of life, a single sperm is attempting to penetrate the egg covering. If it succeeds, the genetic material from both parents will combine into a single cell that marks the beginning of a new life.

David M. Phillips/Science Source

A typical 9-month pregnancy is commonly divided into three trimesters, or 3-month periods. From the standpoint of prenatal development, we can also identify three major prenatal stages or periods: the germinal stage, which roughly corresponds to the first 2 weeks after conception; the embryonic stage, which spans the period of about 2 weeks to about 8 weeks after conception; and the fetal stage, which continues until birth (see Figure 9.1).

Figure 9.1Prenatal Development

Dramatic changes in shape and form occur during prenatal development. Compare the embryo (a) at about 6 to 7 weeks of development with the fetus (b) at approximately 16 weeks. The fetus has already taken on a clearly recognizable human form.

Petit Format/Science Source; Nestle/Petit Format/Science Source

The  germinal stage  spans the time from  fertilization  to implantation in the wall of the  uterus . For the first three or four days following conception, the mass of dividing cells moves about the uterus before implantation. The process of implantation is not completed for perhaps another week or so.

The  embryonic stage  spans the period from implantation to about the eighth week of pregnancy. The major organ systems begin to take shape in the developing organism, which we now call the  embryo . About three weeks into pregnancy, two ridges fold together to form the  neural tube , from which the nervous system will develop. The head and blood vessels also begin to form at this time. By the fourth week, a primitive heart takes shape and begins beating. It will normally (and hopefully) continue beating without a break for at least the next 80, 90, or more years.

The embryo is suspended in a protective environment within the mother’s uterus called the  amniotic sac  (see Figure 9.2). Surrounding the embryo is amniotic fluid, which acts as a kind of shock absorber to cushion the embryo and fetus from damage that could result from the mother’s movements. Nutrients and waste materials are exchanged between the mother and the embryo (and fetus) through the  placenta . The embryo and later, the fetus, are connected to the placenta by the umbilical cord. The placenta allows nutrients and oxygen to pass from mother to fetus. Their blood streams do not mix.

Figure 9.2Structures in the Womb

During prenatal development, the embryo lies in a protective enclosure within the uterus called the amniotic sac. Nutrients and waste materials are exchanged between mother and embryo/fetus through the placenta. The umbilical cord connects the embryo and fetus to the placenta.

The  fetal stage , or stage of the  fetus , begins around the 9th week of pregnancy and continues until the birth of the child. All of the major organ systems, as well as the fingers and toes, are formed by about the 12th week of prenatal development, which roughly corresponds to the end of the first trimester. They continue to develop through the course of the pregnancy. The fetus increases more than 30-fold in weight during the second trimester of pregnancy, from about 1 ounce to about 2 pounds. It grows from about 4 inches in length to about 14 inches. Typically the mother will feel the first fetal movements around the middle of the fourth month. By the end of the second trimester, the fetus approaches the age of viability, the point at which it becomes capable of sustaining life on its own. However, fewer than half of infants born at the end of the second trimester that weigh less than 2 pounds will survive on their own, even with the most intense medical treatment.

Threats to Prenatal Development

Concept 9.1

The fetus faces many risks, including maternal malnutrition and teratogens.

Concept 9.2

Certain environmental influences or agents, called teratogens, may harm a developing embryo or fetus.

A pregnant woman requires adequate nutrition for the health of the fetus as well as for her own. Maternal malnutrition is associated with a greater risk of premature birth (birth prior to 37 weeks of gestation) and low birth weight (less than 5 pounds, or about 2,500 grams). Preterm and low-birth-weight babies face a higher risk of infant mortality and later developmental problems, including cognitive deficits and attention difficulties (for example, Lemons et al., 2001).

Women may receive prescriptions from their obstetricians for multivitamin pills to promote optimal fetal development. The federal government recommends that all women of childbearing age take 400 micrograms daily of the B vitamin folic acid and that pregnant women take 800 micrograms. Folic acid greatly reduces the risk of neural tube defects such as  spina bifida , but only if it is taken early in pregnancy (Heseker, 2011).

The word  teratogen  is derived from the Greek root teras, meaning “monster.” Teratogens include certain drugs taken by the mother, X-rays, environmental contaminants such as lead and mercury, and infectious organisms capable of passing through the placenta to the embryo or fetus. The risks posed by teratogens are greatest during certain critical periods of development. For example, teratogens that may damage the arms and legs are most likely to have an effect during the fourth through eighth weeks of development (see Concept Chart 9.1).

Concept Chart 9.1Critical Periods in Prenatal Development

Let us now consider several of the most dangerous teratogens.

Infectious Diseases

Rubella  (also called German measles) is a common childhood disease that can lead to serious birth defects, including heart disease, deafness, and intellectual disability (formerly called mental retardation), if contracted during pregnancy. Women exposed to rubella in childhood acquire immunity to the disease. Those who lack immunity may be vaccinated before becoming pregnant to protect their future offspring.

Some sexually transmitted infections, such as HIV/AIDS and syphilis, may be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy. Fortunately, aggressive treatment of HIV-infected mothers with the antiviral drug AZT greatly reduces the risk of maternal transmission of the virus to the fetus. Children born with congenital syphilis may suffer liver damage, impaired hearing and vision, and deformities in their teeth and bones. The risk of transmission can be reduced if the infected mother is treated effectively with antibiotics prior to the fourth month of pregnancy.

Smoking

Maternal smoking can have harmful consequences on the fetus and newborn, including miscarriage (spontaneous abortion), premature birth, low birth weight, and even infant mortality (Chertok, Luo, & Anderson, 2011; Heilbronner & Berlin, 2005). The more the mother smokes, the greater the risks. The risks extend to grade-school children, as those with mothers who smoked continuously during pregnancy show signs of abnormal brain development, including lower brain volumes and areas of thinning of neural tissue in the cerebral cortex (El Marroun et al., 2013).

Maternal smoking during pregnancy is also linked to increased risks of  sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)  and lung problems, including childhood asthma, as well as to developmental problems such as reduced attention span, learning problems, and behavioral problems (for example, Goodwin et al., 2009; Trachtenberg et al., 2011).

Smoking is harmful not just to the mother, but also to the fetus and newborn.

VGstockstudio/ Shutterstock.com

Alcohol and Drugs

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) , which results from the mother’s use of alcohol during pregnancy, is a leading cause of intellectual disability (May et al., 2014). It is also associated with facial deformities such as a flattened nose, an underdeveloped upper jaw, and widely spaced eyes. Although FAS is more likely to occur with heavy maternal drinking, there is actually no established safe limit for alcohol use in pregnancy. FAS may occur in babies whose mothers drank as little as a few ounces of alcohol a day during the first trimester. But more commonly it is found in babies whose mothers engaged in binge drinking before they knew they were pregnant (May et al., 2014). Even moderate drinking during pregnancy is associated with lower IQ scores in children (Lewis et al., 2012). Is there a safe level of alcohol use in pregnancy? Put simply and directly, the answer, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, is a firm no (Williams, Smith, & the Committee on Substance Abuse, 2015). Alcohol or any other drug used during pregnancy, whether legal or illegal (illicit), or any medication, whether prescribed or bought over the counter, is potentially harmful to the fetus.

Module Review

9.1Prenatal Development: A Case of Nature and Nurture

Recite It

· Answer1.

Identify and describe the stages of prenatal development and major threats to prenatal development.

The germinal stage is the period from conception to (a)implantation. The (b)embryonic stage begins with implantation and extends to about the eighth week of development; it is characterized by differentiation of the major organ systems. The (c)fetal stage begins around the ninth week and continues until birth; it is characterized by continued maturation of the fetus’s organ systems and dramatic increases in size.

Threats include maternal diet, maternal diseases and disorders, and use of certain medications and drugs. Exposure to particular (d)teratogens causes the greatest harm during critical periods of vulnerability.

Recall It

· Answer1.

The first stage of prenatal development, which ends with implantation in the uterine wall, is called thegerminal stage.

· 2.

Name two major risks to the developing embryo or fetus.

Answer

maternal malnutrition, teratogens

· 3.

Match the following terms to their descriptions:

1. (a) the first stage of pregnancy

2. (b) a protective environment

3. (c) the organ in which nutrients and wastes are exchanged within the uterus

4. (d) a structure in the developing organism from which the nervous system develops

i. neural tube

i. placenta

i. amniotic sac

i. germinal stage

Think About It

· Based on your reading of the text, what advice might you give someone about the risks posed by drinking alcohol or smoking during pregnancy?

· Would you want to know if you or your partner were at risk for carrying a genetic abnormality? Why or why not? How would such knowledge affect your decisions about having children?