Growth and Lifespan Development Flashcards

A researcher finds that vocabulary scores peak in the 40s-50s and remain relatively stable, while processing speed declines from young adulthood. This pattern best illustrates which theoretical distinction?

Answer: Fluid vs. crystallized intelligence

Fluid intelligence (processing speed, novel problem solving) declines earlier while crystallized intelligence (accumulated knowledge, vocabulary) is maintained or grows into middle age.

According to Baumrind's parenting styles research, which style is characterized by high demandingness combined with high responsiveness and is associated with the best child outcomes?

Answer: Authoritative

Authoritative parenting, with warm emotional support and consistent firm boundaries, is consistently associated with positive developmental outcomes including higher self-esteem and academic achievement.

Marcia's identity statuses extend Erikson's work. An adolescent who has made identity commitments without undergoing exploration is in which status?

Answer: Identity foreclosure

Identity foreclosure describes commitment without prior exploration, often by adopting parents' values or roles without personally questioning them.

Which of the following is a hallmark characteristic of preoperational thought in Piaget's theory?

Answer: Egocentrism and animism

Preoperational children (ages 2-7) exhibit egocentrism (inability to take another's perspective) and animism (attributing life to inanimate objects).

The Strange Situation procedure developed by Ainsworth is used to assess which developmental construct?

Answer: Quality of infant-caregiver attachment

Ainsworth's Strange Situation is a laboratory paradigm assessing the quality of infant-caregiver attachment through a series of separations and reunions.

Cross-sectional studies of intelligence across the lifespan often show earlier declines than longitudinal studies. This discrepancy is primarily due to which factor?

Answer: Cohort effects confounding cross-sectional results

Cross-sectional designs confound age with cohort differences; older cohorts may have had less education, making declines appear steeper than they are for any single individual over time.

Which developmental concept refers to a sensitive period during which specific experiences must occur for normal development to proceed, such as language acquisition in early childhood?

Answer: Experience-expectant development

Experience-expectant development refers to processes that depend on species-typical experiences occurring during sensitive periods to wire normal neural circuits, such as exposure to language for language acquisition.