© 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 What is child development and why should we study it? Sub-area of child psychology 1. 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

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved What exactly does that mean? Developmental psychologists are interested in what things change as children get older and how these changes come about.

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

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

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Page 2 (left)-Reflective Response Thinking about Themes in Child Psychology- Activity Sheet #1-B

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Page 5 (right)-Themes of Development Biological versus Environmental Influences: nature vs. nurture –Disagreement on which influences development the most –Genetic or biological processes unfold naturally in maturation –Environmental events can shape, modify –Children are active agents

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

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Themes of Development 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?

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Pg. 4 (left) Work it Out: What is Sroufe’s view on the characteristics of child development?

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

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

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

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Page 6 (left) Graphic Organizer Complete the 5 perspective handouts and staple them in when finished

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

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

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Research Methods in Child Psychology 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

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

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Research Methods in Child Psychology 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

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Page 8 (left)- Activity Sheet #1-C Glue/Staple in this handout and complete the assignment with a partner.

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Year of evaluation Year of birth Cohort comparisons Cross-sectional comparisons Longitudinal comparisons

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Research Methods in Child Psychology 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)

© 2009 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved Page 10 (left)- Activity Sheet #1-D Read pages 30 and 31 in your textbook and complete this activity with a partner.

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