Glossary Psych 41

Glossary
Pronunciation Guide
for
THE DEVELOPING PERSON
THROUGH THE LIFE SPAN
Seventh Edition

Kathleen Berger
Bronx Community College
City University of New York

© 2008 by Worth Publishers

WORTH PUBLISHERS

Copyright © 2008 Worth Publishers

2 Glossary Pronunciation Guide

A adrenal glands (uh-DREE-null) Two glands,
located above the kidneys, that produce
AARP A U.S. organization of people aged 50 and hormones (including the “stress hormones”
older, which advocates for the elderly. It was epinephrine [adrenaline] and norepinephrine).

affordance (ah-FORE-dense) An opportunity
originally called the American Association of
Retired Persons, but now only the initials AARP
are used, to reflect the fact that the organization’s for perception and interaction that is offered by
members do not have to be retired. a person, place, or object in the environment.

absent grief A situation in which overly private age in place Refers to a preference of elderly
people cut themselves off from the community people to remain in the same home and
and customs of expected grief; can lead to social community, adjusting but not leaving when
isolation. health fades.

achievement tests Measures of mastery or age of viability (vye-uh-BILL-it-ee) The age
proficiency in reading, math, writing, science, or (about 22 weeks after conception) at which a
any other subject. fetus can survive outside the mother’s uterus if

active euthanasia (you-thenn-AY-zha) A
specialized medical care is available.

situation in which someone takes action to bring ageism A prejudice in which people are cate-
about another person’s death, with the intention of gorized and judged solely on the basis of their
ending that person’s suffering. chronological age.

activities of daily life (ADLs) Actions that aggressive-rejected Rejected by peers
are important to independent living, typically because of antagonistic, confrontational behavior.
consisting of five tasks of self-care: eating,
bathing, toileting, dressing, and transferring from allele (ah-LEEL) A slight, normal variation of a
a bed to a chair. The inability to perform any of particular gene.
these tasks is a sign of frailty.
allostatic load (al-oh-STAT-ick) The total, com-
activity theory The view that elderly people
bined burden of stress and disease that an
want and need to remain active in a variety of
individual must cope with.
social spheres—with relatives, friends, and
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) (AHLTZ- [or ALTZ-]
community groups—and become withdrawn only
unwillingly, as a result of ageism.
hy-merz) The most common cause of dementia,
additive gene A gene that has several alleles, characterized by gradual deterioration of memory
each of which contributes to the final phenotype and personality and marked by the formation of
(such as skin color or height). plaques of beta-amyloid protein and tangles in
the brain.
adolescence-limited offender A person
whose criminal activity stops by age 21. amygdala (ah-MIG-dull-uh) A tiny brain
structure that registers emotions, particularly fear
adolescent egocentrism A characteristic of and anxiety.
adolescent thinking that leads young people (ages
10 to 13) to focus on themselves to the exclusion analytic intelligence (ann-uh-LIT-ick) A form
of others. A young person might believe, for of intelligence that involves such mental
example, that his or her thoughts, feelings, and processes as abstract planning, strategy
experiences are unique, more wonderful or awful selection, focused attention, and information
than anyone else’s. processing, as well as verbal and logical skills.


Glossary Pronunciation Guide 3

analytic thought (ann-uh-LIT-ick) Thought that apprentice in thinking Vygotsky’s term for
results from analysis, such as a systematic rank- a person whose cognition is stimulated and
ing of pros and cons, risks and consequences, directed by older and more skilled members of
possibilities and facts. Analytic thought depends society.
on logic and rationality.
aptitude The potential to master a particular
androgyny (ann-DROJ-in-ee) A balance, within skill or to learn a particular body of knowledge.
a person, of traditionally male and female
psychological characteristics. Asperger syndrome A specific type of autistic
spectrum disorder characterized by extreme
andropause (ANN-dro-pozz) A term coined to attention to details and deficient social
signify a drop in testosterone levels in older men, understanding.
which normally results in reduced sexual desire,
erections, and muscle mass. Also known as male assisted living A living arrangement for elderly
menopause. people that combines privacy and independence
with medical supervision.
anorexia nervosa (ann-oh-REX-ee-uh ner-
VOSE-uh) A serious eating disorder in which a assisted reproductive technology (ART)
person restricts eating to the point of emaciation A general term for the techniques designed to
and possible starvation. Most victims are high- help infertile couples conceive and then sustain a
achieving females in early puberty or early pregnancy.
adulthood.
asthma (AZZ-muh) A chronic disease of the
anoxia (ann-OX-ee-uh) A lack of oxygen that, if respiratory system in which inflammation narrows
prolonged during birth, can cause brain damage the airways from the lungs to the nose and mouth,
or death to the baby. causing difficulty in breathing. Signs and
symptoms include wheezing, shortness of breath,
antioxidants (ann-tie- [or ann-tee-] OX-ih- chest tightness, and coughing.
dents) Chemical compounds that nullify the
effects of oxygen free radicals by forming a bond attachment According to Ainsworth, “an
with their unattached oxygen electron. affectional tie” that an infant forms with the
caregiver—a tie that binds them together in
antipathy (ann-TIP-uh-thee) Feelings of anger, space and endures over time.
distrust, dislike, or even hatred toward another
person. attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
(ADHD) A condition in which a person not only
antisocial behavior Feeling and acting in has great difficulty concentrating for more than a
ways that are deliberately hurtful or destructive to few moments but also is inattentive, impulsive,
another person. and overactive.

antithesis (ann-TITH-uh-sis) A proposition or authoritarian parenting Child rearing with
statement of belief that opposes the thesis; the high behavioral standards, punishment of
second stage of the process of dialectical misconduct, and low communication.
thinking.
authoritative parenting Child rearing in
Apgar scale A quick assessment of a which the parents set limits but listen to the child
newborn’s body functioning. The baby’s color, and are flexible.
heart rate, reflexes, muscle tone, and respiratory
effort are given a score of 0, 1, or 2 twice—at one autism A developmental disorder marked by
minute and five minutes after birth—and the total an inability to relate to other people normally,
of all the scores is compared with the ideal score extreme self-absorption, and an inability to
of 10. acquire normal speech.


autistic spectrum disorder Any of several bickering Petty, peevish arguing, usually
disorders characterized by inadequate social repeated and ongoing.

Big Five The five basic clusters of personality
skills, unusual communication, and abnormal play.

automatization A process in which repetition traits that remain quite stable throughout
of a sequence of thoughts and actions makes the adulthood: openness, conscientiousness,
sequence routine, so that it no longer requires extroversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

bilingual education A strategy in which
conscious thought.

autonomy versus shame and doubt (aw- school subjects are taught in both the learner’s
TONN-uh-mee) Erikson’s second crisis of psycho- original language and the second (majority)
social development. Toddlers either succeed or language.

binocular vision (bye-NOCK-you-ler)The
fail in gaining a sense of self-rule over their own
actions and bodies.
ability to focus the two eyes in a coordinated
average life expectancy The number of
manner in order to see one image.

blastocyst A cell mass that develops from the
years the average newborn in a particular
population group is likely to live. zygote in the first few days after conception,
axon A nerve fiber that extends from a neuron
during the germinal period, and forms a hollow
sphere in preparation for implantation.
and transmits electrical impulses from that neuron
to the dendrites of other neurons. blended family A family that consists of two

B
adults and the children of the prior relationships
of one or both parents and/or the new
partnership.
B cells Immune cells manufactured in the bone
marrow that create antibodies for isolating and body image A person’s idea of how his or her
destroying bacteria and viruses that are invading body looks.

body mass index (BMI) The ratio of a
the body.

babbling The extended repetition of certain person’s weight in kilograms divided by his or her
syllables, such as ba-ba-ba, that begins between height in meters squared.

bulimia nervosa (boo- [or byoo-] LEE-mee-uh
6 and 9 months of age.

balanced bilingual A person who is fluent in
ner-VOSE-uh) An eating disorder in which the
person, usually female, engages repeatedly in
two languages, not favoring one or the other.
episodes of binge eating followed by purging
behavioral teratogens (tuh-RAT-oh-jens)
through induced vomiting or use of laxatives.
Agents and conditions that can harm the prenatal bully-victim Someone who attacks others, and
brain, impairing the future child’s intellectual and who is attacked as well. (Also called provocative
emotional functioning. victims because they do things that elicit bullying,

behaviorism A grand theory of human develop-
such as taking a bully’s pencil.)

ment that studies observable behavior. Behavior- bullying aggression Unprovoked, repeated
ism is also called learning theory because it physical or verbal attack, especially on victims
describes the laws and processes by which who are unlikely to defend themselves.
behavior is learned.
bullying Repeated, systematic efforts to inflict
bereavement The sense of loss following a harm through physical, verbal, or social attack on
death. a weaker person.



butterfly effect The idea that a small effect or abdomen and uterus allow the fetus to be
thing can have a large impact if it happens to tip removed quickly, instead of being delivered
the balance, causing other changes that create a through the vagina. (Also called c-section or
major event. simply section.)

C child abuse Deliberate action that is harmful to
a child’s physical, emotional, or sexual well-being.
calorie restriction The practice of limiting
dietary energy intake (while consuming sufficient child maltreatment Intentional harm to or
quantities of vitamins, minerals, and other avoidable endangerment of anyone under 18
important nutrients) for the purpose of improving years of age.
health and slowing down the aging process.
child neglect Failure to meet a child’s basic
cardiovascular disease Disease that physical, educational, or emotional needs.
involves the heart and the circulatory system.
child sexual abuse Any erotic activity that
carrier A person whose genotype includes a arouses an adult and excites, shames, or
gene that is not expressed in the phenotype. confuses a child, whether or not the victim
Such an unexpressed gene occurs in half of the protests and whether or not genital contact is
carrier’s gametes and thus is passed on to half of involved.
the carrier’s children, who will most likely be
carriers, too. Generally, only when the gene is child-directed speech The high-pitched,
inherited from both parents does the characteristic simplified, and repetitive way adults speak to
appear in the phenotype. infants. (Also called baby talk or motherese.)

case study A research method in which one children with special needs Children who,
individual is studied intensively. because of a physical or mental disability, require
extra help in order to learn.
centenarian (sen-ten-AIR-ee-un) A person who
has lived 100 years or more. chromosome (KROME-oh-sohm) One of the
46 molecules of DNA (in 23 pairs) that each cell
center day care Child care in a place of the human body contains and that, together,
especially designed for the purpose, where contain all the genes. Other species have more or
several paid providers care for many children. fewer chromosomes.
Usually the children are grouped by age, the day-
care center is licensed, and providers are trained classical conditioning The learning process
and certified in child development. that connects a meaningful stimulus (such as the
smell of food to a hungry animal) with a neutral
centration A characteristic of preoperational stimulus (such as the sound of a bell) that had no
thought in which a young child focuses (centers) special meaning before conditioning. Also called
on one idea, excluding all others. respondent conditioning.

cerebral palsy (sair-uh-brul or ser-EE-brul) A classification The logical principle that things
disorder that results from damage to the brain’s can be organized into groups (or categories or
motor centers. People with cerebral palsy have classes) according to some characteristic they
difficulty with muscle control, so their speech and have in common.
body movements are impaired.
clinical depression Feelings of hopelessness,
cesarean section (see-ZAIR-ee-en) A surgical lethargy, and worthlessness that last two weeks or
birth, in which incisions through the mother’s more.



clique (click or cleek) A group of adolescents to the experimental group in all relevant ways but
made up of close friends who are loyal to one who do not experience the experimental condition
another while excluding outsiders. (the independent variable).

clone An organism that is produced from compression of morbidity A lessening of
another organism through artificial replication of the time a person spends ill or infirm,
cells and is genetically identical to that organism. accomplished by postponing illness.

cluster suicides Several suicides committed concrete operational thought Piaget’s term
by members of a group within a brief period of for the ability to reason logically about direct
time. experiences and perceptions.

co-sleeping A custom in which parents and conditioning According to behaviorism, the
their children (usually infants) sleep together. processes by which reponses become linked to
(Also called bed-sharing.) particular stimuli and learning takes place. The

code of ethics A set of moral principles that
word conditioning is used to emphasize the
importance of repeated practice, as when an
members of a profession or group are expected athlete gets into physical condition by training for
to follow. a long time.

cognitive equilibrium In cognitive theory, a conservation The idea that the amount of a
state of mental balance in which people are not substance remains the same (i.e., is conserved)
confused because they can use their existing when its appearance changes.
thought processes to understand current
experiences and ideas. continuity theory The theory that each

cognitive theory A grand theory of human
person experiences the changes of late adulthood
and behaves toward others in much the same
development that focuses on changes in how way he or she did in earlier periods of life.
people think over time. According to this theory,
our thoughts shape our attitudes, beliefs, and control processes Mechanisms (including
behaviors. selective attention, metacognition, and emotional
cohabitation An arrangement in which a man
regulation) that combine memory, processing
speed, and knowledge to regulate the analysis
and a woman live together in a committed sexual and flow of information within the information-
relationship but are not formally married. processing system.
cohort A group of people who were born at
conventional moral reasoning Kohlberg’s
about the same time and thus move through life
together, experiencing the same historical events second level of moral reasoning, emphasizing
and cultural shifts. social rules.

common couple violence A form of abuse in corpus callosum A long band of nerve fibers
which one or both partners of a couple engage in that connect the left and right hemispheres of the
outbursts of verbal and physical attack. (Also brain.

correlation A number indicating the degree of
called situational couple violence.)

comorbidity The presence of two or more relationship between two variables, expressed in
unrelated disease conditions at the same time in terms of the likelihood that one variable will (or
the same person. will not) occur when the other variable does (or
does not). A correlation is not an indication that
comparison group/control group A group one variable causes the other, only that the two
of participants in a research study who are similar variables are related to the indicated degree.



cortex The outer layers of the brain in humans quality of life. DALYs are the reciprocal of quality-
and other mammals. Most thinking, feeling, and adjusted life years: A reduction in QALYs means
sensing involve the cortex. (Sometimes called the an increase in DALYs.
neocortex.)
deductive reasoning Reasoning from a
creative intelligence A form of intelligence general statement, premise, or principle, through
that involves the capacity to be intellectually logical steps, to figure out (deduce) specifics.
flexible and innovative. (Sometimes called top-down thinking.)

critical period In prenatal development, the deferred imitation A sequence in which an
time when a particular organ or other body part of infant first perceives something that someone else
the embryo or fetus is most susceptible to does and then performs the same action a few
damage by teratogens. Also, a time when a hours or even days later.
certain development must happen if it is ever to
happen. For example, the embryonic period is Defining Issues Test (DIT) A series of
critical for the development of arms and legs. questions developed by James Rest and designed
to assess respondents’ level of moral
cross-sectional research A research design development by having them rank possible
that compares groups of people who differ in solutions to moral dilemmas.
age but are similar in other important charac-
teristics. delay discounting The tendency to
undervalue, or downright ignore, future
cross-sequential research (cross-see- consequences and rewards in favor of more
KWEN-shull) A hybrid research method in which immediate gratification.
researchers first study several groups of people
of different ages (a cross-sectional approach) delirium (deh-LEER-ee-um) A temporary loss of
and then follow those groups over the years memory, often accompanied by emotions of fear
(a longitudinal approach). (Also called cohort- or grandiosity and irrational actions.
sequential research or time-sequential research.)
dementia (dee-MEN-shah) Irreversible loss of
crowd A larger group of adolescents who have intellectual functioning caused by organic brain
something in common but who are not damage or disease. Dementia becomes more
necessarily friends. common with age, but it is abnormal and
pathological even in the very old.
crystallized intelligence Those types of
intellectual ability that reflect accumulated demography (dee-MOG-ruff-ee) The study of
learning. Vocabulary and general information are the characteristics of human populations,
examples. Some developmental psychologists including size, birth and death rates, density, and
think crystallized intelligence increases with age, distribution.
while fluid intelligence declines.
dendrite A nerve fiber that extends from a
culture of children The particular habits, neuron and receives electrical impulses
styles, and values that reflect the set of rules and transmitted from other neurons via their axons.
rituals that characterize children as distinct from
adult society. dependency ratio The ratio of self-sufficient,

D
productive adults to dependents (children and the
elderly) in a given population.

DALYs (disability-adjusted life years) A dependent variable In an experiment, the
measure of the impact that disability has on variable that may change as a result of whatever



new condition or situation the experimenter adds. makes a person’s social sphere increasingly
In other words, the dependent variable depends narrow, resulting in role relinquishment,
on the independent variable. withdrawal, and passivity.

developmental psychopathology The field disorganized attachment A type of
that uses insights into typical development to attachment that is marked by an infant’s
study and treat developmental disorders, and vice inconsistent reactions to the caregiver’s departure
versa. and return.

developmental theory A group of ideas, distal parenting Parenting practices that focus
assumptions, and generalizations that interpret on the intellect more than the body, such as
and illuminate the thousands of observations that talking with the baby and playing with an object.
have been made about human growth. In this
way, developmental theories provide a framework diversity For developmentalists, diversity
for explaining the patterns and problems of involves differences among groups of people
development. based on such characteristics as race, gender,
culture, age, family income, and sexuality.
deviancy training The process whereby
children are taught by their peers how to rebel dizygotic (DZ) twins (dye-zye-GOT-ick)Twins
against authority or social norms. who are formed when two separate ova are
fertilized by two separate sperm at roughly the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of same time. (Also called fraternal twins.)
Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-R) The American
Psychiatric Association’s official guide to the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) (dee-ox-ee-
diagnosis (not treatment) of mental disorders. (IV- rye-boh-noo-CLAY-ick) The molecule that
R means “fourth edition, revised.”) contains the chemical instructions for cells to
manufacture various proteins.
dialectical thought (dye-uh-LECK-tick-ull)The
most advanced cognitive process, characterized DNR (do not resuscitate) (ree-SUSS-it-ate)
by the ability to consider a thesis and its A written order from a physician (sometimes
antithesis simultaneously and thus to arrive at a initiated by a patient’s advance directive or by a
synthesis. Dialectical thought makes possible an health care proxy’s request) that no attempt
ongoing awareness of pros and cons, advantages should be made to revive a patient if he or she
and disadvantages, possibilities and limitations. suffers cardiac or respiratory arrest.

diathesis-stress model (dye-uh-THEE-sis) dominant–recessive pattern The interaction
The view that mental disorders, such as schizo- of a pair of alleles in such a way that the
phrenia, are produced by the interaction of a phenotype reveals the influence of one allele (the
genetic vulnerability (the diathesis) with stressful dominant gene) more than that of the other (the
environmental factors and life events. recessive gene).

disability Long-term difficulty in performing double effect An ethical situation in which a
normal activities of daily life because of some person performs an action that is good or morally
physical, mental, or emotional condition. neutral but has ill effects that are foreseen,
though not desired.
disenfranchised grief A situation in which
certain people, although they are bereaved, are doula (DOO-lah) A woman who helps with the
not allowed to mourn publicly. birth process. Traditionally in Latin America, a
doula was like a midwife, the only professional
disengagement theory The view that aging who attended childbirths. Now doulas are likely to



work alongside a hospital’s medical staff to help dyslexia (diss-LEX-ee-ah) Unusual difficulty with
mothers through labor and delivery. reading; thought to be the result of some
neurological underdevelopment.
Down syndrome A condition in which a person
has 47 chromosomes instead of the usual 46, E
with three rather than two chromosomes at the
21st position. People with Down syndrome eclectic perspective (eh-CLECK-tick) The
typically have distinctive characteristics, including approach taken by most developmentalists, in
unusual facial features, heart abnormalities, and which they apply aspects of each of the various
language difficulties. (Also called trisomy-21.) theories of development rather than adhering
exclusively to one theory.
drug abuse The ingestion of a drug to the
extent that it impairs the user’s biological or ecological niche (eh- [or ee-] co-LOJ-ick-ull)
psychological well-being. The particular lifestyle and social context adults
settle into that are compatible with their individual
drug addiction A condition of drug personality needs and interests.
dependence in which the absence of the given
drug in the individual’s system produces a drive— ecological-systems approach (eh- [or ee-]
physiological, psychological, or both—to ingest co-LOJ-ick-ull) A vision of how human
more of the drug. development should be studied, with the person
considered in all the contexts and interactions that
dual-process model The notion that two constitute a life.
networks exist within the human brain, one for
emotional and one for analytical processing of edgework Occupations or recreational activities
stimuli. that require a degree of risk or danger; it is this
prospect of “living on the edge” that makes
dual-task deficit A situation in which a edgework compelling to some individuals.
person’s performance of one task is impeded by
interference from the simultaneous performance effortful control The ability to regulate one’s
of another task. emotions and actions through effort, not simply
through natural inclination.
dynamic perception Perception that is primed
to focus on movement and change. egocentrism Piaget’s term for children’s
tendency to think about the world entirely from
dynamic theories Theories of psychosocial their own personal perspective.
development that emphasize change and
readjustment rather than either the ongoing self elderspeak A condescending way of speaking
or the impact of stratification. Each person’s life is to older adults that resembles baby talk, with
seen as an active, ever-changing, largely self- simple and short sentence, exaggerated
propelled process, occurring within specific social emphasis, repetition, and a slower rate and a
contexts that are also constantly changing. higher pitch than normal speech.

dynamic-systems theory A view of human Electra complex The unconscious desire of
development as always changing. Life is the girls to replace their mother and win their father’s
product of ongoing interaction between the exclusive love.

embryo (EM-bree-oh) The name for a
physical and emotional being and between the
person and every aspect of his or her environ-
ment, including the family and society. Flux is developing organism from about the third through
constant, and each change affects all the others. the eighth week after conception.



embryonic period (em-bree-ON-ick) The estradiol (ess-trah-DYE-ull [or –ole]) A sex
stage of prenatal development from approxi- hormone, considered the chief estrogen. Females
mately the third through the eighth week after produce more estradiol than males do.
conception, during which the basic forms of all
body structures, including internal organs, ethnic group People whose ancestors were
develop. born in the same region and who often share a
language, culture, and religion.
emergent theories Theories that bring
together information from many disciplines in ethnotheory A theory that underlies the values
addition to psychology and that are becoming and practices of a culture and that becomes
comprehensive and systematic in their apparent through analysis and comparison of
interpretations of development but are not yet those practices, although it is not usually apparent
established and detailed enough to be considered to the people within the culture.
grand theories.
exclusion criteria A person’s reasons for
emotional regulation The ability to control omitting certain people from consideration as
when and how emotions are expressed. This is close friends or romantic partners. Exclusion
the most important psychosocial development to criteria vary from one individual to another, but
occur between the ages of 2 and 6, though it they are strong filters.
continues throughout life.
experience-dependent Refers to brain
empathy (EM-puh-thee) The ability to functions that depend on particular, variable
understand the emotions of another person, experiences and that therefore may or may not
especially when those emotions differ from one’s develop in a particular infant.
own.
experience-expectant Refers to brain
empirical (em-PEER-ick-ull) Based on functions that require certain basic common
observation, experience, or experiment; not experiences (which an infant can be expected to
theoretical. have) in order to develop normally.

empty nest A time in the lives of parents when experiment A research method in which the
their grown children leave the family home to researcher tries to determine the cause-and-effect
pursue their own lives. relationship between two variables by manipu-
lating one variable (called the independent
English-language learner (ELL) A child who variable) and then observing and recording the
is learning English as a second language. resulting changes in the other variable (called the
dependent variable).
epigenetic theory (ep-ih-jen-ET-ick) An
emergent theory of development that considers experimental group A group of participants in
both the genetic origins of behavior (within each a research study who experience some special
person and within each species) and the direct, treatment or condition (the independent variable).
systematic influence that environmental forces
have, over time, on genes. explicit memory Memory that is easy to
retrieve on demand (as in a specific test),
ESL (English as a second language) An usually with words. Most explicit memory
approach to teaching English in which all children involves consciously learned words, data, and
who do not speak English are placed together concepts.
and given an intensive course in basic English so
that they can be educated in the same classroom extended family A family of three or more
as native English speakers. generations living in one household.



externalizing problems Difficulty with by mentally charting them into categories
emotional regulation that involves outwardly according to their meaning.
expressing emotions in uncontrolled ways, such
as by lashing out in impulsive anger or attacking fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) (FEE-tull) A
other people or things. cluster of birth defects, including abnormal facial
characteristics, slow physical growth, and
extreme sports Forms of recreation that retarded mental development, caused by the
include apparent risk of injury or death and that mother’s drinking alcohol while pregnant.
are attractive and thrilling as a result. Motocross
is one example. fetal period (FEE-tull) The stage of prenatal
development from the ninth week after after
extremely low birthweight (ELBW) A body conception until birth, during which the organs
weight at birth of less than 3 pounds (1,360 grow in size and mature in functioning.
grams).
fetus (FEE-tuss) The name for a developing
extrinsic motivation The need for rewards organism from the ninth week after conception
from outside, such as material possessions or until birth.
someone else’s esteem.
fictive kin (FICK-tiv) A term used to describe
extrinsic rewards of work The tangible someone who becomes accepted as part of a
rewards, usually in the form of compensation, that family to whom he or she has no blood relation.
one receives for a job (e.g., salary, benefits,
pension). filial responsibility (FILL-ee-ull) The idea that

F
adult children are obligated to care for their aging
parents.

familism (FAMM-ill-iz-um) The idea that family fine motor skills Physical abilities involving
members should support one another because small body movements, especially of the hands
family unity is more important than individual and fingers, such as drawing and picking up a
freedom and success or failure. coin. (The word fine here means “small.”)

family day care Child care that occurs in fluid intelligence Those types of basic
another caregiver’s home. Usually the caregiver is intelligence that make learning of all sorts quick
paid at a lower rate than in center care, and and thorough. Abilities such as short-term
usually one person cares for several children of memory, abstract thought, and speed of thinking
various ages. are all usually considered part of fluid intelligence.

family function The way a family works to Flynn Effect The rise in average IQ scores that
meet the needs of its members. Children need has occurred over the decades in developed
families to provide basic material necessities, nations.
encourage learning, develop self-respect,
nurture friendships, and foster harmony and fMRI Functional magnetic resonance imaging, a
stability. measuring technique in which the brain’s
electrical excitement indicates activation
family structure The legal and genetic anywhere in the brain; fMRI helps researchers
relationships (e.g., nuclear, extended, step) locate neurological responses to stimuli.
among relatives in the same home.
focus on appearance A characteristic of
fast-mapping The speedy and sometimes preoperational thought in which a young child
imprecise way in which children learn new words ignores all attributes that are not apparent.



foreclosure Erikson’s term for premature general intelligence (g) The idea that
identity formation, which occurs when an adoles- intelligence is one basic trait, underlying all
cent adopts parents’ or society’s roles and values cognitive abilities. According to this concept,
wholesale, without questioning and analysis. people have varying levels of this general ability.

formal operational thought In Piaget’s generational forgetting The idea that each
theory, the fourth and final stage of cognitive new generation forgets what the previous
development, characterized by more systematic generation learned about harmful drugs.
logic and the ability to think about abstract ideas.
foster care A legal, publicly supported plan in genetic clock A purported mechanism in the
which a maltreated child is removed from the DNA of cells that regulates the aging process by
parents’ custody and entrusted to another adult, triggering hormonal changes and controlling
who is paid to be the child’s caregiver. cellular reproduction and repair.

fragile X syndrome A genetic disorder in genetic counseling Consultation and testing
which part of the X chromosome seems to be by trained experts that enable individuals to learn
attached to the rest of it by a very thin string of about their genetic heritage, including harmful
molecules. The actual cause is too many conditions that they might pass along to any
repetitions of a particular part of a gene’s code. children they may conceive.

frail elderly People over age 65 who are genome (JEE-nome) The full set of genes that
physically infirm, very ill, or cognitively impaired. are the instructions to make an individual member

G
of a certain species.

genotype (JEE-no-type) An organism’s entire
gamete (GAMM-eet) A reproductive cell; that is, genetic inheritance, or genetic potential.
a sperm or ovum that can produce a new
individual if it combines with a gamete from the geriatrics (jair-ee-AT-ricks) The medical
other sex to make a zygote. specialty devoted to aging.

gateways to attraction The various qualities, germinal period (JER-minn-ull) The first two
such as appearance and proximity, that are weeks of prenatal development after conception,
prerequisites for the formation of close characterized by rapid cell division and the
friendships and intimate relationships. beginning of cell differentiation.

gender convergence A tendency for men and gerontology (jair-on-TAHL-uh-jee) The
women to become more similar as they move multidisciplinary study of old age.
through middle age.
gonads The paired sex glands (ovaries in
gender differences Differences in the roles females, testicles in males). The gonads produce
and behavior of males and females that originate hormones and gametes.
in the culture.
good death A death that is peaceful, quick, and
gender identity A person’s acceptance of the painless and that occurs at the end of a long life,
roles and behaviors that society associates with in the company of family and friends, and in
the biological categories of male and female. familiar surroundings.

gene A section of a chromosome and the basic goodness of fit A similarity of temperament
unit for the transmission of heredity, consisting of and values that produces a smooth interaction
a string of chemicals that code for the manu- between an individual and his or her social
facture of certain proteins. context, including family, school, and community.



grammar All the methods—word order, verb individuals who tend to be dissimilar with repect to
forms, and so on—that languages use to such variables as attitudes, interests, goals,
communicate meaning, apart from the words socioeconomic status, religion, ethnic
themselves. background, and local origin.

grand theories Comprehensive theories of hidden curriculum The unofficial, unstated, or
psychology, which have traditionally inspired and implicit rules and priorities that influence the
directed psychologists’ thinking about child academic curriculum and every other aspect of
development. Psychoanalytic theory, behaviorism, learning in school.
and cognitive theory are all grand theories.
high-stakes test An evaluation that is critical
grief An individual’s emotional response to the in determining success or failure. If a single test
death of another. determines whether a student will graduate or be

gross motor skills Physical abilities involving
promoted, that is a high-stakes test.

large body movements, such as walking and hikikomori A Japanese word meaning “pull
jumping. (The word gross here means “big.”) away,” a common anxiety disorder in Japan in

growth spurt The relatively sudden and rapid
which emerging adults refuse to leave their
rooms.
physical growth that occurs during puberty. Each
body part increases in size on a schedule. Weight hippocampus A brain structure that is a central
usually precedes height, and the limbs precede processor of memory, especially the memory of
the torso. locations.
guided participation In sociocultural theory, a holophrase (HOLL-oh-fraze) A single word that
technique in which skilled mentors help novices
is used to express a complete, meaningful
learn not only by providing instruction but also by
thought.
allowing direct, shared involvement in the activity.
homeostasis (home-ee-oh-STASS-iss) The
Also called apprenticeship in thinking.

H adjustment of the body’s systems to keep
physiological functions in a state of equilibrium.
habituation The process of getting used to an As the body ages, it takes longer for these
object or event through repeated exposure to it. homeostatic adjustments to occur, so it becomes
harder for older bodies to adapt to stress.
Hayflick limit The number of times a human
cell is capable of dividing into two new cells. The homogamy (hoe-MOG-uh-mee) Defined by
limit for most human cells is approximately 50 developmentalists as marriage between
divisions, an indication that the life span is limited individuals who tend to be similar with respect to
by our genetic program. such variables as attitudes, interests, goals,
socioeconomic status, religion, ethnic
head-sparing The biological protection of the background, and local origin.

hormone An organic chemical substance that is
brain when malnutrition affects body growth. The
brain is the last part of the body to be damaged
by malnutrition. produced by one body tissue and conveyed via
the bloodstream to another to affect some
health care proxy A person chosen by physiological function. Various hormones
another person to make medical decisions if the influence thoughts, urges, emotions, and behavior.
second person becomes unable to do so.
hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
heterogamy (hett-er-OG-uh-mee) Defined by Treatment to compensate for hormone reduction
developmentalists as marriage between at menopause or following surgical removal of the



ovaries. Such treatment, which usually involves individual, in accord with past experiences and
estrogen and progesterone, minimizes meno- future plans.
pausal symptoms and diminishes the risk of
osteoporosis in later adulthood. identity diffusion A situation in which an

hospice (HAH-spiss) An institution in which
adolescent does not seem to know or care what
his or her identity is.
terminally ill patients receive palliative care.
household A group of people who live together identity versus diffusion Erikson’s term for
in one dwelling and share its common spaces, the fifth stage of development, in which the
such as kitchen and living room. person tries to figure out “Who am I?” but is

HPA axis The hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal
confused as to which of many possible roles to
adopt.
axis, a route followed by many kinds of hormones
to trigger the changes of puberty and to regulate imaginary audience The other people who, in
stress, growth, sleep, appetite, sexual excitement, an adolescent’s egocentric belief, are watching,
and various other bodily changes. and taking note of, his or her appearance, ideas,

Human Genome Project An international
and behavior. This belief makes many teenagers
very self-conscious.
effort to map the complete human genetic code.
This effort was essentially completed in 2001, immunization (im-you-nye-ZAY-shun) A
though analysis is ongoing. process that stimulates the body’s immune

hypothalamus (high-poe-THAL-uh-muss) A
system to defend against attack by a particular
contagious disease. A person may acquire
brain area that responds to the amygdala and the immunization either naturally (by having the
hippocampus to produce hormones that activate disease) or through vaccination (by having an
other parts of the brain and body. injection, wearing a patch, swallowing, or

hypothesis (high-POTH-uh-sis) A specific
inhaling).

prediction that is stated in such a way that it can implantation The process, beginning about 10
be tested and either confirmed or refuted. days after conception, in which the developing

hypothetical thought (high-poe-THET-ick-ull)
organism burrows into the placenta that lines the
uterus, where it can be nourished and protected
Reasoning that includes propositions and as it continues to develop.
possibilities that may not reflect reality.
implicit memory Unconscious or automatic
I memory that is usually stored via habits,
emotional responses, routine procedures, and
identification An attempt to defend one’s self- various sensations.
concept by taking on the behaviors and attitudes
of someone else. in vitro fertilization (IVF) (in VEE-troe fer-till-
ih-ZAY-shun) Fertilization that takes place outside
identity The logical principle that certain a woman’s body (as in a glass laboratory dish).
characteristics of an object remain the same even Sperm are mixed with ova that have been
if other characteristics change. Also, a consistent surgically removed from the woman’s ovary. If the
definition of one’s self as a unique individual, in combination produces a zygote, it is inserted into
terms of roles, attitudes, beliefs, and aspirations. the woman’s uterus, where it may implant and
develop into a baby.
identity achievement Erikson’s term for the
attainment of identity, or the point at which a incidence How often a particular behavior or
person understands who he or she is as a unique circumstance occurs.



inclusion An approach to educating children and that injuries can be made less harmful if
with special needs in which they are included in proper controls are in place.
regular classrooms, with “appropriate aids and
services,” as required by law. insecure-avoidant attachment A pattern of

incomplete grief A situation in which
attachment in which an infant avoids connection
with the caregiver, as when the infant seems not
circumstances, such as a police investigation to care about the caregiver’s presence, departure,
or an autopsy, interfere with the process of or return.
grieving.
insecure-resistant/ambivalent attach-
independent variable In an experiment, the ment A pattern of attachment in which anxiety
variable that is introduced to see what effect it and uncertainty are evident, as when an infant is
has on the dependent variable. (Also called very upset at separation from the caregiver and
experimental variable.) both resists and seeks contact on reunion.

individual education plan (IEP) A instrumental activities of daily life
document that specifies educational goals and (IADLs) Actions that are important to
plans for a child with special needs. independent living and that require some

induced abortion The intentional termination
intellectual competence and forethought. The
ability to perform these tasks may be even more
of a pregnancy. critical to self-sufficiency than ADL ability.

inductive reasoning Reasoning from one or instrumental aggression Hurtful behavior
more specific experiences or facts to a general that is intended to get or keep something that
conclusion; may be less cognitively advanced another person has.
than deduction. (Sometimes called bottom-up
reasoning.) integrity versus despair The final stage

industry versus inferiority The fourth of
of Erik Erikson’s developmental sequence, in
which older adults seek to integrate their unique
Erikson’s eight psychosexual development crises, experiences with their vision of community.
during which children attempt to master many
skills, developing a sense of themselves as either interaction effect The result of a combination
industrious or inferior, competent or incompetent. of teratogens. Sometimes risk is greatly magni-
fied when an embryo or fetus is exposed to more
infertility The inability to produce a baby after than one teratogen at the same time.

internalizing problems Difficulty with
at least a year of trying to conceive via sexual
intercourse.
emotional regulation that involves turning one’s
information-processing theory A emotional distress inward, as by feeling
perspective that compares human thinking excessively guilty, ashamed, or worthless.

intimacy versus isolation The sixth of
processes, by analogy, to computer analysis of
data, including sensory input, connections, stored
memories, and output. Erikson’s eight stages of development. Adults
seek someone with whom to share their lives in
initiative versus guilt (ih-NISH-uh-tiv) an enduring and self-sacrificing commitment.
Erikson’s third psychosocial crisis. Children begin Without such commitment, they risk profound
new activities and feel guilty when they fail. aloneness and isolation.

injury control/harm reduction Practices intimate terrorism Spouse abuse in which,
that are aimed at anticipating, controlling, and most often, the husband uses violent methods of
preventing dangerous activities; these practices accelerating intensity to isolate, degrade, and
reflect the beliefs that accidents are not random punish the wife.


intrinsic motivation Goals or drives that kinship care A form of foster care in which a
come from inside a person, such as the need to relative of a maltreated child becomes the
feel smart or competent. This contrasts with approved caregiver.
external motivation, the need for rewards from
outside, such as material possessions or knowledge base A body of knowledge in a
someone else’s esteem. particular area that makes it easier to master new

intrinsic rewards of work The intangible
information in that area.

benefits one receives from a job (e.g., job kwashiorkor (kwah-shee-ORE-core) A disease
satisfaction, self-esteem, pride) that come from of chronic malnutrition during childhood, in which
within oneself. a protein deficiency makes the child more

intuitive thought (in-TOO-ih-tiv) Thought that
vulnerable to other diseases, such as measles,
diarrhea, and influenza.
arises from an emotion or a hunch, beyond
rational explanation. Past experiences, cultural L
assumptions, and sudden impulses are the
precursors of intuitive thought. (Also called language acquisition device (LAD)
contextualized or experiential thought.) Chomsky’s term for a hypothesized mental

invincibility fable (in-vince-uh-BILL-ih-tee) An
structure that enables humans to learn language,
including the basic aspects of grammar,
adolescent’s egocentric conviction that he or she vocabulary, and intonation.
cannot be overcome or even harmed by anything
that might defeat a normal mortal, such as latency (LAY-ten-see) Freud’s term for middle
unprotected sex, drug abuse, or high-speed childhood, during which children’s emotional
driving. drives and psychosocial needs are quiet (latent).

IQ tests Tests designed to measure intellectual
Freud thought that sexual conflicts from earlier
stages are only temporarily submerged, to burst
aptitude, or ability to learn in school. Originally, forth again at puberty.
intelligence was defined as mental age divided by
chronological age, times 100—hence the term lateralization (latt-er-ull-ih-ZAY-shun) Literally,
intelligence quotient, or IQ. sidedness. The specialization in certain functions
irreversibility (ear-ee-verse-uh-BILL-ih-tee)
by each side of the brain, with one side dominant
for each activity. The left side of the brain controls
The idea that nothing can be undone; the inability
the right side of the body, and vice versa.
to recognize that something can sometimes be
restored to the way it was before a change learning disability A marked delay in a
occurred. particular area of learning that is not caused by
K an apparent physical disability, by mental
retardation, or by an unusually stressful home
kangaroo care A form of child care in which environment.

least restrictive environment (LRE) A
the mother of a low-birthweight infant spends at
least an hour a day holding the baby between her
legal requirement that children with special needs
breasts, like a kangaroo that carries her immature
be assigned to the most general educational
newborn in a pouch on her abdomen. If the infant
context in which they can be expected to learn.
life review An examination of one’s own part in
is capable, he or she can easily breast-feed in
this position.
life, engaged in by many elderly people.
kinkeeper The person who takes primary
responsibility for celebrating family achievements, life-course-persistent offender A person
gathering the family together, and keeping in whose criminal activity typically begins in early
touch with family members who do not live adolescence and continues throughout life; a
nearby. career criminal.


linked lives The notion that family members mental retardation Literally, slow, or late,
tend to share all aspects of each other’s lives, thinking. In practice, people are considered
from triumph to tragedy. mentally retarded if they score below 70 on an IQ
test and if they are markedly behind their peers in
“little scientist” Piaget’s term for the stage- adaptation to daily life.
five toddler (age 12 to 18 months) who
experiments without anticipating the results. metacognition (MET-uh-cog-NISH-un)
“Thinking about thinking,” or the ability to evaluate
living will A document that indicates what a cognitive task to determine how best to
medical intervention an individual wants if he or accomplish it, and then to monitor and adjust
she becomes incapable of expressing those one’s performance on that task.
wishes.
middle childhood The period between early
long-term memory The component of the childhood and early adolescence, approximately
information-processing system in which virtually from age 7 to 11.
limitless amounts of information can be stored
indefinitely. middle school A school for the grades

longitudinal research (lon-jih-TOO-din-ull) A
between elementary and high school. Middle
school can begin with grade 5 or 6 and usually
research design in which the same individuals are ends with grade 8.
followed over time and their development is
repeatedly assessed. midlife crisis A period of unusual anxiety,

low birthweight (LBW) A body weight at birth
radical reexamination, and sudden transformation
that is widely associated with middle age but
of less than 51?2 pounds (2,500 grams). which actually has more to do with developmental
M
history than with chronological age.

mirror neurons Brain cells that respond to
marasmus (muh-RAZZ-muss) A disease of
actions performed by someone else, as if the
severe protein-calorie malnutrition during early
observer had done that action. For example, the
infancy, in which growth stops, body tissues waste
brains of dancers who witness another dancer
away, and the infant eventually dies.
moving onstage are activated in the same
maximum life span The oldest possible age movement areas as would be activated if they
that members of a species can live, under ideal themselves did that dance step, because their
circumstances. For humans, that age is mirror neurons reflect the activity.

modeling The central process of social
approximately 122 years.

menarche (MEN-ar-kee) A girl’s first menstrual learning, by which a person observes the actions
period, signaling that she has begun ovulation. of others and then copies them.

monozygotic (MZ) twins (mon-oh-zye-GOT-
Pregnancy is biologically possible, but ovulation
and menstruation are often irregular for years
after menarche. ick) Twins who originate from one zygote that
splits apart very early in development. (Also
menopause (MEN-oh-pozz) The time in middle called identical twins.) Other monozygotic multiple
age, usually around age 50, when a woman’s births (for example, quadruplets) can occur as
menstrual periods cease completely and the pro- well.
duction of estrogen, progesterone, and testos-
terone drops considerably. Strictly speaking, morality of care In Gilligan’s view, the
menopause is dated one year after a woman’s tendency of females to be reluctant to judge right
last menstrual period. and wrong in absolute terms because they are



socialized to be more nurturant, compassionate, National Assessment of Educational
and nonjudgmental. Progress (NAEP) An ongoing and nationally

morality of justice In Gilligan’s view, the
representative measure of children’s achievement
in reading, mathematics, and other subjects over
tendency of males to emphasize justice over time; nicknamed “the Nation’s Report Card.”
compassion, judging right and wrong in absolute
terms. nature A general term for the traits, capacities,

moratorium (more-uh-TORE-ee-um) A way for
and limitations that each individual inherits
genetically from his or her parents at the moment
adolescents to postpone making identity of conception.
achievement choices by finding an accepted way
to avoid identity achievement. Going to college is near-death experience An episode in which
the most common example. a person comes close to dying but survives and

morbidity Disease. As a measure of health,
reports having left his or her body and having
moved toward a bright, white light while feeling
morbidity refers to the rate of diseases of all peacefulness and joy.
kinds in a given population—physical and
emotional, acute (sudden) and chronic (ongoing). neuron One of the billions of nerve cells in the

mortality Death. As a measure of health,
central nervous system, especially the brain.

mortality usually refers to the number of deaths No Child Left Behind Act A U.S. law passed
each year per 1,000 members of a given by Congress in 2001 that was intended to in-
population. crease accountability in education by requiring
mosaic (moe-ZAY-ick) Having a condition
standardized tests to measure school achieve-
ment. Many critics, especially teachers, say the
(mosaicism) that involves having a mixture of law undercuts learning and fails to take local
cells, some normal and some with an odd number needs into consideration.
of chromosomes or a series of missing genes.
norm An average, or standard, measurement,
motor skill The learned ability to move some
calculated from the measurements of many
part of the body, from a large leap to a flicker of
individuals within a specific group or population.
the eyelid. (The word motor here refers to
movement of muscles.) nuclear family (NOO-klee-er) A family that
mourning The ceremonies and behaviors that a
consists of a father, a mother, and their biological
children under age 18.
religion or culture prescribes for bereaved people.
nurture (NER-cher) A general term for all the
multifactorial Referring to a trait that is
environmental influences that affect development
affected by many factors, both genetic and
after an individual is conceived.
environmental.

myelination (my-ell-ih-NAY-shun) The process O
obesity (oh-BEE-sit-ee) In an adult, having a
by which axons become coated with myelin, a
fatty substance that speeds the transmission of
nerve impulses from neuron to neuron. BMI (body mass index) of 30 or more. In a child,

N
being above the 95th percentile, based on the
U.S. Centers for Disease Control’s 1980
standards for his or her age and sex.
naming explosion A sudden increase in an
infant’s vocabulary, especially in the number object permanence The realization that
of nouns, that begins at about 18 months of objects (including people) still exist when they
age. cannot be seen, touched, or heard.



objective thought Thinking that is not the pain and suffering of the patient and his or
influenced by personal qualities, such as facts her family.
and numbers that are considered true and valid
by every observer. parasuicide Any potentially lethal action
against the self that does not result in death.
Oedipus complex (ED-ih-pus) The
unconscious desire of young boys to replace their parental alliance Cooperation between a
father and win their mother’s exclusive love. mother and a father based on their mutual
commitment to their children. In a parental
old-old Older adults (generally, those over age alliance, the parents agree to support each other
75) who suffer from physical, mental, or social in their shared parental roles.
deficits.
parental monitoring Parents’ ongoing
oldest-old Elderly adults (generally, those over awareness of what their children are doing,
age 85) who are dependent on others for almost where, and with whom.
everything, requiring supportive services such as
nursing homes and hospital stays. parent–infant bond The strong, loving
connection that forms as parents hold their
operant conditioning The learning process newborn.
by which a particular action is followed by
something desired (which makes the person or Parkinson’s disease A chronic, progressive
animal more likely to repeat the action) or by disease that is characterized by muscle tremor
something unwanted (which makes the action and rigidity, and sometimes dementia, caused
less likely to be repeated). Also called by a reduction of dopamine production in the
instrumental conditioning. brain.

organ reserve The capacity of young adults’ passive euthanasia (you-thenn-AY-zha) A
organs to allow the body to cope with stress. situation in which a seriously ill person is allowed
to die naturally, through the cessation of medical
overregularization The application of rules of interventions.
grammar even when exceptions occur, so that the
language is made to seem more “regular” than it peer facilitation (fuh-sill-ih-TAY-shun) The
actually is. encouragement adolescent peers give one
another to partake in activities or behaviors they
overweight In an adult, having a BMI (body would not otherwise do alone, whether
mass index) of 25 to 29. In a child, being above constructive or destructive.
the 85th percentile, based on the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control’s 1980 standards for his or her peer pressure Encouragement to conform with
age and sex. one’s friends or contemporaries in behavior,
dress, and attitude; usually considered a negative
oxygen free radicals Atoms of oxygen that, force, as when adolescent peers encourage one
as a result of metabolic processes, have an another to defy adult authority.
unpaired electron. These atoms scramble DNA
molecules or mitochondria, producing errors in peer selection An ongoing, active process
cell maintenance and repair that, over time, may whereby adolescents select friends based on
cause cancer, diabetes, and arteriosclerosis. shared interests and values.

P people preference A universal principle of
infant perception, consisting of an innate
palliative care (pal-ee-AY- tiv or PAL-ee-uh-tiv) attraction to other humans, which is evident in
Care designed not to treat an illness but to relieve visual, auditory, tactile, and other preferences.



percentile A point on a ranking scale of 1 to those that regulate growth and control other
99. The 50th percentile is the midpoint; half the glands, among them the adrenal and sex
people in the population rank higher and half rank glands.
lower.
placenta (plah-SEN-tah) The organ that sur-
perception The mental processing of sensory rounds the developing embryo and fetus, sustain-
information, when the brain interprets a ing life via the umbilical cord. The placenta is
sensation. attached to the wall of the uterus.

permanency planning An effort by authorities polygenic (pol-ee-JEN-ick) Referring to a trait
to find a long-term living situation that will provide that is influenced by many genes.
stability and support for a maltreated child. A goal
is to avoid repeated changes of caregiver or positivity effect The tendency for elderly
school, which can be particularly harmful for the people to perceive, prefer, and remember positive
child. images and experiences more than negative

permissive parenting Child rearing with high
ones.

nurturance and communication but rare punish- post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
ment, guidance, or control. (post-traw-MAT-ick) A delayed reaction to a
perseveration The tendency to persevere in, or
trauma or shock, which may include hyperactivity
and hypervigilance, displaced anger, sleepless-
stick to, one thought or action for a long time. ness, sudden terror or anxiety, and confusion
phallic stage Freud’s third stage of
between fantasy and reality.

postconventional moral reasoning
development, when the penis becomes the focus
of concern and pleasure.
Kohlberg’s third level of moral reasoning,
phenotype (FEEN-oh-type) The observable emphasizing moral principles.

postformal thought A proposed adult stage of
characteristics of a person, including appearance,
personality, intelligence, and all other traits.
cognitive development, following Piaget’s four
phenylketonuria (PKU) (FEEN-ull-kee-tun- stages, that goes beyond adolescent thinking by
YER-ee-ah) A genetic disorder in which a child’s being more practical, more flexible, and more
body is unable to metabolize an amino acid called dialectical (that is, more capable of combining
phenylalanine. Unless phenylalanine is eliminated contradictory elements into a comprehensive
from the child’s diet, the resulting buildup of that whole).

postpartum depression A new mother’s
substance in body fluids causes brain damage,
progressive mental retardation, and other
symptoms. feelings of inadequacy and sadness in the days
and weeks after giving birth.
phonics approach Teaching reading by first
teaching the sounds of each letter and of various practical intelligence The intellectual skills
letter combinations. used in everyday problem solving.

physician-assisted suicide A form of active preconventional moral reasoning
euthanasia in which a doctor provides the means Kohlberg’s first level of moral reasoning,
for someone to end his or her own life. emphasizing rewards and punishments.

pituitary gland (pih-TOO-ih-tair-ee) A gland prefrontal cortex The area of cortex at the
that, in response to a signal from the hypo- front of the brain that specializes in anticipation,
thalamus, produces many hormones, including planning, and impulse control.



preoperational intelligence Piaget’s term Progress in International Reading
for cognitive development between the ages of Literacy Study (PIRLS) Inaugurated in 2001,
about 2 and 6; it includes language and imagina- a planned five-year cycle of international trend
tion (in addition to the senses and motor skills of studies in the reading ability of fourth-graders.
infancy), but logical, operational thinking is not yet
possible. prosocial behavior Feeling and acting in ways
that are helpful and kind, without obvious benefit
presbycusis (prez-bih-KYOO-sis) The loss of to oneself.
hearing associated with senescence. Presbycusis
often does not become apparent until after age protein-calorie malnutrition A condition in
60. which a person does not consume sufficient food
of any kind. This deprivation can result in several
preterm birth A birth that occurs three or more illnesses, severe weight loss, and sometimes
weeks before the full 38 weeks of the typical death.
pregnancy has elapsed—that is, at 35 or fewer
weeks after conception. proximal parenting Parenting practices that
involve close physical contact with the child’s
prevalence (PREV-uh-lents) How widespread entire body, such as cradling and swinging.

psychoanalytic theory (sy-ko-ann-uh-LIT-ick)
within a population a particular behavior or
circumstance is.
A grand theory of human development that holds
primary aging The universal and irreversible that irrational, unconscious drives and motives,
physical changes that occur to all living creatures often originating in childhood, underlie human
as they grow older. behavior.

primary circular reactions The first of psychological control A disciplinary
three types of feedback loops in sensorimotor technique that involves threatening to withdraw
intelligence, this one involving the infant’s own love and support and that relies on a child’s
body. The infant senses motion, sucking, noise, feelings of guilt and gratitude to the parents.

puberty (PYOO-ber-tee) The time between the
and so on, and tries to understand them.

primary prevention Actions that change
first onrush of hormones and full adult physical
development. Puberty usually lasts three to five
overall background conditions to prevent some
years. Many more years are required to achieve
unwanted event or circumstance, such as injury,
psychosocial maturity.
disease, or abuse.
Q
primary sex characteristics The parts of
the body that are directly involved in reproduction, QALYs (quality-adjusted life years) A way
including the vagina, uterus, ovaries, testicles, of comparing mere survival without vitality to
and penis. survival with good health. QALYs indicate how

priming Preparation that makes it easier to
many years of full vitality are lost to a particular
physical disease or disability. They are expressed
perform some action. For example, it is easier to in terms of life expectancy as adjusted for quality
retrieve an item from memory if we are given a of life.
clue about it beforehand.
qualitative research Research that considers
private speech The internal dialogue that qualities instead of quantities. Descriptions of
occurs when people talk to themselves (either particular conditions and participants’ expressed
silently or out loud). ideas are often part of qualitative studies.



quantitative research Research that or refine, or dispute the original study’s
provides data that can be expressed with conclusions.
numbers, such as ranks or scales.
reported maltreatment Harm or endanger-
R ment about which someone has notified the
authorities.
race A group of people who are regarded (by
themselves or by others) as genetically distinct resilience (reh-ZILL-yense) The capacity to
from other groups on the basis of physical develop optimally by adapting positively to
appearance. significant adversity.

reaction time The time it takes to respond to a resource room A room in which trained
stimulus, either physically (with a reflexive teachers help children with special needs, using
movement such as an eye blink) or cognitively specialized curricula and equipment.
(with a thought).
respite care (RESS-pit) An arrangement in
reactive aggression An impulsive retaliation which a professional caregiver relieves a frail
for another person’s intentional or accidental elderly person’s usual family caregiver for a few
actions, verbal or physical. hours each day or for an occasional weekend.

Reading First A federal program that was reversibility (ree-verse-uh-BILL-ih-tee) The
established by the No Child Left Behind Act and logical principle that a thing that has been
that provides states with funding for early reading changed can sometimes be returned to its original
instruction in public schools, aimed at ensuring state by reversing the process by which it was
that all children learn to read well by the end of changed.
the third grade.
risk analysis The science of weighing the
reflex A responsive movement that seems potential effects of a particular event, substance,
automatic because it almost always occurs in or experience to determine the likelihood of harm.
reaction to a particular stimulus. Newborns have In teratology, risk analysis attempts to evaluate
many reflexes, some of which disappear with everything that affects the chances that a
maturation. particular agent or condition will cause damage to
an embryo or fetus.
reinforcement A technique for conditioning
behavior in which that behavior is followed by rumination (roo-mih-NAY-shun) Repeatedly
something desired, such as food for a hungry thinking and talking about past experiences that
animal or a welcoming smile for a lonely person. can contribute to depression.

REM sleep Rapid eye movement sleep, a stage S
of sleep characterized by flickering eyes behind
closed lids, dreaming, and rapid brain waves. sandwich generation A term for the
generation of middle-aged people who are
reminder session A perceptual experience supposedly “squeezed” by the needs of the
that is intended to help a person recollect an idea, younger and older generations. Some adults do
a thing, or an experience, without testing whether feel pressured by these obligations, but most are
the person remembers it at the moment. not burdened by them, either because they enjoy
fulfilling them or because they choose to take on
replication The repetition of a scientific study, only some of them, or none.
using the same procedures on a similar (but not
identical) group of participants, in order to verify, scaffolding Temporary support that is tailored



to a learner’s needs and abilities and aimed at secular trend A term that refers to the earlier
helping the learner master the next task in a given and greater growth of children due to improved
learning process. nutrition and medical care over the last two
centuries.
science of human development The
science that seeks to understand how and why secure attachment A relationship in which an
people change or remain the same over time. infant obtains both comfort and confidence from
Developmentalists study people of all ages and the presence of his or her caregiver.
circumstances.
selective adaptation The process by which
scientific method A way to answer questions humans and other organisms gradually adjust to
that requires empirical research and data-based their environment. Specifically, the frequency of a
conclusions. particular genetic trait in a population increases or
decreases over generations, depending on
scientific observation A method of testing whether or not the trait contributes to the survival
hypotheses by unobtrusively watching and and reproductive ability of members of that
recording participants’ behavior in a systematic population.
and objective manner, either in a laboratory or in
a natural setting. selective attention The ability to concentrate
on some stimuli while ignoring others.
Seattle Longitudinal Study The first cross-
sequential study of adult intelligence. This study selective expert Someone who is notably
began in 1956; the most recent testing was more skilled and knowledgeable than the average
conducted in 2005. person about whichever activities are personally
meaningful.
secondary aging The specific physical
illnesses or conditions that become more selective optimization with compensa-
common with aging but are caused by health tion The theory, developed by Paul and Margaret
habits, genes, and other influences that vary from Baltes, that people try to maintain a balance in
person to person. their lives by looking for the best way to compen-
sate for physical and cognitive losses and to
secondary circular reactions The second become more proficient in activities they can
of three types of feedback loops in sensorimotor already do well.
intelligence, this one involving people and objects.
The infant is responsive to other people and to self theories Theories of late adulthood that
toys and other objects the infant can touch and emphasize the core self, or the search to maintain
move. one’s integrity and identity.

secondary education Literally the period after self-awareness A person’s realization that he
primary education and before tertiary education. It or she is a distinct individual, with body, mind, and
usually occurs from about age 12 to 18, although actions that are separate from those of other
there is some variation by school and by nation. people.

secondary prevention Actions that avert self-concept A person’s understanding of who
harm in a high-risk situation, such as stopping a he or she is. Self-concept includes appearance,
car before it hits a pedestrian. personality, and various traits.

secondary sex characteristics Physical self-efficacy (self-EFF-ih-kuh-see) In social
traits that are not directly involved in reproduction learning theory, the belief that some people have
but that indicate sexual maturity, such as a man’s that they are able to change themselves and
beard and a woman’s breasts. effectively alter the social context.


Glossary Psych 41

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