PSYC 3100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Vertically Transmitted Infection, Thalidomide, Limb Development

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 3100
• Professor: Pat Barclay

Document Summary

The environment is crucially involved in every stage of development genes are more a recipe than a blueprint. Genes require some activation to have an effect. Phenotype = gene + environment (this interaction is development) Behavioural phenotype: gene + environment cause brain development, brain + environment produce internal response, response causes observable behaviour, consequences + brain cause learning (change in brain for next time period) Gene expression can be increased or decreased in different circumstances. The environment causes more/less expression of a gene in certain circumstances. Prepared learning: an example of a gene-environment interaction. Some associations are easier to learn than others: Example: imprinting: early life exposure in a specific period causing a long term response. Birds are able to learn their song in a very specific developmental period. Ducklings follow and respond to the first moving thing they encounter after birth. Also changes whether they will court geese or humans later in life.