Psychology 2040A/B Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Prenatal Development, Frontal Lobe, Synaptogenesis

• School: Western University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: Psychology 2040A/B
• Professor: Ian Mac Donald

Document Summary

Chapter 5: physical development: the brain, body, motor skills and sexual. Cephalocaudal: prenatal growth from conception to 5 months when the head grows more than the body. It is also the trend of infants learning to use their upper limbs before their. Proximodistal: prenatal growth from 5 months to birth when the fetus grows from the inside of the body outwards. When referring to motor development, the proximodistal trend refers to the development of motor skills from the center of the body outwards. Maturation viewpoint: unfolding of a genetically programmed series of events, evidence from cross cultural findings. Experiential hypothesis: opportunities to practice are important, evidencefrom early orphanage experience. Dynamical systems theory: new skills are active reorganizations of existing skills, reorganization occurs as new, more effective ways of exploring are sought, environment provides motivation, maturation provides foundation. Voluntary reaching emerges at 3 months, different from initial prereaching. Thyroxine operates prenatally, promotes brain and nervous sys development (thyroidgland)