What Have You Learned?

1. Question 2.1

   How can a theory be practical?

   Theories help us frame and organize all of the facts (observations and observable behaviors) of the world around us.

2. Question 2.2

   What is the relationship between norms and facts?

   Norms reflect facts and can be calculated.

3. Question 2.3

   How do theories differ from facts?

   Theories raise questions and lead to the development of hypotheses that can be tested. The data gathered to research a hypothesis are the facts.

4. Question 2.4

   What is the basic idea of psychoanalytic theory?

   Unconscious drives and motives influence every aspect of human thinking and behavior.

5. Question 2.5

   What is Freud’s theory of childhood sexuality?

   Freud identified a body part from which a child derives sexual pleasure for each of his developmental (psychosexual) stages.

6. Question 2.6

   What body parts are connected to the oral, anal, and phallic stages?

   The oral stage is the mouth, the anal stage is the anus, and the phallic stage is the penis. Freud believed that the lack of a penis caused girls to develop penis envy.

7. Question 2.7

   In what two ways does Erikson’s theory differ from Freud’s?

   Erikson’s theory focused on psychosocial stages of development—which included the environment in which a child is raised—and did not put much emphasis on sexual development. His theory was also the first to cover the entire life span. Freud’s theory was about psychosexual stages of development and ended with adolescence.

8. Question 2.8

   What is the basic idea of behaviorism?

   Psychology should only study observable behavior. Behaviorists study how people learn and acquire habits through conditioning.

9. Question 2.9

   How does behaviorism oppose psychoanalytic theory?

   Behaviorism arose in direct opposition to the psychoanalytic emphasis on unconscious, hidden urges. John B. Watson (1878–1958) argued that scientists should examine only what they can observe and measure.

10. Question 2.10

    How do classical and operant conditioning differ?

    Classical conditioning is the process in which a person or animal learns to associate a neutral stimulus with a meaningful stimulus, gradually reacting to the neutral stimulus in the same way as to the meaningful one. In operant conditioning a person or animal performs some action and then a response occurs. If the response is useful or pleasurable, the behavior is likely to be repeated; if the response is painful, it is unlikely that the behavior will be repeated.

11. Question 2.11

    What reinforcers are emphasized by social learning theory?

    Personal learning, or observational learning, is emphasized in social learning theory. Rather than relying on personal reinforcement, social learning theory says that people learn through modeling—copying what they see other people do.

12. Question 2.12

    What is the basic idea of cognitive theory?

    According to cognitive theory, our thoughts shape our attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.

13. Question 2.13

    How do Piaget’s stages compare to Freud’s stages?

    Piaget, like Freud, defines development in terms of age and related stages. However, Piaget’s stages are related to cognitive development as opposed to sexual development and/or unconscious motives. Piaget identified cognitive tasks to be completed at each stage, the success of which will enable the changes and therefore the adjustments for the next stages. Freud emphasized that failure to resolve a stage could result in lifelong consequences (such as being overly controlling, smoking, talking too much, etc.).

14. Question 2.14

    What are assimilation and accommodation and how are they similar?

    Assimilation is the process by which new ideas or experiences are interpreted in a way that fits with prior knowledge, and accommodation is modifying prior knowledge based on new experiences. Both processes are similar in that they are used to ease the cognitive disequilibrium created by new experiences.

15. Question 2.15

    Why is information processing not a stage theory?

    Information processing is applicable to all stages of the life span. It explores the processes of thought—that is, how minds work. The underlying theoretical basis of information processing is that the details of the cognitive process shed light on the specifics of the outcome (responses).

16. Question 2.16

    What are the underlying differences between the newer theories and the grand theories?

    The newer theories are multicultural and multidisciplinary, thus making them more in line with current views of human development.

17. Question 2.17

    How is “apprenticeship in thinking” an example of sociocultural theory?

    Vygotsky’s work focuses on the relationship between education and culture. His “apprenticeship in thinking” refers to the idea that children and adults develop with the help, or apprenticeship, of more skilled members of society after whom they model themselves.

18. Question 2.18

    What do mentors do when mentees are in their zone of proximal development?

    Through sensitive assessment of the learner, the mentor engages the mentee at just the right level of challenge; together, in a “process of joint construction,” new knowledge is attained. The mentor must avoid two opposite dangers: boredom and failure. Some frustration is permitted, but the learner must be actively engaged, never passive and never overwhelmed.

19. Question 2.19

    What did Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow stress in humanism?

    Humanism stresses free will and self-determination. It stresses that people are good and want to do what’s right.

20. Question 2.20

    How does Maslow’s hierarchy of needs differ from Erikson’s stages?

    Maslow’s hierarchy is not age-specific and doesn’t involve any specific task to achieve. It simply states basic human needs required for all ages and postulates that having unmet needs prevents a person from progressing any further in the hierarchy, thus limiting his or her capabilities and contributions to society.

21. Question 2.21

    How does evolutionary psychology explain human instincts?

    Evolutionary theory states that human instincts are based on selective adaptation, which proposes that humans today react in ways that helped their survival and reproduction long ago. This may be why people fear snakes and spiders. It also explains why someone spits out something that is spoiled or bitter.

22. Question 2.22

    Why are aspects of evolutionary theory of human emotions controversial?

    The evolutionary explanation of emotions is rejected by many women, who contend that patriarchy and sexism, not genes, lead to mating patterns. Another controversy surrounds the observation that people do not always behave in ways that are consistent with evolutionary predictions; parents may harm their children; people take risks that could harm themselves.

23. Question 2.23

    What does the idea of selective adaptation imply about the nature—nurture controversy?

    It implies that nature is more important than nurture since traits and behaviors that have benefitted the species’ survival have been preserved over the generations.

24. Question 2.24

    What are the key criticism and key contribution of psychoanalytic theory?

    The main criticism is that psychoanalytic theory is subjective and beyond the scope of scientific investigation. The contribution is that psychoanalytic theories have made us aware of the impact of early childhood experiences, remembered or not, on subsequent development.

25. Question 2.25

    What are the key criticism and key contribution of behaviorism?

    Criticism of behaviorism states that it is deterministic and mechanistic. Behaviorism’s contribution has shown the effect that immediate responses, associations, and examples have on learning.

26. Question 2.26

    What are the key criticism and key contribution of cognitive theory?

    The criticism of cognitive theory is that it tends to ignore emotion. The contribution of cognitive theories has brought an understanding of intellectual processes and how our thoughts and beliefs affect every aspect of our development.

27. Question 2.27

    What are the key criticism and key contribution of sociocultural theory?

    Criticism of sociocultural theory states that it ignores the voice and self-direction of the individual. Sociocultural theories have reminded us that development is embedded in a rich and multifaceted cultural context, which is evident in every social interaction.

28. Question 2.28

    What are the key criticism and key contribution of universal theories?

    Universal theory ignores cultural, economic, and gender differences. However, universal theories stress that human differences are less significant than those characteristics that are shared by all humans.

29. Question 2.29

    What are the advantages of an eclectic perspective?

    Being eclectic, or not tied to any one theory, is beneficial since everyone tends to be biased. It is easy to dismiss alternative points of view, but using all five theories opens our eyes and minds to aspects of development that we might otherwise ignore.