Course Snapshot for PSY235 - Human Growth and Development
The information listed below is subject to change. Please review the course syllabus within your online course at the start of class.
Course Competencies
The competencies you will demonstrate in this course are as follows:
- Identify the biological factors associated with prenatal development.
- Evaluate the environmental factors associated with prenatal development.
- List and explain the physical factors associated with infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, and aging.
- Compare and contrast the cognitive factors associated with infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, and aging.
- Discuss the emotional factors associated with infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, and aging.
- Identify and discuss the psychosocial factors associated with infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, and aging.
- Examine and interpret the emotional factors associated with death and dying.
- Identify and differentiate the psychosocial factors associated with death and dying.
Module Outcomes Mapped to Competencies
Module 1 Learning Outcomes |
Mapped to Course Competencies (above) |
| What ideas about development were proposed by early philosophers and scientists? | 1 |
| What is the lifespan perspective? | 4, 5 |
| What major domains and periods do developmental scientists use to organize their discussions of the human lifespan? | 3 |
| How do developmentalists view the two sides of the nature-nurture debate? | 3, 4 |
| What is the continuity-discontinuity debate? | 4, 5 |
| How do the three kinds of age-related change differ? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does consideration of the contexts in which change occurs improve scientists’ understanding of human development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the goals of scientists who study human development? | All |
| What descript4e methods do developmental scientists use? | All |
| What is the primary advantage of the experimental method? | All |
| What are the pros and cons of cross-sectional, longitudinal, and sequential research designs? | All |
| Why is cross-cultural research important to the study of human development? | All |
| What are the ethical standards that developmental researchers must follow? | All |
| What are the main ideas of Freud’s psychosexual theory? | 6 |
| What is the conflict associated with each of Erikson’s psychological stages? | 6 |
| What are the strengths and weaknesses of psychoanalytic theory? | 6 |
| How did Watson condition Little Albert to fear white, furry objects? | 4, 6 |
| How does operant conditioning occur? | 4, 6 |
| In what ways does social-cognit4e theory differ from other learning theories? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do the learning theories explain development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does cognit4e development progress, according to Piaget? | 3 |
| How did Vygotsky use the concepts of scaffolding and the zone of proximal development to explain cognit4e development? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How does information-processing theory explain the findings of developmental psychologists such as Piaget and Vygotsky? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are some of the important contributions of the cognit4e theories? | 4 |
| How do behavior geneticists explain ind4idual differences? | 1, 2, 4 |
| What kinds of behaviors are of interest to ethologists and sociobiologists? | 1, 2, 3 |
| What is the main idea of Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory? | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What assumptions do the three families of theories make about development? | All |
| On what criteria do developmentalists compare the usefulness of theories? | All |
| What is eclecticism? | All |
| What are the characteristics of the zygote? | 1 |
| In what ways do genes influence development? | 1, 2 |
| What are the effects of the major dominant, recess4e, and sex-linked diseases? | 1, 2 |
| How do trisomies and other disorders of the autosomes and sex chromosomes affect development? | 1, 2 |
| What are the characteristics of each trimester of pregnancy? | 1 |
| What happens in each stage of prenatal development? | 1 |
| How do male and female fetuses differ? | 1 |
| What behaviors have scientists observed in fetuses? | 1, 2 |
| How do teratogens affect prenatal development? | 1, 2 |
| What are the potential adverse effects of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs on prenatal development? | 1, 2 |
| What risks are associated with teratogenic maternal diseases? | 1, 2 |
| What other maternal factors influence prenatal development? | 1, 2 |
| How do physicians assess and manage fetal health? | 2 |
| What kinds of birth choices are available to expectant parents? | 1, 2, 3, 6 |
| What happens in each of the three stages of labor? | 1 |
| What do physicians learn about a newborn from the Apgar and Brazelton scales? | 1, 2 |
| Which infants are categorized as low birth weight and what risks are associated with this status? | 1, 2 |
Module 2 Learning Outcomes |
Mapped to Course Competencies (above) |
| What important changes in the brain take place during infancy? | 3, 4 |
| How do infants’ reflexes and behavioral states change? | 3, 4 |
| How do infants’ bodies change, and what is the typical pattern of motor skills development in the first two years? | 3, 4 |
| What are the nutritional needs of infants? | 3 |
| How does malnutrition affect infants’ development? | 3 |
| What are infants’ healthcare and immunization needs? | 3 |
| What have researchers learned about sudden infant death syndrome? | 3 |
| How do infant mortality rates vary across groups? | 3 |
| How do infants’ visual abilities change across the first months of life? | 3, 4 |
| How do infants’ senses of hearing, smell, taste, touch, and motion compare to those of older children and adults? | 3, 4 |
| How do researchers study perceptual development? | 3, 4 |
| How do infants' depth perception and patterns of looking change over the first two years? | 3, 4 |
| How do infants perce4e human speech, recognize voices, and recognize sound patterns other than speech? | 3, 4 |
| What is intermodal perception? | 3, 4 |
| What arguments do nat4ists and empiricists offer in support of their theories of perceptual development? | 3, 4 |
| What are the milestones of Piaget’s sensorimotor stage? | 4 |
| How have other theorists challenged Piaget’s explanation of infant cognit4e development? | 4 |
| What does research tell us about infants’ understanding of objects? | 3, 4 |
| What kinds of learning are infants capable of? | 3, 4 |
| How does categorical understanding change over the first two years? | 3, 4 |
| How does memory function in the first two years? | 3, 4 |
| What are the behaviorist, nat4ist, and interactionist explanations of language development? | 3, 4 |
| What are some environmental influences on language development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do infants’ sounds, gestures, and understanding of words change in the early months of life? | 3, 4 |
| What are the characteristics of toddlers’ first words? | 4 |
| What kinds of sentences do children produce between 18 and 24 months of age? | 4 |
| What kinds of ind4idual differences are evident in language development? | 4 |
| How does language development vary across cultures? | 4 |
| How is intelligence measured in infancy? | 4 |
| How do Freud’s and Erikson’s views of personality development in the first two years differ? | 4, 6 |
| What are the main ideas of attachment theory? | 4, 6 |
| How does synchrony affect parent-infant relations? | 4, 6 |
| What are the four phases of attachment and the behaviors associated with them? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the four attachment patterns that Ainsworth discovered? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What variables might affect a parent’s ability to establish an attachment relationship with an infant? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the long-term consequences of attachment quality? | 4, 5, 6 |
| In what ways do patterns of attachment vary across cultures? | 4, 5, 6 |
| On which dimensions of temperament do most developmentalists agree? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the roles of heredity, neurological processes, and environment in the formation of temperament? | 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do the subject4e self, the object4e self, and the emotional self develop during the first two years? | 4, 5, 6 |
| Why is it difficult to study the effects of nonparental care on development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What might be the effects of nonparental care on physical and cognit4e development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What does research suggest about the risks of nonparental care with respect to social development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What variables should be taken into account in interpretations of research on nonparental care? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the major milestones of growth and motor development between ages 2 and 6? | 3, 4 |
| What important changes happen in the brain during the years 2 through 6? | 3, 4 |
| What are the nutritional and healthcare needs of young children? | 3 |
| What factors contribute to abuse and neglect, and how do these traumas affect children’s development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the characteristics of children’s thought during Piaget’s preoperational stage? | 4 |
| How has recent research challenged Piaget’s view of the preoperational period? | 4 |
| What is a theory of mind, and how does it develop? | 4 |
| How do information-processing and sociocultural theorists explain changes in young children’s thinking? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How does fast-mapping help children learn new words? | 4 |
| What happens during the grammar explosion? | 4 |
| What is phonological awareness, and why is it important? | 3, 4 |
| What are the strengths and weaknesses of IQ tests? | 4 |
| What kinds of evidence support the nature and nurture explanations for ind4idual differences in IQ? | 4 |
| What theories and evidence have been offered in support of genetic and cultural explanations of group differences in IQ scores? | 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What major themes of development did the psychoanalytic theorists propose for the early childhood period? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the findings of social-cognit4e theorists with respect to young children’s understanding of the social world? | 4, 6 |
| How does temperament change in early childhood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What changes take place in the young child’s categorical, emotional, and social selves during the preschool years? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do the major theoretical orientations explain gender development? | 6 |
| What are the characteristics of young children’s sex-role knowledge? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How is the behavior of young children sex-typed? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does attachment change during the early childhood years? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do parenting styles affect children’s development? | 5, 6 |
| How are ethnicity and socioeconomic status related to parenting style? | 5, 6 |
| How is family structure related to children’s development? | 5, 6 |
| How does d4orce affect children’s behavior in early childhood and in later years? | 5, 6 |
| What are some possible reasons for the relationship between family structure and development? | 5, 6 |
| What are the various kinds of play that are exhibited by preschoolers? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What types of aggression do children display during early childhood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do prosocial behavior and friendship patterns change during early childhood? | 4, 5, 6 |
Module 3 Learning Outcomes |
Mapped to Course Competencies (above) |
| What kinds of physical changes occur during middle childhood? | 3 |
| In what ways does the brain change during middle childhood? | 3, 4 |
| What are the three most important health hazards for 6- to 12-year-olds? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do vocabulary and other aspects of language change during middle childhood? | 4 |
| What cognit4e advantages do children gain as they move through Piaget’s concrete operational stage? | 4 |
| What is horizontal decalage, and how does Siegler explain concrete operational thinking? | 4 |
| How do children’s information-processing skills improve during middle childhood? | 4 |
| What should be included in an effect4e literacy curriculum? | 4 |
| How do bilingual and ESL approaches to second-language instruction differ? | 4 |
| Why do schools administer achievement tests, and what kinds of items do they include? | 4 |
| What kinds of group differences in achievement have educational researchers found? | 4, 6 |
| Why is the term learning disability controversial? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How does attention-deficit hyperact4ity disorder affect a child’s development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How did the psychoanalytic theorists characterize the middle childhood years? | 6 |
| What are the main ideas of the trait and social-cognit4e theorists? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the features of the psychological self? | 4, 5 |
| How does self-esteem develop? | 4, 5 |
| How does children’s understanding of others change in middle childhood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do children in Piaget’s moral realism and moral relat4ism stages reason about right and wrong? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How does self-regulation affect school-aged children’s relationships with their parents? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What changes occur in children’s understanding of friendships during the school-age period? | 4, 5, 6 |
| In what ways do boys and girls interact during the middle childhood years? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What types of aggression are most common among school-aged children? | 5, 6 |
| How do popular, rejected, and neglected children differ? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What factors contribute to resilience and vulnerability among poor children? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do television, computers, and video games affect children’s development? | 4, 6 |
| How do the brains and other body systems of adolescents differ from those of younger children? | 3 |
| What are the major milestones of puberty? | 3 |
| What are the consequences of early, “on time,” and late puberty for boys and girls? | 3 |
| What are the patterns of adolescent sexual behavior in the United States? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Which teenaged girls are most likely to get pregnant? | 5, 6 |
| What are some causes that have been proposed to explain homosexuality? | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does sensation seeking affect risky behavior in adolescents? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What patterns of drug, alcohol, and tobacco use have been found among adolescents in the United States? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the characteristics and causes of eating disorders? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Which adolescents are at greatest risk of depression and suicide? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the characteristics of thought in Piaget’s formal operational stage? | 4 |
| What are some major research findings regarding the formal operational stage? | 3, 4 |
| What kinds of advances in information-processing capabilities occur during adolescence? | 3, 4 |
| How do changes in students’ goals contribute to the transition to secondary school? | 5, 6 |
| What gender and ethnic differences in science and math achievement have researchers found? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What variables predict the likelihood of dropping out of high school? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What happens during Erikson’s identity-versus-role-confusion stage? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does Marcia explain identity development? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| In what ways does self-understanding in adolescence differ from that in childhood? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does self-esteem change across the teenage years? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are adolescents' concepts of gender role? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do minority, biracial, and immigrant teens develop a sense of ethnic identity? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the features of moral reasoning at each of Kohlberg’s stages? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are some important causes and effects in the development of moral reasoning? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How has Kohlberg’s theory been criticized? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the moral reasoning abilities and other characteristics of delinquents? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the features of adolescents’ relationships with their parents? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the characteristics of adolescents’ friendships? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do peer groups change over the teen years? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How does interest in romantic relationships emerge among heterosexual and homosexual teens? | 4, 5, 6 |
Module 4 Learning Outcomes |
Mapped to Course Competencies (above) |
| What is the difference between primary and secondary aging? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What changes in the brain take place in early adulthood? | 3, 4 |
| How do other body systems change during early adulthood? | 3 |
| What habits and personal factors are associated with good health? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are some of the viral and bacterial STDs that afflict young adults? | 3 |
| What are the causes and effects of intimate partner abuse? | 4, 5, 6 |
| Which mental disorders occur most frequently in young adulthood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What is the difference between physical and psychological substance dependence? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What types of postformal thought have developmentalists proposed? | 4 |
| How do the concepts of crystallized and fluid intelligence help to explain age-related changes in IQ scores? | 4 |
| What are some of the ways in which college attendance affects ind4idual development? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What is the impact of gender, ethnicity, and disability on the college experience? | 3, 5, 6 |
| What did Erikson mean when he described early adulthood as a crisis of intimacy versus isolation? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What is a life structure, and how does it change? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the characteristics of emerging adulthood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What factors do evolutionary and social role theorists emphasize in their theories of mate selection? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do marriage and d4orce affect the l4es of young children? | 5 |
| What factors contribute to the relationship between premarital cohabitation and d4orce? | 5, 6 |
| In what ways are gay and lesbian couples similar to and different from heterosexual couples? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do singles accomplish Erikson’s psychosocial developmental task of intimacy? | 6 |
| What happens during the transition to parenthood? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How are family and friends important to young adults? | 5, 6 |
| What factors influence an ind4idual’s occupational choices? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do career goals and job satisfaction change over time? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are some of the innovations associated with the quality of work–life movement? | 5, 6 |
| In what way do women’s work patterns differ from those of men? | 3, 5, 6 |
| What do researchers know about brain function in middle age? | 3, 4 |
| How does reproduct4e function change in men and women in middle age? | 3 |
| What is osteoporosis, and what factors are associated with it? | 3 |
| How do vision and hearing change in middle age? | 3 |
| How does cardiovascular disease develop? | 3 |
| What factors contribute to cancer? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What are some important differences in the health of middle-aged men and women? | 3, 5, 6 |
| How are socioeconomic status and ethnicity related to health in middle adulthood? | 3, 5, 6 |
| What are some of the consequences of alcoholism for middle-aged adults? | 3, 5, 6 |
| How do Denney’s and the Balteses’ models explain the relationship between health and cognit4e functioning in middle age? | 3, 4 |
| What has research revealed about the link between health and cognit4e functioning? | 3, 4 |
| How do young and middle-aged adults differ in performance on memory tests? | 3, 4, 6 |
| What does research suggest about age-related changes in creat4ity? | 3, 4 |
| How do the views of Erikson and Vaillant differ with regard to generat4ity? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do proponents of the midlife crisis perspect4e and proponents of the events perspect4e approach middle age differently? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What contributes to the “mellowing” of partnerships in middle adulthood? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do multigenerational careg4ing and careg4er burden affect middle-aged adults’ l4es? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does the grandparent role affect middle-aged adults? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How do social networks change during middle adulthood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What is the evidence for continuity and change in personality throughout adulthood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What factors influence work satisfaction in middle adulthood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What strategies do middle-aged workers use to maintain job performance at a satisfactory level? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What factors contribute to career transitions in midlife? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How do Baby Boomers differ from previous cohorts with respect to preparation for retirement? | 4, 5, 6 |
Module 5 Learning Outcomes |
Mapped to Course Competencies (above) |
| What factors contribute to life expectancy and longevity? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What variables contribute to ind4idual differences in health among older adults? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does the brain change in late adulthood? | 4 |
| What types of sensory changes occur in late adulthood? | 3, 4 |
| How do theories explain biological aging? | 3 |
| What are the behavioral effects of changes in the various body systems of older adults? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| What is Alzheimer’s disease, and how does it differ from other forms of dementia? | 3, 4 |
| What does research suggest about depression among older adults? | 5, 6 |
| What kinds of memory differences distinguish older and younger adults? | 3, 4 |
| What do theory and research on wisdom and creat4ity reveal about cognit4e functioning in late adulthood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What does research say about Erikson’s stage of ego integrity versus despair? | 4 |
| What are the main ideas of act4ity, disengagement, and continuity theory? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How is successful aging manifested in the l4es of older adults? | 4, 5, 6 |
| How does religious coping influence physical and mental health in late adulthood? | 4, 5, 6 |
| What are the l4ing arrangements of most elderly people in the United States and in other industrialized countries? | 3, 5, 6 |
| How do intimate partnerships contribute to development in late adulthood? | 5, 6 |
| What is the significance of family relationships and friendships for older adults? | 5, 6 |
| What are some gender and ethnic differences in older adults’ social networks? | 3, 5, 6 |
| What factors contribute to the decision to retire? | 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| How does retirement affect the l4es of older adults? | 5, 6 |
| What are the characteristics of clinical death, brain death, and social death? | 3, 4, 7, 8 |
| How do hospice and hospital care differ with respect to their effects on terminally ill patients? | 3, 7, 8 |
| What are the characteristics of children’s and adolescents’ ideas about death? | 4,7, 8 |
| How do young, middle-aged, and older adults think about death? | 4,7, 8 |
| What factors are related to fear of death in adults? | 7,8 |
| How do adults prepare for death? | 7,8 |
| How did Kübler-Ross explain the process of death? | 8 |
| What are some other views of the process of dying? | 7,8 |
| How do people vary in the ways they adapt to impending death? | 7,8 |
| How does Freud’s psychoanalytic theory view grief? | 8 |
| What are the theories of Bowlby and Sanders regarding grief? | 8 |
| What theories of grief have been proposed by critics of psychoanalytic and attachment theories? | 7,8 |
| How do funerals and ceremonies help surv4ors cope with grief? | 7,8 |
| What factors influence the grieving process? | 7,8 |
| How does grief affect the physical and mental health of widows and widowers? | 3, 7,8 |
Course Time Commitment and Expectations
For every credit hour, students should plan to spend an average of 2-3 hours per week for course-related activities in a 15-week course. For example, a 3 credit hour course would average an average 6-9 hours per week to read/listen to the online content, participate in discussion forums, complete assignments, and study the course material. For 10 and 6-week courses, the amount of time per week will be higher so all course competencies, module outcomes, and assignments will be covered.
Aside from typical reading assignments, this course has the following (Please Note: This list is subject to change based on the discretion of the instructor facilitating this course.):
| Assignment | Points |
|---|---|
| Quizzes (7 @ 80 Points Each) | 560 |
| Discussions (10 @ 20 Points Each) | 200 |
| Buffet Assignment | 80 |
| Buffet Assignment Peer Review | 40 |
| Reflection Essay | 80 |
| Reflection Essay Peer Review | 40 |
| TOTAL | 1000 |
CCCOnline Course Quality Commitment
CCCOnline goes to great lengths to assure the quality of your online learning experience. You can expect the following from our courses:
- All CCCOnline courses are developed by content experts and a professional team of instructional designers.
- CCCOnline courses are built with a template that assures accessibility and Quality Matters Design Standards.
- There is navigation consistency across all CCCOnline courses.
- Most of our courses come with illustrative models and videos to enhance learning concepts.