Vocabulary Chapter 11

The study of changes in physiology, cognition, and social behavior over the life span

Environmental agents that harm the embryo or fetus

A survival mechanism that has persisted from our primate ancestors; an adaptive reflex because the offspring need to be carried from place to place

The turning and sucking that infants automatically engage in when a nipple or similar object touches an area near their mouths

A process whereby the synaptic connections in the brain that are frequently used are preserved, and those that are not are lost

Biologically determined time periods for the development of specific skills

Biologically determined time periods when specific skills develop most easily

A strong emotional connection that persists over time and across circumstances

When an infant becomes very distressed when they cannot see or are separated from their attachment figures

A test involving observing, though a one-way mirror, a child, a caregiver, and a friendly but unfamiliar adult in a series of eight semi-structured episodes in a laboratory playroom

Secure, avoidant, and anxious/ambivalent

Attachment style for a majority of infants, who are readily comforted when their caregiver returns after a brief separation

Attachment style in which infants ignore their caregiver when he or she returns after a brief separation

Attachment style in which infants become extremely upset when their caregiver leaves but reject caregiver when he or she returns

Attachment style in which infants five mixed responses when their caregiver leaves and then returns from a short absence