PSYC 304 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Tabula Rasa, Natural Selection, Organism
Document Summary
John locke - human infant: tabula rasa - blank slate. Jean-jacques rousseau - newborns were endowed with an innate sense of justice and morality that unfolds naturally as children grow. Theory an organized set of ideas designed to explain and make predictions about development. A source of predictions that can be tested through research. Cognitive, personality, physical and motor dvp proceed according to a biological plan. Organism whose individual traits are best suited, adapted for survival in a particular environment are the organisms most likely to survive. Survival depends on a fit between the characteristics of the organism and the environment in which it lives. Natural selection: the best-adapted offspring then reproduce in an ongoing process of environmental adaptation. Maturational theory: child dvp reflects a specific and prearranged scheme or plan within the body. Ethological theory: many behaviors are adaptive - survival value e. g: crying for infants.
