PSYC 1010 Chapter Notes - Chapter 11: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, Prenatal Development, Preterm Birth

• School: York University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 1010
• Professor: Gerald Goldberg

Document Summary

Conception occurs when fertilization creates a zygote, a one-celled organism formed by the union of a sperm and an egg. All of the other cells in your body developed from this single cell. The prenatal period extends from conception to birth, usually encompassing nine months of pregnancy. Development during the prenatal period is remarkably rapid. The prenatal period is divided into three phases: the germinal stage (the first two weeks) the embryonic stage (two weeks to two months), and the fetal stage (two months to birth). Some key developments in these phases are outlined here. The germinal stage is the first phase of prenatal development, encompassing the first two weeks after conception. This brief stage begins when a zygote is created through fertilization. This mass of (cid:272)ells slo(cid:449)l(cid:455) (cid:373)ig(cid:396)ates alo(cid:374)g the (cid:373)othe(cid:396)"s fallopia(cid:374) tu(cid:271)e to the ute(cid:396)i(cid:374)e (cid:272)a(cid:448)it(cid:455). On about the seventh day, the cell mass begins to implant itself in the uterine wall.