PSYCH 223 - Lifespan

Developmental Psychology

Chapter 2- The Start of Life (Prenatal)

 Prenatal Development

- happens between the moment

of conception and birth
- prenatal development takes an
average of 38 weeks and is
divided into 3 stages:
1) germinal (zygote) 14 days
2) embryonic stage (3rd week after
conception and lasts until the
end of the eighth week
3) fetal stage (final and longest) 9th
week after conception until birth

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Embryo and Fetus
1 zygote/germinal 14 days
Conception begins with sperm
penetrating an ovum, forming a
zygote.
Zygote divides into two cells, then
four cells, and continues dividing.
Formation of a blastula, a
ball-shaped structure.
Within the first week, the zygote
reaches the uterus.
Implantation occurs as the blastula
burrows into the uterine wall.
Connections with the mother's blood
vessels are established.
Within 8 to 10 days post-conception,
the zygote firmly attaches to the
uterine wall.
2 embryonic stage 3rd week - 8th week - all the basic organs of
the body take shape
- organism’s rapid growth
during this period is
facilitated by the efficient
way in which the mother
supplies nutrition and
protects the organism
from the harmful
environmental
influences
3 fetal stage (final and 9th week until birth - the baby becomes
longest) much larger
- body system begin to
work
- refinements of organ
system such as lungs
and brain happen
Genes and Chromosomes: The Code of Life
Genes: basic units of heredity and contain instructions that guide the formation of all
individual traits. both physical traits (sex. skin, eye color) and behavioral and psychological
traits (how the individual attends to and responds to their environment and communicates
with others

- all genes are composed of specific sequences of DNA

- A child receives 23 chromosomes from each parent.
- These 46 chromosomes provide a genetic blueprint.
- A genotype is the combination of genetic material.
- A phenotype is the visible trait.
 Chromosomes
- every human egg contains 23 chromosomes
- the chromosome is a single molecule of DNA
- DNA molecule takes the form of 2 long connected
strands that spiral around each other
- every chromosome contains hundreds and
thousands of genes
- each of which is a small segment of DNA
- when conception happens. the zygote (a single cell
containing 46 chromosomes. 23 from the mother
and 23 from the father is formed)
- the single cell is the foundation for all the cells that
ever develop in an individual

At the moment of conception, humans receive 23 pairs of chromosomes, half from the mother and half from the father. These chromosomes contain
thousands of genes.
Source: SPL/ScienceSource
 Boy or Girl? Establishing the Sex of the Child
- 22 of the 23 pairs of chromosomes found in
a human cell are similar in males and
females
•the 23rd chromosome determines the sex of the child
▪Females are XX
▪Males are XY
Determining Sex
When an ovum and sperm meet at the moment of fertilization, the
ovum is certain to provide an X chromosome, whereas the sperm will
provide either an X or a Y chromosome. If the sperm contributes its
X chromosome, the child will have an XX pairing on the 23rd
chromosome and will be a girl. If the sperm contributes a Y
chromosome, the result will be an XY pairing—a boy.
Prenatal Testing
–The earliest testing method:
- blood test and Ultrasound sonography
- ultrasound is one of the main screening tests done in combo with blood tests
- sound waves are used to examine the fetus
- to check the fetus for defects or problems
- find out the age of the fetus. fetal position. movement, breathing and heart rate
- most women have at least 1 ultrasound during pregnancy
- when diagnosis of a birth defect is necessary, ultrasound help guide the more
invasive diagnosis tests of amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling
 Amniocentesis
>> a needle is used to withdraw a small
amount of amniotic fluid and cells from
the sac surrounding the fetus and later
test it

>> used to identify a number of genetic

defects.
Chorionic villus sampling

- a small sample of cells is taken from the placenta and tested

Both amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling have a risk of

miscarriage and consequently they are not done routinely
The Interaction of Heredity and Environment
>> genes and environment constantly interact throughout a child’s development
>> today’s psychologist no longer think in terms of nature vs nurture
>> they try to determine how these 2 important influences might combine or interact to
promote developmental change
1) genotype: the combination of genetic material (the genetic makeup of an organism
and our genes affect our behavior
- Some genotypes are not as sensitive to the environment as others
2) phenotype is the visible trait (the visible result of the interaction between the
environment and the genetic makeup)
- *** the observable characteristics of an individual
● Phenotype: Observable characteristics of an individual.
● Environmental factors crucial in defining phenotype during early
development.
● Example: People with genotype predisposed to weight gain may
have limitations in becoming excessively thin due to environmental
factors.
● Environment influences how specific genotypes manifest as
phenotypes.
● Some genotypes less influenced by environmental factors.
● Example: Individuals with genotype restricting height will not
exceed predetermined limits, regardless of diet or environment.
Genetics and the Environment: Working Together

•Psychological Disorders: are caused by different types of

genetics and Environmental factors

–Several disorders brought about by genetic factors:

▪Schizophrenia spectrum disorder
▪Major depression
▪Alcoholism
▪Autism spectrum disorder
▪Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
The Genetics of Schizophrenia

The psychological disorder of schizophrenia has clear genetic components. The closer the genetic links between someone with schizophrenia and
another family member, the more likely it is that the other person will also develop schizophrenia.
Source: Based on Gottesman, 1991.
Genetics and the Environment:
Working Together
genetic alone - is not the cause of most mental disorders and people with genetic
predisposition to a mental disorder are not destined to suffer from a disorder and if they
live in an optimal living situation, the disorder might never happen

•Psychological Disorders: The Role of Genetics and

Environment
–Genetics alone does not influence development of disorders
▪If genetics is the sole cause, the concordance rate for identical twins would be 100
percent
▪Genetics can produce a tendency toward future development of disorder
▪Environment determines if the genetic tendency will be displayed
The Prenatal Environment:
Threats to Development
•Teratogen致畸剂: any disease, drug or other environmental issues that can
harm a developing embryo or fetus by causing physical deformities. brain
damage or even death
–the timing and the quantity of exposures to a teratogen is very important to each major
organ system
–each organ systems and body parts are vulnerable to a teratogen at different times
- since most organs and body parts are rapidly forming during the period of embryo,
therefore this is the time the most vulnerable period for many organs and body parts
such as heart
- once an organ and body part is fully formed. it becomes somewhat less susceptible to
damages
•2)Mother’s Age
•1)Mother’s Diet
–Important in supporting development
–Mothers over 30 have greater risk of complications:
of fetus
▪Premature birth
–High-nutrient diet leads to fewer
▪Low birth weight
complications
▪Down syndrome
–Diet is immense concern worldwide
▪Infant mortality
-malnutrition produces small and
underweight babies, cognitive deficits
•3)Mother’s Health later in childhood. increasing risk of
–Illness can cause devastating consequences: heart disease, diabetes and
▪Rubella hypertension
▪Chicken pox
▪Syphilis and gonorrhea
▪AIDS some of the teratogens that
Mental health
can adversely affect prenatal
development:
•Mother’s Drug Use
–Legal and illegal drugs pose risk
▪Legal drugs
▪Illegal drugs
–Marijuana restricts oxygen
–Cocaine restricts oxygen and blood flow.
•Mother’s Use of Alcohol and Tobacco
–Small amounts can impact fetus
–Alcohol
▪Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD)
▪Fetal alcohol effects (FAE)
▪Two drinks a day has been associated with lower
intelligence
1) Mother’s Diet

● Malnutrition: Severe malnutrition during pregnancy can lead to the

birth of small and underweight babies, potentially causing cognitive
deficits in childhood, and increasing the risk of heart disease,
diabetes, and hypertension in adulthood.
● Interventions: Dietary supplements can help counteract the effects
of maternal malnutrition. Babies born to malnourished mothers can
still overcome some negative effects if raised in enriched
environments.
2) Mother’s age

● Older Women (>30 years): Increased risk of complications

during pregnancy and childbirth compared to younger
women.
● Teenage Mothers: Higher likelihood of complications
during pregnancy, labor, and delivery due to factors such
as inadequate prenatal care. They also face a higher risk
of preterm delivery and low birth weight babies
3) mother’s health

Illnesses: Certain illnesses like chickenpox,

rubella, and AIDS during pregnancy can severely
impact the developing fetus, sometimes even
being transmitted to the child.
4) mother’s drug use

● Prescription and Over-the-Counter Drugs: These can

sometimes cause adverse effects on the developing
fetus.
● Caffeine: Heavy use (more than 4 soft drinks or cups of
coffee per day) may lead to miscarriages and low birth
weight.
5) mother’s use of alcohol and tobacco

● Alcohol: Even minimal consumption can adversely affect fetal

development, potentially leading to fetal alcohol spectrum
disorders, characterized by physical deformities, smaller head size,
and intellectual disabilities.
● Tobacco: Smoking or exposure to tobacco smoke during pregnancy
increases risks of miscarriage, preterm birth, low birth weight, and
developmental issues in children
Birth:The Three Stages of Labor
1) stage 1 of childbirth

● Onset: Characterized by uterine contractions occurring at

10-15 minute intervals.
● Duration: Lasts about 8-14 hours for first-time mothers
and 3-8 hours for mothers who have previously given
birth.
● Completion: Ends when the cervix is fully dilated, allowing
the fetus’s head to pass through.
2) second stage of childbirth (delivery)

● Start: Begins as the fetus’s head passes through the cervix into
the vagina.
● Process: Involves the active pushing by the mother to help the
baby emerge.
● Duration: Can be quick, approximately 30 minutes, or extend
beyond 1.5 hours.
● End: Concludes when the baby fully emerges from the mother’s
body.
3) third stage of childbirth (afterbirth)

● Process: Involves contractions of the uterus to expel

the placenta.
● Duration: Typically takes 5-10 minutes.
● Completion: Ends with the expulsion of the placenta
from the mother’s body.
 From Labor to Delivery
•Birth: From Fetus to Neonate
–Birth occurs when fetus emerges from mother’s body
–Most babies cry immediately to clear lungs and breathe
–The APGAR Scale
▪Each quality scored on 0–2 scale with final numbers 0–10
–Most babies score 7
–Scores under 4 need immediate intervention
▪Dangers of anoxia
Newborn Screening:
● Purpose: Tests newborns for a range of diseases and
genetic conditions.
● Benefits: Allows early treatment to prevent severe health
consequences.
Post-Birth Procedures:
● Handling of Birth Remnants: Health care workers manage
and clean remnants from the child’s passage through the
birth canal.
first inspection after birth
Time: after the fetus emerges from the mother’s body and starts breathing

● Purpose: Quick assessment of a newborn's immediate health condition.

● Criteria: Evaluates heart rate, respiration, muscle tone, skin color, and reflexes.
● Scoring: Ranges from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating better health.
● Timing: Performed at 1 minute and repeated at 5 minutes after birth.
● Interpretation:
● Scores of 7 or above indicate good physical condition.
● Scores of 4 or below suggest serious health issues, requiring immediate
medical attention.
Apgar Scale

A score is given for each sign at 1 minute and 5 minutes after the birth. If there are problems with the baby, an additional score is
given at 10 minutes. A score of 7-10 is considered normal, whereas 4-7 might require some resuscitative measures, and a baby with
an Apgar score less than 4 requires immediate resuscitation.
Source: Apgar, 1953; Rozance & Rosenberg, 2012.
Approaches to Childbirth: Where Medicine
and Attitudes Meet
•Alternative Birthing Procedures
–Lamaze Method (breathing techniques and relaxation training)
–Bradley Method (medication-free method that emphasizes relaxation as
a form of pain reduction during labor. use of physicians are unnecessary)
–Water birthing (delivery happen in water, in a birthing pool, in a more
relaxed, less painful experience
•Use of Anesthesia and Pain-reducing Drugs

● Prevalence: About 50% f women giving birth

choose to receive epidural anesthesia.
● Effect of Epidural: Creates numbness from
the waist down, which may hinder the
mother's ability to push during labor.
Benefits of Using Drugs and Anesthesia:

● Pain Relief: Significantly reduces pain in the lower body of the

mother during childbirth.

Disadvantages of Using Drugs and Anesthesia:

● Oxygen Flow: Can decrease the flow of oxygen to the fetus.

● Labor Duration: May delay the process of labor.
● Newborn Health:
● Newborns may be less physiologically responsive.
● Possible poorer motor skills in the initial days after birth.
● Increased likelihood of crying and difficulty in breastfeeding
Birth Complications: Preterm Infants
•Preterm infants are born before 38 weeks and at risk for illness and
death
–Low-birthweight infants: Weigh less than 2,500 grams
–Some are small-for-gestational-age infants: 90 percent or less of average weight
of infants of same gestational age
•Preterm infants benefit from responsive, stimulating, and organized
care
–Infant massage is beneficial
–Susceptible to respiratory distress
syndrome (RDS)
–May be placed in an incubator
•What Causes Preterm and Low-birthweight
Deliveries?

–Multiple births (twins or triplets)

–age of mother (younger than 18 or older than 35)
–Too closely spaced together births
–General health and nutrition of mother
–Ethnicity: African American mothers have double the chance of
having a low-birthweight baby
-had preterm before. mostly like experience it again
•Postmature Babies: Later, Larger
–Postmature babies are still unborn 2 weeks
after mother’s due date
–more riskier because of the size
–Blood supply may be decreased to the brain
–Labor and delivery is more difficult
-more likely to happen when a mother has had
a post-term pregnancy before
-symptoms: dry, loose and peeling skin.
overgrown nails. large amount of hair on the
head and small amounts of fat on the body
Cesarean Delivery (c-section): Intervening in the Process of
Birth

•More than a million cesarean deliveries each

year
–Cesarean delivery: Baby surgically removed from the
uterus
–Several difficulties can lead to cesarean delivery:
▪Fetus appears to be in danger
▪Mothers over age 40
▪Used for breech position
▪Used for transverse position
▪When the baby’s head is large
Reasons for C-Sections:

● Unexpected Problems During Delivery: Includes maternal health issues,

fetal distress, inadequate space for vaginal delivery, or unfavorable fetal
positioning (e.g., breech where the head is not downward).
● Prevalence in Canada: 28.2% of women have babies delivered via
C-section.
Risks and Considerations of C-Sections:

● Surgical Risks: While relatively safe, C-sections are major surgeries with
inherent health risks.
● Recovery Time: Longer recovery period compared to vaginal births.
● Future Births: The incision may weaken the uterine wall, potentially
complicating future vaginal births. However, over half of women who
have a C-section can successfully have a vaginal birth later.
impact on the baby (c-section)

● Hormonal Disruption: The normal release of stress

hormones, important for adjusting to life outside the
womb, is affected.
● Breathing Issues: Babies may experience breathing
problems after a C-section, as they do not pass through
the birth canal, which can help clear the lungs of fluid.
Stillbirth and Infant Mortality

•Stillbirth and Infant Mortality: The Tragedy of

Premature Death
–Rate is declining
–Depression often occurs
● Parents might experience depression or post-traumatic stress disorder after
they lose their baby.
Postpartum Depression
-definition: a complex mix of physical. emotional. and behavioral
changes that happen in some women after giving birth
-experience: trouble sleeping. appetite changes. severe fatigue.
frequent mood changes
-possible reason: level of female reproductive hormones. estrogen
and progesterone increase dramatically during pregnancy then
dramatically decrease after delivery → Moving from the Heights
of Joy to the Depths of Despair
 - by 25 hours after giving birth. the levels of hormones drop back to what
they were before pregnancy
- this rapid change could cause postpartum depression
-
Period of depression following childbirth
–Affects about 10 percent of new mothers
–Depression can last for months or even years
–May be triggered by hormones
–May lead to detachment and lack of responsiveness to infant’s needs
The Competent Newborn: (1) Physical Competence:
Meeting the Demands of a New Environment

•Reflexes are unlearned, organized involuntary responses

–Sucking and swallowing (ensure prepared to begin a new diet of life
- milk)
–Rooting reflex
-blinking (protect newborn from danger in the environment)
-all reflexes serve as: the foundation for voluntary patterns
of motor activity (stepping reflex. a precursor to walking)
The Competent Newborn: (1) Physical Competence:
Meeting the Demands of a New Environment

•Infant’s visual and auditory systems are not fully developed

–They can see levels of contrast and brightness
–They can tell size consistency and distinguish colors
–They react to sudden sounds and recognize familiar sounds
- can only focus at a close range (8-10 inches, or the distance
between a mother’s face to the baby in her arms)
The Competent Newborn: (1) Physical Competence:
Meeting the Demands of a New Environment
•Infants are sensitive to touch (mouth cheeks face hands and ab).
-infants use touch to help make sense of visual information
•Their senses of taste and smell are well developed
e.g. distinguish between breast milk and formula
react negatively to bitter and positively to sweet
Early Learning Capabilities
•3 sources of learning in infants:
(1) Classical conditioning: becomes conditioned to the nipple so
that sucking beings as soon as the baby sees a nipple
–Little Albert conditioned to be afraid of white rats
(2) Operant Conditioning:
e.g. learn to keep sucking on a nipple when it permits them to
continue hearing their mothers. read story or listen to music
(3) Habituation (infants looking time decreases with repeated
exposure to the stimulus and increases to novel items)
e.g baby shows interest to a novel toy but stops paying attention to it after
several presentations
Social Competence: Responding to Others

•Infants can imitate others (help them form

relationships and develop social competence)
•Infants can differentiate basic facial expressions
- happiness. sadness. surprise
•Infants cycle through various states of arousal
–Different degrees of sleep and wakefulness