Social And Personality Development Lecture 3

Front 1

ethology

Back 1

instincts: species specific drive

Evolved and adaptive characteristics shaped by experience and learning

Critical and sensitive periods

Front 2

Modern psycho-evolutionary theories

Back 2

survival of genes, not individuals

Front 3

Epigenetics/methylation

Back 3

Focus on the epigenome: on/off switches for genes

Methylation: environment is largely responsible for the amount of methylation

Epigenetic changes can be inherited

Front 4

Infants are biologically prepared for social engagement

1st and 2nd month

Back 4

1st month: peripheral (seeing) light contrasts especially apparent

2nd month: attend to emotional expressions

Front 5

Survival and social skills

Back 5

Social orientation and interactional synchrony help survive

Front 6

Neurological basis of social development

Back 6

Rapid brain development until 2 years

This continues until early 20s

Timing of growth of specific regions coincides with development of some behavioral competencies

Front 7

Hemispheric specialization and Frontal Asymmetries

Back 7

Left: Approach/activation/rewards

Right: withdrawal/avoidance/inhibition

Detectable in infants

Front 8

The developing brain has growth spurts

Back 8

Visual cortex → first months

Motor → 1 year

Auditory → 2 year

Prefrontal → 4-7 years

Front 9

Implications for changes in social interactions

Back 9

Adolescent brain development → in mid adolescence the drive for reward, positive experience, outweighs thought.

Front 10

The social brain

Back 10

Network of regions involved in social functions – processing faces, inferring mental states, and communicationg

Front 11

Inferior frontal gyrus

Back 11

imitation, learning, understanding emotions, and empathy

Front 12

Mirror Neurons

Back 12

fire when performing action and when seeing others perform an action, Associated with the inferiorfrontal gyrus

Front 13

Amygdala and mirror neurons

Back 13

insula and mirror neuron system areas were activated more when imitating facial expressions than when just observing them

Front 14

Empathy and the IFG, Insula, Amygdala

Back 14

children who have higher levels of empathy have greater bilateral activation in the Inferior frontal Gyrus, right insula, and left amygdala

Front 15

Psychoneuroendocrynology

Back 15

Hormonal control of brain behavior relations

Front 16

HPA Axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis)

Back 16

Produces cortisol – which follows a standard rhythm throughout the day and is associated with biological regulation

- peaks after waking
- stress causes bursts in cortisol (anxiety)

Front 17

HPA activity and Loneliness in youths

Back 17

less of a decrease in cortisol, causing a wearing of energy and withdrawal

After a day of loneliness they had a heavy cortisol awakening response (left over cortisol in the body)

Front 18

Cortisol Awakening Response or CAR

Back 18

Predicts depression for youth over 1 year of having it

Strong CAR may cause a diagnosis of major depressive disorder if had over 12 months

Front 19

Autonomic Nervous System

Back 19

Sympathetic – fight/flight – cardiac and pre-ejection period

Parasympathetic – rest/digest – off switch related to cardiac vagal tone and physiology

Front 20

Poly-vagal theory

Back 20

mammalian evolution has built on parasympathetic nervous system regulation of cardiac activity to facilitate behavioral control without activating fight or flight response

Front 21

Changes in Vagal Tone

Back 21

Changes in Vagal tone help us engage in social behavior without activating fight/flight

Front 22

RSA and executive function:

Back 22

Preschoolers with higher RSA performed better on tests of executive function than those with low RSA

Moderate RSA suppression did better than those with extreme or low RSA

Front 23

Homeostasis vs. Allostasis and Dynamic change

Back 23

Homeostasis suggests an unchanging optimal state

Allostasis reflects a changing flexible state depending on the scenario which is ideal

Dynamic change: how flexible you are in dealing with changing circumstances

Front 24

Vagal Withdrawal

Back 24

decreased parasympathetic influence: lowered RSA

Front 25

Behavioral genetics

Back 25

Study phenotypes to understand genotypes

Front 26

Heritability

Back 26

variance attributable to hereditary factors

does not mean inherited nor is it unchangeable

Environment moderates heritability

Front 27

Heritability of Altruism STUDY

Back 27

94 identical twin pairs and 90 same sex fraternal twin pairs

observed pro social response to distress

mother reported helping, sharing, and comforting

children seen later: home environment shaped responses