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C  onception
and
G-enetics
The Process of ConceptionGenotypes, Phenotypes, and Patterns of Genetic Inheritance
Development
from Conception to Birth
The Stages of Prenatal DevelopmentSex Differences in Prenatal Development Prenatal Behavior
CHAPTER
 P roblems in
Prenatal Development
Genetic DisordersChromosomal ErrorsTeratogens:Maternal Diseases Teratogens:Drugs Other Teratogens and Maternal Factors
Summary
K ey Terms
 
 finding the Answers:
Research
Designs
and
Methods
•The goals of developmental psychology are to describe, toexplain,to predict, and to influence age-related change.Developmental psychologists use various methods to meetthese goals.•In cross-sectionalstudies,separate age groups are each tested once. In longitudinal designs, the same individualsare tested repeatedly over time. Sequential designs com-bine cross-sectional with longitudinal comparisons.•Case studies and naturalistic observation provide a lot of important information, but it usually is not generalizable.
 Key Terms
behavior genetics(p. 8) behaviorism(p.4) case studies (p.25)classicalconditioning (p.17) cognitive-developmental theories(p. 15) control group (p. 26)correlation(p. 25) critical period(p.6) cross-cultural research (p. 27)cross-sectional design(p. 23) dependent variable (p. 26)developmental science (p. 3)eclecticism(p.22) ego(p. 14) Correlational studies measure relations between variables.They can be done quickly and yield information that ismore generalizable than information from case studies ornaturalistic observation. Totest causal hypotheses, it isnecessary to use experimental designs in which partici-pants are assigned randomlyto experimental or control groups.•Cross-cultural(cross-context)research helpsdevelopmen- talists identif yuniversal patterns and cultural variables that affect development.•Ethical principlesthat guide psychological research include protection from harm, informed consent, confidentiality,knowledge of results, and protection from deception.experiment (p.26) experimental group(p.26)
id
(p.
14)
independent variable (p.26)information-processingtheories(p. 16) internal models of experience (p.8)learning theories(p.17) libido(p.14) longitudinal design (p. 23)maturation (p. 6)naturalistic observation(p.25) negative reinforcement (p. 18)norms(p. 4) operant conditioning(p.18)
See
for 
-youtiself.
.. . •
~~
.
.
,.
Culture and Informal Theories of Development
Researchers have found that the development of psychologi-cal theories is a basic component of human thinking. In otherwords, we observe human behavior and develop ideas that wethink explain our observations. These ideas are often stronglyinfluenced by culture. Youcan find out about the relationshipbetween culture and informal theories of development bypresenting people from different backgrounds with the state-ment attributed to John Watson at the beginning of the chap-ter.Next, ask them to explain why they agree or disagreewith the statement.Write down or record their responses andanalyze them to see how much emphasis each person placeson internal (e.g.,intelligence) and external (e.g., education)variables. One way of measuring this would be to giveeachperson an "internal" score and an "external" score by assign-ing 1point for each internal and each external variable men-positive reinforcement(p. 18) psychoanalytictheories(p. 13) psychosexual stages (p.14)psychosocial stages(p.15) punishment(p.19) scaffolding (p.16)sensitive period (p. 6)sequential design(p. 23) superego (p. 14)zone of proximal development (p. 16)tioned. Averagethe scores within each cultural group repre-sented by the people included in your study, and then com-pare the results across cultures.
Research Design
Almost allthe important findings in developmental psychol-ogy have resulted from studies employing all of the methodsyou have learned about in this chapter. For instance, Piaget'stheory was built on naturalistic observation, case studies, cor-relational studies, and experiments. Moreover,many cross-cultural studies have replicated his original results. Think of aquestion about development that you find intriguing or per-sonally meaningful.How would you look for an answer tothat question with each of the methods described in thischapter?
 
While she
was in
labor  ,
Ward admitted
to
caregivers
that she
was a crack cocaine ad-dict and had frequently used
the
drug during
her 
pregnancy.As
soon
as Ward's
sonwas born, he was tested for the
drug and was found
to
have traces
of 
it in
his system.
As a result,Ward
was
charged
with
delivering a
controLLed 
substance
to
a
minor,
and
her 
children were placed in
the custody of 
relatives.In August
20M,
Ward
pled 
guiltyand
was
sentenced
to
five
years' 
probation.
fiowever  ,her 
prosecution continues
to
becontroversial and is Likely
to
produce an important appeLLatecourt ruling in
the
nearfuture.
Wards
case and
others
Likeit are at
the
heart
of 
a public
policy
debate regarding
the most 
effective
way to
discourage pregnant women
from
using substances
that 
mayendanger
the fetuses they
carry.
In the
United
States ,some
have drawn a paraLLelbe-
tween
drug use during pregnancy and
physical
abuse
of 
an infant after birth and havesuggested
that 
pregnant drug
users
be criminally
prosecuted. Prosecution
advocatesargue
that 
injecting a newborn
with
a drug is a crime. Even if no damage is done
tot he child,
'aeLivering
controLLed 
substances
to
a minor"
(the terminology
used in
most 
 jurisdictions) is
itself 
a crime.One
problem with this
approachis
that 
it isn't dear
whether 
a fetus can be con-sidered
legaLLy
equivalent
to
a
child.
u.s.
Supreme Court rulings have introduced
theissue of 
fetal viability into abortion law.
These
rulings
aLLowstates to
outlaw abortions
of 
viable
fetuses
and
suggest 
using
24
weeks
as
the
age
of 
viability, based on currentresearch on prenatal development.
Thus,
it
would seem that states
could
also
use ex-isting
laws
against giving drugs
to
children and
child 
abuse
to prosecute
women after
t he 24th
week 
of 
prenatal development.
In
addition,
doctors
often
seek 
judicial inter-vention in
cases where
pregnant women make medical
decisions that 
are potentiallydamaging
to their fetuses
(National Abortion and Reproductive
Rights
Action League[NARAL],1997).
In most such cases,
 judges make rulings on
the
basis
of the best 
in-
t erest of the fetus. fiowever  ,
it isn't
always easy to
find
out whether 
a fetus
or 
newborn
has
been ex-
 posed to drugs.The
difficulty is
that  ,while
many drugs
pass through the
placenta,
t hey
don't
always do so
in sufficient amounts
to
be identifiable in a newborn's
blood or 
urine.In addition,
some
drugs,Likemarijuana,remain in
the system for 
a
long
time,making it
possible to t est f or them
several
days
after birth. But
others,
Like
co-
caineand
alcohoL ,
are excreted
fr om the
newborn's
body
within
hours of 
birth.
Thus,
drug
testing must 
be carried
out almost 
immediately after birth
to
determine
whether the
newborn
has
been prenatally
exposed to
potentially harmful drugs (Cen-
t er sfor 
Disease
C ontrol
[CDC],199Gb).An additional difficulty is
that 
drug testingatbirth usuaLly reveaLs
Little or 
nothing about drug
exposure
earlier in
the
pregnancy.Consequently, a pregnant womancould "deliver" a drug
to her 
viable fetus during,
for 
of 00

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