| Unit name | Developmental Science |
|---|---|
| Unit code | PSYC30025 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Dalmaijer |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School of Psychological Science |
| Faculty | Faculty of Life Sciences |
Many of our cognitive skills and mechanisms are shaped during childhood and adolescence. Some are passed down by our parents/carers, some learned from our peers, and many are impacted by the environment we grow up in. In this unit, we will map out the typical pattern of development from conception to adolescence, and relate this to child behaviours and adult outcomes. We will also explore instances of atypical development, both in terms of traditional diagnostic criteria for DSM-classifications like “autism spectrum disorder” and “attention deficit hyperactivity disorder”, and with a transdiagnostic view of individual competencies and challenges. Furthermore, we will address the unique challenges associated with measuring behaviour and cognitive functions across development. Finally, we will explore how environmental influences such as socioeconomic status impact individual development.
This unit will cover psychological development from conception, through infancy and childhood, to adolescence. It starts with a general overview, covering foetal development in utero, experimental approaches to studying babies, childhood language development, and cognition and affect in adolescence. We will then explore how typical development is shaped by direct and indirect genetic effects, parental modelling, and socioeconomic environment. This will be supplemented with genetic and environmental influences on atypical development, with a focus on methodology, variation in environmental input and conditions such as Down syndrome, the autism spectrum, and ADHD. Finally, we will discuss the transdiagnostic revolution in child development, which is increasingly shifting the field towards data-driven (machine learning) statistics, and a focus on individual competencies and challenges.
Learning Outcomes
Upon the successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Self-paced online learning materials supported by regular live sessions. These live sessions will take a variety of different forms depending on the focus of the week, including the following:
Problem-based learning: In several seminars, students will be presented with a specific problem, which they will tackle within the seminar, and briefly present their results at the end of the seminar (one presentation per group; presentations will not be assessed). For example, in a seminar on transdiagnostic approaches, they will be given the outcomes of data-driven clustering analyses. These comprise the dividing up of a population of assessed children into subgroups, but it is unknown to students which number of subgroups is the statistical solution. Instead, students will be given summary statistics on test scores for various subgroups, and decide amongst themselves which solution is most likely to be true.
Creative/experiential learning: In several seminars, students will form groups that will be tasked with developing a specific approach to experiments or analysis. For example, groups will each take an adult experiment, and translate it into an experiment that could work in children. This will require implementing the unique language and attention requirements for testing children.
Training/workshop based: One seminar will focus on statistical methods used in transdiagnostic research. Specifically, this will be a workshop on using statistical software (JASP) to do cluster analysis.
You will write a research proposal on the basis of a body of existing literature. This will require you to evaluate papers, synthesise their content, and analyse this to identify gaps in knowledge. You will then apply what you have learnt about experimental methods in infants and children to propose a new study that will cover the identified knowledge gap.
Feedback will be provided on your literature synthesis and analysis, and on your application of methodological knowledge. This will help you prepare for both summative assessments, which will test your ability to evaluate, synthesise, and analyse the existing literature.
The unit mark is made up of:
Research proposal (50%)
Timed assessment (50%)
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. PSYC30025).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an
assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
