Chapter 5: Development of the Brain and Nervous System
Learning Objectives
- Describe how genetics can influence our appearance, mind, and behavior
- Describe how evolution plays a role in shaping our behaviors over time
- Understand what epigenetics is and how epigenetic mechanisms can alter gene expression and impact physical and mental health
- Describe the different stages of neuronal development
- Relate the embryonic stage of nervous system development to the adult structures of the central nervous system
- Understand sensitive and critical periods of development
- Relate the trade-off between neuroplasticity and neural efficiency to brain development
This chapter was adapted from: Hove, M. J., & Martinez, S. A. (2024). Biological psychology. ROTEL (Remixing Open Textbooks with an Equity Lens) Project. https://rotel.pressbooks.pub/biologicalpsychology/.
and
Grose-Fifer, J., Spielman, R., Dumper, K., Jenkins, W., Lacombe, A., Lovett, M. & Perlmutter, M. (2023). Introduction to Psychology (A critical approach). CUNY. https://pressbooks.cuny.edu/jjcpsy101/. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
