Assignment:
Product Development: Biological Influences of Psychology
In order to better understand how preschool children learn from their play activities, you have advised the Product Development department to study the biological influences of psychology. See the scenario for the specifics of your role.
Develop a short presentation describing the biological influences of psychology. In your presentation you may include elements such as:
1. Functions of the various systems and the divisions of the nervous system.
2. The importance of understanding the biological influences of psychology. Detail what these influences are.
3. The importance that biological factors play in bodily appetites.
4. Similarities and differences in the functions of the spinal cord and the brain.
5. Major areas of the brain and the function of each area. How prescription medicines are designed to positively affect brain function.
6. The way hormones affect our behavior.
Learning:The Fun Learning and Toy Company, is developing a new line of educational games for preschoolers. Ralph Peterson is the Manager of Product Development for this proposed series of educational games.
Historically, the games and toys have been created, child tested, produced and marketed in a linear fashion. Because the company's traditional marketing strategy has not produced the stellar results predicted by the advertising agency, it was determined that a new approach be incorporated. The increasingly competitive market, combined with a tight economy and shrinking market share, caused him to rethink this historic method.
Ralph believes that the designing and testing of the games should be concurrent activities. Any prototypes which are not highly desirable to the test group of children will not proceed beyond the preliminary design phase.
In an effort to ensure the success of the proposed new product line, Ralph has engaged your services. You are Dr. Dee Walton, a renowned child psychologist. Your responsibility is to study habits of the children in the testing group and to make recommendations on making the games more engaging for the children.
You tell Ralph that to design toys and games which will have greater appeal to young children; he and the members of his workgroup need to have an improved understanding of early childhood cognitive thinking and development. You advise Ralph that this will require all of them to have a better working knowledge of the following topics:
• Biological influences of psychology
• The distinction between sensation and perception
• Comparison of learning types
• Personality traits
• Common psychological disorders
• Social behavior and its influences
• Games which experiment with techniques for improving memory