As one of the most complex organs within the human body, the brain develops as we age, affected by both internal and external factors. The basics of brain development in psychology focus on many different research areas.
The brain itself is the body's command centre and is vital for everyday processes. The average adult brain has 86 billion neurons. How did such a remarkable structure develop? The basics of brain development concern aspects such as the forebrain, midbrain, hindbrain, cerebellum, and medulla.
Infants learn to develop skills progressively after developing brain structures, freepik.com/premium-vector
Brain Development Psychology
Brain development in psychology has undergone extensive research over the years. With the recent advancements in neuroimaging techniques, we can take a deep, accurate look into how the brain develops as we age.
How we develop during our childhood affects our later life, such as our cognitive abilities or if we develop later developmental or mental illnesses. The brain is made up of many structures responsible for different functions. Although the brain regions are responsible for different functions, they still need to work together so that you can function correctly.
Brain development meaning
The human brain begins to develop when we are fetuses and continues to develop throughout our lifespan. The early stages of brain development are the most important as this is when the brain structures are forming.
Brain development meaning is the biological process that results in the brain structures forming, and the network between these structures forms that are required for the brain and body to function.
Early brain development stages
Early brain development stages focus on the forebrain, midbrain, hindbrain, cerebellum, and medulla oblongata. The aforementioned areas differ in their functions.
Early brain development stages - the forebrain, midbrain and hindbrain
The brain starts developing pre-natally. When the fetus is around three or four weeks old, a neural tube develops in the brain, and this tube is split into three sections: the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain, known as differentiation.
Structure of the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain in the fetus, Erika Hae, Vaia Originals
The forebrain is one of the first structures formed in the brain.
The forebrain is responsible for higher-order functions such as processing sensory information.
The forebrain later develops into the cerebrum, cerebral cortex (outer layer of the cerebrum, where much of brain processing takes place), and thalamus (information hub of the brain).
The cerebrum is the largest structure in the brain. The cerebrum is divided into left and right hemispheres. Each of the hemispheres is made up of four lobes:
The frontal lobe is responsible for thought, planning, memory, problem-solving, and social behaviours such as facial expressions.
The midbrain is responsible for sensory information, sleep, and specific movements such as movement of the eyes. The midbrain later develops into part of the brainstem and plays an essential role in relaying information between the forebrain and cerebellum.
You may notice a slight overlap between the functions of the forebrain and midbrain.
The hindbrain is located at the back of the brain.
An interesting fact about the hindbrain is that researchers have found it has existed in creatures since ancient times.
Based on this information, the hindbrain's function probably makes sense. The hindbrain is responsible for basic functions such as survival and reproduction instincts. In addition to involuntary processes such as heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing (these processes are part of the autonomic nervous system). The cerebellum and medulla develop in the hindbrain during later development, which we will now discuss in further detail.
Early brain development stages - the cerebellum
The cerebellum is formed when a fetus is six weeks old. Research on the brain development stages has found that the cerebellum triples in size from when a fetus is six weeks old to when an infant becomes one years-old. Why the cerebellum develops so fast has been thought to be because the region controls motor skills, which progress a lot from when you are a fetus to one year old.
You have probably heard the saying practise makes perfect; this makes sense in this context. Pre-natally a fetus cannot do simple movements, but an infant can begin to learn to crawl or make movements. This explains why the cerebellum may develop so much during this period.
Early brain development stages - the medulla
When the fetus is 20 weeks old, the medulla oblongata has developed.
The medulla oblongata is a structure that controls involuntary bodily responses (autonomic functions) such as breathing.
The medulla oblongata connects the brain to the spinal cord. Therefore, this structure is important to ensure that the brain and body can send messages to each other.
When the fetus is around six months old, the brain's structure is very similar to an adult brain. However, at birth, a baby’s brain is 25% of the size of an adult brain.
After the brain structures have developed, the connections between the structures develop (this happens throughout the lifespan), which improves our abilities to do tasks that the brain structures/ networks are responsible for.
Diagram showing the forebrain, midbrain, hindbrain, cerebellum and medulla oblongata, commons.wikimedia.org
Importance of brain development in early years
Each brain structure must be developed to carry out its associated function. A vital part of a baby's brain development is developing neural connections, undergoing fast proliferation.
There are neural connections in the brain that allow different brain structures to send messages.
Neural connections are important because the brain structures work collaboratively to complete an action.
Hypothetically, the forebrain may be activated when we see a lion approaching us. Our survival instincts may kick in (therefore, the hindbrain would be activated). The hindbrain may then relay a signal to the cerebellum so that we can run.
These neural connections are vital for learning new skills. Every time something is learned, new neural connections are formed. From birth until three years old, 700-1000 new neural connections are formed every second. During the first year of life, the brain doubles in size.
To make sure these connections are formed and the brain develops properly, it is crucial that young children have enough stimulation. There is a very apt phrase for the brain, ‘use it or lose it'; essentially, when the new connections are not 'used', they are lost through a process known as pruning. Pruning is not all bad - often pruning allows space for more efficient connections to be made, mass amounts of connections does not mean efficient transmission of information.
Brain development in early childhood forms the brain's functionality for later life.
Brain development Psychology example
Research into brain development in psychology has established the importance of brain development.
Children exposed to alcohol or drugs prenatally have been found to have problems with brain development. This is known as fetal alcohol syndrome.
Some examples of how fetal alcohol syndrome can affect later development are later problems with language, processing information abilities, attention, speech and social skills.
Research into fetal alcohol syndrome highlights how important brain development is to later development.
Early brain development - Key takeaways
Brain development meaning is the biological process that results in the brain structures forming, and the network between these structures forms that are required for the brain and body to function.
The forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain are brain structures that develop when a fetus is around three to four weeks old.
The cerebellum and medulla later develop from the hindbrain.
To carry out a function, the part of the brain responsible for that function must develop fully. This is why brain development is so important in the early years of life.
Research into fetal alcohol syndrome highlights how important brain development is to healthy brain function.
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