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normal

adj. relating to what is considered standard, average, typical, or healthy. This general meaning is applied in a variety of different contexts, including statistics (referring to scores that are within the usual or expected range), biology (referring to the absence of malformation or other pathology), and development (referring to progression and growth that are comparable to those seen in others of similar ages). However, the term is most often applied to behavior that conforms to a culturally accepted norm, especially as an indication that a person is mentally healthy and does not have a psychological disorder.

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Psychology term of the day

March 13th 2025

class inclusion

class inclusion

the concept that a subordinate class (e.g., dogs) must always be smaller than the superordinate class in which it is contained (e.g., animals). Jean Piaget believed that understanding the concept of class inclusion represented an important developmental step. Children progress from classifications based on personal factors, perceptual features, and common function to classifications based on hierarchical relationships; for example, a monkey is a primate, a mammal, and a vertebrate animal. See concrete operation.