Introduction to Human development, Life Span development.

Introduction to Human development, Life Span development.
Historical changes happening in periods of the Life span

Human Development: An Ever-Evolving Field

Human development: Scientific study of processes of change and stability throughout the human life span.

Human Growth & Development

Ø Growth and development begins at birth and ends at death

Ø During an entire lifetime, individuals have needs that must be met

Ø Health care workers need to be aware of the various stages and needs of the individual to provide quality health care.

Human Development:
An Ever-Evolving Field Human Development Today

   Describe: Scientists observe behavior in order to describe what happens in the lives of children and adults. Example: When do children say their first words?

       Explain: Scientists attempt to understand, or explain, why observed behavior occurs—the cause of observed behavior. Example: How do children learn to use language?

       Predict: Scientists make educated guesses about what might happen in the future to behavior. Example: Will delayed language development affect speech?

       Intervene: Scientists use the knowledge of causes of behavior to change or control behavior. Example: Can therapy help speech delays?

Periods of the Life Span Domains of Human Development

Physical development: Growth of the body and brain and change or stability in sensory capacities, motor skills, and health.Biological processes

Cognitive development: Change or stability in mental abilities, such as learning, memory, language, thinking, moral reasoning, and creativity.

Cognitive processes

Psychosocial development: Change and stability in emotions, personality, and social relationships.

Socio-emotional Processes

Biological, Cognitive, and Socioemotional Processes

Influences on Development

1) Individual differences

2) Heredity

3) Environment

4) Maturation: Unfolding of a natural sequence of physical and behavioral changes, including readiness to master new abilities.

          Nature:  The influence of heredity on development

          Nurture: The influence of environment on                        development

5) Culture

6) Ethnicity

Development is Contextual

Developmental Issues

Onset of Influences

Onset of Influences.

Imprinting

Phenomenon in which newly hatched birds instinctively follow the first moving object they see; usually mother - the result of the readiness of the nervous system to acquire certain information during a brief critical period in early life.

Konrad Lorenz & his ducklings

Indicates predisposition or readiness to learn

The Effects of Early Experience

Questions to consider:

How important are early experiences and how much of an effect do they have on a person’s later life?

Are there critical periods during which a child must be exposed to certain stimulations or experiences (or forever be disadvantaged)?

How “plastic” is the child? That is, how can a child take and still bounce back? How much can a child endure before his/her later development will be permanently impaired?

Critical & Sensitive Periods

   Critical and sensitive periods are both times when the organism is biologically ready to most benefit from a particular experience.

Sensitive Periods: adverse effects caused by missing a sensitive period may be overcome at a later time, although with great difficulty.

Critical Periods: adverse effects caused by missing a critical period are permanent.

   The only clearly demonstrated critical period in human beings involves early stimulation of certain neural and body cells. Without such stimulation, these cells atrophy and die e.g., visual neurons must have light during their early development or they will die.

Historical changes happening in periods of the Life span

1. Growth and Development Types

2. Physical: body growth

3. Mental: mind development

4. Emotional: feelings

5. Social: interactions and relationships with others

All four types above occur in each stage of life span

Ø Infancy

Dramatic and rapid changes

Physical development– roll over, crawl, walk, grasp objects

Mental development—respond to cold, hunger, and pain by crying. Begin to recognize surroundings and become aware of surroundings and people

Emotional development – show anger, distrust, happiness, excitement, etc.

Social development – self-centeredness concept of the newborn to recognition of others in their environment

Ø Early Childhood

Physical development – growth slower than in infancy. Muscle coordination allows the child to run, climb, move freely. Can write, draw, use a fork and knife

Mental development – verbal growth progresses, short attention span, at end of stage ask questions, recognize letters, and some words

Emotional development – develop self-awareness and recognize the effect they have on other people and things.  Children feel impatience and frustration as they try to do things beyond their abilities. 

Social development – at beginning of stage very self-centered one year old to sociable six year old.  Strong attachment to parents.  Needs are food, shelter, protection, love and security.

Ø Late Childhood

Physical development– slow but steady.  Muscle coordination is well developed and children can engage in physical activity that require complex motor-sensory coordination.

Mental development – developing quickly and much of the child’s life centers around school.  Reading and writing skills are learned, understand abstract concepts like honesty, loyalty, values and morals.

Ø Late Childhood

Emotional development -- the child achieves greater independence and a more distinct personality.  Fears are replaced by the ability to cope. 

Social development – focus on group oriented activities.  They are more ready to accept the opinions of others and learn to conform to rules & standards of behavior.  Need for reassurance, parental approval, and peer acceptance.

Adolescence

Physical development – growth spurts, muscle coordination slows. Onset of puberty. Body shape and form changes.

Mental development – most foundations have been set.  Development primarily involves an increase in knowledge and sharpening of skills.  Learn to make decisions and accept responsibility for actions.

Emotional development – emotional development is often stormy and in conflict. Adolescents try to establish their identities and independence.   They respond more and more to peer group influences.

Social development – spending less time with family and more time with peer groups.  They attempt to develop self-identity and independence and seek security from  their peers. Toward the end of this stage they develop a more mature attitude and develop patterns of behavior that they associate with adult behavior. 

Need for reassurance, support and understanding.  Problems that develop in this stage can be traced to conflict and feelings of inadequacy and insecurity.

Early Adulthood

Physical development – basically complete.  Muscles are developed, strong and motor coordination is at its peak.

Mental development – young adults seek additional education, choose careers and independence.

Emotional development – Young adults are subjected to many emotional stresses related to career, marriage, family, etc.

Social development – moving away from peer group, and tend to associate with others who have similar ambitions.

 

Middle Adulthood

Physical development – Graying of hair, skin wrinkles, muscle tone decreases, mild hearing loss, visual acuity losses, weight gain. 

Mental development – can continue to increase. Confident decision makers and excellent at analyzing situations.

Emotional development – can be a period of contentment and satisfaction.

Social development --  Family relationships can decline as children begin lives of their own and parents die. Friendships are with people with similar interests and lifestyles.

Late Adulthood

Physical development – on the decline. Skin becomes dry and wrinkles, “age spots” appear. Hair thins, muscles lose tone and strength.  Memory loss can occur and reasoning ability can diminish.

Mental development – varies.  People who remain mentally active and are willing to learn new things tend to show fewer signs of decreased mental ability

Emotional development – Emotional stability also varies. 

Social development – retirement can lead to loss of self esteem, lost identity.  Death of spouse and friends cause changes in social relationships.

Life-Span Developmental Approach
Paul B. Baltes

1) Development is lifelong (change never stops)

2) Development  is multidimensional (bio-psycho-social)

3) Development is multidirectional (gains and losses)

4) Relative influences of biology and culture shift over the lifespan (less physical strength, more cultural strength)

5) Development involves changing resource allocations (compensation)

6) Development shows plasticity (can change with practice/effort)

7) Development is influenced by the historical and cultural context.

 The stage of development in which Erikson believed that children must gain a greater sense of personal control is known as.

a) Trust vs Mistrust

b) Initiative vs Guilt

c) Autonomy vs Shame and Doubt

d) Industry vs Inferiority

          The issue in developmental psychology that involves debate over the relative contributions of inheritance and the environment is known as the.

Nature Vs Nurture Debate: 

    Early experiences Vs Later experiences debate.

    Continuity Vs Discontinuity debate.

    Abnormal behaviour Vs Individual behaviour debate.

A major strength of ecological theory is its framework for explaining.

A)     environmental influences on development.

          B)      Biological influences on development. 

          C)      Cognitive development.

          D)     Effective processes in development.

Ø Origins of Child Development Theories

ž 6th - 15th centuries, Medieval period: Children seen as little adults. Their clothing, worked at adult jobs, could be married, were made into kings, were imprisoned or hanged as adults.

ž 16th Century, Reformation period: Children were considered to be born evil, and must be civilized.  A goal emerged to raise children effectively.

ž 17th Century, Age of Enlightenment: Children were thought to develop in response to nurturing.

ž Origins of Child Development Theories

ž 18th Century, Age of Reason: Children were considered noble savages, born with an innate sense of morality.

ž Origins of Child Development Theories

›     19th Century, Industrial Revolution: Theories of natural selection and survival of the fittest.

ž “Those individuals that possess superior physical, behavioral, or other attributes are more likely to survive than those that are not so well endowed”

ž Selection

›     Artificial

›     Natural

›     Darwin made parallels between human growth and other animals.

ž 20th Century: Theories about children's development expanded around the world.

ž Human Development: THEMES

ž The Nature / Nurture Theme

›     Genetics versus environment

›     Both interact to produce change

ž The Active / Passive Theme

›     Children are active, determining how society treats them.

›     Children are passive, being moulded by society

ž Human Development: THEMES

ž The Continuity / Discontinuity Theme

›     Change occurs gradually and continuously

–  Quantitative changes: change in degree or amount

›     Change occurs with abrupt changes or stages (discontinuous)

–  Qualitative changes: changes in form or kind.

Ø Five Theories (Perspectives) of Development

Psychological

ž Psychoanalytic (Freud)

ž Cognitive

ž Behavioral & Social Cognitive / Learning

Other

ž Ethological

ž Ecological

Ø THE PSYCHOANALYTIC VIEWPOINT

Freud’s Psychosexual Theory

ž Work based on his therapy with troubled adults. 

ž He emphasized that a child's personality is formed by the ways which his parents managed his sexual and aggressive drives.

ž Unconscious motives are repressed

ž Development is a conflictual process

ž Sexual and aggressive instincts that must be served, yet society dictates restraint

Ø Freudian Psychosexual Stages

Ø Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory

ž Eight stages of development

›     Primary human motivation is social

›     Eight stages unfold over the life span

›     At each stage, unique developmental task confronts individuals with crisis that must be resolved

ž A Preview of Erikson’s Stages

Ø Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Theory

ž Children actively construct their understanding of the world

›     Assimilation: incorporation of new information into existing knowledge

›     Accommodation: adjusting knowledge to fit new information and experience

Ø Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Cognitive Theory

ž Culture guides cognitive development

ž Memory, attention, reasoning involves learning to use society’s inventions

ž Cognitive growth is a socially mediated activity

ž Stresses children’s active interaction with social environments, proposed the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

ž Learning Theory:
Behaviorism

ž We respond based on whether the situation is:

–  Painful or Threatening

–  Pleasurable

ž Behaviorism:
Classical Conditioning

ž John Watson: Conditioning of Fear

ž Orphan boy ‘Little Albert’

ž Behaviorism:
Operant Conditioning

ž Individual learns the consequences of ‘operating’ on the environment

ž Learned relationship between behavior and its consequences

ž B.F. Skinner formulated original ideas by working with animals, then applied them to humans

ž Skinner’s Operant Learning Theory

›     Repeat acts if outcomes are favorable,  suppress acts if outcomes are unfavorable

–  Operant – initial voluntary act

–  Reinforcer – increases probability of act

–  Punisher – decreases probability of act

›     Development depends on external stimuli

ž Operant Conditioning: Reinforcement

ž Increases likelihood of behavior reoccurring

›     Positive: Giving a reward

–  Candy for finishing a task

›     Negative: Removing something aversive

–  No chores for getting an A+ on homework

ž Operant Conditioning:
Punishment

ž Decreases likelihood of behavior reoccurring

›     Positive: Adding something aversive

–  Getting scolded

›     Negative: Removing something pleasant

–  Taking away car keys

–  Getting a ‘time out’

ž Social Learning Theory

ž Albert Bandura: Development is “bidirectional”

›     Reciprocal determinism—person acts on world as the world acts on the person

ž Observational Learning or Modeling

›     Children choose “models to” imitate

ž Ethological Theory

ž Science of character

ž Behavior

›     Based on study of animal behavior

›     Influenced by biology, tied to evolution

›     Characterized by critical or sensitive periods

›     Lorenz: imprinting is rapid, innate learning within a critical period of time

›     Bowlby’s view of infant’s attachment to care giver

ž THE ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS VIEWPOINT

ž Bronfenbrenner – ecological systems theory: a detailed analysis of environmental influences

›     Contexts for Development

–  Natural environments are the major source of influence for development

–  Environment is a set of nested structures

ž Ecological Theory

ž Development is influenced by five (05) environmental systems,

ž Microsystem:  daily life

ž Mesosystem: relates microsystems

ž Exosystem:  influences from other social systems

ž Macrosystem:  culture

ž Chronosystem:  (time) personal/social history