Development Psychology

“Development Psychology is the study of Human Behavior from prenatal to old age. Most
psychologists believed that early experiences are essential in the serious period of development. It traces
human development from fertilization, infancy to early childhood. The adolescent stage focuses on
physical and cognitive development. Adulthood and old age stages are explained in terms of the physical
and psychological changes.
Development is a sequence of continuous change in a system, extending over a considerable time;
specifically, such change or related and enduring particular changes, follows one another in an organism
from its origin to maturity and death. Changes may be in structure, function or organization, or in size,
differentiation, complexity, integration and efficiency.
Growth and development are sometimes used synonymously. Formerly, development referred to
qualitative changes while growth referred to quantitative changes.”
Development Psychology talks about how humans started, how human grow from birth to old
age. It talks about what we possess during times of development, how we learn things from our
surroundings and how we adapt through the changes that are happening around us.
1. Childhood - Child development is another way of saying how children develop through
different stages or how children grow and learn. It also refers to the biological and
psychological changes that occur in human beings between start and the end of adolescence.
The developmental areas are physical, emotional, social, educational, and cognitive. The ideal
development of children is considered vital to society and it is important to understand these
areas. These areas are connected to one another. As a child grows in one domain, this will
affect and is then influenced by another domain of development. These domains are
important in development because they focus on the whole child. New theories and methods
have between found due to research in this area, with specific regard to teaching that
promotes development in the schools. Also, there are some theories that aim to describe a
sequence of different states that make child development.

a. Early childhood – (2-4) early childhood is the most rapid period of development
in a human life. Although individual children develop at their own pace, all
children progress through an identifiable sequence of physical, cognitive, and
emotional growth and change. Early childhood spans from birth to age 8 years.
This is a time of critical change and development as a child attains the physical
and mental skills she will use for the rest of her life. Early childhood is a time of
remarkable physical, cognitive, social and emotional development. Early
childhood is a time of tremendous growth across all areas of development. The
dependent newborn grows into a young person who can take care of his or her
own body and interact effectively with others. For these reasons, the primary
developmental task of this stage is skill development.
The average child grows 2 ½ inches in height and gains between 5 and 7
pounds a year during early childhood. Growth patterns vary individually, though
some of the brain’s interior changes in early childhood are due to myelination.
From 3 to 6 years of age, the most rapid growth in the brain occurs in the frontal
lobes.
Gross motor skills increase dramatically during early childhood. Between
three and five years of age, children continue to grow rapidly and begin to
develop fine-motor skills. By age five most children demonstrate fairly good
control of pencils, crayons, and scissors. Gross motor accomplishments may
include the ability to skip and balance on one foot. Physical growth slows down
between five and eight years of age, while body proportions and motor skills
become more refined.
By age five, a child's vocabulary will grow to approximately 1,500 words.
Five-year-olds are also able to produce five-to seven-word sentences, learn to use
the past tense, and tell familiar stories using pictures as clues. Language is a
powerful tool to enhance cognitive development and solve problems. By the age
of eight, children are able to demonstrate some basic understanding of less
concrete concepts, including time and money. The eight-year old still reasons in
 concrete ways and has difficulty understanding abstract ideas. The quality of
emotional attachment, or lack of attachment, formed early in life may serve as a
model for later relationships. From age’s three to five, growth in socio-emotional
skills includes the formation of peer relationships, gender identification, and the
development of a sense of right and wrong. Between ages five and eight, children
enter into a broader peer context and develop enduring friendships. Social
comparison is heightened at this time, and taking other people's perspective
begins to play a role in how children relate to people, including peers.

CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

When children learn to walk, they become more interested in the environment. Between the ages
of two and four, they have insatiable curiosity they are highly motivated to explore their home or, if given
the opportunity, their neighborhood. These explorations give children experiences, such as falling or being
hit by objects or people, which provide them opportunities for emotional as well as physical development

Between the ages of three and six years, children generally become interested in sex differences.
As part of their curiosity, they may ask many questions about sex and differences in the organs of males
and females.

When children leave the home to enter school, they are beginning a new phase of development.
emotionally, this is the first major step of many children towards being weaned away from their father
and mother. The child id given to the company of the teacher and children his/her own age. They are
compelled to adjust on their own, with their teachers and other children, without the company and
guidance of either parent.

During this time, children develop rapidly as they are exposed to different attitudes and
behaviors. They learn many things formally and informally. These experiences contribute to their
emotional, intellectual, physical, and social development. They also become able to formulate a sense of
value and to discriminate between what is right and wrong in a given situation.

The tendency of boys to segregate themselves from the company of girls is normal at this age.

Motor development

Motor refers to movement, such as waking, swimming, grasping, etc. Motor skills appear in a
definite order but at different rates. There is a pattern of development from month to month and from
year to year. The pattern is similar for all children and passes through the same steps during their
development.

Once the children master standing, walking alone, and the art of getting about, they progress
rapidly to learn more advance skills like jumping, skipping, and running. They develop speed and accuracy
and begin to coordinate all these skills into more complex abilities.

Developmental tasks from infancy through later maturity.

Infancy and Early Childhood (Birth to 6 years old)

- Learning to walk
- Leaning to take solid foods
- Learning to talk
- Learning to control the elimination of body wastes
- Learning sex differences and sexual modesty
- Achieving physiological stability
- Forming simple concepts of social and physical reality
- Learning to relate oneself emotionally to parents, other siblings, and people
- Learning to distinguish right from wrong and developing a conscience.
From

Tria, E., Gaerlan, J. & Limpingco, D. (2022). General Psychology. KEN INC., 6th Edition pp. 62 -73.

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT AND HEALTH

Height and weight increase rapidly in infancy (Lampl, 2008). Then, they take a slower course
during the childhood years.

Early Childhood (pp 119-120)

As the preschool child grows older, the percentage of increase in height and weight decreases
with each additional year (Copper & others, 2008). Girls are only slightly smaller and lighter than boys
during these years. Both boys and girls slim down as the trunks of their bodies lengthens. Although their
heads are still somewhat large for their bodies, by the end of the preschool years most children have lost
their top-heavy look. Body fat declines slowly but steadily during the preschool yeas. Girls have more fatty
tissues than boys; boys have more muscle tissue.

Growth patterns vary individually (Burns & others, 2009). Think back t your preschool years. This
was probably the first time you noticed that some children were taller than you, some shorter; some were
fatter, some thinner; some were stronger, some weaker. Much of the variation is due to heredity, but
environmental experiences are involved to some extent. A review of the height and weight of children
around the world concluded that two important contributors to height differences are ethnic origin and
nutrition (Meredith, 1978). Also, urban, middle-socioeconomic status, and firstborn children were taller
than rural, lower-socioeconomic status and later-born children. The children whose mothers smoked
during pregnancy were half an inch shorter than the children whose mothers did not smoke during
pregnancy. In the United States, African American children are taller than White children.

Why are some children usually short? The culprits are congenital factors (genetic or prenatal
problems), growth hormone deficiency, physical problem that develops in childhood, or an emotional
difficulty. When congenital growth problems are the cause of unusual shortness, often the child can be
treated with hormones. Usually this treatment is directed at the pituitary the body’s master gland, located
at the base of the brain. This gland secretes growth-related hormones. Physical problems during childhood
that cans stunt growth include malnutrition and chronic infections. However, if the problems are properly
treated, normal growth usually attained.

Brain Physiology

During early childhood, the brain and head grow more rapidly than any other part of the body.
The head and brain advance more rapidly than the growth for height and weight. Some of the brain’s
increase in size is due to myelination and some is due to an increase in the number and size of dendrites.
Myelination in the areas of the brain related to focusing attention is not complete until the end of the
middle or late childhood.

Still, the brain in early childhood is not growing as rapidly as in infancy. However, the anatomical
changes in the child’s brain between the ages of 3 and 15 are dramatic. The overall size of the brain does
not increase dramatically from 3 to 15. What does dramatically change are local patterns within the brain
(Thompson & others, 2000). From 3 to 6 years of age, the most rapid growth occurs in the frontal lobe
areas involved in planning and organizing new actions and in maintaining attention to tasks. From age 6
through puberty, the most dramatic growth takes place in the temporal and parietal lobe, especially in
the areas that play major roles in language and spatial relations.

The development of the brain and opportunities to experience a widening would contribute to
children’s emerging cognitive abilities (Westermann & others, 2007). Scientists are beginning to chart
connections between children’s cognitive development, their changing brain structures, and the
transmission of information at the level of the neuron. For example, we mentioned earlier that neural
circuit for attention and working memory is in the prefrontal cortex and uses the neurotransmitter
dopamine. The concentration of dopamine in a child’s brain typically increases considerably from 3 to 6
years of age (Diamond, 2001).

Sleep (p 134- 145)

A national survey indicated that children who do not get adequate sleep are more likely to show
depressive symptoms, have problems at school, have a father in poor health, live in family characterized
by frequent disagreements and heated arguments, and live in an unsafe neighborhood than children who
get adequate sleep (Smaldone, Honig, & Byrne, 2007). Another study revealed that martial conflict was
linked to disruption in children’s sleep (El-Sheikh & others, 2006). Yet another study revealed that
preschool children who did not get adequate sleep were more likely to experience injuries that required
medical attention (Kouloughlioti, Cole & Kitzman, 2008).

Not only is the amount of sleep children get is important, but so is uninterrupted sleep. One study
revealed that disruption in 4-5 years old children’s sleep (variability in amount of sleep, variability in
bedtime, and lateness in going to bed) was linked to less optional adjustment in preschool (Bates & others,
2002). And recent study found that bedtime resistance was associated with conduct problems and
hyperactivity in children (Carvalho Bos & others, 2008).

Helping the child slow down before bedtime often contributes to less resistance in going to bed.
Reading the child a story, playing quietly with the child in the bath, or letting the child sit on the caregiver’s
lap while listening to music are quieting activities.

Among the sleep problems that children can develop are nightmares and night terrors.
Nightmares are frightening dreams that awaken the sleeper more often toward the morning than just
after the child has gone too bed at night. Almost every child has occasional nightmares, but persistent
nightmares might indicate that the child is feeling too much stress during waking hours. A rest study
revealed that preschool children who tended to have bad dreams were characterized by a difficult
temperament at 5 months of age and anxiousness at 17 months of age (Simard & others, 2008).

Most young children sleep through the night and have one daytime nap. It is recommended that
preschool children sleep 11 to 13 hours each night and 5 to 12 year old children 10 to 12 hours each night.

Illnesses and Injuries among children (pp. 136 – 145)

Early childhood

The story of children’s health in the past 50 years is a shift away from fighting infectious diseases
and to prevention and outpatient care (Alario & Birn Krant, 2008; Burn & others, 2009). In recent decades,
vaccines have nearly eradicated disabling bacterial meningitis and have greatly reduced the indidence of
measles, rubella, mumps, and chicken pox. In the effort to make a child’s world safer, one of main
strategies is to prevent childhood injuries.

Most of young children’s cuts, bumps, and bruises are minor, but some accidental injuries can
produce serious impairment or even death (Andres, Brouilette, & Brouilette, 2008). In the United States,
motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death in young children, followed by cancer and
cardiovascular disease (National Vital Statistic report, 2004). In addition to motor vehicle accidents, other
accidental deaths in children involve drowning, falls, burns, and poisoning (Lee & others, 2008).

Parental smoking is another major danger to children. Young children whose fathers smoked at
home were more likely to have upper respiratory tract infections than those whose fathers did not smoke
at home (Shiva & others, 2004). Children exposed to tobacco smoke in the house are more likely to
develop wheezing symptoms and asthma than children in nonsmoking homes (Carlsen 7 Carlsen, 2008;
Dong & others, 2008).

Poor nutrition in childhood can lead to a number of problems and occurs more in low-income
than in higher-income families (Larson & others, 2008; Ruel & others, 2008). A special concern is the
increasing epidemic of overweight children.
 • Malnutrition and children in Low-income families – Insufficient food and sources, failure to eat
adequate amount of quality meats and dark green vegetables. Young children from low-income
families are most likely to develop iron deficiency anemia (Shamah& Villalpando, 2006).
• Eating behavior and parental feeding styles – unhealthy eating habits and being overweight
threaten their present and future health (Bolling & Daniel, 2008; Reilly, 2009). Children’s eating
behavior is strongly influenced by their caregiver’s behavior (Black & Hurley, 2007). Children’s
eating behavior improves when caregivers eat with children on a predictable schedule, model
eating healthy food, make mealtimes pleasant occasions, and engage in certain feeding styles.
Distractions from television, family arguments, and competing activities should be minimized so
children can focus on eating. Forceful and restrictive caregiver behaviors are not recommended.
For example, a restrictive feeding style is linked to children being overweight (Black & Lozoff,
2008).
• Overweight children – poor nutrition as result of unhealthy eating habits and being overweight
threaten their present and future health (Ventura & others, 2009; Wabitsch, 2009). Being
overweight in childhood is linked to being overweight in adulthood. Overweight children with
cardiovascular problems are more likely to come from low-socioeconomic-status families than
higher-status ones (Longo-Mbenza & others, 2002). Both heredity and environmental influence
whether children will become overweight. Environmental factors that influence whether children
become overweight or not include the greater availability of food (especially food high in fat
content), energy-saving devise, declining physical activity, parental monitory of children’s eatin
habits, the context in which a child eats, and heavy TV watching (Byrd0Williams & others, 2008l
Shoup & others, 2008).

Many experts recommend a program that involves a combination of diet, exercise and behavior
modification to help children lose weight (Wittmeier, Mollar & Keiellaars, 2008). Healty eating and an
active rather than a sedentary lifestyle plays important roles in children’s development (Robbines, Power
& Burgess, 2008; Wabitsch. 2009). Pediatric nurses play an important role in the health of children,
including providing advice to parents about ways to improve their children’s eating habits and active
levels.

Exercise (p.146- 147)

The following three studies address aspects of families and schools that influence young children’s
physical activity levels:

• Preschool children’s physical activity was enhanced by family members engaging in sports
together and by parents’ perception that it was safe for their children to play outside (Beets &
Foley, 2008).
• Preschool children’s physical activity varied greatly across different child-care centers (Bowers &
others, 2008). Active opportunities, presence of fixed portable play equipment, and physical
activity were linked to preschool children’s higher physical activity in the centers.
• Incorporation of a “move and learn” physical activity curriculum increased the activity level of 3 -
to – 5 year-old children in half-day preschool program (Trost, Fees, & Dzewaltowski, 2008).

MOTOR, SENSORY, AND PERCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT (p.162-163)

The preschool child no longer has to make an effort to stay upright and to move around. As
children move their legs with more confidence and carry themselves more purposefully, moving around
in the environment becomes more automatic.

At 3 years of age, children enjoy simple movements, such as hopping, jumping and running back
and forth, just for the sheer delight of performing these activities. They take considerable pride in showing
how they can run across a room and jump all of 5 inches. They run-and-jump will win no Olympic gold
medals, but for the 3-year-old the activity is a source of pride.
 At 4 years of age, children are still enjoying the same kind of activities, but they have become
more adventurous. They scramble over low jungle gyms as they display their athletic prowess. Although
they have been able to climb stairs with one foot on each step for some time, they are just beginning to
be able to come down the same way.

At 5 years of age, children are even more adventuresome than they were at 4. It is not unusual
for self-assured 5-year-olds to perform hair-raising stunts on practically any climbing objects. They run
hard and enjoy races with each other and their parents.

Fine Motor Skills

Whereas gross motor skills involve large-muscle activity, fine motor skills involve finely tuned
movements. Grasping a toy, using a spoon, buttoning a shirt, or doing anything that requires finger
dexterity demonstrates fine motor skills.

As a child get older, their fine motor skills improve (Sveitrup & others, 2008). At 3 years of age,
children have had the ability to pick up the tiniest object between their thumb and forefinger for some
time, but they are still somewhat clumsy at it. Three-year-old can build surprisingly high block towers,
each block placed with intense concentration but often not in a completely straight line. When 3-year-
olds play with a dorm board or a simple puzzle, they are rather rough in placing the pieces. When they try
to position a piece in a hole, they often try to force the piece or pat it vigorously.

By 4 years of age, children’s fine motor coordination is much more precise. Sometimes 4-year-old
children have trouble building high towers with blocks because, in their desire to place each of the block
perfectly, they upset those already stacked. By age 5, children’s fine motor coordination has improved
further. Hand, arm, and fingers all move together under better command of the eye. Mere towers no
longer interest the 5-year-old, who now wants to build a house or a church, complete with steeple. (Adults
may still need to be told what each finished project is meant to be.)

Vision (pp. 170-171)

Children become increasingly efficient at detecting the boundaries between colors 9such as red
and orange) at 3 to 4 years of age (Gibson, 1969). When they are about 4 or 5 years old, most children’s
eye muscles are developed enough for them to move their eyes efficiently across a series of letters. Many
preschool children are farsighted, unable to see close as well as they can see far away. By the time they
enter the first grade, though, most children can focus their eyes and sustain their attention effectively on
close-up objects. After infancy, children’s visual expectations about the physical world continue to
develop.

What are the signs of vision problems in children? They include rubbing of eyes, excessive blinking,
squinting, appearing irritable when playing games that require good distance vision, shutting or covering
one eye, and tilting the head or thrusting it forward when looking at something. A child who shows any of
these behaviors should be examined by an ophthalmologist.

Approximately 1 in every 3,000 children is educationally blind, which means they cannot use their
vision in learning and must use hearing and touch to learn. Almost one-half of these children were born
blind, and another one-third lost their vision in the first year of life. Many children who are educationally
blind, like Stevie Wonder and Andrea Bocelli, have normal intelligence and function very well academically
with appropriate supports and learning aids. However, many educationally blind students have multiple
disabilities and need a range of support services.