Introduction

OVERVIEW OF HUMAN
DEVELOPMENT

Chapter 1
 Chapter Outline
• Discuss the distinctive features of a life-span
perspective on development
• Identify the most important processes,
periods, and issues in development
• Describe the main theories of human
development
• Explain how research on life-span
development is conducted
 The Importance of Studying Life-span
Development
• Prepares us to take responsibility for children
• Gives us insight about our own lives
• Gives us knowledge about what our lives will
be like as we age
DEVELOPMENT
• Pattern of change that begins at conception and
continues through the life span

LIFE-SPAN PERSPECTI VE

• Involves growth, maintenance, and regulation

• Is constructed through biological, sociocultural,
and individual factors working together
 Characteristics of the Life-Span
Perspective
• Development:
– Is contextual
– Is lifelong
– Is multidimensional
– Is multidirectional
– Is plastic
 Types of Contextual Influences
• Normative age-graded influences: Similar for
individuals in a particular age group
• Normative history-graded influences:
Common to people of a particular generation
because of historical circumstances
• Nonnormative life events: Unusual
occurrences that have a major impact on an
individual’s life
 The Nature of Development
• Biological, cognitive, and socioemotional
processes
• Periods of development
• The significance of age
• Developmental issues
 Biological, Cognitive, and
Socioemotional Processes
BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES

• Changes in an individual’s physical nature

COGNITIVE PROCESSES

• Changes in an individual’s thought, intelligence,

and language

SOCIOEMOTIONAL PROCESSES
• Changes in an individual’s relationships with other
people, emotions, and personality
 Periods of Development
• Four ages
– First age - Childhood and adolescence
– Second age - Prime adulthood, ages 20 through 59
– Third age - Approximately 60 to 79 years of age
– Fourth age - Approximately 80 years and older
• Development in one period is connected to
development in another period
Figure 1.8 - Processes and Periods of
Development
 Significance of Age
• A full evaluation of age requires consideration
of chronological, biological, psychological, and
social age
– Chronological age
• Number of years that have elapsed since birth
– Biological age
• Age in terms of biological health
 Significance of Age
– Psychological age
• An individual’s adaptive capacities compared with
those of other individuals of the same chronological
age
– Social age
• Connectedness with others and the social roles
individuals adopt
 Theories of Development
• Scientific method: An approach that can be
used to obtain accurate information
– Conceptualize the problem
– Collect data
– Draw conclusions
– Revise research conclusions and theory
 Theories of Development
• Theory: An interrelated, coherent set of ideas
that helps to explain phenomena and facilitate
predictions
• Hypotheses: Specific assumptions and
predictions that can be tested to determine
their accuracy
 Theories of Development
• Psychoanalytic theories
• Cognitive theories
• Behavioral and social cognitive theories
• Ethological theory
• Ecological theory
• An eclectic theoretical orientation
Figure 1.11 - Freudian Stages
 Psychoanalytic Theories
• Erikson’s psychosocial theory
– Eight stages of development
• Trust versus mistrust (1)
• Autonomy versus shame and doubt (2-3)
• Initiative versus guilt (3-5)
• Industry versus inferiority (6-13)
• Identity versus identity confusion (20)
• Intimacy versus isolation (20-40)
• Generativity versus stagnation (40-65)
• Integrity versus despair (65+)
Figure 1.13 - Piaget’s Four Stages of
Cognitive Development
 Cognitive Theories
• Vygotsky’s theory: Emphasizes how culture
and social interaction guide cognitive
development
• Information-processing theory: Emphasizes
that individuals:
– Manipulate information
– Monitor it
– Strategize about it
 Behavioral and Social Cognitive
Theories
• Skinner’s operant conditioning
– Development consists of the pattern of behavioral
changes that are brought about by rewards and
punishments
• Bandura’s social cognitive theory
– Emphasizes behavior, environment, and cognition
as the key factors in development
 Ethological Theory
• Ethology: Stresses that behavior is strongly
influenced by biology, is tied to evolution, and
is characterized by critical or sensitive periods
• Konrad Lorenz helped bring ethology to
prominence
• John Bowlby - Attachment to a caregiver over
the first year of life has important
consequences throughout the life span
 Figure 1.15 - Bronfenbrenner’s
Ecological Theory of Development
 Five Environmental Systems
Bronfenbrenner’s Model
• Microsystem - Setting in which the individual lives
• Mesosystem - Relations between
microsystems or connections between
contexts
• Exosystem - Links between a social setting in
which the individual does not have an active role
and the individual’s immediate context
• Macrosystem - Culture in which individuals live
 Eclectic Theoretical Orientation
• Does not follow any one theoretical approach
– Selects from each theory whatever is considered
the best in it