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Theories And Worldview Essay

Anthony Martin

School of Behavioral Science, Liberty University

PSYC 210-D05: Developmental Psychology

Professor June Vess

November 1, 2021
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Theories and Worldview Essay

In my short time as a student at Liberty University, it has been continually presented in

every course how important it is to understand your worldview. Everything that we do along

with the decisions we make are a result of it. Personally, the Christian worldview is what I

subscribe to. It has made my life better and guilds me morally. In this brief essay, we will

compare developmental theories to the Christian worldview that I hold. This essay in no way was

written to offend anyone or the worldview they follow, only to share and explain these principles

from my perspective.

Why is Worldview Important?

According to Van der Walt (2008:6), worldview is a human expression and it shouldn’t

be something that your mind alone deals with but your entire being should be in participation

with. In other words, it involves all of you. This is a true statement and our world view guilds

every decision we make (good or bad). Not only does it guild your decisions but lets you

compare and in some cases make a judgment of others and their theories. For someone to say

that they have no worldview has just stated theirs. A worldview is not simply your opinion about

life but also the way you live your life. Theories can be wrong or have a worldview that

contradicts what you believe. When people develop theories, they don’t necessarily subscribe to

a Christian worldview, and as Christians, we believe that the bible is the final authority in all

matters. It is possible to adopt a theory in part but not fully engulfed in it.

Behaviorism Developmental Theory

Erik Erikson (1902–1994) was a student of Sigmund Freud but did not share in his

theory of development. While Freud believed that the development was based on a desire for
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sexual pleasure, Erikson believed that development grew out of a relationship with family and

those that were in close contact with the child (Cashion 2019). Where Freud only covered

childhood, Erikson covered the entire lifespan. Erikson began with Infancy, Early Childhood,

Preschool, school age, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, and maturity. Each

stage presented a crisis that had to be resolved to arrive at the next stage successfully and

function in it. Unlike Freud, there is no emphasis on a sexual desire that must be met but the

nurturing effect family. Erikson's theory falls in line with a behavioristic view that involves a

combination of approaches to include: classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and social

learning.

Worldview Comparison

Having a Christian worldview is compatible in many ways with the behaviorism theory.

When it comes to training a child, they should be nurtured as well as instructed. Not only that but

we as parents are called to live a life before them that is pleasing to God. To be an example not

just instruct and give orders. Behaviorism lines up completely in my opinion. The scripture that

comes to mind is one that was drilled into my mind” Train up a child in the way they should go

and when they're old they will not depart”

When we explore behaviorism we have several components within this theory. The first is

classic conditioning which includes neutral stimuli and meaningful stimuli. This is consistent

with training a child from a Christian worldview. As we get into operant conditioning this is in

line with scripture. It has both positive and negative reinforcements. Christian worldview depicts
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that we should love our children but we also should enforce discipline to train them which are

known in behaviorism as reinforcements.

Conclusion

While further study and analysis are warranted, worldview is extremely important when

looking into any theory or concept. Your worldview shapes the very concepts by which you

relate to the world in any form. It is with great pride and pleasure that I subscribe to a Christian

worldview that has shaped my life and my entire family. Holding on to my faith is of the utmost

importance to me. Do when studying ant subject, it will continue to guild my opinion.

Developmental theories are important but they must align with my beliefs before I exspect them

and apply them to my life.

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References

Cashion (2019). Lifespan 360: Christian Perspectives on Human Development (2nd Edition).

Kendall Hunt Publishing. https://libertyonline.vitalsource.com/books/9781524987374

Van der Walt, B.J., 2008, The eye is the lamp of the body: Worldviews and their impact,
Institute for Contemporary Christianity in Africa (ICCA), Potchefstroom.