ROBERT HAVIGHURST

 Developmental tasks are based on the aspirations and need of the

society.
 Every society or culture has certain norms.
 Every society expects its members to follow these norms. These norms
are in terms of certain essential skills. Mastery over these skills leads to
happiness and failure leads to unhappiness.
Some tasks are same for everyone, regardless of where he lives as they
are about human biology.
A development task is a task which arise at or about a certain period in the life
of the individual, successful achievement of which leads to his happiness and
to success with later tasks, while failure leads to unhappiness and difficulty
with later task.
Development is the process of growth and change that people go through in
life.
Robert J. Havighurst was a psychologist in the 20th century who developed a
theory on how people develop through life.
Havighurst's theory of development: the stages of life and the sources
of developmental tasks.
 EARLY LATER
ADULTHOOD MATURITY
It lasts from birth to age 5.
 These are babies who are just learning to walk and
talk and figuring out the world around them.
Achieving physiological stability
Relate oneself emotionally to parents,
Siblings and other people.
To control the elimination of body wastes.
Lasts from age 6 to age 12
 During this time, children become more self-sufficient as they go to school
and make friends.
Learning physical skills necessary for ordinary games.
 Developing fundamental skills-reading, writing and calculating.
Achieving personal independence.
Developing attitudes towards social group and institutions.
 Learning appropriate masculine and feminine social role.
Which lasts from age 13 to age 18, comes with hormonal changes
and learning about who you are as an individual.
 Achieving new and more mature relations with age mates of both
sexes.
Accepting one’s physique and using the body effectively.
Achieving emotional independence of parents and other adults.
Preparing for marriage and family life.
EARLY ADULTHOOD
 (19-30 YEARS OLD)
1. Selecting a mate
2. Achieving a masculine or feminine social role
3. Learning to live with a marriage partner
4. Starting a family
5. Rearing children
6. Managing a home
7. Getting started in an occupation
8. Taking on civic responsibility
9. Finding a congenial social group
 (30-60 YEARS OLD)

1. Achieving adult civic and social responsibility

2. Establishing and maintaining an economic standard of living
3. Assisting teenage children to become responsible and happy adults
4. Developing adult leisure-time activities
5. Relating oneself to one’s spouse as a person
6. Accepting and adjusting to the physiologic changes or middle age
7. Adjusting to aging parents.
 LATER MATURITY
(60 YEARS OLD AND
OVER)
 (60 YEARS OLD AND OVER)

1. Adjusting to decreasing physical strength and health

2. Adjusting to retirement and reduced income
3. Adjusting to death of a spouse
4. Establishing an explicit affiliation with one’s age group
5. Meeting social and civil obligations
6. Establishing satisfactory physical living arrangement