PSYC 25 (Chapter 1; Module 1)

life-span development

The study of ____ provides critical insights into human nature, personal history, and future trajectories. It posits that development is a continuous pattern of change, involving both growth and decline, that begins at conception and ends at death.

traditional approach

Emphasized extensive change from birth to adolescence, little to no change in adulthood, and decline in old age.

Life-span approach

Emphasizes that significant developmental change occurs throughout adulthood as well as during childhood and adolescence.

life-span perspective

According to Paul Baltes, ____ views development as:

• lifelong

• multidimensional

• multidirectional

• plasticity

• multidisciplinary

• contextual

• involves growth, maintenance, and regulation of loss

• a co-construction of biology, culture, and the individual

Lifelong

[Life-span perspective on development]

No single age period dominates development.

Multidimensional

[Life-span perspective on development]

Development consists of biological, cognitive, and socioemotional dimensions, each with multiple components (e.g., attention, memory, and social intelligence are all parts of the cognitive dimension).

Multidirectional

[Life-span perspective on development]

Throughout life, some dimensions or components expand while others shrink. For example, the capacity to learn a new language decreases after early childhood, while wisdom may increase in late adulthood.

Plasticity

[Life-span perspective on development]

• refers to the capacity for change. While cognitive skills in older adults can be improved with training, individuals may possess less capacity for change as they age.

Multidisciplinary

[Life-span perspective on development]

• The study of development involves psychologists, sociologists, neuroscientists, anthropologists, and medical researchers.

contextual

[Life-span perspective on development]

• All development occurs within a context (e.g., family, school, culture). These contexts are influenced by three types of influences:

  • normative age-graded influences

  • normative history-graded influences

  • nonnormative life events

Normative Age-Graded Influences

[Life-span perspective on development; contextual]

• Similar for individuals in a particular age group (e.g., puberty, menopause, starting school).

Normative History-Graded Influences

[Life-span perspective on development; contextual]

• Common to people of a particular generation due to historical circumstances (e.g., the Great Depression, the rise of social media).

Nonnormative Life Events

[Life-span perspective on development; contextual]

• Unusual occurrences with a major impact on an individual's life (e.g., the early death of a parent, winning the lottery).

Involves Growth, Maintenance, and Regulation of Loss

[Life-span perspective on development; contextual]

• As individuals age, the focus shifts from growth towards the maintenance of skills and the regulation of loss.

Co-construction of Biology, Culture, and the Individual

[Life-span perspective on development; contextual]

• Development is the product of these three factors working together. Individuals can actively choose from their environment to shape their developmental path.

contemporary concerns

These are the _____ of life-span development:

• health and well-being

• parenting and education

• sociocultural contexts and diversity

• social policy

• technology

biological, cognitive, and socioemotional

[nature of development]

What are the developmental processes?

biological processes

[nature of development; developmental processes]

Changes in an individual's physical nature (e.g., genetics, brain development, hormonal changes).

cognitive processes

[nature of development; developmental processes]

Changes in thought, intelligence, and language.

socioemotional processes

[nature of development; developmental processes]

Changes in relationships, emotions, and personality.

periods of development

[nature of development]

1. Prenatal Period: Conception to birth.

2. Infancy: Birth to 18-24 months.

3. Early Childhood: 3 to 5 years.

4. Middle and Late Childhood: 6 to 10/11 years.

5. Adolescence: 10-12 to 18-21 years.

6. Emerging Adulthood: Approximately 18 to 25 years, a period of experimentation and exploration.

7. Middle Adulthood: Approximately 40 to 60 years.

8. Late Adulthood: 60s/70s until death. This period is further subdivided into the "young-old" (65-84) and the "oldest-old" (85+), who often experience significant functional decline.

chronological age

[nature of development]

• often less relevant than other conceptions:

• ___: Number of years since birth.

• Biological Age: Age in terms of biological health and vital organ capacity.

• Psychological Age: An individual’s adaptive capacities compared to others of the same chronological age.

• Social Age: Connectedness with others and the social roles individuals adopt.

biological age

[nature of development]

• often less relevant than other conceptions:

• Chronological Age: Number of years since birth.

• ____: Age in terms of biological health and vital organ capacity.

• Psychological Age: An individual’s adaptive capacities compared to others of the same chronological age.

• Social Age: Connectedness with others and the social roles individuals adopt.

psychological age

[nature of development]

• often less relevant than other conceptions:

• Chronological Age: Number of years since birth.

• Biological Age: Age in terms of biological health and vital organ capacity.

• ____: An individual’s adaptive capacities compared to others of the same chronological age.

• Social Age: Connectedness with others and the social roles individuals adopt.

Social Age

[nature of development]

• often less relevant than other conceptions:

• Chronological Age: Number of years since birth.

• Biological Age: Age in terms of biological health and vital organ capacity.

• Psychological Age: An individual’s adaptive capacities compared to others of the same chronological age.

• ___: Connectedness with others and the social roles individuals adopt.

nature vs nurture, stability vs change, continuity vs discontinuity

[nature of development]

What are the key development issues?

nature vs nurture

[nature of development; key development issues]

The debate over whether development is primarily influenced by an organism’s biological inheritance (nature) or its environmental experiences (nurture). The epigenetic view posits an ongoing, bidirectional interchange between genes and the environment.

stability vs change

[nature of development; key development issues]

The degree to which early traits and characteristics persist through life or change.

continuity vs discontinuity

[nature of development; key development issues]

Whether development involves gradual, cumulative change (continuity) or distinct, abrupt stages (discontinuity).

eclectic theoretical orientation

[theories of development]

Five major theoretical orientations offer different perspectives on human development. An ____ selects the best features from each theory rather than adhering to a single approach.

psychoanalytic theories

[theories of development]

These theories describe development as primarily unconscious and heavily colored by emotion, with an emphasis on early family experiences.

Freud’s Psychosexual Theory

[theories of development; psychoanalytic theories]

Proposed that personality is shaped by how we resolve conflicts between sources of pleasure and reality across five stages: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory

[theories of development; psychoanalytic theories]

Shifted the focus from sexual to social motivations. Erikson proposed eight psychosocial stages spanning the entire life span, each characterized by a unique developmental crisis to be resolved (e.g., Trust vs. Mistrust in infancy; Integrity vs. Despair in late adulthood).

cognitive theories

[theories of development]

These theories emphasize conscious thoughts and the active construction of understanding.

Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Theory

[theories of development; cognitive theories]

States that children progress through four distinct, age-related stages of cognitive development (Sensorimotor, Preoperational, Concrete Operational, Formal Operational), actively constructing their understanding of the world.

Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Cognitive Theory

[theories of development; cognitive theories]

Emphasizes how culture and social interaction guide cognitive development. Children learn to use the tools of their society (e.g., language, math systems) through interaction with more-skilled adults and peers.

Information-Processing Theory

[theories of development; cognitive theories]

Compares human cognition to a computer, focusing on how individuals manipulate, monitor, and strategize about information. It views development as a gradual increase in processing capacity rather than as stage-like

behavioral and social cognitive theories

[theories of development]

These theories hold that development is observable behavior learned through experience with the environment, emphasizing continuity.

Skinner’s Operant Conditioning

[theories of development; behavioral and social cognitive theories]

Argues that the consequences of a behavior (rewards and punishments) shape the probability of its recurrence. Development is the pattern of behavioral changes brought about by these reinforcements.

Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory

[theories of development; behavioral and social cognitive theories]

Holds that behavior, environment, and cognition are key factors in development. It emphasizes observational learning (imitation or modeling) and posits a reciprocal relationship between these three elements.

ethological theory

[theories of development]

This theory stresses that behavior is strongly influenced by biology, tied to evolution, and characterized by critical or sensitive periods.

Konrad Lorenz

[theories of development; ethological theory]

Demonstrated imprinting in geese, where attachment occurs to the first moving object seen during a critical period.

John Bowlby

[theories of development; ethological theory]

Applied ethological theory to human development, arguing that attachment to a caregiver during the first year of life (a sensitive period) has crucial consequences for later development.

ecological theory

[theories of development]

This theory emphasizes environmental factors.

Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Theory

[theories of development; ecological theory]

Holds that development reflects the influence of five nested environmental systems:

1. Microsystem: The immediate setting (family, peers, school).

2. Mesosystem: Relations between microsystems (e.g., connection between family and school experiences).

3. Exosystem: Links between a social setting where the individual has no active role and their immediate context (e.g., a parent's workplace).

4. Macrosystem: The culture in which the individual lives.

5. Chronosystem: The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course.

Microsystem

[theories of development; ecological theory; brofenbrenner’s biological theory]

1. ____: The immediate setting (family, peers, school).

2. Mesosystem: Relations between microsystems (e.g., connection between family and school experiences).

3. Exosystem: Links between a social setting where the individual has no active role and their immediate context (e.g., a parent's workplace).

4. Macrosystem: The culture in which the individual lives.

5. Chronosystem: The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course.

Mesosystem

[theories of development; ecological theory; brofenbrenner’s biological theory]

1. Microsystem: The immediate setting (family, peers, school).

2. ____: Relations between microsystems (e.g., connection between family and school experiences).

3. Exosystem: Links between a social setting where the individual has no active role and their immediate context (e.g., a parent's workplace).

4. Macrosystem: The culture in which the individual lives.

5. Chronosystem: The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course.

Exosystem

[theories of development; ecological theory; brofenbrenner’s biological theory]

1. Microsystem: The immediate setting (family, peers, school).

2. Mesosystem: Relations between microsystems (e.g., connection between family and school experiences).

3. ____: Links between a social setting where the individual has no active role and their immediate context (e.g., a parent's workplace).

4. Macrosystem: The culture in which the individual lives.

5. Chronosystem: The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course.

Macrosystem

[theories of development; ecological theory; brofenbrenner’s biological theory]

1. Microsystem: The immediate setting (family, peers, school).

2. Mesosystem: Relations between microsystems (e.g., connection between family and school experiences).

3. Exosystem: Links between a social setting where the individual has no active role and their immediate context (e.g., a parent's workplace).

4. _____: The culture in which the individual lives.

5. Chronosystem: The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course.

Chronosystem

[theories of development; ecological theory; brofenbrenner’s biological theory]

1. Microsystem: The immediate setting (family, peers, school).

2. Mesosystem: Relations between microsystems (e.g., connection between family and school experiences).

3. Exosystem: Links between a social setting where the individual has no active role and their immediate context (e.g., a parent's workplace).

4. Macrosystem: The culture in which the individual lives.

5. _____: The patterning of environmental events and transitions over the life course.

methods

[research on life-span development]

• observation

• survey and interview

• standardized test

• case study

• physiological measures

research designs

[research on life-span development]

• descriptive research

• correlational research

• experimental research

time span of research

[research on life-span development]

• cross-sectional approach

• longitudinal approach

• cohort effects

ethical considerations and minimizing bias

[research on life-span development]

• informed consent

• confidentiality

• debriefing

• deception

Researchers must also actively work to minimize bias:

• gender bias

• cultural and ethnic bias