Psychological Development
Psychological Development
Overview of Psychological Development
Definition: Developmental psychology is the psychology of growth, change, and consistency throughout the lifespan.
Focus: It investigates how thinking, feeling, and behavior change over a person's life Cycle.
Central debates:
Nature vs. Nurture
Continuity vs. Discontinuity
Stability vs. Change
The Case of the Two Jims
Identical Twin Study
Two twin brothers named Jim raised apart.
Investigates if their similarities are due to hereditary factors or mere luck.
Psychological Perspective
While some similarities are hereditary, many are coincidental.
Example: Two strangers born on the same day may find numerous astounding similarities.
Identical Twins
Identical twins show notable similarities in expected characteristics:
Intelligence
Temperament
Gestures
Posture
Pace of speech
Influence of Environment: As twins age, differences in personality often increase.
Treatment: Twins are often treated alike, influencing similarities.
Problems with Twin Studies
Expectancy Biases: This is a significant challenge in studying twins.
Researchers may focus more on similarities than differences, due to pre-existing beliefs about heritability.
Nature vs. Nurture Debate
Developmental psychology addresses two core questions:
What is the relative influence of heredity (nature) vs. environment (nurture)?
How do heredity and environment interact?
Definitions:
Nature: Refers to heredity's effects.
Nurture: Refers to environmental influences.
Studying Nature vs. Nurture
Methods of Investigation:
Twin Studies: Examines identical twins (100% shared genotype) and fraternal twins (approx. 50% shared genes).
Adoption Studies: Similarities with biological family indicate nature; similarities with adoptive family indicate nurture.
Gradual vs. Abrupt Change in Development
Question: Do children transition into adulthood through gradual changes or abrupt phases?
Continuity View
Description: Change represents a gradual process.
Skills in thinking, talking, and acting develop similarly as physical growth.
Method of learning often involves trial and error, e.g., learning to walk or eat.
Observable Skills: The impact on mental processes is questioned.
Discontinuity View
Description: Development involves abrupt transitions or stages leading to different behaviors.
Examples: Sudden improvement in reading skills, recognition of letters and sounds.
Developmental Stages: Include Sensorimotor, Preoperational, Concrete Operational, Formal Operational.
Characteristics of Developmental Stages
Developmental stages are initiated by distinct transitions in functioning. Psychologists believe:
All individuals go through the same stages in the same sequence, but at varying rates.
Missing a stage can result in lasting consequences.
Capabilities of Newborns
Historical belief: Newborns were considered a 'tabula rasa' (blank slate).
Current understanding: Research shows newborns have
Abilities to find nourishment.
Communication skills (interact with others).
Instincts to avoid harm.
Developmental Periods
Definitions of Key Developmental Periods:
Prenatal Period: Development before birth, lasting about nine months.
Neonatal Period: Birth to one month.
Infancy: 1 month to approximately 18-24 months.
Prenatal Development Stages
Zygote: Fertilized egg; rapid cell division, forming into an embryo within two weeks.
Embryo: Developing organism from 2 weeks to 2 months.
Fetus: Developing organism from 9 weeks after conception until birth.
Teratogens: External substances that can cause harm to the developing baby during pregnancy.
Discussion on Substance Abuse During Pregnancy
Legal ramifications: Thirteen states can terminate parental rights based on evidence of substance abuse.
Discussion point: The potential impacts of punitive measures on mothers and society.
Newborn to Infancy Development
Neonatal Period Capabilities:
Responsive to sensory stimulation.
Infancy Characteristics:
Rapid growth but reliant heavily on reflexive behaviors.
Lack of memory from birth to approximately 3.5 years due to underdeveloped brain circuits.
Learning During Development
Infants start learning through interactions:
Examples: Crying, cooing, and smiling behaviors.
Classical Conditioning in Newborns: Experiments show conditioning methods result in learned behaviors, such as turning towards a sweetened liquor.
Social Abilities in Infancy
Notable features:
Synchronicity: Close coordination between mothers and infants.
Preprogrammed Responses: Babies' predisposition to recognize mothers' voices and faces, exhibiting synchronized behaviors (laughing/crying).
Attachment to Caregivers
Theory of Attachment: A lasting emotional bond formed instinctively.
Imprinting: Observed notably in birds (e.g., chicks follow the first moving object they see).
Imprinting in Animals vs. Humans
Mama Duck and Chick example: Chicks display attachment by following the mother.
Human babies develop connections to caregivers responding to their needs, showing attachment through signals.
Strength of Attachment
Research has indicated emotional distress in infants when separated from caregivers, measured by skin temperature responses.
Monkeys raised without maternal care show immense fear in novel situations, indicating the importance of attachment for coping.
Lasting Effects of Attachment
Healthy attachments in infancy promote good social relationships later in life; however, some individuals can overcome deficiencies in early attachment experiences.
Contact Comfort Theory
Attachment explained through evolutionary lenses:
Contact Comfort: Infants depend on close relationships would enhance survival and promote natural selection.
Cupboard Theory Disproved
Freud's View: Infants only see caregivers as sources of food (“cupboard theory”).
Harlow's Experiment: Monkeys preferred comfort from a soft object over a food-providing model, demonstrating the need for contact and emotional support beyond mere sustenance.
Harlow's Findings
Significant findings from Harlow's work indicate that:
Infants require more than just food for healthy development; they need emotional comfort as well.
Lack of close relationships can stunt growth and bone development, termed as psychological dwarfism.
Maturation
Definition: The biological growth sequence by which an organism develops over time in both physical and mental dimensions.
Research indicates a predictable maturation pattern when provided an adequate environment; this illustrates how nature and nurture work in development.
Cognitive Development: Piaget's Theory
Jean Piaget’s Contribution: Developed the Cognitive Theory of Development, focused on how children build understanding through different stages.
Key Components of Piaget's Theory
Schemas: Mental frameworks that guide thinking.
Experience alters schemas that organize knowledge.
Assimilation: Incorporating new experiences into existing schemas (e.g., a baby sucking on various objects as if they were bottles).
Accommodation: Adapting or changing schemas in response to new information (e.g., recognizing differences between a butterfly and a bird).
Piaget’s Stages of Development
Sensorimotor Stage (0-2 years):
Characterized by reflexive responses; development of mental representations and object permanence.
Typical experiences: Stranger anxiety begins around 8 months.
Preoperational Stage (2-6/7 years):
Marked by developing mental representation and language use; egocentrism evident where children see the world from their own perspective.
Concrete Operational Stage (7-11 years):
Develop logical thinking about concrete events and understanding the concept of conservation (quantities remain the same despite physical changes).
Formal Operational Stage (12 years and beyond):
Abstract reasoning capabilities develop; individuals consider deeper existential concepts and moral reasoning.
Theory of Mind
Description: Refers to the ability to understand others' mental states and distinguish them from one's own. Piaget believed this developed after age 8; however, recent studies suggest it emerges around ages 4-5.
Reflections on Piaget
Piaget remains fundamental in developmental psychology despite potential inaccuracies with age designations; his emphasis on the sequence of cognitive milestones has been supported by global research.
Lev Vygotsky's Contribution
Vygotsky highlighted social interaction's role in cognitive development, proposing the idea that language is a crucial factor in this growth.
Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
Definition: The gap between a child’s current development level and potential capabilities with guidance from knowledgeable individuals. This concept includes:
The skills being too difficult for the child to master independently but can be achieved with assistance.
Erikson's Theory of Psychosocial Development
Overview: Erik Erikson proposed development as a series of psychosocial stages characterized by central conflicts that individuals must navigate throughout their lives.
Each of the eight stages presents new challenges that must be addressed to foster healthy development.
Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development
Key Stages:
Trust vs. Mistrust (0-1.5 years): Outcome - basic trust if needs are met.
Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (1.5-3 years): Outcome - self-sufficiency vs. self-doubt.
Initiative vs. Guilt (3-6 years): Outcome - independence vs. guilt about independence.
Industry vs. Inferiority (6-puberty): Outcome - competence vs. feelings of inferiority.
Identity vs. Role Confusion (Adolescence): Outcome - clarity about self vs. confusion about self-identity.
Intimacy vs. Isolation (Young Adulthood): Outcome - meaningful relationships vs. isolation.
Generativity vs. Stagnation (Middle Adulthood): Outcome - contribution to society vs. stagnation.
Ego Integrity vs. Despair (Late Adulthood): Outcome - reflection leads to satisfaction or despair over life's unachieved goals.
Erikson and Freud
Compared to Freud’s focus on sexual stages, Erikson emphasized social and psychological factors that shape identity.
Personality development occurs throughout an individual's lifetime.
Challenges of Adulthood and Aging
Young adults today often face distinct societal pressures, including identity struggles amidst advancing education and lasting relationships.
Critics highlight that Erikson's model, while foundational, needs to accommodate contemporary challenges related to gender and societal expectations.
Adverse Effects of Isolation: Erikson emphasizes the need for supportive social networks to maintain health and well-being.
Parenting Styles
Overview of Four Distinct Parenting Styles:
Authoritative: Warm, responsive, allows autonomy, reasonable expectations.
Authoritarian: Cold, demanding, emphasizes obedience.
Permissive: Warm but lacks boundaries, allows significant child decision-making.
Uninvolved: Emotionally detached, low expectations.
Impact of Parenting Styles
Research Findings:
Authoritative parenting leads to higher child confidence and well-being.
Authoritarian parenting correlates with anxiety and insecurity.
Permissive parenting relates to impulsiveness and dependency in children.
Daycare Effects on Development
Majority of children thrive socially in daycare environments, although poor quality can lead to adjustment issues (e.g., aggression).
Children's Leisure Time
American children have significantly more leisure time compared to those in non-industrialized societies, who engage in chores for up to 6 hours.
Many American children balance free time between structured activities and unstructured leisure activities like television and internet.
Gender Differences in Play Behavior
Noteworthy trends in gender-based interaction settings:
Girls tend to form smaller, cooperative groups while boys form larger, hierarchical teams.
The distinctions are believed to be influenced both by biological factors and socialization processes.
Psychological Research and Aging Population
Increased attention is being paid to development beyond young adulthood due to a growing aging population and evolving health issues.
Challenges Confronting Adults
Critical transition junctures include career decisions, education, and long-term relationships.
Basic needs outlined by Freud revolve around love and work, similar to Maslow's hierarchy emphasizing love and belongingness.
Midlife Challenges
Erikson identifies generativity as a critical midlife requirement, seeking fulfillment in contributions to individual, family, and societal growth without succumbing to stagnation.
Erikson’s Last Stage of Development
Elderly individuals face the challenge of ego integrity versus despair, assessing the significance of their life's journey.
Stages of Grief (Elisabeth Kübler-Ross)
Five stages of coping with inevitable death:
Denial: Unwillingness to accept the truth of the situation.
Anger: Frustration and rejection of the situation.
Bargaining: Seeking compromise to delay inevitable outcomes.
Depression: Profound sadness over reality.
Acceptance: Coming to terms with mortality.