When you hear the word “lifespan,” what do you imagine? Is it an age range, the growth of the body from infant to elderly? Perhaps it’s puberty or is the time-lapse of one’s mental capacity. If you imagined any of these or had something similar in mind, you were correct, for these are all part of the lifespan experience. Personally, I define lifespan as the time from which a human is conceived all the way to their death. It is often characterized by milestone experiences such as finding love, giving birth, starting a career, and acknowledging death. Thus, the study of the lifespan looks at these milestones associated with human development as well as the experiences that give life its individual flare. Therefore, almost anything you may imagine …show more content…
Though his has a multicultural approach with its emphasis on individualism, this makes it difficult to test. In addition, the theory fails to address how development occurs. This is where Piaget’s theory comes in. Piaget’s theory has been widely accepted by developmental theorists as it focuses on how development occurs through childhood and into adolescents. Despite having the potential for yielding based results, his theory has been widely accepted by developmental theorist (Belsky, 2016). Unlike Erikson’s theory, Piaget’s theory is not culturally friendly, in that it is near impossible to apply this theory to children who have intellectual disabilities or those who missed developmental milestones as it can underestimate their cognitive ability. Despite having their limitations, both approaches offer valuable insight on the development of humans and as well as contributions to the counseling and education field. Erikson’s theory has not only influenced research, but has influenced the development of identity theories (Belsky, 2016). Likewise, Piaget’s theory has influenced how children are studied. These studies have then impacted educations structures and parenting as it is so heavily focused on …show more content…
While Piaget preferred to study the evolution of though in stages, Vygotsky was curious about what stimulated thought (Belsky, 2016). Vygotsky’s approach thus had a focus on cultural influence which can be considered contradictory to Piaget’s idea of having universal stages for cognitive development. It is for this reason that Vygotsky’s theory may be more applicable to different cultures, such as those with intellectual disabilities, as it allows for an individual to develop at their own pace rather than offering a universal stage process such as Piaget’s theory. It is also interesting to note that Vygotsky’s theory has a deeper focus on a child’s information processing rather than exploring, as it examines the fundamental processes of attention, memory and
Piaget, Vygotsky, and Erikson are very well known men for their different theories of development. Although each of them believe different things about how a child develops, I believe that a child can go through all of these theories and benefit from them. I also understand that not everyone is the same, and what might be true for someone could be different for someone else. In my own personal experience, I believe I went through and I’m going through all these different stages in theories throughout my life. I also work at a daycare and we use aspects from each of these theories when going about teaching children. The three different theories include: Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, Vygotsky;s sociocultural theory of
B. Blake & T. Pope. (2008). Developmental Psychology: Incorporating Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s Theories in. Journal of Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives in Education, Vol. 1, No 1,, 59-67. Retrieved from http://jcpe.wmwikis.net/file/view/blake.pdf
At the centre of Piaget's theory is the principle that cognitive development occurs in a series of four distinct, universal stages, each characterized by increasingly sophisticated and
There are many different theories on child development but they are all related in some way. Jean Piaget theory focuses on the first twelve years of a child’s life. Erik Erikson’s theory focuses on a person complete life. In this paper I will be focusing on the differences between Piaget’s and Erikson’s theory on child development.
Many factors influence children’s development as well as that massive amount of development theories that elaborate on why children do certain things, why children have developmental disorders, or even why some children have developmental delays. Although there are many theories regarding children development and how they are influences, theorist make some great points in the child development but with any theory come flaws such as developmental issues. Famous theorists Freud, Erikson, and Piaget all have different ideas on this topic. Freud was a psychiatrist who believed in unconscious activity of the mind. Erikson was a developmental psychologist who believed that the mind developed in a series of stages, and Piaget was a clinical psychologist who believed in cognitive development. Theorists such as Sigmund Freud, Jean Piaget, and Erik Erikson discusses how their individual theory influences the make-up of the development of children.
Lifespan developmental psychology is systematic physical, cognitive, and psychological process that lead to the changes throughout life. There are various periods of growth in lifespan. Zygote happens around conception to 2 weeks, Embryo happens around 2 to 9 weeks, Fetus happens around 9 weeks to birth, infancy happens around birth to age 1 year, toddler happens around 1 to 3 years, adolescents happens around 12 to 20 years. During the prenatal development, there are 9 months in total, and within the 9 months they are divided into 3 stages. The Germinal Stage is around 2 weeks, it is the process of rapid cell division and implantation, it develop placenta. The Embryonic stage is 2 weeks to the end of 2 months, it is the process of developing
There are three known major areas of study in Lifespan Development which are the Physical, Cognitive, and personal and social development. These groups have to do with age and range of Lifespan Psychology. Lifespan literally connotes from cradle to grave, in other words from conception to death. Lifespan is divided into these following age periods; prenatal, infancy, toddlerhood, middle childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, late adulthood and death.
In both of these theories you’ll find it has its strengths and weaknesses. In Piaget theory, it provides a systematic and organized perspective on infant and child development. By dividing such development into several stages, Piaget theory empowers psychologists’ and caregivers to monitor and evaluate the patterns of infant and child development (Mooney, 2013). Also, his theory reaffirms the importance of environmental variables and the role of the caregiver and the social support of the cognitive and emotional development of children (Hetherington & Parke, 2003). What I find that lacks in Piaget's theory is its methodological rigor and objectivity. Another example is, Piaget's theories and claims were not always based on solid research. He often underestimated the ability of infants and children to manage their routine tasks (Hetherington & Parke, 2003).
Boundless. “Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development.” Boundless Psychology. Boundless, 27 Jun. 2014. Retrieved 05 Apr. 2015 from https://www.boundless.com/psychology/textbooks/boundless-psychology-textbook/human-development-14/theories-of-human-development-70/piaget-s-theory-of-cognitive-development-270-12805/
The educational implications of Piaget’s theory are closely tied to the concept of intelligence as the dynamic and emerging ability to adapt to the environment with ever increasing competence (Piaget, 1963). According to the development ideas presented by Piaget’s theory, cognitive structures are patterns of physical and mental action that underlie specific acts of intelligence and correspond to changes in child development. A review of the assumptions and ideas grounded in his theory and investigation into research conducted since will illustrate applications of his developmental
To answer this question, Piaget's theory of development should be explained along with Vygotsky's theory and the connectionist theory of development, and then each should be compared with the others. Once this has been achieved the main similarities and differences will be summarized, and finally the areas of Piaget's theory that have not been undermined by other theories will be reiterated.
Piaget *Missing Works Cited* Piaget work has received world wide acclaim and recognition , as well as having a positive impact in areas such as education and social curricula. Though he had made an impact on understanding of the child cognitive development , his theory of cognitive development has suffered a great deal of critics that it neglects the social nature of human development.(Hook, Watts and Cockroft ,2002).So the following essay will discuss on whether this critic is valid or not based on detail discussion of Piaget theory. The theory of Vygotsky shall also be discussed to prove that indeed social factors play a role .
Jean Piaget is considered to be very influential in the field of developmental psychology. Piaget had many influences in his life which ultimately led him to create the Theory of Cognitive Development. His theory has multiple stages and components. The research done in the early 1900’s is still used today in many schools and homes. People from various cultures use his theory when it comes to child development. Although there are criticisms and alternatives to his theory, it is still largely used today around the world.
The first difference is on the points of emphasis on the theory by the two psychologists. According to Vygotsky theory, more emphasis is on the culture as the main factor that affects cognitive development in human beings. However, Piaget theory contradicts this emphasis by maintaining his views that development happens in stages and the stages are universal, that means all children develop in the same way, that means environment, culture and social relationship have no effect on children development (Jones, & Reynolds, 1992). In summary, Piaget’s theory believes that there is uniform development of children across culture while, Vygotsky emphasizes every child different cognitive development depending on the social environment and culture.
Educational Implications of Piaget’s Theory. Piaget’s theory of cognitive development is well-known and provides a basic understanding of the cognitive process and how children