Lifespan Development Development happens to people which, of course, goes without saying, but does development stop at a certain stage or does it continue throughout one's lifetime. The development of the person does not happen overnight, and it has been the purpose of many researchers to determine exactly how far development extends. The theories of lifespan development are among the most complete at attempting to codify development, but even they are not complete in and of themselves. That is why many different theories exist. This paper examines the lifespan theory of development, summarizes two of the theories, and looks at the influences of heredity and environment. The Lifespan Theory of Development One of the first statements that Berger (2011, 4) makes in her book is that "The science of human development seeks to understand how and why people all kinds of people, everywhere, of every age change over time. Growth is multidirectional, multi-contextual, multicultural, and plastic." This definition of development is useful in trying to determine what development is, but adding lifespan into the phrase adds more to it. A person, the argument goes, does all this changing in multi-ways throughout life. People do not stop growing and changing just because they have reached a certain plateau or a specific age. The individual continues to mature throughout life, so the definition has the concept of lifespan added to it as another variable. Two Theories Many theories
My full name is Christina Kaysone Chantharavongsa and I was born March 23, 1995 in Bridgeport Hospital located in Bridgeport, Connecticut. It was a little city and a small world since a ton of people would know each other. My parents were in an arranged marriage and were both moved to the United States from Laos during their high school years. But I’m actually half Laotian and Thai since my mom’s side is Thai from Thailand although she was born in an Asian Southeastern country called Laos. I’m the second oldest out of four children with two sisters and one brother. The order goes from Sarah, Christina (me),
Lifespan development is essential, as it is the changes that happen to us throughout a person’s lifespan. Our development occurs at ages stages where we develop from infancy till death. This essay will contain my life story to display the domains in 5 age stages in my lifespan development. The domains I will be exploring is in this essay is physical, emotional, cognitive, social, cultural and moral domain. The influence of biological and environmental play a significant role in my development. Development is influenced by nature or nurture and its affect will occur throughout lifespan. The changes that occur during development have stage. Each theorists has stages of development where they display the changes. This essay will explore my
The sensorimotor stage infants develop their schemas through sensory and motor activities. Followed by the preoperational stage where children begin to think symbolically using words, to represent concepts. Next concrete operational stage children display many important thinking skills, like ability to think logically. Finally, formal operational stage young adolescences formulate their operations by abstract and hypothetical thinking. Piaget’s theory provides ample and insightful perspectives, so it remains the central factor of contemporary
The field of study that examines patterns of growth, change, and stability in behavior that occur throughout the entire lifespan is called lifespan development. Lifespan development takes a scientific approach in its study of growth, change, and stability. This development emphases on human development. Developmentalists study the course of development in nonhuman species, the most popular examine growth and change in people. In contrast I will focus on the ways people and myself change and grow during our lives, with the consideration of stability in our live span. Together, these findings suggest that we will go through
This paper serves to apply the knowledge learned throughout the course, COUN 502, to the development and growth in my lifespan. I will aim to demonstrate a working knowledge of the theories, terminology, and concepts of human growth and development. I will show how these disciplines apply to my own life experiences and how I did throughout my key life events, through the use of empirical studies.
Berger, K. (2011). The Developing Person through the Life Span. (8th ed.). New York: Worth Publishers
Development of a person throughout his or her whole lifetime can be seen either as a continuous process or as a final status to be attained. Psychologists agree
Life span developmental psychology takes a scientific approach to human growth and change, focusing on change during the life span. There are three main aspects to life span development: cognitive, social, and physical development. This class is not simply a discussion of nature vs. nurture, it explores the interaction between genetic and environmental factors that orient us towards specific behaviors. Initially, my views on life span development were limited to more sociological factors, and did not take into consideration physical developments of the brain. In relation to my personal and professional identity this course has made me realize that development occurs on a spectrum and that not everyone develops at the same time, in the same ways, making me more understanding and compassionate towards those who developed differently than me. The three most important lessons I have learned from this class are that development occurs throughout the entire life span, infants begin learning at a very young age, and that senescence begins as early as young adulthood.
Lifespan Development is the field of study that examines patterns, modes of growth, change, and stability in behavior that occur throughout the entire lifespan of an individual. There are so many things to keep in mind about Lifespan Psychology;
After reviewing the two articles provided and studies of my proposed topic, there was no evidence of the theoretical and conceptual frameworks in six of my studies. However, there is one theoretical framework in my quantitative study that focuses on the individual and is grounded within the context of the life-span perspective of human development theory. Contextual influences include the types of changes in resources that occur in response to the individual's needs for resources throughout a changing life-span. Life-span development involves biological considerations, cultural considerations, and individual factors working together. The life-span perspective put emphasis on the development of the course of a lifetime, and all stages of the
The theory of psychosocial development developed by Erik Erikson is one of the best-known theories of personality. Erikson believed that personality develops in a series of stages and described the impact of social experience across the lifespan. Similar to Sigmund Freud, but unlike Piaget, Erikson believed that personality develops in a series of stages that are predetermined. Unlike Freud’s theory of psychosexual stages, Erikson’s theory, that of a psychosocial behavior, describes the impact of social experience across the entire lifespan. At each stage of development, Erikson described conflicts that act as turning points in life. This paper will discuss what Erikson’s theories is sheltered instruction, and how they apply to
The development of a child is viewed from a number of different perspectives by several developmental theorists. While some say that development continues throughout the life, others would hold an opinion that children stop to develop as soon as they mature. Therefore, lifespan developmental theorists have focused on a number of areas while studying the development of an individual. Some of these areas include cognitions, social development, sexual development, moral development and more. Each of these theories is important in order to completely analyze the process whereby which a child matures and transitions into an adult.
The life-span perspective is a modern scientific approach to the study of human development that accounts for all phases of life including childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, and it breaks each phase into individual stages of development (Berger,2014). This perspective suggests that development is multidirectional, metacontextual, and all stages of development are important and play a crucial role in the individuals cognitive health (Berger,2014). The stages of development are categorized as infancy, early childhood, middle childhood, adolescence, emerging adulthood, adulthood, and late adulthood. For the purpose of this paper I will be focusing on the infancy stage due to the importance of cognitive development before the age of two, middle childhood due to a child’s social structure becoming a defining factor in their lives, and emerging adulthood due to the stresses that an individual must endure while maturing into a young adult.
This assignment identifies and discusses the relevant theory and theorists and discusses the influences possible on lifespan development from the time of conception to 20 years of age. I will analyse my own life story in relation to theories of lifespan development participating my understanding of the domains of development and the age old argument of nature versus nurture concerning the Biological and Environmental influences on one 's development and whether they may or may not have influenced my development during that stage of my life.
Throughout chapter one, I’m given a general scope of understanding on how there are multidisciplinary aspects of development that encompass and influence someone’s life, whether it be biological, socioemotional or cognitive. We have many concepts of gauging an individual’s age, including psychological, biological, social and ,most commonly used or expressed, chronological. These concepts together, including social, economic, cultural and chronological similarities and differences, make up our developmental timeline, with everyone’s being unique. Theories of development to make sense of such complexity have been made including Freud’s psychosexual stages, Erikson’s psychosocial stages, ecological theory, ethological theory and one that attempts to incorporate or use them all, the eclectic theory. With many methods of collecting data and time span research we can identify patterns and offer solutions to many problems. However, there will always be the issue with sorting through and eliminating bias research and irrelevant, misguided and misleading information.