The Theoretical Approaches Of Human Development Essay

Erikson’s (1968, 1980, 1982) psychosocial stages of development provide a framework for the different stages of development throughout the human lifespan. These stages of development begin at birth and continue until death, and separate the lifespan into eight stages based on chronological age. Within these eight different aging stages are corresponding psychosocial stages. Each of these psychosocial stages represent a conflict between two characteristics of development for that particular time period in a person’s life.

This theory focuses solely on children’s cognitive development so that is both a strength and a weakness as it gets an in-depth understanding of children’s cognitive processes however it cannot be generalised to adults. Another strength of this theory is the fact that it can be applied practically within the real world, especially in regards to education as it means children can be taught based upon their developmental stage. It is extremely useful in that sense as it is nomothetic so it can be applied to larger population. The theory contains both continuous and discontinuous, it is discontinuous as it contains distinct hierarchal stages. It is good in one sense as it allows professionals to see if a child is meeting the stages and if they do not action can be taken. At the same time it can be disadvantageous as professionals, such as teachers may not push a child to reach their full cognitive capabilities as they have met the criteria for their age. At the time this was quite revolutionary as children were once considered “little adults” that only has a slightly less mental and developmental capacity. Therefore they may not have learnt as effective as they could, as they may have been taught above or below their capacity. However with that said it has been suggested that his stages of

How does an infant develop into an adult? The answer is not as obvious as it seems. There are a variety of factors that contribute to human development. A person not only grows physically but also cognitively and socio-emotionally. This paper will explain two theories; one cognitive and one socio-emotional; about human development. The two theories will be described, compared, contrasted and individually evaluated based on the strong points and limitations.

There are many theories of child development largely because many different people have studied the field for many years. Each theory has their different factors; biology, sociology, genetics, environment, and relationships are just a few of them. “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous -- and how well I know it. ”! (Psalms 139:14).  One might ask the question: "If theories are so useful, why do we need so many?"  Having a multitude of theories allow us to see how children develop from a variety of

* Your Christian/Other worldview – this implies that you understand your worldview and clearly define how it relates to the theories discussed.

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

Produce a report to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of differing theories of development. This report should identify how these theories have influenced current practice and include the following:

Theories of development are important as they can influence practice and help us understand a Childs way of learning, behaviour and reactions

The study of human development is a science. It is based on theories, data, analysis, critical thinking, and sound methodology (Berger). Five characteristics of Development that will be discussed in this paper are multidirectional, multi-contextual, multicultural, multidisciplinary and plasticity. There are also five theories of development which are psychoanalytical, behaviorism, cognitive, socio-cultural, and epigenetic theory. Together these characteristics and theories can be used together to get a better understanding of the human development and how much genetics play a role in development and how much the

Development psychology refers to the scientific study of the systematic psychological changes that normally occur to human beings throughout their growth period from birth to old age. It was originally concerned with children and infants, but it has since expanded to include the entire life span of mankind including adolescence and adulthood. Development psychology covers the extent to which human development occurs through gradual accumulation of knowledge, and the extent to which children born with inmate mental structures learn through experience. Several psychological theories and approaches like the behavioral, humanistic, psychoanalytic, biological, and cognitive approaches have been developed to explain the

The three theories I have chosen to discuss are all extremely relevant ideas; although I prefer Erik Erikson’s stage of psychosocial development. Erik Erikson’s theory covers a person’s entire lifespan showing the many different stages throughout one’s life. A person is always

Anne is a 22-year-old Caucasian female currently enrolled in college. She is enrolled as a full time student majoring in Criminal Justice. She lives in a single room on campus and is three hours away from her family. She is currently in the Later Adolescence stage of development and is dealing with several different life issues.

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.

There are many theories on how a human develops. Most babies follow a certain pattern of development but the controversy is which person 's developmental pattern of development is correct? Erik Erickson, Sigmund Freud and Jean Piaget 's developmental theories are similar. Each of the theories goes through a human 's development chronologically, giving a guideline of when certain developments happen. For example when a child is supposed to walk or when a child is going to speak. It is only a guideline and these theories are not supposed to be held too strictly.

There are three foundations of human development. The foundations are the biological development, psychological development, and social development. The concept of human diversity and cultural competences demonstrates how different people can be. General systems theory and social order are connected in some way.