Developmental

Psychology
EST 101
Introduction to
Developmental
Psychology
Recap
 Outcomes:
By the end of the session students will be
able to:
- Define Human Development
- Understand the characteristics of human
development
- Know the periods and domains of
development
Development
Human Development
 Human
Development

Prenatal
What is human
Development?

ex a m i n e s
fi e l d o f s t u d y t h at
The , a n d
th , c h an g e
o f g r o w
patterns r
r t h a t o c c u
i n b e h a v i o
sta b i l i t y
r e l i fe s p a n
u t t h e e n ti
thr o u g h o
 Five characteristics of
development

Development is multi-dimensional.

•There are biological dimensions.

•There are cognitive dimensions.
•There are socioemotional dimensions.


Development is multi-directional:
• Some dimensions or components of a dimension increase in growth.
• Some dimensions or components of a dimension decrease in growth.


Development is multi-contextual:

• Normative history-graded influences

• Normative age-graded influences
• Nonnormative life events

(faculty.mwsu.edu, n.d)
 Five characteristics of
development
• Development is multidisciplinary:

•Psychologists
•Sociologists
•Anthropologists
•Neuroscientists
•Medical Researchers

Development is multicultural: each culture has a unique set of values,

traditions, and tools that need to be understood.

• Development is plastic: Plasticity involves the degree to which

characteristics change or remain stable
(faculty.mwsu.edu, n.d)
The lifespan is usually divided into broad age
ranges

a)      Prenatal period (conception to birth)

b)      Infancy and toddlerhood (birth to age 3)
c)      Preschool period (ages 3 to 6)
d)      Middle childhood (ages 6 to 12)
e)      Adolescence (ages 12 to 20)
f)       Young adulthood (ages 20 to 40)
g)      Middle adulthood (ages 40 to 60)
h)      Late adulthood (age 60 to death)
Your Turn!
• Draw a
d i a g ra m wh
i ch ex p lain s
human perio all
d s o f l i fe w i
th t h e age
periods and
developmen
tal stage.
• Describ
e the age pe
riod given t
g r o u p b r i e fl o your
y.
• Yo u c a n
add simple
d r a w in g s r e
the age sele lated to
cted.

15 minutes
 Domains of Development
Development is
often categorized
into 3 broad
domains so as to
make the study Physical
of changes more
orderly and easier
to understand:
Emotional
and Cognitive
Social
 Physical
What determines the sex of a child ?
What leads to obesity ?
 Cognitive
Does intelligence decline in late adulthood?
What are the consequences of watching television?
 Social and Emotional development
How do we choose a romantic partner?
How does a sense of gender develop?
Physical Development
Slide Q:
What are the factors that are involved
in physical development of a child?

• Changes in body size,

proportions, appearance,

functioning of body systems,

perceptual and motor

capacities, and physical health

 Cognitive Development
• Changes in intellectual
abilities, including
attention, memory,
academic and everyday
knowledge, problems
solving imagination,
creativity, and language.
 Emotional and Social Development
Slide Q:
•Changes in emotional How emotions influence
social development , describe
communication, self- how each other is connected?

understanding, knowledge
about other people,
interpersonal skills,
friendship, intimate
relationships and moral
reasoning and behaviour.
 Case Study: Tonya

- What would be the typical reaction

o e s
h a td of teachers and the general
W o r
an f public towards Tonya?
t m e
i t o
d re n - How easy might it has been for a
ch i l
p ” ?
v e l o teacher to view Tonya as a bully
“de
and a thief?

- What did this teacher do instead?

• Infants, children and • Professionals who
work daily with
adolescents need caring youngsters play an
adults in their lives to important - in fact, a
critical –role in the
support all aspects of
directions children’s
their development lives take
 These adults can play a key role in
developing :
- social skills
- self-confidence
- a love for learning and
- health promoting habits
 As practitioners we can follow
many strategies to support good
developmental outcomes in children
and to give second chances to
children when they develop
unhealthy patterns.
 i c I s s u e s
Bas
 c h o n
a r
Rese ent is a
e l o p m t
de v re c e n
ti v e l y
re l a v o r.
e a
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 n ti l
g i n u
t b e e n t h
id n o n e t e
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the arly tw
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r ie s
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 ti o n s
e c u l a
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t he th
As d w i
in e
comb e y
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es e a r
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e d t h
ins p ir
o n o f
t r u c ti
co ns
r i es .
The o
 t h e r e
o u g h
Alt h n y
e m a c a n
ar s , w e
e o r i e i z e
t h r g a n
s i l y o
e a i n c e
e m , s e a
th l l t a k
l y a
n e a r o n t h re e
st a n d s :
i s s u e
b a s i c
 s e o f
co u r
Is t h e nt
1. p m e
ve lo r
de o u s o
n ti n u s ?
co n u ou
o nti
disc
 c o r
e n e ti
re g n t a l
2 . A n m e
v ir o re
en s m o
c to r in
fa ta n t
p o r
im c in g
flu e n nt ?
in p m e
ve l o
d e
 o u rs e
on e c
o e s e nt
3.D v e lo p m
e
of d terize all
ra c e
cha n , o r a r
d re
chil a n y
e re m se s?
th c o u r
s si b le
p o
 Continuous vs. Discontinuous
• Is development continuous or discontinuous?
1. Some theorists believe that development is a smooth, continuous
process. Children gradually add more of the same types of skills.
2. Other theorists think that development takes place in discontinuous
stages.
Children change rapidly as they step up to a new level of development
and then change very little for a while. With each step children
interprets and responds to the world in a qualitatively different way.
Slide Q:
Describe the diagram
briefly, and provide
example related to each
 One course of development or many?
• Stage theorist assume that people everywhere follow the
same sequence of development.
• For example: in the domain of cognition, a stage theorist
might try to identify the common influences that lead
children to represent their world through language and
make-believe play in early childhood, to think more
logically and systematically in middle childhood, and to
reason abstractly in adolescence.
 One course of development or many?

• At the same time, the field of child development

is becoming increasingly aware that children grow

up in distinct contexts, or unique combinations of

personal and environmental circumstances that

can result in different paths of change.

 Nature vs Nurture
• Are genetic or environmental factors more important in
influencing development?
• By Nature we mean inborn, biological givens- the
hereditary information we receive from our parents at
the moment of conception.
• By Nurture we mean the complex forces of the physical
and social world that influence our biological makeup and
psychological experiences before and after birth.
 e s t i o n
y Q u
An