BASIC CONCEPTS AND ISSUES ON HUMAN

DEVELOPMENT
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT: MEANING, CONCEPTS, AND APPROACHES
TWO APPROACHES TO HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Traditional
 Extensive change happened from birth to adolescence;
there is little or no change in adulthood and eventually
will decline in late old age.
Life-span Development
 Development takes place from childhood up to
adulthood; It will not end
CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENT (PAUL
BALTES)

1.Development is lifelong.
2.Development is plastic.
Plasticity – potential for change; no one is too old to learn

3.Development is multidimensional.
Development as a process is complex because it is the product of
biological, cognitive, and socio-emotional processes (Santrock, 2002).
CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENT (PAUL
BALTES)

Biological Processes:
Development is relatively orderly.
Proximodistal Pattern.
Cephalo-caudal Pattern.

Development takes place gradually.

CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENT (PAUL
BALTES)

Cognitive Processes
Involve changes in the individual’s thought,
intelligence ,and language.
Socioemotional Processes
Changes in the individual’s relationships with other
people, changes in emotions, and changes in
CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENT (PAUL
BALTES)

4. Development is contextual.
Individuals respond to and act on contexts. These contexts
include the individual’s biological make up, physical
environment, cognitive processes, historical, social and culture
contexts. (Santrock, 2002)
5. Development involves growth, maintenance, and
regulation.
LET’S DO SOME EXERCISE!
 Principles of Human Development Characteristics of Human
Development from Life-
span Perspective
a. All the domains of
development and learning –
physical, social, and
emotional, and cognitive – are
important, and they are
closely interrelated. Children’s
development and learning in
one domain influence and are
influenced by what takes place
in other domains.
 Principles of Human Development Characteristics of Human
Development from Life-
span Perspective
b. Many aspects of children’s
learning and development follow
well documented sequences, with
later abilities, skills, and knowledge
building on those already acquired.
c. Development and learning
proceed at varying rates from child
to child, as well as at uneven rates
across different areas of a child’s
individual functioning.
 Principles of Human Development Characteristics of Human
Development from Life-
span Perspective
d. Development and learning result
from a dynamic and continuous
interaction of biological maturation
and experience.
e. Early experiences have profound
effects, both cumulative and
delayed, on a child’s development
and learning; and optimal periods
exist for certain types of
development and learning occur.
 Principles of Human Development Characteristics of Human
Development from Life-
span Perspective
f. Development proceeds toward
greater complexity, self-regulation,
and symbolic or representational
capacities.
g. Children develop best when they
are have secure, consistent
relationships with responsive
adults and opportunities for
positive relationships with peers.
h. Development and learning occur
in and are influenced by multiple
 Principles of Human Development Characteristics of Human
Development from Life-
span Perspective
i. Always mentally active in
seeking to understand the world
around them, children learn in a
variety of ways; a wide range of
teaching strategies and
interactions are effective in
supporting all these kinds of
learning.
j. Play is an important vehicle for
developing self-regulation as well
as for promoting language,
cognition, and social competence.
 Principles of Human Development Characteristics of Human
Development from Life-
span Perspective
k. Development and learning
advance when children are
challenged to achieve at a level
just beyond their current mastery,
and also when they have many
opportunities to practice newly
acquired skills.
l. Children’s experiences shape
their motivation and approaches to
learning, such as persistence,
initiative, and flexibility; in turn,
these dispositions and behaviors
STAGES DEVELOPMENT OF DEVELOPMENT
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT: MEANING, CONCEPTS, AND APPROACHES
From birth to adulthood, a child goes through several
stages of human development. Changes like being able
to hold up their head, talking, and playing are just
some of the milestones that can tell you whether your
child is growing up at the right pace. However, note
that milestones are NOT set in stone. They are only
used as a guide to check if a child is at par, delayed or
advanced compared to other infants or children of the
same age.
Numerous researchers devised theories
about developmental stages, but only a
few major theories have withstood the test
of time. Below are a few of the recognized
theories in child development which are
still relevant today to further enrich the
scope of Developmental Psychology.
POPULAR THEORIES ON THE STAGES OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT PSYCHOLOGY

 Psychosexual Developmental Theory

 Develop by Sigmund Freud. His theory proposed that the way parents
dealt with their children’s “sexual” and aggressive drives will determine
whether or not they would become well-adjusted adults.
 “Drives” refers to instincts or appetites that motivated human
behavior that need to be satiated.
 Freud’s psychosexual theory revolved around erogenous zones
like the mouth, bowel, bladder, and genitalia, and how our desires
at that age often revolved around a specific erogenous zone.
FREUD’S PSYCHOSEXUAL STAGES
• 0-2 years of age: This stage is referred to as the “oral phase”
because your desires at this age were all derived from sucking or
biting things.
• 2-4 years of age: This stage is referred to as the “anal phase”
because children at this age are being potty trained, thus learning to
control their bladder and bowel movements.
• 4-7 years of age: This stage is called the “phallic stage” because
children at this age were concerned about their penis or clitoris.
• 7-12 years of age: This stage of development is what Freud refers to
as “period of latency” where sexual developments are placed on
hold.
• 13 years of age and onward: This stage is called the “genital phase”
because of how attraction to the opposite sex starts during this age.
STAGES OF PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

 Erik Erikson based his theory of psychosocial

development on Freud’s previous psychosexual theory of
development. His theory involved crisis or conflict
between a person’s psychological and societal needs. The
outcome of these conflicts would then contribute to the
person’s personality development.
 This theory has 8 chronological stages, with corresponding
CRISES, that need to be resolved for the individual to gain
corresponding strengths, per developmental stage.
8 CHRONOLOGICAL STAGES OF PSYCHOSOCIAL
DEVELOPMENT

1.Mistrust vs. trust

Erikson’s theory also
2.Doubt/Shame vs. Autonomy
went into detail
3.Guilt vs. Initiative
4.Inferiority vs. Industry
about what strengths
5.Role confusion vs. Identity a child would develop
6.Isolation vs. Intimacy if each stage’s
7.Stagnation vs. Generativity psychosocial crisis is
8.Despair vs. Ego Integrity resolved.
COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENTAL THEORY

 According to Piaget, intelligence develops over time,

both physically and through changes that are a result
of one’s interaction with their environment.
 Four stages in a child’s cognitive development:
 The Sensorimotor Stage
 The Preoperational Stage
 The Concrete Operational Stage
 The Formal Operational Stage
THE SENSORIMOTOR STAGE

 Occurs during infancy. This stage of cognitive

development is characterized by an infant acquiring
intelligence by using sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch.
By 8 to 12 months, children also develop
“object permanence“. This is the ability to distinguish that
an object exists even if it can’t be seen. For example,
when playing peek-a-boo a child will understand that you
are just covered and not actually disappearing.
THE PREOPERATIONAL STAGE

 Starts during toddler age and lasts up throughout early

childhood. Use of symbols, language use, and egocentrism make
up the key characteristics of this stage.
 Children who are egocentric can only see the world from their
point of view and assume what they see is what everyone else
sees. For example, if two children sit at opposite ends of a table
with the number “6″ printed on it, one will say it says “6″ while
the other will insist it is “9″. Technically, both can be correct,
however, the children will not be able to “see” the solution from
another person’s perspective.
THE CONCRETE OPERATIONAL STAGE

 Happens during school age to early adolescence. This

stage is a milestone in cognitive development because
this is when a child learns how to use logic and
reasoning. Here, they are able to understand the concept
of conservation. For example, a volume of water does not
change when poured from a tall glass to a different glass
with the same volume. Additionally, children in this stage
can arrange objects into two or more groups at a time,
based on length, weight, and other characteristics.
THE FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE

 During this stage, a person learns how to think about abstract

(intangible) concepts. They prove or disprove theories through
experimentation or trial and error. Propositional thought or
verbal reasoning also develops during this stage. The Formal
Operational Stage begins during adolescence and typically lasts
throughout a person’s life.
 Piaget’s theory offers insight on how a child slowly creates a
model of the world in their minds. The theory also offers insight
on how you should communicate with a child depending on
what stage in cognitive development they’re currently in.
SANTROCK’S DEVELOPMENTAL STAGES
 Santrock’s theory divides the human lifespan into eight periods
namely:
1. Prenatal period (infancy to birth)
2. Infancy (birth to 18-24 months)
3. Early childhood (2-5 years)
4. Middle and late childhood (6-11 years)
5. Adolescence
6. Early adulthood
7. Middle adulthood
8. Late adulthood
HAVIGHURST’S DEVELOPMENTAL TASKS THEORY

 Santrock’s and Havighurst’s stages of human development

are similar. Both consider development as a continuous
process that lasts throughout a person’s entire life.
 Havighurst’s theory proposes that individuals need to
achieve one developmental phase before moving onto the
next. Peers and supportive groups encourage an individual
to develop along with an increase sense of accomplishment.
The stages of Havighurst’s theory together with their
corresponding developmental tasks are the following:
DEVELOPMENTAL TASKS:
1. Infancy and Early Childhood (0-5 years old): Learning to walk, talk, and
interact with others
2. Middle Childhood (6-12 years old): Learning to read, write and be more
independent
3. Adolescence (13-17 years old): Learning about gender-based roles
4. Early Adulthood (18-35 years old): Learning to establish a career and a
family
5. Middle Age (36-60 years old): Learning to adjust to physiological changes
6. Later Maturity (over 60 years old): Learning to adjust to old age and
retirement.
KEY TAKEAWAYS

Development may include physical, psychological, and

social changes during the life span. Understanding the
different theories that discuss the stages of human
development can offer a deeper insight on how the
human body and mind changes over the years. These
theories can also offer insight as to how parents,
guardians, or teachers can communicate and teach
young children in a way that they would truly learn
from.