DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY Page 1 of 15

Introduction to Human Development

Topic: Introduction to Human Development

Sub Topic: ________________________

Welcome Notes:

WELCOME PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS.

I. INTRODUCTION:

If you look around, you will notice that from birth onwards changes of various kinds are taking place
in an individual’s life, which continue even during old age. Over a span of time, a human grows and develops,
learns to communicate, walk, count, and read and write. S/he also learns to distinguish between right and
wrong. S/he makes friends, goes through puberty, gets married, rears children, and grows old. Even though
we differ from each other, we share many commonalities. Most of us learn to walk by the first year and talk
by the second year. This topic will familiarize you with the changes observed in people during the course of
their lifespan in different domains. You will learn about key developmental processes and changes taking
place in major periods during the life-span: prenatal, infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and old
age. This would be a journey of personal understanding and self-discovery which should help in your future
development. The study of human development would also help you to deal with others better.

II. OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this module, you should be able to:

1. Describe human development and its three domains: physical, cognitive, and psychosocial
development
2. Evaluate the reciprocal impacts between genes and the environment and the nature vs. nurture
debate
3. Summarize the stages of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, Freud’s structural model of
personality and the stages of his psychosexual theory of development, and Erikson’s stages of
psychosocial development
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Introduction to Human Development

III. PRELIMINARY ACTIVITIES:

Before you proceed to the main lesson, test yourself in this activity.

Explain:

 Which comes first, an egg or a chicken?

 What made up of human personality? Nature or nurture?

GREAT!!!
You may now proceed to the main lesson.

IV. LESSON PROPER

Based on the preliminary activities, what did you notice about it?
________________________________________________________
CONGRATULATIONS!
You may now proceed to the lesson.

Domains in Human Development

Human development refers to the physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development of humans throughout
the lifespan. What types of development are involved in each of these three domains, or areas, of life?
Physical development involves growth and changes in the body and brain, the senses, motor skills, and
health and wellness. Cognitive development involves learning, attention, memory, language, thinking,
reasoning, and creativity. Psychosocial development involves emotions, personality, and social relationships.

Physical Domain

Many of us are familiar with the height and weight charts that pediatricians consult to estimate if babies,
children, and teens are growing within normative ranges of physical development. We may also be aware of
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Introduction to Human Development
changes in children’s fine and gross motor skills, as well as their increasing coordination, particularly in terms
of playing sports. But we may not realize that physical development also involves brain development, which
not only enables childhood motor coordination but also greater coordination between emotions and planning
in adulthood, as our brains are not done developing in infancy or childhood. Physical development also
includes puberty, sexual health, fertility, menopause, changes in our senses, and primary versus secondary
aging. Healthy habits with nutrition and exercise are also important at every age and stage across the
lifespan.

Cognitive Domain

If we watch and listen to infants and toddlers, we can’t help but wonder how they learn so much so fast,
particularly when it comes to language development. Then as we compare young children to those in middle
childhood, there appear to be huge differences in their ability to think logically about the concrete world
around them. Cognitive development includes mental processes, thinking, learning, and understanding, and
it doesn’t stop in childhood. Adolescents develop the ability to think logically about the abstract world (and
may like to debate matters with adults as they exercise their new cognitive skills!). Moral reasoning develops
further, as does practical intelligence—wisdom may develop with experience over time. Memory abilities and
different forms of intelligence tend to change with age. Brain development and the brain’s ability to change
and compensate for losses is significant to cognitive functions across the lifespan, too.

Psychosocial Domain

Development in this domain involves what’s going on both psychologically and socially. Early on, the focus
is on infants and caregivers, as temperament and attachment are significant. As the social world expands
and the child grows psychologically, different types of play and interactions with other children and teachers
become important. Psychosocial development involves emotions, personality, self-esteem, and relationships.
Peers become more important for adolescents, who are exploring new roles and forming their own identities.
Dating, romance, cohabitation, marriage, having children, and finding work or a career are all parts of the
transition into adulthood. Psychosocial development continues across adulthood with similar (and some
different) developmental issues of family, friends, parenting, romance, divorce, remarriage, blended families,
caregiving for elders, becoming grandparents and great grandparents, retirement, new careers, coping with
losses, and death and dying.

Nature versus Nurture

A significant issue in developmental psychology is the relationship between the innateness of an attribute
(whether it is part of our nature) and the environmental effects on that attribute (whether it is influenced by
our environment, or nurture). This is often referred to as the nature vs. nurture debate, or nativism vs.
empiricism.
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Introduction to Human Development
 A nativist (“nature”) account of development would argue that the processes in question are innate
and influenced by an organism’s genes. Natural human behavior is seen as the result of already-
present biological factors, such as genetic code.
 An empiricist (“nurture”) perspective would argue that these processes are acquired through
interaction with the environment. Nurtured human behavior is seen as the result of environmental
interaction, which can provoke changes in brain structure and chemistry. For example, situations of
extreme stress can cause problems like depression.

The nature vs. nurture debate seeks to understand how our personalities and traits are produced by our
genetic makeup and biological factors, and how they are shaped by our environment, including our parents,
peers, and culture.

We are all born with specific genetic traits inherited from our parents, such as eye color, height, and
certain personality traits. Beyond our basic genotype, however, there is a deep interaction between our genes
and our environment. Our unique experiences in our environment influence whether and how particular traits
are expressed, and at the same time, our genes influence how we interact with our environment (Diamond,
2009; Lobo, 2008). There is a reciprocal interaction between nature and nurture as they both shape who we
become, but the debate continues as to the relative contributions of each.

Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development

Piaget’s theory of cognitive development states that our

cognitive abilities develop through four specific stages.

The Swiss cognitive theorist Jean Piaget is one of the most

influential figures in the study of child development. He
developed his cognitive-developmental theory based on the
idea that children actively construct knowledge as they explore
and manipulate the world around them. Piaget was interested
in the development of “thinking” and how it relates to development throughout childhood. His theory of four
stages of cognitive development, first presented in the mid-20th century, is one of the most famous and
widely-accepted theories in child cognitive development to this day.
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. Sensorimotor Stage

The sensorimotor stage occurs from birth to age 2. It is

characterized by the idea that infants “think” by manipulating
the world around them. This is done by using all five senses:
seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling. Children figure
out ways to elicit responses by “doing”, such as pulling a lever
on a music box to hear a sound, placing a block in a bucket and
pulling it back out, or throwing an object to see what happens.
Between 5 and 8 months old, the child develops object
permanence, which is the understanding that even if something is out of sight, it still exists (Bogartz,
Shinskey, & Schilling, 2000).

Preoperational Stage

The preoperational stage occurs from age 2 to age 7. During this stage, children can use symbols to represent
words, images, and ideas, which is why children in this stage engage in pretend play. A child’s arms might
become airplane wings as she zooms around the room, or a child with a stick might become a brave knight
with a sword. Language development and make-believe play begin during this stage. Logical thinking is still
not present, so children cannot rationalize or understand more complex ideas. Children at this stage are
very egocentric, meaning they focus on themselves and how actions will impact them, rather than others.

Concrete Operational Stage

The concrete operational stage occurs from age 7 to age 11. It is characterized by the idea that children’s
reasoning becomes focused and logical. Children demonstrate a logical understanding of conservation
principles, the ability to recognize that key properties of a substance do not change even as their physical
appearance may be altered.

Formal Operational

The formal operational stage occurs from age 11 to adulthood. It is characterized by the idea that children
develop the ability to think in abstract ways. This enables children to engage in the problem-solving method
of developing a hypothesis and reasoning their way to plausible solutions.
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Freud’s Psychosexual Theory of Development

Freud’s psychosexual theory of development suggests that children develop

through a series of stages related to erogenous zones.

Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud was a Viennese physician who developed his psychosexual

theory of development through his work with emotionally troubled adults. Now
considered controversial and largely outdated, his theory is based on the idea
that parents play a crucial role in managing their children’s sexual and aggressive
drives during the first few years of life in order to foster their proper development.

Psychosexual Stages of Development

For Freud, childhood experiences shape our personalities and behavior as adults. Freud viewed development
as discontinuous; he believed that each of us must pass through a series of stages during childhood, and
that if we lack proper nurturing and parenting during a stage, we may become stuck in, or fixated on, that
stage. According to Freud, children’s pleasure-seeking urges (governed by the id) are focused on a different
area of the body, called an erogenous zone, at each of the five stages of development: oral, anal, phallic,
latency, and genital.

 Oral (0-1 years of age): During this stage, the mouth is the pleasure center for development. Freud
believed this is why infants are born with a sucking reflex and desire their mother’s breast. If a child’s
oral needs are not met during infancy, he or she may develop negative habits such as nail biting or
thumb sucking to meet this basic need.
 Anal (1-3 years of age): During this stage, toddlers and preschool-aged children begin to experiment
with urine and feces. The control they learn to exert over their bodily functions is manifested in toilet-
training. Improper resolution of this stage, such as parents toilet training their children too early, can
result in a child who is uptight and overly obsessed with order.
 Phallic (3-6 years of age): During this stage, preschoolers take pleasure in their genitals and,
according to Freud, begin to struggle with sexual desires toward the opposite sex parent (boys to
mothers and girls to fathers). For boys, this is called the Oedipus complex, involving a boy’s desire for
his mother and his urge to replace his father who is seen as a rival for the mother’s attention. At the
same time, the boy is afraid his father will punish him for his feelings, so he experiences castration
anxiety. The Electra complex, later proposed by Freud’s protégé Carl Jung, involves a girl’s desire for
her father’s attention and wish to take her mother’s place.
 Latency (6-12 years of age): During this stage, sexual instincts subside, and children begin to further
develop the superego, or conscience. Children begin to behave in morally acceptable ways and adopt
the values of their parents and other important adults.
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 Genital (12+ years of age): During this stage, sexual impulses reemerge. If other stages have been
successfully met, adolescents engage in appropriate sexual behavior, which may lead to marriage
and childbirth.

Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

Erikson’s psychosocial stages of development focus on the resolution of different crises to become a
successful, complete person.

Erikson’s Theory

Erik Erikson (1902–1994) was a stage theorist who took Freud’s controversial
theory of psychosexual development and modified it as a psychosocial theory.
Erikson emphasized that the ego makes positive contributions to development
by mastering attitudes, ideas, and skills at each stage of development. This
mastery helps children grow into successful, contributing members of society.
During each of Erikson’s eight stages, there is a psychological conflict that
must be successfully overcome in order for a child to develop into a healthy,
well-adjusted adult.

Stages of Psychosocial Development

Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development are based on (and expand upon) Freud’s psychosexual
theory. Erikson proposed that we are motivated by the need to achieve competence in certain areas of our
lives. According to psychosocial theory, we experience eight stages of development over our lifespan, from
infancy through late adulthood. At each stage there is a crisis or task that we need to resolve. Successful
completion of each developmental task results in a sense of competence and a healthy personality. Failure
to master these tasks leads to feelings of inadequacy.

Trust vs. Mistrust

From birth to 12 months of age, infants must learn that adults can be trusted. This occurs when adults meet
a child’s basic needs for survival. Infants are dependent upon their caregivers, so caregivers who are
responsive and sensitive to their infant’s needs help their baby to develop a sense of trust; their baby will see
the world as a safe, predictable place. Unresponsive caregivers who do not meet their baby’s needs can
engender feelings of anxiety, fear, and mistrust; their baby may see the world as unpredictable. If infants are
treated cruelly or their needs are not met appropriately, they will likely grow up with a sense of mistrust for
people in the world.
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Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt

As toddlers (ages 1–3 years) begin to explore their world, they learn that they can control their actions and
act on their environment to get results. They begin to show clear preferences for certain elements of the
environment, such as food, toys, and clothing. A toddler’s main task is to resolve the issue of autonomy vs.
shame and doubt by working to establish independence.

This is the “me do it” stage. For example, we might observe a budding sense of autonomy in a 2-year-old
child who wants to choose her clothes and dress herself. Although her outfits might not be appropriate for
the situation, her input in such basic decisions has an effect on her sense of independence. If denied the
opportunity to act on her environment, she may begin to doubt her abilities, which could lead to low self-
esteem and feelings of shame.

Initiative vs. Guilt

Once children reach the preschool stage (ages 3–6 years), they are capable of initiating activities and
asserting control over their world through social interactions and play. According to Erikson, preschool
children must resolve the task of initiative vs. guilt. By learning to plan and achieve goals while interacting
with others, preschool children can master this task. Initiative, a sense of ambition and responsibility, occurs
when parents allow a child to explore within limits and then support the child’s choice. These children will
develop self-confidence and feel a sense of purpose. Those who are unsuccessful at this stage—with their
initiative misfiring or stifled by over-controlling parents—may develop feelings of guilt.

Industry vs. Inferiority

During the elementary school stage (ages 6–12), children face the task of industry vs. inferiority. Children
begin to compare themselves with their peers to see how they measure up. They either develop a sense of
pride and accomplishment in their schoolwork, sports, social activities, and family life, or they feel inferior and
inadequate because they feel that they don’t measure up. If children do not learn to get along with others or
have negative experiences at home or with peers, an inferiority complex might develop into adolescence and
adulthood

Identity vs. Role Confusion

In adolescence (ages 12–18), children face the task of identity vs. role confusion. According to Erikson, an
adolescent’s main task is developing a sense of self. Adolescents struggle with questions such as “Who am
I?” and “What do I want to do with my life?” Along the way, most adolescents try on many different selves to
see which ones fit; they explore various roles and ideas, set goals, and attempt to discover their “adult”
selves. Adolescents who are successful at this stage have a strong sense of identity and are able to remain
true to their beliefs and values in the face of problems and other people’s perspectives. When adolescents
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are apathetic, do not make a conscious search for identity, or are pressured to conform to their parents’ ideas
for the future, they may develop a weak sense of self and experience role confusion. They will be unsure of
their identity and confused about the future. Teenagers who struggle to adopt a positive role will likely struggle
to “find” themselves as adults.

Intimacy vs. Isolation

People in early adulthood (20s through early 40s) are concerned with intimacy vs. isolation. After we have
developed a sense of self in adolescence, we are ready to share our life with others. However, if other stages
have not been successfully resolved, young adults may have trouble developing and maintaining successful
relationships with others. Erikson said that we must have a strong sense of self before we can develop
successful intimate relationships. Adults who do not develop a positive self-concept in adolescence may
experience feelings of loneliness and emotional isolation.

Generativity vs. Stagnation

When people reach their 40s, they enter the time known as middle adulthood, which extends to the mid-60s.
The social task of middle adulthood is generativity vs. stagnation. Generativity involves finding your life’s
work and contributing to the development of others through activities such as volunteering, mentoring, and
raising children. During this stage, middle-aged adults begin contributing to the next generation, often through
childbirth and caring for others; they also engage in meaningful and productive work which contributes
positively to society.

Integrity vs. Despair

From the mid-60s to the end of life, we are in the period of development known as late adulthood. Erikson’s
task at this stage is called integrity vs. despair. He said that people in late adulthood reflect on their lives and
feel either a sense of satisfaction or a sense of failure. People who feel proud of their accomplishments feel
a sense of integrity, and they can look back on their lives with few regrets. However, people who are not
successful at this stage may feel as if their life has been wasted. They focus on what “would have,” “should
have,” and “could have” been. They face the end of their lives with feelings of bitterness, depression, and
despair.