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12 views

Module 2

Uploaded by

Sonia David
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Key Issues in Lifespan

Development
Developmental Issues

 Nature vs. Nurture


 Continuity vs. Discontinuity
 Stability vs. Change
 Activity vs. passivity
 Universal vs. particular
Developmental Issues
Nature and Nurture: the extent to which development
is influenced by biological inheritance and/or
environmental experiences
◦ Nature proponents argue that an evolutionary and genetic
foundation produces commonalities in growth and
development
◦ Nurture proponents emphasize the importance of both the
biological and social environment
The Nature-Nurture Issue

 Involves
the debate about whether development is
primarily influenced by nature or nurture
Nature

 An organism’s biological inheritance


Nurture

 An organism’s environmental experiences


(Key Issues in Lifespan Development
continued)
Nature vs. Nurture
◦ Nature refers to inherited traits, abilities, and
capacities
 Includes maturation
◦ Nurture refers to the environmental
influences that shape behavior
What do developmentalists
believe today?
That behavior is the result of nature and
nurture combined
Continuity
and Discontinuity: focuses on whether
development is either:
◦ A process of gradual, cumulative change (continuous)
◦ A set of distinct stages (discontinuous)
The Continuity-Discontinuity Issue

 Thisissue focuses on the extent to which development


involves gradual, cumulative change or distinct stages.
Continuity

 Development results from a gradual process occurring


over several weeks, months, and possibly years.
Discontinuity

 Developmentoccurs through a sequence of stages in


which change is qualitatively rather than quantitatively
different.
Continuous vs. Discontinuous Change
◦ Continuous change
 Gradual development in which
achievements at one level build on
those of previous levels
◦Changes achieved are a matter of
degree, not kind
◦ Discontinuous change
 Development that occurs in distinct
steps or stages
◦Changes achieved are qualitatively
different that behavior at earlier
stages
What do most
developmental psychologists
believe on this issue????

Some development is
continuous, and some is
discontinuous!
(Key Issues in Lifespan Development continued)
The importance of critical periods
◦ A critical period is a specific time during development when an
event has its greatest consequences (interference with critical
periods thought to interfere with development, often permanently)
◦Language development, exposure to disease
NOW…
The concept of a sensitive period is favored
--A sensitive period is a point in development when an
individual is especially susceptible to certain stimuli
BUT the absence of those stimuli does not always
produce irreversible consequences
(Key Issues in Lifespan Development continued)

*A focus on particular periods vs. lifespan


approaches
Early developmentalists focused on
“infancy” & “adolescence.”
Today the entire lifespan is seen as
important for several reasons:
-growth and change are continuous
throughout life
-each age has reciprocal influences
on other ages
Stabilityand Change: the degree to which early traits
and characteristics persist through life or change
◦ Stability: traits and characteristics are seen as the result of
heredity and early life experiences
◦ Change: traits and characteristics can be altered by later
experiences
◦ Role of early and later experiences is hotly debated
The Stability-Change Issue

 This issue involves the degree to which we


become older renditions of our early experience
or whether we develop into someone different
from who we were at an earlier point in
development.
 It considers the extent to which early
experiences (especially in infancy) or later
experiences are the key determinants of a
person’s development.
Evaluating Developmental Issues:

Evaluating Developmental Issues:


◦ Most developmentalists acknowledge that development is
not all-or-nothing
◦ There is debate regarding how strongly each of these issues
influences development
Evaluating the Developmental Issues

 Most life-span developmentalists recognize that extreme


positions are unwise.
 The key to development is the interaction of nature and
nurture rather than either factor alone.
 There still exists strong debate regarding how strongly
development is influenced by each of the factors.

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