Psy250 LifeSpan Development

Session 2Introduction Continued

Dr. Susan M. Hansen

Life-span perspective is an approach that studies human

development…

A. Through childhood

B. Through adulthoof

C. Through all phases of life

What causes people to change or remain the

same over time?

science of human development: Seeks

to understand how and why people of

all ages and circumstances change or

remain the same over time.

Science

Defining Development

Is the question of

nature or nurture

more about how much

rather than which

factor?

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nature: Traits, capacities,

limitations each individual

inherits genetically from parents

(at conception).

nurture: All environmental

influences that affect

development (after conception).

Influences

Defining Development

dynamic-systems theory: A view

of human development as an

ongoing, ever-changing interaction

between the physical and emotional

being and between the person and

every aspect of his or her

environment, including the family

and society.

How do people interact

with other people, and

do so continuously over

time, each interaction

affecting the other?

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Dynamic Systems TheoryDefining Development

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life-span perspective: Study

of human development that

takes into account all phases

of life.

How do human

characteristics change

in every direction to

reflect development as

multidirectional?

MultidirectionalDefining Development

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Date of Birth

Milestones – Critical Moments in

Time

Events, Goals, Expected

Roles

Expected Date of Death

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The enduring behaviors,

ideas, attitudes, and

traditions shared by a

large group of people and

transmitted from one

generation to the next.

culture

People whose

ancestors were born in

the same region and

who often share a

language, culture, and

religion.

ethnic groupA group of people who

are regarded by

themselves or by others

as distinct from other

groups on the basis of

physical appearance.

(Social scientists think

race is a misleading

concept.)

Multicontextual

Four Characteristics of Development

When monkey sees, why does monkey do?

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mirror neurons:Cells in an

observer’s brain that respond to

an action performed by

someone else in the same

way they would if the observer

had actually performed that

action.

Multidisciplinary

Four Characteristics of Development

Brain damage/

injury

The brain

is plastic,

able to

reassign

neurons

Change may occur, some functions may be

restored.

plasticity: Human traits can be molded (as plastic can be), yet people maintain a certain durability of identity (as plastic does).

How plastic (moldable) are the brain and personality?

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Plasticity

Four Characteristics of Development

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ecological-systems

approach: The view

that in the study of

human development,

the person should be

considered in all the

contexts and

interactions that

constitute a life.

How does the ecological-

systems approach work?

Multicontextual

Four Characteristics of Development

behavioral (learning theory)

cognitive

John B. Watson, Ivan Pavlov, B.F. Skinner, Albert Bandura

Jean Piaget

Study of observable behavior; describes the laws and processes by which behavior is learned.

Focus on changes in how people think over time; also thoughts shape our attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.

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psychoanalytic Freud, EriksonIrrational, unconscious drives and motives, often originating in childhood, underlie human behavior.

Founders Description

Freud’s Personality/Mind Iceberg

Personality develops from the efforts of our ego, our rational self, to resolve tension between our id,based in biological drives,and the superego, society’s rules and constraints.

The Unconscious, in Freud’s view: A reservoir of thoughts, wishes, feelings, memories, that are hidden from awareness because they feel unacceptable.

The Mind is mostly below the surface of conscious awareness

In Maslow’s view, people are motivated to keep moving up a hierarchy of needs, growing beyond getting basic needs met.

At the top of this hierarchy are self-actualization, fulfilling one’s potential, and self-transcendence.

Maslow: The Self-Actualizing Person

In this ideal state, a personality includes being self-aware, self-accepting, open, ethical, spontaneous, loving caring, focusing on a greater mission than social acceptance.

Stages and Continuity Three different types of development-cognitive, moral, and

psychosocial--have been running in parallel.

Differences in Theory - Are they really separate stages, or a continuous process of development?

What kind of

framework

do theories provide

for the study of

human

development?

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developmental theories: A framework for explaining patterns and problems of development.

Produce hypotheses Generate

discoveries

Offer practical guidance

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What do theories about human development really do?

How do adults interact with children to teach them social norms?

What do

you say?Please?

Okay

Thank you

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sociocultural theory: Development results from the

dynamic interaction of each person with the

surrounding social and cultural forces.

Sociocultural Theory

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Evolutionary Theory

selective adaptation: Process by which genes that enhance survival and reproductive ability are selected and, over generations, become more frequent.

Scared of death by car?

In 2010,10 U.S. death in 100,000

Scared of death by snake?

12 deaths in 2010 (out of 314 million people)

What are you more scared of?

Which fear would have helped our ancestors survive?

What do theories contribute to our understanding of nature and nurture?

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The Nature – Nurture Controversy