Human Growth and Development

Chapter Two Theories of Development

PowerPoints prepared by Cathie Robertson, Grossmont CollegeRevised by Jenni Fauchier, Metropolitan Community College

Five Questions Central to Theories

• Do early experiences of breast-feeding or bonding or abuse linger into adulthood, even if they seem to be forgotten?

• How important are specific school experiences in human intelligence?

• Can a person develop moral values without being taught them?

Five Questions Central to Theories, cont.

• Does culture elicit behavior, e.g., is violent crime more common in one place than another; for example, in China or Canada?

• If your parents or grandparents schizophrenia, or alcoholism, will you develop them suffer from depression,?

• Of all questions—Why or Why not? When and How?, So What?

• Developmental theory—systematic statement of principles and generalizations that provides a coherent framework for studying development

What Theories Do

What Theories Do, cont.

• Theories– form basis for hypotheses that can be

tested by research studies •formulating right question is more difficult that finding right answers

– generate discoveries– offer insight and guidance by

providing coherent view

What Theories Do, cont.

• Different Types– grand theories—comprehensive, traditional theories

• originated in psychology– minitheories—theories that focus on specific area of

development• originated more in sociology through study of social

groups and family structures– emergent theories—new, comprehensive groupings of

minitheories • multidisciplinary approach includes historic events

and genetic discoveries

Grand Theories

• Grand Theories—powerful framework for interpreting and understanding change and development that applies to all individuals in all contexts, across all contents

• Psychoanalytic theory interprets human development in terms of motives and drives

Psychoanalytic Theory

Freud’s Ideas

• Sigmund Freud• Three stages of development in first six

years– oral, anal, phallic in early childhood,

latency and then adolescence, genital– each stage includes potential conflicts

•how a person experiences and resolves conflicts determines personality and patterns of behavior

Erikson’s Ideas• Erik Erikson, a follower of Freud,

proposed 8 developmental stages, each characterized by a developmental crisis– trust vs. mistrust– autonomy vs. shame– initiative vs. guilt– industry vs. inferiority– identity vs. role diffusion– intimacy vs. isolation– generativity vs. stagnation– integrity vs. despair

• Behaviorism is built on laws of behavior and processes by which behavior is learned– focus: ways we learn specific

behaviors that can be described, analyzed, and predicted with scientific accuracy

Behaviorism

• Conditioning—any process in which behavior is learned

• Classical conditioning—Ivan Pavlov– process by which a neutral stimulus

become associated with a meaningful stimulus•stimulus and response (respondent conditioning)

•Learning by association

Laws of Behavior

• Operant conditioning—B. F. Skinner– process by which a response is

gradually learned via reinforcement or punishment•also called instrumental conditioning

•Learning by consequence

Social Learning

• Extension of learning theory that includes modeling which involves people observing behavior and patterning their own after it

• Modeling– process in which people observe, then copy

behavior– Alfred Bandura—most likely to occur if model is

admired or observer is inexperienced– self-efficacy motivates people to change

themselves and their contexts

• Focuses on the structure and development of thought processes, which shape perceptions, attitudes, and actions.

• Jean Piaget’s 4 Stages – sensorimotor– pre-operational– concrete operational– formal operational

Cognitive Theory

Cognitive Theory, cont.

• Cognitive equilibrium—state of mental balance

• Cognitive adaptation—assimilation, accommodation of ideas

• Emergent theories arise from several accumulated minitheories and may be the new systematic and comprehensive theories of the future

Emergent Theories

Sociocultural Theory

• Seeks to explain growth of individual knowledge, development, and competencies in terms of guidance, support, and structure supplied by the society– human development is the result of

dynamic interaction of the developing persons and their surrounding culture

• Guided participation—tutor engages learner in joint activities, providing instruction and direct involvement in learning

• Apprenticeship in thinking—mentor provides instruction and support needed by novice

Guided Participation

• Zone of proximal development—range of skills learner can perform with assistance but not independently– learner is drawn into learning by teacher

• Cultural variations: Basic principles are universal, but skills, challenges, and opportunities vary from culture to culture, depending on the values and structures of the culture’s society

The Zone of Proximal Development

Epigenetic Theory

• Emphasizes the interaction between genes and the environment—the newest developmental theory – stresses that we have powerful instincts and

abilities that arise from our biological heritage. Timing and pace of certain developmental changes are genetically guided

– performism—everything is set in advance by genes and then is gradually manifested in the course of maturation

• Genetic refers to the entire genome that makes up the particular genes that cause each person to be unique– each human has a genetic foundation that is

unique – epigenetic theory acknowledges the powerful

instincts and abilities that arise from our biological heritage

With, On, and Around the Genes

With, On, and Around the Genes, cont.

• Epi = with, around, before, after, on, or near = surrounding factors – epigenetic—surrounding factors that

affect expression of genetic instructions– some surrounding factors may be stress

factors; others may be facilitating factors

• Genetic-environmental Interactions– genes never function alone

• Adaptation of the Genes– selective adaptation means that

genes for the traits that are most useful will become more frequent, thus making survival of species more likely

Genetic Adaptation

What Theories Can Contribute

• Psychoanalytic theory has made us aware of importance of early childhood experiences

• Behaviorism has shown effect of immediate environment on learning

• Cognitive theory helps us understand how intellectual process and thinking affect actions

What Theories Can Contribute, cont.

• Sociocultural theory has reminded us that development is embedded in a rich and multifaceted context

• Epigenetic theory emphasizes interactions between inherited forces and immediate contexts

What Theories Can Contribute, cont.

• Eclectic perspective– approach taken by most

developmentalists in which they apply aspects of each of the various theories rather than staying with just one

The Nature-Nurture Controversy

• Is it heredity or environment that shapes us?

• How much is a result of any given characteristics, behavior or pattern of development is a result of genes and how much is a result of experiences

• Policy and practice: nature/nurture theories are implicit in many public policies