CHAPTER 1.1 Life-Span Development Notes
Defining Human Development
• Examines how and why people change and how they remain the
same over time
• Examines how and why people are both unique and similar to each
other
• A multidisciplinary science based on theories and research studies
Recurring Issues in Human Development
• Nature vs. nurture
• Influence of heredity vs. environment
• Continuity vs. discontinuity
• Does development smoothly progress or shift abruptly?
• Universal vs. context-specific development
• Is there just one or multiple ways in which development occurs?
Basic Forces in Human Development:
The Biopsychosocial Framework
• Biological forces
• Genetic, health related
• Psychological forces
• Cognitive/perceptual, emotional, and personality
• Sociocultural forces
• Societal, cultural, ethnic, gender-specific and interpersonal (intersectionality)
• Life-cycle forces
• Identical events and different age group
Neuroscience: A Window Into Human
Development
• Neuroscience is the study of the brain and the nervous system, especially
in terms of brain– behavior relationships
• Helps in understanding interactions among the four forces in the
biopsychosocial framework
Think, Pair, and Share Activity: Your
Experiences
Students should find a partner to begin the activity
• Students, think back over your life experiences or those of your family
and friends. How does your life experience reflect the four
developmental forces in the biopsychosocial model?
• Provide one example of each
Defining Human Development
• Examines how and why people change and how they remain the
same over time
• Examines how and why people are both unique and similar to each
other
• A multidisciplinary science based on theories and research studies
Recurring Issues in Human Development
• Nature vs. nurture
• Influence of heredity vs. environment
• Continuity vs. discontinuity
• Does development smoothly progress or shift abruptly?
• Universal vs. context-specific development
• Is there just one or multiple ways in which development occurs?
Basic Forces in Human Development:
The Biopsychosocial Framework
• Biological forces
• Genetic, health related
• Psychological forces
• Cognitive/perceptual, emotional, and personality
• Sociocultural forces
• Societal, cultural, ethnic, gender-specific and interpersonal (intersectionality)
• Life-cycle forces
• Identical events and different age group
Neuroscience: A Window Into Human
Development
• Neuroscience is the study of the brain and the nervous system, especially
in terms of brain– behavior relationships
• Helps in understanding interactions among the four forces in the
biopsychosocial framework
Think, Pair, and Share Activity: Your
Experiences
Students should find a partner to begin the activity
• Students, think back over your life experiences or those of your family
and friends. How does your life experience reflect the four
developmental forces in the biopsychosocial model?
• Provide one example of each
