EVOLUTIONARY DEVELOPMENT
AND LEARNING
Jaione Mainz Betelu
2nd Semester - Psychology
Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education
,1
, CHAPTER 1: FOUNDATIONS AND
MAIN THEORETICAL APPROACHES
TO DEVELOPMENT PSYCHOLOGY
1.- INTRODUCTION TO DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY .
What is development? Development refers to systematic continuities and changes in the
individual that occur between conception and death. It is everything that happens in our lives.
What is a developmentalist? It is any scholar who seeks to understand the developmental
process.
What causes us to develop? To grasp the meaning of development , we must understand two
important processes that underlie developmental change: maturation and learning.
1. Maturation refers to the biological unfolding of the individual according to the
species-typical biological inheritance and an individual person’s biological inheritance.
2. Learning is the process through which our experiences produce relatively permanent
changes in our feelings, thoughts and behaviors. This means that we change in response
to our environments.
Normative vs idiographic development
• Normative development: typical patterns of change. Ex: learn to write at 6-7 years of age
• Idiographic development: individual variations of change. Ex: learn to write later than 7
Character development
• A continual and cumulative process: the first 12 years are extremely important years that
set the stage for adolescence and adulthood. But who we are as adults also depends on the
experiences we have later in life and the path of such developmental change stretches over
onward, through middle age and beyond, culminating in the final change that occurs when we
die. In sum, human development is best described as a continual and cumulative process.
The one constant is change, and the changes that occur at each major phase of life can
have important implications for the future.
2
, • A holistic process: development is not piecemeal but holistic, humans are physical,
cognitive and social beings, and each of these components of self depend, in part, on
changes taking place in other areas of development.
• Plasticity: refers for a capacity for change in response for positive or negative life
experiences. The course of development can change abruptly if important aspects of one’s
life change. It is indeed fortunate that human development is so plastic, for children that have
horrible starts can often be helped to overcome their deficiencies (resilience).
• Historical/Cultural context: no single portrait of development is accurate for all cultures,
social classes, or racial and ethnic groups. Each culture, subculture, and social class
transmits a particular pattern of beliefs, values, customs and skills to its younger generations,
land the content of this cultural socialization has a strong influence on the attributes and
competencies that individuals display. Development is also influenced by societal changes:
historical events such as wars, technological breakthroughs and social causes such as the
gay and lesbian rights movements. So we should not assume that developmental patterns
observed in North American or European children are optimal or even that they characterize
persons developing in other eras or cultural settings. Only by adopting a historical/cultural
perspective can we fully appreciate the richness and diversity of human development.
2.- MAIN THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES .
Psychodynamic perspective
The psychodynamic perspective suggests that behavior is motivated by inner forces, memories,
and conflicts that are generally beyond people’s awareness and control. It focuses on the
unconscious determinants of behavior (Freud)
Behavioral/Psychosocial perspective
Contrary to Freud, Eric Erickson proposed a psychosocial approach and suggested that our
social interaction with others, the society, and culture in which we evolve challenge us and shape
us. The behavioral perspective focuses on observable behavior and environmental stimuli.
Behaviorists believe that people are affected by the environment to which they happen to be
exposed. The cognitive and humanistic perspectives look more at what people think than what
they do.
Cognitive perspective
Piaget proposed that all people pass through a fixed sequence of universal stages of cognitive
development. His focus was on the change in cognition that occurs as children move from one
stage to the next
Humanistic perspective
The humanistic perspective points to other concepts, such as congruence and self-actualization,
and has helped describe important aspects of human behavior. Humanistic psychology is a
perspective that emphasizes looking at the whole individual and stresses concepts such as
free will, self-efficacy, and self-actualization. Rather than concentrating on dysfunction,
humanistic psychology strives to help people fulfill their potential and maximize their well-being.
3
AND LEARNING
Jaione Mainz Betelu
2nd Semester - Psychology
Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education
,1
, CHAPTER 1: FOUNDATIONS AND
MAIN THEORETICAL APPROACHES
TO DEVELOPMENT PSYCHOLOGY
1.- INTRODUCTION TO DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY .
What is development? Development refers to systematic continuities and changes in the
individual that occur between conception and death. It is everything that happens in our lives.
What is a developmentalist? It is any scholar who seeks to understand the developmental
process.
What causes us to develop? To grasp the meaning of development , we must understand two
important processes that underlie developmental change: maturation and learning.
1. Maturation refers to the biological unfolding of the individual according to the
species-typical biological inheritance and an individual person’s biological inheritance.
2. Learning is the process through which our experiences produce relatively permanent
changes in our feelings, thoughts and behaviors. This means that we change in response
to our environments.
Normative vs idiographic development
• Normative development: typical patterns of change. Ex: learn to write at 6-7 years of age
• Idiographic development: individual variations of change. Ex: learn to write later than 7
Character development
• A continual and cumulative process: the first 12 years are extremely important years that
set the stage for adolescence and adulthood. But who we are as adults also depends on the
experiences we have later in life and the path of such developmental change stretches over
onward, through middle age and beyond, culminating in the final change that occurs when we
die. In sum, human development is best described as a continual and cumulative process.
The one constant is change, and the changes that occur at each major phase of life can
have important implications for the future.
2
, • A holistic process: development is not piecemeal but holistic, humans are physical,
cognitive and social beings, and each of these components of self depend, in part, on
changes taking place in other areas of development.
• Plasticity: refers for a capacity for change in response for positive or negative life
experiences. The course of development can change abruptly if important aspects of one’s
life change. It is indeed fortunate that human development is so plastic, for children that have
horrible starts can often be helped to overcome their deficiencies (resilience).
• Historical/Cultural context: no single portrait of development is accurate for all cultures,
social classes, or racial and ethnic groups. Each culture, subculture, and social class
transmits a particular pattern of beliefs, values, customs and skills to its younger generations,
land the content of this cultural socialization has a strong influence on the attributes and
competencies that individuals display. Development is also influenced by societal changes:
historical events such as wars, technological breakthroughs and social causes such as the
gay and lesbian rights movements. So we should not assume that developmental patterns
observed in North American or European children are optimal or even that they characterize
persons developing in other eras or cultural settings. Only by adopting a historical/cultural
perspective can we fully appreciate the richness and diversity of human development.
2.- MAIN THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES .
Psychodynamic perspective
The psychodynamic perspective suggests that behavior is motivated by inner forces, memories,
and conflicts that are generally beyond people’s awareness and control. It focuses on the
unconscious determinants of behavior (Freud)
Behavioral/Psychosocial perspective
Contrary to Freud, Eric Erickson proposed a psychosocial approach and suggested that our
social interaction with others, the society, and culture in which we evolve challenge us and shape
us. The behavioral perspective focuses on observable behavior and environmental stimuli.
Behaviorists believe that people are affected by the environment to which they happen to be
exposed. The cognitive and humanistic perspectives look more at what people think than what
they do.
Cognitive perspective
Piaget proposed that all people pass through a fixed sequence of universal stages of cognitive
development. His focus was on the change in cognition that occurs as children move from one
stage to the next
Humanistic perspective
The humanistic perspective points to other concepts, such as congruence and self-actualization,
and has helped describe important aspects of human behavior. Humanistic psychology is a
perspective that emphasizes looking at the whole individual and stresses concepts such as
free will, self-efficacy, and self-actualization. Rather than concentrating on dysfunction,
humanistic psychology strives to help people fulfill their potential and maximize their well-being.
3
