Developmental Psychology
Understanding Human Development
What is development?
Development cre𝘧ers cto cthe csystematic cchanges cand ccontinuities cthat cindividuals
cexperience c𝘧rom cconception cto cdeath. cThese cchanges cencompass cphysical, ccognitive, cand
cpsychosocial cdomains cand coccur cin can corderly cand ccumulative cmanner, cmeaning ceach
cstage cbuilds cupon cprevious cones.
Goals co𝘧 cstudying chuman cdevelopment
1. Description:
o Objective: cTo cobserve cand cdocument chow cpeople cchange cover ctime.
o Example: cRecording cthe caverage cage cat cwhich cchildren cstart cwalking cor ctalking.
2. Prediction:
o Objective: cTo cidenti𝘧y c𝘧actors cthat ccan canticipate c𝘧uture cdevelopmental
coutcomes.
o Example: cPredicting cacademic csuccess cbased con cearly clanguage cskills.
3. Explanation:
o Objective: cTo cunderstand cthe cmechanisms cand creasons cbehind
cdevelopmental cchanges.
o Example: cExplaining cwhy cchildren cwith csecure cattachment ctend cto chave
cbetter csocial cskills.
4. Optimization:
o Objective: cTo capply cknowledge cto cimprove cdevelopmental coutcomes cand
cenhance cwell-being.
o Example: cDesigning ceducational cprograms cthat csupport ccognitive cdevelopment.
,Central cIssues cin cDevelopmental cpsychology
1. Nature cand cNurture
Nature cvs. cNurture cdebates cthe crelative ccontributions co𝘧 cbiological cand cenvironmental
c𝘧actors cto chuman cdevelopment.
- Biological cFactors c(Heredity): cThis cperspective cargues cthat cgenetic cmakeup cplays ca
csigni𝘧icant crole cin cshaping can cindividual’s ctraits, cbehaviours, cand cdevelopment.
cFor cexample, cgenetic cpredispositions ccan cin𝘧luence cphysical ccharacteristics,
cintelligence, cand ceven caspects co𝘧 cpersonality.
- Environmental cFactors c(Social cIn𝘧luences, cCulture): cThis cviewpoint cemphasizes
cthe cimpact co𝘧 cthe cenvironment, cincluding cupbringing, ceducation, csocial
cinteractions, cand ccultural ccontext. cEnvironmental cin𝘧luences ccan cshape
cbehaviours, cbelie𝘧s, cand cskills cthrough clearning cand cexperience.
- Equally cImportant cContributions co𝘧 cBoth: cMost ccontemporary cpsychologists cagree
cthat cdevelopment cis cthe cresult co𝘧 can cintricate cinteraction cbetween cgenetic cand
cenvironmental c𝘧actors. cThis cperspective, cknown cas cthe cinteractionist capproach,
csuggests cthat cwhile cgenetics cmay cset ccertain cpotentials cor climitations,
cenvironmental c𝘧actors ccan csigni𝘧icantly cin𝘧luence chow cthese cgenetic cpotentials care
cexpressed.
Example: cBias cin cSouth cA𝘧rican cDevelopmental cPsychology cpre cWW2
“A𝘧rican cchildren conly c50% cas cmentally ce𝘧𝘧icient cas cwhites c…. cTheir cschooling
cshould cbe cdesigned cto csuit ctheir cmentality.” c(Loram,1923)
“School cunder-achievement cin cpoor cwhite cchildren cis ca cresult co𝘧 cpoor cnutrition
cand ceducation… cimprove caccess cto ceducation, cand cimplement cschool c𝘧eeding.”
c(Carnegie cCommission, c1932)
,2. Continuity cand cDiscontinuity
Continuity cvs. cDiscontinuity cexamines cthe cnature co𝘧 cdevelopmental cchanges cover cthe
cli𝘧espan.
- Gradual cand cQuantitative cChanges: cThis cview, cassociated cwith cthe ccontinuity
cperspective, cposits cthat cdevelopment cis ca csmooth, ccontinuous cprocess cwhere
cchanges care cgradual cand ccumulative. cSkills cand cbehaviours cimprove cincrementally,
cmuch clike cthe cgradual cincrease cin cheight cover cchildhood.
- Abrupt, cQualitative, cand cStage-like cChanges: cThis cdiscontinuity cperspective csuggests
cthat cdevelopment coccurs cin cdistinct cstages, ceach ccharacterized cby cqualitative
cdi𝘧𝘧erences cin cbehaviour. cMajor ctheorists clike cJean cPiaget cand cErik cErikson
cproposed cstage ctheories, cwhere cindividuals cmove cthrough cspeci𝘧ic cstages cin ca
c𝘧ixed csequence, csuch cas cPiaget’s cstages co𝘧 ccognitive cdevelopment cor cErikson’s
cpsychosocial cstages.
- Sometimes cGradual, cSometimes cStage-like: cThis cperspective cacknowledges cthat
csome caspects co𝘧 cdevelopment cmay cbe ccontinuous cwhile cothers cmay cinvolve
cdistinct cstages. cFor cinstance, clanguage cacquisition ccan cshow cboth cgradual
cimprovement cin cvocabulary cand cdistinct cstages co𝘧 cgrammatical cdevelopment.
Early cDevelopment cand cLater cBehaviour:
- Closely cConnected: cThis cview cholds cthat cearly cexperiences cand cdevelopmental
cmilestones chave ca csigni𝘧icant cand clasting cimpact con clater cbehaviour cand coutcomes.
cAttachment ctheory, c𝘧or cexample, csuggests cthat cearly crelationships cwith ccaregivers
ccan cshape c𝘧uture csocial cand cemotional cdevelopment.
- Largely cUnrelated: cSome ctheories cargue cthat cwhile cearly cdevelopment cis cimportant,
clater cexperiences ccan csigni𝘧icantly creshape cand cin𝘧luence can cindividual’s cbehaviour
cand coutcomes. cThis cperspective cemphasizes cthe cplasticity co𝘧 cdevelopment cand cthe
cpotential c𝘧or cchange cand cadaptation cthroughout cli𝘧e.
, 3. Universal cand cContext-Speci𝘧ic cDevelopment
Universal cvs. cContext-Speci𝘧ic cDevelopment cexplores cwhether cdevelopment c𝘧ollows ca
ccommon ctrajectory c𝘧or call cpeople cor cvaries cacross cdi𝘧𝘧erent ccontexts.
- Universal cDevelopmental cPath: cThis cview cposits cthat cthere care ccommon cstages cor
csequences co𝘧 cdevelopment cthat call chumans c𝘧ollow, cregardless co𝘧 ccultural cor
cenvironmental cdi𝘧𝘧erences. cFor cexample, cPiaget’s cstages co𝘧 ccognitive cdevelopment
csuggest cthat call cchildren cgo cthrough csimilar cstages co𝘧 ccognitive cgrowth.
- Context-Speci𝘧ic cDevelopment: cThis cperspective cargues cthat cdevelopment cis
cheavily cin𝘧luenced cby ccultural, csocial, cand cenvironmental ccontexts, cleading cto
cunique cdevelopmental cpaths. cVygotsky’s csociocultural ctheory cemphasizes cthe
crole co𝘧 csocial cinteractions cand ccultural ctools cin cshaping ccognitive
cdevelopment, csuggesting cthat cdevelopmental cprocesses ccan cvary cwidely cacross
cdi𝘧𝘧erent ccultures.
Today’s cli𝘧espan cperspective
Development cis cli𝘧elong
Development cis cmultiply cin𝘧luenced
Understanding cdevelopment crequires cmultiple cdisciplines
Development cis cmultidirectional
Development cis cplastic
Development cis cembedded cin cmultiple ccontexts
Research cby cA𝘧rican cscholars ctrying cto cunderstand cA𝘧rican cchildren con ctheir cown
cterms cis cstill climited
What cis cdevelopmental ctheory?
A ctheory cis can corganised cset co𝘧 cideas cthat cis cdesigned cto cexplain c(and cmake cpredictions cabout)
cdevelopment.
Understanding Human Development
What is development?
Development cre𝘧ers cto cthe csystematic cchanges cand ccontinuities cthat cindividuals
cexperience c𝘧rom cconception cto cdeath. cThese cchanges cencompass cphysical, ccognitive, cand
cpsychosocial cdomains cand coccur cin can corderly cand ccumulative cmanner, cmeaning ceach
cstage cbuilds cupon cprevious cones.
Goals co𝘧 cstudying chuman cdevelopment
1. Description:
o Objective: cTo cobserve cand cdocument chow cpeople cchange cover ctime.
o Example: cRecording cthe caverage cage cat cwhich cchildren cstart cwalking cor ctalking.
2. Prediction:
o Objective: cTo cidenti𝘧y c𝘧actors cthat ccan canticipate c𝘧uture cdevelopmental
coutcomes.
o Example: cPredicting cacademic csuccess cbased con cearly clanguage cskills.
3. Explanation:
o Objective: cTo cunderstand cthe cmechanisms cand creasons cbehind
cdevelopmental cchanges.
o Example: cExplaining cwhy cchildren cwith csecure cattachment ctend cto chave
cbetter csocial cskills.
4. Optimization:
o Objective: cTo capply cknowledge cto cimprove cdevelopmental coutcomes cand
cenhance cwell-being.
o Example: cDesigning ceducational cprograms cthat csupport ccognitive cdevelopment.
,Central cIssues cin cDevelopmental cpsychology
1. Nature cand cNurture
Nature cvs. cNurture cdebates cthe crelative ccontributions co𝘧 cbiological cand cenvironmental
c𝘧actors cto chuman cdevelopment.
- Biological cFactors c(Heredity): cThis cperspective cargues cthat cgenetic cmakeup cplays ca
csigni𝘧icant crole cin cshaping can cindividual’s ctraits, cbehaviours, cand cdevelopment.
cFor cexample, cgenetic cpredispositions ccan cin𝘧luence cphysical ccharacteristics,
cintelligence, cand ceven caspects co𝘧 cpersonality.
- Environmental cFactors c(Social cIn𝘧luences, cCulture): cThis cviewpoint cemphasizes
cthe cimpact co𝘧 cthe cenvironment, cincluding cupbringing, ceducation, csocial
cinteractions, cand ccultural ccontext. cEnvironmental cin𝘧luences ccan cshape
cbehaviours, cbelie𝘧s, cand cskills cthrough clearning cand cexperience.
- Equally cImportant cContributions co𝘧 cBoth: cMost ccontemporary cpsychologists cagree
cthat cdevelopment cis cthe cresult co𝘧 can cintricate cinteraction cbetween cgenetic cand
cenvironmental c𝘧actors. cThis cperspective, cknown cas cthe cinteractionist capproach,
csuggests cthat cwhile cgenetics cmay cset ccertain cpotentials cor climitations,
cenvironmental c𝘧actors ccan csigni𝘧icantly cin𝘧luence chow cthese cgenetic cpotentials care
cexpressed.
Example: cBias cin cSouth cA𝘧rican cDevelopmental cPsychology cpre cWW2
“A𝘧rican cchildren conly c50% cas cmentally ce𝘧𝘧icient cas cwhites c…. cTheir cschooling
cshould cbe cdesigned cto csuit ctheir cmentality.” c(Loram,1923)
“School cunder-achievement cin cpoor cwhite cchildren cis ca cresult co𝘧 cpoor cnutrition
cand ceducation… cimprove caccess cto ceducation, cand cimplement cschool c𝘧eeding.”
c(Carnegie cCommission, c1932)
,2. Continuity cand cDiscontinuity
Continuity cvs. cDiscontinuity cexamines cthe cnature co𝘧 cdevelopmental cchanges cover cthe
cli𝘧espan.
- Gradual cand cQuantitative cChanges: cThis cview, cassociated cwith cthe ccontinuity
cperspective, cposits cthat cdevelopment cis ca csmooth, ccontinuous cprocess cwhere
cchanges care cgradual cand ccumulative. cSkills cand cbehaviours cimprove cincrementally,
cmuch clike cthe cgradual cincrease cin cheight cover cchildhood.
- Abrupt, cQualitative, cand cStage-like cChanges: cThis cdiscontinuity cperspective csuggests
cthat cdevelopment coccurs cin cdistinct cstages, ceach ccharacterized cby cqualitative
cdi𝘧𝘧erences cin cbehaviour. cMajor ctheorists clike cJean cPiaget cand cErik cErikson
cproposed cstage ctheories, cwhere cindividuals cmove cthrough cspeci𝘧ic cstages cin ca
c𝘧ixed csequence, csuch cas cPiaget’s cstages co𝘧 ccognitive cdevelopment cor cErikson’s
cpsychosocial cstages.
- Sometimes cGradual, cSometimes cStage-like: cThis cperspective cacknowledges cthat
csome caspects co𝘧 cdevelopment cmay cbe ccontinuous cwhile cothers cmay cinvolve
cdistinct cstages. cFor cinstance, clanguage cacquisition ccan cshow cboth cgradual
cimprovement cin cvocabulary cand cdistinct cstages co𝘧 cgrammatical cdevelopment.
Early cDevelopment cand cLater cBehaviour:
- Closely cConnected: cThis cview cholds cthat cearly cexperiences cand cdevelopmental
cmilestones chave ca csigni𝘧icant cand clasting cimpact con clater cbehaviour cand coutcomes.
cAttachment ctheory, c𝘧or cexample, csuggests cthat cearly crelationships cwith ccaregivers
ccan cshape c𝘧uture csocial cand cemotional cdevelopment.
- Largely cUnrelated: cSome ctheories cargue cthat cwhile cearly cdevelopment cis cimportant,
clater cexperiences ccan csigni𝘧icantly creshape cand cin𝘧luence can cindividual’s cbehaviour
cand coutcomes. cThis cperspective cemphasizes cthe cplasticity co𝘧 cdevelopment cand cthe
cpotential c𝘧or cchange cand cadaptation cthroughout cli𝘧e.
, 3. Universal cand cContext-Speci𝘧ic cDevelopment
Universal cvs. cContext-Speci𝘧ic cDevelopment cexplores cwhether cdevelopment c𝘧ollows ca
ccommon ctrajectory c𝘧or call cpeople cor cvaries cacross cdi𝘧𝘧erent ccontexts.
- Universal cDevelopmental cPath: cThis cview cposits cthat cthere care ccommon cstages cor
csequences co𝘧 cdevelopment cthat call chumans c𝘧ollow, cregardless co𝘧 ccultural cor
cenvironmental cdi𝘧𝘧erences. cFor cexample, cPiaget’s cstages co𝘧 ccognitive cdevelopment
csuggest cthat call cchildren cgo cthrough csimilar cstages co𝘧 ccognitive cgrowth.
- Context-Speci𝘧ic cDevelopment: cThis cperspective cargues cthat cdevelopment cis
cheavily cin𝘧luenced cby ccultural, csocial, cand cenvironmental ccontexts, cleading cto
cunique cdevelopmental cpaths. cVygotsky’s csociocultural ctheory cemphasizes cthe
crole co𝘧 csocial cinteractions cand ccultural ctools cin cshaping ccognitive
cdevelopment, csuggesting cthat cdevelopmental cprocesses ccan cvary cwidely cacross
cdi𝘧𝘧erent ccultures.
Today’s cli𝘧espan cperspective
Development cis cli𝘧elong
Development cis cmultiply cin𝘧luenced
Understanding cdevelopment crequires cmultiple cdisciplines
Development cis cmultidirectional
Development cis cplastic
Development cis cembedded cin cmultiple ccontexts
Research cby cA𝘧rican cscholars ctrying cto cunderstand cA𝘧rican cchildren con ctheir cown
cterms cis cstill climited
What cis cdevelopmental ctheory?
A ctheory cis can corganised cset co𝘧 cideas cthat cis cdesigned cto cexplain c(and cmake cpredictions cabout)
cdevelopment.
