Lifespan Development: Ch 1 by Heather Marie Merchant

The People and The Field Chapter 1

Ted and Alice: How did they get to be who they are?

Who We Are and What We Study Lifespan Development: the scien;ﬁc study of human development throughout life ▫  Concep;on, Infancy, Childhood, Adolescence, Emerging Adulthood, and Adulthood ▫  Gerontology

Characteristics of the Life-Span Perspective

Development is Lifelong Ø No age period dominates

development

Development is

Multidimensional Ø Biological/physical dimensions Ø cogni<ve dimensions Ø socioemo<onal dimensions

Development is Multidirectional Ø Some dimensions increase or

decrease in growth

Language development l  Socioemo<onal development l  Cogni<ve development -‐ older adults l

Development is Plastic Ø Plas<city is the capacity for

change

Development is Multidisciplinary Ø Psychologists Ø Sociologists Ø Anthropologists Ø Neuroscien<sts Ø Medical Researchers

Development is Contextual

We are changing beings in a changing world.

Four Contexts of Development Cohort: birth group l

e.g., baby boom cohort

Four Contexts of Development Socioeconomic Status (SES) l

education and income level

Four Contexts of Development Culture l

Collectivist and Individualist

Four Contexts of Development Gender

Normative Age-Graded Influences: biological -‐ environmental events that are similar for age

Normative History-Graded Influences: common for particular generation

Nonnormative Life Events: major impact events on the life of individual

Changing Concep<ons of Childhood Different Ideas: • Tabula Rasa • Original Sin • Innate Goodness

Ø  Emerging l  l

Adulthood: newest life stage

Age 18 to late 20s Time for personal exploration

Changing Concep<ons of Later Life: Adulthood and Old Age Ø  Life l

l

Expectancy

Low before 20th century medical advances Today, 20th century life expectancy revolution!

Ø  New l  l

Stages

Young-old (60s, 70s) Old-old (80s and beyond)

Cohort Changes in Adult and Late Life Ø  Late

20th-Century “Revolution in Lifestyles” l  l

l

Baby boomers come of age (60s-early 70s) Civil Rights; Women’s Movement; Sexual Revolution Positive change: more open society with ability to make new choices at any time of life Negative changes related to economics: single parenthood; poverty

Theories of Development Ø  Nature/Nurture l

Are we shaped by biological/genetic forces or is the environment more influential?

Behaviorism •  Behaviorism: John

Watson and B. F. Skinner ▫  ▫

▫

Nurture is all important! A real science: study observable, measurable responses We behave a certain way because we are reinforced (rewarded) for certain behaviors

Social Learning Theory Ø  Albert l

Bandura

Modeling •  We model people who are nurturant, or involved with us. •  We model those whom we perceive as being like us. l

e.g., At about age 2, gender identification and gender- specific behaviors develop.

How to Housebreak Your Dog

ALachment Theory John Bowlby •  Early life experiences with caregivers shape our personality   Determines whether we become well-adjusted or emotionally impaired adults ▫

Main Focus: “attachment response”   Attachment response is genetically programmed into our species to promote survival   Early attachments affect development

ALachment to a caregiver over the ﬁrst year of life has important consequences: l

l

Posi;ve and secure aPachment results in posi;ve development Nega;ve and insecure aPachment results in problema;c development

Why is it important?

(for development of social rela;onships)

Behavioral Genetics •  Role that hereditary

forces play in individual diﬀerences in behavior: ▫  Twin Studies ▫  Adop;on Studies

Person−Environment Fit Ø

The extent to which the environment is tailored to our biological tendencies and talents

Ø

Main Goal: foster the correct person −environment fit

Ø

Change the environment in order to enhance one’s quality of life

Age-Linked Theories: Freud Ø  Psychoanalytic

Theory l  Analyzes our psyche or “inner life” l  “mothering” during first five years determines adult personality and mental health Ø  Id, Ego, Superego Ø  Age-Linked Stages l  Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency

Psychoanaly<c Development is unconscious and colored by emo<on behavior is a surface characteris<c Freud says, “The child is the father to the man.” id -‐ ins<ncts

ego -‐ execu<ve superego -‐ morality

Adult personality is determined by the way conﬂicts between early sources of pleasure…and the demands of reality are resolved

Id impulsesß-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐-‐àDemands of reality

Psychosexual development erogenous zones oral stage anal stage phallic stage Oedipus Complex latency stage genital stage anatomy is des<ny

Psychosexual development Fixa<ons

Psychosocial Development: Erikson Believed we continue to develop throughout life Exception to Freud’s idea that development ends in adolescence

§  Identified core developmental

tasks, or psychosocial tasks, for each of eight stages from infancy to old age §  Believed that we need to master the task of each previous stage in order to progress to the next

The primary mo<vator for human Erikson behavior is social Psychosocial stages (lifelong) 8 crises must be confronted trust vs mistrust Crises = turning points

autonomy vs shame realize will

physical comfort and

minimal fear

ini<a<ve vs guilt preschool – develop a sense of

responsibility-‐> increases ini<a<ve

industry vs inferiority enthusias<c about learning teachers

iden<ty vs iden<ty confusion adolescence –

ﬁnding out who you are

in<macy vs isola<on forming in<mate

rela<onships

genera<vity vs stagna<on assist the younger genera<on

integrity vs despair restrospec<ve glance at life

The diﬀerence between the theories of development oﬀered by Freud and Erikson? sexual Freud’s theory is psycho________. social Erikson’s is psycho_______.

Psychosocial development

Age-Linked Theories: Piaget Ø  Cognitive-Developmental

Theory

Ø

Qualitatively different stages exist in the way thinking develops (different age groups conceptualize the world in completely different ways). l  Schemas (cognitive structures) l  Assimilation, Accommodation l  Studies focused on children

Cognitive Development: Piaget Believed that we grow mentally through assimilation, fitting information from the outside world into our “schemas” (or current mental capacities), and accommodation, enlarging our capacities to fit in this “data” from the world

B’s Ecological Theory

5 Environmental Systems:

Microsystem Mesosystem Exosystem Macrosystem Chronosystem

The Microsystem Ø  Where you live Ø  Includes: family, peers, school, and

neighborhood Ø  The most direct interac<ons with social agents take place Ø  The individual helps construct the seengs

The Mesosystem Ø Rela<ons between microsystems or

connec<ons between contexts Ø Examples:

The rela<on of family experiences to school experiences l  The rela<on of family experiences to peer experiences l

The Exosystem Ø  When experiences in another social seeng

—in which the individual does not have an ac<ve role— inﬂuence what the individual experiences in an immediate context Ø  Example: l  Work experiences may aﬀect a woman’s rela<onship with her family, due to travel and increased job responsibili<es

The Macrosystem Ø Culture that you live in Ø Culture refers to the behavior paLerns,

beliefs, and all other products of a group of people that are passed on from genera<on to genera<on

The Chronosystem Ø The paLerning of environmental

events and transi<ons over the life-‐ span -‐ includes sociohistorical circumstances Ø Example: l

The eﬀects of divorce on children vary based on the <me since the divorce and the gender of the children

Activity: Choosing A Partner What are the most important things for choosing a partner? Choose 5: ______ educa<on ______ family character ______ family background ______ looks ______ income or poten<al income/ wealth ______ job ______ sense of humor ______ religion ______ politeness ______ age ______ things in common ______ bad habits ______ personal philosophy/ character ______ future goals and plans What are some things that ‘turn you on’ (excite you) in a date? What are some things that ‘turn you oﬀ’ (that you dislike) in a date? Where do you like to go on a date? What do you like to do on a date? What was your best date that you can remember? What was the worst date you can remember?

Some Careers in Life-‐Span Development

Ø

Audiologist Child psychologist/psychiatrist Child welfare worker College/University professor Day-‐care supervisor Early childhood educator Elementary/Secondary school teacher Geriatric nurse or physician Geropsychologist

Ø

Home health aide

Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø

Some Careers in Life-‐Span Development (con’t) Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø  Ø

Medical social worker Pediatrician Pediatric nurse Physical therapist Day-‐care supervisor Preschool/Kindergarten teacher Recrea<onal therapist Rehab counselor School psychologist

Why Study Life-‐Span? Ø  You can gain insight into your own life. Ø  You may be a parent or a teacher some day. Ø  Life-‐span development is linked with many

diﬀerent areas of psychology. Ø  Because you have to, to pass the class!