Chapter 1 Flashcards
(42 cards)
What is Development?
The systematic changes over the lifespan - these include gains, loss or neutral changes in physical, cognitive and psychosocial functioning (where the development of one functioning affects others).
What is aging?
It is not just growth in childhood and biological aging (decline) in adulthood - its both gain and losses (such as losing old abilities when gaining new ones in a young age and intelligence in older people). Although biological aging overall can be seen in a gain-stability-loss model.
What is the relationship between development and aging?
Both involve gains and losses in the lifespan of an individual. Aging is a part of development.
How has development been impacted historically?
- Starting in the 17th century, children came to be seen as innocents
- In the late 19th century, adolescence emerged as a distinct phase
- In the 20th century, our society recognised emerging adulthood (most recent after WW2 as jobs became more complex and students went to uni)
- In the 20th century, a middle- aged “empty nest” period was determined
- In the 20th century, old age was characterised by retirement.
What is an age grade? How does it affect development?
Socially defined age groups in a society which are assigned different statuses, roles, privileges and responsibilities. They can by defined by culture, subculture and historical periods and affect the development of individuals by giving them these different tasks. A transition of one age grade to another is a “rite of passage.”
What is an age norm? How does it affect development?
The expectations of society on what people should or should not do at different points in their life span. They can by defined by culture, subculture and historical periods and affect the development of individuals by having different expectations at different ages.
What is a social clock? How does it affect development?
It is a person’s sense of when things should be done and when they are ahead of or behind the “schedule” dictated by age norms. Just as how age norms are impacted by different factors, so is the social clock - which determines development by socially making people start or stop taking actions.
What are the 7 messages of life-span perspective?
Developed by Paul Baltes, it suggests that development:
1. occurs throughout the life span
2. can take many different directions
3. involves gains and interlinked losses at every age
4. is characterized by plasticity
5. is affected by its historical and cultural context
6. is influenced by multiple interacting causal factors
7. can best be understood if scholars from multiple disciplines join forces to study it.
In Baltes’s life-span perspective, what is meant by” development occurs throughout the life span?”
Development isn’t just children forming into adults, it involves changes throughout lifespan and that development in any period of life needs to be seen in the context of the WHOLE life.
In Baltes’s life-span perspective, what is meant by” development can take many different directions ?”
He meant that it is multidirectional, not just towards mature functioning. Different aspects of human functioning have different trajectories of change and peak at different times.
In Baltes’s life-span perspective, what is meant by” development involves gains and interlinked losses at every age?”
It suggests that there is gain and loss in each phase of life and that gain inevitably brings a loss of some kind and vice versa.
In Baltes’s life-span perspective, what is meant by” development is characterized by plasticity?”
Plasticity is the capacity to change in response to experience, positive or negative. Development can be damaged by a deprived environment or optimized by a rich one. Even people in old age can enhance cognitive abilities with enough mental/physical excercise.
In Baltes’s life-span perspective, what is meant by” development is affected by its historical and cultural context?”
That historical and cultural contexts impact the development, not only of the people who lived through it, but also in the generations after them
In Baltes’s life-span perspective, what is meant by” development is influenced by multiple interacting causal factors?”
It suggests that human development is the product of many interacting causes both inside and outside a person, between a changing person and their changing world.
In Baltes’s life-span perspective, what is meant by” development can best be understood if scholars from multiple disciplines join forces to study it?”
Since human development is influenced by a multitude of factors, multiple disciplines and perspectives must come together to give a full picture on development.
How did the study of human development begin?
The study of human development began with the baby biographies written by Charles Darwin and others and the questionnaires of G. Stanley Hall - founder of developmental psychology
What is a theory for human development and what makes a good theory?
A theory of human development organizes facts and explains development; a good theory should be falsifiable and supported by data.
What are the three major issues addressed by theories of human development?
- Nature-Nurture
- Universality-Context Specificity
- Continuity-Discontinuity
- Activity-Passivity
What is the issue of Nature-Nurture when is comes to development theories?
The issue describes whether development is primarily from the product of genes, biology and maturation or of experience, learning and social influence. Generally, it is the complex interplay of both that lead to developmental changes - with nature affecting nurture and vice versa - so we can’t differentiate them.
What is the issue of Universality-Context Specificity when is comes to development theories?
The issue describes whether development is similar from person to person and form culture to culture or do pathways of development vary depending on social context. Other theorists believe that human development is more varied since it is influenced by environmental and contextual factors. Unlike most other theories, time of measurement is important to determine gradualism/other.
What is the issue of Continuity-Discontinuity when is comes to development theories?
Th issue described whether humans change gradually and in quantitative ways or progress through qualitatively different stages (abrupt) and develop very different competencies and characteristics as they get older. It is two different concepts: gradual change and if there is change from characteristics earlier in life.
What are the 5 theoretical perspectives that dominate the study of development?
- Evolutionary
- Psychoanalytic
- Learning
- Cognitive- developmental
- Bioecological systems theories.
What is the theoretical perspective of evolutionists?
Developed by Darwin, it suggests that human development and behaviour reflect a genetic makeup that evolved since it aided ancestors in adapting to their environment. It considers issues such as N-N, C-D (sensitive periods) and emphasises universal traits.
What is the theoretical perspective of psychoanalytics?
Developed by Freud and Erikson, it suggests that humans progress through universal stages of development with inner psychic conflicts. Freud suggested psychosexual development and introduced the idea that early childhood affects adult life - Erikson extended developmental conflicts through adulthood than childhood such as trust vs. mistrust in babies with/without needs met and storm of adolescence period. It considers issues such as N-N, D (stages that carryover from early to late personality), universal emphasis by Freud and attention to cultural differences by Erikson.
