Outline of the Developmental Psychology

Outline of the Developmental Psychology

Introduction to Developmental Psychology

Developmental psychology focuses on how people change and remain the same over time, from conception to death.
Lifespan development encompasses the entire lifespan and considers changes in physical, cognitive, social and emotional domains.
Key processes in the developmental journey are maturation, learning, socialisation and enculturation.

Key Concepts and Theories

Nature vs nurture debate: Discussion on whether genetic inheritance (nature) or environmental factors (nurture) have more influence on development.
Continuity vs discontinuity debate: Considers whether development is a gradual, continuous process or a sequence of distinct stages.
Stability vs change debate: Focuses on whether we become older renditions of our early experiences or if we develop into someone different as we age.

Methods of Study

Longitudinal studies involve studying the same group of individuals over an extended period of time.
Cross-sectional studies observe people of different ages at the same point in time.
Sequential studies combine cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches.

Importance of Developmental Psychology

Helps in understanding human behaviour by providing insights into how people grow, adapt, and change.
Aids professionals, like teachers and therapists, to create strategies that support human development and improve quality of life.

Major Theories

Freud’s Psychosexual Stages

Proposed that development in early life is driven by sexual energy, or libido.
Identified five stages: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages

Believe that development occurs throughout the lifespan.
Suggested eight stages of identity development based on facing and resolving certain conflicts.

Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory

Theorized that children progress through four stages of cognitive development: Sensorimotor, Preoperational, Concrete operational, and Formal operational stages.
Each stage is characterised by different ways of thinking and understanding the world.

Key Topics

Attachment

Attachment theory: Bowlby’s theory, which postulates that children have a biological instinct to form an attachment with a caregiver for survival.
Types of attachment: Identified by Ainsworth - secure, insecure-avoidant and insecure-resistant.

Theory of Mind

Refers to the understanding that others have thoughts, feelings, and perspectives that may be different from one’s own. Typically develops around age of 4 to 5.

Moral Development

Kohlberg’s stages of moral development: pre-conventional, conventional and post-conventional stages, each characterised by different motivations for moral behaviour.

Recognizing and understanding feelings and emotions, learning to manage them, and developing and maintaining relationships with others are all part of social and emotional development.

Gender Development

Understanding of the development of gender identity and roles, and theories put forth by Kohlberg, Freud, and the Gender-schema theory.