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Group 2

Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

BSPT1-2

Principles of Growth and Development – Mechanisms of Heredity

Heredity and Maturation

An individual’s hereditary endowment determined at the time of conception, has a great


influence on his/her biological and psychological characteristics.

Every cell of the body contains a set of biological blueprints. These are contained in
chromosomes, which are composed of a substance known as DNA.

The chromosome pairs split, and each replicates itself so that the full number is restored. Half of
our genetic material comes from our mother and half from our father.

These basic mechanisms explain why persons who are related resemble one another more than
persons who are totally unrelated, and also why the closer the family tie between individuals, the
more similar they tend to be physically.

Heredity is the transmission of traits from parents to offspring. Heredity gives the human
individual a similarity to other organisms and also uniqueness.

Genes are submicroscopic particles in chromosomes. They are the unit carriers of heredity.

What are transmitted through heredity can be changed only by changes in the genes, which is
called mutation.

Human beings inherit physical traits, such as height, general body contour, weight, facial
appearance, texture and distribution of hair. Certain capacities, like intelligence, special talent
and susceptibilities, are also inherited and both have direct and indirect effects on behavior.

Environment

Environment includes all the conditions in the world that influence behavior, growth,
development or life in any way. Environment may be external (air, trees, houses, etc.), internal
(the lymph fluids and blood, etc.), and social (includes the other human beings who in any way
influence us). Human traits and characteristics are determined through the interaction of heredity
and environment.

The relationship between heredity and environment in producing the level of an individual’s
biological, psychological and social development at any given time can be expressed in this
formula:
Herdity X Environment X Time = Development Level

Heredity determines how high a level of development a given environment can bring about in a
given period of time.

Up to the time of birth an organism’s development is mainly a biological growth process steered
by heredity. After birth, learning begins to play a major role in determining new behavior
patterns. Some kinds of development are, however, the result of bodily changes determined by
heredity acting over a period of time. This process is called maturation.

The function of the environment in determining an individual’s developmental behavior is


twofold: (1) the environment supplies the stimuli that set off patterns of response already
prepared by maturation and (2) the environment also provides situations which are conducive to
the person’s learning new patterns or altering old ones. All through life, learning helps shape our
responses. As soon as the infant is born, basic inborn behavior patterns are altered and enriched
through contact with environment.

Heredity and environment are the main determinants of development, but from their interaction
emerges a new and important factor – the individual or the self.

The self is the individual’s own characteristics frame of reference, determining how one will
perceive and react to one’s environment and the extent to which one will use or deny one’s
inherited potentialities.

Maturational Process

From the time of conception up to maturity, the development of an individual shows


characteristics that are typical of the maturation process. Every organ and every system within
the body must mature over a period of time before it is ready to function.

Because of differences brought about by heredity, maturation is not uniform for all individuals.
These are noticeable differences in the rate, pattern, and extent of individual development,
although a general sequence is followed.

The Stages of Development – The Human Infant

Neonate –from birth to 1 month

Infant -1 month to 15 months

Toddler -15 months to 2 ½ years

Preschool Child -2 ½ to 6 years

Child in Middle Years –from 6 to 12 years

Adolescent –from12 to 21 years


Prenatal and Postnatal Development

Cognitive abilities also appear to emerge during the prenatal period. Series of studies were made
where mothers were asked to read a particular story to their unborn child two times each day
during the last six weeks of pregnancy. At the end of that period, the heart rates of each fetus
were measured as recordings of the familiar story and of an unfamiliar story were played. Results
show that the familiar story produced a slight increase. These findings suggest that fetuses could
distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar stories. It appears that even before birth, the ability
to process information may already be present and operating.

Motor Development

Motor refers to movement, such as walking, swimming, grasping, etc. Motor skills appear in a
definite order but at different rates.

Once children master standing, walking alone and the art of getting about, they progress rapidly
to learn more advanced skills like jumping, skipping and running. They develop speed and
accuracy, and begin to coordinate all these skills into more complex activities.

Prehension

Prehension refers to grasping objects. A baby learns to reach before he can grasp, then to grasp
with his palm and fingers before he can grasp with his thumb and fingertips.

Language Development

Language ability depends in part on maturation aside from other factors. Those with a more
stimulating home environment generally make more rapid progress in language development
than those with a poorer environment.

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