Life-Span Development

Outline
• Definition of Development
• Research Methods in Developmental Psychology
• How Do Nature and Nurture Influence
Development?
• Three Domains of Development
• Theories of Development
• Stages of Development
• Biological Theories of Aging
 Definition of Development
• Development refers to the pattern of
continuity and change in human capabilities
that occurs throughout the course of life,
involving both growth and decline.
 Research Methods in Developmental
Psychology
• Cross- Sectional Design. A research design in which a group
of people are assessed on a psychological variable at one
point in time. One problem in cross-sectional design is
cohort effects. Cohort effects are differences between
individuals that stem not necessarily from their ages but
from the historical and social time/period in which they
were born and developed (Schaie, 2009 in King, 2013).
• Longitudinal Study. A research design which assesses the
same participants multiple times over a lengthy period. A
longitudinal study can find out not only whether age groups
differ but also whether the same individuals change with
respect to a particular characteristic as they age.
How Do Nature and Nurture Influence
Development?
• Nature pertains to the individual’s biological inheritance,
especially his or her genes; while nurture refers to the
individual’s environmental and social experiences. Let’s
examine the idea of phenotype (the person’s observable
characteristics). The phenotype shows the contributions of
both nature (genetic heritage) and nurture (environment).
Whether or how the genotype (the individual’s genetic
heritage – the actual genetic material) is expressed in the
phenotype may depend on the environment. For example,
a person might be born with the genes to be the next
Michel Phelps; but in the absence of environmental factors
such as good nutrition, sound medical care, access to a
swimming pool, and superb coaching, that potential might
never be reached.
 Three Domains of Development
• Physical processes involve changes in an individual’s
biological nature. Genes inherited from parents, the
hormonal changes of puberty and menopause, and
changes throughout life in the brain, height, weight,
and motor skills all reflect the developmental role of
biological processes.
• Cognitive processes changes in individual’s thought,
intelligence, and language.
• Socioemotional processes involves changes in an
individual’s relationship with other people, changes in
emotions, and changes in personality.
Theories of Development
Theories of Development
Theories of Development
Theories of Development
 Stages of Development
Prenatal Period begins with conception. Conception occurs when a single
sperm cell from the male merges with the female’s ovum (egg) to produce
a zygote – a single cell with 23 chromosomes from the mother and 23
from the father (King, 2013).
• Germinal Period (weeks 1 and 2): begins with conception. After 1 week
and many cell divisions, the zygote is made up of 100 to 150 cells. By the
end of two weeks, the mass of cells has attached to the uterine wall.
• Embryonic Period (weeks 3 through 8): rate of cell differentiation
intensifies, support system for the cells develop, and the beginnings of
organs appear.
• Fetal period ((months 2 through 9): at 2 months the fetus is the size of the
kidney bean and has already started to move around. At 4 months, the
fetus is 5 inches long and weighs about 5 ounces. At 6 months, the fetus
has grown to a pound and a half. The last three months of pregnancy are
the time when organ functioning increases, and the fetus puts on
considerable weight and size, adding baby fat.
 Stages of Development
Neonatal Period (first two weeks of life)
• The neonate is capable of rooting reflex which enables the baby to take its
mother’s nipple in its mouth and nurse.
• Hearing is fairly good, and they react differently to different colors and tastes
(Santrock, 1998) in Lahey, 2012)
• Vision is still limited, but they can see objects clearly that are 10 to 12 inches from
their face.
Infancy (2 weeks to 2 years)
• Physical development and growth are more rapid during the first year than at any
other time after birth.
• At 2 months, many infants can raise their head than at any other time after birth
• Transition period from reflexive to voluntary movements from 2 to 5 months.
• At 6 months, can roll over from back to front, sit, and begin to crawl; vision is
20/20 and increases to 12 feet during this period; preferred to look at patterned
stimuli
• At age 2, speaking vocabulary of 300 words and speaks in word combinations that
facilitate adults (telegraphic speech)
 Stages of Development
Early Childhood ( 2 to 7 years)
• Young’s child thought is egocentric, or self-centered which simply means that child
is simply not able to see things from another person’s perspective.
• Both positive and negative emotions are fairly well-developed by age 2.
• Engages in solitary play (playing alone) ate age 2 to 5; then replaced gradually by
cooperative play, which involves a cooperative give-and-take type of play (Barnes,
1971 in Lahey, 2012).

Middle Childhood (7 to 11 years)

• They can order objects (seriation) according to size, weight, and other dimensions.
• They understand reversibility of logical operations (e.g. 7+2 =9; to reverse 9-2 =7).
• They understand the concept of conservation (e.g quantity does not change just
because shape or other superficial features have changed).
• Friendship groups, or cliques, also emerge during the concrete operational stage,
and most friendships are with members of the same sex.
 Stages of Development
Adolescence (begins at 10 to 12 ; ends at 18 to 21)
• The signature physical change in adolescence is puberty, a period of rapid skeletal
a nd sexual maturation that occurs mainly in early adolescence.
• Menarche (first menstrual cycle) in girls; first nocturnal emission for boys
• Increase in height and weight but two years earlier for girls than boys
• Concentrations of hormones increase dramatically during puberty (Dorn & Biro,
2011 in King, 2013).
• Testosterone, an androgen, is associated with boys with the development of the
genitals, an increase in height, and voice change.
• Estradiol, an estrogen, is associated in girls with beast, uterine, and skeletal
development
• Earlier development of amygdala, which involves emotion, and the later
development of the prefrontal cortex
• Adolescent egocentrism or the quality of thinking that leads some adolescents to
believe that they are the focus of attention in social situations, to believe that their
problems are unique, to be unusually hypocritical, and to be “pseudostupid.”
 Stages of Development
Early Adulthood (late teens or early twenties to the thirties)
• Peak of physical development during their 20s
• Perceptual speed is at its peak between ages of 20 and 30,
• Better reflexes and are able to respond to sensory input
than at any other time in adulthood (Schaie, 2009 in KIne,
2013)
• Fluid intelligence is higher in early intelligence compared to
middle adulthood (Horn & Catell, in King 2013).
• The challenge of this stage is to enter into committed,
loving relationships withothers that partially replaces the
bonds with parents.
 Stages of Development
Middle Adulthood (40 -60)
• Crystallized intelligence (individual’s
accumulated information and verbal skills is
higher in middle adulthood than early
adulthood(Horn & Catell, in King 2013).
• Age-related changes in vision at 40
• Lose height in middle age as a result of bone
loss in the vertebrae, and many gain weight
(Onwudiwe et al., 2011 in King, 2013).
 Stages of Development
Late Adulthood (60- )
• Number of dimensions of intelligence decline
• Wisdom, expert knowledge about practical aspects of life
improve (Taylor, Bates, & Webster, 2011 in King. 2013).
• Selective optimization with compensation, which means
that older adults match their goals with their current
abilities and compensate for the declines by finding other
ways to do the things they enjoy (Riediger & Freund, 2006
in King, 2013).
• Recent study of older adults revealed that exercise
increased the size of the hippocampus and improved
memory (Erickson et al., 2011 in King, 2013)
 Biological Theories of Aging
• Cellular Clock Theory. Leonard Hayflick’sview that cells can
divide a maximum of about 100 times and that as we age,
our cells become less capable of dividing.
• Free Radical Theory. This state that people age because
unstable oxygen molecules known as free radicals are
produced inside their cells. The molecules damage DNA
and other cellular structures. The damage done by free
radicals may lead to range of disorders, including cancer
and arthritis.
• Hormonal Stress Theory. This argues that aging in the
body’s hormonal system can lower resistance to stress and
increase the likelihood of the disease. As individuals age,
the hormones stimulated by stress stay in the bloodstream
longer than is the case for the younger people.