Instructional Materials: 1.2 The Stages of Development and Developmental Tasks

GREEN VALLEY COLLEGE FOUNDATION, INC.
Document Code:
Km.2, Bo.2, Gensan Drive., Koronadal City South Cotabato FM-DEA-031
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS Issue No: 01 Revision No: 00
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION Effectivity Date: June 4, 2020
Page No: Page 1 of 1
1.2 The Stages of Development and Developmental Tasks
Robert J. Havighurst was born in June 1900 in De Pere, Wisconsin, United States. He was a chemist
and physicist, educator and experts on human development and aging. He was the proponent of the six (6)
developmental tasks.
Havighurst (1972) defined developmental task as one that “arises at a certain period in our life, the
successful achievement of which leads to happiness and success with later task while failure leads to
unhappiness, social disapproval and difficulty with later tasks.
The following are the Stages of Development with corresponding Developmental Tasks according to
Havighurst.
Stages of Development Developmental Tasks

Infancy and Early Childhood  Learning to walk
(0-5 years old)  Learning to take solid foods
 Learning to talk
 Learning to control the elimination of body wastes
 Learning sex differences and sexual modesty
 Acquiring concepts and language to describe social
and physical reality
 Readiness for reading
 Learning to distinguish right from wrong and
developing a conscience
Middle Childhood  Learning physical skills necessary for ordinary games
(6-12 years old)  Building a wholesome attitude towards oneself
 Learning to get along with age mates
 Learning an appropriate sex role
 Developing fundamental skills in reading, writing and
calculating
 Developing concepts necessary for everyday living
 Developing conscience, morality and a scale of
values
 Achieving personal independence
 Developing attitudes towards society
Adolescence  Achieving mature relations with both sexes

(13-18 years old)  Achieving a masculine or feminine social role
 Accepting one’s physique
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 Achieving emotional independence of adults

 Preparing for marriage and family life
 Preparing for an economic career
 Acquiring values and an ethical system to guide
behavior
 Desiring and achieving socially responsible behavior
Early Adulthood  Selecting a mate
(19-29 years old)  Learning to live with a partner
 Starting a family
 Rearing children
 Managing a home
 Starting an occupation
 Assuming civic responsibility
Middle Adulthood  Helping teenage children to become happy and
(30-60 years old) responsible adults
 Achieving social and civic responsibility
 Satisfactory career achievement
 Developing adult leisure time activities
 Relating to one’s spouse as a person
 Accepting physiological changes of middle age
 Adjusting to aging parents
Late Maturity  Adjusting to decreasing strength and health
(over 60 years old)  Adjusting to retirement and reduced income
 Adjusting to death of spouse
 Establishing relations with one’s own age group
 Meeting social and civic obligations
 Establishing satisfactory living quarters.
Table 1. Havighurst Six (6) Developmental Tasks
Dr. John W. Santrock in 2002 cited eight (8) developmental stages as described below.
1. Prenatal period (from conception to birth). In prenatal period, conception occurs and
development begins. It involves growth from a single cell to an organism complex with brain and
behavioral capabilities. Prenatal period has three stages namely: germinal stage (0-2 weeks)
embryonic stage (3-8 weeks) and fetal stage (9weeks-birth).
2. Infancy (from birth to 18-24 months). In this stage, an infant may exhibit a full dependence on
adults. Psychological activities such as language acquisition, symbolic thought, sensorimotor
coordination, and social interaction are just developing.
3. Early childhood (end of infancy to 5-6 years). These are the preschool years. Children at this
age begins to learn become more independent and can take care of themselves. They also
develop skills necessary for schooling like learning alphabets, numbers, shapes, colors and
others.
4. Middle and late childhood (6 to 11 years of age). The fundamental skills of reading, writing and
arithmetic are mastered. The child is formally exposed to the larger world and its culture.
Achievement becomes a more central theme of the child’s world and self-control increases.
5. Adolescence (10-12 years of age ending up to 18-22 years of age). Physical changes occur such
as changes in body weight and height, body shape, and the development of sexual
characteristics such as enlargement of breast for girls, deepening of the voice for boys, and
development of pubic and facial hair. The search for independence and identity are prominent.
Thought is more logical, abstract and idealistic. More time is spent outside of the family.
6. Early Adulthood (from late teens or early 20’s lasting through the 30’s). In this stage, one focuses
more on establishing a career, selecting a partner, starting a family and raising up children.
7. Middle Adulthood (40 to 60 years of age). This is the time of intensifying personal and social
responsibilities; assisting the next generation in becoming competent and mature individuals;
and achieving and maintaining a satisfied career.
8. Late Adulthood (60s and above). It is the time for adjustment to decreasing strength and health,
retirement and new social roles.

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GREEN VALLEY COLLEGE FOUNDATION, INC.

1.2 The Stages of Development and Developmental Tasks

Stages of Development Developmental Tasks

Adolescence  Achieving mature relations with both sexes

 Achieving emotional independence of adults

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