CHAPTER 3: DEVELOPMENTAL

STAGES
ROBERT HAVIGHURST
*Robert J. Havighurst was a professor of
education and human development at the
University of Chicago for more than 4
decades.

*He was a researcher, educator,

administrator, and author who made
contributions in life span developmental
psychology and related fields (Neugarten,
2010).
ROBERT HAVIGHURST
He identified several developmental tasks
associated with adolescent transition. He said that
each tasks plays a significant factor in the overall
sense of self of an adolescent which they carry
with them as they move toward and into young
adulthood.

According to him, there are six stages of

development of an individual throughout his or
her life and each stage has critical developmental
tasks that need to be satisfied to be able to satisfy
the succeeding stages (Cruz and Cruz, 2016).
DEVELOPMENTAL
STAGES
STAGE 1: Infancy and Early Childhood (0-6)

STAGE 2: Middle Childhood (6-13)

STAGE 3: Adolescence (13-18)

STAGE 4: Early Adulthood (19-30)

STAGE 5: Middle Age (30-60)

STAGE 6: Later Maturity (60+)

BLOOPERS IN STAGES OF HUMAN
DEVELOPMENT
BIRTH to 2 years old- “pa-cute-an kuno”
3 to 8 years old- paramihan ng toys
9 to18 years old- pataasan ng grades
19 to 25 years old- padamihan ng jowa
26 to 35 years old- pagandahan/pagwapuhan ng
asawa
36 to 45 years old- palakihan ng income
46 to 55 years old- padamihan ng kabit
56 to 70- padamihan ng sakit
70 and above- pabonggahan ng libing
ROBERT HAVIGHURST

“Developmental Task is a task that arises at

or about a certain period in life. Failure to
achieve these tasks will lead to inability to
perform tasks associated with the next
period or stage in life.”
 Task 1. Achieve a new and more relations
with age-mates of both sexes.
In this age, most of your time is actually
spent with your friends. It is important for
an adolescent to learn to have a smooth
inter-personal relationship with others
regardless of the sex/gender. Thus,
behavioral maturity is necessary in dealing
with others. Behavioral maturity entails that
you need to be able to socialize and
cooperate with your fellow adolescents, to
work with them for a common goal.
 Task 2. Adopt a masculine or feminine
social role
Society leads us to perceive male figure as
strong and assertive while female is weak and
passive. But things are changing as days pass
by and so are we. If you are a boy, it is not
shameful or degrading in your manhood if you
express your feelings or shed tears. If you are a
girl, it is not arrogance or rudeness if you speak
your mind and be assertive. There are
professions that used to be men’s world that is
now being infiltrated by women and vice versa.
What matters is that you know what roles you
want to achieve or your own growth.
 Task 3. Accept changes in one’s physique
You have a vision of what kind of body you want to
look like when you grow up. Some of you are
achieving the body they wish to have while some
others do not. For others, it is difficult to be
comfortable and to accept with their body which
results to negative self-esteem. It is normal for a
teenager to be conscious of your physical
appearance. You have to understand and accept that
your self-worth is more important than your
physique. You must take into consideration good
nutrition, exercise and healthy living. You must be
on guard against diseases and keep away from bad
vices such as taking drugs, drinking alcohol and
smoking cigarettes.
 Task 4. Achieve emotional independence
Prior to adolescence, an individual is dependent on their guardians
or parents. Now that you are in your journey to adulthood, you
have to achieve emotional independence. This entails that you have
to carefully analyze options and consequences before exhibiting an
emotion or coming up with a decision. Remember that being
emotionally dependent from parents does not mean that your
dependence on them has to fully lost. There are actually a lot of
things you can start working independently in your life but be
careful not to be disrespectful of your parents and other people.
 Task 5. Develop your personal attitude
toward marriage and family living
In the future, you, may start thinking on establishing
you own family and raise children. You have to
acquire knowledge about entering married life,
building a family and child rearing. Being married is
a responsibility that you need to be prepared of. That
is why it is essential that as early as adolescence, you
have to be aware of such matters. It is not only the
duties and responsibilities of being a husband or a
wife that you need to learn but also being a parent.
Parenthood is not something to be experimented on.
It is something that you need to be prepared even
before children come in your family.
 Task 6. Select and prepare for an
occupation
Ideally, one of the milestones in being an
adolescent is finishing studies. Throughout
one’s adolescence, a person is supposedly
studying, preparing for the future and
improving his abilities, skills and expertise.
You therefore, have to make sure that you
are getting the correct training in relation
to the kind of work or career you are
longing for. You also have to decide
whether to or immediately after senior high
school or pursue further studies in college.
 Task 7. Acquire a set of standards as a
guide to behavior
This task involves identifying principles in life to live by or
selecting models like your parents or teachers to imitate. It also
entails the setting the priorities in life. The process of deciding on
priorities is influenced by the values you get from your family and
by your relationship with people around you.

Be firm to stand on you values and avoid settling for compromise.

Your set of priorities can guide your behavior in choosing what will
give you the most satisfaction in life.
 Task 8. Accept and adopt socially
responsible behavior

To adopt socially responsible behavior, you should take every

opportunity to get involved in various civic activities such as
feeding programs, clean-up drives, youth organizations. Through
your involvements together with your set priorities, you will learn
the values of bayanihan, of being concern to the welfare of other
people. The feeling of empathy will strengthen your social duties
and responsibilities.