Lifespan Development Chapter 1 PDF

Chapter 1: Introduction to Lifespan Development Lifespan Development: A Psychological Perspective By Martha Lally and Suzanne Valentine-French (Published 2017) In this chapter:  The lifespan perspective  Periods of development  Theories of development  Research methods...

Chapter 1: Introduction to Lifespan Development Lifespan Development: A Psychological Perspective By Martha Lally and Suzanne Valentine-French (Published 2017) In this chapter:  The lifespan perspective  Periods of development  Theories of development  Research methods and issues  Types of research studies  Ethical issues What is developmental psychology?  Scientific study of how people change  Multiple areas (cognition, emotional control, etc.)  Also concerned with what causes changes  May focus on specific age group or entire lifespan  May also look at how people don’t change Key questions  Qualitative or quantitative differences?  Do children think differently than adults or just have less knowledge?  Continuous or discontinuous?  Is change gradual or marked by distinct stages?  Nature or nurture?  Is development innate or affected by experience? Learning objectives: The lifespan perspective  Explain the lifespan perspective and its assumptions about development  Differentiate periods of human development  Explain the issues underlying lifespan development  Identify the historical and contemporary theories impacting lifespan development The lifespan perspective (Baltes, 1987)  Development is lifelong  No one age period is more important than another  Development is multidirectional  Includes both gains and losses  Development is multidimensional  Physical – Body growth, immune function, motor skills  Cognitive – Attention, memory, language, intelligence  Psychosocial – Self-perception, relationships The lifespan perspective (Baltes, 1987) (continued)  Development is multidisciplinary  Involves fields such as biology, sociology, and medicine  Development is characterized by plasticity  Plasticity – Many of our characteristics are malleable and can be changed  Development is multicontextual  Affected by circumstances such as time and socioeconomic status Contexts of development (Baltes, 1987)  Normative age-graded influences  Changes experienced by people in a certain age group (e.g., learning to talk, puberty, retirement)  Normative history-graded influences  Changes experienced by people alive at a certain time (e.g., war, epidemics, economic recession)  Cohort - A group of people born at roughly the same period in a particular society  Non-normative life influences  Individual experiences (e.g., illness, winning the lottery) Table 1.1 Which generation (cohort) are you? Generation Born between … Silent Generation 1928 and 1945 Baby Boomers 1946 and 1964 Generation X 1965 and 1980 Millennials 1980 and later Socioeconomic status  Identifier based on shared levels of education, income, and occupation  People of similar SES are often similar in other ways (e.g., parenting styles, where they live, stressors)  Higher SES associated with more control and less stress  Lower SES associated with poorer health and lower life expectancy due to poor diet, dangerous jobs, lack of medical care, etc. Culture  Totality of shared language, knowledge, material objects, and behavior  Ideas about right and wrong  Social interaction behaviors  Food, music, and activity preferences  Beliefs about achievement and success  Culture is learned from the people around us  Helps members function in their society Culture (continued)  Ethnocentrism – Belief that one’s own culture is superior to other cultures  Cultural relativity  Appreciation for cultural differences  Understanding that cultural practices are best understood from the standpoint of that particular culture Lifespan vs. life expectancy  Lifespan (longevity)  The length of time a species can exist under the most optimal conditions  Species-specific  Life expectancy  Predicted number of years a person born in a particular time period can reasonably expect to live  Affected by behavior, experiences, individual genetic factors Conceptions of age  Chronological age - The number of years since your birth  Biological age – How quickly your body is aging  Psychological age – Psychologically adaptive capacity compared to others of our chronological age  Social age - Based on the social norms of our culture and the expectations our culture has for people of our age group Periods of development  Prenatal – Conception to birth  Infancy and toddlerhood – Birth to 2 years of age  Early childhood – 2 to 6 years of age  Middle childhood – 6 years of age to puberty  Adolescence – From onset of puberty to age 18  Emerging adulthood – 18 to 25 years of age  Early adulthood – 25 to 40 or 45 years of age  Middle adulthood – 40-45 to 60-65 years of age  Late adulthood – Age 65 and older Table 1.2 Age periods of development Age Period Description Prenatal Starts at conception, continues through implantation in the uterine wall by the embryo, and ends at birth. Infancy and Toddlerhood Starts at birth and continues to two years of age Early Childhood Starts at two years of age until six years of age Middle and Late Childhood Starts at six years of age and continues until the onset of puberty Adolescence Starts at the onset of puberty until 18 Emerging Adulthood Starts at 18 until 25 Early Adulthood Starts at 25 until 40-45 Middle Adulthood Starts at 40-45 until 60-65 Late Adulthood Starts at 65 onward Issues in development: Nature and nurture  Question about causes of development – Why are we the way we are?  Nature perspective - Heredity plays the most important role in causing a trait/behavior  Nurture perspective – The environment is most significant in shaping the way we are  Many things are caused by interaction of nature and nurture Issues in development: Continuity vs. discontinuity  Question about the course of development – Gradual process or abrupt change?  Continuous  Development is a slow and gradual process  Discontinuous  Developmental change often occurs in distinct stages  Stages are qualitatively different from each other  Stages occur in a set, universal sequence Figure 1.6 Continuous and discontinuous development  The tree represents continuous development, while the ladybug represents discontinuous/stage development Issues in development: Active vs. passive  How much of a role do we play in our development?  Active – We construct our experiences  Passive – We are affected by the environment or our genes with little control Issues in development: Stability vs. change  How much do we change as we develop?  In what ways do we change?  Stability perspective – We change very little from childhood to adulthood  Change perspective – Initial tendencies modified by experiences Historical theories of development  Preformationism - A tiny, fully formed human is implanted in the sperm or egg at conception and then grows in size until birth  Assumes infants are born with all capabilities intact  Environment plays no role in development Historical theories of development (continued)  Tabula rasa (blank slate) – John Locke  Child’s mind entirely shaped by environment  Early experiences important  Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s theory  Development occurs on biological timetable  Children should be allowed to develop naturally Historical theories of development (continued)  Maturational theory – Arnold Gesell  Development activated by genes  Development occurred in fixed sequences  Freud’s psychosexual theory  Must learn to transform biological instincts into socially acceptable behaviors  Early experiences important Contemporary theories of development  Erikson’s psychosocial theory  Each period of life has a unique challenge (psychosocial crisis) that must be managed  Resolution of early crises may affect later crises  Learning theory (behaviorism)  Psychology should focus on observable behavior  Environment is important for affecting development Table 1.3 Erikson’s psychosocial stages Age range Psychosocial crisis Positive resolution of crisis Birth to 12 to 18 Trust versus Mistrust The child develops a feeling of trust in his or her caregivers. months 18 months to 3 years Autonomy versus The child learns what he or she can and cannot control and shame/doubt develops a sense of free will. 3 to 6 years Initiative versus Guilt The child learns to become independent by exploring, manipulating, and taking action. 6 to 12 years Industry versus inferiority The child learns to do things well or correctly according to standards set by others, particularly in school. 12 to 18 years Identity versus role The adolescent develops a well-defined and positive sense confusion of self in relationship to others. 19 to 40 years Intimacy versus isolation The person develops the ability to give and receive love and to make long-term commitments. 40 to 65 years Generativity versus The person develops an interest in guiding the development stagnation of the next generation, often by becoming a parent. 65 to death Ego integrity versus The person develops acceptance of his or her life as it was despair lived. Contemporary theories of development (continued)  Social learning theory  We learn through observation and imitation ( Bobo doll video)  Reciprocal determinism – We influence the environment and vice versa Contemporary theories of development (continued)  Piaget’s cognitive theory  Children of different ages interpret the world differently  Changes caused by maturation, not training  Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory  Culture and social interaction influence cognitive development  Can increase performance with proper guidance Table 1.4 Piaget’s stages of cognitive development Stage Approximate age range Characteristics Stage attainments Sensorimotor Birth to about 2 years The child experiences the world through Object permanence the fundamental senses of seeing, hearing, touching, and tasting. Preoperational 2 to 7 years Children acquire the ability to internally Theory of mind; rapid represent the world through language increase in language and mental imagery. They also start to ability see the world from other people’s perspectives. Concrete 7 to 11 years Children become able to think logically. Conservation operational They can increasingly perform operations on objects that are real. Formal 11 years to adulthood Adolescents can think systematically, can Abstract logic operational reason about abstract concepts, and can understand ethics and scientific reasoning. Contemporary theories of development (continued)  Information processing theory  Cognitive development is continuous  We’re born with the ability to notice stimuli, store, and retrieve information  Brain maturation and experiences develop our information processing system Contemporary theories of development (continued)  Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory – Individuals function in and are impacted by systems  Microsystem – Immediate settings and people  Mesosystem – Organizational structures (e.g., school, religion) that affect microsystem  Exosystem – Community’s values, history, and economy  Macrosystem – Influence of culture  Chronosystem – Influence of time Figure 1.11 Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory Learning objectives: Research methods  Define the scientific method  Compare research methods noting the advantages and disadvantages of each.  Explain research involving time spans  Explain ways to conduct ethical research Research methods: Terms  Scientific method - The assumptions, rules, and procedures scientists use to conduct research  Research design – The specific way a researcher collects, analyzes, and interprets data  Descriptive research describes what is occurring at a particular point in time  Correlational research examines relationships among variables  Experimental research involves manipulating variables to see their effects Types of descriptive research  Case study – Describe experience of individual or small group  Naturalistic observation – Observe and record behavior in everyday settings  Laboratory observation – Observe behavior in a setting created by the researcher Types of descriptive research (continued)  Survey – Verbal or written questionnaire  Sample – Group who participates in the study  Population – Larger group the sample is based on  A representative sample includes the same percentages of genders, age groups, ethnic groups, and socio-economic groups as the larger population  Social desirability – Participants might lie to make themselves look good Types of descriptive research (continued)  Interview – Direct questioning by researcher  Psychophysiological assessment – Biological measures (e.g., heart rate, hormone levels, brain activity)  Secondary/Content analysis – Examine information already collected (e.g., media, existing data sets) Correlational research  Assesses relationship between two or more variables  Does not show causation  May not know direction of relationship TV violence causes aggression? Or aggressive kids watch more violent TV?  Third variable may produce relationship Parenting style may affect both aggression and TV viewing Correlational research (continued)  Pearson correlation coefficient – Most common statistical measure  Ranges from -1 to 1  Strength indicated by distance from 0 Closer to 0 = Weaker Farther from 0 = Stronger  Direction indicated by valence Positive = Both variables change in same direction Negative = Variables change in opposite directions Figure 1.14 Examples of scatter plots Figure 1.15 Illustration of third variable influence Experimental method  Studies cause-and-effect relationships  Tests hypotheses – Specific statements about the relationships between variables  Variable = Something that changes in value  Independent variable Causal variable Manipulated/controlled by researcher  Dependent variable Measured (outcome) variable Believed to be affected by IV Experimental method (continued)  Participants randomly assigned to groups  Each group receives different level of IV Experimental group receives treatment Control group doesn’t  Compare each group on outcome (DV) Different outcomes caused by differences in IV  Control for extraneous variables  Variables that could affect results but aren’t part of experiment Table 1.5 Characteristics of the three research designs Research design Goal Advantages Disadvantages Descriptive To create a snapshot of the Provides a relatively Does not assess current state of affairs complete picture of what is relationships among occurring at a given time. variables. May be Allows the development of unethical if participants do questions for further study. not know they are being observed. Correlational To assess the relationships Allows testing of expected Cannot be used to draw between and among two relationships between and inferences about the causal or more variables among variables and the relationships between and making of predictions. Can among the variables. assess these relationships in everyday life events. Experimental To assess the causal impact Allows drawing of Cannot experimentally of one or more conclusions about the manipulate many important experimental manipulations causal relationships among variables. May be on a dependent variable variables. expensive and time consuming. Source: Stangor, C. (2011). Research methods for the behavioral sciences (4th ed.). Mountain View, CA: Cengage. Developmental research  Cross-sectional research  Compare different groups that vary in age  Cohort effect – Age differences caused by being born in a certain time period Differences in attitudes, experiences, education Developmental research (continued)  Longitudinal research  Study one group repeatedly over time  Attrition – People stop participating  Practice effect – Performance improves with practice Developmental research (continued)  Sequential research  Study multiple age groups over time Table 1.6 Time span research designs advantages and disadvantages Ethics in research  Prevent harm to participants  Informed consent  Participants must understand what they’ll be asked to do and why  Some deception may be allowed  Children ineligible to give informed consent Ethics in research (continued)  Confidentiality  Deception - Participants are not fully informed about the nature of the research project before participating in it  Debriefing - Explain the purposes and procedures of the research and remove any harmful aftereffects