Major Theories For Understanding Human Development

Learning Objectives

1. Explain the concept of theory and discuss how theories contribute to the study of development

Learning Objectives

2. Explain the basic concepts of seven major theories and examine the implications of each theory for the study of human development:– Evolutionary theory– Psychosexual theory– Cognitive developmental theories– Theories of learning– Cultural theory– Social role theory– Systems theory

What is a Theory?

• A logical system of concepts– Helps explain observations– Contributes to development of body of knowledge

• Three questions to ask:– Which phenomena is the theory trying to explain?– What assumptions does the theory make?– What does the theory predict?

Requirements for Theories of Development

• What is the direction of change over the lifespan?

• What are the mechanisms that account for growth from conception through old age? Do these mechanisms vary across the life span?

• How relevant are early experiences for later development?

Requirements for Theories of Development

• How do physical, cognitive, emotional, and social functions interact?

• How do the environmental and social contexts affect individual development?

• What factors are likely to place the person at risk at specific periods of the life span?

The Theory of Evolution

• Darwin emphasized adaptive value of behavior and physical characteristics to specific environments:– Natural selection– Fitness, or reproductive success– Adaptation– Inclusive fitness

The Theory of Evolution

• Ethology– Studies the survival value of unique adaptive

behavior and its evolutionary history• Evolutionary psychology– Studies long-term historical origins of behavior

Evolutionary Theory – Implications for Human Development

• Evolutionary theory highlights three phases of the life span– Healthy growth and development leading up to

the reproductive period– Success in mating and the conception of offspring– Parenting offspring to survive and bear their own

offspring

Concepts of Evolutionary Theory

Psychosexual Theory

• Children move through a series of stages– Confront conflicts between biological drives and

social expectations• Healthy personality development– Determined by how parents manage child’s early

sexual and aggressive drives• Focuses on how individuals resolve conflicts

between drives

Psychosexual Theory

• Freud believed that all behavior is motivated– Unconscious• Stores powerful, primitive motives

– Drives, or libido• Sexual and aggressive forces that desire to be satisfied

• Id, ego, and superego• Three structures of personality

Psychosexual Theory

• Stages of development– Oral– Anal– Phallic– Latency– Genital

Psychosexual Theory

• Defense mechanisms– Repression– Projection– Reaction formation– Regression– Displacement

– Rationalization– Isolation– Denial– Sublimation

Psychosexual Theory – Implications for Human Development

• The psychosexual approach recognizes:– The tension between interpersonal and

intrapsychic demands help shape personality– The influences of childhood experiences on adult

behavior– The importance of motives, emotions, and

fantasies– The role of sexual impulses during childhood

Cognitive Developmental Theories

• Cognition– The process of organizing and making meaning of

experience• Two cognitive developmental theories– Piaget’s cognitive developmental theory– Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory

Basic Concepts in Piaget’s Theory

• Equilibrium• Schemes• Operations• Assimilation• Accommodation

Basic Concepts in Piaget’s Theory

Basic Concepts in Piaget’s Theory

• Four stages of cognitive development:– Sensorimotor Stage (0-18 months)– Preoperational Stage (18 months-6 years)– Concrete Operational Stage (7-11 years)• Enables scientific reasoning

– Formal Operational Stage (11 years on)• Knowledge is created through active engagement• Novelty promotes cognitive development

Vygotsky’s Concepts of Cognitive Development

• Vygotsky is an interactionist– Human development can only be understood

within a social-historical framework– Cognitive development is a socially mediated

process• Zone of proximal development– Range of tasks that the child cannot handle alone– Can accomplish with help of adults, more skilled

peers

Basic Concepts of Cognitive Development Theories

Theories of Learning

• Social learning theory emphasizes:– Learning via observation and imitation– Role of modeling – Learning via vicarious reinforcement– Social cognition rather than a social learning

approach • How is efficacy the culmination of this learning

process?

Cognitive Behaviorism

• Study of thoughts, ideas, and memories that influence behavior

• Edward Tolman – Learner develops a cognitive map • Mental representation of the learning environment

Cognitive Behaviorism

Cultural Theory

• Emphasizes:– Meaning, or the behavior shared by a group of

people– An individual’s psychological experiences are

shaped through:• Cultural pathways• Cultural determinism• Enculturation

Cultural Theory

• How do individualistic and collectivistic cultures differ?

Cultural Theory

• Implications for human development– Culture and biological development interact• Determine how each period of life is experienced

• Links to the psychosocial approach– All cultures must be able to adapt to changes in

economic, environmental, and intercultural conditions to survive

Social Role Theory

• Process of socialization and personality development – Via the individual’s participation in increasingly

diverse and complex social roles

Social Role Theory

• Three elements of concern:– Role enactment– Social roles– Role expectations

• Four dimensions of social roles– Number of roles– Intensity of role involvement– Amount of time the role demands– Degree of structure or flexibility

Social Role Theory – Implications for Human Development

• Social roles:– Provide consistency to life experiences – Prompt new learning

• Personal relationships and social groups help contribute to one’s social identity

Social Role Theory

Systems Theory

• Systems are characterized by relationships among component parts– The whole is more than the sum of its parts

• An open system– Adaptive self-organization– Components and the whole are always in tension

Ecological Systems Theory

• Urie Bronfenbrenner argues that individuals develop within a multilayered system of relationships– Microsystem– Mesosystem– Exosystem– Macrosystem – Chronosystem

Ecological Systems Theory

Developmental Systems Theory

• Emphasizes the ongoing interaction across many levels of the human organism (genetic to behavioral)

• Focuses on:– The individual in the setting – Plasticity, both in the individual, and in an

environmental context

Systems Theory – Implications for Human Development

• The family system is maintained by patterns of communication

• Interdependence– Change in one family member is accompanied by

changes in others• Interventions at any level of the environment

can affect development

Systems Theory

Case Study – Jack Manasky and His Daughter Marilyn

• Reflections– What defense mechanisms might Jack be using?– How might the differences in Jack and Marilyn’s

“cultures” affect their cognitive reasoning?– How might Marilyn use social learning techniques

to modify her father’s coffee-drinking behavior?

Case Study – Jack Manasky and His Daughter Marilyn

• Reflections– What cultural norms for the relationship of an

adult daughter and an aging father are at play?– What reciprocal roles do you see between Jack

and Marilyn?– What feedback mechanisms encourage or

discourage certain behaviors between Jack and Marilyn?

Your Perspective

• What theories do you find most relevant to your current stage of development, and why?– Evolutionary theory– Psychosexual theory– Cognitive developmental theories– Theories of learning– Cultural theory– Social role theory– Systems theory