Chapter 2: The Science of Life-Span Development

Theories of Development

All scientific knowledge comes from scientific investigation a four-step process Identify a problem to be studied Collect data or research information Analyze the data Draw conclusions Diverse but complimentary theories are used for explaining life-span development: Psychoanalytic theories Cognitive theories Ethological theories Ecological theories

Psychoanalytic Theories: Freud s Psychosexual Theory Personality has 3 parts There are 5 stages of psychosexual development Oedipus complex allows child to identify with same-sex parent Fixation is an unresolved conflict during a stage of development Today s focus is more on cultural experiences and less on sexual instincts

Freudian Stages Birth to 1½ yrs 1½ to 3 yrs 3 to 6 years 6 yrs to puberty Puberty onward Oral Stage Infant s pleasure centers on mouth Anal Stage Child s pleasure focuses on anus Phallic Stage Child s pleasure focuses on genitals Latency Stage Child represses sexual interest and develops social and intellectual skills Genital Stage A time of sexual reawakening; source of sexual pleasure becomes someone outside of the family Figure 2.1

Erikson s Psychosocial Theory: There are 8 stages of psychosocial development Each has a unique developmental task Developmental change occurs throughout life span Key points of psychoanalytic theories: Early experiences and family relationships are very important to development Unconscious aspects of the mind are considered Personality is best seen as a developmental process

Erikson s Eight Life-Span Stages Erikson s Stages Trust vs Mistrust Developmental Period Infancy (first year) Autonomy vs shame & doubt Infancy (1 to 3 years) Initiative vs guilt Early childhood (3 to 5 years) Industry vs inferiority Middle and late childhood Identity vs identity confusion Adolescence (10 to 20 years) Intimacy vs isolation Early adulthood (20s, 30s) Generativity vs stagnation Integrity vs despair Middle adulthood (40s, 50s) Late adulthood (60s onward) Figure 2.2

Cognitive theories: Piaget s cognitive developmental theory Stresses conscious mental processes Cognitive processes are influenced by biological maturation Four stages of cognitive development in children Assimilation and accommodation underlie how children understand the world, adapt to it, and organize their experiences

Piaget s Four Stages of Cognitive Development Birth to 2 years of age 2 to 7 years of age 7 to 11 years of age 11 15 years of age through adulthood Sensorimotor Stage: The infant constructs an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences with physical actions: progressing from reflexive, instinctual action at birth to the beginning of symbolic thought toward end of the stage. Preoperational Stage: The child begins to represent the world with words and images. These words and images reflect increased symbolic thinking and go beyond the connection of sensory information and physical action. Concrete Operational Stage: The child can now reason logically about concrete events and classify objects into different sets. Formal Operational Stage The adolescent reasons in more abstract idealistic and logical ways. Figure 2.3

Vygotsky s sociocultural cognitive theory Children actively construct their knowledge Social interaction and culture guide cognitive development Learning is based upon inventions of society Knowledge is created through interactions with other people and objects in the culture Less skilled persons learn from the more skilled Information-processing theory Compares computers to the human mind Thinking is information processing

Information-Processing Theory geography literature science history math religion INPUT Information is taken into brain Information gets processed, analyzed, and stored until use OUTPUT Information is used as basis of behaviors and interactions

Behavioral and social cognitive theories: Pavlov s classical conditioning includes conditioned and unconditioned responses Watson applies association and generalization Operant conditioning focuses on positive and negative reinforcement Social cognitive theory focuses on observation and imitation Ethological theory includes imprinting and attachment

Classical Conditioning Generalization

What are the reinforcements to achieve? Task: Learn to read What happens when there are no controls or reinforcement? Operant Conditioning

Bandura s Social Cognitive Model Behavior Person (cognitive) Environment Figure 2.4

Bandura s Modeling/Imitation Child observes someone admired Child imitates behavior that seems rewarded

Urie Bronfenbrenner s ecological theory: Environmental factors influence development 5 environmental systems affect life-span development Eclectic theoretical orientation: Selects features from other theories No one theory has all the answers Each theory can make a contribution to understanding life-span development

Exosystem Political philosophy School system Mesosystems Family School & classroom Chronosystem Religion & groups Peer group Macrosystem Bronfenbrenner s Ecological Theory of Development Figure 2.5

Research in Life-Span Development

Types of research: Descriptive: observes and records behavior Laboratory research Naturalistic observation Surveys and interviews Standardized tests Case studies Life-history records Physiological measures

Percentage parent child interactions in which the parent explained science concepts 30 25 20 15 10 Parents Explanations of Science to Sons and Daughters at a Science Museum 5 0 Boys Girls Figure 2.8

Correlational research Measures relationships; not the same as causation Experimental research Independent variable gets manipulated Dependent variable is the resulting change Experimental group is manipulated Control group serves as the norm for comparison

Observed correlation: as permissive parenting increases, children s self-control decreases Permissive parenting causes Children s lack of self-control Children s lack of self-control causes Permissive parenting Other factors, such as genetic tendencies, poverty, and sociohistorical circumstances cause both Permissive parenting and Children s lack of self-control Possible Explanations for Correlational Data Figure 2.9

Principles of Experimental Research Participants randomly assigned to experimental and control groups Independent variable Experimental group (aerobic exercise) Control group (no aerobic exercise) Dependent variable Newborns breathing and sleeping patterns Figure 2.10

Group 1 Time playing video games: 2 hours each day More playful and sociable Group 2 Time playing video games: 6 hours each day More aggressive and antisocial

Time-span research Focus on the relation of age to some other variable across the life span (e.g., memory) Cross-sectional approach compares different age groups at one time Longitudinal approach studies a group over a period of time Sequential approach combines longitudinal and cross-sectional approaches Cohort effects: due to time or era of birth but not due to one s actual age

Facing Up to Research Challenges

Conducting Ethical Research Informed consent: participants give informed consent and participation is voluntary Confidentiality of participants information Participants rights will be observed Debriefing after the experiment Deception: researchers ensure any deception will not harm the participants

Minimize bias: Gender bias is based on preconceived ideas about the abilities and differences between men and women; research affects how people think about men and women Cultural and ethnic bias Life-span research needs to include more diverse groups of people Avoid ethnic gloss in research

Being a Wise Consumer of Information Media only publishes parts of research when of public interest All information for public consumption may be Oversimplified, condensed with few details Distorted or exaggerated People must consider information carefully Separate group from individual outcomes Do not overgeneralize from small sample Look for additional information on a study Do not attribute causes when none exist Evaluate the source of information

The End