Free Essay

Lifespan Development

In:

Submitted By kantors
Words 384
Pages 2
Many of the classes I had as an undergraduate student helped prepare and shape my understanding of chapters 1 and 2. It was mainly review; however, not every textbook is written the same way. With a different perspective, there is opportunity to learn new information. I learned the most from chapter 2. A topic of interest to me from chapter 1 is the nature and nurture section. I have always believed that both nature and nurture shape the development of individuals. I guess I am biased when I say that because I am an example of both nature and nurture contributing to my human development. I was adopted at 17 month and I had very little interaction with my birth parents to truly know them, but my adopted parents were close with my biological parents. As I age, my mother comments that I handle conflict like my birth mother. After forming a relationship with birth mother, I observe that we do handle it the same. It is very intriguing. Conversely, friends that know nothing about my adoption comment that I have a personality like my adopted mother. I can say that I have her sass and confidence. Additionally, chapter 2 states “If an adopted child’s behavior resembles that of his or her biological parents, this shows the impact of heredity [nature]; if the adopted child’s behavior resembles his or her adoptive parents, this shows the influence of the environment [nurture]” (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2016, pg. 47). This is true for me. Chapter 2 is always very interesting to me. I absolutely love genetics, especially with prenatal development, and the birthing process. Unfortunately, I know very little about fetal surgery. I had no idea that spina bifida can be corrected surgically during pregnancy. Of course, there are risks involved with any surgery. However, this surgery seems more risky because there is the mother and the baby to monitor. I am interested in researching this further. This is only the beginning of the textbook and there is so much information on human development. I look forward to expanding my knowledge and learning new information about development and the impact it has in shaping who we are. Reference Kail, R. V. & Cavanaugh, J.C. (2016). Human development: A life-span view, seventh edition. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Lifespan Development

...Lifespan Development and Personality Luis Cervantes PSY/103 January 11, 2016 Susanne Nishino Lifespan Development and Personality Developmental psychology is the study of how human beings age and transform throughout the eight major stages of life. This paper will focus on the physical, cognitive, social, moral, and personality development of individuals found in stage two, (early childhood 1-6 year olds). Through exploring, and examining the countless influences that affect their growth development. The physical growth transformations infants undergo in stage two of lifespan development range from, brain, motor, to sensory/perceptual development, and infant’s overall body height and weight. During the first two years, brain development and the central nervous system experience the most growth increase of any other infant’s body parts. Brain growth and learning transpire simply because neurons grow in size and the number of axons and dendrites, escalate (Carpenter S, & Huffman K. 2013a. pp. 237, 238). Meanwhile on the outside of the infant’s skull the fontanels or soft spots close off (Bjorklund, D. F., & Bering, J. M. 2002., pp. 272- 275). Motor skill development fall into two categories fine, and gross motor skills. Fine motor skill development involves the muscular, skeletal, and nervous systems generating precise operations of motions on the infant hands (Fluetsch, K. 2015 p. 9). Example of fine motor skills, a child’s ability to grasp a fork, spoon,...

Words: 1516 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Lifespan Development

...* Lifespan development is the field tha examine pattern of growth, change, and stability in behavior. (womb to tomb) * Major topical Areas (Physical Dev., Cognitive Dev., Personality Dev., Social Dev.) * Physical- Body and the brain. * Cognitive- Growth and behavior * Personality- Stability and change * Social- interaction and relationships grow * Cultural factors and developmental diversity * Broad factors * Orientation toward individualism or collectivism * Finer differences * Ethnicity * Race * Socioeconomic Race * Gender * Korosol increase stress * Cohort- group of people born at around the same time in the same place * Age graded influences- similar at particular age group * Sociocultural graded influences- social and cultural factors present at a particular time. * Modafin * Critical period- environmental stimuli are necessary for dev. * Sensitive Period- Certain kind of stimuli in environment. * Development is constructed thru biological, sociocultural, and individual factors working together. * Development is lifelong * Early adulthood is not the endpoint of development * No age perios dominates * Development is Multidimensional * Consist of biological, cognitive, and socioemotional dimensions * Multiple components within each dimension * Health and Well-Being * Parenting and Education ...

Words: 945 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Lifespan Development and Personality

...Lifespan Development and Personality Development does not only start as soon as we are born, but does not end with adolescence as some may think. Adults also experience cognitive, physical, and social changes along with going through modifications. It has been suggested that adulthood starts at the age of 18, but adulthood can actually be divided into three different periods; early adulthood (18 to 40), middle adulthood (41 to 60), and late adulthood (60 and up). In early adulthood, a persons’ body is still developing. The chest range increases, shoulder length, and height, along with each individual continues to expand his or her physical capabilities. Through the mid-thirties just about everyone will have some type of hearing loss, but during this time most people would will say this these years are the best part of adulthood. In middle adulthood, physical modifications slowly appear. The one that is most common is the loss of sensory sharpness. Individuals become more sensitive to light, more accurate at noticing differences in the distance, and he or she is slower and less able to consider factors. At the age of 40, an individual has more caution then before. In a woman’s late 40’s or early 50’s, a woman will go through menopause, which is the shutdown of her reproductive capability. Estrogen and progesterone also decrease, and her menstrual cycle eventually stops. Most individuals are well into the delayed adulthood before his or her physical functions start to show...

Words: 1397 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Freud's Lifespan Development and Personality

...Freud’S Lifespan Development And Personality Life doesn’t stand still. We are in a state of constant change throughout our lives. When we ask ourselves who we are, we think of ourselves in terms of who we are now. But we have been and will be many different people in our lifetime; an infant, a child, a teenager, a young adult, a mature person, and an aged person. Young children understand their worlds in ways that are so different from adults. To understand ourselves fully, we must understand the process of development, the more-or-less predictable changes in behavior associated with increasing age. Both nature and nurture work together in development. Without getting some advice (nurture), a child can’t use a baseball glove correctly. But the child must be physically developed enough to use the glove (nature). You cannot effectively teach children to do much with a glove until age 4 or so, after considerable physical development has taken place (nature). We are creatures of complex combinations of both our nature and nurture (Lahey (2007) page 316, 317 para 1). It is very important to understand that it’s normal for child development to be highly variable, even when they are raised in typical conditions. This is true in two senses: a) There are differences between children in their development b) Children vary in the rate of their own development from one period to the next Parents must make important decisions about raising children that can have a major impact on their...

Words: 337 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Lifespan Development and Personality Paper

...Lifespan Development and Personality Paper David Trejo PSY103 June 13, 2011 Sandy Collins Lifespan Development and Personality Paper An organized study of life’s different cycle phases of human beings is what developmental psychology sets out to accomplish. The psychological development of humans is also described through developmental psychology. Lifespan development study of humans involves psychological, behavior, and genetic alterations from birth to the end of one’s life. How one progresses through life is mainly influenced by environmental and hereditary (nature and nurture) factors that involve cognitive, physical, moral, personality, and social development (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000).  This paper will discuss the influences on physical and cognitive development of middle childhood years (6 – 12 years). As a child progresses into these years, physical, moral, cognitive, personal, and social traits are further developed. All of these traits are imperative in the personality development of humans. Understanding how humans develop traits as physical, moral, and social during the middle childhood years will give insight into lifespan development (Karpov, 2005).  Physical Development Factors During childhood years, the physical development stage ranges from gross motor development skills to fine motor development skills. Hereditary...

Words: 1357 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Lifespan Development and Personality Paper

...Lifespan Development and Personality Paper: Middle Childhood Ages Soterica Johnson Psy 103 June 15, 2015 Mary Newhams Lifespan Development and Personality Paper: Middle Childhood Ages The main goal of developmental psychology is to pursue the understandings of and report different aspects of human development. These aspects include development of physical, cognitive, social, moral, and personality. Discussing these aspects in different terms can be a tough task. In this paper I chose to write on one age group. To define this age, I will focus on the middle childhood ages 6 to 12. I will address physical, cognitive, social, and moral as well as personality development. Within these factors I am also considering both hereditary and environmental factors. Middle childhood is the period of life between the years of 6 to 12, where children are going to school, beginning to make friends outside of their families, mastering new physical and mental abilities, and also learning to become independent. During these ages physical development is most important. Growth may be slower during these ages, causing wide differences in height and weight in children. Passing through the beginning stages of life children have already began losing teeth. Middle childhood ages is when permanent teeth began to come in and dental visits have become more frequent. Children of this age group have improved motor skills so they began getting involved in more physical activities. Along with the psychical...

Words: 1266 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Lifespan and Personality Development

...Lifespan and Personality Development Adolescence There are many factors that affect the physical, cognitive, social, moral and personality development in an adolescent. Adolescence as defined in the dictionary, is the transitional period between puberty and adulthood in human development extending mainly over the teen years (RHCD, 1980). Adolescence is the time that can bring various changes physical, social and emotional. Adolescence begins with the onset of puberty. This usually occurs during the ages of twelve to twenty years old. Puberty is the period during which the reproductive system matures. This process is characterized by the increase in sex hormones (RHCD, 1980). Heredity and the environment both plays a significant role in the development of various human traits. Genes are determinants of heredity, and each individual carries genes from the mother and father. Characteristics such as height, weight, skin color, eye and hair color are all determined through the balance of genes in the body. Genes are responsible for cognitive and mental processes as well as physical features (ehow.com). Adolescents undergo a wide range of physical changes in a very short time, which is a result of biological and hereditary factors, but environmental influences are also significant. There are rapid height and weight gains, which generally takes place earlier in girls, more body fat is generated in girls where muscles are developed in boys. Changes in hormone levels trigger...

Words: 1716 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

Lifespan Development and Personality Paper

...Lifespan Development and Personality Paper Adolescence, also known as teenage years is a time of dramatic change. Adolescence is a period in one’s life in which major physiological, cognitive, and behavioral changes take place. This phase of life marks a developmental period that follows childhood and comes before adulthood. Adolescence is closely associated with puberty, which is also considered as a developmental milestone, particularly in the western countries. Puberty refers to the period of adolescence when a person becomes capable of reproduction (Carpenter, S. & Huffman, K., 2010). In this paper, I will discuss the various factors that affect the physical, cognitive, social, moral, and personality development of adolescents. Adolescence is a time of rapid physical growth which is illustrated by the drastic growth spurt in the height, weight and skeletal muscles. The actual age may vary but generally occurs somewhere between the ages of 12 through 18. This is a critical stage where a child attempts to become independent, wants to establish their identity and there are noticeable changes in their moods and behavior. During this time in the adolescent’s life, the physical development factors are genetics and nutrition. If the child has genetics that hinder on his or her physical development the child will only develop as his DNA allows. If the child does not have proper nutrition, he or she could be underweight or overweight. This is such a crucial stage for advancement...

Words: 1340 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Lifespan Development and Personality Paper

...Lifespan Development and Personality Paper BY: April Johnson PSY/103 Professor Vincent D’Elia May 31, 2010 Lifespan Development and Personality Paper This paper will focus on the human development stages of adolescence. Adolescence is a very interesting age group to study for the fact this is the development stages from childhood to adulthood. These developments involve the development stages of physical, cognitive, and psychosocial phases. Adolescence, some may say, revolve around the age group 12 to 18 years of age. In detail this paper will focus on the factors that affect physical, cognitive, social, moral, and personality developments. In addition, the paper will as well discuss hereditary and environmental influences of each. According to Wiley Plus, adolescence and adulthood are the times for dramatic and gradual changes. Early and a person’s late teen years a person would experience physical changes in the body itself. What we mean by physical changes is what is called puberty. Puberty can be defined as changes to the body from a child to an adult. Girls and boys will each experience hair growth in places where he or she usually does not see as child, such as pubic, facial, and underarms. Girls start to experience menstruation cycles and breast development. For girl these are signs that she is turning into a woman. Men on the other hand, experience voice changes, muscle changes, and hair growth in many places. With the cognitive development...

Words: 387 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Cognitive And Moral Development: Lifespan Development

...The most interesting concepts I learned from this course, Lifespan Development, were those topics that involved the many stages of development. This was of particular interest to me as I was able to compare the various theories and how they related to my own children’s developmental milestones. Having two typical children and one with Autism, it was fascinating to see the differences and similarities in their cognitive and moral development. One specific chapter that grabbed my attention was chapter 6, which focused on the different theories that focused on cognitive developmental milestones which were explained by Piaget and Vygotsky (Stantrock, pages 175 and 191). Piaget’s Processes of Development was noteworthy as it highlighted the different...

Words: 405 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Lifespan Development

...Lifespan Development Lifespan Development A child can always brighten a room, the inquisitive look in a child’s eyes as he or she gazes upon their new surrounding, and the joy they get from everyday objects that adults take for granted because adults have seen and touched these objects. This paper will attempt to describe how certain surroundings and traditions can affect ones personality from aspects in their childhood. Over a lifespan the human body develops, and at different ages the body changes. What factors affect physical development? Physical development starts when we are born, the genetic make-up from our parents may decide on how fast or slow our motor skills are developed. Another factor that plays in our early development is the environment we are born into, or in some bigger families the place we are born into can be a factor in our development. According to child psychologist, Dr. Richard Woolfson a first born child may learn at a faster rate than a second or third born. First born children are surrounded by adults, so speech may come quicker where as a child born with siblings may develop motor skills at an accelerated rate often copying, or mimicking siblings. The environment that the child is exposed to is probably the most important factor in the child’s development, what children are exposed to, or not exposed to, may decide how their speech or personality are developed. A child exposed to violence...

Words: 962 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Lifespan Development

...Lifespan Development Name Institution Course Date Lifespan Development Lifespan development is a wide field in the field of psychology. It all began with Darwin, who, in his quest to understand evolution, began to study the topic. In simple terms, lifespan development refers to a process, usually beginning from conception and ending when an organism dies. The process occurs methodologically and is as a result of the change that occurs with increasing age. Although the lifespan development may look simple, it is quite complex and involves different developmental stages. According to Baltes, (1996), the entire life cycle has four eras. These eras, he says, take an approximate time of 20-25 years. Levinson goes further to identify the developmental periods as childhood and adolescence, early childhood, middle adulthood, and late adulthood. At this point in time, it is formal to simplify various terminologies that relation to human development. This is because they will feature constantly in the preceding sections. First and foremost is development. This is simply a change characterized by movement from one state to another. Usually, development leads to transitions. Development, as will be used in this paper, will refer to growth, and progression through certain stages, commonly termed as “maturity.” Another term of significance is stage. This refers to sections that differentiate the various phases of growth. The phases involve...

Words: 4003 - Pages: 17

Premium Essay

Lifespan Development

...Lifespan Development and Personality PSY 103 (Introduction to Psychology) Lifespan Development and Personality Middle adulthood has been seen as a variety of different ages depending on the source you choose to believe. Oxford English Dictionary defines “middle-age” as the period of life between young adulthood and old age, now usually regarded as between about 45 and 60 years of age. The U.S. Census describes middle age as including the age categories of 35-44 and 45-54, and the Collins Dictionary considers it approximately between the ages of 41-60. No matter how it is viewed middle adulthood or middle age is arguably the most defining time of a person’s life. I will explain the factors that affect physical and cognitive development in most people as they reach these stages in life. First, let’s explore the physical affects. As we begin to get older it is almost inevitable to notice the physical changes that our bodies take as we age. Although some may age quicker or slower than others depend on the environment you live in and/or your genetic background. Slower metabolism, lose of organ functions such as eyesight and hearing loss and even gender specific ailments such as erectile dysfunction in men and menopause in women. These changes have no bias regarding race, ethnic background or social-economic class, as we get older our bodies start to change. Although many of these changes are biological in nature, there are certain that we do that can decrease or speed up...

Words: 1147 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Lifespan Perspective of Human Development

...important years in life for human development? Human development is a complicated and controversial subject. In the past, childhood has been attributed a majority of the concentration in regards to the development of a human being, and in some cases, adulthood has gotten all of the attention. However there is one perspective that considers all phases of life, known as the life-span perspective, which is universally accepted by most psychologists and implicated into their own respective theories. This perspective was originally introduced by Paul and Margaret Baltes, and was monumental as it considered all phases of life, rather than just childhood or adulthood (Berger 2010). There are five insights which are focused on to describe the context under which development occurs. According to the life-span perspective, development is multidirectional, multicontextual, multicultural, multidisciplinary, and plastic (Berger 2010). Let’s begin with multidirectional. Multidirectional means that human qualities change in all directions. A more traditional belief was that development took place up until the age of 20, becomes stagnant, and then declines. Life-span research has refuted this claim (Berger 2010). For example, when an elderly person’s spouse passes, the newly single elderly person can either lose motivation to live, or expand their social surroundings. Regardless of the outcome, development occurred even in these elderly years. The belief that development occurs in stages is held by...

Words: 1178 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Lifespan Development

...Irina Mkchyan Psychology 41 Dr. Christopher Williams May 29, 2012 Abridge - shorten, cut down, trim My job as an instructor is to abridge and condense large and difficult study material into more comprehensible content for my students. Obsequious - submissive, brown - nosing Many superiors prefer to have obsequious employees even though their inclination may not be sincere. Alacrity - willingness, readiness, enthusiasm My students accepted my suggestion to visit human body museum with alacrity, where they will be able to apply all their newly acquired knowledge about our body structure. Banal - uninteresting, boring, overdone, warn-out, corny Unfortunately, I found the philosophy class banal and strange, in contrast to the psychology class, which I attended with alacrity, despite it being a late class, and from which I learned a great deal about changes that occur in human being as they grow older. Buffet - harm, bother, harass My best friend and a co-worker was buffeted by our boss who constantly made remarks and requested sexual favors before he honored a promised promotion she deserved. Capitulate - surrender, give in/up, throw in the towel Capitulation of the rebels leader took place because of an intense mass pressure and caused an enormous anger and disappointment within the rebels. Coalesce - merge, unite, converge Delivery of oxygen to and removal of carbon dioxide from all the body cells is possible due to blood flowing...

Words: 521 - Pages: 3