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Section 1: Human Development Today and Its Origins
A.
Introduction to Text
1. This text was written to emphasize the cultural approach in
understanding the way people grow and change across the lifespan. That is
in essence human development.
2. Culture is the total pattern of a group’s customs, beliefs, art, and technology
passed along through language.
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3. A biological perspective is also offered in this text, especially in terms of
how biology interacts with cultural and social influences.
4. In the past, culture was largely ignored by social scientists in
favor of universal principles of development.
a. Research with White, middle-class Americans was the
basis of much developmental research—to the exclusion of
other cultures.
b. More researchers are now embracing the influence
of culture on development.
5. By learning to think critically about culture, and to appreciate
diversity, you will
be better prepared to think culturally and to act as a citizen of
the global village. a. Globalization refers to the increasing
connections between different
parts of the world in trade, travel, migration, and
communication.
B.
Humanity Today: A Demographic
Profile
1.
Population Change
a. Historically, the human population hovered around 10
million.
However, notable growth began to occur about 10,000
years ago. b. Medical advances facilitated a population
boom, and in 2011, the
Earth’s population was about 7 billion.
c. Increases, of up to 9 billion, are expected to continue until
2050.
i. The increase can be attributed to the current
Total Fertility Rate, or number of live births per
woman, which is 2.8 live births per woman. This is
higher than the replacement rate of just 2.1.
2.
Variations across Countries
a. Developed countries are the most affluent countries in
the world as classified by the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD).
i. These countries likely include the United
States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Australia,
New Zealand, and most European countries.
ii. They represent about 18 percent of the world’s
population.
b. In contrast, developing countries have less wealth, but
an increasing economic presence in the global economy.
i. They represent about 82 percent of the world’s
population.
c. Most developed countries, except the United States,
are expected to lose population.
i. The U.S. population is expected to have slight
gains because the fertility rate is close to the
replacement rate and they have generous
immigration laws compared to other developed
countries.
ii. Japan’s population expected to decline the most
due to low fertility and lack of immigration.
d. There is a large income difference between developing
and developed countries.
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i. In developing countries, most families live on less than
$6,000 per year, with Africa remaining the poorest region in
the world.
ii. Ninety percent of individuals in developed countries are
in the top twenty percent of the global income distribution.
e. There is also an educational divide between developing and
developed countries.
i. Nearly 100 percent of children in developed countries are
afforded a primary and secondary education, and about half
go on to college.
ii. In developing countries, 80 percent of children attend primary
school, but only half advance to secondary school; college
attendance is for the rich.
f. Cultural differences across developed and developing countries
should
be noted.
i. Developed countries tend to foster individualistic values
such as independence and self-expression, while developing
countries prize collectivistic values such as obedience and
group harmony.
g. The rural and urban areas within developing countries
resemble the differences between developing and developed
countries.
i. Individuals in rural areas tend to have more traditional
cultures and follow historic traditions. Compared with city
dwellers, people in rural areas have lower incomes, fewer
educational opportunities, and inadequate medical care.
3.
Variations within Countries
a. Human development varies not only between
developing and developed countries, but within each as
well.
i. Within each country, the majority culture sets most of the
norms and standards and holds most of the positions of
power.
ii. There are additional influences from the minority culture.
b. The context in which human development occurs varies based
on the environmental setting and circumstances that surround the
individual.
c. Additional variations include socioeconomic status (SES), gender,
and ethnicity.
i. SES refers to social class and is based on educational level,
income, and occupational status. A high SES is associated with
positive developmental outcomes and a low SES is associated
with negative outcomes.
ii. Gender roles are the expectations for males and females and
vary within and between countries.
f. In developed countries, gender roles have become
more integrated over time with less differentiation. This
is
not true in some other cultures.
iii. Ethnicity, which includes cultural origin and traditions,
race, religion, and language, also influences human
development.
f. Ethnic minorities tend to be more
collectivistic even within an individualistic
majority culture.
C.
The Origins of Human
Diversity
Understanding human development through the lens of evolutionary
theory provides a perspective that may be challenging but which helps
us to understand the human species and culture.
1.
Human Origins
a. According to evolutionary theory, species change through
the process of natural selection.
i. Young are born with variations, and those
with the best adaptations are the most likely to
survive.
a. Natural selection results in species change a
little at a time over many generations. This can
result in the development of new species.
b. Human Evolution
i. Human evolution began about 6–8 million years
ago when a common primate ancestor split into
different paths.
ii. The human evolutionary line is called the hominid
line.
a. Early hominids developed the ability to walk on
two legs, called bipedal locomotion, which allowed
them to use their arms and hands for tasks other
than moving about.
iii. The hominid line further split, resulting in the Homo
species, which is most closely related to modern
humans. iv. The early Homos had an increased brain
size and wider
female pelvis.
a. Infant dependency lasted longer, requiring
mothers to stay close to home and become
gatherers.
b. Males/fathers were able to travel greater
distances to hunt or scavenge.
v. With the development of the ability to make
tools and control fire, the Homo species began
cutting and cooking meat. This led to smaller teeth
and jaws because the food was easier to eat.
vi. Our species, Homo sapiens, evolved about
200,000 years ago from the Homo species.
a. They were thinner and had lighter
bones. b. They had smaller teeth and
jaws.
c. Their brain was 30 percent larger than the Homo
species.
2.
The Origin of Cultures and Civilizations
a. During the Upper Paleolithic period (40,000–10,000
years ago), evidence of culture first appeared.
i. Human evolution began about 6–8 million
years ago when a common primate ancestor split
into one of three paths: human, chimpanzee, or
gorilla (See Figure 1.2).
ii. Burial of the dead began.
iii. Cultural differences appeared between groups of
people.
iv. Trade, industry, and migration across large
bodies of water began after the invention of the
boat.
b. The Neolithic period followed: about 10,000–5,000 years
ago.
i. The hallmarks of the period included farming
and animal domestication, a warmer climate, new
tools, and permanent dwellings.
c. Civilization as we know it began around 5,000 years ago.
i. Civilization is characterized by the
development of cities, the ability to write,
divisions of labor, SES, and political systems called
states.
ii. Civilizations and states arose due to
agricultural efficiency, which led to the
opportunity to create and work in different
fields. As people spread, the state tended to
infrastructure and trade development.
3.
Human Evolution and Human Development Today
a. Our human development is based in part on our
evolutionary history.
i. Evolutionary psychology is a biologically based
approach to the study of behavior that has
adapted as a result of natural selection.
b. Biologically, little evolutionary change has occurred since
the origin of
Homo sapiens—but much has changed in terms of culture.
c. Our cultures shape our raw biological material,
producing variations in development throughout the
lifespan.
d. Culture is what makes us unique from non-human animals,
and it
developed in part from our large brains and our ability to
learn, create, and adapt.
II. Section Two: Theories of Human Development
A.
Classic Theories
1.
Historical Focus: Ancient Conceptions of Human Development
a. Dharmashastras, the oldest known conception of a life
course, was advanced about 3,000 years ago by the
Hindus and is comprised of 4 stages, including Apprentice,
Householder, Forest Dweller, and Renunciant.
b. The second conception of life was drawn from Judaism,
from the
Talmud (about 1,500 years ago), and is comprised of
14 stages.
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2.
Freud’s Psychosexual Theory
a. The basis of Freud’s psychosexual theory of human
development was a sexual desire that shifted around the
body during a person’s early development.
b. There are several stages: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and
genital.
c. Failure to successfully complete each stage results in a
fixation that will impact later development.
d. There are limitations of Freud’s psychosexual theory.
i. No single motive can explain the complexity
of human development.
ii. The theory was not developed or tested with
children: only a retrospective using troubled, adult
women.
e. It was the dominant theory until the latter half of the
twentieth century;
it is no longer considered accurate.
3.
Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory
a. Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development was based
on our need to become integrated into our social and cultural
environment throughout the lifespan.
b. Each of the eight stages of development is
characterized by a distinctive developmental challenge
or crisis that a person must
successfully resolve. His theory extends
across the lifespan. i. Trust vs.
Mistrust (infancy)
ii. Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (toddlerhood)
iii. Initiative vs. Guilt (early childhood)
iv. Industry vs. Inferiority (middle to late
childhood)
v. Identity vs. Identity Confusion (adolescence)
vi. Intimacy vs. Isolation (early adulthood)
vii. Generativity vs. Stagnation (middle adulthood)
viii. Ego Integrity vs. Despair (late adulthood)
c. The psychosocial theory that we develop across the
lifespan with cultural and social influences is widely
accepted.
d. Not all of the stages he outlined have been fully embraced.
B. Behavioristic and Learning Theories
1.
Pavlov and Skinner: Laws of Conditioning
a. Behaviorism developed as a reaction to
psychoanalytical theory as well as a need for a more
scientific approach.
b. Persons such as John Watson who used the behaviorist
approach also are called learning theorists; they believe that
all behavior is learned and shaped.
c. Classical conditioning is the process of association between a
neutral
stimulus and one that previously existed (unconditioned
stimulus). d. Ivan Pavlov’s work with dogs produced one of
the best known
examples; the dogs were conditioned to salivate to a bell.
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e. B.F. Skinner studied operant conditioning through the
use of reinforcement. This process is used by parents and
teachers who shape behaviors with grades, praise, and other
reinforcements.
2.
Social Learning Theory
a. Social Learning theory studied how behaviors can
change through observation or modeling.
b. Albert Bandura studied aggression and other
behaviors that were modeled and imitated.
C. Constructivist Theories
1. Piaget’s Cognitive Constructivist Theory
a. Jean Piaget observed children’s cognitive development
and concluded that children function differently. He
developed a stage theory of cognitive development.
b. Piaget suggested that children organize abilities into mental
structures
and developed the cognitive constructivist approach.
c. There are four stages, according to Piaget (see
Table 1.3). i. Sensorimotor stage (ages Birth to two
years)
ii. Preoperational stage (ages two years to seven years)
iii. Concrete operations stage (ages seven to eleven years)
iv. Formal operations stage (ages eleven to fifteen and up)
d. The changes in stages are due to maturation, a biological
unfolding of cognitive skills that occurs in conjunction with
interaction with the world.
e. Schemes are the cognitive structures for processing,
organizing, and interpreting information.
f. Assimilation occurs when new information is taken
in to fit an existing scheme.
g. Accommodation involves changing or adapting the new
information to fit or developing a new scheme.
h. Piaget’s theory helps explain how persons take in and utilize
new
information, and it continues to be very influential
even though research has modified the original ideas.
2. Vygotsky’s Social Constructivist Theory
a. The Russian psychologist’s theory has gained popularity
and is known as a social constructivist or sociocultural theory.
He emphasized the ways in which learning is actively
constructed through social interaction.
b. The zone of proximal development is the difference between
the
skills that the child can accomplish alone and the ones that
the child can accomplish with guidance from a teacher.
c. Scaffolding is the degree of assistance provided to
children in the zone of proximal development.
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Copyright
©
2013
by
Pearson
NJ 07458. All rights reserved.Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River,
D. Recent Theories
1. Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory
a. The ecological theory of development is a systems
approach to development: not a stage theory. It focuses on
five social systems that influence development.
i. Microsystem (a more common term is
context):
immediate environmental settings and
relationships ii. Mesosystem: the network of
the microsystems
iii. Exosystem: societal institutions with an
indirect
influenc
e
iv. Macrosystem: shared cultural beliefs and
values that include the economy and
government
v. Chronosystem: individual and historical
changes in developmental circumstances
b. Ecological theory differs from stage theories because of
its cultural
emphasis and the recognition of historical contexts and of
children as active participants in their development.
2. A Stage Model for This Book
a. Combination of Erikson’s and Bronfenbrenner’s
approaches
i. A seven-stage approach to development
from prenatal development through emerging
adulthood that takes into account multiple
contexts interacting in many different ways
ii. The stages are divided by the traditional
periods with the addition of emerging adulthood
between adolescence and young adulthood.
iii. Emerging adulthood is a life stage,
primarily seen in developed countries, that is a
transition from parental dependence to
independence but lacks the hallmarks of
adulthood.
iv. Emerging adulthood usually occurs when
tertiary education is pursued, thus delaying
marriage and parenthood.
v. Age ranges are more specific for the early
stages, but less defined in the last two stages.
vi. Although this text uses a stage approach,
be aware that development is a continuous
and gradual process.
III. Section Three: How We Study Human
Development
A.
The Scientific Study of Human Development
1.
The Five Steps of the Scientific Method
a. Identifying a question to be
investigated b. Forming a
hypothesis
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i. A hypothesis is the researcher’s idea about the
possible answer to his or her question.
ii. The formation of the hypothesis is crucial to
determining the research methods and design.
c. Choosing a research method and design
i. The research method is the way the hypothesis
is investigated.
ii. The research design is the data collection plan.
d. Collecting data to test hypothesis
i. Data are collected from a sample, a group of participants
that should be representative of the population of
interest. ii. Using a representative sample increases the
generalizability
of the findings so that conclusions may extend to the
population.
iii. The procedure details how the study is conducted and
the data are collected.
e. Drawing conclusions that lead to new questions and
hypotheses i. Conclusions are based on results that have
been statistically
analyzed.
ii. The researcher determines whether the data
support or refute the hypothesis.
iii. The research is usually disseminated by writing a
manuscript that is submitted to a peer-reviewed journal
so that the work can be assessed for accuracy and
credibility.
iv. Research may lead to the development or modification of
theories.
f.
A theory is an original framework to explain a
set of interconnected ideas that fosters new
research.
2.
Ethics in Human Development Research
a. The requirements of the institutional review board usually
include the following components:
i. Protection from physical and psychological harm
ii. Informed consent from adult participants and the
parents of minor participants, as well as the child’s assent
b. The consent form or cover letter provides basic information about
the
researcher and the study.
i. This includes the purpose, the nature and
extent of participation, risks, and benefits of the
study.
ii. Subjects must also be informed that participation is
voluntary and withdrawal at any time is permissible.
a. Confidentiality
I. information not shared outside
of researchers
II. data reported in aggregate
iii. Deception and debriefing
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a. Deception is sometimes required to
study phenomena that subjects might
want to hide.
b. If deception is used, the researchers must
debrief that participant afterward. That is,
they must tell the participant the true
purpose of the study.
B.
Methods and Designs in
Research
1.
Research Methods
a. Questionnaires (Surveys)
i. Closed questions have specific responses; this makes
it easy to collect and analyze the data. This is useful for
large data sets.
ii. Open-ended questions allow self-generated responses by the
participant.
iii. Limitations: Closed-ended questions that use an existing
response set may miss the depth, complexity, and diversity
of the participants.
b. Interviews
i. Interviews capture a subjects’ individuality and
complexity by allowing them to describe their lives in
their own words.
ii. Interviews provide qualitative data that are not readily
quantifiable. iii. Limitations: difficult and time consuming to code
into useful
categories c.
Observations
i. Involve making systematic observations and recording that
information
a. Locations: naturalistic and
laboratory b. Advantage: better than
self-report
c. Limitation: possible change in participant behavior
when he or she has knowledge of observation
d. Ethnographic Research
i. in-depth observational research over time that occurs
when the researcher lives and interacts with the
participants
ii. Advantage: naturalistic setting that more accurately captures
daily
life
iii. Limitation: time-consuming and expensive;
researchers may develop observer bias due to personal
relationships with participants
e. Case Studies
i. A case study is a detailed examination of the life of one
person or a small number of persons.
ii. Advantage: detailed account of the whole
person iii. Limitation: limited generalizability
f. Biological Methods
i. Human development includes biological changes.
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a. Includes hormonal functioning, brain functioning, and
the genetic basis of development
b. Often combined with other methodology to
present a more complete picture
ii. Advantage: allows for precise measurements; investigation of
the relationship between biological and other types of
development
iii. Limitations: expensive; relationships are correlational, not causal
g. Reliability and Validity
i. Reliability refers to the consistency of measurements. That
is, getting the same measurements time and again.
ii. Validity refers to the truthfulness or accuracy of a method. A
valid measure is one that measures what it claims to measure.
h. Experimental Research
i. In an experiment, participants are randomly assigned to an
experimental group or a control group to measure the difference
between the groups after the treatment or manipulation.
a. The experimental group gets the treatment or
manipulation.
b. The control group gets no treatment or manipulation.
c. Random assignment assumes equality between the
groups prior to the treatment or manipulation.
1. An independent variable is the variable
that differs from the control group. It is the
variable that is being manipulated.
2. A dependent variable is the measurable
outcome.
ii. Advantage: allows control and gives the researcher the ability
to make causal, rather than correlational, statements about the
effectiveness of the experimental manipulation.
iii. Disadvantage: limited generalizability due to a lack of realism
a. Interventions programs intend to change the attitudes
or behavior of participants and are often measured
experimentally to determine their effectiveness.
i. Natural Experiments
i. A natural experiment (sometimes referred to as a quasiexperiment) can examine naturally occurring groups for differences
while yielding the control that a lab and random assignment afford.
2.
Research Design
a. Cross-Sectional
i. Most common type
ii. Data are collected with a sample on a single occasion.
iii. Advantage: quick and inexpensive
iv. Limitation: only yields correlational relationships between variables
without the ability to determine cause
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b. Longitudinal Research
i. Longitudinal Research is a type in which the same
individuals are followed over time with repeated measures.
ii. The same participants have data collected over time—at
least twice,
but often more frequently.
iii. Longitudinal research usually lasts a year or less, but
could last a lifetime.
iv. Advantages: ability to examine development over
time; allows greater insight into possible causation
a. A cohort effect is a cultural change that
occurs and
impacts the development of a specific
generation.
v. Limitations: costly and time-consuming; requires more
patience;
attrition, or participants leaving the study, can be a problem.