Developmental Psychology Essay Example for Free

Developmental Psychology Essay 1.1. Nature – nurture Nature refers to the inherited (genetic) characteristics and tendencies that influence development. It is the abilities that are present at birth, as well as any abilities determined by genes. On the other hand, nurture is the processes caused by our environment that influences our development. Everything is learned through our interactions with our environment and as a result of our experiences. In the past, hereditary and environmental factors were considered to be operating separately from each other. It was one or the other nature (hereditary) or nurture (environment). Today it is generally agreed that hereditary and environment are both important factors; development is a combination of both. Example: Average longevity is influenced by genetic and environmental factors. To increase your chances of a long life you need to come from a family with a history of individuals who lived to a ripe age (genetic factors). Environmental factors; such as diseases, toxins, lifestyle and social class are also important factors that influence longevity. A person who makes poor lifestyle choices and live in an impoverished area will decrease his/her chances of a long life. Therefore it can be said that both nature and nurture play a role in a person living to a ripe age. 1.2. Stability – change The stability versus change concept explores how much of ones behaviour is consistent and how much is changeable over a lifespan. Simply put, we can ask whether development is best characterized by stability (for example, does a behaviour or trait such as shyness stay stable in its expression over time?) or change (could a persons degree of shyness fluctuate across the life span?). Stability at a basic level is vital for us to recognize that we are still the same person as we grow older. But we also like to believe that our characteristics are not set in stone, that we can change ourselves if we want to. Psychoanalysts believe that personality traits developed in the first 5 years predict adult personality. Change theorists argue that personalities are modified by interactions with family, experiences at school, and acculturation. Example: Costa and McCrae (1994; 1997) have investigated whether the traits that make up the five-factor model remain stable across adulthood and came to the general conclusion that personality traits remain stable after age 30. If a 30 year old woman worried excessively about whether or not her husbands salary was enough to make mortgage payments, then she also is likely to be worried about having saved enough for her childrens college tuition when she is 45 and is likely to be worried about the adequacy of her husbands pension income at age 70. Since Costa and McCrae suggest that personality traits remain stable through adulthood a high degree of neuroticism, as reflected by a consistent and excessive level of anxiety and worry, is likely to persist and find new focal points over time. However, there is evidence that change can be found in personality trait development across the adult life span. Allemand et al. (2008) found that the way people differ in their personality becomes more pronounced with older age. Furthermore, other studies (Donnellan Lucas, 2008) found that extraversion and openness decrease with age whereas agreeableness increases with age (Blanchard-Fields Cavanaugh, 2011, p. 321). 1.3. Continuity – discontinuity The continuity versus discontinuity controversy deals with the question of whether development is a gradual, smooth progression from conception to death (continuity), or a series of distinct and abrupt shifts (discontinuity). Continuity focuses on quantitative changes in number or amount, such as changes in height and weight. Discontinuity focuses on qualitative changes in kind, structure, or organization. An example of continuity is: Infants who have satisfying emotional relationships with their parents typically become children with satisfying peer relationships. And they will eventually become adults with satisfying relationships with others. An example of discontinuity: After spending most of adulthood trying to ensure the success of the next generation and to leave a legacy, older adults turn to evaluating their own lives in search of closure and a sense that what they have accomplished has been meaningful. 1.4. Universal versus context-specific development This concerns whether or not there is one path of development or several. Example: David Schmitt and colleagues (2004) investigated whether one’s attachment style may have a major influence on how one forms romantic relationships. The results showed that 79% of the cultural groups studied demonstrated secure romantic attachments, but that North American cultures tended to be dismissive and East Asian cultures tended to be high on preoccupied romantic attachment. Overall, Schmitt and colleagues concluded that although the same attachment pattern holds across most cultures, no one pattern holds across all of them. East Asian cultures in particular tend to fit a pattern in which people report that others do not get as emotionally close as the respondent would like, and that respondents find it difficult to trust others or to depend on them.