DEVELOPMENTAL

PSYCHOLOGY
Lecture – 2nd Year – DEVP211

DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY NORMATIVE AND

− Developmental Psychology is NONNORMATIVE INFLUENCES
the scientific study of systematic
processes of change and NORMATIVE INFLUNCES
stability in all domains, or − These are biological or
aspects of development and environmental events that affect
throughout all periods of the many or most people in a society
lifespan (Papalia et al., 2009). in similar ways.
− Development is systematic ▪ Normative age-graded
(coherent and organized) and influences- Events that are
adaptive (aimed at dealing with highly similar for people in a
internal and external conditions particular age group.
of existence). ▪ Normative history-graded
− It studies how thinking, feeling, influences – Significant
and behavior change environmental events that
throughout a person’s life. shape the behavior and
DOMAINS OF DEVELOPMENT attitudes of an age cohort
PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT or a historical generation.
• Growth of the body and brain NONNORMATIVE INFLUENCES
• Sensory capacities − There are unusual events that
• Motor skills have major impact on individual
• Health lives because they disturb the
COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT expected sequence of the life
cycle.
• Learning
− They are either typical events
• Memory
that happen at an atypical time of
• Attention
life(such as the death of a parent
• Language
when a child is young) or atypical
• Reasoning
events (such as winning the
• Thinking lottery).
PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT TIMING OF INFLUENCES
• Emotions Critical Period
• Personality
− A specific time when a given event
• Social Relationships
or its absence has a specific impact
on development.
Sensitive Period
− Times in development when a
person is particularly open to
certain kinds of experiences.

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DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGY
Lecture – 2nd Year – DEVP211

PRINCIPLES OF LIFESPAN maintenance and recovery are not

DEVELOPMENT APPROACH possible.
Baltes and his colleagues identified the 6. Development shows plasticity.
following principles for the study of Many abilities, such as memory,
lifespan development: strength, and endurance, can be
1. Development is lifelong. improved significantly with training
Development is a lifelong process of and practice, even late in life.
change. Each period of the lifespan is 7. Development is influenced by the
affected by what happened before and historical and cultural context.
will affect what is to come. Each period Each person develops within multiple
has unique characteristics and value; contexts - circumstances or conditions
no period is more or less important defined in part by maturation and in
than any other. part by time and place. Human beings
2. Development is multidimensional. not only influence but are also
It occurs along multiple interacting influenced by their historical-cultural
dimensions - biological, psychological, context.
and social -each of which may develop RECURRING ISSUES IN
at varying rates. DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGY
3. Development is multidirectional.
NATURE VS. NURTURE
As people gain in one area, they may
lose in another, sometimes at the same − Nature-Nurture Issue: The degree
time. People seek to maximize gains by to which genetic or hereditary
concentrating on doing things they do influences(nature) and
well and to minimize losses by learning experiential or environmental
to manage or compensate for them. influences (nurture) determine the
kind of person you are.
4. Relative influences of biology and
− Development is always shaped by
culture shift over the lifespan.
both : Nature and nurture are
The process of development is
mutually interactive influences.
influenced by both biology and culture,
but the balance between these CONTINUITY VS. DISCONTINUITY
influences’ changes. − Continuity–discontinuity issue:
5. Development involves changing Whether a particular
resource allocations. developmental phenomenon
represents a smooth progression
Individuals choose to invest their
throughout the lifespan
resources of time, energy, talent,
(continuity) or a series of abrupt
money, and social support in varying
shifts (discontinuity).
ways. Resources may be used for
growth, maintenance or recovery, or
for dealing with loss when

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 DEVELOPMENTAL
PSYCHOLOGY
Lecture – 2nd Year – DEVP211

UNIVERSAL VS. CONTEXT- Life-Cycle Forces

SPECIFICDEVELOPMENT − This reflects differences in how the
− Universal and context-specific same event affects people of
development issue: Concerns different ages.
whether there is one path of − In the scenarios with Jacqui (32
development or several. y/o, happily married)and Jenny
BASIC FORCES IN HUMAN (17, in a complicated relationship),
DEVELOPMENT the same event— pregnancy—
Biological Forces produces happiness and eager
anticipation for one woman but
− Include all genetic and health-
anxiety and concern for the other.
related factors that affect
development. Biopsychosocial Framework
− For example: Prenatal − Combining the four
development, brain maturation, developmental forces gives a
puberty, and menopause may view of human development that
occur to you as outcomes of encompasses the life span yet
biological forces. appreciates the unique aspects of
Psychological Forces each phase of life.
− From this perspective we can
− Include all internal perceptual,
view each life story as a complex
cognitive, emotional, and
interplay among the four forces.
personality factors that affect
− A useful way to organize the
development.
biological, psychological, and
− For example, we will see how the
sociocultural forces on human
development of intelligence
development.
enables individuals to experience
and think about their world in
different ways.
Sociocultural Forces
− Include interpersonal, societal,
cultural, and ethnic factors that
affect development.
− To understand human
development, we need to know
how people and their
environments interact and relate
to each other.

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