CHILD PSYCHOLOGY:UNDERSTANDING
DEVELOPMENTAL STAGES
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Imagine
two children born in the same town and the same year to families with similar
socioeconomic statuses. One child grows up to be assertive and confident, while
the other grows up to be timid and shy. The study of the stages of human
development can help explain the reasons for these differences and much more.
What
is human development,
exactly? Human development is a branch of psychology with the goal of
understanding people — how they develop, grow, and change throughout their
lives. This discipline, which can help individuals better understand themselves
and their relationships, is broad. As such, it can be used in various
professional settings and career paths.
What
Are the Eight Stages of Human Development?
If human
development is the study of how people change throughout their lives, how and
when does this development happen? Many scientists and psychologists have
studied various aspects of human development, including ego psychologist Erik
Erikson. He examined the impact of social experiences throughout an
individual’s life and theorized that psychosocial development happens in eight
sequential parts. What are the eight stages of human development?
Stage
1 — Infancy: Trust vs. Mistrust
In the
first stage of human development, infants learn to trust based on how well
their caregivers meet their basic needs and respond when they cry. If an infant
cries out to be fed, the parent can either meet this need by feeding and
comforting the infant or not meet this need by ignoring the infant. When their
needs are met, infants learn that relying on others is safe; when their needs
go unmet, infants grow up to be less trusting.
Stage
2 — Toddlerhood: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
In
addition to autonomy versus shame and doubt, another way to think of the second
stage is independence versus dependence. Like in the first stage, toddlers go
through this stage responding to their caregivers. If caregivers encourage them
to be independent and explore the world on their own, toddlers will grow up
with a sense of self-efficacy. If the caregivers hover excessively or encourage
dependence, these toddlers grow up with less confidence in their abilities.
For
example, if a toddler wants to walk without assistance in a safe area, the
caregiver should encourage this autonomy by allowing the independent behavior.
If the caregiver insists on holding the toddler’s hand even when it’s not
necessary, this attention can lead to doubt later in life.
Stage
3 — Preschool Years: Initiative vs. Guilt
During
the preschool years, children learn to assert themselves and speak up when they
need something. Some children may state that they’re sad because a friend stole
their toy. If this assertiveness is greeted with a positive reaction, they
learn that taking initiative is helpful behavior. However, if they’re made to
feel guilty or ashamed for their assertiveness, they may grow up to be timid
and less likely to take the lead.
Stage
4 — Early School Years: Industry vs. Inferiority
When
children begin school, they start to compare themselves with peers. If children
feel they’re accomplished in relation to peers, they develop strong
self-esteem. If, however, they notice that other children have met milestones
that they haven’t, they may struggle with self-esteem. For example, a first
grader may notice a consistently worse performance on spelling tests when
compared with peers. If this becomes a pattern, it can lead to feelings of
inferiority.
Stage 5 — Adolescence: Identity vs. Role
Confusion
The
adolescent stage is where the term “identity crisis” originated, and for good
reason. Adolescence is all about developing a sense of self. Adolescents who
can clearly identify who they are grow up with stronger goals and
self-knowledge than teenagers who struggle to break free of their parents’ or
friends’ influences. Adolescents who still deeply depend on their parents for
social interaction and guidance may experience more role confusion than
teenagers who pursue their own interests.
Stage
6 — Young Adulthood: Intimacy vs. Isolation
In young
adulthood, which begins roughly at age 20, people begin to solidify their
lifelong bonds; many people enter committed relationships or marriages, while
others form lifelong friendships. People who can create and maintain these
relationships reap the emotional benefits, while those who struggle to maintain
relationships may suffer from isolation. A young adult who develops strong
friendships in college may feel more intimacy than one who struggles to form
and maintain close friendships.
Stage
7 — Middle Adulthood: Generativity vs. Stagnation
In middle
adulthood, people tend to struggle with their contributions to society. They
may be busy raising children or pursuing careers. Those who feel that they’re
contributing experience generativity, which is the sense of leaving a legacy.
On the other hand, those who don’t feel that their work or lives matter may
experience feelings of stagnation. For example, a middle-aged adult who’s
raising a family and working in a career that presumably helps people may feel
more fulfilled than an adult who’s working at a day job that feels meaningless.
Stage
8 — Late Adulthood: Integrity vs. Despair
As adults
reach the end of life, they look back on their lives and reflect. Adults who
feel fulfilled by their lives, either through a successful family or a
meaningful career, reach ego integrity, in which they can face aging and dying
with peace. If older adults don’t feel that they’ve lived a good life, they
risk falling into despair.
Erikson’s
psychosocial development theory has been critiqued for focusing too much on
childhood. Critics claim that his emphasis makes the model less representative
of the growth that people experienced in adulthood. Erikson’s model of the
stages of human development is only one theory addressing growth and change
throughout life, as many other psychologists have researched their own theories
of human development, including the following:
Cognitive
Development
Jean
Piaget developed the theory of cognitive development. Piaget’s theory is widely
used in education programs to prepare teachers to instruct students in
developmentally appropriate ways. The theory is based on four stages:
• Sensorimotor — In the sensorimotor stage
(birth to 2 years old), children learn object permanence, which is the
understanding that people and objects still exist even when they’re out of
view.
• Preoperational — In the preoperational
stage (2-7 years old), children develop symbolic thought, which is when they
begin to progress from concrete to abstract thinking. Children in this stage
often have imaginary friends.
• Concrete operational — In the concrete
operational stage (7-11 years old), children solidify their abstract thinking
and begin to understand cause and effect and logical implications of actions.
• Formal operational — In the formal
operational stage (adolescence to adulthood), humans plan for the future, think
hypothetically, and assume adult responsibilities.
Moral
Development
Lawrence
Kohlberg created a theory of human development based on moral development
concepts. The theory comprises the following stages:
• Preconventional — In the preconventional
stage, people follow rules because they’re afraid of punishment and make
choices only with their best interests in mind.
• Conventional — In the conventional stage,
people act to avoid society’s judgment and follow rules to maintain the systems
and structures that are already in place.
• Postconventional — In the
postconventional stage, a genuine concern for the welfare of others and the
greater good of society guides people.
Psychosexual
Theory
Sigmund
Freud popularized the psychosexual theory. The theory comprises five stages:
• Oral — In the oral stage (birth to 1 year
old), children learn to suck and swallow and may experience conflict with
weaning.
• Anal — In the anal stage (1-3 years old),
children learn to withhold or expel feces and may experience conflict with
potty training.
• Phallic — In the phallic stage (3-6 years
old), children discover that their genitals can give them pleasure.
• Latency — In the latency stage (roughly
6 years old through puberty), they take a break from these physical stages and
instead develop mentally and emotionally.
• Genital — In the genital stage (puberty
through adulthood), people learn to express themselves sexually.
Ideally,
children move through each phase fluidly as their sexual libidos develop, but
if they’re stuck in any of the phases, they may develop a fixation that hinders
their development.
Behavioural
Theory
The
behavioral theory focuses solely on a person’s behaviors rather than the
feelings that go alongside those behaviors. It suggests that behaviors are
conditioned in an environment due to certain stimuli. Behavioral theorists
believe that behavior determines feelings, so changing behaviors is important
because this will in turn change feelings.
The
attachment theory focuses on the deep relationships between people across their
lifetime. An important attachment theory finding is that children must develop
at least one strong bond in childhood to trust and develop relationships as
adults. The attachment theory comprises four stages:
• Asocial or pre-attachment (birth to 6 weeks old)
• Indiscriminate attachment (6 weeks old to
7 months old)
• Specific or discriminate attachment (7-9
months old)
• Multiple attachments (10 months old or
later)
Social
Learning Theory
The
social learning theory builds upon the behavioral theory and postulates that
people learn best by observing the behavior of others. They watch how others
act, view the consequences, and then make decisions regarding their own
behavior accordingly. The four stages in this theory are:
• Attention
• Retention
• Reproduction
• Motivation
In the
attention stage, people first notice the behavior of others. In the retention
stage, they remember the behavior and the resulting consequences. In the
reproduction stage, people develop the ability to imitate the behaviors they
want to reproduce, and in the motivation stage, they perform these behaviors.
Sociocultural
Theory
The
sociocultural theory ties human development to the society or culture in which
people live. It focuses on the contributions that society as a whole makes to
individual human development. For example, children who are raised to play
outdoors develop differently from children who are raised to play indoors.
An
important part of this theory is the zone of proximal development, which is an
area of knowledge and skills slightly more advanced than a child’s current
level. The zone of proximal development helps teachers think about and plan
instruction, so sociocultural theory plays a large role in preservice teacher
training.
What
Are the Genetic Factors That Affect Human Growth and Development?
One more
key element of human growth and development left to explore is genetics.
Genetics influences the speed and way in which people develop, though other
factors, such as parenting, education, experiences, and socioeconomic factors,
are also at play. The multiple genetic factors that affect human growth and
development include genetic interactions and sex chromosome abnormalities.
Genetic
Interactions
Genes can
act in an additive way or sometimes conflict with one another. For example, a
child with one tall parent and one short parent may end up between the two of
them, at average height. Other times, genes follow a dominant-recessive
pattern. If one parent has brown hair and the other has red hair, the red hair
gene is the dominant gene if their child has red hair.
Gene-Environment
Interactions
Humans’
genetic information is always interacting with the environment, and sometimes
this can impact development and growth. For example, if a child in utero is
exposed to drugs, the child’s cognitive abilities may be impacted, thus
changing the developmental process. In addition, even if a child’s genes would
indicate a tall height, if that child experiences poor nutrition as children,
it may impact their height.
Sex
Chromosome Abnormalities
Sex
chromosome abnormalities impact as many as 1 in 500 births. The following
syndromes are examples of sex chromosome abnormalities that can impact
development:
• Klinefelter syndrome is the presence of
an extra X chromosome in males, which can cause physical characteristics such
as decreased muscle mass and reduced body hair and may cause learning
disabilities.
• Fragile X syndrome is caused by a
mutation in the FMR1 gene that makes the X chromosome appear fragile. It can
cause intellectual disability, developmental delays, or distinctive physical
features such as a long face.
• Turner syndrome happens when one of the X
chromosomes is missing or partially missing. It only affects females and
results in physical characteristics like short stature and webbed neck.
Down
Syndrome
Down
syndrome is another common example of how genetics can impact development. This
chromosomal disorder may cause some individuals to experience physical or
intellectual development differences. Down syndrome occurs at the 21st
chromosomal site, in which people with Down syndrome have three chromosomes
rather than two.
Those
with Down syndrome often have different physical characteristics and may be
prone to physical problems like heart defects and hearing problems. Most
individuals with Down syndrome have intellectual impairment, but the degree of
this impairment varies from person to person.
Why Do
We Study Human Growth and Development?
The study
of human growth and development offers a wealth of value for personal and
professional growth and understanding. Many reasons exist for why we study
human growth and development.
Common
benefits include the following:
• To gain a better understanding of one’s
own life experiences. This can help people personally reach an understanding of
what childhood events shaped their adulthood.
• To gain knowledge of how social context
impacts development. This knowledge can be invaluable for professionals like
teachers as they gain a deeper understanding of their students.
• To help others understand and
contextualize the ups and downs of life. This helps therapists and
psychologists better aid their clients in self-discovery.
• To understand how societal change can
support growth and development. This understanding helps decision-makers in
schools change the educational culture for the better.
• To become a more effective research,
teacher, or leader in many different industries. Understanding human
development deeply and in context has many professional benefits that can lead
to greater insight.
• To support the physical and mental health
of individuals throughout their life span. Professionals like doctors, nurses,
and therapists must understand human growth and development to better support
their clients.
Students
may choose to study human growth and development because of its array of
applications across many professional fields. For example, students who want to
become elementary school teachers may take courses on the stages of human
development to understand cognitive development and how children’s brains grow
and change.
Human
development is a wide-reaching and ever-changing discipline. A knowledge of
human development can be invaluable to people personally as they continue to
learn and grow throughout their lives and professionally as they learn to apply
what they’ve learned to their careers.
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