Unit 7 Human Growth and
Development
Chapter 7
Principles of Health Science
Life Stages
 Growth and development begins at birth
and ends at death
 During an entire lifetime, individuals have
needs that must be met
 Health care workers need to be aware of
the various stages and needs of the
individual to provide quality health care
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Life Stages
(continued)
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Infancy: birth to 1 year
Early childhood: 1-6 years
Late childhood: 6-12 years
Adolescence: 12-20 years
Early adulthood: 20-40 years
Middle adulthood: 40-65 years
Late adulthood: 65 years and up
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Growth and Development
Types
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Physical: body growth
Mental: mind development
Emotional: feelings
Social: interactions and relationships
with others
 All four types above occur in each stage
 Tasks progress from simple to complex
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Growth and Development
Rates
 Rate of progress varies
 Factors that can affect include:
– Sex
– Race
– Heredity
– Culture
– Life experiences
– Health status
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Erikson’s Stages of
Psychosocial Development
 Erik Erikson was a psychoanalyst
 A basic conflict or need must be met in
each stage
 See Table 7-1 in text page 191 & the
handout
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Infancy
 Age: birth to 1 year old
 Dramatic and rapid changes
– Newborn average weight is 6-8 pounds
– Average length is 18-22 inches
 Reflexes are present at birth
– Moro/startle
– Rooting
– Sucking
– Grasping
 Teeth appear between 4-6 months of age. By age one 10-12 teeth.
 Vision is poor at birth limited to black and white but by age 1 can
focus on small objects.
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Infancy Physical Development
AGE:
ACTIVITY:
BIRTH
lift head slightly
2 MONTHS
roll side to back
4-5 MONTHS
turn body completely around, accept objects handed to
them, grasp stationary objects, hold head up while sitting
6-7 MONTHS
sit unsupported for several minutes, grasp moving
objects, crawl on the stomach
12 MONTHS
walk without assistance, grasp with thumb and fingers,
throw objects
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Infancy Development
 Mental– Rapid in the 1st year.
– Responds to discomforts by crying.
– By 6 months make basic sounds
– By 12 months understand and use single words.
 Emotional– Newborns show excitement
– At 12 months, affection for parents is evident.
 Social– 4 months – recognizes/smiles at caregiver.
– 6 months- watches the activities of others.
– 12 months – shy with strangers, but socializes with familiar people.
 REMEMBER, stimulation is essential for mental growth.
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7lL1jnwZOs
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Early Childhood
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Age: 1-6 years old
Physical Development
Growth slows down
At age 6 average height – 46 inches, average weight – 45 pounds
Has more adult appearance – head more in proportion to the rest of
the body.
Muscle coordination – allows the child to run and climb
Learn to write and draw and use a fork and knife.
2-3 years – most of the teeth developed – can eat adult foods
2-4 years – establishment of bowel and bladder control.
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Early Childhood
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Mental development:
Advances rapidly
Verbal – several words at age one to 1500-2000 words at age 6.
Two years – short attention span.
Four years – ask many questions, recognizes letters and some
words and begins to make logic based decisions.
 Six years – learns to read and write, and makes decisions based on
the present and the past.
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Early Childhood
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Emotional development:
At age 2 safety limits are defined & child will accept or defy the limits.
Become impatient and frustrated when they try to do things beyond their
ability.
Temper tantrums – when can’t perform as desired.
Likes routine
Age 4-6: Understands right from wrong.
Less anxiety when faced with new situations.
Social Development
Expands form a self-centered one-year-old to a very sociable six-year-old.
Still has a need for routine, order, and consistency in daily lives.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qb3DXY_7fU
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Late Childhood or
Preadolescence
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Age: 6-12 years old
Physical development
Slow but steady
Weight gain 5-7 pounds/year; height gain of 2-3 inches/year
Most primary teeth are lost and replaced by permanent teeth.
Age 10-12 - sexual maturation begins.
Mental development
Learns to use information to solve problems
Memory becomes more complex
Begins to understand more abstract concepts such as loyalty,
honesty, values, and morals.
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Late Childhood or
Preadolescence
 Emotional Development
 Age 6 often frightened as school begins. Reassuring
parents can ease this transition.
 Age 10-12 sexual maturation and changes in body
functions can lead to periods of depression followed by
joy.
 Social Development
 7 years-tend to like activities they can do by themselves.
 8-10 years-tend to be more group orientated.
 10-12 years-make friends more easily & gain interest in
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUS-5p7CPuE.
the opposite sex
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUS-5p7CPuE
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Adolescence
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Age: 12-20 years old
Physical development
Sudden growth spurt can cause rapid increases in weight and height.
Occurs between ages 11-13 for girls; and between ages 13-15 for boys.
Muscle coordination does not occurs as quickly, and can lead to clumsiness or
awkwardness during this period.
Onset of puberty; secretion of sex hormones begin
Girls
– Menstruation
– Pubic hair
– Hips widen
– Develop breasts
– Body fat distribution leads to the female shape.
Boys
– Production of semen and sperm
– Deeper voice
– More muscle mass
– Pubic and facial hair.
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Adolescence
 Mental Development
 Most foundations established and experience increase of
knowledge and sharpening of skills.
 Make independent decisions and accept responsibility
for actions
 Emotional development:
 Often stormy and in conflict
 Worry about appearance, abilities and relationships with
others.
 Social development:
 Move away from family to association with peers.
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Eating Disorders
Anorexia nervosa
 Drastically reduce or
refuse food intake
 Metabolic disturbances
occur
 Weakness and death
 Psychological
 More common in females
Bulimia
 Alternately binges
 Eat excessively then fast
or refuse to eat
 Induce vomiting
 Use laxatives
 Psychological
 More common in females
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Chemical Abuse
 Use of substances such as alcohol or drugs
 Reasons for trying chemicals:
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Anxiety
Stress relief
Peer pressure
Escape from emotional or psychological problems
Experimentation with feeling the chemical produces
Instant gratification
Heredity traits
Cultural influences
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Suicide
 One of the leading causes of death in
adolescents
 Reasons
– Depression
– Grief over a loss or love affair
– Failure in school
– Inability to meet expectations
– Influence of suicidal friends
– Lack of self-esteem
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Increased Risk of Suicide
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Family history of suicide
A major loss or disappointment
Previous suicide attempts
Recent suicide of friends, family, or role
models (heroes or idols)
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Early Adulthood
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Age 20-40 years
Physical development
Frequently the most productive period of life.
Physical development is basically complete.
Prime child-bearing years and usually produces the healthiest
babies.
 Mental development
 Time to make many decisions and form many judgments
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Independence
Career choices
Establish life style
Select marital partner
Start a family
Establish values
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Early Adulthood
 Emotional development
 Subjected to many emotional stresses related to
career, marriage, and family
 Social development
 Move away from peer group.
 Associate with others who have similar
ambitions and interests (regardless of age)
 Spend more time with mate and family of their
own
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Middle Adulthood
(Middle Age)
 Age: 40-65 years of age
 Physical changes begin to occur
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Hair gray and thins
Skin wrinkles
Muscle tone decreases
Hearing loss starts
Visual acuity declines
Weight gain
 Mental development
 Mental ability can continue to increase during this period
– usually very good students!
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Middle Adulthood
 Emotional development
 Period of contentment and satisfaction , or a time of
crisis.
 Satisfaction derived from: job stability, financial success,
the end of child- rearing, and good health.
 Stresses can result from: loss of job, fear of aging, loss
of youth and vitality, illness, martial problems , and
“empty-nest” syndrome.
 Social development
 Relationships between husband and wife can become
stronger as a result of have more time to spend with
each other.
 However, divorce rates are also high in this group.
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Late Adulthood
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Age: 65 years of age and up
Physical development
Often referred to as elderly or senior citizen
People are living longer
Physical development on the decline:
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Skin-dry, wrinkled, thin with brown or yellow spots
Loss of hair or thins, gray, loss of shine
Bones become brittle and porous
Cartilage thins
Decrease muscle strength and tone
Hearing and vision loss
Decreased tolerance for heat and cold
Memory loss and decline of reasoning ability
Decreased circulation
Decreased lung capacity
Less efficient kidney & bladder
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Late Adulthood
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Mental development
Mental abilities vary among individuals.
Short-term memory is usually the first to decline.
Alzheimer’s disease can lead to irreversible loss of memory, and
deterioration of intellectual function.
Emotional Development
Some people cope well with the stresses presented by aging and
remain happy and able to enjoy life.
Others become lonely, frustrated, withdrawn, and depressed.
Stress can be the result of:
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Retirement
Spouse or friend’s death
Physical disabilities
Financial problems
-Loss of Independence
-Knowledge of death impending
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Late Adulthood
 Social development
 Retirement can lead to a loss of self-esteem.
 Less contact with co-workers can lead to a limited circle
of friends.
 Death of a spouse and friends, and moving to a new
environment can cause changes in social relationships.
 Development of new social outlets is important:
 Remember, no matter what the age, people need a
sense of belonging, self-esteem, financial security, social
acceptance, and love.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ld8GLIzIWKU
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7:2 Death and Dying
 Death is “the final stage of growth”
 Experienced by everyone and
no one escapes
 Young people tend to ignore its existence
 Usually it is the elderly, who have lost
others, who begin to think about their
own death
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Terminal Illness
 Disease that cannot be cured and will
result in death
 People react in different ways
 Some patients view death as a final peace
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Research
 Dr. Elizabeth Kübler-Ross was the leading
expert in the field of death and dying
 Results of her research
– Most medical personnel now believe patient
should be informed of approaching death
– Patient should be left with some hope and
know they will not be left alone
– Staff need to know extent of information
known by patient
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Research
(continued)
 Dr. Kübler-Ross identified 5 stages of
grieving
– Dying patients and their families/friends may
experience these stages
– Stages may not occur in order
– Some patients may not progress through
them all, others may experience several
stages at once
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Stages of Death and Dying
 Denial – refuses to believe
 Anger – when no longer able to deny
 Bargaining – accepts death, but wants
more time
 Depression – realizes death will
come soon
 Acceptance – understands and accepts
the fact they are going to die
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Caring for the Dying Patient
 Very challenging, but rewarding work
 Supportive care
 Health care worker must have
self-awareness
 Common to want to avoid feelings by
avoiding dying patient
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Hospice Care
 Palliative care only
 Often in patient’s home
 Philosophy: allow patient to die with dignity
and comfort
 Personal care
 Volunteers
 After death contact and services
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Right to Die
 Health care workers must understand
this issue
 Ethical issues must be addressed
 Allowing patients to die can cause conflict
 Specific actions to end life cannot be taken
 Laws allowing “right to die”
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Summary
 Death is a part of life
 Health care workers will deal with death
and dying patients
 Must understand death and dying process
and think about needs of dying patients
 Then health care workers will be able
to provide the special care these
individuals need
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7:3 Human Needs
 Needs: lack of something that is required
or desired
 Needs exist from birth to death
 Needs influence our behavior
 Needs have a priority status
 Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
(See Figure 7-14 in text)
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Altered Physiological
Needs
 Health care workers need to be aware
of how illness interferes with meeting
physiological needs
 Surgery or laboratory testing
 Anxiety
 Medications
 Loss of vision or hearing
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Altered Physiological
Needs (continued)
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Decreased sense of smell and taste
Deterioration of muscles and joints
Change in person’s behavior
What the health care worker can do to
assist the patient with altered needs
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Meeting Needs
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Motivation to act when needs felt
Sense of satisfaction when needs met
Sense of frustration when needs not met
Several needs can be felt at the same time
Different needs can have different levels
of intensity
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Methods for Satisfying
Needs
 Direct methods
– Hard work
– Set realistic goals
– Evaluate situation
– Cooperate with others
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Methods for Satisfying
Needs (continued)
 Indirect methods
– Defense mechanisms
– Rationalization
– Projection
– Displacement
– Compensation
– Daydreaming
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Methods for Satisfying
Needs (continued)
 Indirect methods (continued)
– Repression
– Suppression
– Denial
– Withdrawal
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Summary
 Be aware of own needs and
patient’s needs
 More efficient and quality care can
be provided when know needs and
understand motivations
 Better understanding of our behavior
and that of others
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7:4 Effective Communications
 Health care workers must be able to relate
to patients, family, coworkers, and others
 Understanding communication skills
assists in this process
 Communication: exchange of information,
thoughts, ideas, and feelings
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Effective Communications
(continued)
 Verbal: spoken words
 Written
 Nonverbal: facial expressions, body
language, and touch
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Effective Communications
(continued)
 Essential elements
– Sender
– Message
– Receiver
– Feedback
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Effective Communications
(continued)
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Message must be clear
How sender delivers message
How receiver hears message
How receiver understands message
Avoid interruptions and distractions
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Listening
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Essential to communications
Attempt to hear what other is really saying
Need constant practice
Good listening skills techniques
Observe speaker closely
Reflect statements back to speaker
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Nonverbal Communications
 Facial expressions, body language,
gestures, eye contact, and touch
 Can conflict with verbal message
 Be aware of own and other’s nonverbals
 Don’t always need verbals to
communicate effectively
 When verbal and nonverbal agree,
message more likely understood
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Barriers to Communication
 Something that gets in the way of clear
communications
 Common barriers
– Physical disabilities
– Psychological attitudes and prejudice
– Cultural diversity
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Recording and Reporting
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Observe and record observations
Use all senses in the process
Report promptly and accurately
Criteria for recording observations on a
patient’s health care record
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Summary
 Good communication skills
allow development of
good interpersonal relationships
 Health care worker also relates
more effectively with coworkers and
other individuals
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