Human Development Across a Life Span
Development
 The sequence of age-related changes
that occur as a person progresses from
conception to death.
 Discontinuous
 Based on species
Germinal Stage
 lasting from conception to about 2 weeks.
 A zygote, a one
celled organism is
formed by the union
of an egg and sperm
 During this stage, rapid cell division occurs, and the mass
of cells migrates to the uterus and begins to implant into
the uterine wall, forming a placenta during the
implantation process.
Embryonic Stage
 Lasts from 2 weeks to 2 months
 Is the period when most of the vital organs and
bodily systems such as the heartbeat, spine, and
brain emerge.
 The embryonic period is a time of great
vulnerability; if anything
interferes with development
during this time period,
effects can be devastating.
Fetal Stage
 Lasts from 2 months to birth. During the early parts of this
stage, the muscles and bones begin to form. The body
continues to grow and function, with sex organs developing in
the 3rd month and brain cells multiplying during the final 3
months.
• Between 22 and 26 weeks, the age of viability is reached…
when the baby could survive if born prematurely.
 12 weeks 3 inches, fetus, fingerprints,
 smile, urinate
 16 weeks 6-7 inches, hair, fingernails
 20 weeks 12 inches, sucks thumb,
 hiccups, eye lashes
 age of viability-(22 weeks)
Infants
 Average 7.3 pounds
 18-22 inches
 Grasping: an infants response to cling to something
that touches their hand.
 Rooting: an infants sucking response to something
touching their cheek.
Environmental Factors
Maternal Nutrition
 Severe maternal malnutrition increases
the risk of birth complications and
psychological defects in the newborn.
 Prenatal malnutrition has been linked
to vulnerability to schizophrenia and other
disorders in adolescence and early adulthood.
 Low birth weight is associated with increased risk
of diabetes and heart disease.
 Teratogens
harmful agents to the prenatal environment
Maternal Drug Use
 Virtually all prescription and non prescription drugs can
be harmful to an unborn child. (alcohol, nicotine,
aspirin, caffeine, cocaine, marijuana, heroin.)
 Babies of heroine users are born addicted to narcotics
and have an increased risk of death due to
complications.
 Fetal alcohol syndrome is a collection of congenital
problems associated with excessive alcohol use during
pregnancy.
pg 111 in Life Span book
Maternal Illness
 Diseases such as rubella, syphilis, cholera,
smallpox, mumps, and sever cases of the flu
can be hazardous to the fetus.
 Herpes can cause paralysis, deafness,
blindness, and brain damage in infants, and
can be fatal for many newborns.
 20-30% of mothers who carry the AIDS virus
pass it to their babies.
Basic Principles of Motor
Development
 Cephalocaudal trend – children tend to gain
control over the upper part of their bodies before
the lower part.
 Proximodistal trend – children gain control over
their torsos before their extremities. Maturation
– gradual unfolding of genetic blueprint
 Developmental norms – median age
 Cultural variations
Early Emotional Development:
Attachment
 Attachment refers to the close, emotional bonds of
affection that develop between infants and their
caregivers.
 Separation anxiety is normal emotional distress seen
in infants when they are separated from people with
whom they have formed an attachment.
Mary Ainsworth’s Patterns of
Attachment (AP ESSAY 2008)
 Secure attachment, playing and exploring
comfortably when mom is present, becoming visibly
upset when she leaves, and calming quickly upon her
return. More closely related to high self-esteem later in
life.
 Anxious-ambivalent attachment, show anxiety even
when mom is near and protest excessively when she
leaves, but are not particularly comforted when she
returns.
 Avoidant attachment, sought little contact with their
mothers and were not distressed when she left.
Easy and Difficult Babies:
Difference in Temperament
 Temperament is primarily genetic & refers to characteristic
mood, activity level, and emotional reactivity. Nutrition
and environment plays a secondary role.
 Easy children- happy, regular in sleeping and eating,
adaptable, and not easily upset.
 Slow-to-warm-up children- less cheery, less regular in their
sleep and eating, and slower in adapting to change.
 Difficult children- glum, erratic
in sleep and eating, resistant to
change, and relatively irritable
Diana Baumrind
Parenting styles (AP ESSAY 2008)
 Authoritarian: parents are the boss: Children often
become resentful, develop low self-esteem, lack
independence & autonomy.
 Democratic/authoritative: children are involved in
decisions. Overall……Most successful children &
families.
 Permissive/laissez-faire: children do what they want. A
lot of children tend to get involved with drugs and
illegal activities.
Erikson’s Theory-Psychosocial
Erikson’s Stages: Early Childhood
Conflict must occur to transition to next stage through moratorium
 Trust vs. Mistrust- first year of life-Feeding
 If an infant’s basic needs are met and sound attachments are
formed, the child should develop and optimistic attitude
toward the world.
 Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt- age 2 to age 3-toileting
 Child must begin to take some responsibility in feeding,
eating, and dressing. If all goes well, he or she acquires a sense
of self-sufficiency.
 Initiative vs. Guilt- age 3 to age 6-Independance
 Children experiment and take initiatives that may conflict
with parents rules. Self-esteem is established.
 Industry vs. Inferiority- age 6 through puberty-school
 Children learn to value achievement and take pride in
accomplishment, resulting in a sense of competence.
Erikson’s Stages: Adolescence
 Identity vs. Confusion- adolescence-peers
 A sense of self identity is established
along with a set of unique morals and
ideals.
Erikson’s Stages: Adulthood
 Intimacy vs. Isolation- early adulthoodrelationships
 Development of the capacity to share intimacy
with others.
 Generativity vs. Self-absorption- middle
adulthood-parenting
 The decision is made whether to have children.
 Integrity vs. Despair- retirement years-life
reflection
 Avoidance of dwelling on the mistakes of the
past, the meaning in life is found.
 James Marcia (1988)
 4 identity statuses
Foreclosure-commitment based on others
ideas.
 Moratorium-considering important issues.
Experiencing life.
 Identity Diffusion-confused, no sense of
identity.
 Identity Achievement-based on experiences
and own beliefs clear decisions are made.

Piaget’s Stage Theory-Cognitive
Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive
Development
 Sensorimotor period- birth to age 2
 Symbolic thought develops
 Development of object permanence, when a child realizes that
object continue to exist even when they are no longer visible.
 Preoperational period- age 2 to age 7
 Improved use of mental images
 Understanding conservation, the awareness that physical
quantities remain constant in spite of changes in their shape.
 Concrete Operational Period- age 7 to age 11
 Children can perform operations only on images of tangible
objects and actual events
 Reversibility and decentration are mastered.
 Formal Operational Period- begins at age 11
 Abstract, systematic, logical and reflexive thought.
Kohlberg’s Stage Theory-Moral
Freud-Psychosexual Development
Adolescence
 Adolescence is the transitional period
between childhood and adulthood.
 Adolescence begins around age 13 and
end about age 22 or even later.
 Begin developing independence now: laundry,
cooking, self care, financial. Get a job, help around
the house, contribute.
 Puberty happens during this time.
 Failure to move into adulthood can
lead to depression.
Secondary sexual characteristics
in females:
 Breast development
 Pubic hair
 Increase in body fat mass
 Development of sex organs & breast ducts
 Stimulation of skeletal growth
Event Average Age in Years:
 Initial breast development 11
 Growth spurt 12 ¼
 First menstruation 13
 Skeletal growth completed 14 ½
 Final breast development 15 ¼
Secondary sexual characteristics
in Enlargement
males:of the male sex organs
Pubic & facial hair
Increase in muscle mass
Increase in size of the larynx with deepening of the voice
Acceleration of linear growth
Stimulation of libido
Event Average Age in Years
Initial testicular growth 11 ¾
Temporary breast development 13
Voice cracking begins 13
Growth spurt 13 ½
Hair in armpits 14
Adult voice attained 15
Moustache begins to appear 15
Whiskers appear 16
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Puberty
 Pubescence- the two year span preceding puberty
during which secondary sex characteristics,
develop physical features that distinguish one sex
from the other but that are not essential for
reproduction, and the changes leading to physical
and sexual maturity take place.
 Puberty- the stage in which sexual functions
reach maturity, and the primary sex
characteristics, the structures necessary for
reproduction, develop fully.
Adulthood
Personality Development
 Personality is marked by both stability
and change, as adulthood is a period of
many transitions.
Adjusting to Adulthood
Marriage
 Newly married couples tend to settle into marriage
roles gradually.
 Difficulties occur when couples enter a marriage
with different ideals of marital roles.
 The first few years of marriage tend to be
characterized by great happiness.
 Happiness tends to decline in the middle years of
marriage and increase again toward the end.
 95% of all people get married.
 Nearly 60% divorce rate for 1st marriages
 70% divorce rate for 2nd marriages
Aging and Cognitive Changes
 Fluid intelligence- information processing
skills
 Decreases with age.
 Crystallized intelligence- application of
accumulated knowledge.
 Remains stable with age.
The Expanse of Adulthood
 Personality development
 Social development
 Career development
 Physical changes
 Cognitive changes
Life span is increasing. 1900-40, 2009-80
Menapause, Empty nest, mid-life crisis
Kübler-Ross’s Stages
of Dying
People who are terminally ill go through a series of
stages as they approach death. Some of the stages
can be legitimate expressions of other concerns,
however. The stages are:
Denial
Bargaining
with God
Anger
Depression
Acceptance
of death