The Study of
Human Development
The Development of Children (5th ed.)
Cole, Cole & Lightfoot
Chapter 1
Basic Concepts

Developmental psychology

A study of physical, cognitive, and psychosocial
changes that transpire throughout the
course of human development

Growth years

Period from
infancy through
adolescence
Study of Child Development
 Focus
Physical changes
 Cognitive changes
 Psychosocial changes

 Aim
Promote the healthy
development of children
 Answer important questions…

Intriguing Questions

How are fetuses in the womb influenced by the
events occurring in the outside world, and how
do such influences shape
their development?

Can changes in diet
and upbringing
compensate for
genetic abnormalities?

In what ways is brain
development affected by experience?
Intriguing Questions


What makes it possible for
infants to acquire their native
language so rapidly with no
special training?

When do children become aware
that other people have thought
processes of their own, and what
makes this awareness possible?
What leads to the marked differences in
levels and forms of aggression between boys
and girls early in childhood?
Intriguing Questions

Why do some children learn to read with little
effort, while others require extensive help?

What causes some children to be bullies?

When do children begin to reason
systematically, and what
makes this form of thought
possible?

Is parent-child conflict
a necessary part of
adolescence?
Overview of the Journey

Early Beginnings of Modern
Developmental Psychology

Central Questions of
Developmental Psychology

Developmental Psychology
as a Discipline
Early Beginnings of
Modern Developmental
Psychology
Jean-Marc Itard and Victor,
the Wild Boy of Aveyron
Industrial Revolution and Research
into Child Labor Conditions
Charles Darwin’s
The Origin of Species
Victor, The Wild Boy


France (province of Aveyron), 1800, ~age 12
Jean-Marc Itard (physician)





To test the theory that social environment shapes
a child’s development
Abandoned the experiment after 5 years
Victor never learned to speak or interact normally
Maybe as a result of autism or social isolation
A beginning point for developmental
psychology because Itard was among first to
go beyond mere speculation to conduct
experiments to test his ideas
Child Labor Conditions

England (1833): Factory Inquiries Committee
decided that 12 hours was an acceptable
workday for children


Others disagreed: Believed that 10-hour workday
preferable, with remaining 2 hours
devoted to religious/moral education
Research results: Children who
worked in textile mills were
shorter and weighed less
than local nonworking children
The Origin of Species (1859)


Rather than viewing
children merely are
imperfect adults, not to be
seen or heard
Children came to be viewed
as scientifically interesting
because their behavior
might provide clues to ways
in which humans are
related to other species
Ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny
Phylogeny: The evolutionary history of a species
Ontogeny: Development of an individual organism over its lifetime
Distinctive Differences…
Homo sapiens
 Develops a unique environment consisting of
artifacts (e.g., tools, clothing, words),
knowledge (e.g., how to construct
and use artifacts), beliefs, and
values  culture
 Shapes and transmits culture to
succeeding generations largely
through language
 Seeks understanding of
transcendental dimensions
Central Questions of
Developmental
Psychology
Continuity
Sources of Development
Plasticity
Individual Differences
The Question of Continuity
Is the process of development gradual
and continuous (primarily in the form
of quantitative changes),
or is it marked by abrupt,
stagelike discontinuities
(primarily in terms of
qualitative changes)?
Continuous/
Quantitative
vs.
Discontinuous/
Qualitative
Developmental
Stages
Developmental Stages
1.
2.
3.
4.
Distinguished by qualitative changes
(e.g., crawling  walking)
Marked by simultaneous changes in many, if not
all, aspects of a child’s behavior (e.g., enhanced
mobility  new child-caregiver relations)
Characterized by rapid changes (e.g., transition
from crawling  walking in < 90 days)
Behavioral and physical changes merge to form
a coherent pattern (e.g., walking accompanied by
pointing, ability to follow another’s gaze, first words,
new child-caregiver relations)
List three ways in which
the person you were at the age
of 5 differed from the person
you were at the age of 15.
Label those differences as
either qualitative or
quantitative.
The Question of
Developmental Sources
How do nature (biology) and
nurture (environment)
interact to produce
development?
Philosophical Foundations
Nature of man

John Locke:
Tabula rasa (neutral)

Jean-Jacques Rousseu
(Emile):
Innately good

Jonathan Swift (“odious
vermin”):
Intrinsically evil
Nature vs. Nurture
Gender and mathematics: A case in point…
 Nature (inherited biological predispositions)
Advise girls to take less challenging math
courses, use different standards on
quantitative sections of standardized tests
 Nurture (influence of the social and cultural
environment on the individual)
Encourage girls to take more challenging
math courses, hold out societal models of
women in math and science
List two major ways in which
you are like your best friend and
two major ways in which the two
of you are different.
What causal factors do you think
are primarily responsible for these
similarities and differences?
The Question of Plasticity
To what degree, and under what
conditions, is development
open to change and
intervention?
Are there critical or sensitive
periods? “No” & “Yes”
Konrad Lorenz & Goslings
The Question of
Individual Differences
How do people come to have
stable individual characteristics that
differentiate them from one another?
Individual Differences
1.
What makes individuals different from
each other?

2.
Nature vs. nurture: fussy infant, obese child
To what extent are individual
characteristics stable over time?


Is the temperament of a baby an indicator of
its personality as an adult?
Case of children who remain in an orphanage
vs. adopted (p. 13) – What might be the
implications?
Developmental
Psychology as
a Discipline
Criteria of Scientific Description
Methods of Data Collection
Research Designs
The Role of Theory
Criteria of Scientific Description




Objectivity
Not distorted by preconceptions
Reliability
Test-retest & inter-rater
consistency
Validity
Actually reflects what is
being studied
Replicability
Similar findings by other
researchers
Methods of Data Collection

Self-Reports



Interviews, questionnaires,
behavioral checklists
Problems: Inaccuracies, may not
understand questions, selective
memory
Naturalistic Observations


Baby biographies (e.g., Darwin,
Piaget), ecological studies (e.g.,
developmental niche)…
Problems: Difficult to maintain
objectivity, observer may affect
situation
The
Ecological
Approach
Methods of Data Collection

Experimental Methods



Experimental & control group
Problems: Correlation vs.
causation, artificiality of
context
Clinical Interview Methods


Tailor question depending on
answer to previous question
(e.g., Freud, Piaget)
Problems: Difficult to compare
across individuals, relies
heavily on verbal expression
Research Designs
What is one question
you have about the
development of children?
How do you think one
might go about finding
the answer?
Gesell &
Freud
Watson &
Skinner
Endogenous factors
Exogenous factors
Piaget
Active shaping
Vygotsky
Mediated by culture
The
Role
of Big
Theory
Bio-Social-Behavioral Shift
A transition point in
development during which a
convergence of biological,
social, and behavioral changes
occurs to cause distinctively
new forms of child functioning.
Prominent Shifts &
Subsequent Periods
Shift Point
Conception
Birth
2 ½ months
7-9 months
24-30 months
5-7 years
11-12 years
19-21 years
Developmental Period
Prenatal period
Early infancy
Middle infancy
Late infancy
Early childhood
Middle childhood
Adolescence
Adulthood