Developmental Psychology - 14091 Words

QUESTION 1: THEORISTS HAVE A CERTAIN POINT OF VIEW ON THE BASIC ISSUES UNDERLYING CHILD DEVELOPMENT. DETERMINE, DISCUSS AND EVALUATE THE POINT OF VIEW OF VYGOTSKY’S SOCIOCULTURAL THEORY AND THE INFORMATION PROCESSING APPROACH WITH REGARD TO THE ISSUES UNDERLYING CHILD DEVELOPMENT * THE COURSE OF DEVELOPMENT (CONTINUOUS OR DISCONTINUOUS) * THE COURSE OF DEVELOPMENT: ONE OR MANY * FACTORS THAT DETERMINE DEVELOPMENT (NATURE/NURTURE) Introduction Child development has many theories with different ideas about what children are like and how they change. Children are beings who change physically, cognitively emotionally and socially. There are many different theories and they all take a stand on 3 basic issues: Is the course of†¦show more content†¦Similarities in development across cultures imply a fundamental change in efficiency in the information processing system – perhaps due to myelination or synaptic pruning in the brain. Thus, according to them, the fact that changes studied characterises most or all children, supports their argument that development has a single course. Nature versus Nurture According the sociocultural approach, both nature and nurture are seen as playing an important role in the development of a child. Vygotsky recognized the importance of heredity, brain growth and influence of dialogue in contributing to a child’s development. His followers’ emphasis on culture and social experience (nurture) led to neglect the biological side (nature) of development. Information processing theorists hold the same viewpoint as Vygotsky - that both are equally important. As an example of the impact of a child’s environment (nature) research shows that preschoolers from low income families have fewer opportunities than economically advantaged agemates – a major reason why they lag behind in reading achievement throughout their school years. They, however, view children as active sensemaking beings who modify their thinking as the brain develops. In granting social experience a fundamental role in cognitive development, Vygotsky’s theory helps us understand the wide cultural variation in cognitive skills. His theory also underscores the vital role of teaching inShow MoreRelatedDevelopmental Psychology3823 Words   |  16 PagesDevelopmental Psychology There are three main theories of development that I shall discuss in this assignment, Cognitive, the main theorist being, Piaget, (1896 - 1980), The, Psychosocial Theory, Erikson, (1902 - 1994), and, The Psychosexual, of, Freud, (1856 - 1939). Cognitive Psychology draws the comparison between the human mind and a computer, suggesting that we like the computer process the information we acquire from around us and then react accordingly. Hearnshaw, (1987)Read MoreDevelopmental Psychology : An Introduction2958 Words   |  12 PagesDevelopmental Psychology: An introduction Psychology is a field that is broken down into many subfields, each field distinctive in their nature. One of the most studied fields is developmental psychology. Before I explain the field in depth, it is important to understand what developmental psychology is, and how it came to be. Developmental psychology is mainly a scientific approach, which aims to explain how children and adults change overtime (Lerner, Lewin-Bizan, Warren, 2011). Most uniquelyRead MoreDevelopmental Psychology : Understanding The Developmental Process978 Words   |  4 PagesDevelopmental Psychology has widened my perspective and knowledge of the nature of development from humans’ infancy to adolescence and emerging adulthood. Although I have learned about biological, cognitive, and socioemotional processes and periods of development, I am especially interested in socioemotional development in infancy because it is the foundation for a child’s future development. That is to say, if children h ave a healthy socioemotional development from infancy, they will have a healthyRead MoreThe Developmental Psychology Of A Child983 Words   |  4 PagesThe developmental psychology of a child is one that is in many ways difficult and very special to understand. I would like to start by saying that a child’s development depends on many factors and circumstances. In finding if a child has a developmental problem or a psychological problem takes time and a delicate nature in finding the problem. The child that I am going to represent and defend on his or her actions, is a child that needs the proper representation of his or her age of developmentalRead MoreThe Theory Of Developmental Psychology1896 Words   |  8 PagesDevelopmental psychology is viewed as different types of approaches which aim to look at how people develop. Theories such as Bowlby s attachment theory can explain how a child s development can be altered by their attachment, thus leading to the ideology of the nature vs nurture debate, nature referring to the process of biological maturation while nurture is referring to the influence of the environment or surroundings, which involves the idea that a person learns through experiences.(McLeodRead MoreDevelopmental Psychology : Psychology And Psychology943 Words   |  4 Pagesof the fields of psychology that have influenced me and my current major in biology are Developmental Psychology, Neurological Psychology, and Clinical Psychology; they have influenced me by Developmental Psychology relating to my future goal to work with pediatrics, Neurological Psychology relating to both biology in a general sense and also my potential interests in the neurology field, and Clinical Psychology relating to being a doctor in general. One of the fields of Psychology that has influencedRead MoreDevelopmental Psychology : The Biological Examination Of Changes951 Words   |  4 PagesPSYCHOLOGY ESSAY: Introduction Developmental psychology is the the biological examination of changes that happens to human beings during the course of their life time. During the course of a life time of a human being ,certain biological changes happens. The development stages are divided into different stages. According to Erikson ,†the eight ages of development and the major life crisis are significant in terms of individual growth and development.†(Care human development,Student support SessionRead MoreDevelopmental Psychology And The Life Of Anne Frank1068 Words   |  5 Pages DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY AND THE LIFE OF ANNE FRANK Name: Professor: Course: Date: Introduction Developmental psychology is rapidly becoming an inalienable branch of the subject of psychology. Developmental psychology can be defined as the scientific study concerned with how and why human beings develop over the course of their life. Although connected with infants and children, the scope of developmental psychology has expanded over the years. It also describes the concepts of adolescenceRead MoreDevelopmental Psychology Essay1110 Words   |  5 PagesDevelopment Psychology Development psychology refers to the scientific study of the systematic psychological changes that normally occur to human beings throughout their growth period from birth to old age. It was originally concerned with children and infants, but it has since expanded to include the entire life span of mankind including adolescence and adulthood. Development psychology covers the extent to which human development occurs through gradual accumulation of knowledge, and the extentRead MoreThe Theory Of Developmental Psychology1336 Words   |  6 PagesDevelopmental psychology is viewed as different approaches which aims to look at how children and adults develop. Theories such as Bowlby s attachment theory can explain how a child s development can be altered by their attachment, thus leading to the ideology of the nature vs nurture debate, nature referring to the process of biological maturation while nurture is referring to the impact of the environment or surroundings, which involves the idea that a person learns through experiences. (McLeod