CHAPTER 2 Theories of Human Development
Dec 16, 2015
Theories of Human Development
Theory: Ideas proposed to describe/explain certain phenomenaOrganizes facts/observationsGuides collection of new data
Should be internally consistentFalsifiable: Hypothesis can be testedSupported by data
Freud: Psychoanalytic Theory
Instincts and unconscious motivation Id, Ego, and Superego formed from psychic
energy (Libido) Id: Instinctual nature of humansEgo: Rational and objectiveSuperego: Internalized moral standards
Dynamic system: Regular conflicts within
Freud’s Psychosexual DevelopmentChild moves through five stagesStages result from conflict between Id &
SuperegoConflict creates anxietyEgo defends against anxiety with defense
mechanismsEarly experiences have long-term effects on
personality
Strengths and Weaknesses of Freud’s Theory
StrengthsAwareness of unconscious motivationEmphasized important early
experienceWeaknesses
Ambiguous, inconsistent, not testableNot supported by research
Erik EriksonMost influential neo-FreudianSome differences with Freud
Less emphasis on sexual urgesMore emphasis on rational egoMore positive, adaptive view of human
natureDevelopment continues through
adulthood
Erikson’s Stages
Trust vs. Mistrust: Importance of responsive caregiver
Autonomy vs. Shame & Doubt: Preschool Initiative vs. Guilt: Preschool Industry vs. Inferiority: School-age children Identity vs. Role Confusion: Adolescence Intimacy vs. Isolation: Young adult Generativity vs. Stagnation: Middle ageIntegrity vs. Despair: Old Age
Strengths and Weaknesses of Erikson
StrengthsFocus on identity crisis of adolescence still
most relevantEmphasis on rational and adaptive nature Interaction of biological & social influences
WeaknessesSometimes vague and difficult to testDoes not explain how development comes
about
Learning Theories: Classical Conditioning
Behaviorism: Conclusions should be based on observable behavior only
Tabula Rasa - Environmental view Association Learning
UCS: Built-in, unlearned stimulusUCR: Automatic, unlearned responseCS: Stimulus causes learned responseCR: Learned response
Learning Theories: Operant Conditioning
Probability of behavior based on environmental consequencesReinforcement
Pleasant consequenceIncreases probability
Punishment Decreases probabilityUnpleasant, aversive
Possible consequences of whining behavior. Moosie comes into the TV room and sees his father talking and joking
with his sister. Lulu, as the two watch a football game. Soon Moosie begins to whine, louder and louder, that he wants them to turn off the television so he can play Nintendo games. If you were Moosie’s father, how would you react? Here are four possible consequences of Moosie’s behavior. Consider both the type of consequences – whether it is a pleasant or aversive stimulus – and whether it is administered (“added to”) or withdrawn. Notice that reinforcers strengthen whining behavior, or make it more likely in the future, whereas punishers weaken it.
Bandura: Social Cognitive Theory
Formerly called social learning theoryHumans think, anticipate, believe, etc.
Cognitive Emphasis: Observational learningBoBo doll studiesModel praised or punished
Child learned to imitate rewarded modelVicarious reinforcement
Learning Theory: Strengths & Weaknesses Strengths
Precise and testable theoryCarefully controlled experimentsPractical applications across lifespan
Weaknesses Inadequate account of lifespan changes Ignored genetic and maturational
processes
Piaget: Cognitive Developmental Theory
Intelligence: Ability to adapt to environment Constructivism: Understanding based on
experience Interactionist
Both biological maturation and experience required for developmental progress
At each new stage, children think in a qualitatively different way
Cognitive Developmental Theory
StrengthsWell-accepted by developmentalistsWell-researched, mostly supported Influenced education and parenting
Weaknesses Ignores motivation and emotionStages not universal especially the last one
Contextual/Systems Theories
Lev Vygotsky: Sociocultural perspectiveCognitive development is a social processProblem solving aided by dialogues
Gottlieb: Evolutionary/Epigenetic SystemsGenes, neural activity, behavior, and
environment mutually influential
Normal genes and normal early experiences most helpful
Gottlieb – Developmental Psychobiology
Interaction: Biological & environmental influences
Individual programmed through evolution Current behavior results from past adaptation Ethology: Behavior adaptive to specific
environmentsE.g., food scarcity creates nomadic behaviorsSpecies-specific behavior of animals &
humans
Gottlieb: EpigenesisInstinctual behavior may or may not occurDepends on early physical and social
environmentsGenes alone don’t influence behaviorA system of interactionsPeople develop in changing contexts
HistoricalCultural
Strengths and Weaknesses
StrengthsStresses the interaction of nature
and nurtureWeaknesses
Only partially formulated and testedNo coherent developmental theory