Development through the Life Span

Myers, D. (2010) Psychology Worth: New York

CHAPTER PREVIEW

Developmental psychologists study the life cycle, from conception to death, examining how we
develop physically, cognitively, and socially. Three issues pervade this study: (1) the relative
impact of genes and experience on behavior, (2) whether development is best described as
gradual and continuous or as a sequence of predetermined stages, and (3) whether the
individual’s personality remains stable or changes over the life span.

The life cycle begins when one sperm unites with a mature egg to form a zygote. Attached to
the uterine wall, the developing embryo begins to form body organs and by 9 weeks, the fetus
becomes recognizably human. With the aid of new methods of studying babies, researchers
have discovered that newborns are surprisingly competent. Infants develop skills of sitting,
standing, and walking in a predictable sequence; their actual timing is a function of individual
maturation rate.

Infants become attached to their parents largely because they are comfortable, familiar, and
responsive. Denied such care, children may become withdrawn, anxious, and eventually
abusive. Self-concept develops gradually, but by age 10, children’s self-images are quite stable
and are linked with their independence, optimism, and sociability. Children who develop a
positive self-image tend to have been reared by parents who are authoritative but at the same
time allow their children a sense of control over their own lives.

Adolescence typically begins at puberty with the onset of rapid growth and sexual maturity.
Jean Piaget theorized that adolescents develop the capacity to reason abstractly. Following
Piaget’s lead, Lawrence Kohlberg contended that moral thinking likewise proceeds through
stages, from a morality of self-interest to a morality of universal ethical principles. Erik Erikson
theorized that a chief task of adolescence is to form one’s identity. This struggle may continue
into the adult years as new relationships emerge and new roles are assumed. The time from 18
to the mid-twenties is an increasingly not-yet-settled phase of life called emerging adulthood.

The barely perceptible physical declines of early adulthood begin to accelerate during middle
adulthood. For women, a significant change is menopause. After 65, declining perceptual acuity,
strength, and stamina are evident, but short-term ailments are fewer. Fluid intelligence declines
in later life, whereas crystallized intelligence does not. Research suggests that people are not
as predictable as some stage theorists have argued. Life events and even chance occurrences
influence adult life in unanticipated ways. Two basic aspects of our lives—love and work—
dominate adulthood. Most people retain a sense of wellbeing throughout life.
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
After completing their study of this chapter, students should be able to:

1. State three areas of change that developmental psychologists study, and identify the three major
issues in developmental psychology.
2. Discuss the course of prenatal development and the destructive impact of teratogens, and
describe some abilities of the newborn.
3. Describe some developmental changes in brain and motor abilities during infancy and childhood,
and explain why our earliest memories rarely predate our third birthday.
4. State Piaget’s understanding of how the mind develops, and outline Piaget’s four stages of
cognitive development, noting current thinking regarding cognitive stages.
5. Discuss the effects of nourishment, body contact, and familiarity on infant social attachment.
6. Contrast secure and insecure attachment, and discuss the roles of parents and infants in the
development of attachment and an infant’s feelings of basic trust.
7. Assess the impact of parental neglect, family disruption, and day care on attachment patterns and
development.
8. Trace the onset and development of children’s self-concept.
9. Describe three parenting styles, and explain why authoritative parenting is considered most
effective.
10. Define adolescence, and identify the major physical changes during this period.
11. Describe adolescents’ reasoning abilities and moral development, according to Piaget and
Kohlberg, and note the impact of emotional intuitions on our moral judgments.
12. Identify Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development and their accompanying issues, and
discuss how forming an identity prepares us for intimacy.
13. Contrast parental and peer influences during adolescence, and discuss the characteristics of
emerging adulthood.
14. Identify the major changes in physical and sensory abilities that occur in middle adulthood and
later life.
15. Assess the impact of aging on memory and intelligence.
16. Explain why the path of adult development need not be tightly linked to chronological age, and
discuss the importance of love, marriage, children, and work in adulthood.
17. Describe trends in people’s life satisfaction across the life span, and describe the range of
reactions to the death of a loved one.
18. Summarize current views on continuity versus stages and stability versus change in lifelong
development.

Lecture Outline – Use this outline to record your notes as you view the Lecture
Presentation and read the chapter in your text.

I. Introducing Developing Through the Life Span

A. Life-Span Development

B. What Is the Ideal Age?

A. Conception

B. Prenatal Development

C. The Competent Newborn

III. Infancy and Childhood

A. Physical Development

B. Cognitive Development

C. Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory of Cognitive Development

D. Social Development

E. Parenting and Children’s Traits

1. Harlow’s Studies on Dependency in Monkeys

F. Psychosocial Development—Trust Versus Mistrust (Erikson)

G. Self-Recognition

IV. Adolescence

A. Physical Development

1. Teen Boys: Emerging Sexuality

B. Cognitive Development

1. Do Adolescents Lack Empathy?

C. Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development

D. Social Development

E. Identity Formation

F. Emerging Adulthood

V. Adulthood

A. Physical Development

B. Cognitive Development

1. Growing Old

2. Alzheimer’s disease
 C. Old Age: Thinking and Moving at the Same Time

D. Social Development

E. Thinking about death

VI. Reflections on Two Major Developmental Issues

A. Continuity and Stages

B. Stability and Change