Gavilan The science of human
development
College:
PSYC / CD 3
Child Growth & … seeks to understand
Development
how and why people of all
Spring 2024 ages and circumstances
change or remain the
same over time.
What is and why study human
development?
• “Human development is a branch of psychology that studies—
and strives to optimize—the elements that help people live
healthy and fulfilling lives. This field aims to understand the
various changes individuals and their relationships go through
as they continue to learn and grow.”
• “Because the study of human development includes biology,
psychology, sociology, anthropology, and economics, you can
further your knowledge in all of these areas. Plus, you can also
focus on the interplay of these factors. For example, a human
development student could study how factors like how access
to health care impacts high school graduation rate or whether
nutrition has an impact on test scores.”
• “A human development degree also applies to a wide
spectrum of career paths. If you obtain a human development
degree, you can go on to work in healthcare, education, public
policy, business, law, and so on.” Many of our students are in
the early childhood education field, but not all.
Source: https://www.pacificoaks.edu/voices/human-development/human-
development-study/
Focus in our
course:
Children &
Youth ages
7 – 19
Scientific method is
• Way to answer questions using
empirical research and data-based
conclusions.
How do we know
what we know? Five basic steps of the scientific
method include:
(More in Week 2) • Begin with curiosity and pose a
question.
• Develop a hypothesis.
• Test the hypothesis.
• Draw conclusions.
• Report the results.
• Replication
• Repeat of a study, usually using
different participants, perhaps
of another age, SES, or culture
• Scientific method is not
We want to foolproof.
replicate • Quick conclusions,
misinterpreted data,
studies to ignored alternative
perspectives, data
minimize bias. falsification
• No study exactly mirrors
another because humans
and cultures differ.
The chicken or
the egg?
• Nature–nurture
controversary
• Nature
• Influences of
genes we inherit
• Nurture
• Influences of our
environment,
including the
entire
developmental
context
• Nature always affects nurture
and nurture always affects
nature.
Why do people differ?
Variation in how sensitive
Differential people are to particular
experiences
susceptibility
Differences are often genetic
Video Connection (link to How Resilience is Built
video in module)
Development occurs lifelong.
Child &
Adolescent Each life reflects what has happened in earlier
years.
Development
Five perspectives arose from study of lifespan
human development: multidirectional,
multicontextual, multicultural,
multidisciplinary, and plasticity.
Karla is 7 Jacob is 13
Lets hold “in mind” this family or any other family you
would like to as we reflect the
5 Lifespan Perspectives.
Child & Adolescent
Development
• Development is multidirectional.
• Patterns of change: Discontinuity and
continuity
• Critical and sensitive periods
“Humans change in many directions. We may
show gains in some areas of development, while
showing losses in other areas. Every change,
whether it is finishing high school, getting
married, or becoming a parent, entails both
growth and loss.”
Source: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-
lifespandevelopment/chapter/lifespan-
perspective/#:~:text=Development%20is%20multidirectional.,entails%
20both%20growth%20and%20loss.
Child & Adolescent
Development
• Development is multicontextual.
• Social context
• Ecological systems
• Historical context
• Socioeconomic context
Let’s take a look at these in the next slides.
• Social context includes
everyone who influences
each individual, both
Child & immediately and over time,
both directly and indirectly.
Adolescent
Development
• Ecological systems approach considers
all influences from various contexts of
development (Bronfenbrenner & Morris,
2006).
• Each person is affected by many
social contexts and interpersonal
interactions.
Child & • Nested levels and systems
surround individuals and affect
Adolescent them.
Development • This approach was later named the
“bioecological theory.”
Video Connection (link to video in module)
• Ecological Systems Approach
The Ecological Model
• Historical context
• All persons born within a
few years of one another
are called a cohort.
Child & • Move through life
Adolescent together
• Likely experience same
Development events, new
technologies, and
cultural shifts at the
same ages
• Influence of attitudes
and behaviors
• Socioeconomic context
• Economic context reflected
in socioeconomic status
Child & (SES)
Adolescent • Involves education,
Development occupation,
neighborhood, &
income
• Brings advantages and
disadvantages
Top and Bottom 1 Percent
Figure 1.4
Page 10
Child & Adolescent Development
• Development is multicultural.
• Culture is social construction.
• Culture is a powerful social construction.
• Difference-equals-deficit error is prevalent.
• Differentiation among culture, ethnic groups, and race is
important.
Video Connection (link to video in module)
• Color Blindness
Difference, But Not Deficit
• This Syrian refugee living in a
refugee camp in Greece is
quite different from the aid
workers who assist there.
• But the infant, with a pacifier
in her mouth and a mother
who tries to protect her,
illustrates why
developmentalists focus on
similarities in terms of
developmental needs of
children and youth.
Child &
Adolescent
Development
• Intersectionality
• Identities interact with
and influence each
other.
• Focus on power
differences between
groups
• Highlights
discrimination in many
institutions
• Video Connection (link to
video in module)
• Intersectionality
Childhood and Adulthood
• Development is multidisciplinary.
• Biosocial includes biology, neuroscience, and medicine.
• Cognitive includes psychology, linguistics, and education.
• Psychosocial includes economics, sociology, and history.
Childhood and Adulthood
Development is plastic.
• Abilities, personality, and other human traits can be molded over time.
• Individuals, families, and societies are moldable.
• People maintain certain durability of identity.
• Plasticity underlies all other four aspects of development.
Dynamic-systems approach illustrates a complex mix of
complementary, interrelated effects.
Video Connection (link to video in module)
Neuroplasticity
