Chapter One

Part I Introduction
Defining Development Five Characteristics of

Development
Developmental Study as a Science
Prepared by Madeleine Lacefield Cautions from Science Tattoon, M.A. 1

Beginnings

Introduction
What will happen to the baby just born, or to the schoolchild trying to make a friend, or to the emerging adult wondering how to pay for college, or to the elder contemplating retirement?
Why should you care?

Defining Development
The science of human development seeks to understand how and why peopleall kinds of people, everywherechange or remain the same over time. There are 3 crucial elements. Science, Diversity, and Connections
Between Change and Time

1. Science
developmental

science.

study is a

theories data analysis critical thinking sound methodology

2. Diversity
studying

all kinds of people

young and old rich and poor every ethnicity, background sexual orientation

3 . Connections Between Change and Time

Changing

over time

or remaining the same

transformations consistencies of human life

beginning

to end

understanding each segment of life

Dynamic Systems Theory

stresses the fluctuations and transitions

the dynamic synthesis of multiple levels of analysis

the interaction between people and within each person

parent and child prenatal and postnatal life between ages 2 and 102
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Bioecological Systems

Urie Bronfenbrenner
a leader in understanding ecological systems approach
he

believed that developmentalists need to examine all systems surrounding the development of each person
Microsysems mesosystem exosystems macrosystems

The Ecological Model

microsysems exosystems

a persons immediate surroundings local institutions, such as schools and churches larger social setting, including cultural values, economic polices, and political processes

macrosystems

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developmentalists are acutely aware of the reciprocal connections between one moment in life and another leading to five principles that are useful for understanding any age of human life

Five Characteristics of Development

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1. Multidirectional
changes

in direction; development is dynamic, not static

each fraction of a second years are analyzed, revealing unexpected twist and turns

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Gains and Losses

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The Butterfly Effect

the power of a small change
all

change may have a large effect every change affects a dynamic system

a tiny event could have an enormous impact, not that is always does
opposite

can occur large changes can affect people in contradictory ways (i.e., lottery jackpots)

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2. Multicontextual
humans develop in dozens of contexts that profoundly affect their development
physical surroundings family patterns

Social context
historical socioeconomic

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The Historical Context

corhort
people

born within a few years of one another

these people are affected by the same values events technologies culture

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The Socioeconomic Context

socioeconomic status (SES)
social

class

more than money occupation education place of residence

includes

advantages and disadvantages

Question: does low SES cause damage in infancy or in late adulthood?

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3. Multicultural
culture affects each human at every moment culture is so pervasive, people rarely notice their culture while they are immersed in it

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Deciding What to Do Each Moment

culture
the

patterns of behavior that are passed from one generation to the next groups have their own culture
values customs clothes dwellings cuisine assumptions

people

are influenced by more than one culture

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Ethnicity, Race, and Income

ethnic groups
share certain attributes ancestral heritage national origin religion culture language
ethnic

categories arise from history, sociology, and psychology, not from biology

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Ethnicity, Race, and Income

race
used to categorize groups of people
based

on appearance 95% of the genetic differences between one person and another occur within, not between, supposed racial groups

race is misleading as a biological category race = social construction an idea created by society perceived racial differences lead to discrimination affect cognition

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Ethnicity, Race, and Income

social construction
SES

(socioeconomic status)

a form of income or wealth overlaps with ethnicity and race national history and SES affect culture, development

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4. Multidisciplinary
a broad array of disciplines and crosscutting topics each person develops simultaneously in body, mind, and spirit Development is divided into three domains;
biosocial cognitive psychosocial

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The Three Domains

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Mirror Neurons
reflected brain cells observed actions
mirror

the intentions, sensations, and emotions of those around cultural transmission or social organization

implications of Mirror-Neuron Research

possible

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5. Plasticity

denotes two complementary aspects of development

human traits can be molded
yet

provides hope and realism

hope

maintaining durability of identity culture and upbringing affect both aspects of plasticity Genes and other biological influences = changes is possible realism = each developing person must build on what has come before

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Developmental Study as a Science

based on objective evidence laden with subjective perceptions

making developmental science challenging

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Steps of the Science Method

to avoid distortions of unexamined opinions and to control the biases of personal experience
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

ask a question developing a hypothesis test the hypothesis draw conclusions Make the finding available

Replication

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Ways to Test Hypotheses

Four methods:
1. 2. 3. 4. Observation The Experiment The Survey The Case Study

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Observation

record behavior systematically and objectively

occur in a naturalistic setting tries to be unobtrusive can occur in a laboratory or in searches of archival data

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The Experiment

used to establish cause

a particular treatment to expose to a specific condition

notes whether their behavior changes

independent variable = imposed treatment or special condition dependent variable = specific behavior being studied experimental group: is given a particular treatment control group: does not get the treatment

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The Experiment

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The Survey

Information is collected from a large number of people by:

interview questionnaire some other means

wording and the questions can influence answers

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The Case Study

intensive study of one individual or situation

asking about past history current thinking future plans

can provide unanticipated insight

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Studying Change over Time

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Studying Change over Time

Cross-Sectional Research
designed to compare groups of people who differ in age but share other important characteristics
(i.e., education, SES, ethnicity)

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Studying Change over Time

Longitudinal Research
design in which the same individuals are followed over time and their development is repeatedly assessed

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Studying Change over Time

Cross-Sequential Research
designed to first study several groups of different ages and then follow those groups over the years

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Caution from Science

developmental scientists also discover changes that are not beneficial

television, divorce, shift work, automobiles.

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Caution from Science

Correlation and Causation

can be confusing

a correlation indicates the degree of relationship between two variables.

a correlation is positive if both variables tend to increase or decrease together a correlation is negative if one variables tends to increase when the other decreases a correlation is zero if no connection is evident

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Caution from Science

Quantity and Quality

a second caution concerns how much scientists should rely on data produced

quantitative research: provides data that can be expressed with numbers qualitative research contains descriptions of conditions, and participants ideas

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Caution from Science

Ethics in Research
Caution for all scientists is to ensure that research meets ethical standards

code of ethics
A set of moral principles that members of a profession or group are expected to follow

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Caution from Science

Protection of Research Participants

Researcher must ensure that participation is voluntary, confidential, and harmless Informed consent

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Caution from Science

What should we Study?

Consider the most important ethical concern:

Are scientists studying issues that are crucial to human development?

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