MODULE 1- DEV.

Module Lectures.html
Developmental Psychology: Definition, Research, and Themes
Developmental Psychology is a foundational course for anyone within the field of psychology. This course provides students with an opportunity to examine the biological, intellectual, emotional, and social growth of the individual. It is only by understanding how one develops in a healthy manner that that one can begin to assess and intervene when aspects of development form in an unhealthy manner. The field of developmental psychology has been defined by three core conflicts (nature versus nurture, continuity versus discontinuity, active versus passive), and this course will consistently utilize the application of these core conflicts to each developmental concept to enhance the formation of a professional perspective. Throughout this course students will apply each of these conflicts to the essential areas of child and adolescent development. Students will be challenged to utilize their professional and personal experiences throughout life to establish a context for their practical application. Students will find that the path through this course starts with the highly biological and hereditary information that begins life, and each module explores development in key aspects of cognitive development, emotional development, formation of the self-concept, moral development, and the environments that provide the influential contexts for that development.
The field of psychology is founded on a need to understand human behavior. The American Psychological Association (2015) defines developmental psychology as the study of “human growth and changes across the lifespan, including physical, cognitive, social, intellectual, perceptual, personality and emotional growth” (Developmental Psychology Applied section, para. 1). The complexity of the human experience requires research to examine many of these domains, and their components, by isolating areas of ability or behavior. While this is quite effective for research purposes, it is easy to see how its ability to account for the interaction across the domains may present a significant limitation to this approach.
Further, in the examination of typical and atypical development across the lifespan, students will also be able to consider the impact of social and cultural factors—and strategies for assessment, intervention, and promotion of optimal development—from differing theoretical perspectives. The traditional theories of development have ranged from the strictly biological (Gesell, 1928) to the radically behavioral (Watson, 1928), and the current theoretical trend is toward a holistic approach. The holistic approach is founded on the principle that human beings are an integrated and functional unit and recognizes the interconnectedness of all domains of human development to include physical, cognitive, socio-emotional, and language. The course will also consider the impact of the information or digital age on the field of developmental psychology, across nearly every theoretical perspective, as we attempt to understand the impact that our increasingly complex digital existence will have on the current and next generations. It is logical that this new force must be accounted for in theory, research, and practice. Students will find that this course will utilize assignments as an opportunity to apply developmental theories to establish professional perspectives.
As previously mentioned, there are three core issues that consistently assist the field (regardless of the theory of development) in categorizing and/or comparing theories across perspectives.
Nature versus nurture
Continuity versus discontinuity
Stability versus change
While these issues are presented as oppositional forces, the reality is that each represents a continuum. Any developmental theory may be placed on the continuum for the core conflict to assess where it truly lies on these core issues. What would become evident is that even the most biologically based theories acknowledge a role for the social or environmental forces. While they may differ in the amount of their attributional acknowledgement of these forces, it is difficult to pin any one theory to one end of a continuum.
Nature versus nurture examines the biological/genetic or environmental/social determinants of behavior and, in human development, assesses the role of these two factors in growth. While there is distinct support for nature or nurture inherent to each theory that will be examined in this course, critical thought will demonstrate that within the subtle details of each theory there are indicators of the opposite position.
“Continuity” refers to a consistent path or progression, while “discontinuity” refers to a more abrupt and uneven path. This continuum in developmental psychology is represented by the argument of whether development takes place in stages (discontinuity) or is an orderly progression that builds on itself consistently over time (continuity).
Today developmental theorists agree that human development is characterized by both discontinuity and continuity through time. The conceptualization of human development as continuous or discontinuous thus lies with our interpretation of observed changes over a specified period (Kuther, 2023).
The final issue that students will utilize in the examination of theories of development is that of the active versus passive theme. Traditionally titled “stability versus change,” this describes whether individuals are molded by their environments or play an active role in influencing the contexts that shape our development. This conflict, or continuum, is defined by how actively an individual is contributing to or shaping his or her development, as opposed to how passively an individual may be in regard to how biological, social, and environmental influences determine the development outcome.
In summary, this course will help students gain a foundational understanding of the field of developmental psychology, as well as an appreciation for the role it plays for the entire field of psychology. The research challenges that are unique to examining development are highlighted in this module to prepare students for reviewing and interpreting essential research, and this will support students’ development toward completing the final research project for this course. Finally, the three core conflicts will repeatedly be referenced in each module through readings or assignments to create a consistent contextual lens through which each aspect can be evaluated.
References
American Psychological Association. (2015). Developmental psychology studies human development across the lifespan. http://apa.org/action/science/developmental/index.aspx
Kuther, T. L. (2023). Lifespan development in context: A topical approach (2nd ed.). Sage Publications, Inc.

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