An Evaluation of How Life Span Approach Explains Human Development - Essay Sample

Introduction

Traditional theories of human development were majorly involved in the study of the developmental stages that children underwent. These theories, however, did not pay any attention to other developmental changes that occurred after adolescence because the theorists believed that they had a very insignificant contribution to the overall development of an individual. However, during the latter half of the 20th century, psychologists began realizing that people kept on changing even after they had gone past the adolescent stage. This new knowledge influenced the work of later psychologists most notably Paul Baltes (1936-2006) to develop theories which came to be known as the lifespan approach to human development. The lifespan approach argues that human development does end at puberty. Instead, it's a lifelong process which only terminates when an individual dies (Gonchap, 2012). The lifespan approach has seven main features. These features are: development being a lifelong process, development being multidirectional and multidimensional, human development exhibiting plasticity, development encompassing gains and losses, human development being multidisciplinary, development baing history embedded, being contextual as well as influenced by socio-cultural factors (Gonchap, 2012). This paper aims to use Baltes and Erikson's theories to evaluate how lifespan approach explains human development. It will also compare these lifespan theories with Piaget's theory to determine whether indeed the lifespan approach is better than traditional theories when it comes to human development.

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According to Baltes Theory, human development does not stop at puberty; it continues even during the aging times (Baltes, 2005). This development, although grouped in several stages, occurs continuously. It starts when children are born and begin exploring the world around them using trial and error methods. The nurture theory comes into play when the people around them show them what to do and what not to do. The children gradually develop the ability to self -regulate based on their advanced knowledge of what is wrong and what is right. As children enter adolescence, they discover that they can optimize specific activities in their lives by making sacrifices (Dacey & Travers, 2002).

Finally, when people age, they begin to consider the consequences of whatever choices they make. This logical approach towards life issues is due to their past historical experiences. Baltes also argues that as an individual grows, several dimensions influence their development and their social-emotional, cognitive, spiritual and biological factors (Health Research Finding, 2018). Also, Baltes theory argues that although some aspects like cognitive function and eyesight decline as one gets older, other elements increase and these include the ability of the brain to reorganize itself for it to become more efficient (Baltes, 2005). Plasticity is also displayed as a person is exposed to different environments, e.g., a person with poor eyesight will detect the location of sounds with more precision than the one with fully functional vision.

Erick Erickson, in his theory of psychosocial development, argued that human beings pass through eight distinctive stages of development. These stages cover an individual's life from early childhood to adulthood. During each developmental stage, an individual undergoes a psychosocial crisis which will have either a positive or negative impact on their personality (McLeod, 2017). His theory emphasizes the fact that society and culture play a role in a person's development. However, part of that development is also influenced by the conflicts that take place in an individual. The ability to successfully finish one stage gives an individual the confidence to handle the next stage while failure may adversely affect how an individual will manage the following stages (McLeod, 2017). During the first stage, the child is faced with a psychological crisis of trust vs. mistrust. The crisis changes to that of autonomy vs. shame as the child enters the second stage. The industry vs. inferiority stage characterizes the third stage. When the child grows and enters into adolescence, they are faced with a psychological crisis of identity vs. role confusion which later develops into one of intimacy and isolation as they begin the young adulthood stage. When an individual enters middle adulthood, generativity vs. stagnation becomes the crisis which they have to deal with. This crisis later changes to that of Ego Integrity vs. despair when they finally enter the final stage which comprises of individuals who are 65 years and above (McLeod, 2017).

Baltes' lifespan approach to human development has several similarities as well as differences when compared to Erikson's theory of psychosocial development. The first similarity between the two is that in both, human development is a lifelong process which starts when an individual is born and continues even they are in their old age (Arnett and Tanner, 2009). Also, in both theories, the role of nurture in human development is seen especially during the early stages where the people around them mainly influence children personalities. The theories also support the fact that although development can be categorized into stages, it is a continuous process that involves transitions from one stage to another (Dacey & Travers, 2002).

The two theories, however, possess specific distinct differences, for example, while Baltes theory considers development as a multidimensional process which includes biological, social-economic, spiritual and cognitive factors, Erikson's theory only concentrates on the psychological and sociological factors of human development. Erickson's theory categorizes human development into eight distinct stages while Baltes' does not provide any clear stages of development. Baltes, on the other hand, proposes seven key factors which he argues influence human development. These factors, although some of them are included in Erikson's theory, they are not clearly defined (Arnett and Tanner, 2009).

Lifespan approach theories have several advantages. One of these advantage is the fact that, these theories provide a guideline which psychologists can use to determine whether an individual is developing typically or not (Stage Theory, n.d). They also enable psychologists to identify individuals who are lagging behind in their development so that they can come up with programs to help such individuals to catch up with others of their same level. The lifespan approaches also provides useful information that explains why people at a particular age group have certain things in common and display some similarities in their behaviors. Lifespan theories also offer one with a rough idea of what to expect as they grow.

Lifespan theories also have their cons. The most notable one being the stigmatization of people who do not perform as expected (Stage Theory, n.d). It may make such individuals to regard themselves as failures. Its emphasis on age-groups also ignores the fact that some life experiences and other factors may cause an individual to either progress faster or slower through the developmental stages.

Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development is a classic example of traditional theories of human development. According to his theory, child development occurs in four stages. The first stage is referred to as the sensory-motor stage, comprised of kids between the ages of 0 to 2 years. It is during this stage that children start to interact with the world around them through the use of their senses and motor skills (Harris, 2007). The second stage is referred to as the preoperational stage, comprised of children between the ages of 2 to 7 years. Children in this category can symbolize thoughts. They, however, had a problem when it came to solving problems logically. The third stage was referred to as the concrete operations stage comprised of children who were between the ages of 7 to 11 years. Children in this stage can use logic in problem-solving. They employed a trial and error approach when they had to settle problems (Boree, 1999). The final stage is referred to as the formal operations stage and is comprised of children from the ages of 12 years onwards. Individuals at this stage could think abstractly. They also could formulate and test hypothesis (Boree, 1999).

When compared to the lifespan approach, traditional theories bear some similarities with this relatively new approach to human developmental studies. In both theories, age categories are used to explain the different stages of human development (Research Articles digest, 2012). Also, in each stage, individuals are presented with various challenges which they must overcome before proceeding to the next stage. Continuous development is also factored in both the theories and the success or failure in one particular phase will influence how the individual performs as they progresses on to other stages. Also, these theories are in agreement that the surrounding environment of an individual has a significant influence on the development of that individual. The theories also agree that early childhood and adolescence are very substantial stages in an individual's life. It is during these stages that individuals develop both physically and mentally. Whatever...