Observation Paper: Child’s Development

Infancy and Toddlerhood 

The first two years of a child’s development are the foundation for the physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional wellbeing of an individual. On average, a newborn should weigh 7.5 pounds and 20 inches in length. By two years, the infant should weigh four times the aforesaid weight while the length should have increased to 29.5 inches. Other dramatic physical changes also occur on the body proportions where the head takes about 25% of the infant’s entire length. The brain also develops in the first two years with the 85 billion neurons at birth increase in number to store and transmit voluminous information (American Optometric Association, 2019). Brain dendrites also extend to facilitate the collection of information from other neurons while synaptogenesis increased to connect more neurons. This duration is called synaptic blooming and is characterized by increased neural growth although synaptic pruning follows immediately to make the useful neurons stronger. During pruning, the brain starts to function more efficiently and increased the mastery of more complex skills. The myelin develops in the central nervous system to insulate the nerve cell and increased the speed with which impulses are transmitted from one cell to the next. Consequently, the neural pathways build up and the infant experiences improved coordination and controlled movement of his/her thought processes. The cortex improves the neural activity in this stage to improve involuntary activity and thinking with the help of the frontal lobe that processes information about touch. The occipital lobe processes visual information while the temporal lobe processes hearing and language as the prefrontal cortex matures to regulate emotions, strategize, and plan activities for better decision-making and judgment. Lateralization then occurs to localize the diverse brain functions on one side while neuroplasticity enables the brain to change its physical and chemical stature for proper adaptability to environmental change and compensate for injuries. 

A newborn sleeps for about 16.5 hours a day. However, there are instances of sudden unexpected infant deaths, especially among toddlers that are less than a year old. A healthy infant can pass on unexpectedly due to unknown causes or due to accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed. However, parents should ensure that infants have their own beds to reduce the rate of unexpected deaths and related injuries during infant reflexes that include but not limited to rooting, grasping, and tonic neck. Motor development greatly supports the infant’s transitioning from reflex reactions to more advanced motor functioning (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). It occurs based on cephalocaudal and proximodistal principles and during this period, the toddler can move and manipulate objects using fingers, toes, and eyes through fine motor skills. However, gross motor skills focus on large motor groups such as the head, torso, arms, and legs to initiate larger movements like balancing, running, and jumping. After motor development, the infant develops sensory and perceptual abilities. Vision is poorly developed due to the incomplete development of the fovea, the central field of vision within the retina. They also develop the binocular vision as they pay attention to major reflex actions associated with crawling. Hearing also develops and they develop a sense of touch and pain when exposed to strange temperatures and this can be observed when they are crying or responding through cardiovascular movements. Newborns can respond to taste and smell using different facial expressions. Infants can perceive the world around them in intermodal ways through stimulation. 

Early Childhood 

Early childhood begins from two years to six years when their height increases to 3 inches and they gain weight of up to 5 pounds every year. The growth rate can reduce as compared to that of infancy due to the loss of appetite and the development of poor eating habits. Brain maturation occurs as evident in myelination and the increased development of dendrites in the cortex. Other brain developments occur in the prefrontal cortex for improved thinking, attention, and motion. At this time, the child can think ahead and coordinate both movement and practice. Further brain growth occurs in the hemisphere and the corpus callosum to improve language skills and spatial skills. Motor skills development adjusts and the child acquires locomotion skills as evident in stable running, jumping, and object control. The motor developmental stage is characterized by improved motor skills and the child showcases perceptual development and cognitive understanding of the world. The child can be toilet trained to sharpen his/her physical and emotional readiness. The child sleeps about 15 hours a day but at age 6, he/she can sleep for between 7 and 8 hours. Right from infancy, children develop sexual arousal and males and females can erect and vaginally lubricate due to physical contentment of stimulation associated with feeding and warmth. Stimulation is more common in early childhood, particularly among boys than girls (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2015). However, children tend to lose appetite during their early childhood periods through to middle childhood. They are vulnerable to malnutrition although some can become obese due to binge eating and excessive consumption of soda, pizza, desserts, and whole milk. In childhood, children involuntarily enter the preoperational stage in which they use symbols to depict words, images, and ideas. They then manipulate language and pretend play using toys and teddy bears as a reflection of their conceptions and thoughts. Consequently, they develop egocentrism, which makes them think differently from others. It is during childhood that they are assisted in performing certain tasks to stretch beyond their zone of proximal development. Information processing at this stage has improved and attention skills, working memory, memory accuracy, and memory emerge are well established (Alloway, Bibile, & Lau, 2013). The child can have both divided and selective attention and engage in multitasking activities to well-developed sensory memory and working memory that involves changes in the executive function. Additionally, the child starts to perceive and understand the world and they can well think about other people’s thoughts while trying to interpret what guides people’s actions and responses. Also, their language develops and they achieve increased growth in vocabulary as they make connections between new words and put them into context while repeating the literal meanings of words. Children can become bilingual at this stage and they can build positive and collaborative relationships with adults. They can develop self-concept and self-esteem based on their external and internal attributes and the evaluative judgment of who they are and the categorical self. They also develop self-control and become aware of their gender although socialization depends on behavior, which is based on observation, modeling, and punishment (Abuhatoum & Howe, 2013). Lastly, Al-Haddad, et al. (2019) argues that they adjust their psychological thoughts, adapt to social situations, and play with their peers to release pent-up emotions while emotionally dealing with distressing situations. 

Middle and Late Childhood 

Middle and late childhood is the age between 6 years and 11 years that is characterized by late childhood and adolescence when children can control the movement of their bodies. They have improved mastery due to improved motor skills. Their growth rate slows significantly and their heights can increase at an average of between 2 inches and 3 inches every year while weight increment is between 5 pounds and 7 pounds. Brain development increases and eye-hand coordination improves due to improved motor skills and myelination facilitates advanced growth. They engage in sporting activities to help them build their social skills while improving athletically and attain increased levels of satisfaction to improve their quality of life, physical and emotional development, as well as academic performance. However, not all children can take part in sports due to several factors that include but not limited to poverty, gender, location, ethnicity, and disability. With the advancing technology, children in this stage take part in esports that involves competition through the use of video games. Mostly, children are introduced to sports through physical education, which helps them to reduce risks associated with childhood obesity and other related health complications. Childhood obesity is common among children in their middle and late childhoods. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed that about 18.4% of children in this age group were obese between 2015 and 2016. Obesity and overweight are associated with medical and cognitive conditions such as blood pressure, insulin resistance, inflammation, and repression. However, overweight can be linked to impaired brain functioning, particularly deficits in executive functioning, working memory, and mental inflexibility that result in poor decision-making (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). As of 2014, 80% of boys aged between 8 and 15 years were overweight while another 70% were overweight girls. Children aged between 6 and 11 years are in Piaget’s concrete operational stage, where they have to master the application of logic in more concrete ways to solve problems in their physical surroundings. At this stage, the child can use inductive reasoning and differentiate between what is true and what is not. Also, they can classify words and use the right vocabulary in different ways due to improved information processing. The cognitive function improves and the capacity of the working memory and their ability to pay attention becomes desirable. Children show improved attention and the developmental progression of memory acquisition increases as they develop a knowledge base that makes learning new information easier. Additionally, their metacognition improves by developing knowledge about how we think and regulate cognitive processes. The children develop critical thinking to help them examine beliefs and courses of action comprehensively and this insightful information evaluation is crucial in making informed decisions after analyzing arguments and clarifying information (American Civil Liberties Union, 2016). However, some children have a history of learning disability, which is the impairment of their academic learning that curtails their ability to perform better in schoolwork. It can result from dyslexia, dysgraphia, or dyscalculia, all of which can interfere with their self-understanding and self-concept. 

Adolescence 

Adolescents undergo rapid growth and sexual maturation between 8 years and fourteen years. Girls and boys begin their puberty aged 10 years and 12 years respectively and this growth proceeds from extremities towards the torso. Both girls and boys grow rapidly and may acquire similar height and weight although girls may gain more weight. They undergo sexual development as evident in their reproductive organs. For example, the testes, penis, and scrotum enlarge in boys while females start experiencing menstruation, growth of the breasts, and ovaries. After the primary changes, adolescents start developing physical changes that are not directly linked to reproduction but signal sexual maturity, such as shaving, hair becomes darker, broader shoulders, breast development, and broadening hips (Bosson, Vandello, & Buckner, 2019). In adolescence, the brain undergoes dramatic changes since it becomes interconnected and specialized rather than enlarging. It basically involves myelination and the development of several connections between neurons to improve thinking and processing skills. However, increased myelination makes it difficult to learn a second language because of the increased insulation of axons that consolidate the acquired language skills. The brain becomes more sensitive to neurotransmitter dopamine and oxytocin, which increases bonding and makes social connections more rewarding. Adolescents sleep between 8 and 10 hours although they may receive less sleep due to work, media, socialization, and the brain (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2016). Between ages 10 and 11, both boys and girls engage in sexual intercourse. Teen pregnancy by 2018 was 17.4 per 1000 women although the overall birthrate among teenagers declined by 58% between 2007 and 2008. Adolescents are exposed to eating disorders that lead to a distorted sense of body image such as muscle dysmorphia. They usually enter the formal operational stage that involves a proper understanding of abstract principles and a demonstration of hypothetical-deductive reasoning when there is a need to decide what is logically right. Their information processing increase as evident in executive functions such as attention, working memory, and cognitive flexibility improve significantly. For example, they focus on self-regulation and trying to control impulses to reduce stress and improve mental functioning (American Psychological Association, 2019). Their inductive and deductive reasoning has improved and the adolescents’ transition from elementary to middle school becomes difficult both academically and socially (Brass, et al., 2019). Psychosocial development in adolescence involves self-concept and self-esteem, all of which continue to develop due to the improve thinking and abstract reasoning. Young teens tend to be outgoing, moody, happy, and withdraw from social situations. Adolescents develop a sense of identity through vocational choices, career aspirations, education, sexuality, and personality (Allendorf, 2013). Their relationships with parents decrease due to less time spent with adults and the increased desire for independence or autonomy. It is the stage at which romantic relationships emerge and dating is an important aspect that marks status, used in sexual experimentation, intimacy, and a sign of status. 

Emerging and Early Adulthood 

Emerging adulthood is the age between late teens and early twenties, particularly 18-25 years. It is neither adolescence nor adulthood but rather an age of identity exploration and instability due to the changing jobs, relationships, and residences. Also, it is the age of self-focus and feeling in-between while weighing possibilities as they anticipate their destiny. It is socioeconomically described by upper-middle-class, college-attending, or a mix of both positive and negative perceptions about work, education, love, sex, and marriage. The beginning of adulthood begins with the rites of passage such as marriage and parenthood. Currently, both financial independence and accepting responsibility are significant makers of adulthood. Employed men rarely live with their parents while those possessing a college degree possess their own households. Physical maturation stops immediately one reaches early adulthood although height and weight can still increase slightly. During this stage, people still experience physiological development such as muscle strength, sensory abilities, and cardiac functioning. The stage is further characterized by the proper functioning of the reproductive system, motor skills, strength, and lung capacity up to age 40. However, obesity is the major concern that affected approximately 70.7% of Americans in early adulthood as of 2012. 39.8% of this population was obese in the US in 2016 with statistics showing an increase in obesity prevalence since 2013. The CDC attributes obesity to an individual’s environment, behavior, and genetics as well as societal factors that include education, promotion, and quality of food as the major causes. The obesity issue can result in coronary heart attack, stroke, high blood pressure, and diabetes among other complications that reduce the quality of life (American Diabetes Association, 2016). Substance use also leads to poor quality of life, especially alcohol. Early adulthood is the stage where individuals perceive gender and social construct based on the existing cultural and societal norms that assign gender roles and minority discrimination. Sexuality increases intensely because both men and women in this age group are sexually attracted to others and they explore their erotic experiences and responses based on their thoughts, fantasies, beliefs, behaviors, and even roles. Reproductive hormones such as oxytocin, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, vasopressin, estrogen, and progesterone work best at this stage to regulate the desire to do sexual intercourse. However, in the course of coitus, sexually transmitted diseases such as syphilis, herpes, gonorrhea, and HIV can arise and eventually deteriorate the quality of life due to reduced immune system. The society holds several views on sexuality and they believe that young people should not be exposed to magazines, televisions, movies, and music that convey explicit content. However, cultural perceptions about sexuality differ significantly as they relate to cohabiting, premarital sex, and their respective taboos. Similarly, society holds different perceptions about sexual orientation. For instance, the United States supports heterosexuality as a norm while such a practice is met with homophobia in African countries (American Civil Liberties Union, 2016). Adults tend to have postformal thoughts, which is the ability to withstand or overcome what others think and not being influenced by it. Just like in childhood, adults also show mood swings and emotional reactivity to situations or their relationships with others. Such changes result in a unique personality within an individual that depicts the way of thinking, feeling, and environmental influences. Attachment in young adulthood can either be secure, avoidant, or anxious/ambivalent. However, parents find it difficult to come to terms with the status of their children who are becoming young adults. Intimacy increases with the lovers while in some introverts; they risk social isolation, especially those struggling with identity. 

Middle Adulthood 

Middle adulthood is the period between early adulthood and late adulthood and it ranges between age 40-45 and 60-65. Age-related physical changes in the body lead to primary aging, which is experienced when molecular and cellular changes occur in addition to the oxidative damage. Secondary aging, on the other hand, results from controllable factors associated with unhealthy diets and lifestyles such as lack of physical activity. Sensory changes often occur during middle adulthood with the vision changing due to presbyopia. People in this age group have a hard time reading small print, they cannot hold reading materials well, cannot see clearly due to eyestrain. They experience reduced scotopic sensitivity and dry eye syndrome, which occurs when the eye does not produce enough tears or maybe they evaporate too quickly due to incorrect inconsistency. Middle adulthood is associated with several health concerns such as atherosclerosis, which involves the buildup of fatty plaque in the arteries. Risk factors associated with atherosclerosis include advanced age, sex, family history, and smoking and poor diet. Hypertension is also common, especially if the individual consumes alcohol, uses tobacco or nicotine that raises their blood pressure. Additionally, cholesterol buildup, obesity, diabetes, and cancer are common health concerns in middle adulthood (American Cancer Society, 2019). Climacteric is the mid-life changes in the reproductive system, especially when fertility declines. Middle adulthood individuals experience perimenopause where the woman’s ovaries cease the release of eggs while the levels of progesterone and estrogen drop significantly. Women also undergo menopause, which is a year without menstruation but can entail infrequent surge in adrenaline in what is referred to as hot flash. Men continue to be sexually active although erectile dysfunction can be the only problem. Sexuality is an important part of people and they stay sexually active; and about 80% of women aged between 40 and 49 years still engage in vaginal intercourse while males aged between 50 and 59 years still do coitus. Their brain functioning is still normal and they still acquire new knowledge to improve their cognitive functioning. Hereditary factors influence intelligence through personal choices, culture, and social contexts. Fluid intelligence is the ability to learn new solutions to the problems and perform activities abstractly while crystallized intelligence is the accumulation of knowledge that middle adults acquire throughout their lives. The individuals have better verbal memory, spatial skills, inductive reasoning, and a rich vocabulary than when they were young as evident in the Seattle longitudinal study. Individuals have both flow and tacit knowledge for their professional instincts and general knowhow. Individuals return to college to improve their skills and expertise to launch their second career although the mechanics of their cognition can reduce due to the declining speed of processing (American Federation of Aging Research, 2011). They can still acquire new and specialized skills and knowledge in a given field of study although work participation declines. Middle adults spend most of their leisure watching television although they often face midlife crises such as reevaluating previous commitments and finding the meaning of a sense of urgency. They experience stressful situations although they deal with stress through its management and coping strategies. 

Late Adulthood 

The population of adults aged between 65 and 79 years has increased significantly between 2012 and 2020. The graying population is expected to increase further by 2050 in all developed countries with Japan expected to have the highest percentage of the elderly. Women in their late adulthood have a higher life expectancy compared to their male counterparts. This is favored by then women’s ability for better genes selection resulting in genetic stability, slower deterioration of the immune system and the protective effect of estrogen hormones. In addition to unfavorable biological factors, men also work in more dangerous jobs and are less likely to seek medical attention when they are sick; hence their lower life expectancy. Late adulthood categories include a)Young-old with relatively good health and social engagement, b) Old-old living independently but suffer from diseases linked to lifestyle choices, c)Oldest-old which is the fastest-growing age group with serious chronic ailments and d) Centenarians who are 100 years and above who ironically are healthier compared to many other adults. Healthy lifestyles while growing older and delay in onset of chronic ailments are linked to these centenarians old age. Theories of aging are: 1) Programmed theories that show aging occurs due to changes in gene expression that affect systems responsible for the maintenance, repair and defense responses (American Federation of Aging Research, 2011). They include genetics, evolutionary theory, and the cellular clock theory. 2) Damage or error theories such as DNA damage, mitochondrial damage, harmful free radicals, and hormonal stress theories. Physical changes occurring during aging include thickening of heart muscles, diminishing lung capacity, kidneys are less efficient in waste removal, urine incontinence, some brain cells lose their functioning, skin no longer looks smooth and plump, tendency to be shorter, and loss of weight. Sensory changes include those related to vision, hearing, taste and smell, pain and touch. Others include cataracts, glaucoma, presbyscusis, prebyosmia, anosmia, changes in sensations and others. A healthy diet is important in older adults to boost their immune system and energy levels. Chronic diseases with aging include cardiovascular diseases such as heart failure and rheumatoid diseases such as arthritis (American Federation of Aging Research, 2011). Reduced brain volume and loss in white matter connections are some of the changes in brain functioning experienced in late adulthood. Motor tremors, loss of balance, poor coordination, rigidity, and difficulty moving, characterize Parkinson’s disease. Older adults experience advanced phase syndrome where they tend to sleep earlier and get up earlier than those younger. Many greater older couples find greater satisfaction in their sex lives than when they were young but this is affected by issues such as old-related ailments, hormonal changes, and medications. 

References 

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Al-Haddad, B., Jacobsson, B., Chabra, S., Modzelewska, D., Olson, E……. Sengpiel, V. (2019). Long-term risk of neuropsychiatric disease after exposure to infection in utero. JAMA Psychiatry, 76(6), 594-602. 

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