Science provides the best explanations for the various changes humans experience in their lifetime. These explanations are based on the various theories of development, sound methodology, critical thinking, proper analysis and the available data. The changes experienced by humans from their birth to death are explained in the term human growth and development. The essay is focused on discussing the human development perspective as related by various theories.
Humans experience diverse changes throughout life. Among the changes experienced, include social, physical, intellectual and emotional changes that help in life covering events such as loss. The works developed by Sigmund Freud a famous psychoanalyst are better placed to explain human development. In his personal development psychoanalytic theory, Freud argues that there are three important structures of the human mind in which help in personality formation. Moreover, he states that the three structures within the mind that personality is formed include id, ego, and the superego.
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Furthermore, Freud's theory discusses the various steps that humans must go through to reach their full potential in life. The theory explores how one's personality develops in the course of childhood transiting into adulthood. In Freud’s theory, there are five diverse phases, how actions of one particular stage affect one's physical development in the next stage is also explained. In the first stage of Freud’s theory, it is evident that children find joy and peace in sucking and biting things within their grasp with their mouth. At this stage, it is advisable to keep poisonous substance away from children reach to avoid complications relating to the consumption of poisonous things.
The second phase is the anal phase where children are trained to learn how to empty their bowels on their own with ease. The third stage is phallic where children begin learning the differences between male and female. According to Freud, male children begin rivalling with their fathers over their mother's affection. These feelings of desiring the mother are described as the Oedipus complex . On the other hand, the female children at this stage desire their fathers; Freud describes these feelings as Electra complex. The fourth stage is the latent stage where the sexual feelings are suppressed while feelings of exploration take over. At this stage, children are more concerned with social interactions and intellectual pursuits. The id’s energy becomes suppressed while the superego continues to develop. This is the stage where children develop self-confidence and social communications.
The last phase of Freud’s theory is the Genital stage where children develop an interest in the opposite sex. Freud believes the stage starts at puberty and continues throughout one's lifetime. According to Erikson. E (1959), development did not end at puberty, instead, he believes it is a continuous process throughout one’s lifetime. Erikson in his psychosocial development theory believes that the manner in which certain psychosocial crisis is resolved to have an impact on the general development from infancy to elderly age. Erikson created eight stages of psychosocial conflicts that explain one's development from childhood throughout life. The first stage is trust versus mistrust where the child is solely dependent on others to meet the basic needs. Moreover, if the needs are met, then a sense of trust develops and mistrust develops if the needs are not met. The second stage is autonomy versus shame where the child explores the environment.
At this stage, the child gets encouragement from the adults. When the child experiences failures, he or she experiences shame and doubts his or her self-worth. The third stage is initiative versus guilt where children have a sense of exploration. At this stage, children develop feelings of initiative when encouraged to explore but when the parents prohibit the sense of exploration, they develop guilt. The fourth stage is the industry versus inferiority where children aim to acquire social skills and gain approval from their peers. Failure to win approval results in feelings of inferiority. Identity versus role confusion is the fifth stage in Erikson developmental stage where children are faced with the task of finding their role in life socially and sexually. At this stage, if the previous past crisis were not properly solved, they develop a strong ego; however, if those crises were solved correctly, then the child faces a shortage of ego.
Intimacy versus isolation is the sixth stage of Erikson development stage where children seek to gain intimacy. The inability to relate to other intimately results in isolation and feelings of loneliness. The seventh stage is Generativity versus stagnation where children feel intimacy is not the final stop hence they need to generate themselves in other ways. Therefore, those who find ways of generating themselves find happiness and a sense of purpose in life while those do not feel self-centered and stagnated. The final stage in Erikson stages is integrity versus despair where people often unaccomplished when they never resolved the certain crisis in early stages of life. However, in instances where one has a feeling of unity conducts themselves with a sense of integrity.
Jean Piaget developed cognitive development theory, which states that children there are four stages of mental development that children experience in life. According to Piaget, children play a vital role in the learning process through their exploration of the world. The first stage is the sensorimotor stage where Piaget believes infants gain knowledge through the manipulation of objects and sensory experiences. Preoperational is the second stage where children learn through pretending to play. Concrete operational is the third stage where children learn to think about the feelings of others and not just themselves.
The formal operational is the final stage of Piaget’s theory where an increase in the ability to use deductive reasoning and an increase in logic (Piaget, 1964) . Lifespan involves gaining knowledge and the necessary skills that help people later in life. According to science, human development is directly affected by hereditary and environment. One's environment shape and determine how they solve their crisis and the lessons they learn also play a vital role in their development. Inheriting genes influence some behaviours and characteristics that are essential in the development of a child.
References
Erik Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development (2019). Retrieved from https://www.psychologynoteshq.com/erikerikson/
Piaget, J. (1964). Part I: Cognitive development in children: Piaget development and learning. Journal Of Research In Science Teaching , 2 (3), 176-186. doi: 10.1002/tea.3660020306
