PYC 4805:
Developmental
Psychology
Chapter 1
, 1. Perspectives on Adult Development and Aging
» Gerontology – the scientific study of aging from maturity through old age, has changed our understandin
the aging process.
» Many myths about old people persist – these myths of aging lead to negative stereotypes of older people
result in ageism, a form of discrimination against older adults based on their age.
1.1. The Life-Span Perspective:
» The life-span perspective divides human development into two phases: an Early phase (childhood and ad
and a later phase (young adulthood, middle age, and old age).
» The early phase is characterized by rapid age-related increases in people's size and abilities.
- During the later phase, changes in size or slow, but abilities continue to develop as people continue adap
environment.
» One of the most important perspectives on lifespan development is that of Paul Baltes,
- who identified four key features of the life span perspective:
1. Multi-directionality – Development involves both growth and decline , as people grow in one area, they
another and at different rates.
* For example, people’s vocabulary ability tends to increase throughout life, but reaction time tends to slo
2. Plasticity – One's capacity is not predetermined or set in concrete.
* Many skills can be trained or improved with practice, even in late life.
* However, there are limits to the degree of potential improvement.
, 1.1. The Life-Span Perspective:
3. Historical Context - Each of us develops within a particular set of circumstances determined by the historic
which we are born and the culture in which we grow up.
4. Multiple Causation – how people develop results from a wide variety of forces, you will see that developm
by biological, psychological, social cultural, and life-cycle forces.
» The lifespan perspective emphasizes that human development takes a lifetime to complete.
» Basing their theories on these principles, Baltes et al. argue that life span development consists of the dyn
interactions among growth, maintenance, and loss regulation.
- In their view, three factors are critical:
1. As people age, they begin to focus on or select those abilities deemed essential for functioning.
2. People then optimize their behavior by focusing on this more limited set of abilities.
3. Finally, people learn to compensate for declines by designing work around strategies.
» Taken together, this Selective Optimization with Compensation (SOC) approach explains how people shift
more resources to maintain function and deal with biologically related losses as we grow old, leaving fewe
be devoted to continued growth.
, 1.2. The Demographics of Ageing:
» The proportion of older adults in the population of developed countries has increased tremendously, main
better health care over the past century and to lowering women's mortality rate during childbirth.
» People who study population trends, called, demographers, use a graphic technique called a population p
illustrate these changes.
2. Issues in Studying Adult Development and Ageing
» Developmentalists place special emphasis on four forces: biological, psychological, social cultural, and life
- These forces direct our development much as an artist’s hands direct the course of a painting or sculptur
» Having a firm grasp on the forces and controversies of development is important because it provides a con
understanding why researchers and theorists believe certain things about aging or why some topics have b
researched a great deal and others have been hardly studied at all.
, 2.1. The Forces of Development:
» Developmentalists typically considered for interactive forces:
1. Biological Forces – Includes all genetic and health related factors that affect development.
* Examples of biological forces include menopause, facial wrinkling, and changes in the major organ system
2. Psychological Forces – Includes all internal perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and personality factors tha
development.
* Collectively, psychological forces provide the characteristics we notice about people that make them ind
3. Sociocultural Forces – Includes interpersonal, societal, cultural, and ethnic factors that affect developm
* Sociocultural forces provide the overall contexts in which we develop.
4. Life-cycle Forces – Reflects differences in how the same events or combination of biological, psychologi
sociocultural forces affects people at different points in their lives.
* Life-cycle forces provide the context for the development developmental differences of interest in adult
and aging.
» One useful way to organize the biological, psychological, and sociocultural forces on human development
biopsychosocial framework.
- Together with lifecycle forces, the biopsychosocial framework provides a complete overview of the shape
development.
- Each of us is a product of a unique combination of these forces.
