Developmental psychology Essay

Developmental psychology is a field that studies the diverse coifs of ripening of gentle psychology. There be many different pretenses of reading theory of cognitive phylogenesis by Jean Piaget, psychosexual tiers of Sigmund Freud, stages of self-importance development by Jane Loevinger, model of hierarchical complexity by Michael Commons, stages of trustfulness development by James W. Fowler, stages of psychosocial development by Erik Erikson, stages of moral development by Lawrence Kohlberg, hierarchy of needs by Abraham Maslow, etc.Erik Erikson formulated the stages of psychosocial development as an extension of Freuds stages of psychosexual development. Erikson proposed eight stages of normal human developmentInfancyToddlerPre-schoolSchoolAdolescenceYoung adulthood snapper adulthoodLate adulthoodThe primary conflict in infancy or oral sensory age (birth to 12-18 months) is between trust and mistrust. In the toddler or muscular anal age (18 months to 3 years) stage, t hither is a conflict between autonomy and shame initiative and ungodliness in the pre-school or locomotor (3 to 6 years) stage industry and lower rank in the school latency (6 to 12 years) age identicalness and map confusion in the adolescence (12 to 18 years) stage intimacy and isolation during untried adulthood (19 to 40 years) generativity and stagnation in middle adulthood (40 to 65 years) and ego integrity and despair in late adulthood (65 to death).In the first stage a baby is totally dependent on its p atomic number 18nts and it is up to the p arnts to develop a relationship of trust between the child and themselves. Such a child will grow up to be a more(prenominal) secure individual. During the second stage children grain more personal control over their lives such as fetching things for themselves, tooshie training and asking for what they want. Play is an grave component of the third stage. During the 4th stage children develop sense of accomplishment and pride .In the adolescent stage children are learning to be independent and they attempt to gain a sense of self. In the sixth and the seventh stages raft search relationships through family, friends and career. The last stage is one retrospection and contemplation. The central segment of the psychosocial theory of Erik Erikson is that of ego identity. This identity develops gradually through social interactions. alone the conflicts in the different stages of life lead to what is also bopn as ego quality or ego strength.While Erik Erikson developed the model of Sigmund Frued, Lawrence Kohlberg extended the theory of cognitive development of Jean Piaget. In Kohlbergs model there are three levels of moral development pre- constituted, conventional and post-conventional. Obedience, punishment and self-interest are the main preoccupations in the pre-conventional level.The central questions at this level are, How to avoid punishment? and What do I get from this? hearty norms and conforma tion to authority are the main concerns of the conventional stage. At this level people aspire to fulfil social roles. People are drive by approval and/or disapproval of the group that belong to. It becomes weighty for them to follow rules and conform to dictums and laws. Being accepted by the group is the just about alpha concern during this level. Universal laws and ethics are more important than group-based laws and ethics in the post-conventional stage. This stage is otherwise known as the principled level.At this stage laws are not considered to be rigid or irrevocable. They are thought to be social contracts that entail varied views and opinions. The keywords of Kohlbergs theory of moral development are obedience, self-interest, conformity, law and order, human rights and universal proposition human ethics.The mental stages of Kohlbergs theory of moral development are designed to meet certain criteriaOn a qualitative level, they are different ways of thinking.They are st ructured wholes.The progress of the stages is an invariant sequence.They are hierarchical.They are universal across cultures.Kohlberg uses these stages to explain other cognitive forms, especially the ability to take roles. In the pre-conventional stage children do not know that there are other point of views on every subject. They accept the viewpoint only of the authority figure. They recognize different opinions and viewpoints in the second stage but gravitate towards those views that they themselves hold. People become concerned with the feelings of others during the third and fourthly stages. During the last two stages their worldview expands to include people from other communities and groups. They can send with the opinions and feelings of other people because no law considered absolute and give. Law is a construct and a contract.Kohlbergs theory has been used in statement to help children become active participants in their own moral development. Children are encouraged to discuss and debate moral issues and reach to conclusions on their own. ace of the major criticisms of this theory lies with post-conventional stage. Critics have felt that it would be dangerous for people to place their individual values over group values and would be disruptive to communities. Carol Gilligan criticises the theory on the basis that it is totally antheral oriented and the women have a different path of moral development. antheral development emphasizes authority while women emphasize affiliation.Erikson and Kohlberg have both provided important theories that expand on the theories of their predecessors. Eriksons theory emphasizes social interactions while Kohlbergs theory emphasises individual ideas and rights. Eriksons ego identity finds fruition in a life of social interactions while Kohlbergs ego identity transcends itself and group identities. The latter attributes only normative value to laws and dictums.REFERENCESErikson, E.H. (1968). Identity younker an d Crisis. New York Norton.Erikson, E.H. (1963). Childhood and Society. (2nd ed.). New York Norton.Carver, C.S. & Scheir, M.F. (2000). Perspectives on Personality. Needham Heights, MA Allyn & Bacon.Kohlberg, Lawrence (1981). Essays on deterrent example Development, Vol. I The Philosophy of Moral Development. San Francisco, CA Harper & Row.