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Introduction to Human Development: A Scientific Approach, Summaries of Human Development

Gonzaga UniversityHuman Development

1. The science of human development seeks to understand how and why people—all people, everywhere, of every age—change over time, and how and why they remain ...

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Chapter Preview
The first chapter introduces the study of human development. The first section defines
development, briefly describing the how, why, and who of this definition. The second sec-
tion identifies five characteristics of the life-span perspective on human development and
explains different aspects of the overlapping contexts in which people develop. The story of
David illustrates the importance of human plasticity. The ecological-systems approach is
Bronfenbrenner’s description of how the individual is affected by, and affects, many other
individuals, groups of individuals, and larger systems in the environment.
The next section discusses the strategies developmentalists use in their research,
including scientific observation, experiments, and surveys. To study people over time,
developmentalists have created several research designs: cross-sectional, longitudinal, and
cross-sequential.
The final section discusses several common mistakes that can be made in interpreting
research, including the mistake of confusing correlation with causation and the ethics of
research with humans. In addition to ensuring confidentiality and safety, developmental-
ists who study children are especially concerned that the benefits of research outweigh the
risks.
What Have You Learned?
The “What Have You Learned?” questions at the end of the text chapter are reprinted here
for your convenience in checking students' understanding of the chapter contents.
1. What makes the study of human development a science?
2. What are the five steps of the scientific method?
3. Why have recommendations regarding the sleeping circumstances of infants changed?
4. Why is it a mistake to ask how much of development is nature and how much is
nurture?
5. What are examples of a critical period and a sensitive period of development?
6. What factors make it more or less likely that a person will be a juvenile delinquent?
7. Why do developmentalists insist that differences among people not be assumed to be
deficits?
8. How does the dynamic-systems concept interpret family relationships?
9. Does the multidirectional concept support continuity or discontinuity? Why?
10. How does the ecological-systems concept affect the way individual growth is per-
ceived?
11. What are the differences among Bronfenbrenner ’s five systems of development?
1
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CHAPTER
Introduction
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Chapter Preview

The first chapter introduces the study of human development. The first section defines development, briefly describing the how, why, and who of this definition. The second sec- tion identifies five characteristics of the life-span perspective on human development and explains different aspects of the overlapping contexts in which people develop. The story of David illustrates the importance of human plasticity. The ecological-systems approach is Bronfenbrenner’s description of how the individual is affected by, and affects, many other individuals, groups of individuals, and larger systems in the environment. The next section discusses the strategies developmentalists use in their research, including scientific observation, experiments, and surveys. To study people over time, developmentalists have created several research designs: cross-sectional, longitudinal, and cross-sequential. The final section discusses several common mistakes that can be made in interpreting research, including the mistake of confusing correlation with causation and the ethics of research with humans. In addition to ensuring confidentiality and safety, developmental- ists who study children are especially concerned that the benefits of research outweigh the risks.

What Have You Learned?

The “What Have You Learned?” questions at the end of the text chapter are reprinted here for your convenience in checking students' understanding of the chapter contents.

  1. What makes the study of human development a science?
  2. What are the five steps of the scientific method?
  3. Why have recommendations regarding the sleeping circumstances of infants changed?
  4. Why is it a mistake to ask how much of development is nature and how much is nurture?
  5. What are examples of a critical period and a sensitive period of development?
  6. What factors make it more or less likely that a person will be a juvenile delinquent?
  7. Why do developmentalists insist that differences among people not be assumed to be deficits?
  8. How does the dynamic-systems concept interpret family relationships?
  9. Does the multidirectional concept support continuity or discontinuity? Why?
  10. How does the ecological-systems concept affect the way individual growth is per- ceived?
  11. What are the differences among Bronfenbrenner’s five systems of development?

C H A P T E R

Introduction

  1. How does cohort affect attitudes?
  2. What impact does family SES have? Explain for one particular stage; include three domains.
  3. What are examples of the impact of culture on adolescents?
  4. Why do the three domains overlap?
  5. What are the implications of the research on mirror neurons?
  6. What is the evidence that development is plastic?
  7. How do scientific observation and experimentation differ?
  8. What are the advantages and disadvantages of cross-sectional research?
  9. What are the advantages and disadvantages of longitudinal research?
  10. Why do experiments need a control (or comparison) group?
  11. How do independent and dependent variables make it easier to learn what causes what?
  12. Why does correlation not prove causation?
  13. Why do some researchers prefer quantitative research and others, qualitative research?
  14. Why do most colleges have an Institutional Review Board (IRB)?
  15. What are the ethical priorities when scientists use human subjects in research?
  16. Why are some questions about human development not yet answered with scientific research?

Chapter Guide

I. Defining Development

Instructional Objective: To spark students’ interest in human development, and to describe the scientific method, so students will begin to understand the basic tool of develop- mental psychology.  “On Your Own” Activities: Developmental Fact or Myth?; “Dear Future Child”; Portfolio Assignment  AV: 21st-Century Sons and Mothers; Transitions Throughout the Life Span, Program 1: The Developing Person; The Developing Child series: History and Trends; Child Development; Development  Teaching Tips: First Day of Class: Developmental Milestones and Qualitative Versus Quantitative Change; Asking Students What They Want to Know About Development; Establishing Classroom Rapport; Becoming a Master Teacher; Exporting Developmental Psychology; Developmental Psychology Scrapbook Albums; Having Students Confront Their Biases and Assumptions  Classroom Activity: The Blank Slate, the Noble Savage, and the Ghost in the Machine

  1. The science of human development seeks to understand how and why people—all people, everywhere, of every age—change over time, and how and why they remain the same.
  2. Development is multidirectional, multicontextual, multicultural, multidisciplinary, and plastic.
  3. The science of human development is empirical, meaning that it focuses on data, facts, observation, and experimentation.
  4. The scientific method consists of five basic steps: (1) formulate a research question, (2) develop a hypothesis, (3) test the hypothesis, (4) draw conclusions, and (5) make the findings available.
  1. Although race was once defined as a biological category, it is actually a social con- struction, an idea that is built on shared perceptions, not on objective reality, and, unlike genetic differences, social constructions can change.
  2. The value of an interdisciplinary approach to understanding human development can be seen in research on mirror neurons, which are brain cells that respond to the observed actions of others. These neurons, which in the human brain reflect not only the movements but also the intentions, sensations, and emotions of those around us, may help explain some autism, language learning, empathy for other people, and how culture is transmitted.
  3. One of the most encouraging aspects of the science of development is that development is characterized by plasticity, or the capability of change.

III. Using the Scientific Method

Instructional Objective: To describe the various tools developmental psychologists use to test hypotheses about human development, so that students will appreciate the function of research methods and results, and thus develop a critical attitude toward them.  AV: Transitions Throughout the Life Span, Program 2: A Scientific Approach; How Cultures Are Studied; How We Study Children; Infancy Research Methods; Research Methods; Observation; Experimental Design; Experiments in Human Behavior; Research Methods for the Social Sciences; The Ethnic Flaw; Race: The World’s Most Dangerous Myth; Social Constructionist Ideas About Research; PsychNow: Interactive Experiences in Psychology (CD- ROM)  “On Your Own” Activities: Wording Effects in Survey Questions; Teaching Students to Use PsycINFO Effectively  Classroom Activities: Using “Telepathy” to Demonstrate Principles of the Scientific Method; Naturalism, the Scientific Method, and Classroom Debates; Counting Fidgets: Bringing Naturalistic Observation to Life; Experimental Tests of Popular Advertising Claims; Limitations of the Survey as a Research Method; Cultural Influences on Research  Teaching Tips: Teaching Critical Thinking About Research Reports in the Media; Motivating Students to Read Journal Articles

  1. There are many ways to test hypotheses. One method is scientific observation of people in their natural environment, in a laboratory setting, or in searches of archival data. Observation is limited in that it does not tell us what causes people to do what they do.
  2. Experiments can reveal cause-and-effect relationships by allowing experimenters to observe whether a change in an independent variable affects some specific behavior, or dependent variable. In an experiment, the participants who receive a particular treatment constitute the experimental group; the participants who do not receive the treatment constitute the comparison group (control group).
  3. The survey is a quick and direct way to obtain data. However, it is especially difficult to get valid data from a survey: Some people may refuse to answer, and others may give answers to make themselves look better. Survey answers also are influenced by the wording and the sequence of the questions.
  4. In cross-sectional research , groups of people who are different in age but similar in all other important ways are compared on the characteristic that is of interest to the researcher(s). One limitation of cross-sectional research is that it is always possible that some variable other than age differentiates the groups.
  5. In longitudinal research , the same people are studied over a period of time. Longitudinal research is particularly useful in studying developmental trends that occur over a long age span.
  6. Both longitudinal and cross-sectional researchers must bear in mind that research on a cohort may not be valid for people developing in an earlier or later cohort.
  7. In cross-sequential research , several groups of people at different ages (cross- sectional component) are followed over time (longitudinal component).

IV. Cautions from Science

 AV: The Way of Science; Ethics and Scientific Research  Classroom Activity: Limitations of Correlational Research  Critical Thinking Activity: Breast-Feeding and Intelligence Instructional Objective: To identify possible pitfalls in the scientific method, and to sum- marize some of the ethical issues involved in conducting research with human participants.

  1. Correlation is a number indicating the degree of relationship between two variables. A correlation is positive if both variables tend to increase together or decrease together, negative if one variable tends to increase when the other decreases, and zero if no connection is evident. Correlation does not prove causality.
  2. Because numbers can be easily summarized and compared, scientists often rely on data produced by quantitative research. This method may be particularly limiting when researchers describe child development. Also, many developmental researchers use qualitative research that asks open-ended questions.
  3. When studying people, scientists take special care to ensure that participation is vol- untary and harmless and that the study’s benefits outweigh its costs. They do this by establishing a code of ethics for researchers to follow, which is enforced by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at most educational and medical institutions.