Studying Middle Childhood and Adolescence
Learning Objectives
- Describe human development and its three domains: physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development
- Explain key human development issues about the nature of change: continuous/discontinuous, one course/multiple courses, and nature/nurture
- Describe Baltes’ lifespan perspective with its key principles about development
Developmental psychology is the study of human development. In this book, we will be focusing on the development of school-aged children from primary school till they turned 18. In general, development examines patterns of growth, change, and stability by applying universal principles of development, including variations due to culture, race, ethnicity, and individual differences. The study of development investigates changes in the physical or biological, cognitive, and psychosocial or socioemotional domains, as well as the interactions between changes in these domains.
Middle childhood is a developmental stage that has been defined as around primary school (ages 6-10). As children starts to enter the formal school system, they faces a lot of novel challenges and changes that they may not have experienced in preschool. Adolescence is a developmental stage that has been defined as starting with puberty and ending with the transition to adulthood (approximately ages 10–20). Adolescence has evolved historically, with evidence indicating that this stage is lengthening as individuals start puberty earlier and transition to adulthood later than in the past. Puberty today begins, on average, at age 10–11 years for girls and 11–12 years for boys.
While we will be studying the periods that we call middle childhood and adolescence, it is important to remember that developmental age ranges are social constructs. People mature at different rates and reach milestones at various points; we most often refer to milestone averages, but some people will be above or below the average. Environmental factors also influence development. Variations in development may exist in different cultures. When we discuss developmental theories and milestones, we are discussing the average, typical, or trend that applies to the most significant segments of the population. Individual and cultural variations exist and do not necessitate abnormality or concern.
You will discover that no matter the domain or topic of study, developmental psychologists consider several key questions. Is development continuous or discontinuous? Is development active or passive? Are there critical periods of development or only sensitive periods? Is development a result of nature or nurture? Does development vary due to cohort effects, sociocultural influences, and life events? In this chapter, we will explore these questions more in-depth.
