Stage_Theories_of_Development

In Developmental Psychology, stages are a series of abrupt changes from one period to another. Through these stages all children must pass in the same order. Some of the most famous developmental stage theories are: Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, Kohlberg’s Stages of moral development and Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development. Piaget’s theory of cognitive development Piaget justified four stages of cognitive development. He theorized that people pass from one stage to another only when they are confronted with the correct type of stimulation to initiate a change. According to Piaget, the four stages of cognitive development are the sensorimotor stage (birth – 2 years), the preoperational stage (2 - 7 years), the concrete operational stage (7 - 12 years) and formal operational stage (12 – adulthood). During the sensorimotor stage the infant begins to develop motor skills and has the ability to conceive of things existing outside of its immediate vicinity (object permanence). The infant experiences the world in sensory information and motor activities. In the next stage, the preoperational stage, children begin to use language and other representational systems. The chief marker of this stage is egocentric thought, as Piaget called it. Preoperational children can conceive of things that are not present, but they cannot conceive of others perceiving what they can not. During the concrete operational stage, children begin to develop clearer methods of thinking and they start to overcome the egocentrism of the preoperational stage. They begin to better understand spatial relationships and matters of time, but they are largely bound by the concrete world and have trouble conceiving abstract thought. At the formal operational stage, people develop the ability to think logically and systematically and to understand abstractions and the concepts of casuality of choice. They see that outcomes can proceed from different actions and that they are free to choose between various actions depending on a desired outcome. Kohlberg’s Stages of moral development According to Kohlberg the moral development consists of three levels with two stages in each level. The three levels of moral development are: I. preconventional moral reasoning, II. conventional moral reasoning and III. postconventional moral reasoning. At the preconventional level children base moral decisions on how they themselves are affected. Something is “right” if they are not likely to be punished for doing it. During the conventional level, people base their moral judgments on the conventions of society or family or religion or some other social order. Something is “right” if most people consider as “right” too. The next level of moral development, the postconventional, is where moral judgments are based on personal beliefs. In this level of development, something is “right” even if it contradicts social norms. Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development Erik Erikson justified eight stages of psychosocial development, which are: Trust vs. Mistrust Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt Initiative vs. Guilt Industry vs. Inferiority Identity vs. Role confusion Intimacy vs. Isolation Generativity vs. Stagnation Integrity vs. Despair Only four stages deal with childhood. The first of Erikson’s stage is “Trust versus Mistrust”. It occurs from birth to 1 year. The infant formulates a trusting or mistrusting relationship to the world around it, based on whether its immediate needs are met. The second stage is “Autonomy versus Shame” and occurs between 1 and 3 years of age. During this stage, children learn to be independent and autonomous on the condition that they are adequately encouraged to explore their world and given the freedom to do so. On the other hand, children with restrictive or anxious parents who wield too great an influence over their children’s behavior, stifling creativity and independent exploration of their environment, become shameful and self-doubting. The third stage is “Initiative versus Guilt”. It occurs between the ages of 3 and 6. During this period of development, children seek to further explore their world by initiating new experiences. The guilt comes about when there are unexpected consequences involved in these initiations. The final stage of childhood development is called “Industry versus Inferiority” and it lasts from age six to 12. Here, children seek to become industrious in all areas of life, from school to interpersonal relations. Mastery of these skills, with adequate support at home and in school, brings about a sense of overall competence, whereas failure brings about a sense of inferiority. Sources The Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology, Gale, 2nd edition, 2001 http://www.psych.wright.edu/faculty/shebilske/classes.htm#slides/lahey9e_09.ppt