Having read chapters 1 and 2, what are your initial thoughts about human development? About the field of developmental psychology? Have your thoughts of human development changed at all compared to views you held before you began this class? Have you been surprised by anything you’ve learned so far? Explain. What do you still wonder about?

text book link https://3lib.net/book/5819284/cf85c0

ANSWER

Human Development

My initial thoughts about human development were based on Charles Darwin’s theory of human evolution. The theory states that human beings originated from apelike ancestors who existed approximately six million years ago. In addition, all behavioral and physical traits that human beings portray evolved from the apelike ancestors as well. After lessons learned in class, however, my thoughts changed as I came into a realization that the theory does not offer sufficient information regarding how culture shapes human development throughout their lifespan. I was able to understand that regardless of how the biological basis of human development is important, culture is more of keen importance in that it determines how people interact, what they learn, and what they aspire to become in the future (Arnett, Jeffrey).

The cultural developmental approach learned in class emphasizes how individuals in their respective communities interact and negotiate with others from other cultures. This way, it becomes easy for them to become conversant with the traditions, values, and beliefs of more than one culture. What surprised me most from the approach was the fact that it recognizes ‘emerging adulthood’ as a stage of human development that lies in between the adolescence and young adulthood stages (Arnett, Jeffrey). The truth of the matter is that the new stage mainly exists in the developed countries and rarely exists in developing countries. In addition, the stage exists in some cultures and has been reported not to exist in some cultures. According to the approach, these differences occur particularly due to early and late marriages. In developed countries, most individuals enter into marriage mostly in their late twenties or early thirties after they complete their education. On the other hand, most individuals from developing countries enter into marriage mostly in their early or late twenties even before they complete their education.

Work-Cited

Arnett, Jeffrey Jensen. Human development: a cultural approach/ Second edition. ISBN 978-0-13-379242-3 (student edition: alk. paper) Developmental psychology—Cross-cultural studies.Title.BF713.A816 201 305.2—dc23