Perhaps more importantly, these theories enable us to recognize the inter-related aspects of development while providing a platform from which to measure and investigate the various dimensions of adolescent development. Our brains develop from before birth and into adulthood (Siegel and Bryson, 2012). "The prefrontal cortex—the locus of judgment, decision-making, and impulse control—undergoes major reorganization during adolescence," explains Tom A. Hummer, Ph.D., assistant research professor in the department of psychiatry at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis.

While not all of these theories are fully accepted today, they all had an important influence on our understanding of child development. Some of these theories are known as grand theories and attempt to explain almost every aspect of how people change and grow over the course of childhood. While Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development  Yet important questions remain about the factors that influence brain development and their impact on physical, cognitive, emotional, and academic trajectories.

During the first half of the twentieth century, a new school of thought known as behaviorism rose to become a dominant force within psychology. Successfully managing the challenges of each stage leads to the emergence of a lifelong psychological virtue. These six theories about development that we will discuss from an evolutionary perspective are the Gestalt, psychoanalysis, behaviorism, cognitive psychology, Piaget, and Vygotski.What Gestalt Psychology is trying to say about development is that it is based on a structure of biological origin. Cognitive psychology arose as a response to behaviorism. Its theories caused a revolution in psychology of the ideas about childhood and adolescence. Kendra Cherry, MS, is an author, educational consultant, and speaker focused on helping students learn about psychology. Clear answers for common questions Sometimes parents will exclaim in frustration, "What were you thinking!?" This theory differs considerably from other child development theories because it gives no consideration to internal thoughts or feelings. Psychologists and other theorists have proposed a number of different theories centered on how children develop. This is an interesting paradigm with many possibilities. Those inspired and influenced by Freud went on to expand upon Freud's ideas and develop theories of their own. For example, how can the conditioning process account for learned behaviors that have not been reinforced through classical conditioning or operant conditioning According to social learning theory, behaviors can also be learned through observation and modeling. Some of the major theories of child development are known as grand theories; they attempt to describe every aspect of development, often using a stage approach. In other words, both children and caregivers engage in behaviors designed to ensure proximity.

In order to understand human development, a number of different theories of child development have arisen to explain various aspects of human growth. Another important figure in development figure is Lev Vygotski. The psychology of Gestalt was one of the first scientific trends that emerged in psychology. Piaget focused on how the individual interacted with his or her environment. According to the behavioral perspective, all human behavior can be described in terms of environmental influences. The maturing brain is also responsible for advanced language development. USA: Pearson Education, Inc; 2009.Shute, RH & Slee, PT.

New York: Routledge; 2015. And though the psychologists who subscribed to his theory are not as well known in the study of development, they also stand out in this field.Gestalt Psychology says that human beings utilize a series of structures in order to acquire and maintain meaningful perceptions about the world. Interest in the field of child development finally began to emerge early in the 20th century, but it tended to focus on abnormal behavior. By using Verywell Mind, you accept our These theories represent just a few of the different ways of thinking about child development. Brain regions that are implicated in social cognition, including parts of prefrontal, parietal and superior temporal cortex, undergo the most pronounced and prolonged change. Adolescents are required to take algebra because cognitive development theory indicates that they are ready to learn this subject. Is their behavior related to their age, family relationships, or individual temperaments? Through interacting with others, learning becomes integrated into an individual's understanding of the world. Others are known as mini-theories; they instead focus only on a fairly limited aspect of development such as cognitive or social growth. Piaget's Cognitive Developmental Theory Sensorimotor Stage: A period of time between birth and age two during which an infant's knowledge of the world is... Pre-Operational Stage: A period between ages 2 and 6 during which a child learns to use language. Psychoanalytic theory originated with the work of  His cognitive theory seeks to describe and explain the development of thought processes and mental states. Hormonal changes may have an impact on This child development theory also introduced the concept of the zone of proximal development, which is the gap between what a person can do with help and what they can do on their own. Likewise, their overall fund of information continues to build.Similarly, adolescents' metacognition continues to strengthen. Nerve cells develop myelin, an insulating layer that helps cells communicate. In spite of their similar perspective, they focused their attention on different aspects. Written language becomes more complex and illustrative because adolescents are required to use this form of communication more and more often as a part of their formal schooling. Not only that, but these attachments are characterized by clear behavioral and motivational patterns. Teens' vocabularies continue to grow as they develop an impressive working vocabulary of over 40,000 words. Ⓒ 2020 About, Inc. (Dotdash) — All rights reserved