1. Dr Neeta Gupta
Associate Professor
Department of psychology
Certified Practitioner of EFT &
REBT (London) & CBT
(Scotland)
DAV PG College
Dehradun
Life Span Development
2.
3. What is development in the context of the
life span?
Lifespan development explores how we
change and grow from conception to death.
This field of psychology is studied by
developmental psychologists. They view
development as a lifelong process that can
be studied scientifically across three
developmental domains: physical, cognitive
development, and psychosocial.
4. Why is lifespan development
important?
Perhaps most importantly, studying
human development makes it easier
to spot possible signs of trouble. From
problems with cognitive, social, or
emotional development in early
childhood to struggles later in life,
being able to identify potential
problems is important.
5. Lifespan Development refers to the full process
of human development from conception to
death. It is a holistic approach to understanding
all of the physiological, cognitive, emotional, and
social changes that people go through. Since
humans live according to the customs and values
of a wide range of cultures, this is a rich and
diverse area of study.
6. Lifespan development is the field of
study that examines patterns of growth,
change, and stability in behaviour that
occur through-out the lifespan.
7. 2.The importance of critical periods, whether to
focus on certain periods or on the entire life span,
and
3. The nature–nurture controversy.
8. Some important issues in lifespan
development are:
1.continuity versus discontinuity in
development
9. What are the three domains of lifespan
development?
Lifespan development explores how we change and
grow from conception to death. This field of
psychology is studied by developmental
psychologists. They view development as a lifelong
process that can be studied scientifically across
three developmental domains: physical, cognitive
development, and psychosocial.
10. Scholars have pointed out the striking sequential
depiction of the biological process of evolution which
shows up in the gradual development of Vishnu’s
consecutive descents: life originates in water (fish) before
amphibians (tortoise) leave for land and before the
evolution to strictly land animals (boar) sets in; what
follows symbolizes the development of land animals to
humanoids with rudimentary animalistic traits (man-
lion); in the next steps, a fully developed but small man
(dwarf) is followed by a taller and ferocious man who uses
a tool (warrior with an axe); the progression to a greater
level of civilization, including the civilization of humanity
is symbolized in a divine prince (rama) whose morality,
bravery and nobility serve as role model for appropriate
behaviour.
11. While the depiction of classical darwinian
evolutionary theory would usually end here,
the Indian model of development described
in Vishnu’s dashavatara does not. the avatars
of lord Krishna and Buddha show that the
evolution of life also includes a spiritual
aspect and the Indian model leaves no doubt
that reaching the spiritual heights of
knowledge means living up to the fullest
potential of human
12. Hinduism acknowledges and enforces four
central goals:
1. dharma: righteousness, responsibility and
moral conduct in accordance with the
scriptures and including all duties—individual,
social and religious
13. 2. artha: Attainment of economic
success, wealth and power in order to
raise a family and maintain a
household
14. 3.Kama: Satisfaction of the desires of the
body and mind in the form of passions,
emotions and drives; moreover,
satisfaction of genuine human desires
such as art, music, food, sports, conjugal
love.
15. 4. Moksha: release from sansara these four life
goals reflect the essentials of a value system
that allows the individuals to pursue the
satisfaction of basic human needs without
losing sight of the ultimate spiritual goal of
salvation.
16. In the Hindu model of ideal human development, one can
see how the life cycle of an individual should be divided
into four stages that allow one to reach the four
consecutive essential life goals:
1.The Brahmacarya "ashrama: begins when a child
enters school at an early age and continues until he or she
has finished all schooling. the goal is to acquire
knowledge, build character and to learn to shoulder
responsibilities.
17. 2. The Grihastha "ashrama: begins at
marriage. In this ashrama, an individual
pays three debts (serving God, serving the
sages and the saints, and serving the
ancestors), and enjoys good and noble
things in life in accordance with artha,
kama and the goal of moksha.
18. 3. the Vanaprastha "ashrama: begins after the
responsibilities of grahastha ashrama are
complete (when one’s children have reached
adulthood). this is known as the hermit stage of
life. In this stage, one gradually withdraws from
active life and begins devoting more time to the
study of scriptures, contemplation and
meditation.
19. 4. the Sanyas ashrama: final stage of life in which
an individual mentally renounces all worldly ties,
spends all of his or her time in meditation and
contemplation, and ponders over the mysteries of
life. In ancient times but rarely today, one would
part company with one’s family and become a
mendicant.
20. More detailed insight into the life-span
character of this model can be gained by
looking at some of the rituals (sanskaras)
that are traditionally performed during an
individual’s life. They covers the whole life-
cycle and thus highlights certain
developmental stages within the four-stage
model described above.
21. 1. Garbhadharan (impregnation): performed to ensure the
healthy birth of a child.
2. Namakarana: the ceremony of giving the child a name;
takes place between the tenth and twelfth day of a
newborn’s life.
22. 3. Nishkramana: the first outing, which occurs
during the fourth month. the child is carried
out to the sound of conch shells and the
chanting of various prayers and hymns. this
rite is also known as the surya-darshana or
sun showing, as the child is placed facing the
sun.
23. 4. Anna-prashana: food eating
ceremony, when the child is
between five to eight months old
and is fed with solid food for the
first time
24. 5. Karna-vedha: ear-piercing occurs between the
ninth and the twelfth month (usually done before
the child’s first tooth appears) and was formerly
performed on children of both sexes, but today it is
mainly restricted to girls. the pierced hole should
be large enough to allow the sun’s rays to pass
through.
26. 7. Vidyarambha (beginning of knowledge):
performed when the child commences his
education. It takes place in the fifth year at the
child’s home. the gods are invoked and addressed.
the child then pays homage to the teacher.
27. 8. Upanayana (thread ceremony): takes place
during the child’s eighth year. In ancient times,
both girls and boys were admitted to this
ceremony, but it was later restricted to boys of the
traditional first three castes. the night before the
ceremony is spent alone and is the first night spent
without the mother. the next morning the boy eats
together with his mother for the last time.
28. The ceremony symbolizes the boy’s
readiness for receiving sacred
knowledge. the boy wears a sacred
thread consisting of three strands which
symbolize the three Vedas,
representing
moral discipline
in thoughts,
words and deed.
29. 9. Vivaha (marriage): a major ceremony
and the only one permitted for the
lowest castes, too..
It is a binding between a man and a
woman, not only in this life but for the
life hereafter.
30. 11. Antyeshti (final ceremony): performed after
death and includes the sraddha rites that cannot
be performed by women. They are a means of
paying homage to departed ancestors. Prayers are
offered to gods, while the deceased ancestors are
called upon to consume a large feast prepared by
the grieving family. Brahmins perform the
ceremony.
31. Development occurs across one's entire
life, or is lifelong.
Development is multidimensional,
meaning it involves the dynamic
interaction of factors like physical,
emotional, and psychosocial development
Development is multidirectional and
results in gains and losses throughout life
32. Development is plastic,
meaning that characteristics
are malleable or changeable.
Development is influenced
by con textual and socio-
cultural influences.
Development is
multidisciplinary.
33. 1.Development is lifelong
Lifelong development means that development is
not completed in infancy or childhood or at any
specific age; it encompasses the entire lifespan,
from conception to death. The study of
development traditionally focused almost
exclusively on the changes occurring from
conception to adolescence and the gradual
decline in old age;
34. 2.Development is multidimensional
By multidimensionality, Baltes is referring to the
fact that a complex interplay of factors influence
development across the lifespan, including
biological, cognitive, and socio-emotional changes.
Baltes argues that a dynamic interaction of these
factors is what influences an individual's
development.
35. For example, adolescence consists of
physiological and physical changes with
changes in hormone levels, the development of
primary and secondary sex characteristics,
alterations in height and weight, and several
other bodily changes. But these are not the
only types of changes taking place; there are
also cognitive changes, including the
development of advanced cognitive faculties
such as the ability to think abstractly. There are
also emotional and social changes involving
regulating emotions, interacting with peers,
and possibly dating.
36. 3.A central theme in lifespan
psychology concerns the malleability, and
especially optimization, of psychological
functioning and behavior throughout all
phases of life. The effects of cohort, historical
period, and environmental change on age
changes and age differences in cognitive
performance are one indication of
malleability .
37. 4.Development is multidirectional
Baltes states that the development of a particular
domain does not occur in a strictly linear fashion but
that development of certain traits can be characterized
as having the capacity for both an increase and
decrease in efficacy over the course of an individual's
life.
If
38. we use the example of puberty again, we can see that
certain domains may improve or decline in
effectiveness during this time. For example, self-
regulation is one domain of puberty which undergoes
profound multidirectional changes during the
adolescent period. During childhood, individuals have
difficulty effectively regulating their actions and
impulsive behaviors. Scholars have noted that this lack
of effective regulation often results in children
engaging in behaviors without fully considering the
consequences of their actions. Over the course of
puberty, neuronal changes modify this unregulated
behavior by increasing the ability toregulate emotions
and impulses.
39. The acquisition of effective self-regulation in
adolescents illustrates this gain/loss concept. As
adolescents gain the ability to effectively
regulate their actions, they may be forced to
sacrifice other features to selectively optimize
their reactions. For example, individuals may
sacrifice their capacity to be spontaneous or
creative if they are constantly required to make
thoughtful decisions and regulate their
emotions. Adolescents may also be forced to
sacrifice their fast reaction times toward
processing stimuli in favor of being able to fully
consider the consequences of their actions.
40. Development is Multidisciplinary
Any single discipline’s account of development across
the lifespan would not be able to express all aspects of
this theoretical framework. That is why it is suggested
explicitly by lifespan researchers that a combination of
disciplines is necessary to understand development.
41. Psychologists, sociologists, neuroscientists,
anthropologists, educators, economists,
historians, medical researchers, and others may
all be interested and involved in research
related to the normative age-graded, normative
history-graded, and nonnormative influences
that help shape development.
