1.

1 • Psychology and Human Development 9

through our behavior. Behavior consists of physical, observable actions—things like riding a bike, cooking
dinner, or texting a friend. Behavior is driven by affect and cognition, both of which are not always easily
observable. Affect is a more precise term for emotional experience, which includes not only our own feelings
and moods, but also the ability to discern or understand others’ emotional states. Cognition is the scientific
term describing all of our thinking abilities, such as memory, computation, imagination, and language. If you
can think it, feel it, or do it, psychologists study it.

In addition to its broad applicability in studying much of the human condition, psychology is notable for how it
bridges previously separate areas of intellectual inquiry. Founded as a scientific discipline in 1879 by Wilhelm
Wundt in Germany, psychology was meant to apply the scientific method to the big questions of human
experience that philosophers had pondered for thousands of years. For example: “Are humans fundamentally
good or bad?” “Do our early life experiences dictate our destiny?” “What is the nature of love?” “Do humans
have free will?” and “What is consciousness?”

For nearly 150 years, psychological science has attempted to objectively answer these and thousands of other
questions. Along the way, more than a dozen major subfields in psychology have emerged, including clinical,
social, cognitive, industrial-organizational, health, and developmental psychology.

Lifespan Development and Human Development

The term lifespan development is another name for the subfield of developmental psychology. These terms
describe the scientific study of growth, change, and stability in humans and the processes that underlie that
growth and change—from conception until death, or colloquially, womb to tomb (Figure 1.2). Growth most
often refers to maturation, which is typically biological and includes, for example, all the changes in height,
weight, and physical characteristics that the transition to adolescence brings. Maturation refers to growth in
psychological characteristics as well, like the expansion of vocabulary and social skills that occurs throughout
childhood. Lastly, it is important to recognize that change is non-linear and can occur in both directions,
whereas stability is characterized by an absence of pronounced change.

FIGURE 1.2 Lifespan development is the study of people from womb to tomb or from cradle to cane. The main idea
is that we continue to grow and develop in interesting ways throughout our lifespan, however long that may be.
(credit: modification of work “Children and Nature” by Children Nature Network/nappy, CC0 1.0)

Developmental psychologists look for patterns of stability and investigate the biological, psychological, and
other mechanisms that create stability in our behavior across time. Stability can be further defined as the state
in which characteristics and abilities remain the same or function similarly across broad portions of the
lifespan. For example, a young child who is shy in social situations may also show signs of social inhibition as a
teenager and adult, even making a career choice that allows them to work behind the scenes instead of being
10 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

the focus of attention. As you will learn, the concepts of temperament and personality help us understand why
the way someone approaches the world often remains consistent across the lifespan.

Human development, closely related to lifespan development, is a perspective that incorporates a

multidisciplinary approach to understanding the development process. In fact, some universities host
academic departments separate from the psychology department that focus on human development. The
main difference between the two is human development’s emphasis on the broad scope of factors that
influence development. Specialists in human development often engage with theories, perspectives, and
findings from other disciplines such as anthropology, medicine, communications, history, economics,
medicine, and law.

The human development perspective helps remind us that human development is complex and is best
understood using as many tools, perspectives, and levels of analysis as possible. The contemporary study of
human growth, change, and stability across the lifespan has embraced this multidisciplinary perspective,
whether it is called lifespan development or human development.

The History of Lifespan Development

Perhaps surprisingly, while lifespan development is a subfield of psychology, scientific and philosophical
inquiry into the nature of human development (especially of children) pre-dates psychology’s establishment as
a formal scientific discipline. The child study movement, which united disciplines such as education, social
work and public policy to focus the scientific community’s interest in child development, arose during the
Progressive Era of the 1890s, shortly after psychology’s founding (Siege & White, 1982).

However, one of the earliest published scientific accounts of child development had appeared nearly 100 years
earlier. This was the work of French physician Jean-Marc Gaspard Itard, who conducted a case study of a boy
who had spent his childhood without human contact. The case of Victor, the “Wild Boy of Aveyron” (Itard,
1802, 1821) continues to spark interest more than two centuries later. Through his work with Victor, Itard was
able to begin exploring many of the fundamental questions that lifespan development concerns itself with
today. So, we can trace the field of lifespan development to at least the start of the nineteenth century in
Europe. Older roots lead back to ancient Greece, around 400 BCE. Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and many other
philosophers were fascinated with the same questions that contemporary developmental psychologists study.
Today, we are fortunate to have a sophisticated set of science-based tools to help us uncover ever-more-precise
answers.

As a scientific field of inquiry, lifespan development asks several fundamental questions, most of which are
related to the passage of time. Exploring what changes we expect to see, when those changes occur during the
lifespan, and how they come about is of central importance. Lifespan developmentalists are not content with
simply describing and explaining human development across the lifespan, however. They want to make that
knowledge applicable. Professionals from other fields—including medicine and health care, education, public
policy, senior care, social work, the non-profit sector, and even toy design—are also keenly interested in taking
theory and research findings from developmental science and using them in everyday life. This highlights the
scientific goal of application—the process of translating evidence-based research and ideas into practical
solutions to influence and improve human life. Developmental psychology, as a scientific discipline, advocates
for public policies and interventions to be based on evidence derived from scientific research (Dahl et al.,
2018). For example, once developmental science made clear that the reasoning abilities of teenagers,
including risk assessment and reward-seeking behavior, are heavily swayed by peers (Steinberg, 2014), public
policy agencies around the United States changed driving regulations to explicitly limit the number of non-
familial teens who could be present in the car with a teenage driver (Figure 1.3).

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 1.1 • Psychology and Human Development 11

FIGURE 1.3 The allure of a text message can override a teen’s developing ability to assess danger, a stark reminder
of why evidence-based policies, like restrictions on teen passengers, are vital for road safety. (credit: “April10 033”
by “Lord Jim”/Flickr, CC BY 2.0 “Texting while driving” by Jason Weaver/Flickr, CC BY 2.0)

IT DEPENDS

Does Money Really Buy Happiness?

Think about the age-old question of whether money can buy happiness (Diener et al. 1993; Diener et al., 2004).
At first glance, it seems like it should. If you had enough money, you could purchase the necessities of life, and
then some: a nicer home, better means of transportation, or more leisure time or activities. One approach to
answering this question is to study the relationship between income and subjective well-being (a personal sense
of satisfaction and happiness) in various countries across the globe. Data consistently show that subjective well-
being rises with income (e.g., Stevenson & Wolfers, 2013).

At the same time, however, researchers found that above a certain level of income (roughly $90,000 USD per
year) the relationship between income and subjective well-being leveled off (D’Ambrosio et al., 2020; Kahneman
& Deaton, 2010). That is, a certain amount of money was necessary to satisfy wants and needs, but beyond that,
earning more money began to have a diminishing influence.

A recent re-examination of the data looked more closely at this question by classifying participants by their
reported level of emotional well-being: those scoring low on emotional well-being were placed in one group,
those scoring in the middle in another, and so forth. When examined this way, the findings revealed three main
conclusions. First, for those with low reported emotional well-being, there is indeed a steady increase in
happiness with increasing income up to about $100,000 per year, and then a leveling off. Second, for those with
a reported medium level of emotional well-being, the direct and proportional relationship between happiness
and income continued across the entire income spectrum, meaning this group of individuals continued to get
ever happier with increasing income. Finally, those individuals with high levels of emotional well-being showed
an intensifying relationship between happiness and income after about $100,000 per year. In other words,
happiness increased even more when earnings increased (Killingsworth et al., 2023).

Psychologists point out that money is not the only factor related to subjective well-being. Other factors such as
self-esteem, strong relationships, social support, and a sense of freedom and optimism play a role (Choi et al.,
2023). Throughout this course, you’ll explore many of the psychological factors and processes that promote life
satisfaction.
12 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

Psychological Domains of the Developing Individual

When we think about the myriad sources of influence on an individual’s development, we immediately
recognize how complex the task of understanding someone truly is. Likewise, the psychological makeup of a
person is very complex. Emotional experiences, internal motivations and needs, temperament, personality,
and a dozen or more major thinking-skill domains all have developmental pathways, even as they are shaped
and influenced by one another. When we add biological growth and maturation, including the unfolding of
each person’s unique genetic blueprint over time, answering the question, “Why is this person the way they
are?” can be daunting.

Psychologists have devised a way to study developing individuals by looking at several major functional areas.
These areas of development are biological, cognitive, social, emotional, and personality. This resource is
organized along these functional lines by covering each period of the lifespan across two chapters: one chapter
focused on biological/physical and cognitive developments, and another chapter focused on social and
emotional developments, including the development of personality. Together, the two chapters for each life
stage paint a complete picture of developmental psychology’s theories and findings. In many instances, a topic,
like eating disorders, for example, may be covered in the physical and cognitive discussion, even though there
are clear social, emotional, and personality aspects to the development of eating disorders. So, while this
separation is useful for organizing our study of lifespan psychology, keep in mind that there are many
intersections across areas (Figure 1.4). Note that developmental psychology sometimes refers to social,
personality, and emotional topics as “psychosocial” development, to highlight the way these areas overlap with
cognition and mental processes.

FIGURE 1.4 The overlapping domains of development include an individual’s biological/physical, cognitive, and
socioemotional processes. (attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license)

LINK TO LEARNING
Developed in 1985 by Deiner and colleagues, the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) (https://openstax.org/r/
104SWLS) measures an individual’s overall life satisfaction. Take this short assessment and follow the
instructions for how to score and analyze your results.

References
Choi, Y., Joshanloo, M., Lee, J., Lee, H.-S., Lee, H.-P., & Song, J. (2023). Understanding key predictors of life satisfaction in a nationally representative sample of
Koreans. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(18), Article 6745. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20186745
Dahl, R. E., Allen, N. B., Wilbrecht, L., & Suleiman, A. B. (2018). Importance of investing in adolescence from a developmental science perspective. Nature, 554(7693),
441–450. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature25770
D'Ambrosio, C., Jäntti, M., & Lepinteur, R. (2020). Money and happiness: Income, wealth and subjective well-being. Social Indicators Research, 148(1), 47–66.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-019-02186-w
Diener, E., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Beyond money: Toward an economy of well-being. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 5(1), 1–31. https://doi.org/
10.1111/j.0963-7214.2004.00501001.x
Diener, E., Sandvik, E., Seidlitz, L., & Diener, M. (1993). The relationship between income and subjective well-being: Relative or absolute? Social Indicators Research,

Access for free at openstax.org

 1.2 • Themes of Development 13

28(3), 195–223. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01079018

Itard, J. M. G. (1802). An historical account of the discovery and education of a savage man, or of the first developments, physical and moral, of the young savage
caught in the woods near Aveyron, in the year 1798. Richard Phillips.
Itard, J. M. G. (1821). Traité des maladies de l’oreille et de l’audition, Tome premier. Méquignon-Marvis.
Kahneman, D., & Deaton, A. (2010). High income improves evaluation of life but not emotional well-being. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(38),
16489–16493. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1011492107
Killingsworth, M., Kahneman, D., & Mellers, B. (2023). Income and emotional well-being: a conflict resolved. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,
120(10), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2208661120
Siege, A. & White, S. (1982). The child study movement: early growth and development of the symbolized child. Advances in Child Development and Behavior, 17,
233–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2407(08)60361-4
Steinberg, L. (2014). Age of opportunity: Lessons from the new science of adolescence. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Stevenson, B., & Wolfers, J. (2013). Subjective well-being and income: Is there any evidence of satiation? American Economic Review, 103(3), 598–604. https://doi.org/
10.1257%2Faer.103.3.598

1.2 Themes of Development

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
• Explain the difference between continuous and discontinuous development
• Describe nature and nurture as sources for developmental change
• Explain the importance of the timing of opportunities for development

Maya, who is in her late forties, never understood the draw of social media. She put off creating a Facebook
account until she found herself missing out on information about her niece’s school shared via Facebook
groups. Now she finds herself reconnecting with old friends and acquaintances from high school and
neighborhoods where she’s lived, almost like a virtual reunion. She is fascinated by how people have both
changed and stayed the same. Maya’s college girlfriend, who swore that she never wanted children, is now a
mother of four. But she held to her goal of joining—and eventually running—her family’s business. Maya’s timid
high school classmate took a leap and now lives an adventurous life as a travel writer. But the writer part
doesn’t surprise Maya at all. She always turned to this friend for support on school papers.

To a developmental psychologist, such a scenario is endlessly fascinating. People often have a natural
inclination to wonder about how people from our past turned out. The field of lifespan development has
established and advanced several themes and questions to focus this curiosity and exploration. These themes
look at the form of, sources for, and timing of developmental experiences and achievements.

Continuous versus Discontinuous Development

The first theme that helps organize the way we think about the nature of development over time is the shape of
developmental change (Figure 1.5). Theories about this developmental change are often called stage theories:
a stage theory attempts to explain why we may observe brief periods of rapid development followed by longer
stretches of stability. Stage theories give us an idea about the nature of change as well. Relatively abrupt
change is likely to be more apparent and cause us to wonder about its source or mechanism.

When we observe a gradual day-by-day or week-over-week progression of change, we see continuous

development. Many topics in the field of lifespan development show a continuous pattern of development. For
example, vocabulary growth across the toddler and early childhood years shows a dramatic but smooth
progression of growth in the number of words a child produces and comprehends (e.g., Pan et al., 2005).

However, early psychological theorists, such as Jean Piaget and Erik Erikson (whose work you’ll learn about
throughout this course), noted that certain cognitive and personality characteristics seem to develop in
intermittent fits and spurts—or stages. For a period of time, the developing individual has one set of
capabilities, such as a toddler who communicates in two-word utterances, and then, rather abruptly, a
reorganization takes place, and the individual is transformed. Seemingly overnight, that toddler begins
speaking in complete sentences. This is discontinuous development—a change in developmental kind, form,
or degree that does not directly follow from what came before. Some developmental progressions may appear
to be discontinuous, such as the sudden changes of puberty. However, when researchers consider the
biological changes that prepare a body for the growth spurts of puberty, such as hormone changes, we begin to
see that continuous development patterns are also present.
14 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

FIGURE 1.5 In contrasting theories, development can be viewed as continuous or discontinuous. Continuous
development is conceptualized as a gradual, ongoing process, whereas discontinuous development is marked by
distinct, stepped stages. (attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license)

Whether a characteristic appears to follow a continuous or a discontinuous pattern, an underlying assumption

in developmental psychology is the idea that development is progressive and proceeds from basic forms of a
characteristic in early life to more advanced forms later. That is, development moves forward. From this
perspective, moving backward to an early stage or lower capability, a process termed regression, is a sign that
something may be wrong. In order to promote early child development, major organizations like the United
Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have
made it a priority to educate caregivers about the importance of psychosocial development (Lucas et al. 2018).
For example, poor nutrition can lead to delayed physical growth and poorer long-term health. However,
interventions that provide nutrition supplementation in early childhood can help children catch up on
physical growth and improve health outcomes (Lucas et al., 2018).

Sources of Developmental Change

We now turn to the theme for which developmental psychology is best known: the relationship between nature
and nurture. You may also hear this referred to as the nature versus nurture debate (Angoff, 1988). Suppose
we observe a developmental change (such as a growth spurt in height) or a state of stability in an individual
(such as having a consistent outgoing personality), and their genetic blueprint appears to be the reason for it.
In that case, we argue that nature or biological forces are directing the changes or working to keep the
characteristics consistent. On the other hand, if the impetus for change seems to come from outside the
individual, whether it be a physical or a social aspect of the environment (such as engaging in a new hobby or
growing up in a certain family dynamic), then we argue that nurture (the environment) is the reason.

For most physical and psychological characteristics, the source for developmental change or stability is rarely
nature or nurture alone. Instead, developmental psychologists focus on the complex and fascinating ways that
nature and nurture combine and work together to direct change and stability across the lifespan (Figure 1.6).

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 1.2 • Themes of Development 15

FIGURE 1.6 A father and son, side by side, mirror the growth of the trees they walk through. Development and
change are influenced by both biological and environmental factors. (credit: “Man in Black Jacket Beside Boy in Pink
Jacket Holding Plush Toy during Daytime” by Quaries Official/Quaries.com (https://quaries.com/), CC BY 2.0)

Heritability

Until a few decades ago, the field of psychology often explored the question of what caused developmental
change by asking whether it was nature or nurture. Due to advances in the discipline’s methodologies,
findings, and theories, we now think in terms of nature and nurture, recognizing that most development has
both genetic (nature) and environmental (nurture) influences. In fact, nearly every psychological characteristic
is composed of a combination of biological genetic components and environmental influences. The amount of
influence from genetics and environment varies depending on the characteristic. Today, psychologists work to
discover exactly how much each source contributes. The extent to which the genetic component explains
difference is called a heritability estimate. A good example of how nature and nurture both contribute is the
timing of the onset of puberty. It is determined via the combined influence of nature and nurture, given that
both biological determinants (nature) like genes, and environmental elements (nurture) like nutrition, can
trigger its emergence.

Closely related to our thinking about the relative contributions of nature and nurture is the concept of reaction
range (Figure 1.7). This is the idea that our genes likely set upper and lower levels for particular traits,
behaviors, and abilities, as well as how sensitive these are to environmental forces. One example to consider is
general intelligence (Sternberg, 2012). While scientists have yet to fully identify the specific genes responsible
for intelligence, we know it’s not solely determined by genetics: environmental factors are of equal importance.
However, it’s difficult to directly measure the impact of these environmental influences because researchers
cannot ethically manipulate a child’s upbringing to observe the effects on their intelligence. Although the
application of reaction range to intelligence remains largely theoretical, it serves as a useful way to
conceptualize the complex interplay of genetics and environment in human development. It reminds us that
both nature and nurture contribute to who we become.
16 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

FIGURE 1.7 Although how the contributing factors combine in complex ways not fully understood, researchers
agree that both genes and environment play roles in the development of intelligence. (attribution: Copyright Rice
University, OpenStax, under CC BY 4.0 license)

Gene-Environment Correlations

Another way developmental psychologists try to discern the relative contributions of genetic and
environmental influences is gene-environment correlation. Gene-environment correlation describes the
complex interplay between our genes and the environments we experience (Price & Jaffee, 2008), and
encompasses three main types: passive, evocative, and active.

• The passive type occurs when a child inherits genes from their parents that influence the environment in
which they are raised. For example, parents who enjoy reading are more likely to read to their children
regularly and have many books in the house.
• The evocative type explains how our genetically influenced behaviors can evoke reactions in others,
shaping our environment in turn. For example, parents are more likely to take their child to the library if
they notice the child enjoys reading.
• The active type refers to how our genetic tendencies guide us to select specific environments. For example,
a child joins a book reading club at school because they have a passion for reading.

Studies of twins and adopted children have shown that our genes play a role in shaping the environments we
experience, highlighting that what seems like environmental influence may actually be partly due to our
genetic makeup.

Epigenetics

A breakthrough concept over the past few decades called epigenetics also explores the complexity of the
nature and nurture question, as well as the level of sophistication in our current thinking about how best to
answer it. The process of epigenetics explains how an individual’s behaviors and environment can cause
changes that affect the way their genes work. (Smeeth et al., 2021). Biologists, neuroscientists, and
psychologists alike now recognize that environmental influences can modify an individual’s genetic
expression. There is evidence that stressful environments can trigger a chemical tagging of someone’s DNA.
For example, trauma experienced in childhood (like growing up in a highly stressful home environment,
violence-ridden neighborhood, or a war zone) could make someone sensitized to and highly reactive to signs of
conflict later in life (Gladish et al., 2022; Ramo-Fernández et al., 2015). More specifically, the genes responsible
for building the brain systems that regulate our stress level could be altered. The nature and nurture question
is as fascinating to explore as it is complex to answer, and it underlies just about every topic of inquiry studied
by lifespan psychologists.

LINK TO LEARNING
This TEDEd talk on epigenetics with Carlos Guerrero-Bosagna (https://openstax.org/r/104Epigentics) explains
that beyond nature and nurture, we can learn a lot from research into how genes can be altered by

Access for free at openstax.org

 1.2 • Themes of Development 17

environmental influences.

Windows of Opportunity for Development

In addition to studying what changes are expected and how they occur, developmental psychologists ask when
we should expect certain skills to develop, and whether there are windows of opportunity for these that affect
developmental outcomes. Is it possible to speed up development if we introduce an experience at just the right
time? Is it possible to hinder or even prevent the development of a particular ability or characteristic
altogether, such as speech? What are the impacts of highly enriching environments? What are the impacts of
being deprived of certain experiences, such as human contact?

Scientists have learned that across nearly all psychological characteristics, humans are highly adaptable. They
observe normative developmental outcomes, meaning those that are typical or expected, across a wide range
of environmental conditions. Certainly, there are optimal environments for these developmental outcomes,
but good outcomes occur even in suboptimal circumstances. This is central to resilience, an individual’s
capacity for and “process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant
sources of stress” (American Psychological Association [APA], 2014). It takes extreme deprivation to severely
restrict a developing human’s potential, as well as such deprivation occurring at specific developmental times.
In other words, resilience is common and lifespan development principles can be applied to increase the
likelihood of resilience.

A critical period is the developmental age range in which certain experiences are required for a psychological
or physical ability to develop (Colombo et al., 2019). For example, it appears that exposure to human speech is
necessary in the early years of life for typical language development. Consider the 1970s case of Genie, a child
who was severely neglected and isolated to the point that she was rarely spoken to. Upon her rescue at age
thirteen years, Genie faced the monumental task of learning a language (a primary task of infants and
toddlers) with an adolescent (post-pubescent) brain (Jones, 1995). Genie became the subject of intense study
and remediation efforts by doctors, speech pathologists, and psychologists (Fromkin et al., 1974). Despite her
extreme early deprivation, she made many improvements in language comprehension and speech production.
However, her development of language differed markedly from what is normative. For example, language
production and comprehension happen in the left hemisphere of the brain for the vast majority of humans, but
Genie showed processing of language in her right cerebral hemisphere.

LINK TO LEARNING
This concise video describes Genie’s case and includes archival footage (https://openstax.org/r/
104GeniesCase) about her story. Extensive attempts for rehabilitation and intense study by linguists, medical
doctors, and psychologists added to the body of knowledge about language learning and the effects of long-
term child neglect and maltreatment.

A sensitive period describes an age range during which the development of a characteristic is particularly
amenable to inputs and influences from the environment (Colombo et al., 2019). For a critical period, certain
experiences are necessary for normal development, whereas having certain experiences during a sensitive
period makes an advantageous situation for ideal development (Pascalis, 2020). For example, a sports coach
would want to know about normative periods for growth spurts in males and females, especially the typically
wide variation around puberty. Not only could this awareness of timing help with training young athletes, but it
could inform injury prevention practices. A faith-based youth leader working closely with a group of teenagers
would want to understand that the adolescent period is a time of identity exploration and desire to fit in with
peers, and plan activities accordingly. A social worker employed by an assisted living facility knows that
residents might be concerned with life review and may develop a scrapbooking activity to support the process
of reflection. Physical development, identity exploration, and reflections on past life can occur across the
18 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

entire lifespan. What’s notable across these three examples is that each takes on more importance at a
different stage in life, when the opportunities for impact on development are greatest. That is the concept of
the sensitive period.

Variability and Diversity of Development

In this course, you’ll learn about numerous theories, topics, and research findings based on the developmental
experiences of many thousands of people. It is sometimes easy to confuse or conflate the broad results of
studies with individual life histories. Scientific ideas about development represent statistical averages for
developmental outcomes across many individuals. But every individual is unique and has their own life
history—one that may show varying degrees of similarity to and deviation from the findings presented as
normative in this discipline.

For example, when you learn that two-word utterances typically appear around eighteen months, a reader
might recall, “Well, my child did this when they were twelve months old.” The fact that this individual’s
development doesn’t perfectly fit the finding doesn’t invalidate the overall research. What’s more important is
the pattern or sequence from one-word utterances to two, and that this development occurs within a typical
timeframe, the midpoint of thousands of examples with a range of variations on either side. So, while lifespan
psychology attempts to uncover what is typical for all humans, psychologists recognize and allow for the
inherent variability of a single individual’s development.

Variability in development can also occur on a cultural level. For example, research compared Dutch and
Israeli parents and found cultural differences in how they promote their babies’ motor development
(Oudgenoeg-Paz et al., 2020). Israeli parents encouraged more tummy time, believing it helps babies develop
faster. Dutch parents were not as likely to encourage their infants spend time laying on their tummies.
Interestingly, the Israeli babies who got more tummy time and stimulation from their parents showed better
crawling skills than the Dutch babies. This study highlights that different cultures have different approaches to
parenting, and these choices can influence how babies develop.

References
American Psychological Association. (2024). Resilience. https://www.apa.org/topics/resilience
Angoff, W. H. (1988). The nature-nurture debate, aptitudes, and group differences. American Psychologist, 43(9), 713–720. https://doi.org/10.1037/
0003-066X.43.9.713
Colombo, J. Gustafson, K. M., & Carlson, S. E. (2019). Critical and sensitive periods in development and nutrition [Supplemental material]. Annals of Nutrition and
Metabolism, 75(1), 34–42. https://doi.org/10.1159/000508053
Fromkin, V., Krashen, S., Curtiss, S., Rigler, D., & Rigler, M. (1974). The development of language in Genie: A case of language acquisition beyond the “critical period.”
Brain and Language, 1(1), 81–107. https://doi.org/10.1016/0093-934X(74)90027-3
Gladish, N., Merrill, S. M., & Kobor, M. S. (2022). Childhood trauma and epigenetics: State of the science and future. Current Environmental Health Reports, 9(4),
661–672. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40572-022-00381-5
Jaffe, A. E., Straub, R.E., Shin, J. H., Tao, R., Gao, Y., Collado-Torres, L., Kam-Thong, T., Xi, H. S., Quan, J., Chen, Q., Colantuoni, C., Ulrich, W. S., Maher, B. J., Deep-
Soboslay, A., The BrainSeq Consortium, Cross, A. J., Brandon, N. J., Leek, J. T., Hyde, T. M., Kleinman, J. E., & Weinberger, D. R. (2018). Developmental and genetic
regulation of the human cortex transcriptome illuminate schizophrenia pathogenesis. Nature Neuroscience, 21, 1117–1125. https://doi.org/10.1038/
s41593-018-0197-y
Jones, P.E., (1995). Contradictions and unanswered questions in the Genie case: A fresh look at the linguistic evidence. Language & Communication, 15(3), 261–280.
https://doi.org/10.1016/0271-5309(95)00007-D
Lucas, J. E., Richter, L. M., & Daelmans, B. (2018). Care for Child Development: an intervention in support of responsive caregiving and early child development. Child:
Care, health and development, 44(1), 41–49. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.12544
Oudgenoeg-Paz, O., Atun-Einy, O., & van Schaik, S. D. M. (2020). Two cultural models on infant motor development: Middle class parents in Israel and the Netherlands.
Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00119
Pan, B. A., Rowe, M. L., Singer, J. D., & Snow, C. E. (2005). Maternal correlates of growth in toddler vocabulary production in low-income families. Child Development,
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Pascalis, O., Fort, M., & Quinn, P. C. (2020). Development of face processing: Are there critical or sensitive periods? Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 36, 7–12.
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Psychology, 44(2), 305. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.44.2.305
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 1.3 • Major Theories and Theorists 19

1.3 Major Theories and Theorists

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this section, you will be able to:
• Describe the major theoretical perspectives of lifespan development
• Connect each theoretical perspective with the themes of lifespan development
• List the similarities and differences among the major theoretical perspectives
• Provide examples of developmental concepts present in the lifespan

Shanae is in her late twenties and is several years into her career as a marketing consultant for a
communications company. She finds life busy and fulfilling, and enjoys both the challenge of her job and the
new city she lives in. However, she is concerned about her childhood friend, Georgia. Georgia visited Shanae
last weekend and the two went out to several dance clubs to meet up with some of Shanae’s new friends. Amid
all the fun, Georgia confided in Shanae that she wasn’t happy with her current job, didn’t know what career
path she should pursue, and that her last relationship ended poorly. Sad and confused, Georgia seemed
directionless and asked Shanae to give her advice. Shanae wants to help her friend but doesn’t know where to
begin.

All human beings are complex. As individuals, we are collections of thousands of traits, capabilities, roles,
relationships, and behavioral tendencies. Each of those characteristics grows, changes, or shows remarkable
stability over the course of a lifetime. And the developmental trajectory of each characteristic is itself
influenced by dozens or even hundreds of genes, experiences, and gene-environment interactions. In short,
humans are multidimensional and impacted by a multitude of influences. Because of this complexity, lifespan
development employs many theoretical perspectives and relies on research methodologies from multiple
scientific disciplines. This multi-perspective, multidisciplinary approach aims to give us a full and accurate
understanding of human functioning.

As you learn about some of the major theoretical perspectives or frameworks for understanding human
behavior throughout the lifespan, there will be different perspectives to explain development and behavior.
Instead of seeing these as contradicting each other, these varied perspectives can be considered together to
enhance our understanding of how human behavior evolves over the lifespan. Even when two theories may
seem diametrically opposed, there are often ways that they can be seen as complementary explanations of
different areas of development.

Psychosocial Theory of Development

Erik Erikson (Figure 1.8) was born in Germany in the early twentieth century and became a teacher and
psychoanalyst. He worked with psychoanalyst Anna Freud as each practiced and strove to further Sigmund
Freud’s foundational theory of psychosexual development, which outlined a series of stages that children
navigate in their personality development. When World War II approached, Erikson moved to the United States
and spent time living with the Sioux in South Dakota. As a result of his training in psychoanalysis and his
cultural experiences, he proposed a highly influential update to Sigmund Freud’s theory.
20 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

FIGURE 1.8 Erik Erikson proposed the psychosocial theory of development. In each stage of Erikson’s theory, there
is a psychosocial task that we must master in order to feel a sense of competence. (credit: “Erik Erikson” by WP
Clipart/Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)

Erikson called this a psychosocial theory of development, which views human development as occurring in a
discontinuous or stage-like fashion as we resolve increasingly complex and age-graded challenges posed by
the social environment. The theory highlights the way the developing mind (the “psyche”) is embedded within
society (the “social” part of the theory’s name), with an intricate back-and-forth between the changing
demands and expectations of society and the mind’s responsive transformation.

Erikson’s theory was the first to consider the entire lifespan. The eight stages of life he outlined (Erikson, 1950,
1963) now form one of the organizing frameworks for the study of lifespan development. In Erikson’s view, as
an individual enters each successive period of the lifespan, society presents a new challenge, called a
psychosocial crisis, for the developing individual to work on (Table 1.1). For example, a toddler (aged one to
three years) is learning to operate independently, which allows them physical independence from their
caregivers. Successfully mastering this crisis results in the toddler having autonomy. Society, as represented
by parents and other caregivers, has a vested interest in keeping the child safe during this early phase of life.
Erikson called this struggle or tension between the child and society’s expectations the “autonomy versus
shame/doubt” stage. The child spends eighteen to twenty-four months working to gain a basic sense of self-
control while negotiating this achievement with their caregivers. In this way, Erikson proposed that personality
development is an interactive process between an individual and society. Each stage affords the opportunity to
achieve another level of psychosocial mastery, beginning with trust in our first year and culminating in a sense
of integrity.

Stage Age Developmental Description Successful

(years) Task Mastery

Trust versus Trust (or mistrust) that basic needs, such as nourishment
1 0–1 Trust
Mistrust and affection, will be met

Autonomy versus
2 1–3 Develop a sense of independence in many tasks Autonomy
Shame/Doubt

TABLE 1.1 Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages of Development (source: Erikson, 1950, 1963)

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 1.3 • Major Theories and Theorists 21

Stage Age Developmental Description Successful

(years) Task Mastery

Initiative versus Take initiative on some activities—may develop guilt when

3 3–6 Initiative
Guilt unsuccessful or boundaries overstepped

Industry versus Develop self-confidence in abilities when competent or

4 7–11 Industry
Inferiority sense of inferiority when not

Identity versus
5 12–18 Experiment with and develop identity and roles Identity
Confusion

Intimacy versus
6 19–29 Establish intimacy and relationships with others Intimacy
Isolation

Generativity
7 30–64 Contribute to society and be part of a family Generativity
versus Stagnation

Integrity versus
8 65+ Assess and make sense of life and meaning of contributions Integrity
Despair

TABLE 1.1 Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages of Development (source: Erikson, 1950, 1963)

Cognitive Perspectives
The cognitive perspective in developmental psychology emphasizes the study of mental processes and how
they change over time. Key figures in this area include Jean Piaget, known for the stage theory of cognitive
development; Lev Vygotsky, who emphasized the role of social interaction in cognitive development; and
information processing theorists who examine how the mind processes information like a computer.

Stage Theory of Cognitive Development

Swiss biologist Jean Piaget is famous for contributing theories regarding changes in cognitive ability that occur
as we move from infancy to adulthood. He spent his early years as a scientist studying various animals. He
then worked on creating some of the earliest measures of intelligence. As he was writing test items, he
interviewed children and asked them to explain the thought process behind their answers to sample
questions. One of Piaget’s early insights was to focus on the children’s incorrect answers because they
provided a window into their reasoning abilities. From these observations, he developed his prominent stage
theory of cognitive development (Piaget, 1952, 1954). Piaget’s theory, like Erikson’s, is an organizing
framework for the modern study of lifespan development.

Piaget’s theory views development as occurring through a series of age-based stages (Table 1.2). As we age and
our brain and bodily systems mature, we are afforded new ways of interacting with the world. The combination
of these new physical and sensory capabilities with the new experiences the environment offers drives the
development of thinking abilities that are acquired across the first twenty years or so of life. Along the way,
individuals are active participants in their own development, testing out ideas and capabilities in the world
and formulating a coherent sense of how the world works. Piaget’s emphasis on the active nature of learning
and development, his focus on the reasoning behind wrong answers, and his delineation of the psychological
processes occurring in cognitive development made for a groundbreaking theory.
22 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

Age Stage Description Developmental

(years) Issues

Object permanence
0–2 Sensorimotor World experienced through senses and actions
Stranger anxiety

Pretend play
Use words and images to represent things, but lack logical Egocentrism
2–6 Preoperational
reasoning Language
development

Conservations
Concrete Understand concrete events and analogies logically; perform
7–11 Mathematical
operational arithmetical operations
transformations

Formal Formal operations Abstract logic

12+
operational Utilize abstract reasoning Moral reasoning

TABLE 1.2 Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development (source: Piaget, 1952, 1954)

Sociocultural Theory of Cognitive Development

Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky explored learning and cognitive development in children during the early
twentieth century, and demonstrated how important social interaction is for learning and growing. He died in
his thirties and his work did not become widely known outside Russia until the 1970s, when his theory became
very influential in the field of developmental psychology.

Vygotsky (1978, 1998) proposed a sociocultural theory of cognitive development, emphasizing that thinking
abilities are embedded within an individual’s social and cultural context. Whereas Piaget’s theory focused on a
person’s step-like journey of coming to understand the world, Vygotsky saw cognitive development as
supported and propelled by social tools available to the individual learner. These social tools include language,
direct support from others, and technological aids. Vygotsky, then, was among the first to recognize that
language guides cognition and gives shape to ideas that can be readily communicated with others through
words. One such example is private speech, whereby the learner may use words to audibly (or not) keep
themselves on track during a difficult problem-solving session. If you’ve ever rehearsed a list of grocery items
out loud while you searched for a place to record them, you’ve used language in such a way. Acronyms for
remembering complex math concepts, such as PEMDAS (parentheses, exponents, multiplication, division,
addition, and subtraction) for the order of arithmetic operations, are another example of language use
supporting cognition.

LINK TO LEARNING
Being caught talking to yourself can feel embarrassing, but it is normal to do so. Most people talk to themselves
throughout a typical day. View this TED talk about the psychological benefits of positive self-talk
(https://openstax.org/r/104PositiveTalk) to learn more about why we do this and the impact of what we say to
ourselves.

The application of various forms of technology, another social tool, can allow an individual to perform complex
tasks more easily than by relying on brain power alone. From this perspective, using a calculator to do basic
calculations frees up the mind to think about the more important and complex parts of a word problem, for
example. Word processing programs and apps that autocorrect spelling and grammar support thinking by
allowing the writer to focus on the ideas of their message, instead of on the mechanics of writing.

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 1.3 • Major Theories and Theorists 23

Vygotsky is best known for championing social supports in propelling cognitive development and educational
achievement. His notion of the zone of proximal development (ZPD) states that all of us are capable of
thinking and achieving at a higher level than we may realize: there are concepts and ideas just beyond our
current abilities that we are ready to master if only we have a little help, often from others. Educators and
parents have used the idea of scaffolding to help learners achieve beyond their current level, gradually
withdrawing support as the student becomes more competent. Learning how to ride a bicycle is a great
example of scaffolding. Support for learning this difficult task can come through training wheels, or from a
caregiver holding the bicycle seat while running alongside the child. As the child gains a sense of balance and
masters the mechanics of pedaling and steering, the training wheels become less necessary and are eventually
removed, and the caregiver lets go of the seat. The child has reached a new level of development with guided
and temporary support.

Information Processing Theory

Our digital age has also brought new ways of thinking about how the human brain works. Although the
computer was conceptualized via ideas about how the human brain functions, psychologists now use the
functioning of a computer as a metaphor for understanding how we think.

From the 1960s onward, the metaphor of information processing has been a helpful way to think about
cognition and cognitive development (Atkinson & Schriffrin, 1968). One key concept is that of information
flowing into the brain, being processed or acted on, and then leaving the brain in the form of behavioral
output, just like data in a computer. This concept also relies on a modular view of the brain: the idea that
discrete structures within our brain specialize in various cognitive tasks, such as memory, sensory processing,
language comprehension, and spatial reasoning. As information flows into the brain through various senses, it
is routed to the appropriate brain region and acted on, and then behaviors emerge through actions and words.
From a developmental perspective, cognitive development is fostered as the various parts of this information
processing system mature and gain operational efficiency.

While the information processing model is useful, it has also become more simplistic as science has
progressed. Our brain indeed has many functional modules that are connected and share information back
and forth. The advent of brain imaging technology brought insight into further complexities of how the brain
and its cognitive abilities are organized.

Cognitive Neuroscience

Advancement in computing technology ushered in increasingly sophisticated ways to image, or view, the
brain. At first, technologies such as x-rays and CT-scans (computed tomography scan) were used to make
images of brain structures. Often, researchers would correlate brain injury and loss of functionality with
changes seen in these images. The invention of MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scanning made highly
detailed imaging possible. Finally, an innovative software development allowed many such images to be made
quickly and spliced together into a real-time video of the brain at work. This technique is called fMRI (or
functional magnetic resonance imaging.)

Together, these are imaging tools that psychologists working in cognitive neuroscience use to connect brain
structure and function with behavior. Scientists can now see which areas of the brain become more active
when participants solve math problems, think about a romantic partner, or perform a memory recall task,
among many other fascinating findings (Figure 1.9). Periodic brain scans allow researchers to observe the
effects of learning and mastering a challenging task over time, and to look for changes in connectivity among
various brain regions as individual’s age. The Dallas Lifespan Brain Study (DLBS) is an example of the advances
made by using these technologies to think about the aging brain. For example, contrary to the expectation that
brain changes and symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia begin in late adulthood,
research from DLBS has shown a steady relation between changes in the brain and a decline in cognitive
function beginning much earlier in adulthood (Smith et al., 2023). This provides hope for advancements in the
24 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

identification, prevention, and treatment of these diseases.

FIGURE 1.9 Psychologists use fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) to learn more about which areas of
the brain respond to different stimuli. (credit: modification of work “Haxby2001” by US Department of Health and
Human Services: National Institute of Mental Health/Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)

Biological and Evolutionary Perspectives

It can be difficult to distinguish between fields that study the interaction of genes and the environment, such as
the fields of evolutionary psychology and behavioral genetics. In both fields, it is understood that genes not
only code for particular traits, but also contribute to certain patterns of cognition and behavior. Evolutionary
psychology focuses on how universal patterns of behavior and cognitive processes have evolved over time,
whereas behavioral geneticists study how individual differences arise, in the present, through the interaction
of genes and the environment. When studying human behavior, behavioral geneticists often employ twin and
adoption studies to research to help provide insight into the relative importance of genes and environment for
the expression of a given trait.

Many of the most influential early psychologists and developmental theorists were medical practitioners or
had some form of training in biology. It is no surprise, then, that various biological principles and
methodologies have come to play a prominent role in thinking about human development, including
evolutionary factors, behavioral genetics, and ethology.

Ethology

The study of animal behavior is called ethology. Developmental psychologists who use this approach study
animals, especially other mammals, as models to discover and test ideas relevant to understanding human
functioning. In 1930s England, John Bowlby used his medical and psychoanalytic training to research the
experience of children growing up in orphanages and similar institutions. Even though these children had all
the physical necessities for health—clothing, shelter, and food—he was concerned by the emotional and social
effects he observed. Using these observations and his findings from animal studies, including rodents and
monkeys, Bowlby formed the theory of attachment, an enduring, emotionally significant bond that forms
between two individuals, often in a caregiving context (Bowlby, 1951). The development of at least one
attachment, the basis of human bonding, is essential to human development. Bowlby’s discovery of this
necessary component for human flourishing opened a new area of developmental inquiry with far-ranging
consequences for individuals across the entire lifespan.

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 1.3 • Major Theories and Theorists 25

IT DEPENDS

How Does Attachment in Childhood Carry across the Lifespan?

You’ve likely heard that what happens in childhood has lifelong consequences. In many ways, the field of lifespan
development can be proud of the pervasiveness of this idea in that it can help to focus attention, priority, and
care on child development. Of course, this idea does not mean that childhood experiences define our destiny or
that experiences later in life do not matter as much in comparison.

Attachment is the enduring bond that develops between child and caregiver. The quality of this bond depends on
the pattern of interactions between these individuals. How sensitive has the caregiver been to the child’s
physical and psychological needs? How responsive has the caregiver been in addressing those needs? And
finally, how consistently has there been a match between this sensitivity and responsiveness? When there is a
history of consistent, sensitive, and responsive caregiving, a secure attachment develops. If one or more of those
dynamics is missing, various forms of insecure attachment may develop. The functional purpose of this enduring
attachment bond is not just the emotional and physical support that comes with being nurtured, but also a sense
of security that allows the child to venture forth into the world and explore. This exploration supports other
aspects of human development including cognitive, social, and personality domains.

The quality of the early attachment bond carries forward to future significant relationships. A child’s expectations
of what a relationship is, what it is for, and how others will behave toward them are informed by that first
attachment bond. The impact of stability of attachment across the lifespan has been well-documented. For
example, attachment quality predicts how far of a distance a young adult is comfortable traveling to attend
college (secure attachment predicts the ability to move farther away from home), as well as academic success
once at college, with a more secure attachment history predicting better academic success (Kurland et al.,
2020). Attachment quality also has connections to later life stages, such as when the now-adult child becomes
the caregiver for an elderly parent. A secure attachment history is related to an increased desire to care for the
elderly and the amount and quality of caregiving provided (Karantzas et al., 2019).

Despite these findings suggesting remarkable stability across the lifespan, a central feature of attachment theory
is the ability for an insecurely attached individual to re-approach attachment quality by forming a significant
relationship with a securely attached person at any time in life. That is, a person with a secure attachment history
can provide a model for an insecurely attached person to emulate, thereby changing that person from that point
forward (Ainsworth et al., 1979; Hazan & Shaver, 1987).

So, do childhood experiences lead to lifelong consequences? Indeed they do, but humans have a remarkable
capacity for change, growth, re-learning, and development, as shown through the example of attachment theory.

Evolutionary Psychology

The approach of evolutionary psychology looks to the theory of natural selection to explain the emergence,
development, and persistence of various psychological characteristics in humans. Natural selection posits that
long-ago environmental conditions favored those with certain physical and psychological characteristics
making them more likely to survive and be able to reproduce. These individuals could then pass on their
genes, coded for those characteristics, to their offspring. Across many generations, the characteristics that
conferred such a survival advantage became part of the species’ genetic package. Examples of human
functioning that have been studied from an evolutionary perspective include aggression and prosocial
(helping) behavior, mating preferences, attachment, wisdom, the timing of puberty, and sleep patterns, among
many others.

Behavioral Genetics

The field of inquiry that most directly explores the intersection between nature and nurture is called
26 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

behavioral genetics. Research in this area helps to explain how much variation in a psychological
characteristic is due to genetic differences among individuals, which will shape the kinds of interventions and
other applications science can offer.

To measure the heritability estimate for a given psychological characteristic, researchers frequently use a
kinship study, which examines how genetic and environmental similarities between individuals relate to
differences in their traits or behaviors. In twin studies, a type of kinship study, the correspondence between
the genetic relatedness of twins specifically (both identical and fraternal) and resulting psychological
characteristics are examined (Figure 1.10).

FIGURE 1.10 Studying twins helps researchers learn more about how genetics and environment influence various
aspects of psychological development. (credit: “Twins” by Shannon Miner/Flickr, CC BY 4.0)

Kinship studies allow psychologists to take advantage of naturally occurring variations in the genetic
similarities among individuals and compare that information with what we know about the degree of similarity
or dissimilarity in the same individuals’ environments. For example, we know that identical twins who grow up
together share close to 100 percent of their genes but also have a high degree of overlap in their upbringing.
Fraternal twins, like any non-identical set of siblings, share approximately 50 percent of their genes, and have
considerably more environmental overlap than non-twin typical siblings who may be born years apart and
grow up in different stages or versions of the same household. Studies that observe family members in these
contexts allow scientists to discern the relative contributions of genes and environment to the development of
psychological characteristics.

Behaviorist Perspectives
For much of psychology’s early history as a scientific discipline, the behaviorist perspective dominated
thinking about how an individual’s characteristics develop and change over time. This perspective, also known
as learning theory, focuses on an environment’s role in influencing behavior and behavioral change. When we
think of language development, for instance, it is easy to be amazed by the rapid rate of growth in a child’s
vocabulary size, complexity of sentences, and skill in communication. It may seem that language development
happens suddenly and naturally. Upon further examination, however, and with using the learning theories that
make up the behaviorist perspective, we can see a tremendous amount of environmental influence working to
build and shape the child’s acquisition of language. Foundational research into these areas includes the
development of theories about classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and observational learning.

Classical Conditioning

Early in psychology’s history as a science, Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov accidentally uncovered the

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 1.3 • Major Theories and Theorists 27

principles that came to be known as classical conditioning. While studying the digestive system of dogs, Pavlov
noticed that his experimental subjects, dogs, would often salivate even when he hadn’t produced the meat
powder that was meant to trigger their salivation. The dogs had come to associate the sound of a bell, which
signaled the start of each experimental trial, with impending food, and thus they would salivate when they
heard the bell, even without the meat powder. Pavlov became curious about this and soon discovered the
principles of classical conditioning.

In classical conditioning, a neutral or meaningless stimulus, in the case of Pavlov’s dogs the sound of the bell,
takes on the same meaning for the learner as the natural stimulus with which it is accidentally or intentionally
paired, in this case the meat powder. As a result, the previously neutral stimulus then produces the same
behavioral outcome as the natural stimulus. The natural stimulus, which has inherent meaning like the smell
of food, is called an unconditioned stimulus, while the once-neutral trigger is called a conditioned stimulus
because the learner has become conditioned to respond to it (Figure 1.11).

FIGURE 1.11 In classical conditioning, food initially triggers salivation, while a bell does not. After repeatedly
pairing the bell with food, the bell alone triggers salivation. (attribution: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under
CC BY 4.0 license)

This type of learning is a form of associative learning, in which the repeated presentation of two stimuli
results in linking them, making their meanings synonymous. A language learner’s vocabulary can be built this
way (Smith & Yu, 2008). For example, a toddler is presented with an apple and at the same time hears the word
“apple.” It doesn’t take many repetitions before the child associates the object apple with the word label
“apple.”

Operant Conditioning

B.F. Skinner uncovered fundamental principles of learning theory in the early twentieth century (Skinner,
1938, 1961). Skinner’s studies built on Thorndike's law of effect—the philosophical idea that the consequences
of an action tend to alter the frequency of the action (Thorndike, 1911). From this came the understanding of
operant conditioning, the theory of learning that outlines how feedback from the environment shapes an
individual’s behavior. Essentially, Skinner’s theory explains how behaviors are strengthened or weakened
according to their consequences.

According to Skinner’s operant conditioning theory, learning starts with an individual performing a behavior.
The environment can then provide encouraging feedback called reinforcement, discouraging feedback in the
28 1 • Lifespan Psychology and Developmental Theories

form of punishment, or a neutral response, including ignoring the behavior. Given positive or negative
feedback, the individual learns the value of the behavior and typically modifies its frequency. The practice of
shaping gradually builds complex behaviors by rewarding actions that get closer and closer to the desired
outcome.

For example, in the case of language development, when a caregiver holds up an apple and a toddler says
“appah,” the caregiver may exclaim excitedly, “Yes! An apple!” The next week, though, the caregiver might
respond with less enthusiasm and instead repeat, “Apple . . . aaa-pulll.” Only when the child responds with the
more accurate “ahpul” would the caregiver give the same enthusiastic praise as before. In this way, speech can
be built and shaped over time. Notice the role of rich and varied environmental feedback in producing this
type of learning.

LINK TO LEARNING
This TEDEd talk comparing classical conditioning and operant conditioning (https://openstax.org/r/
104ClassCondit) helps distinguish between these two modes of learning.

Observational Learning

Albert Bandura studied the principles of observational learning that explain how learning can occur through
the social act of observing others who are themselves learning (Bandura, 1961). Among Bandura’s
contributions are two noteworthy insights to our understanding of human development and learning. First, his
work recognized that humans are social animals: we live, learn, and develop within the presence of others, and
we are influenced by and influence one another. Second, he demonstrated that the processes of classical
conditioning and operant conditioning can guide learning: when we observe others’ actions and the
consequences of those actions, we learn too. This indirect or vicarious learning through others is common in
today’s media-saturated environment, where we are exposed to the actions and learning of others through our
computer screens, smartphones, and televisions (Figure 1.12). Long-running educational television shows like
Sesame Street and Dora the Explorer provide abundant opportunities for a child viewer to learn language, for
instance, by observing others’ language learning.

FIGURE 1.12 Learning by viewing others can be powerful. (a) Yoga students learn by observation as their instructor
demonstrates the correct stance and movement for students (live model). (b) Models do not have to be physically
present for learning to occur, however. Through symbolic modeling, this child can learn a behavior by watching
someone demonstrate it on video. (credit a: modification of work “Yoga Class with Ki Steelman” by Tony Cecala/
Flickr, CC BY 2.0; credit b: modification of work by Andrew Hyde)

LINK TO LEARNING
The original Bobo doll study by Albert Bandura (https://openstax.org/r/bobodoll) demonstrates how children

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