Introductory Lessons on Child and Adolescent Development

1. INTRODUCTION
Child & Adolescent
Development
Richard C. Macapulay
Prof. Ed 1A

2. Outline:
 Fundamentals and Importance of Human Growth,
Development, and Learning
 Aspects of Development
 Principles of Human Growth and Development
 Factors that Influence Growth and Development
 Stages of Human Life Span
 Pre-natal Development
 Havighurst’s Developmental Tasks
 Research Methods in Human Growth and Development

3. FUNDAMENTALS & IMPORTANCE
OF HUMAN GROWTH,
DEVELOPMENT, AND LEARNING

4. FUNDAMENTALS
• Human Development is the scientific study of
the quantitative and qualitative ways by which
people change over time.
• Growth is often referred to as quantitative
change, e.g. physical growth

5. FUNDAMENTALS
• Development or qualitative change refers to
the increase in skills and complexity of function
resulting in increased specialization. It is the
gradual and orderly unfolding of the
characteristics of the successive stages of
growth. It is a progressive series of changes that
occur as a result of maturation and experience.
– Qualitative changes are changes in kind, structure,
or organization, such as changes in the nature of a
person’s intelligence or in the way the mind works.

6. FUNDAMENTALS
• Development:
– It has two processes involved— growth or evolution
and atrophy or involution (a wasting away, or the
failure to grow because of insufficient nutrition). Both
begin at conception and end at death.
So what’s the distinction between quantitative and
qualitative changes?

7. FUNDAMENTALS
• Maturation generally refers to a natural process of
growing up ascribed to heredity. It is a biological
process that accounts for age-related changes in
growth and development and requires favorable
support from the environment.
• Learning is the aspect of development that
connotes modification of behavior that results from
practice and experience.
• Developmental tasks are expectations that arise
during a defined period of life, e.g. learning the
fundamentals of reading, writing, and arithmetic in
the elementary years.

8. Life is a changing process. From the moment of
conception to the moment of death, human beings
undergo many complex processes of
development. Through life, people have the
potential to grow, to change, to develop.
IMPORTANCE

9. ASPECTS OF DEVELOPMENT

10. Physical Development
• Changes in the body, brain, sensory, capacities,
and motor skills which exert a major influence on
both intellect and personality.
E.g. an infant’s knowledge of the world comes from
the senses and from motor activity while a person
in late adulthood has physical changes in the brain,
as in Alzheimer’s disease can result to loss in
memory for recent events and in personality
deterioration.

11. Intellectual Development
• Changes in a wide variety of mental abilities
such as learning, memory, reasoning, thinking,
and facility with language. These changes are
closely related to both the motor and the
emotional aspects of development.

12. Personality and Social Development
• Personality is the unique way in which each
person deals the world, expresses emotions,
and gets along with others, and social
development is that of which affects both the
physical and cognitive aspects of functioning
(other references used psychosocial
development).

13. Moral Development
• This is to cause to become gradually aware of
the distinction between right or wrong; to unfold
standards or habits that have to do with right or
wrong in conduct.

14. Spiritual Development
• This is an evolved refinement of thought and
feeling; of the spirit or soul as distinguished from
the body or material matters. A consciousness of
religion or the church that is held a sacred.

15. PRINCIPLES OF GROWTH
AND DEVELOPMENT

16. 1. Normative Sequence
This is physical, motor, mental, and socio-
emotional development which takes place in
certain orders even though speed varies from one
individual to another.
2. Differentiation and Integration
Global patterns of behavior are broken into smaller
ones, and smaller ones are put together into larger
ones.

17. 3. Developmental direction
Growth and development spreads over the body
from head to foot (cephalocaudal law) and
spreads from the central axis of the body to the
extremities (proximodistal law)
Cephalocaudal Pattern (head to toe)
Proximodistal Pattern (from center outward)

18. 4. Optimal tendency
The organism grows as though seeking a target to
be reached by using any available resources.
5. Development
This is a product of maturation and learning. In
phylogenetic functions, functions which are
common to the human race such as creeping,
sitting, standing, or walking, development comes
from maturation. In ontogenetic functions, e.g.
those that are specific to the individual, such as
writing, driving, dancing, learning in the form of
training is essential.

19. 6. Early foundation are critical
Attitudes, habits, and patterns of behavior
established during early years determine to a large
extent how successfully individuals will adjust to
life as they get older.
7. All individuals are different.
Individual differences are significant because they
are responsible for individuality in personality
make-up.

20. 8. Each phase of development has
characteristic behavior
The patterns of behavior are marked by period of
equilibrium and period of disequilibrium.
9. Each phase of development has
hazards
There is ample evidence that each phase of
development has associated with it certain
developmental hazards whether physical,
psychological, or environmental.

21. 10. Development is aided by
stimulation
This is directly encouraging the individuals to use
ability which is in the process of developing.
11. Growth is unique
Some functions that result from growth are unique
to the species.

22. 12. There are social expectations
for every stage of development
Havighurst has labeled the social expectations as
developmental tasks.
13. The various aspects of
development are integrated
It is only when considered in relation to other
aspects that any phase of development becomes
meaningful.

23. IMPLICATIONS
1. It helps us to know what to expect and when to
expect it.
2. It gives the adult information as to when to
stimulate and not to stimulate the child. It gives
basis for planning the environmental
encouragement that must be offered and the
correct time of this encouragement.
3. It makes possible for parents, teachers, and
others who work with children to prepare the
child ahead of time for the changes that will take
place in his body, his interests, or his behavior.

24. PRINCIPLES OF MATURATION
1. Principle of directionality.
2. Principles of functional asymmetry.
3. Principle of self-regulating fluctuation.

25. FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE
GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

26. • Genetics
• Environment
• Culture
• Nutrition
• Health status
• Family
• Parental attitudes
• Child-rearing philosophies

27. Environmental Influences
• family composition
• family position in society
• family socioeconomic status
• knowledge of the family
• availability of healthy diets
• housing
• diseases present in family and child

28. Cultural Influences
• Must be considered when assessing growth and
development
• Customs vs. work demands from different
cultures

29. Nutritional Influences
• Begins during the prenatal period
• LBW/preterm can result from poor prenatal
nutrition
• Socio-economics may impact growth

30. Health Status of the Child
• Certain diseases may affect growth &
development
• Endocrine and cardiac status included here

31. Family / Parental Attitudes /
Child-rearing Philosophy
• Critical in growth and development, esp.
emotional growth
• Intellectual growth must be included here as well
• Chronic illness can be combated with a loving
environment and close family relationships

32. THE HUMAN LIFE-SPAN

33. STAGES OF THE LIFE SPAN
1. Prenatal period
2. Infancy
3. Babyhood
4. Early childhood
5. Late childhood
6. Puberty or preadolescence
7. Adolescence
8. Early adulthood
9. Middle age
10. Old age or senescence

34. 1. Prenatal period—conception to birth
2. Infancy—divided into two periods:
a) partunatal period—from birth to cutting and tying of
the umbilical cord
b) neonatal period—from cutting and tying of the
umbilical cord to the end of the second week
3. Babyhood—end of the second week to end of the
second year
Divisions: a) lap baby; and b) toddler
4. Early childhood—two to six years
5. Late childhood—six to ten to twelve years

35. 6. Puberty or preadolescence– ten to twelve to
thirteen or fourteen
7. Adolescence—thirteen or fourteen to eighteen
years
8. Early adulthood—eighteen to forty years
9. Middle age—forty to sixty years
10. Old age or senescence—sixty years to death

36. PRE-NATAL DEVELOPMENT

37. THREE PERIODS OF PRENATAL
DEVELOPMENT
1. Germinal Period
2. Embryonic Period
3. The Fetal Period
1. Germinal Period
• Unborn baby called
zygote (fertilized egg)
• 2 weeks
• Cells dividing rapidly (in
fallopian tube)
• Zygote implants in thick
uterine lining
• Zygote size of head of
a pin

38. THREE PERIODS OF PRENATAL
DEVELOPMENT
2. Embryonic Period
• Unborn baby called embryo
• 3rd-8th week
• Face, eyes, ears, limbs & bones formed
• Internal organs & systems develop, but not
function
• Foundation
• Heart, lungs, bones & muscles formed
• Neural tube closes, brain & spinal cord forming
• Critical stage for brain development
• Mother must avoid hazards

39. THREE PERIODS OF PRENATAL
DEVELOPMENT
3. The Fetal Period
• Unborn baby called a fetus
• Longest stage
• Begins 8th or 9th week – birth
• Organs & Body Systems: continue develop & function
• Quickening: 1st time a mother feels movement
• Age of Viability: fetus could survive if born
• Active, but then rest
• 5 senses start to work
• Cough, sneeze, cry, hiccup, kick
• Gain weight
• Last month: get immunities from mother
• Lightening: dropping of baby into birth canal

40. RISK FACTORS TO HEALTHY
PRENATAL DEVELOPMENT

41. 1. Teratogens
2. Prescription and
Nonprescription Drugs
3. Illegal Drugs
4. Tobacco
5. Alcohol
6. Hormones
7. Radiation
8. Environmental Pollution
9. Maternal Disease
OTHER MATERNAL
FACTORS
1. Exercise
2. Nutrition
3. Emotional Stress
4. Rh Blood Incompatibility
5. Maternal Age and
Previous Births

42. Teratogens
A teratogen is any environmental agent that causes
damage during the prenatal period.
a. Larger doses of teratogens over longer time
periods usually have more negative effects.
b. The genetic makeup of the mother and
developing organism may enable or hinder their
ability to withstand harmful environments.
c. The presence of several negative factors at
once can worsen the impact of a single harmful
agent.

43. Teratogens
d. The effects of teratogens vary with the
organism's age at the time of exposure.
1)A part of the body is in a sensitive period when it is
undergoing rapid development; it is especially vulnerable
to its surroundings during that time.
2) The embryonic period is the time when serious
defects are most likely to occur, since the foundations for
all body parts are being laid down.
e. The effects of teratogens may have
psychological consequences. These effects
may be harder to identify than physical damage,
and may not show up until later in development.

44. Prescription and Nonprescription
Drugs
a. Thalidomide, a sedative used in the 1960's,
caused severe limb deformations in embryos
when taken by mothers between the fourth to
sixth week after conception.
b. Repeated use of aspirin is linked to low birth
weight, infant death around the time of birth,
poorer motor development, and lower
intelligence scores in early childhood.
c. Heavy caffeine intake is associated with
prematurity, miscarriage, and newborn
withdrawal symptoms, such as irritability and
vomiting.

45. Thalidomide Effects
© Thalidomide_effects wikipedia

46. Illegal Drugs
a. Babies born to users of cocaine, heroin, or
methadone are at risk for prematurity, low birth
weight, physical defects, breathing problems, and
death. In addition, these infants are often born
drug-addicted.
b. Evidence suggests that prenatal exposure to
cocaine has lasting difficulties. These include
genital, urinary tract, kidney, and heart deformities,
as well as brain seizures.
c. Babies born to mothers who smoke crack are
worst off in terms of low birth weight and central
nervous system damage.

47. Illegal Drugs
d. Fathers may contribute to these negative
effects as cocaine may attach itself to sperm and
cause birth defects.
e. It is difficult to isolate the precise impact of
cocaine, because users often take several drugs
and engage in other high-risk behaviors.
f. Mixed findings regarding the links between
marijuana use and low birth weight or prematurity
have been documented.

48. Tobacco
a. Effects of smoking during pregnancy include low birth
weight and increased chances of prematurity, impaired
breathing during sleep, miscarriage, and infant death.
b. The nicotine in cigarettes causes the placenta to grow
abnormally-the transfer of nutrients is reduced and the
fetus gains weight poorly.
c. Smoking raises the concentration of carbon monoxide
in the bloodstreams of both mother and fetus-carbon
monoxide displaces oxygen from red blood cells.
d. Passive smoking is also related to low birth weight,
infant death, and possible long-term impairments.

49. Alcohol
a. Fetal alcohol
syndrome
(FAS) is the set of
defects that results
when women
consume large
amounts of alcohol
during most or all
of pregnancy.
Symptoms include
mental retardation,
slow physical
growth, and facial
abnormalities. © www.soc.ucsb.edu

50. Alcohol
a. Fetal alcohol effects (FAE) is the condition of
children who display some, but not all, of the
defects of FAS. Usually the mothers drank
alcohol in smaller quantities during pregnancy.
b. Alcohol interferes with cell duplication and
migration in the primitive neural tube.
c. Alcohol also requires large quantities of oxygen
to metabolize, which draws oxygen away from
the developing embryo or fetus.

51. Hormone
a. If the quantity or timing of hormone release is
off, defects of the genitals and other organs can
occur.
b. Diethylstilbestrol (DES) is a synthetic hormone
widely used between 1945 and 1970 to prevent
miscarriages.
i. Daughters of mothers who used DES have high
rates of vaginal cancer and uterine malformations.
ii. Sons of mothers who used DES have increased risk
of genital abnormalities and cancer of the testes.

52. Radiation
a. Radiation exposure can cause miscarriage,
slow physical growth, an underdeveloped brain,
and malformations of the skeleton and eyes.
b. Low-level radiation can increase the risk of
childhood cancer.

53. Environmental Pollution
a. Mercury exposure is linked to mental retardation,
abnormal speech, difficulty in chewing and
swallowing, and uncoordinated movements.
b. High levels of lead exposure are linked to
prematurity, low birth weight, brain damage, and a
wide variety of physical defects.
c. Babies exposed to polychlorinated-biphenyls
(PCBs) have problems including lower than
average birth weight, smaller heads (possible brain
damage) and less interest in their surroundings.
Later developmental problems include memory and
learning difficulties.

54. Maternal Disease
Certain diseases during pregnancy can cause miscarriage
and birth defects.
a. Rubella (three-day or German measles) can cause a
wide variety of abnormalities, especially when it occurs
during the embryonic period.
b. Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), a
disease that destroys the immune system, is infecting
increasing numbers of newborn babies.
c. Herpes virus is one of the common maternal disease
and can be transmitted in the fetus, leading to
blindness, brain swelling or mental retardation.
d. Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease caused by eating
undercooked or raw meat or contact with the feces of
infected cats. During the first trimester, it leads to eye
and brain damage.

55. Exercise
a. In healthy, physically fit women, regular
exercise is related to increased birth weight.
b. Since the growing fetus places some strain on
the back, abdominal, pelvic, and thigh muscles,
exercises that strengthen these areas are
particularly helpful.

56. Nutrition
a. Autopsies of malnourished babies who died at
or shortly after birth reveal fewer brain cells, a
lower brain weight, and abnormal brain
organization.
b. Prenatal malnutrition can damage the immune
system and the structure of organs, including
the pancreas, liver, and blood vessels.
c. Successful intervention after birth must not only
provide nutrients, but must also break the cycle
of strained and apathetic mother-baby
interactions.

57. Rh Blood Incompatibility
a. The Rh factor is a protein that, when present in
the fetus's blood but not in the mother's, can
cause the mother to build up antibodies which
can return to the fetus's system and destroy red
blood cells.
b. Rh blood incompatibility can result in mental
retardation, heart muscle damage, and infant
death. The danger increases with each
additional pregnancy.

58. Emotional Stress
a. Intense stress during pregnancy is associated
with a higher miscarriage rate, prematurity, low
birth weight, respiratory illness, and physical
defects.
b. When a mother experiences fear and anxiety,
blood supply increases to the brain, heart, and
limbs resulting in decreased blood supply to the
uterus. Stress hormones also cross the
placenta.
c. Risks are greatly reduced when mothers have
supportive significant others whom they can
turn to for emotional support.

59. Maternal Age and Previous Births
a. Women who delay having children until their thirties or
forties face a greater risk of infertility, miscarriage, and
babies born with chromosomal defects.
b. For women without serious health difficulties, those in
their forties do not experience more prenatal problems
those in their twenties.
c. No relationship has been found between number of
previous births and prenatal problems.
d. A teenager's body is physically capable of supporting a
pregnancy. However, problems arise when adolescents do
not have access to medical care or are afraid to seek it.

60. HAVIGHURST’S
DEVELOPMENTAL TASK
DURING LIFE SPAN

61. Babyhood and Early Childhood
• Learning to take solid foods
• Learning to walk
• Learning to talk
• Learning to control the elimination of body
wastes
• Learning sex differences and sexual modesty
• Getting ready to read
• Learning to distinguished right and wrong and
beginning to develop a conscience

62. Late Childhood
• Building physical skills necessary for ordinary
games
• Building wholesome attitude toward oneself as a
growing organism
• Learning to get along with age mates
www.visionsmartcenter.com

63. • Beginning to develop masculine or feminine
social roles
• Developing fundamental skills in reading,
writing, and calculating
• Developing concepts necessary for everyday
living
• Developing a conscience, a sense of morality,
and scale of values
• Developing attitudes toward social groups and
institutions
• Achieving personal independence

64. Adolescence
• Achieving new and more mature relations with
age mates of both sexes
• Achieving masculine or feminine social role
www.pediatrics.vcu.edu/media/dept-of-pediatrics/photos/adolescent_med.jpg

65. • Accepting one’s physique and using one’s body
effectively
• Desiring, accepting, and achieving socially
responsible behavior
• Achieving emotional independence from parents
and other adults
• Preparing for an economic career
• Preparing for marriage and family life
• Acquiring a set of values and an ethical system
as a guide to behavior—developing an ideology

66. Early Adulthood
http://matherconsulting.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/young-adults.jpg

67. • Getting started in an occupation
• Selecting a mate
• Learning to live with a marriage partner
• Starting a family
• Rearing children
• Managing a home
• Taking on civic responsibility
• Finding congenial social group

68. Middle Age
• Achieving adult civic and social responsibility
• Assisting teenage children to become
responsible and happy adults
http://i0.huffpost.com/gen/1323306/thumbs/n-MIDDLE-AGE-COUPLE-large570.jpg

69. • Developing adult leisure-time activities
• Relating oneself to one’s spouse as a person
• Accepting and adjusting to the physiological
changes of middle age
• Reaching and maintaining satisfactory
performance in one’s occupational career
• Adjusting to aging parents

70. Old Age
• Adjusting to decreasing physical strength and health
• Adjusting to retirement and reduced income
• Adjusting to death of spouse
• Establishing an explicit affiliation with members of one’s
age groups
• Establishing satisfactory physical living arrangements
• Adapting to social roles in a flexible way
http:oisevansblog.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/late-adulthood.jpg

71. RESEARCH METHODS IN HUMAN
GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

72. Developmentalists use a variety of non-experimental and
experimental research methods and designs for data
collection when they observe people, either going about
their daily lives or in special, planned situations.
1. Non-experimental:
a) Case studies
b) Naturalistic
observations
c) Clinical studies
d) Interviews
e) Correlational studies
2. Experimental:
a) Laboratory, or
b) Natural

73. Case Studies
• These are studies of a single case, or individual life.
E.g. Earliest information about an infant’s development
comes from baby biographies.
• They have shortcomings from a scientific point of
view. Often, they only record behavior; they do not
explain it, and if they do, there is no way to test the
validity of the explanations. Also, they suffer from
―observer bias‖ in which the recorder emphasizes
some aspects of a person’s development and gives
short shrift to others.

74. Naturalistic Observations
• Researchers observe and record people’s behavior
in their real-life settings(e.g. preschools or nursing
homes), making no effort to manipulate the
environment or to alter behavior. This is to gain
normative information about the occurrence of
certain behaviors.
– E.g. time sampling technique (observation of the
occurrence of a particular type of behavior at intervals
throughout a given period of time).
• Naturalistic studies do not attempt to explain
behavior or to determine its causes and effects.

75. Clinical Studies
• It combines observation with flexible
individualized questioning and differs from
naturalistic observation in that the subject is not
necessarily in a natural setting, and in that the
researcher participates in the study.
• It is a tailor-made testing for each person, no
two individuals are questioned in exactly the
same way.
• Its main drawback is that it depends upon the
interviewer’s ability to ask the right questions
and to draw the right conclusions.

76. Interview Method
• In this method, instead of being observed,
people are asked directly to state their attitudes
or opinions or to relate aspects of their life
histories.
• By interviewing large numbers of people,
investigators get a broad picture of what the
people being interviewed say they believe or did.
• The problem with relying on interviews alone for
information is that memory and accuracy of
interviews are even faulty.

77. Correlational Studies
• They show the direction and magnitude of a
relationship between variables, that is, they can
tell us whether two variables are related
positively (that is, they both increase or
decrease together) or negatively (whether as
one increases, the other decreases), and to
what degree.

78. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS
• An experiment is a rigorously controlled
procedure in which the investigator
(experimenter) manipulates variables to
determine how one affects another. Scientific
experiments must be conducted and reported in
such a way that another investigator can
replicate (repeat) them to verify the results and
conclusions.
• One or more experimental groups and one or
more control groups comprise the subjects in
an experiment.

79. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS
• Sampling of the population under study must be
representative and proper assignment of the
carefully selected subjects to experimental and
control groups to ensure results where we can
draw conclusions that are generally true.
• There are three principal types of experiments:
those conducted in the laboratory; those
conducted in the field, a setting that is part of the
subject’s everyday life; and those that make use
of naturally occurring experiences.

80. Types of Experiments
• Laboratory experiments. The subject is brought
into a laboratory setting and is subjected to
conditions that are under the experimenter’s control.
• In the field experiments, the experimenter
introduce a change in a setting familiar to the
subject, e.g. school or the home.
• A natural experiment compares people who have
been accidentally divided into separate groups by
circumstances of life— one group which was
exposed to some naturally occurring event and
another group which was not.

81. METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION
• Cross-Sectional Studies. This kind of study
provides information about differences in behavior
among different age groups, rather than changes
with age in the same person.
• Longitudinal Studies. This design provides a
picture of the process of development, rather than of
its status at any given time.
• Sequential Studies. This method is a combination
o the other two: people in a cross sectional sample
are tested more than once, and the results are
analyzed to determine the differences that show up
over time for the different groups of subjects.

82. The school is a special place within the community
that can promote health, equity, social development,
human rights, global understanding, safety, and
environmental citizenship among children and
adolescents.
A health promoting child-friendly school will have all
facets to support the development of the whole child.
It is the role of the school to address the needs of the
whole child in a positive, principled approach over the
life course.

83. REFERENCES
Books:
• Human Growth, Development and Learning by Acero et.al
• Understanding Children and Teens (A Work Text on Child and
Adolescent Development) by Penetrante
• General Psychology by Kahayon and Aquino
Online Presentations and PDF:
• Growth and Development: http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa
• Chapter 17: The Pediatric Client by Karen Levine and Alan Gelb
• Introduction to Human Development by Pearson Education, Inc
(2010)
• Prenatal Development: psych.ku.edu
• Prenatal: www.uni-graz.at/richard.parncutt/publications
• Three Stages of Prenatal Development: www.shs.d211.org

84. THANK YOU.
Richard C. Macapulay
(Prof Ed 1A 2014-2015)