the theories of child development as given by prominent psychologists

1. THEORIES OF CHILD
DEVELOPMENT

2. Contents:
1.Introduction
2.Jean Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
3.Bruner’s Cognitive Development Theory
4.Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages of Development
5.Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Understanding
6.Conclusion

3. Introduction:
Child development refers to the process through which human beings
typically grow and mature from infancy through adulthood. The different
aspects of growth and development include physical , cognitive,
social, emotional and moral growth.
Name of
Stage
Age
1. Newborn Birth to 1 month
2. Infant 1 month to 12 months
3. Toddler 1 to 2 years
4. Preschooler 2 to 4 years
5. School-aged
child
5 to 12 years
6. Adolescent 13 to 19 years
Developmental theories provide insights into how children grow and learn. They
also help in understanding strategies for promoting children’s development. There
are many theories on child development that help in this.
It is a continuous process with a
predictable sequence yet having a
unique course for every child. The
developmental periods in a child’s
life are as follows:

4. Jean Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development:
Name of the Stage Characteristic Behavior
1. The Sensorimotor Stage
(0 to 2 years)
The infant’s knowledge is limited to what
they can experience through their senses
(sensory) and their attempts to
coordinate this knowledge with what
they can do (motor).
2. The Per-operational Stage
(2 to 7 years)
The child can now use symbols (as in
language),but their concepts are general.
The child’s reasoning is pre-operational(it
lacks adult logic).
3. The Concrete Operational Stage
(7 to 11 years)
Children now use logical mental rules,
but only in the context of concrete rather
than abstract information.
4. The Formal Operational Stage
(11+ years)
Abstract and systematic thought becomes
possible,as distinct from more random
problem-solving methods.

5. Bruner’s Cognitive Development Theory:
J.S. Bruner, an American psychologist, arrived at the inference
that a child’s mental development is a sequential process. He
divided the mental development of a child in the following
three stages:
1. Enactive Stage(birth to 18 months): A child expresses
experiences through non-verbal actions, such as crying
when hungry. Through these actions he relates himself with
the environment.
2. Iconic Stage(18 to 24 months): A child expresses his
experiences through a mental image in his mind.
3. Symbolic Stage(7 years and further):A child expresses his
experiences through language, and relates the symbols with
their basic options.

6. Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages of Personality Development:
S.
No
Approximate age Quality to be
developed
Social focus Virtue
1. 0 to 1 year
(infancy)
Basic trust vs. mistrust Maternal
person
Hope (an optimistic trust
that the world will meet
one’s needs.)
2. 2 to 3 years
(early childhood)
Autonomy vs. shame
and doubt
Parental
persons
Will (the ability to
exercise self-restraint
and choice.)
3. 4 to 5 years (play
age)
Initiative vs. guilt Basic family Purpose (a sense of goal-
directedness)
4. 6 to 12 years
(school age)
Industry vs. inferiority Neighborhood
, school
Competence (a sense of
confidence in one’s own
abilities.)

7. 5. 13 to 18 years
(adolescent)
Identity vs. role
confusion
Peer groups Fidelity (the ability to freely
pledge loyalty to others)
6. 19 to 25 years
(young
adulthood)
Intimacy vs.
isolation
Friendships Love (both romantic and
erotic and including the
ability to commit oneself to
others and maintain the
commitment through degrees
of compromise and self-
denial.)
7. 26 to 40 years
(middle
adulthood)
Generativity vs.
stagnation
The household Care (a sense that certain
things in life have meaning
and importance, leading one
to be productive in life.)
8. 41+ years (old
age)
Ego integrity vs.
despair
Humankind Wisdom (a sense that life has
been worthwhile, arrived at
by integrating the outcomes
of previous stages.)

8. Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Understanding:
First Level : Preconventional Morality (4 to 10 years):
Stage 1: Punishment and Obedience Orientation: the child follows rules only to avoid
punishment
Stage 2: Individualism, Instrumental purpose and Exchange: a child follows rules if it is in
his immediate interest and brings pleasant results.
Second Level: Conventional Morality (10 to 13 years):
Stage 3: Good Interpersonal Relationships: moral actions become those that live up to
others’ expectations.
Stage 4: Maintaining the Social Order: a child conducts himself as approved by the
society in order to avoid social censure
Third Level: Post-conventional or Principled Morality (13 years and later):
Stage 5: Social Contract and Individual Rights: the child acts to achieve the greatest good
for the greatest number. He works in the interests of the community.
Stage 6: Universal Ethical Principles: the individual follows self-chosen ethical principles in
determining what is right.

9. Conclusion:
The theories discussed have stood the
test of time and have proven to be
widely influential, as they have been
contributed by the greatest minds in the
history of psychology.
Development during childhood is of
special concern as it the period of the
most change in a lifespan.
Child development theories enable
one to describe, explain and to
optimize development. They provide a
framework for thinking about human
growth, development and learning.