Subject Outline
PSY202 - Developmental Psychology
Session 1 2012 Faculty of Arts School of Psychology Bathurst Campus Distance Mode
Subject Coordinator Justin Harrison
Subject Overview
Welcome to a new session of study at Charles Sturt University. This subject examines human development across the entire life-span. Descriptions, explanations, and predictions of developmental stages and changes are covered through an investigation of major theories and research findings. Practical implications and applications of this material are also considered, along with some topical current issues.
Introduction
Introducing Developmental Psychology: What is it and how is it studied? For many people, there are few events so fascinating as watching a child take its first step, say their first words or make their first independent forays into their social world. There are few experiences more bemusing than the rapid changes of adolescence, while the increasing maturity and experience of the later years may be compensation for some loss of acuity in other areas. Fundamental changes in the way we experience our world provide some of life’s most pervasive mysteries to which everyone can relate. Shakespeare’s hapless character Benedick was mystified by the changes in himself:
“I have railed so long against marriage; but doth not the appetite alter? A man loves the meat in his youth that he cannot endure in his age? … When I said I would die as a bachelor, I did not think that I should actually live until I was married!” Much Ado About Nothing – Act II, Scene III
What biological, cognitive, emotional and psycho-social mechanisms work to produce these changes? Are these changes pre-programmed at conception, the influence of environment, or both? Developmental psychology, as a field of scientific enquiry, attempts to describe and explain these everyday human wonders. The knowledge of developmental psychology is in many ways intrinsically rewarding, but it also has enormous potential to
Session 1 2012 Faculty of Arts School of Psychology Bathurst Campus Distance Mode
Subject Coordinator Justin Harrison
Subject Overview
Welcome to a new session of study at Charles Sturt University. This subject examines human development across the entire life-span. Descriptions, explanations, and predictions of developmental stages and changes are covered through an investigation of major theories and research findings. Practical implications and applications of this material are also considered, along with some topical current issues.
Introduction
Introducing Developmental Psychology: What is it and how is it studied? For many people, there are few events so fascinating as watching a child take its first step, say their first words or make their first independent forays into their social world. There are few experiences more bemusing than the rapid changes of adolescence, while the increasing maturity and experience of the later years may be compensation for some loss of acuity in other areas. Fundamental changes in the way we experience our world provide some of life’s most pervasive mysteries to which everyone can relate. Shakespeare’s hapless character Benedick was mystified by the changes in himself:
“I have railed so long against marriage; but doth not the appetite alter? A man loves the meat in his youth that he cannot endure in his age? … When I said I would die as a bachelor, I did not think that I should actually live until I was married!” Much Ado About Nothing – Act II, Scene III
What biological, cognitive, emotional and psycho-social mechanisms work to produce these changes? Are these changes pre-programmed at conception, the influence of environment, or both? Developmental psychology, as a field of scientific enquiry, attempts to describe and explain these everyday human wonders. The knowledge of developmental psychology is in many ways intrinsically rewarding, but it also has enormous potential to
References: Presentation Referencing and presentation must conform to APA convention (6th Edition, 2010)