Exploring the Dynamics of Human Development

Exploring the Dynamics of Human Development
Author: Catherine Raeff
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 289
Release: 2016
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0199328412

Researchers and students in developmental psychology have pointed out that the numerous findings from research about human development seem disconnected and that it is difficult to fit fragmented bits of information together. Studies of separate domains of functioning (e.g., cognition, emotion, language, social relationships, identity) divide the field and there are increasing calls for integrative conceptions of human development. In Exploring the Dynamics of Human Development, Dr. Catherine Raeff constructs a theoretical framework that enables readers to reconcile seemingly disparate information by thinking systematically about dynamic developmental processes. This approach integrates systems theory, organismic-developmental theory, and sociocultural theory, as well as research across cultures and the life span. Raeff brings developmental processes into coherence by building a unified theoretical framework that is organized around the following questions: What develops during development?; What happens during development?; and How does development happen? Using a wide range of illustrative empirical examples, Raeff conceptualizes what happens during development in terms of differentiation and integration and explains how development happens through individual, social, and cultural processes. The framework helps to overcome confusion in the field and explore issues such as individual and cultural variability, looking beyond age-based changed to understand development, and resolving fragmentation by starting with whole person functioning. The framework also opens up new directions for research. This book will be useful to developmentalists, graduate students, upper level undergraduates, and others who seek an integrative understanding of the field as a whole and a systematic way of thinking about and investigating human action and development.

Economic Complexity and Human Development

Economic Complexity and Human Development
Author: Dominik Hartmann
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 249
Release: 2018-03-12
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1135118949

This book combines the human development approach and innovation economics in order to explore the effects that structural economic change has on human development. While economic diversification can provide valuable new social choices and capabilities, it also tends to lead to more complex decision processes and changes to the set of capabilities required by people to self-determine their future. Within this process of structural transformation, social networks are crucial for accessing information and social support, but networks can also be a root cause of exclusion and inequality reproduction. This implies the need to encourage innovation and economic diversification beyond production expansion, focusing on the promotion of human agency and social inclusion. This book provides such a modern perspective on development economics, emphasizing the role of social networks, economic diversity and entrepreneurship for social welfare. The author discusses how innovation, social networks, economic dynamics and human development are interlinked, and provides several practical examples of social and micro-entrepreneurship in contexts as diverse as Peruvian rural villages and Brazil’s urban areas. The interdisciplinary perspective put forward in this book illustrates theoretical and methodological methods of exploring the complexity of development in a practical and relevant way. It also provides useful information about structural factors which need to be considered by practitioners when designing pro-poor growth policies. Furthermore, the coverage of the core concepts of innovation, networks and development economics, enriched with multiple examples, makes it a valuable resource for scholars and advanced students of modern development economics.

Human Dynamics

Human Dynamics
Author: Sandra Seagal
Publisher:
Total Pages: 335
Release: 1997-01-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9781883823061

Individuals as Producers of Their Own Development

Individuals as Producers of Their Own Development
Author: Richard M. Lerner
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 407
Release: 2021-03-30
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1000352811

In the World Library of Psychologists series, international experts present career-long collections of what they judge to be their most interesting publications—extracts from books, key articles, research findings, and practical and theoretical contributions. Professor Richard M. Lerner has been prominent in the application of developmental science across the life span for half a century, investigating dynamic, relational development systems, and their potential impact on positive youth development (PYD) and social justice. In this collection, Professor Lerner presents the development of his theory of, and research about, relations between life-span human development and contextual or ecological change, exploring the mutually influential relations between humans and their peer, family, school, and community contexts. Including a specially written introduction, in which Professor Lerner reflects on the importance of mentorship and contextualises both the field and the evolution of his wide-ranging career, this collection will be a valuable resource for students and researchers of developmental psychology.

Culture and Human Development

Culture and Human Development
Author: Jaan Valsiner
Publisher: SAGE
Total Pages: 340
Release: 2000-02-02
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 9780761956846

This major new textbook by Jaan Valsiner focuses on the interface between cultural psychology and developmental psychology. Intended for students from undergraduate level upwards, the book provides a wide-ranging overview of the cultural perspective on human development, with illustrations from pre-natal development to adulthood. A key feature is the broad coverage of theoretical and methodological issues which have relevance to this truly interdisciplinary field of enquiry encompassing developmental psychology, cultural anthropology and comparative sociology. The text is organized into five coherent parts: Part 1: Developmental theory and methodology; Part 2: Analysis of environments for human development Part 3:

Research Methods in Human Development

Research Methods in Human Development
Author: Paul C. Cozby
Publisher: WCB/McGraw-Hill
Total Pages: 300
Release: 1989
Genre: Psychology
ISBN:

For undergradute social science majors. A textbook on the interpretation and use of research. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

Concepts and Theories of Human Development

Concepts and Theories of Human Development
Author: Richard M. Lerner
Publisher: Psychology Press
Total Pages: 636
Release: 2013-05-13
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 1135681899

A classic in the field, this third edition will continue to be the book of choice for advanced undergraduate and graduate-level courses in theories of human development in departments of psychology and human development. This volume has been substantially revised with an eye toward supporting applied developmental science and the developmental systems perspectives. Since the publication of the second edition, developmental systems theories have taken center stage in contemporary developmental science and have provided compelling alternatives to reductionist theoretical accounts having either a nature or nurture emphasis. As a consequence, a developmental systems orientation frames the presentation in this edition. This new edition has been expanded substantially in comparison to the second edition. Special features include: * A separate chapter focuses on the historical roots of concepts and theories of human development, on philosophical models of development, and on developmental contextualism. * Two new chapters surrounding the discussion of developmental contextualism--one on developmental systems theories wherein several exemplars of such models are discussed and a corresponding chapter wherein key instances of such theories--life span, life course, bioecological, and action theoretical ones--are presented. * A new chapter on cognition and development is included, contrasting systems' approaches to cognitive development with neo-nativist perspectives. * A more differentiated treatment of nature-oriented theories of development is provided. There are separate chapters on behavior genetics, the controversy surrounding the study of the heritability of intelligence, work on the instinctual theory of Konrad Lorenz, and a new chapter on sociobiology. * A new chapter concentrates on applied developmental science.

Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8

Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 587
Release: 2015-07-23
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0309324882

Children are already learning at birth, and they develop and learn at a rapid pace in their early years. This provides a critical foundation for lifelong progress, and the adults who provide for the care and the education of young children bear a great responsibility for their health, development, and learning. Despite the fact that they share the same objective - to nurture young children and secure their future success - the various practitioners who contribute to the care and the education of children from birth through age 8 are not acknowledged as a workforce unified by the common knowledge and competencies needed to do their jobs well. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 explores the science of child development, particularly looking at implications for the professionals who work with children. This report examines the current capacities and practices of the workforce, the settings in which they work, the policies and infrastructure that set qualifications and provide professional learning, and the government agencies and other funders who support and oversee these systems. This book then makes recommendations to improve the quality of professional practice and the practice environment for care and education professionals. These detailed recommendations create a blueprint for action that builds on a unifying foundation of child development and early learning, shared knowledge and competencies for care and education professionals, and principles for effective professional learning. Young children thrive and learn best when they have secure, positive relationships with adults who are knowledgeable about how to support their development and learning and are responsive to their individual progress. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 offers guidance on system changes to improve the quality of professional practice, specific actions to improve professional learning systems and workforce development, and research to continue to build the knowledge base in ways that will directly advance and inform future actions. The recommendations of this book provide an opportunity to improve the quality of the care and the education that children receive, and ultimately improve outcomes for children.

The Promise of Adolescence

The Promise of Adolescence
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 493
Release: 2019-07-26
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0309490111

Adolescenceâ€"beginning with the onset of puberty and ending in the mid-20sâ€"is a critical period of development during which key areas of the brain mature and develop. These changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity mark adolescence as a period of opportunity to discover new vistas, to form relationships with peers and adults, and to explore one's developing identity. It is also a period of resilience that can ameliorate childhood setbacks and set the stage for a thriving trajectory over the life course. Because adolescents comprise nearly one-fourth of the entire U.S. population, the nation needs policies and practices that will better leverage these developmental opportunities to harness the promise of adolescenceâ€"rather than focusing myopically on containing its risks. This report examines the neurobiological and socio-behavioral science of adolescent development and outlines how this knowledge can be applied, both to promote adolescent well-being, resilience, and development, and to rectify structural barriers and inequalities in opportunity, enabling all adolescents to flourish.

The Ecology of Human Development

The Ecology of Human Development
Author: Urie BRONFENBRENNER
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 349
Release: 2009-06-30
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0674028848

Here is a book that challenges the very basis of the way psychologists have studied child development. According to Urie Bronfenbrenner, one of the world's foremost developmental psychologists, laboratory studies of the child's behavior sacrifice too much in order to gain experimental control and analytic rigor. Laboratory observations, he argues, too often lead to "the science of the strange behavior of children in strange situations with strange adults for the briefest possible periods of time." To understand the way children actually develop, Bronfenbrenner believes that it will be necessary to observe their behavior in natural settings, while they are interacting with familiar adults over prolonged periods of time. This book offers an important blueprint for constructing such a new and ecologically valid psychology of development. The blueprint includes a complete conceptual framework for analysing the layers of the environment that have a formative influence on the child. This framework is applied to a variety of settings in which children commonly develop, ranging from the pediatric ward to daycare, school, and various family configurations. The result is a rich set of hypotheses about the developmental consequences of various types of environments. Where current research bears on these hypotheses, Bronfenbrenner marshals the data to show how an ecological theory can be tested. Where no relevant data exist, he suggests new and interesting ecological experiments that might be undertaken to resolve current unknowns. Bronfenbrenner's groundbreaking program for reform in developmental psychology is certain to be controversial. His argument flies in the face of standard psychological procedures and challenges psychology to become more relevant to the ways in which children actually develop. It is a challenge psychology can ill-afford to ignore.