Developmental Psychology

1
Chapter 2

• Developmental Psychology
• A description of the general approach to behavior
  by developmental psychologists

2
Concept of Behavior

• There is no single, overarching, comprehensive
  developmental theory
• Not at the level of scientific understanding
  discussed in Ch. 1
• Various minitheories are used to account for
  specific developmental domains
• e.g., social-emotional, perceptual, language
• Text books tend to adopt a cognitive approach to
  development

3
Why Such Theoretical Diversity?

• Subject matter varies widely
• e.g. genetics, biology, and environment
• Structural approach to behavior is taken
• Behavior is largely classified according to its
  form or structure
• Research methods and resulting data do not
  represent basic scientific facts
• Correlational research

4
Form versus Function

• A structural approach (Form) helps organize and
  communicate about subject matter
• But...
• Overlooks function/ hinders functional analysis
  of behavior
• Behaviors that differ in form may have similar
  functions
• Example Attachment
• Most behaviors can be classified according to
  more than one form
• Example baby reaching for mom

5
Example Attachment

• Developmental Psychology
• Classifies types of attachment based on
  topography of behavior
• infant leaves side of parent and explores
  environment secure attachment
• Infant clings to parent shows signs of distress
  when parent leaves anxious attachment

6
Example Attachment

• The topography of the child's behavior is the
  indicator of development
• Secure or anxious attachment are considered
  different behaviors requiring different
  explanations
• From a functional perspective, the differing
  responses may serve the same function (i.e.
  reinforcement)
• Exploring reinforced by finding new toys
• Clinging reinforced by being held/consoled

7
Example Baby reaching for Mom when she is in
close proximity

• This response can be classified according to
  several categories or minitheories
• Memory
• Perception
• Motor behavior
• Social behavior

8
Form versus Function

• What is the best way to conceptualize behavior in
  terms of the goals of science (control,
  prediction, understanding)?
• BOTH form and function are necessary for a
  comprehensive account of behavior
• A concentration on function is important for
  answering how and why behavior occurs

9
Structural Approaches Explanations of Behavior

• Different forms of behavior are assumed to be
  qualitatively different and thus require
  different theories
• This leads to the abundance of minitheories in
  developmental psychology
• Theoretical Eclecticism

10
Structural Approaches Explanations of Behavior

• Circular reasoning (reification)
• Class of behavior is given a name
• Name is referred to as concrete object and
  becomes the object of study
• Name of class becomes the explanation of observed
  behavior
• Only evidence of the concept is the behavior to
  be explained

11
Example of Circular Reasoning

• 1) Infant displays certain behavior toward absent
  objects- behavior is called object permanence
• 2) object permanence is studied as a concept
• 3) When infant behave a certain way toward absent
  objects it is said to happen because they now
  possess object permanence

12
Problems with Circular Reasoning

• Is not explanatory
• Do not address the actual determinants of
  behavior
• May prohibit development of more scientific
  explanations

13
Research Theory in Developmental Psychology

• Correlational Research
• Stage Theories

14
Correlational Research

• Drawbacks
• Nonexperimental observations generate
  correlations between two variables
• Do not represent functional relations
• Age gender are commonly used as independent
  variables
• Scientific definition of IV includes those whose
  values are directly manipulated by the
  experimenter (McCain Segal, 1988)
• Correlation does not mean causation
• Yet causal inferences are drawn from data

15
Correlational Research

• Value/ Purpose
• Allows some prediction of behavior
• Can suggest something about IVs
• Demonstrates whether a behavior is present or not
  at a particular age, but not how that behavior
  came to be
• Age becomes cause of behavior

16
Correlational Research Theory Construction

• Changes in age and changes in behavior are
  frequently positively correlated
• These correlations often lead to stage theories
  of development

17
Stage Theories

• Discontinuous view of development
• Stages seem to represent fixed, biological
  physiological changes
• Stages are independent of of behavior-environment
  interaction
• examples Piaget, Freud, Greenspan, Maslow

18
Problems with Structural Approach to Behavior
Change

• Structures are not directly observable
• e.g., Freud's id, ego, superego
• Underlying behavioral processes are overlooked or
  made unclear
• Description is confused with explanation
• Transitional nature of behavior change is ignored

19
Problems with Structural Approach to Behavior
Change

• 4) Constitutional-maturational determinants of
  behavior change are emphasized at expense of
  environmental/physiological variables
• 5) Optimism about potential benefits of
  environmental manipulations is reduced
• 6) Interpretations easily lead to reification
  (circular reasoning)
• - determinants of behavior come from inside the
  child
• - does not explain or help us understand
  behavior

20
Developmental Theory Assessed

• Generality
• Absence of basic functional units of analysis
• No theory can encompass more than its own limited
  domain, thus minitheories
• Testability (both empirical logical support)
• Theories that rely on hypothetical, cognitive
  structures cannot be tested
• External Validity
• Precise predictions are almost impossible if a
  theory is not based on classes of functional
  relations between observable events

21
Developmental Theory Assessed

• Utility
• Many developmental theories do direct attention
  to interesting phenomena
• Less successful at generating practical
  applications
• Applications should be tempered if theories do
  not meet scientific credibility
• Parsimony
• Assumptions are hypothetical

22
Developmental Theory Assessed

• Verdict
• The general theoretical approach found in
  developmental psychology does not meet criteria
  for scientific understanding
• Does not explain behavioral development well